11-19-23 Kasey Campbell: A Transformed Heart

Today, I’m going to start a new series. I’m going to take us through the book of Romans. And one reason I want to go through Romans is that it is absolutely packed with insight into the kingdom of God and personal triumph. It’s about the futility of sin and living according to the world’s way and the fullness of life and purpose that comes from being justified by Christ and following Him. It teaches us how to be delivered from sin, how to live a balanced life in Jesus, and how to be victorious in spiritual warfare by the power of the Holy Spirit. Before we get into Romans, though, I want us to take a look at the person who wrote it, Paul. We’ve been looking at how Paul deals with a church that is having trouble (the Corinthians) and his understanding of the gifts of the Spirit. But to better understand where he is coming from when it comes to his writings, we need to understand his transformation from a religious pharisee to a loving apostle. So, I’ll be in Acts 9 today as we prepare to jump into his letter to the Romans. PRAY. The first time we meet Paul (whose name then was Saul - God changed his name) is in Acts 7 and 8. He is helping to murder Stephen. You might remember Stephen, but he was a person who was chosen to help serve tables (he was a waiter), and he grew into a powerful preacher who became the first martyr. Acts 7:58-59 NKJV and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Saul (Paul) is holding coats for people so they can stone Stephen to death. They were probably from his synagogue, and it’s likely he was the one ‘in charge’ of the ‘trial.’ not much of a trial. But Paul was very high up in the Jewish religious order, and he made it his mission to destroy Jesus and His followers. A Transformed Heart | 1 Acts 8:1,3 NKJV Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. [...] As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. Before Stephen was killed, the Jewish religious leaders had to be careful about attacking Christians because the church was well thought of. But after Stephen’s death, they felt like they had enough political support to openly attack the church. And Paul would say about himself later, that at this time in his life, he was ‘raging like a madman.’ He wanted to kill Jesus’ followers, and he would crucify Jesus again if he were able to. Acts 26:9-11 AMP “So then, I [once] thought to myself that it was my duty to do many things in opposition to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 And this is just what I did in Jerusalem; I not only locked up many of the saints (God’s people) in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but also when they were being condemned to death, I cast my vote against them. 11 And I often punished them [making them suffer] in all the synagogues and tried to force them to blaspheme; and in my extreme rage at them, I kept hunting them even to foreign cities [harassing and persecuting them]. He would try to force Christians to blaspheme Jesus by flogging them over and over while they were forced to lie down on the floor. He would get letters from the religious leaders so he could use their temple police force to help do his dirty work, hunting the Christians and dragging them in. So Paul at this time is very religious, but he’s actually persecuting Jesus and His church. Just because a person is religious doesn’t mean they know God. Acts 9:3 NKJV As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. A Transformed Heart | 2 Religious people who don’t know God still wreak havoc in the church today. They operate according to the flesh and the demonic, hurt people, and cause toxic cultures even if they still follow all of the ‘religious rules.’ But there was a big change in Paul. it was a change so big that it’s thought of as one of the great evidences for Christianity. The resurrection of Jesus and the transformation of Paul are the two things that are undeniable, and major evidence for God. Paul had a major heart change. And it’s a change that’s available to everyone. So what changed him from a fire-breathing, demonically deceived, angry, murderous religious person into the greatest of Christians, most profound of teachers, staunchest of friends, most intrepid of adventurers, dauntless of sufferers, winsome of saints, soldier, slave, and lover of Jesus Christ? It wasn’t intellect that changed him. He didn’t just ‘learn more,’ and decide to change his mind and follow Jesus. It wasn’t an argument. No one debated him into following Jesus. It wasn’t self-help. He didn’t wake up one day and decide he needed to be nicer and not murder so many people because it was bad. What changed then? Let’s look. Acts 9:1-19 NKJV Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you A Transformed Heart | 3 will be told what you must do.” 7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. 10 Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 So the Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. 12 And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.” 13 Then Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. 