Wednesday Bible Study- Spiritual Habits (Testimony) Associate Pastor Matt Passmore

Ministering to the heart of Western Arkansas's River Valley for over 165 years, welcome to Chapter and First, the Bible Teaching Ministry of Fort Smith's First Baptist Church.

You'll find sermons and teachings from Pastor Greg, our ministry staff, and guest speakers.

Thank you for listening.

All right.

Hey, so grateful that you're here.

The summer is uh coming to a close.

We do have one more week of this, and then we will get back to uh, and I'll explain more of that at the end.

I'll explain that in.

We're we're grateful you're here, grateful for the study.

It's funny the other day I had someone come into the office.

It's amazing how many people come in and want to talk, you know, like I know what I'm talking about, you know.

But came in and he and the person goes, hey, I'm just struggling.

You know, I feel like I come to church and I'm told I needed to get into God's word, I need to pray, I need to do this.

And he goes, now he's been in the church a while.

This isn't just like I just met the guy.

And um, he goes, I just don't know how to be taught and where to learn how to do that at.

And I'm like, and that's what we've been talking about on Wednesday nights.

And so uh hopefully through this, you have been challenged, you've been tweaked, it's helped you develop a habit, and we are grateful that you're here.

I will say this: if anyone has not been here, Bobby's in the process of working on this.

Pastor asked him to do this.

Um they are they are making this a podcast, so it will be found where someone can kind of go through and pick something.

And maybe you saw something you liked and forgot you'd like to rewatch it.

It will we're working on putting that to package of, I used to call, I'd think it would be like a video series, or but now we're cool.

Podcast.

And so there's a podcast, you can go back and listen to it, and uh, so that is coming.

We'll let you know when it comes out.

But um, so again, the whole goal behind this is encouragement.

It's not to slap on your wrist, it's not to you're doing it wrong.

It's all the the point of this is let's continue together to get stronger, to develop habits, spiritual habits.

And so we went through many of them.

And and next week, Pastor's gonna end.

Yeah, you guys are up here.

Um they came and tried to sit in the back.

Lee found y'all new seats, so come on, you're you're up here in the front.

So uh, but no, next week though, the pastor is he's in a meeting right now.

He will be back and he will be closing out.

You know, we've used 2 Peter to help us structure this, and he's gonna do the last chapter of 2 Peter next week, and that will be our closing, and we'll talk more about how that structure at the end.

But I'd like to pray.

Let's pray, and then we'll we're gonna get started for tonight.

Dear God, thank you for your many blessings.

Thank you for your love.

Lord, thank you.

So many times when I just sit around, it just blows my mind that you want a relationship with me.

You want me to take time to just have a chance to speak to the creator.

The God, like my son asked me the other day, where did God come from?

The God that didn't come from anything, the God that was always there.

That's the God that wants to have a conversation with me.

It blows my mind.

And Lord, I am so grateful for that.

Help us as believers never take that for granted.

Lord, help it be on our mind all the time that you want communication with us.

And Lord, help us work, always be working on that habit of making that just something we do all the time when we when we don't even have to think about it.

And Lord, just tonight, as we are challenged, Lord, I ask you just to uh use tonight in a mighty way to speak to our hearts.

In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

Now, tonight, one of the one of the greatest habits that we take for granted is our testimony.

When I was uh when I first got here, kids were being saved.

We did a uh, we would do a um I'm a Christian now class.

So when we would have seven or eight kids that were saved, we would meet with their parents and we would talk through four weeks of challenging kids and start developing a habit.

Start, what does it look like to follow Christ?

And so uh the first week we would always do this, and it was amazing how many parents struggled with this.

The first week I told them to do this.

Go home, parents, and write your testimony.

We had a little form, write your testimony and give it to your kid.

We we worked on these little boxes that we called memory boxes and put it in the memory box.

Your child should know your testimony.

And if they don't know your testimony, they should know your testimony as good as you know your testimony because that's who you are in Christ.

