Acts 9:1-31

Christ. Lord, open our ears and our minds to hear from you this morning, we pray. Amen.

Well, friends, this morning we're continuing our series in the book of Acts, and we are looking at

Acts chapter 9, verses 1 through 31. So let me invite you to turn there with me. Acts chapter 9,

Acts 9:1–31 Acts 9:1–31

verses 1 through 31.

Let me read this text for us.

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the

high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues of Damascus so that if he found any

belonging to the way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he went on his way,

he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. And falling to the

ground, he heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? And he said,

who are you, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city,

and you will be told what you are to do. The men who were traveling with him stood speechless,

hearing the voice, but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened,

he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days

he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias.

The Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. And he said, here I am, Lord. And the Lord said to him,

rise and go to the street called Straight. And at the house of Judas, look for a man of Tarsus named Saul.

And behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his

hands on him so that he might regain his sight. But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many

about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from

the chief priests to bind all who call on your name. But the Lord said to him, go, for he is a chosen

instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. So Ananias departed and entered

the house. And laying his hands on him, he said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you

on the road by which you came, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy

Spirit. And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight.

Then he rose and was baptized. And taking food, he was strengthened.

For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus, and immediately he proclaimed Jesus

in the synagogue, saying, He is the Son of God. And all who heard him were amazed and said,

Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon his name? And has he not come

here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests? But Saul increased all the more

in strength and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.

When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him. But their plot became known to Saul.

They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night

and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket. And when he had come to

Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples, and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe

that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them

how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly

in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of

the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him.

And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking

in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost, but now am found. Was blind, but now I see. Those are some of the most familiar

words in English hymnody, aren't they? And the writer, John Newton, the story of his conversion

is also incredibly well known. He was an 18th century ship captain and slave trader. In his own words,

he was an infidel and a libertine. And yet one day at sea, he met Jesus Christ and his life changed.

In time, he would leave the slave trade, become a minister of the Church of England,

and end up becoming an active supporter of the abolition of slavery.

His conversion to Christ made a complete change.

Of course, the radical and obvious 180 of John Newton's life doesn't initially seem to be the

pattern of everyone who becomes a Christian, does it? Some grow up in the church and come to believe

in Jesus at a young age. Some come to faith gradually over time. Experiences and stories radically differ.

John Newton's conversion happened at sea in the middle of a severe storm in a ship that nearly sunk.

Compare that with C.S. Lewis.

In 1929, in his room at Maudlin College, Oxford, after much intellectual and personal wrestling,

he finally came to believe in God,

calling himself the most reluctant convert in all England.

That was his coming to believe in God. His actual commitment to Christ

came a couple years later, after a long night talking with friends,

in the morning, headed to the zoo with his brother,

riding in the sidecar of his motorcycle.

When we set out, I did not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, Lewis writes,

and when we reached the zoo, I did.

It's hard to imagine two pictures more different than that.

A slave trader, face down, in a sinking ship,

and an Oxford Don pondering the Son of God in the sidecar of a motorcycle.

And yet for all the differences,

is there something in common,

something similar running through them all?

What is the nature of genuine Christian conversion?

And that's an important question.

It's an important question if you're considering the claims of Christ

and wondering what it actually means to become a Christian.

But it's also an important question if you already are one.

Because the dynamics of becoming a Christian

are actually the same ones that function throughout the Christian life

for our growth.

So it's a good exercise, even for believers,

to go back to the beginning

and consider again what conversion actually means.

Well, this morning we're considering

one of the most famous conversions in all of religious history, right?

The conversion of the man we now call the Apostle Paul.

And as we'll see, there's a lot of unique things about Paul's conversion,

things that really can't and aren't going to be repeated today.

But this passage also displays

some of the most essential things

about every conversion to Christ.

In this chapter in Acts,

we're shown how Jesus Christ

radically turns around Paul's life.

In fact, that's what the word conversion actually means,

to be turned around.

And in so doing, it shows us what it means

for Jesus to turn our lives around.

Paul himself saw his conversion this way,

as an example for other believers.

We read earlier in 1 Timothy 1,

but I receive mercy for this reason,

that in me,

as the foremost of sinners,

Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience

as an example

to those who are to believe in him

for eternal life.

