Paul’s Life Transformation

August 27th 2023

Series: Courageous Faith

Sermon Title: Paul’s Life Transformation

Topic: Journey through the book of Acts.

Key Passages: Acts 22

Sermon Blurb: In today’s message we will see Paul sharing his journey to faith with a group of people who do NOT like Paul. He will use his story to try and reach them for Jesus.

Green in sermons means illustration

Yellow means what is yellow will be on the screens and in the handout.

Sermon:

Hello Family Church!

Family Moment –

Try and start our messages with something personal from our family life recently to help people get to know us.

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Those of you who are new, or newer, to Family Church we are SUPER happy you are with us today!

We have been walking through the book of Acts as a church for the better part of the last two years….

Walking through it line by line and verse by verse….

And we LOVE the book of Acts here at Family Church because it is all about how the first churches operated in their communities to reach people for Jesus.

And here at Family Church we LOVE to study the Bible and ask how can we apply what we learn to our lives today.

And that is simply what we will do today!

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So, let’s jump into the Bible today…

Grab your Bibles….

I hope you all brought your Bible to church!

Either paper version or electronic!

Open it up to

Acts 22

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As you are getting there let me catch up with anyone who is new today….

Because last weekend we left off on a cliffhanger!

Last weekend an early church leader named Paul was traveling around and spending time with other people he had led to Jesus in a variety of places.

He was told in SEVERAL of those places to NOT go to Jerusalem because something bad would happen to Paul.

Paul…..was determined though….

And Paul went to Jerusalem…

And it started out fine for Paul….

But ended quite badly….

At the end of chapter 21 we saw people get EXTREMELY angry at Paul and literally beat him almost to the point of death…

The police were called.

They came and pulled Paul away…

The police were almost overwhelmed by the crowds…

The police carried Paul to their military barracks….

And Paul asks them to STOP before they take him inside so he can speak to the crowd….

It would have looked something like this….

And that is where we pick up today…..

Paul says…..

Let me read you just a little of the ending of Chapter 21….because it helps with what happens today…

Acts 21: 37-40 Paul Speaks to the Crowd 37 As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, “May I say something to you?”

“Do you speak Greek?” he replied. 38 “Aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the wilderness some time ago?”

39 Paul answered, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people.”

Stop there…..

What Paul just said I want to put into context….

What Paul said means nothing to you and me…

But what Paul said would have scared the Roman guards….

Let me explain….

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Paul said, “he was from Tarsus which was NO ordinary city.”

What does that mean?

Well….

Tarsus….means nothing to most of us…..

But in that day and age, this meant a great deal.

Tarsus at this time would have been bigger than Grand Rapids.

Saul was not some country boy…..

Tarsus had been in existence as a city many centuries before Paul was born.

During the period of Alexander the Great, the city was the most influential in Asia Minor.

When conquered by Rome it was awarded the privileged standing of Libera Civitas; simply means "free city."

Which means ANYONE that was LUCKILY born in Tarsus…. Stood above other Romans and WAY above all the common people!

Anyone born in Tarsus was NOT allowed to be beaten!

Anyone born in Tarsus was NOT allowed to be put on trial like a commoner!

Anyone born in Tarsus had ALL kinds of privileges!

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So for these guards to hear that from Paul….

It would have made them nervous because of what just happened to Paul…

And nervous because of what they knew these people wanted to do to Paul!

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And because of all that is why….what happens next is allowed…

Let’s keep reading…..verse 40….

40 After receiving the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic:

Acts 22: 1-30 1 “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.” 2 When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet.

The crowd was amazed because Paul did not speak to them in the Greek language…

Paul spoke to the crowds in their mother tongue…

In Aramaic…

Because Paul was….as your about to see…brilliant…

Paul spoke several languages….

Then is says Paul said……

Then Paul said: 3 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors.

Stop there for a second….

Tarsus was widely known as a "university city," as well as a city of commerce in Paul's day.

Educators from all over the Roman Empire came to teach at the schools in Tarsus.

Studying at Tarsus was like being at Harvard.

I mean even the personal teacher and tutor of the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus studied where Paul went to school!!!!!

And Saul….studied under the TOP teacher!!!!

Gamaliel was one of the MOST respected teachers in the entire 1st century!!!!