And so I want to challenge you today, even though we've talked about this.

Yes, the goal of telling your testimony is with a friend, with a peer, with whatever, but also remember, even if your kids are Christians, tell your story.

That's who you are.

So today we're gonna talk about telling your story.

So before we get into it, we got two volunteers that are gonna share their story.

I told them late last night, so uh they haven't had a lot of time.

They're ready to roll.

So uh, but we got to be careful in our testimony.

So many times people mess this up.

I've gone places and we're, oh, we're gonna tell their testimony.

Now, there is different types of testimonies.

I was here about two years and I get this letter in the mail that said, I have to go to jury duty.

And I'm thinking, man, I've only been in Arkansas two years.

What about the people that lived here their whole lives?

Shouldn't they go to jury duty?

I go to jury duty, and by the way, I'm thinking, you know what, I'm a children's pastor.

They're not gonna pick me, you know, because I always I've never been to jury duty.

So I go in and uh they tell us it's a murder case.

And I'm thinking, oh, I'm definitely not in this.

The third name called, Matthew.

When I hear Matthew, it kind of rattles me a little bit.

Matthew Passmore, please stand.

And I stood and they said, you know, the two people, the two groups talk.

I didn't even ask me a question.

And they go, Yeah, we want him.

I'm like, what?

I'm not supposed to be on jury duty.

So I'm on this murder trial.

Okay, we're sitting there, the jury's sitting there.

It's just like on TV.

You know, you're in the little booth sitting on these cool wheelie chairs, and you're just, I'm thinking, really?

I'm on a murder trial?

What?

But we're sitting there, and this I'll never forget this.

The guy gets up there and you know has to swear, and they say, Tell your testimony of the story.

So he shares his story.

Or whatever he saw.

And the other, the uh whoever was asking questions, asking some questions, and all of a sudden, his story starts changing.

And the judge stops, and the judge says, We need your testimony that you saw.

Tell us what you really saw.

It was a they finally took him out because his story, but but I'll never forget the judge saying this.

The testimony is what is true in what you saw.

Well, that's what the testimony of your life is.

And if we're not careful, we can easily change this into a life story.

There's an important part about a testimony, a huge part about a testimony.

It is not your life story.

And a lot of people share that.

Your testimony is the story that Christ did in you.

The only way you have a, let's call it, a Christian or a salvation story is because what Christ did.

It has nothing to do with what you did.

Because if it's about us, it turns into what?

Our life story.

So we have to be careful with that.

So as we think about that, we'll get to that in just a second.

So I would like to.

Um, now let's do I'm gonna do this.

I'm sorry.

2 Corinthians 5.15.

In 2 Corinthians 5.15, Paul is um he's he's he's talking and he answers this question.

As he's speaking, he said, Who should we live for?

Okay, who should we live for?

And then it goes.

He says this, and he died for all, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised.

This is the point of the testimony.

Because we are now what?

Followers of Christ.

We're telling the story of what Christ did for us and what did Christ do for us.

We no live or live for ourselves, but for the one who did what?

Who died and rose again.

It's an it's the it's the most important part of the story.

And what do I mean by that?

I've heard people share the story like this.

They said, you know what, I've grown up in church, my parents were awesome, I did all this.

And then they get done telling about how great their parents were and how the Lord's been with them their whole life, but there was nowhere about what?

Talking about what God did for the one that what?

Who died and was rose from the grave, what he did for us.

And so tonight, when we talk about it, we've got two people.

This is Miss Charlene Day.

Charlene, if you'll come up here, she is going to, I just told her to share her testimony.

Okay?

When she's done, we're gonna evaluate.

Did she do it right?

No, we all of her stories are different.

All of our stories are different.

So she's gonna come up here and just share what the Lord did in her life, and we're gonna get another one in just a second.

So when you're ready, Charlene.

Well, I've done this before, just not in a group quite this big.

I've done it with, you know, friends that I've met or people that I've wanted to share my story.