There it is.

Paul's conversion,

an example of what Jesus does

for those who believe.

So let's follow the narrative of Acts 9,

and let's look at the nature of Christian conversion this morning.

And we're going to take it in four parts.

And the first part is right in verses 1 and 2.

I haven't given the sort of points of my sermon

very creative titles this morning,

so there you go.

I titled this one,

Jesus, Paul before meeting Jesus.

Then the second one's going to be,

Paul meets Jesus.

The third point is,

Paul after meeting Jesus.

Jesus.

And then the fourth point is,

a summary.

So there you go.

There's my creative outline.

So first,

verses 1 and 2,

Paul before meeting Jesus.

Now we met Paul at the end of chapter 7,

do you remember?

In the beginning of chapter 8.

And in these chapters,

Luke refers to Paul

by his Hebrew name, Saul.

It was a very common practice

for Hebrews in the first century

to have a Hebrew name

and also to have a Roman name.

So Saul had a Roman name,

Paul,

and that's what we typically know him by.

And in fact,

in Acts chapter 13,

Acts 13 · chapter mention

when Paul sort of launches out

in the Gentile mission,

Luke will begin referring to him as Paul

pretty much for the rest of the narrative

since he's there among the Gentiles.

And in fact,

as we know,

that's the name that Saul,

Paul will use

in all of his letter to the churches.

But here,

he's referred to as Saul.

Back in chapter 7,

what do we find?

We find Saul

at the execution of Stephen,

approvingly holding people's coats

while they throw the stones.

And after that,

we see him ravaging the church in Jerusalem,

going from house to house,

dragging men and women off to prison.

In other words,

he is the spearhead

of the opposition to the gospel.

He is the arch enemy of the church,

Saul,

the zealous young Pharisee

from Tarsus,

brought up in Jerusalem.

And now,

Luke picks up the story

in chapter 9.

And what we find there

is that he's doing everything he can

to stop the church

from spreading to other cities.

You see,

for Saul,

the message of Jesus

is like gangrene.

It's like a deadly disease

that's moving very quickly

and has to be stopped

as violently

and as vigorously

as he possibly can.

So he's using

whatever means he might find

to cut it off.

And Damascus,

this very ancient city

in the Middle East,

with a large Jewish population

and with multiple synagogues,

was, of course,

a reasonable target

for Saul's attack.

Now, perhaps the most striking thing

about Luke's description

of Paul here

are the overtones

of the language

that he uses.

Even that initial phrase,

breathing threats

and murder,

it actually

conveys the picture

of a wild beast

stalking

and tearing

at its prey.

It's almost as if

Paul's hatred

of Christianity,

of the way,

as Luke calls it,

had begun

to steal his humanity.

His hatred of Christ

was turning him

into a wild animal

of violence

and rage.

Now we see

why years later

Paul would look back

on this part of his life,

his persecution

of the church,

and say,

I am the chief

of sinners.

Of course,

if there was anyone

that the early church

thought would never

have become

a follower of Jesus,

it was Saul.

We see from verse 13

that he was notorious.

Everyone in Damascus,

before he even got there,

had heard that he was

killing Christians,

and they knew that he was

coming to round them up.

If there was anyone

who was too far gone,

it was surely this guy.

If there was anyone

that was beyond the pale,

it was him.

There was no way

that he was going

to believe the gospel

and follow Jesus.

And yet,

that's exactly

what happens.

even though he hated

everything to do

with Christianity,

even though he used

every ounce of his strength

to stomp it out,

even though his heart

had become twisted

and cruel,

none of that

was a match

for the grace

of Jesus Christ.

Don't you see, friends,

Paul was the chief

of sinners,

and yet,

Christ loves him

and rescues him.

Isn't that amazing?

And don't you see

what that means?

If Christ can save

someone like Saul,

friends,

he can save anyone.

No matter how dark

the sins,

no matter how twisted

and beastly the hearts.

So when you think

about and pray

for that friend

or neighbor

who seems so unlikely

to believe,

friend,

in that moment,

remember Paul,

the chief of sinners,

the persecutor

of Christians,

the most unlikely

convert of all time.

