The Disciple in Damascus
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
— Thank Yous for allowing me to preach
— Thank yous to those who are filling in for Jessica and Bryan
— We had a great night Wednesday night at our camp service, if you weren’t able to be here I’d encourage you to go back and listen to that to hear the teens testimonies, you will be blessed and challenged at the same time.
— On Wednesday I forgot to mention a couple things: Shirts from Sandi and A/C did get fixed
— When Bro. Andrew first asked me to preach on a Sunday morning I was surprised, I asked him if he trusted me...
— Let’s go ahead and open our Bibles to the Book of Acts chapter 9
— I was scrolling through Facebook a few days ago and I saw a post from a teacher who taught the third grade and she had her 3rd grade students write one sentence letters to God. She told them if you could ask God anything or tell God just one thing what would it be… and heres what a few of them wrote down:
“Dear God, Did you mean for giraffe to look like that or was it an accident. -Norma”
“Dear God, on Halloween I am going to wear a Devil’s costume, Is that alright with you? -Marnie”
“Dear God, are you really invisible or is that just a trick. -Lucy”
“Dear God, Who draws the lines around the countries? -Nan”
“Dear God, I went to this wedding and they kissed right there in the church, Is that okay? -Neil”
“Dear God, Is Reverend Cole a friend of yours, or do you just know him through business? -Donny”
“Dear God, My grandpa says you were around when he was a little boy. How far back do you go? Love, Dennis”
“Dear God, I am American, what are you?”
“Dear God, Thank you for the baby brother but what I prayed for was a puppy. -Joyce”
“Dear God, My brother told me about being born but it doesn’t sound right. -Marsha”
“Dear God, I think the stapler is one of your greatest inventions. -Ruth”
“Dear God, I bet it is very hard for you to love everybody in the whole world, There are only 4 people in my family and I can never do it. -Nan”
— Man I’m glad we can talk to God, aren’t you? And I’m sure God enjoys even those little simple prayers from a young child. And I’m glad that He talks back to us as well and that is what were going to be talking about today so lets dive right into the Word of God in Acts chapter 9 starting in verse 1
And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.
And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord. And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.
1. God Calls (v. 10-12)
1. God Calls (v. 10-12)
a) Personally- God called Ananias by name
— God wants a personal relationship with each and every single one of us. It says there in verse 10 that Ananias was a disciple, so of course he has already been saved, he has already trusted in Christ and started that personal relationship with Him.
I would regret it if I did not take any opportunity I had to preach the gospel.
If you are not 100% sure that you are going to go to Heaven either when you die or when Christ returns, please listen to what I am about to tell you. If you are sure of your salvation, then please listen to what I am about to say so that you can simply be reminded of what God has done for you.
— The Bible tells us that all have sinned
For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
— Define sin (and talk about kids ministry)
— (Of course we are talking about God’s moral law, not Levitical Law)
— There is a punishment for our sin
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
— Jesus Christ took that punishment for us
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
— He then rose from the dead and all we have to do is believe and ask
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
If you’ve never done that before, if you can’t think back to a time when you believed on Christ and asked Him to save you, then please get that settled today. Come and find me after the service or talk to somebody about it. If you’ve never done that before, then God’s will for you is to do that, get that settled today.
— So God called Ananias personally, they already had their personal relationship established and so God was able to call on Him and communicate with Him. But God also had a specific calling for Ananias, He called him specifically.
b) Specifically- God has specific callings for particular Christians
— For Ananias, this specific calling was pretty serious, it was pretty weighty.
Imagine if you heard in the news, that the worlds most notorious muslim terrorist, has just been converted to Christianity. Of course no one is really sure if this is true, he might just be using this as a lie to get to other Christians to persecute them, who knows. And then a couple days go by and God tells you to go find this guy, pray over him and baptize him. What’s your reaction?
— Uhh no thanks God, I have better things to do than baptize a terrorist. I have my job, family, I’m just too busy, someone else can do it.
— But that is exactly how Ananias would have seen this situation, Saul is one of the most well known hunters of Christians. He was the one in charge of the the very first martyr, Stephen, remember. He was the authority in that story who consented to Stephens death and then held everybody’s coats while they stoned him. I mean Saul is not a good guy.