So I wrote it down so I could be more brief than I sometimes am.

So when I was about 13, I went to church camp and I went for the first time.

And I didn't even want to go to church camp.

I had a home church, but one of my sisters said there's boys there.

So, you know, kids.

That was why I wanted to go.

I'm just telling you.

But at my home church, I'd really been under conviction that I was a sinner, you know, the Lord, I could really feel the Lord tugging on my heart.

And church camp gets kids away sometimes from other distractions, and so I really was feeling the tug of the Lord, you know, there too.

And I was really strongly compelled to go down one evening.

Uh, I think it was, well, every evening, you know, they they play that invitation music, and if the Lord's really working on you, you can you just have to almost hold on to the pew.

And that's kind of how I felt.

And my my sweet little friend, she elbowed me and she said, I'll go up there with you, you know, if you if you want me to walk with you.

And that so that was all I needed.

And I went and I prayed with the counselor there, and I asked the Lord to forgive me.

I'm not sure that I really understood all of it, being kind of young, not really being discipled, but I don't think that that's necessary because the Lord says that He wants us to come and humble ourselves like little children and come to Him.

And so I didn't have to understand it all.

But when I was little as a kid, even a little bitty kid, I would talk to the Lord when I was scared or worried about something, and I just really felt, you know, that connection with him, even though nobody really ever taught me to pray.

And um I didn't have much guidance though about following Jesus' teachings or anything like that.

And so in a few years, um, I got married when I was 16.

And uh I wasn't gonna tell this part, but I'm gonna tell this part briefly.

So I was married to him for a very short period and had my little daughter.

So I then remarried pretty quickly after that and ended up back in Germany, and there was a real void in my life at that point, and I just felt the need for acceptance and love, and I just didn't have that.

And so I married my husband David, who some of you guys know, and he was in stationed in Germany in the military, and I had my little daughter Catherine, and he became daddy to her.

Um, but his unit in the military was deployed all week long, every week, even some weekends, and we were very young.

I was 21 at that time, so now I'm 21 and I've been married twice already.

And it was very hard.

Military life is hard for people, even in peacetime, and it was really hard on our family.

And in his unit, um, in his battalion, and the suicide and divorce rate was awful.

It was the worst in the whole battalion, the whole area where we were.

And and we had our marriage troubles too, because we were both very young still, and we were away from home.

Both of us had grown up in Christian homes.

He had a daddy that was a preacher, and we both got far from the Lord, and before long I found myself separated from the Lord and separated from my husband and moving back home to the United States.

So here's this man that I thought was my best friend, and I've I'm totally alienated from him and the Lord, but God used that time to really get my attention because I was all over the place.

Um but the Lord took people away from me and things away from me until I came to myself.

Kind of like the prodigal son.

And um I prayed at that time and I said, Father, I just want to believe in you like when I was a little child.

I just want to put that belief in you again and that trust in you again.

And I made a huge mess, and I just don't even know what to do with myself.

And will you please forgive me?

And and I just want to start over with you, Father, and and so I I didn't feel like any great, you know, unburdening or anything at that point, but the Lord really used that time afterwards.

It was amazing that David was in Germany, he started going to church with friends there, I started going to church with friends here, and we did not know this, neither one of us, that he was praying for me and I was praying for him because we still loved each other and we had not divorced.

And I'm just amazed that he that he saved our marriage.

And so now I tell people that you know I made a huge mess, he made a huge mess, but God is in the business of rescuing marriages and families, and and I don't share all the gory details with everybody, but if there's a couple ever that we know, we'll often share a little more of what happened with us because people need to know that even sometimes in a Christian's life, you can make a big mess.

I, you know, sometimes over my life I've not been sure, was I saved when I was a kiddo?

Was I saved later?

But at this point it doesn't really matter because I know who I belong to now and I know the changes he made in our lives.

And I got this story about my little granddaughter who was in timeout when she was two years old, and her mama said, Stop screaming and put your hands in your lap and calm down and then we'll talk about this.