Saul was clearly not your average student.

Saul was clearly not your average person.

Saul clearly had everything going for him from a worldly point of view!

Let’s keep reading….Saul says:

I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.

Stop there…

Does anyone remember when we first met Saul….

Did he like Christians?

NOPE!!!!

Saul of Tarsus believed that he was serving God by finding Christians, throwing them into prison, and even executing Christians when possible.

Saul was highly educated for his era, and he was devoted to his Jewish beliefs about God.

Everything since the time Saul was a child taught him what he was doing was not only right by being ZELOUS to stop the growth of God’s church!

And so Saul gets up….Now his name is Paul because Jesus changed his entire life….

And Saul…now Paul…says….

HE GUYS!!!!

LISTEN TO ME!!!!!

I was JUST AS ZELOUS as all of you!

I ALSO thought Jesus was wrong!!!!!

Listen to him say it….Verse 4:

4 I persecuted the followers of this Way

The Way….is what the followers of Jesus called it….like saying you’re a Christian today.

to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, 5 as the high priest and all the Council can themselves testify. I even obtained letters from them to their associates in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished.

Pause here….

Saul admits that he kept persecuting and killing Christians and reported to the High Priest alone….

Saul again is showing he is NOT your average person!

Saul had EXTREMELY HIGH standing in the Jewish culture AND high standing in Roman culture!

Saul was this young prodigy….

He was the up and coming Roman / Jewish leader….

Saul was loved by many people….

And also hated by many people….….

But something happened to Saul on the way to Damascus…..

something that would change his life….his name….

and the eternal destiny of countless people throughout time…..

Verse 6

6 “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me. 7 I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’

8 “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.

“ ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. 9 My companions saw the light, but they did not understand the voice of him who was speaking to me.

10 “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked.

“ ‘Get up,’ the Lord said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’ 11 My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.

12 “A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there.

13 He stood beside me and said, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I was able to see him.

14 “Then he said: ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15 You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard.

16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’

Stop there…..

Imagine being Ananias….

God comes and tells you to go heal this person that is killing off your friends.

God tells you to go do something that would be so scary!!!

God says GO tell the man who is in charge of hunting down Christians you are a Christian.

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Do you have that much faith in God?

Will you follow God no matter what he asks you to do?

Will you follow God even if it could cause you harm?

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Imagine…..being Saul…..or imagine being one of his friends following him at this moment?

Everything Saul has been doing has been hunting and killing the followers of Jesus…..and who just appeared to Saul?

What does it say in verse 8? Jesus!!

Jesus is here showing Saul he is God.

Because remember this moment is AFTER Jesus died and was resurrected!

So….. Saul would clearly know......

God is telling him he was wrong!

God is telling him to become a follower of Jesus!

God is telling him to start helping more people become Christians!

Can you imagine!!!!

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Everything Saul has learned to this point is turned upside down.

Everything Saul has done to this point in his life is about to shift 180 degrees!

Verse 17

17 “When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw the Lord speaking to me. ‘Quick!’ he said. ‘Leave Jerusalem immediately, because the people here will not accept your testimony about me.’

19 “‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. 20 And when the blood of your martyr[a] Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’

21 “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ”

Do you hear what Saul is saying? He is talking like so many of us.

Saul is saying…..God, I am not good enough to do what you’re asking.

God, after what I have done….how can you use me?

God, after how much I have messed up there is no way I can be in ministry!

God, you must have me mistaken for someone else…

Saul….doubts himself because of his past….instead of trusting God with his future.

Which gets us to our point today…….

When I trust God with my future; my past is washed away!

Think about this conversion….

Saul goes from chief of Anti-Christian police………

To leader in the Christian movement that has gone worldwide!

Saul met the resurrected Messiah on the road to Damascus.

Saul of Tarsus changed his name later and became widely known as the Apostle Paul.

By the time the Apostle Paul was martyred for his faith in Jesus, about 32 years later, he had written about 25% of the New Testament!

Paul's written words are the testimony of a man that violently persecuted the early Christians, then became NEW in a matter of moments when he encountered Jesus!

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Maybe you battle with negative thoughts about others,

or about life,

or about yourself,

or maybe you've got some bad habits that you just can't get rid of.