You see,

no barrier of belief

is so thick

that the grace of God

can't break through.

So friends,

don't lose your hope.

For your friends,

your neighbors,

your co-workers.

Instead,

expect that God

can work

even in what seems

to be the hardest

of hearts.

After all,

we know our own hearts,

don't we?

Isn't that part of the reason

why Paul can say,

I'm the chief of sinners?

Because he looks

at his own heart.

And friends,

we do the same thing,

don't we?

And if we know

our own hearts,

if we see

the darkness there,

and if God

can save us,

then surely

he can save anyone.

But I think

we should go

even a step

further

and apply

what we see

of Paul here

in these verses

to our own hearts

even deeper.

Friends,

today,

I wonder if you're

battling with guilt.

I wonder if past

sins keep haunting you.

If your soul

is burdened

with regrets

and shame

over things

that you've said

or left unsaid

or things that you've done

or left undone.

If so,

look at Paul.

Look at all

that he had done

against the name of Christ.

Look at this

chief of sinners

and now see the grace

of Jesus Christ

covering it all

like a great wave

covering the shore.

Like Paul,

no sin of yours

is too great

to withstand

his mercy.

So what does this

picture of Paul

before meeting Jesus

in verses 1 and 2

tell us about

Christian conversion?

Well, it tells us

quite a lot actually

but centrally

it tells us this

that conversion

is by no means

about cleaning up

your own act

and then trying

to come to God.

Real conversion

isn't about

trying harder

to be a better person

or making earnest

resolutions

to change.

No, in fact,

at first

conversion is just

the opposite.

It's about admitting

that we're worse

even than we think

we are.

And from that place,

not to work

but to receive.

to receive

something that's

given to us

or to be

actually more accurate

to receive

someone

who's given to us.

And that actually

brings us to the

second section

of Acts 9

which is in

verses 3-9.

Paul meets

Jesus.

Now briefly,

first and foremost,

we have to realize

that as we look again

at verses 3-9

there's a lot here

that's going on

that is completely

unique in the

history of salvation.

You see,

what happens to Paul

on the road to Damascus

isn't sort of a mere

spiritual vision.

No, it's actually

a genuine bodily

appearance of the

risen Jesus.

Later in the chapter,

both Ananias

in chapter 17

and Barnabas

in verse 17

and Barnabas

in verse 27

they're going to

confirm this.

You saw Jesus, Paul.

And Paul will say

the same thing

in his letters.

1 Corinthians 9-1

Have I not seen

the Lord?

It's interesting

that in 1 Corinthians 15

where Paul's again

talking about

meeting the risen Jesus

he says that

he was like one

untimely born.

It's a very

interesting phrase.

In other words,

he's acknowledging

on the one hand

that the timing

of Jesus appearing

to him

was very unlike

the rest of the apostles.

It was much later

untimely born.

And yet,

nonetheless,

just like them,

he had seen Jesus

with his own eyes.

And as he goes on

to say in 1 Corinthians 15,

Paul was the last one

to have done so.

So clearly,

this seeing

the risen Jesus

is a very unique element

of Paul's conversion.

If you're considering

the claims of Christ

this morning,

don't expect that.

I'm just going to

throw that out there.

Okay, good.

Unique also

is this call

to apostleship,

isn't it?

Jesus comes to Paul,

radically changes his life,

and immediately

gives him a commission.

A commission to be

one of his apostles.

And apostles,

of course,

were unique figures

in the early church.

They were first

and foremost

eyewitnesses

of the risen Jesus.

And moreover,

they were the ones

the risen Jesus himself

commissioned in person

to be his authoritative

representatives

to teach

and to lead the church.

Paul says again

in 1 Corinthians 15

that he was the last

to be chosen

and commissioned

by the resurrection Jesus.

So that, too,

is unique about his conversion.

And even on top

of all that,

we shouldn't expect

there to be the same

kind of spectacular,

visible manifestations

that we see here, right?

The blinding light,

the audible voice,

everyone falling

to the ground.

Those things don't even

happen again

in the book of Acts,

so we shouldn't necessarily

expect them

to be happening today.

which is all to say

that there's a lot here

that is gloriously

and beautifully unique.