And she wouldn't.

She did this.

She was so rebellious that she put her hands up in the air.

And so her mama just sits there and watches her.

She wants to make sure she's not getting out of the corner, but she says, Well, wouldn't you when you give up, you know, and just calm down, then we'll talk about it.

And finally she put her hands down and went, and I thought, that was me.

That was me with the Lord.

It was finally I had to just give it up and say, Lord, I've made a big mess.

We we both made a big mess, but I've personally made a big mess.

And so since then, I tell people, you know, the Lord is in the business of saving families and marriages.

And um, now we've been married almost 38 years, and we say now that we don't even know who those crazy kids were.

Those those were crazy people.

We don't we have no idea who they were.

And David started a practice recently with me that he we put our hands on our little grandchildren and we pray over them and bless them.

And I can't tell you how awesome it is to have a godly husband like that.

And what a difference the Lord has made in both of our lives.

And life's not always perfect.

I've got some of you who know me well enough know that I have worries, you know, about grandkids and different things.

And I give those worries to the Father and I snatch them right back.

But he is so patient with me, and he guides me, you know, and when I'm faithful to read my Bible and pray more faithfully, then it's not as it's not as hard of a struggle, and I can trust him more with those kids or with whatever's going on in my life.

And he loves me through his people here and in my family, and and I've been able to love on all of you guys in my church family and in my family.

And um, I'm just very thankful and blessed for what he did for me and for my whole family, and it it made a huge impact on our whole family.

And that's all.

That's it.

Amen.

Thank you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Okay, I appreciate that.

Uh, this is Steve Gaddis, and Steve just told me last night when I called him, I guilted him into this.

And so if I did, that's okay, because he's here gonna do it.

But he is he's gonna share his story with us.

So, Steve, when you get buckled up, we're ready to go.

I liked it better when she talked.

When I was seven years old, my family went to Unity Missionary Baptist Church.

Kenneth Bazaar was the preacher.

I see my wife back there, so I might have to look this way.

Um, Kenneth Bazaar was a preacher, and he was speaking one Sunday morning, and I knew that I was supposed to go down.

It's one of those things that you just know.

So I told Mom and Dad, I need to go down.

So I was talking to him.

He was a big man, he was really intimidating.

So I'm looking up, and he's I don't remember a lot of what he said, but I remember he looked deep into my soul and he said, Has God been speaking to you this week?

And I said, No, sir, just today.

And he said, Okay.

I don't remember the specifics that he said, but looking back, I know from the plan of salvation what he said.

He didn't give me a kid discount on sin.

He hammered me.

And within minutes, I was weeping.

I saw myself guilty as just as a 90-year-old man.

My sin was was I deserved hell, and I knew it.

And I couldn't stop crying.

Well, as time passed, I reached that stage where the the guilt, all the bird just kind of just fell over, and it was like I could fly, and there was so much joy, and at that point I know I had accepted Jesus.

That was 61 years ago.

Don't do the math.

That was 61 years ago.

So two things I've learned that I've hung on to in the Christian life.

One is that Jesus says, Don't be afraid.

There's so much stuff that makes us afraid.

And he says, Don't be afraid.

The second thing is that he's always with us.

That's huge.

He's always with us.

When I went to college, I really debated on this, but I thought, I'm gonna say this.

You know, you go to college, you're away from mom and dad, you're at a different different place, and you see all this stuff in the dorm.

But what I didn't think about was it wasn't just me going to college, it was the Lord in me going to college.

So when I see people getting drunk over there, alcohol, it's like, ah, I don't want that.

And when I see the neighbors next over smoking pot, what's that smell?

I don't want that either.

But there was there was something that um got my attention.

And I thought, uh, maybe, maybe, maybe.

Well, as time passed, uh, the Holy Spirit just, and you guys know what I'm talking about, the Holy Spirit just just weighted me down and was eating my lunch.

And so quickly I said, okay, just like Charlene, I give up, I give up, I'm out, I'm out, I'm out, I won't do it, I promise.