— I’ve been reading Billy Graham’s autobiography recently and there’s some wonderful stories of ways that God used him. Billy was born on November 7, 1918 in a frame house on a North Carolina dairy farm. Like many others in their day, his parents were hard-working people who knew the value of a dollar and the meaning of self-discipline. Perhaps less ordinary, however, was their belief in God and devotion to seeking His wisdom and blessing for their family and for a world in need. To them, the Bible was the very Word of God, and their prayers declared their dependence on Him through any circumstance. As the times proved, circumstances were trying and challenging. From drought to depression, dust and destitution, people everywhere desperately searched the horizon for hope, that place where answers to prayer lives. God’s faithfulness, as always, would prove gracious and absolute. In a time of penny candy, nickel sodas, hair tonic, blushing brides, travelling preachers, and Sunday suppers, people were optimistic and busy. With so many other things to do, most young people were not thinking about things like Christian service and dying to self. Although it is true that Billy Graham enjoyed having fun, there was more. Somewhere deep, something fundamental was working inside him. In May of 1934, the Christian businessmen of Charlotte, NC, secured permission to hold an all-day prayer meeting at the Graham farm. On that day, a prayer was raised – that out of Charlotte the Lord would raise up someone to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth. It was in that year the previously reluctant Billy Graham gave his life to the Lord at a revival meeting led by travelling evangelist Rev. Mordecai Ham. At 16 years old, Billy Graham was about to experience the transformation of a traditional farm boy into an instrument of God. In a time of burgeoning modernism, of science and philosophy, Billy Graham walked in the woods one night seeking God’s direction for his faith. The answer? The Bible – sealed by a prayer: “Father, I am going to accept this as Thy Word – by faith! I’m going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts, and I will believe this to be Your inspired Word.”
— And that’s it. God had a specific calling for Billy Graham, to go and preach to millions and millions of people. It’s estimated that he preached to over 215 million people in his lifetime, that is a very specific calling that not many are called to.
— Listen, I’d be okay if i never became as well known as somebody like a Paul or Billy Graham, but I at least want to be an Ananias. I want to follow God’s specific call in my life and invest in people and pray for people and just be the disciple that God wants me to be.
— But Ananias had a special calling from God to go find Paul, and bless him and heal him to get him ready for his ministry.
— Listen, I believe that every Christian, has some sort of specific calling from God to go and do something. I can’t tell you what that is, because it is specific to you, only God can tell you what it is. For me, it was being a preacher, it was to come to Gardendale Baptist Tabernacle to be the Youth Pastor. This is where God wants me.
I can’t tell you a specific calling that God is wanting from you but I can tell you five general callings from God for every Christian.
c) Generally- God has general callings for every Christian
— These are some things we’ve been going over with the Youth and I hope that you’ll grasp the need to do these things as well
Pray
Pray without ceasing.
2. Go to Church
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
3. Witness
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
4. Read the Bible
Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
5. Tithe/Offerings
Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.
(This is one of those controversial ones, a lot of people now are asking if tithing is the right way since it’s old testament, or if we should call it grace giving, look call it what you want, but the bottom line is we ought to give a portion, sacrifice some of our gains, and give it to God. Christianity without sacrifice, is not Christianity.)
— Those are the 5 main ones and I would go as far to add Observing the Lord’s Supper as well as corporate worship, but both of those are understood as a part of going to church.
So we saw that God calls, but number 2:
2. Ananias Answers (v. 13-16)
2. Ananias Answers (v. 13-16)
a) He Heard- Ananias was able to hear God’s voice
— Before Ananias could answer, he had to have been able to hear the voice of God.
God speaks in a still small voice, of course we don’t hear Him audibly today like they did in Biblical times, but He still desires to communicate with us, but His Spirit’s leading is subtle.
God hears from us when we pray to Him and we hear from God when we read His Word. We must obey every impulse of the Holy Spirit. We must obey every impulse of the Holy Spirit.
— I hope that you do hear that still small voice and that you do feel the Spirit’s leading in your life. However, sin can clog up that channel between you and the Lord.
If I regard iniquity in my heart,
The Lord will not hear me:
But your iniquities have separated between you and your God,
And your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
Oh I pray that this isn’t the case but if it is, wont you confess and forsake your sins today?
John was writing to Christians when he said
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Maybe you need to pray the prayer of David when he said
Search me, O God, and know my heart:
Try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.
Ask God to show you the unconfessed sin in your life so that you can get that taken care of, so that you can be used as vessel of honor for the Lord.
— I pray that God is tugging at your heart this morning as we read from His Word.
Not only was Ananias able to hear the Lord but He was available
b) He was Available- He was ready to do what the Lord asked
I remember when God called me to the ministry, I was not ready. I was deathly afraid, I was shy and awkward and extremely afraid of what this would mean. I was balling like a baby for hours and finally I gave up and said “okay God, if this is what you want then I’ll do it.”
— Ananias did a lot better than I did, he asked reasoned with God for about 30 seconds, telling Him that Saul was known for persecuting Christians, and God said I know, but He’s the one I want”. No more arguing, Ananias went.