What we have here

is the risen Lord himself

stopping Paul

in his tracks,

taking this wolf

who is trying

to devour the church,

taking this wolf

and turning him in

not just to a sheep,

but turning him

into a shepherd.

An incredible transformation.

But even if all that

is specific

and not repeated today,

at the same time,

the core

and the essence

of what's going on

in Paul's conversion

is still true today

of every conversion.

And that is,

it is a personal

trust and submission

to Jesus

as the living Lord.

turning from whatever

was once

the center of our lives

and taking hold

of him.

And you see

what that means.

That means that

Christianity

is not

at its core

an ethical code.

Christianity

at its core

is not

a sort of

brilliant

philosophical

worldview.

Christianity

is not even

a sort of

moving set

of religious

practices.

No.

What it is

is a vital

relationship

with Jesus Christ,

the living one.

All those other things

are important,

of course,

the ethics,

the worldview,

the practices.

But they're not

the center.

They're not really

what it comes down to.

No, friends,

it's all about

him,

who he is,

what he's done,

and responding

personally to him.

After his conversion,

Paul gets this.

Look again at verse 20.

What did Paul proclaim

in the synagogues

of Damascus?

Not even a what,

but a who.

He proclaimed Jesus.

The one who had spent

his whole life

proclaiming Torah

and obedience

to the law

now proclaims

Jesus.

You see,

what Paul experienced

on the Damascus road

functionally

ripped his world apart

and put it back

together again.

Imagine,

if you will,

this young,

zealous,

highly religious man

walking down the road

and suddenly being

drenched in light.

A light so bright,

a light so heavy

that it probably made

his quick,

intelligent,

scripture-saturated

mind jump right

to passages

about the light

of God's glory

in the temple

or the light

of Ezekiel's vision

of God's chariot.

And then,

out of this heavenly

vision of light,

suddenly,

a voice speaks,

Saul,

Saul,

Saul,

his name being

repeated,

just like in the Old

Testament when God

would address human

beings.

You can hear

Saul's heart start

beating with excitement

and then

the message comes

and it doesn't make

any sense.

Why are you

persecuting me,

the voice says.

And Saul replies,

who are you,

Lord?

And then,

out of the glorious

light,

comes the same

voice saying,

I'm Jesus.

Imagine the shock

and the confusion

of that moment.

Paul staring

into the very

light of God.

Hears the voice

and sees the face

of Jesus.

the same

Jesus

who was crucified.

The same

Jesus whose

followers

he had been

persecuting

as a plague.

In that

moment,

Paul must have

realized that

despite all

of his raging,

Jesus was

exactly

who they had

said he was.

Alive

and risen.

The Messiah.

The Lord

of all.

The one

whose shameful

death on a

cross was not

a defeat,

but in fact

the perfect

sacrifice

for his,

for Saul's

own sins.

And the one

to whom he owed

total allegiance

and trust.

That's what

genuine conversion

is, friends.

Entrusting

oneself

to the person

of Jesus.

The crucified,

risen,

ascended Lord

who lives

and sits

at the

Father's

right hand.

Of course,

for many

of us,

this won't

happen

in a flash

of light,

in an instant.

Getting to

the point of

believing that

Jesus is the

Son of God,

of trusting

Him with

your whole

life,

for most

people,

that's a

process

of months,

even of

years.

But you

know,

regardless

of the

time frame,

the heart

of it all

is actually

the same.

Listen to

what Paul

would write

later in

2 Corinthians

4, 6.

For God,

who said,

let light

shine out of

darkness,

has shown

in our

hearts

to give

the light

of the

knowledge

of the

glory of

God

in the

face of

Jesus Christ.

You have

to wonder

whether Paul

had his

experience

on the

Damascus

road in

mind when

he wrote

those words,

don't you?

Because even

more impressive

than the

light that

shone into

Paul's eyes

and made

him blind

for days

was the

light that

God had

shone into

his heart.

What is

that light?

It's a

light of

knowledge,

he says.

That is,

it's a

new way

of seeing.

In other

words,

God put

a new

understanding,

not just

in his

mind,

but in

his heart.

