Immediately he preached Christ
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
This is the third part of us looking at Paul’s conversion as it is related for us by Luke. The reason is simple, this is an important event in Church History, that’s why Luke dedicates a whole chapter to it.
The apostle to the gentiles was, beyond a shadow of a doubt, one of the most important instruments in God’s hands in the promotion of His kingdom.
As an apostle, an evangelist, a preacher, a teacher and the author of the majority of the New Testament, this relentless persecutor of the church, this pharisee would become one of the, if not the greatest promotors of the Christian faith
Today we will consider the account from verse 20 to 31, where we find a brief account of the first few years of Paul’s ministry
In the book of Galatians chapter 1 from verse 11 we find the apostle talking about these first few years of his ministry.
He adds some information that complement what Luke tells us, and it is important to remember as we saw in the first sermon in this series that Luke’s goal, moved by the Spirit, is not necesseraly to give an extensive account of Church History but to showcase for us what Christ continued to do and teach after his ascension. So it’s important for us to complement Luke’s account with what is registered for us in the other books of the New Testament if we are to have a complete vision of the events in the life of Paul
In the letter to the Galatians, therefore, Paul mentions that, in the period between his conversion and subsequent return to Jerusalem he spent some time in Arabia and returned to Damascus. That only after 3 years he went to Jerusalem where he met Peter and James, the Lord’s brother, in a 15 day period. It is difficult to outline this 3 year period: When exactly did Paul go to Arabia (between verse 22-23 or between 25-26). However what is clear is that Paul’s ministry in Damascus spanned 3 years and that at some point he visited Arabia
Why did Paul visit Arabia? Some believe it was a time of spiritual and theological preparation. Interestingly and maybe not a total coincidence the 3 years match the period of Jesus’ earthly ministry. During this period he might have received direct revelation from the Lord
how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already,
Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began
But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.
For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Some think he went to Arabia to preach the Gospel, Paul does mention he came to be persecuted during this time in
In Damascus the governor, under Aretas the king, was guarding the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desiring to arrest me;
Aretas IV was ruler over the region of Arabia
I want us to consider today’s passage is divided into two parts, his ministry in Damascus and in Jerusalem and the parallels between them that can be simplified into 3 words both accounts speak of preaching, persecution and protection. That’s what we will consider today
Preaching
Preaching
The first activity recorded for us of Paul after his conversion, baptism and spiritual empowerment is preaching.
Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.
Further along in verse 22 we read
But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ.
in verse 27-28
But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.
So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out.
This is natural, that’s what he was commissioned by the Lord to do, Henry says “To this he had an extraordinary call, and for it an extraordinary qualification”, years later writing to his protege Timothy he declared
for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.
Whether in the synagogues or to the hellenist Jews Paul was proclaiming with boldness that Jesus was the Christ the Son of God. This was Paul’s main mission from the very start in the city of Damascus and this was the message he preached or has he said to the Church in Corinth
And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God.
For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Nothing except the faithful preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ can alter the decadent condition of the world, no other means but the proclamation of this Gospel can transform the human heart that is dominated by Satan and enslaved to sin
Persecution
Persecution
Paul’s preaching would come to produce many different types of fruit, specially among the gentiles. Some people would be driven to saving faith in Jesus in Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, Philipi, Thessalonika, Bereia, Athens, Corinth, Ephesus, Rome etc.
Certainly even at this early stage of his ministry in Damascus and Jerusalem there were fruits. However Luke records for us a different kind of reaction to Paul’s ministry in this period one of perplexity, fear, incredulity, surprise, anger and persecution. Surprise and perplexity is to be expected both from unbelievers and believers alike. He was renowned for being a persecutor of the Church. ‘Maybe he was trying to act as a double agent and was trying to infiltrate the ranks, to find the leaders and those who fled from Jerusalem’. Similarly in Jerusalem, they were afraid of him. This is too good to be true, It was necessary that Barnabas interceded for Paul and introduce him to the apostles.
This was but one of the reactions that Paul had to face the other was much more ruthless,
Now after many days were past, the Jews plotted to kill him.
And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him.
Persecution would become the most common reaction to Paul’s preaching, so much so that he, when he was saying his goodbyes to the elders in Ephesus on his way to Jerusalem he declared that he didn’t know what was going to happen there
And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there,
except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me.
But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
Matthew Henry wrote that Paul was “a trophy of Christ’s victory, and a captive to his grace”
The reality is that Paul was not concerned with the reaction of the listeners of those who would listen to the preaching of the Gospel, because he knew that, as he later wrote to the Corinthian Church, that God, in Christ:
Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?
And for that reason he continues to say
For we do not market the word of God for profit like so many. On the contrary, we speak with sincerity in Christ, as from God and before God.
Protection
Protection
Finally brethren, despite all the persecution that he faced and suffered, Paul always enjoyed a Divine Protection, either directly or by God using the Church. He suffered all kinds of physical, emotional and psychological sufferings.
Look at what he says to the Corinthians,
Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often.
From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one.
Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep;
in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness—
besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.
Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?
However, God never forsook or abandoned him, but always preserved his life in the midst of the attacks that he was facing, he sustained him, he did not allow that Paul would grow discouraged. As Paul himself said
We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
Divine protection can clearly be seen in the beginning of Paul’s ministry in Damascus and Jerusalem.