Ananias made himself available to God. HIS WORDS “I AM HERE” REMIND ME OF THE WORDS OF ISAIAH WHEN HE SAID “HERE AM I LORD, SEND ME” OR SAMUEL WHEN HE SAID “SPEAK LORD, FOR THY SERVANT HEARETH”
OH I HOPE, that all of us in this room today have made ourselves available to God, whatever it is He may want of us.
— Ananias had a big job before him, to go and pray for Saul the Persecutor, but he was available.
Even though Ananias made himself available, he was still a bit apprehensive.
c) He was Apprehensive- yet still willing
He said Lord I’ve been hearing some crazy stories about what this guy has been doing to Christians, have you heard? Do you know who this guy is? He’s coming to persecute us all!
— And the Lord said yes I know, but I intervened. I intervened. HE NO LONGER, WILL BE A PERSECUTOR OF MY PEOPLE, BUT WILL BE A LEADER OF MY PEOPLE, AND HE WILL BE PERSECUTED FOR MY NAMES SAKE. HE WILL EVEN DIE AS A MARTYR FOR THE CHRISTIAN FAITH AND HE WILL BE THE ONE TO PEN THE LETTERS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT, WRITING
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
God intervened on Paul’s behalf, and I wonder how many times He has intervened in your life and in my life so as to give us the blessings that we don’t deserve and save us from the heartaches and burdens that we do deserve.
— Ananias was apprehensive, but he was still willing. He submitted to the Lord and His will, and did what He asked.
— So God Calls, Ananias Answers, and now
3. Ananias Obeys (v. 17-18)
3. Ananias Obeys (v. 17-18)
a) Immediately- He didn’t wait in fear, He went with boldness
The very next verse in verse 17, it says that he went. He didn’t try to make any more excuses, he didn’t run in the opposite direction, no he simply did what he was asked to do. He walked out of his house, walked over to Straight Street, found the house of Judas, and laid his hands on him and prayed over him.
Delayed obedience is disobedience.
**I remember growing up, if my parents asked my to clean my room by the end of the day, I would always wait until the last possible moment, and then I would clean my room. My parents would walk in at like 9:30 at night and ask why my room wasn’t clean, and of course I would say i still have a couple hours, the day isn’t over yet. And then I would be grounded and it would hurt when i would sit down for the next few days as well.
When God asks us to do something, He expects us to do it when He asks. If I feel Him leading me to go and witness to one of my friends, I need to do that immediately, there’s no sense in stalling and waiting.
The request ought to be followed and obeyed immediately.
Delayed obedience is disobedience.
b) Precisely- He did exactly what God wanted Him to do
Annanias followed God’s request exactly how He wanted it.
Partial obedience is disobedience.
**Read verse 11 and 12 and compare to 17 and 18
God expects us to follow His commands and requests to every detail because He is a detailed God. He includes so many details in His word for a reason.
Partial obedience is disobedience.
Imagine if Jonah went to Nineveh, but didn’t preach. Imagine if Moses went up on Mount Sinai, but didn’t bring the 10 commandments down with him, Imagine if Paul went to all these different cities, but didn’t plant churches.
God requests our full submission to His will. He requires a precise obedience.
— and finally Ananias obeyed
c) Lovingly- He called Saul “Brother”, He trusted the Lord and therefore trusted Saul
I was kind of struggling with what word to use here, i thought maybe joyfully, willingly, or trustingly, but I chose lovingly because it sort of encompassed all of those. I could imagine, during the walk from his house, to straight street, to Judas’s house, to walking in, to finally seeing Paul, that there was some anxiety, maybe a little bit of worry or a little bit of fear. And finally seeing Paul, putting his hands on him, I imagine it was a relief, to pray over him and bless him and heal him. and to finally be able to call him brother.
— Ananias was willing to put his desires and needs aside and focus on Paul. He took the time to invest in him and pray for him.
— I’d imagine at that point he was excited. I’d imagine he was expectant and ready to see what God is going to do with Paul, ready to see him as a chosen vessel to be a witness to the Jews and also to the gentiles.
Conclusion
Conclusion
So listen, I know that there’s a lot here. There’s a lot of different applications you can grab from this passage of scripture, from listening to God, to following God’s call, or just simply being the disciple that God calls us to be.
In closing here’s just a few questions to consider, to ask ourselves, to help us gain some insights and make some decisions before we leave here today.
What are some steps that I can take to be a better disciple?
Do hear that still small voice/feel the Spirit’s leading in my life? Do I obey Him?
Am I investing and encouraging others in their relationship with Christ?