God put

a new

heart

knowledge

in Paul

that the

very

glory

of God,

the very

sum of

all that

the Creator

and Redeemer

is,

the very

thing that

Saul as

a young,

zealous

Pharisee had

been trying

to attain

with all

of his

effort,

the glory

of God

is found

in none

other than

in the face

of Jesus

Christ.

You know,

if you've

grown up

in the

church,

you might

feel like

your own

testimony isn't

much to

write home

about.

You think

there's no

great sin

or ruin

from which

God has

rescued you,

and you can

often sort of

feel like your

story is a

bit boring,

a bit bland.

Who would

want to hear

my story?

I grew up

in the

church.

I trusted

in Jesus.

The end.

The end.

No one's

exactly making

movies out

of that.

And yet,

don't you

see what

Paul's

saying here?

What is

as true

of you

now,

Christian,

is as

true of

Paul himself

then,

that God

who said,

let light

shine out

of darkness,

has shown

into your

heart to

give you

the light

of the

knowledge

of the

glory of

God in

the face

of Jesus

Christ.

So,

see,

what happens

in every

genuine

conversion

is the

most amazing

supernatural

event of

all,

regardless

of the

outward

circumstances.

Paul says,

it's like a

new creation.

when God

created the

world with

his speech,

that's

what's

going on.

God

shines

his light

into the

dark of

our dead

hearts,

and we

come alive

with a

love and

trust in

Jesus that

knows him

to be the

very display

of God's

radiance.

Now,

what does

that mean,

that we

come to

know the

glory of

God in

the face

of Jesus

Christ?

Well,

friends,

over time,

it means

that there's

no aspect

of who

God is,

his mercy,

his majesty,

his wisdom,

his power,

his beauty.

There is no

aspect of

who God

is that

you don't

come to

increasingly

see,

summarized,

epitomized,

fulfilled,

displayed in

its fullest

extent in

the person

and work

of Jesus

Christ.

It all

centers in

him.

He

becomes

the very

lens

through

which we

can see

the glory

of God.

And that's

what this

second section

of Acts 9

shows us

about conversion.

conversion.

It's not

primarily a

conversion to

some rules

to live

by,

to a new

sort of set

of ideas

about understanding

the world,

or a new

collection of

spiritual practices.

Certainly it

entails all that,

right?

But at its

heart,

conversion is

being turned

around by

and to

a person,

the person

of Jesus

Christ.

Friends,

I wonder

if you've

let that

slip

in your

life.

I wonder

if your

walk with

the Lord

has grown

cold

relationally.

The rules

are good.

The ideas

are great.

The practices

are wonderful.

But don't

lose sight

of the

person

who's at

the center

of them

all.

Then in

verses 10

through 30

we have

the third

section

of Paul's

conversion.

And in

these verses

we see

what happens

to Paul

after

meeting

Jesus.

And here

what we

see in

Paul's

life

are things

that are

increasingly

true of

those who

have

experienced

genuine

conversion.

Here are

some of

the effects,

some of

the results

that come

flowing out

of genuinely

meeting

and believing

in Jesus.

And we're

going to

just run

through them

very quickly.

First,

what we

see is

fellowship.

Do you

notice that?

Both in

Damascus and

later in

Jerusalem,

Paul seeks

out and

stays with

the disciples.

This is

something that

characterizes

everyone who's

come to

genuinely

believe in

Christ,

that they

want to

be with

the people

of Christ.

And Paul,

you know,

not only seeks

out this

fellowship nearly

from the

start,

but he also

experiences its

power,

through

Ananias and

later in

Barnabas.

When everyone

else is

suspicious or

afraid,

when Paul

literally doesn't

have a friend

in the world,

these two men

become friends

to Saul,

but no one

else is.

And the scene

with Ananias is

particularly poignant.

Did you catch

the first words

that Ananias

speaks to him?

Brother,

Saul.

Brother.

Ananias,

even though

Saul was

just days

before the

church's

enemy,

Ananias now

receives him

as family

in Christ.

How comforting,

how powerful

that must have

been for Saul.

Knowing that

he deserved

to be cast

out because

of what he

had done

to hear

in the word

of his

brother Ananias

that he

had indeed

been welcomed

because of

what Christ

had done.

Friends,

this is one

of the main

reasons why

we need

one another

in Christian

community.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

says in Life

Together that

the word

of Christ

in the mouth

of my brother

is stronger

than the word

of Christ

in my heart.