And immediately the burdens just went away, and I felt the peace again.

And from that, I stepped closer to the Lord because I thought, I don't want that junk, I don't want it, I want this.

So it goes back to the He's always with us.

Whenever I've gone through tough times, whether it's uh a job uh uh shutting down, uh factory shutting down three days before Christmas, we're taking Christmas gifts back, money is tight, and it's like the Lord, the bills are coming in.

What are we gonna do?

He was there, he provided.

Uh a couple years ago, when COVID hit, I'd worked at a place for 20 years, they lay it off 60% of the people.

I was one of those 60%.

What are we gonna do, Lord?

And I know in my spirit, he says, I got this.

Would you just calm down?

Remember, I'm always here.

So all the big things, from saying goodbye to my parents, burying them.

Um this is tough when my wife is watching.

Saying, finding out at 47 I'm gonna be a dad, which is a good thing, but that's a little scary.

But all the big things, God has been faithful, he's been there.

When I blow it, he reminds me.

You are mine.

You know, and that that thing in college when When I let go, he didn't reprimand me.

I remember when when the Holy Spirit convicted me, I didn't feel spanked.

I felt loved.

I knew that he was saying you are mine.

I bought you.

I paid for you in full.

You are not your own.

I've got a plan for you, and that that is not it.

I've got this.

Now stay, say no to that stuff, and follow me.

And I did.

So I'm glad 61 years ago I said yes to Jesus.

And I've never regretted that.

Amen.

Um, Cole, I'd like to, so many times we just say, hey, give a testimony.

I'd like to look at some examples in the Bibles and some testimonies.

So if uh if you will, we're we're gonna look into Acts 4, 33.

But if you have your Bibles, I'd like to flip into some of this in our Bible also.

I put it up here, but I want to, as I looked, there's a little more that I would like to look to in this.

So if you have your Bible, open it to Acts 4, and look, uh, if you will, look over in 19.

Acts 4, 19.

Now, where we're at here in the story, if we remember Pentecost has already happened, the Lord is moving amongst his disciples, and his disciples are in the it's the early part of the church, and the Lord is moving among them in a mighty way.

I mean, this is just something they have not experienced.

And we even got to the point where Peter and John were arrested, and then they were brought before, and they they shared some things.

But listen, when Peter and John got finished talking, look with me in Acts 4, and this is what a testimony should do to us.

In Acts 4, 19.

Peter and John answered them, whatever is right in the sight of God for us to listen to you rather than God, you decide.

For we are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.

It is so funny.

When I was doing children's ministry, when a kid got saved, he was going to go to school and tell everyone what?

That he was saved.

Think about when you got saved, how excited.

I mean, the day you went home, let's say church or whatever happened, you had to tell people about it.

Look at, they're here.

I don't care what you do to us, I can't stop talking about what the Lord's doing in my life.

After threatening them further, they realized they found no way to punish them because the people were all giving glory to God over what had been done.

They couldn't, they were scared to punish them because the whole place was doing what?

Giving glory because of their testimony.

They were just sharing what?

What the Lord was doing in their life.

Like right here.

So this continues, it keeps going.

But in Acts 4.33, it says, What greater power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them.

When they were sharing, the Lord was what?

Blessing what they were sharing, because look, remember at the very first, it wasn't their story, it was their salvation story, what the Lord was doing in their life.

Then look in um John 4.39.

You don't have to look that one up because we're going to stay in Acts.

We're going to go to another one in Acts in just a second.

But John 4.39, this is the story of the Samaritan woman.

Remember the story?

She goes to the well at a time no one goes to the well because why?

She wanted a suntan?

No.

She didn't want anyone to see her.

She didn't want to talk to anyone.

Her life was a mess, a wreck, whatever you want to call it.

So you, she was already sour when she got there.

But this day, think about it.

This day was gonna be different.

She probably went every day, or at least every other day.