In Damascus, the Jews were guarding the gates of the city day and night so that they could kill him, but their plot was known to Paul and he managed to escape by being let down the wall in a basket by the disciples
In Jerusalem, Hellenist Jews also tried to kill him, however their plans became known to the disciples and they managed to take Paul to the Port city of Cesarea and from there they sent him to the city of Tarsus, where he probably remained for 7 or eight years preaching the Gospel before he eventually was procured and taken by Barnabas to Antioch, where from his missionary journeys would depart.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Luke’s narrative ends with a new tally of the progress of the Church
Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
After the initial onslaught after the martyrdom of Stephen the Church enjoyed peace. In those days the church was edified, walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they grew in number through the preaching of the Gospel of Christ and the teaching of the Word.
Times of crisis generally send us to our knees and bring us closer to God in desperate need, and stimulate our spiritual growth
Again I quote Henry here:
Sometimes the church multiplies the more for its being afflicted, as Israel in Egypt; yet if it were always so, the saints of the Most High would be worn out. At other times its rest contributes to its growth, as it enlarges the opportunity of ministers, and invites those in who at first are afraid of suffering
Storm cannot shipwreck the Gospel they waft it forward
This verse contains 3 precious lessons for us:
Acts In Syria and Cilicia (Tarsus): Saul Comes Home
Three things come to the surface in this passage by way of invaluable lessons for us to learn. First, no matter what the threat may be, God is greater than the opposition of men and demons. Second, there are times when God pours out his blessing, removing every trace of opposition for a season and causing his church to grow and flourish. Such times are a breath of heaven. Third, it should be noted that the blessing the church experienced (the church “multiplied”) at this juncture is in proportion to the fact that she walked “in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 9:31). It should prove an exhortation to us that we should likewise walk in the fear of God, reverencing him at all times and seeking to do his will.
From my sermon today I want to emphasise 3 lessons,
I - Preaching and it’s importance
I - Preaching and it’s importance
Paul wrote to Timothy that the role of the church is to be “which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”. With these words he declares beyond any shadow of a doubt that the main mission of the Church concerns the defence teaching and preaching/proclamation of the Word of God. That’s our mission. In his second letter to Timothy he wrote
I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom:
Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;
More than anything else right now the world needs the faithful preaching of God’s word, the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
Witnessing is not something we do, it something we are
My heart is full of Christ, and longs
this glorious matter to declare!
Of him I make my loftier songs,
I cannot from his praise forbear;
my ready tongue makes haste to sing
the glories of my heavenly King.
II - The adversities we face for preaching the Gospel
II - The adversities we face for preaching the Gospel
Jesus said:
Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.
The faithful preaching and proclamation of the word gives rise to opposition from the enemies of Christ. Those that love sin hate the truth and those that proclaim it because it casts a floodlight on their true spiritual condition they’re in
Courage is indispensable to every disciple who engages in proclaiming the Gospel, whether a preacher or not.
If you’re afraid of men you act like a slave to their opinions, if that’s the case christianity is not for you. Our message is not for sale to their rotten opinions. You are an herald of the Wise King, you have no need to apologise for what he wants you to say. You better not as an herald change the message to pander to them. Proclaim the Word fearlessly. The maker of the heavens and earth as bid you to do so! What are you afraid of?
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
The purest church is the church under the cross
III - Divine Protection for those who proclaim the Gospel
III - Divine Protection for those who proclaim the Gospel
We’re not fearful because God as promised protection, look at what Paul says to Timothy at the end of his letter to him
But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!
God is faithful, Great is his faithfulness. He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can withstand. On the contrary.
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
We have been considering the cause and effects of Saul’s conversion. Our overall impression has been of the grace of God which could be the cause of such great effects, laying hold of such an obstinate rebel and completely transforming him ‘from a wolf to a sheep’. Luke’s story should persuade us to expect more from God in relation to both the unconverted and the newly converted.
As for the unconverted, there are many Sauls of Tarsus in the world today. Like him they are richly endowed with natural gifts of intellect and character; men and women of personality, energy, initiative and drive; having the courage of their non-Christian convictions; utterly sincere, but sincerely mistaken; travelling, as it were, from Jerusalem to Damascus instead of from Damascus to Jerusalem; hard, stubborn, even fanatical, in their rejection of Jesus Christ. But they are not beyond his sovereign grace. We need more faith, more holy expectation, which will lead us to pray for them (as we may be sure the early Christians prayed for Saul) that Christ will first prick them with his goads and then decisively lay hold of them.
But we should never be satisfied with a person’s conversion. That is only the beginning. The same grace which br ings a person to new birth is able to transform him or her into Christ’s image.
Every new convert becomes a changed person, and has new titles to prove it,
namely a ‘disciple’ (26) or ‘saint’ (13), newly related to God,
a ‘brother’ (17) or sister, newly related to the church,
and a ‘witness’ (22:15; 26:16), newly related to the world.
If these three relationships—to God, the church and the world—are not seen in professed converts, we have good reason to question the reality of their conversion. But whenever they are visibly present, we have good reason to magnify the grace of God.
May God, prepare us as He did Saul. May we accept with joy a similar work in our own lives, willingly allowing our Father in heaven to teach us, to prepare us, to mold us, to protect us, to humble us, and to continually remind us how much we need him without whom we can do absolutely nothing. In Jesus’ name, Amen.