And I need

you to tell

me the truth

of the gospel

so that I

believe it.

And you need

me to tell

you.

Now the

implications of

all this are

pretty straightforward,

aren't they?

Genuine conversion

and healthy

discipleship will

naturally lead

to publicly

joining up

with a local

church, a

local fellowship

of the body

believers.

And the first

step is baptism.

Verse 18.

That's what

Paul does.

So friends,

if you've

recently come

to faith in

Christ, you

should be

considering

baptism.

It's a way

to make

public, to

make a public

profession of

your faith in

Christ.

Jesus himself

commanded the

disciples to

do this.

But even

after baptism,

it's important

to be known

by a local

church.

After Paul

goes to a

new city

in verse 26,

after he has

to leave

Damascus and

go back to

Jerusalem,

what's his

very first

move?

To join up

with the

disciples.

We know

from Galatians

1 that Paul's

actually in the

Damascus area

for three years.

So when Luke

says in verse 23

that many days

had passed,

he really

means it.

Many days

had passed.

But the

pattern here I

think is very

relevant to our

context where

people are always

coming and going

about every three

to four years.

And the healthy

pattern is this.

You come to a

new city, you

find a fellowship

of believers, a

church, and you

join in.

That's what formal

church membership is

all about.

Being known by a

body of disciples

who can help you

along in your

walk with Christ

and who you

can help in turn.

So genuine

conversion results

in fellowship, a

new relationship to

other believers.

But it also

results, second, in

ministry.

This is the pattern

you see.

Paul goes, he

finds the fellowship,

and then he starts

ministering.

In other words, Paul

has a completely new

responsibility to the

world.

We see in verse 20

that immediately after

his conversion, Saul's

proclaiming Jesus in

the synagogues, bearing

witness to Christ.

It's interesting in

verse 25 that Luke,

even at this early

point in Paul's

ministry, can speak of

his disciples.

Paul is busy making

disciples of Jesus, just

like Jesus told the

apostles, go into all

the world and make

disciples of all

nations.

That's exactly what

Paul is doing.

He's making disciples.

Now, of course, not all

of us post-conversion are

going to take up full-time

ministry like Paul.

But coming to know Jesus

will give us this new

sense of vision and

responsibility for the

world that we live in.

We continue to do our

jobs well as a way to

love our neighbors and

glorify God, but we also

want to see our neighbors

flourish spiritually.

So we long for them to

become disciples of Jesus

as well.

And what's more, we want

to see our fellow

believers grow in the

faith.

So we'll begin to want

to find ways of doing

good to them spiritually

as well.

We'll want to be in

discipling relationships.

We'll want to seek them

out and look for them in

small groups and on

Sundays.

We want to be open to

people speaking into our

lives and walking along

with us.

And we want to be open to

finding others that we can

do that with.

Who can I meet with to do

this?

Who can I encourage in

their walk in Christ?

Christ.

So conversion produces not

just a desire to take

part in the fellowship of

the church, but also a

desire to see that

fellowship grow through

your personal active

discipling ministry.

So fellowship, ministry,

and then the last thing we

see, third, is cost.

Jesus makes it clear to

Paul that Paul's going to

suffer for his sake.

And in both Damascus and

Jerusalem, after Paul finds

the fellowship and begins

ministry, people end up

wanting to kill him and he

has to escape.

He's forced to leave the

people he's come to love in

Damascus and he's forced to

flee from the city he loves,

Jerusalem.

He's got to leave it all

behind.

You see, genuine conversion

will lead to doing costly

things for the sake of

Christ.

Of course, few people will

literally want to kill us,

would be my guess.

But being a follower of

Christ will still be costly.

Our reputation in the world

may suffer.

Our job success may be

hindered.

Some of our relationships

may be strained or even

end altogether.

There will come points when

faithfulness to Jesus will

try us with a very hard

path to tread.

And so we have to ask,

what made Paul so willing to

bear the costly weight of

discipleship?

What enabled him to leave so

much that he loved?

What enabled him to leave all

that behind and head out

to begin ministering among

Gentiles people that just

a few years before he

couldn't care anything about?