This day is different because when she gets there, there's this man there that she's not supposed to talk to, and not even he's not even supposed to say anything to her.

But all of a sudden, she realizes in the story what?

Jesus reveals who he is and he changes.

He changes her that day.

Remember?

She walks there quiet, hiding, bitter.

We can use all kinds of adjectives, right?

To explain.

But look here, in John, as the story goes, it says this.

Now many Samaritans from the town believed in him because of what the woman said when she testified.

He told me everything I ever did.

Can you imagine the difference?

Hold on, hold on.

The lady that everybody shamed, by the way, you remember?

She said, I've had 500 husbands.

And Jesus goes, I know that.

And actually the guy you're living with is not even your husband.

Remember, I mean, he the lady that snuck to the water in the well does what?

Goes back and tells her story, what the Lord's done for us.

And what did God?

God used the lady at the well that to do what?

The Samaritans from the town believed in him because of her testimony.

Growing up, we had this guy come into our church to speak one time.

And the guy comes in, and I mean, he was his story was one of the greatest stories of all times of how the Lord changed his life.

I mean, he was an alcoholic, he was doing all this, and the Lord saved him.

And I'll never forget that night I got home and I'm like, man, Dad, and you know, it's the same thing here, like telling a testimony.

It's like, Dad, my testimony is boring compared to this.

Who wants to hear my testimony?

I've grown up in a church, and if I even look wrong, you give me a spanking.

You know, one of those type deals.

My story is boring.

And I'll never forget this.

And he said, You better pray to God that your story's boring.

Because you've been fortunate enough to live this.

But more importantly than that, salvation is not easier for some than others because the Lord died on the cross for all.

And he said, Don't you ever say that again.

In a teaching moment.

But do you see what I'm saying?

The story here, yes, this is a fabulous story, but we have no idea how the Lord's gonna use your story.

Oh, I'll tell you how he's gonna use it.

If you don't share it, it's hard to use.

But we don't know when we do share it, it's what?

How he's gonna use it, how it's gonna affect someone, how someone sitting right there that grew up in the church, same thing with me, could take the story that I said and said, That is me.

I need that.

We have no idea.

Like Charlene, Charlene is talking to me today.

She has used her story many times with couples that are struggling.

We have no idea how God will use our story, but we do know this that He's asked us to do what?

Share it, testify.

That's why we have to have it in our back pocket ready to be used.

We cannot do this when the time is right and the time is ready to share our testimony.

Hey, hold on, I'll get back to you in three days and go home and write it then.

It needs to be in our back pocket so that we can what?

Pull it out and use it.

Share it.

Nowadays they're saying, used to it, and we are starting a new launch of the EE.

But I was at a conference, and I want to be careful with this.

I'm not, and the E, but the question, you know, the question with EE is kind of they start off as if you were to die tonight, would you get to go to heaven?

You know, that's kind of that question that gets them going.

Here's the problem with that question, as much as it used to be, is a lot of people now will look at you and say, Well, I'm not even for sure there's a heaven.

So the question doesn't mean anything to them.

I mean, that's how bad we've gotten.

Even in the Bible belt.

I was, I was, I was tutoring, or not tutoring, I was mentoring a student over there.

He goes, What do you do?

I said, I'm a pastor.

He goes, You go to church?

And I said, Well, yeah, to be a pastor, you gotta go to church.

He goes, Do you really believe in the Bible?

I said, Yeah, do y'all have a Bible at your house?

No.

This is in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Quote the Bible Belt.

His house doesn't even have a Bible?

And he's asking me, do I really believe in the Bible?

Do you see, do you see where we're at?

And I really think and I've really seen that the Lord works to our testimonies because sharing the gospel is a relationship.

And to share the God, to share your story, what it, you have to have a relationship.

You have to feel comfortable to the point of, I want to share.

Now, the gospel has never changed.

I'm just saying getting us into this, getting us into the conversation might be a little different to get to the God, to get to that.

And it's the relationship.

Man, here's what's happened in my life.