14 And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” 17 And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized. 19 So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. Paul had a heart change when he met Jesus. In this case, he literally saw the resurrected Jesus in His glory. It blinded him! Apparently, his eyes oozed over during three days of waiting, and a crust formed over them. Given the enormous amount of abuse and persecution he would experience over the coming years, he needed this level of dramatic encounter. It would strengthen him to remember it. A Transformed Heart | 4 People still meet the resurrected Jesus today. He’s real, He’s alive, and He will come to anyone who invites Him. It may not look this way, but an encounter with Jesus Christ still radically changes people. This is one reason why we care so much about cultivating the presence of God in this church, about learning how to hear God’s voice and respond from our hearts; because it's in spending time with Jesus that we are changed, that our hearts can heal and be transformed. Do you ever wonder why Jesus met with Paul in the first place? You’d think he would be the last person on earth Jesus would go talk to. If He wanted to stop Paul from persecuting Christians, He could have just made him sick or had him drop dead. But Jesus saw something in Paul that caused Him to confront him, not kill him. I’m glad Jesus operates that way towards us, too. He doesn’t send a lightning bolt to kill us every time we mess up. But Jesus saw that Paul was genuinely deceived. He wasn’t a good person who ‘deserved to be saved,’ he was a proud, religious man doing horrible things. But underneath it all, he was doing it honestly. That may sound crazy, but he truly thought he was serving God and His Jewish brothers and sisters. He thought he was doing right. He was a misguided God seeker. Not everyone is that honest in their hearts about spiritual matters. Some people are totally apathetic towards God, some love the world, and they love doing whatever they want to do. God wants to save people with those attitude issues, too, but He often gets their attention in a different way. But Paul will talk about himself later and say, 1 Timothy 1:12-13 NLT I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, 13 even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. A Transformed Heart | 5 In other words, he didn’t know better. He thought he was serving God. So, in spite of the fact that he was covered in innocent blood, in spite of blaspheming Jesus and trying to force others to do it, too, in spite of being full of religious pride and demonic anger and rage, Jesus met him. And Jesus met him because He saw a heart that wanted to know God and follow Him. Paul was terribly confused and headed in the wrong direction, but he had an honest heart. And that kind of person makes a great disciple when they actually meet Jesus. So Paul was transformed by his encounter with Jesus. But some other things happened, too. He also spent three days in darkness. Acts 9:8-9 NKJV Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Paul was lying there blind for three days in the house of a synagogue leader who was supposed to help him attack Christians. What would he have thought about during that time? It would have been scary, I’m sure, sitting in complete and total darkness, reevaluating the last thing he saw (which was Jesus). He was probably remembering all of the people who he had beaten and stoned because they refused to deny Jesus. His own sin and evil must have overwhelmed him, and he realized that Jesus didn’t kill him. Jesus just told Paul who He was. Acts 9:4-6 NKJVThen he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” A Transformed Heart | 6 Then Jesus asked for an act of simple obedience. He told Paul to go into the city and wait for a disciple to come minister to him. So he did. Notice that the person who ministered to Paul was simply a disciple, not an apostle, prophet, preacher, or teacher. I’m not putting those offices down by any means, but we can’t underestimate the value of simply listening to God’s voice and doing what He says, regardless of what gifts, offices, or positions we may have. Acts 9:10 NKJV Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” Anyone with an honest heart who chooses to follow Jesus can be used mightily by Him. In this case, Ananias was used by God to lay hands on Paul and heal his eyes. He also prayed for Paul to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Then he explained the gospel to Paul and led him into the basics of Christianity. Acts 9:17-18 NKJV And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized. God used Ananias to minister to Paul, and Paul was healed, set free of demonic bondage, and baptized in water and the Holy Spirit. So it only took three days for God to change Paul from a violent religious person to a passionate follower of Jesus. He still had a lot to learn. He would go to the Arabian desert (Galatians 1:17) to think about the scriptures and how he had misinterpreted a bunch of them and what they really meant. He still needed to mature in Christ to become a great missionary church planter and apostle. That would be at least another 14 years. But his heart was changed in a moment. A Transformed Heart | 7 He was set free by a miracle encounter with Jesus, and it’s a miracle that still happens today when people meet the One, True God. We serve a Risen Savior, not a religion. We follow a person who is alive now and forevermore. We bow our hearts to a Master who has overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil and has complete and total victory over sin and death. Many of us can remember when we met Jesus, and after Autumn exhorts I want to sing that song ‘We Will Remember’ again. Though we all may have a lot of growing, maturing, healing, and learning to do, though we may struggle through days of darkness and blindness and difficult memories of painful things done to us and painful things we have done, Jesus has set our spirits free to follow Him. Jesus has caused a true ‘before and after’ to happen in our hearts. We’re not the same people anymore because Jesus is alive, and He lives within us, and he’ll do the same miracle for anyone that’s willing to meet Him. A Transformed Heart | 8