Well, friends, it comes back

to his conversion, doesn't

it?

That the Jesus who was

himself and is the glory of

God is the one who took up

the greatest cost for Paul.

Later, Paul will write,

the life I now live,

I live by faith in the Son of

God who loved me and gave

himself for me.

You see, friends, when Jesus

died on the cross,

he was dying the death

of a persecutor and a

blasphemer and an enemy of God,

God, even though he had done

nothing wrong.

And what Paul came to see in

that blinding vision was that

the death of Christ was

something that Jesus had done in

Paul's own place, bearing the cost

that his sins deserved, bearing the

cost that our sins deserved.

Paul knew that his infinite debt had

been paid on the cross so that any

cost he might now bear was nothing

compared to the love that he had

received in Jesus, the Son of God who

loved me and gave himself for me.

And friends, it's the same for us.

When we come to know the one who

loved us and gave himself for us,

no cost will deter us.

No cost will compare to knowing him,

the one who took hold of us.

Well, in Acts 31, 9-31, Luke ends his

account of Paul's conversion with a

summary.

He says this in verse 31,

So the church throughout all Judea and

Galilee and Samaria had peace and was

being built up, and walking in the fear

of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy

Spirit, it multiplied.

It's a fitting summary, you know.

Paul, of course, is a hero of the faith,

no doubt.

God used Paul in simply uncomparable

ways to spread the gospel.

You and I functionally are sitting here

this morning because of what the

apostle, because what God did through

the apostle Paul.

He was the one that God used to take

the gospel in its most sort of poignant

and powerful ways to the Gentiles.

That's most of us.

And yet, doesn't verse 31 remind us

that Jesus loves the whole church,

and that what he did in Paul and through

Paul was for the church, the church that

he loves?

Did you guess what Jesus said back in

verse 4 when he arrests Saul on the road

to Damascus?

He says, Saul, Saul, why are you, not

why are you persecuting them, but why are you

persecuting me?

Isn't that astounding?

Jesus doesn't say, why are you persecuting

those Christians over there?

Why are you persecuting me?

And doesn't that tell us the kind of vital,

intimate union that Jesus has with the whole

church?

That he so identifies with us, and so

completely, and so intimately, that any harm

done to the church is as if it's harm done

to him.

That he has connected himself with his body

in an unbreakable way.

Martin Luther, in his short work,

The Freedom of a Christian, describes what

happens when someone puts their trust in

Christ.

And he describes it like a marriage.

He says, faith unites us to Christ in such a

binding and intimate way.

It's like the same way that a husband and wife are

united to one another and become one flesh.

And then he goes on and he says, and just like a

marriage, so it is with our marriage to Christ that

what's true of the one becomes true of the other.

In other words, Jesus takes what's rightfully mine,

my sin and my death and my condemnation, and I get

what's rightfully his.

His righteousness, his life, and his intimacy with

the Father.

This is the union that the church has with Jesus.

This is the union and the kind of relationship that

everyone who believes has with the risen Lord.

From heaven he came and sought her, the song says,

to be his holy bride.

And with his own blood he bought her.

And for her life he died.

Friends, the same way in which Jesus pursued Saul and

turned his life around and took him to himself,

that is what he desires to do with every one of us.

In a minute we're going to go to the Lord's table where we

actually remember those twin truths.

That Jesus' body was broken for us and his blood was shed for us

to forgive our sins.

And then we do something that's kind of weird.

Lord, we take that bread and we take that cup and we eat it.

What could be more intimate and close than eating with someone,

than sharing a meal together?

Jesus says, that's the kind of closeness that I actually have with you.

So friends, let's pray and let's prepare our hearts.

Lord Jesus, we pray that now as we come to the table,

Lord, you would stir our hearts once again

to see how beautiful you are

and how much you love us.

Lord, I pray for those who are here this morning

who are wrestling with

the claims that you make, Jesus.

Lord, those who are perhaps wrestling with

believing in you, trusting in you,

Lord, I ask that your great grace

would break through their hearts

and draw them to yourself.

And Lord, for those of us whom you have taken hold of,

Lord, would you feed us and strengthen us

and help us to remember

the great love that you have for us.

Lord, we pray this in your name.

Amen.