And so looking at the testimony, that leads us to.

We're gonna come back to this one.

Three parts to a testimony.

Okay, this is important.

Three parts, and we saw both of these people did it well.

Okay, Charlene and Steve did it well.

There's three parts.

Who am I before I met Jesus?

And that's an important part.

I've heard many people say this.

Well, I've always grown up in the church.

I've always been saved.

That's not true.

Now, I know they might say that, meaning I got saved when I was seven, but there comes a time that you weren't saved.

You're not living on your parents, you're not living on your church.

So there is a time before you meet who?

Jesus.

There is a story about that in your life.

Even at the age of seven, there was a time with Steve that he had a life without Christ.

Okay?

And then this is the most important part of the story.

That sometimes kind of just, I've heard a lot of people do number one really well, and they can do number two, three really well.

Number two sometimes gets whipped.

This is important.

How did you meet Jesus?

And here's the thing is it can be different for all of us.

I've heard a story of a lady that was saved in a Mormon church.

Praise the Lord.

However, it wasn't because what they were teaching, the Lord grabbed them in the memory using who he was, his word, in a Mormon church.

Do you see what I'm saying?

The Lord, our number two can be anywhere.

But there has to come a time that the Lord drew you and you responded to his call.

And then the last, which so many times we we want to be careful with this, and we don't necessarily have to be careful, is the life after I met Jesus.

So many times we want this to be a bed of roses, everything's perfect.

And that's not what Scripture says.

In fact, life gets harder when we meet Jesus.

The Bible warns us and tells us it's that way.

Because, just like we were talking about, bread is, I think sometimes the Lord wants it tough on us, so it's not all about us.

Now we have to stop and say, Lord, it's about you.

Do you see the testimony?

I mean, the three pieces that we really have to have.

But three does do this.

No matter how tough it is, the Lord's with it, going through it, with us to be there through that.

So then that takes us, if you will, that takes us now back to Acts 22.

Okay, Acts 22 writes a testimony.

Probably one of the greatest testimonies of all.

Now, I'm sorry.

They're all great, right?

But this is one that I enjoy.

So, if you will, we're gonna we're just gonna read it.

Okay?

So, starting in Acts 22, actually, I want to go up above it a little bit.

Let's start in uh in 2140, right above it.

After he had given permission, Paul after he was given permission, Paul stood up on the steps and motioned with his hands to the people.

When they were there was a great hush, he addressed them in Aramaic.

Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense before you.

When they heard what he was addressing them in Aramaic, they became even quieter.

He continued, I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Siselah, but brought up in this city, educated at the gr at the feet of Gamale.

Gamaleo.

And remember, this guy was, he's known.

This isn't, so according to the law of our ancestors, I was zealous for God just as all of you are today.

I persecuted this way to the death, arresting and putting both men and women in jail.

As both the high priest and the whole council of elders can testify about me.

So what's he saying here?

I'm telling you this, you all know this.

Ask people around.

After I received the letter from them to the brothers, I traveled to Damascus to arrest those who were there and bringing them to Jerusalem to be punished.

Okay, so I want to stop there.

This is the first part.

This was his life before Christ.

And you know, the main thing about the life before Christ is the idea of thinking that we are doing it right.

In Paul's mind, does he think he's doing what he's supposed to do?

He's actually thinking he's doing good.

My testimony before I was saved, I was checking the boxes.

My teachers at school would have said I was saved.

Because if I wasn't doing it, I was gonna get a spanking.

But anyway, I was checking the boxes.

I that's life before Christ is the idea.

Think we've got it all figured out.

I know what I'm doing.

So then let's continue.

As I was traveling and approaching Damascus about noon, and an intense light from heaven suddenly flashed around me.

I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

I answered him, Who are you, Lord?

He said to me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, the one you are persecuting.

Now those who were with me saw the light, but they did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me.

I said, What should I do, Lord?

The Lord told me, Get up and go to Damascus, and there you will be told everything that you have been assigned to do.