You pray that they go away, and they don't go away.

Maybe you have a poor self-image, you wonder, "How could God love someone like me?"

Maybe it's because of your habits.

You keep doing things you know are wrong…...

If that is you….know that even Paul struggled with this insecurity….Paul said in Romans 7, he said,

Romans 7:15 "The things I want to do, I don't do, the things I don't want to do, I end up doing."

Paul says, “We seem to be trapped in these habits.

We seem to get trapped by our history!!!!”

Our habits -- I still struggle with this, I've prayed about it and I've tried and yet I still struggle. I don't feel new.

Listen to me on this….Feelings are legitimate but they're not facts.

They are legitimate; I don't want to discount them and say, you know, you shouldn't have feelings -- we feel certain things.

But just because we feel something doesn't mean, necessarily, that it's true.

The bottom line is we are not changed by feeling different about ourselves, but we are changed by faith in God.

Today, no matter what you feel.

Today, no matter what you think.

Today, no matter where you have been.

You can be made NEW by entering into a true relationship with Jesus!

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And what Paul is doing here….

Every one of you can do…..

Paul is simply sharing the story of his faith journey…

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So let me ask you a question….

How can I share my faith journey with others?

Repeat

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Let’s keep reading….

Paul the Roman Citizen 22 The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!”

23 As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, 24 the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this.

Now you might be wondering….

WHAT I thought you said they can’t beat a Roman!

Hang on……

25 As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?”

26 When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. “What are you going to do?” he asked. “This man is a Roman citizen.”

27 The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” “Yes, I am,” he answered.

28 Then the commander said, “I had to pay a lot of money for my citizenship.” “But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.

Again….

Remember….

Born in Tarsus!!!

He is HIGHER standing than this commander who BOUGHT his citizenship!

29 Those who were about to interrogate him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.

Again…

They are afraid…

Because Paul is not your common guy!

So they know they need to figure out what is going on…

So…verse 30…..

Paul Before the Sanhedrin 30 The commander wanted to find out exactly why Paul was being accused by the Jews.

So the next day he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the members of the Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul and had him stand before them.

AND then….

You have to come back next week to see what happens!

Don’t you love it!

Cliff hanger last week!

Cliff hanger this week!

That is why it is SO important to be in church EVERY week!

Next week you will hear what Paul says to these leaders and trust me….you are NOT going to want to miss it!

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Let me close with an illustration to bring this all home….

Let me close out with an illustration that I think will cement this in all our minds…..

We treat our lives like a Vacuum….. (Table on stage with a rug on it….and a Dust Buster….and a bucket of dirt… make sure dirt is above and below the rug 😊)

See sometimes in life we do something we shouldn’t and we make a mess. (pour dirt on the rug).

Some of us make a BIG mess (more dirt)

Then we say you know what!

I can clean this up!

So, we grab our vacuum…and make a pass at fixing our mess….

It doesn’t clean it all up..….so we make a pass from another direction….

And another direction……

And here is what I want you to notice…..

We can make ourselves look clean on the outside…..

But…..no matter what we do in our own strength…..(pick up rug and brush dirt off on to the floor)….

We can never completely clean it up….. That is just like our life….

We can become religious and look clean.

We can put on clothes to cover our hurts.

We can put on a fake face and look happy.

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We can fake it all……but understand something today…..

Only Jesus can make us NEW!!

Only Jesus can forgive our sins once and for all!!!!

When we give our life to Jesus the Bible tells us he washes us clean as snow!!!!!

So let me end by asking you all to do something this week.

As we have seen Saul was a very religious person.

He thought he was doing what God wanted.

He thought he was living a life that honored God.

He thought he was a very good person.

His culture would have said he was a God-fearing person.

His culture would have said he was doing the right thing.

His culture would have said Saul was a model follower of God.

And Saul missed the boat.

Saul was not destined for heaven.

It was not until he had a REAL encounter with Jesus and that relationship began that everything changed.

So here is what I want to you all to spend some time processing and talking with someone about.

Life Application: In two sentences articulate your relationship with Jesus, and how it is NOT just religious belief. Then share your story with someone else, like Saul (Paul) did! As a result of today’s message, I will ______________________________.

Let’s Pray…..