Since I couldn't see because of the brightness of the light, I was led by hand by those who were with me and went into Damascus.

Someone named Ananias, a devoted man according to the law, who had a good reputation with all the Jews living there, came and stood by me and said, Brother Paul, Brother Saul, regain your sight.

And in that very hour I looked up and saw him, and he said, The God of our ancestors was appointing has appointed you to know his will.

I see the righteous one and to hear the words from his mouth, since you will be a witness for him to all people of what have been seen and heard.

And now, why are why are you delaying?

Get up and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.

Okay, so he had the calling.

What did the calling Jesus had on his life, or Christ had on his life right here?

Um it's the second part.

It wasn't a done deal, but the Lord called him that day, and what did he do?

Surrendered, or not that day, in the process of this, and then he what?

Surrendered.

So I want I keep going just for a little bit.

After I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance and saw him telling me, Hurry, get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.

But I said, Lord, they know that in the synagogues after synagogue, I had those, I'm sorry, hold on.

I had those who believed in you imprisoned and beaten.

And when the blood of your witness Stephen was being shed, I stood there giving approval and guarding the cloths of those who killed him.

He said to me, Go, because I will send you far away to the Gentiles.

Now we can continue.

We know what was his life after he met Christ.

It was completely different.

We can see that all through Scripture.

So we see the three points even in Paul's life of how what the Lord did to him and how the Lord changed him.

And so tonight, I want to stop for just a second.

We're getting close on time.

I want you to think this through.

We're not putting, if you want to start writing it down, you can.

But tonight I want you to.

So many times we say, hey, do this, and then you leave here, you get busy, life gets busy and different.

And I want you to think for just a second.

Who were you before you met Jesus?

If you were sitting here talking to someone, how would you explain who you were before you met Jesus?

How you met Jesus?

And your life right now you're living.

Think about how you would answer those.

I would like to cast a challenge.

In the next two days, find someone to share your testimony to.

And I won't even start with this.

If it has to start with your spouse, share it with your spouse.

Practice doing it.

The more you do it, guess what?

The more comfortable you feel with it.

And I'll tell you this your story is your story, but it's amazing in each situation, the Lord can use it in a little bit different way.

He can, He, it's amazing things in your life that might pop up this time you share the story that relate different than it would the last time because the Lord is working through you sharing your story.

But if we don't use it, it's not in our back pocket to have it.

And one other thing before we go, I would be careful of using certain words.

What do I mean by that?

We're not talking to a Christian, that's why we're sharing our testimony, most likely.

So, sanctification, justification, glorification.

It's good for us to talk about that and where we're at, but if we're sharing the gospel to a new believer, repent.

I know you can explain it, but if we can find a simpler word, you see what I'm saying?

Be careful with your words that growing up in church we always use because sometimes it's harder to explain it than just to change to a simpler word.

Now, do we hope the person you're sharing the gospel can talk those words later on?

Yeah, that's the goal.

But at this point, be careful on as you write it.

It's not to look spiritual, it's to look about what the Lord's done in your life and that the person you're sharing it with can hear it.

Okay?

Thank you for being here tonight.

I hope you've been challenged.

I hope you've enjoyed it.

I hope you've been challenged enough to please go home and tell your kids.

Call your kid on the phone and say it.

Share your testimony.

Let's pray.

Dear God, just uh thank you so much.

Lord, I just thank you for the group here.

Thank you for your word.

Just thank you for the challenge of your word.

But Lord, thank you that you're a God that changes us so that we can have a testimony.

And Lord, help us be about you changing us.

In Jesus' name I pray.

Amen.

Thank you.

Have a great night, and we'll see you Sunday.

We pray this message has been a blessing to you and helped to strengthen your walk with Jesus.

Please know we want to minister to you and pray for you.

Send an email to contact us at fsfbc.org and let us pray for you and help you in any way we can.

Thank you for listening to Chapter and First, the Bible Teaching Ministry of Fort Smith First Baptist Church.