Drowning in Data

Good evening.

Acts twenty-two.

Acts twenty-two As you're turning over there, I have a uh a question to start the lesson off.

And that is who are you?

Of course, that can be a uh that can be a loaded question because oftentimes we're many things.

We're a husband, we're a father, we're a mother, we're maybe an educator, we we're bilingual, whatever it is.

We identify today with so many different things, and those things aren't necessarily bad things.

In Acts 22, we're gonna see Paul identify as a Jew, but also identify as a Roman.

But ultimately, his purpose and why he does what he does is because of his identity in Jesus.

Paul would even say in Galatians chapter 2, verse 20, I have been crucified with Christ.

Galatians 2:20

It is no longer I who live, right?

His identity has changed, his main identity, but Christ who lives in me.

That should be true for every one of us, for every one of us who follows Jesus.

So in Acts 22, we're looking at the identity of Paul.

This chapter really just rehashes his testimony, his life, and there are several places throughout the scripture where Paul talks about himself and his story.

But here we are in Acts 22.

In the previous chapter, he's just been arrested.

But he's going to give his testimony here.

He's going to give his testimony before the Jews, before the uh the tribune, and the tribune is just a high Roman officer in charge of many Roman soldiers.

But here he is in Acts 22, and he's he's telling his story before Romans, but he's specifically talking to the Jews.

Just to provide some context, look at Acts chapter 21, and look at what happens.

Acts 21 · chapter mention

Verses 27 through 28.

He's just finished his missionary journeys, he's in Jerusalem, he's in the temple, and it says this in verse 27 when the seven days were almost complete, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on Paul, crying out, Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place.

Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.

Now these are Jews from Asia, and they obviously are familiar with Paul because when they see Paul, they recognize Paul and they are upset.

Why are they upset?

Well, because in their mind, Paul is corrupting the Jewish nation and everything that they stand for.

He's bringing in these unclean Gentiles.

Why would he do that?

Look at what they say about him.

This is a man who is teaching everyone and everywhere against God's people and against God's law and against God's temple, this place.

And so the next few verses, they drag him out of the temple and they beat him.

And the tribune arrests Paul, and Paul gives his defense or asks to give his defense in Acts 22, and that's where we're at.

If we look at this chapter, we can follow a very simple structure, and it's gonna be the flow of our lesson this evening.

It is to look at his identity as a Jew, and then in the middle of the chapter, he looks at his identity in Christ, and then he ends the chapter with his identity as a Roman citizen.

So we're gonna start with the first one, his identity as a Jew.

In Acts chapter 22, verse 2, he speaks to the crowd and he begins to speak in Hebrew, but I want you to look at verse 3 as he begins to tell us his story.

Acts 22:2

How does he identify?

Verse 3, I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Sis of Sisia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day.

I persecuted the way, I persecuted, he's saying, these Christians to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness.

From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed to Damascus to take those who were who were there and to bring them in bonds to Jerusalem and to be punished.

So, how does Paul open up?

He opens up by saying, Look, I am a Jew.

That's a part of his identity.

That's a part of his story.

He hooks them in by letting them know, look, I get it.

I was once like you.

I persecuted these Christians.

And some of you can be a witness to that in verse 5.

You can testify to that.

He relates to them.

He doesn't just, he's not justifying what they're doing, but but he's connecting to them.

Which makes me ask, what is your story?

Right?

What what's your background?

Because something we know for sure, something that is certain that the scriptures tell us is that all of us has fallen short of the glory of God.

All of us.

When we're talking to others, should relate to those who feel like they are stuck in sin, trapped in this world.

All of us can connect to others to some degree or another.

And so Paul here relates to his audience, no matter how hostile they may be, he relates to them.

Because before Christ, before Christ, all of us had our identity rooted in this world and in our sin.

And so Paul says, look, you think you're zealous for God?

I was zealous for God, so much so that I persecuted the Christians to the death in verse 4.

This is some strong language.

He's resonating with their heart, he realizes where it comes from.

But to those Jews here that are listening in Acts 22, Paul can understand their heart.

But here's the thing: little do they know that by persecuting Paul, they're actually persecuting Christ.

They're persecuting Jesus.

Ironically, they are persecuting the very God that they're zealous for.

And so at this point, Paul's now going to shift the story some and let them know this is where my identity begins to change.

Yes, I'm a Jew by birth.

I grew up here in Jerusalem.

I was brought up in Jerusalem, he says.

I was educated by Gamaliel.

All of that is true.

But things in Paul's life really begin to change from this moment on when he's on his way to Damascus.

He's not just a Jew, he's something much, much more because of who he runs into.

And his life changes for that.

And so should yours.

And so for us, every time we are baptized, we are born again.

We are a new creation.

We're given a new life, and therefore we're given a new identity.

This changes us, it should change us.

It changes our zeal, it reorients our passion, it changes the things that we do and why we do those things.

And this happens to Paul.

He shows us this.

His zeal for God changes, unlike the Jews that he's talking to.

Acts 22, look at verses 6 through 11.

As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon, a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me.

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

And I answered, Who are you, Lord?

And he said to me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.

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

And I said, What shall I do, Lord?

And the Lord said to me, Rise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.

And since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were who were with me and came into Damascus.

You see, who we believe we are, who we think we are affects how we act.

You look at these verses, Paul believed that he was a faithful Jew defending the law of God, defending the strict law, the strict manner of the law, I should say.

And hears Paul's life, his story, his identity, and it is completely interrupted.

A great light shines from heaven and he falls into the ground and he hears a voice.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

You see, Paul thought he was attacking a movement.

I'm attacking the way, I'm attacking these Christians.

But Jesus says, No.

No, actually, you're attacking me.

And I find it interesting how Jesus really introduces himself here.

He doesn't say, and he has every right to say this, and he has said this, I am Jesus the Christ.

He doesn't say I'm King of Kings.

He doesn't say I'm the Son of Man.

He says, No, I'm Jesus of Nazareth.

It's personal.

It's intimate.

I'm Jesus of Nazareth.

Now, of course, to the people he's talking to, to the Jews that he's talking to, what this is telling them is that this is the Jesus that many here in Jerusalem, you know of him, you rejected, but he's alive and he is king.

And for Paul in his life, suddenly he realizes something.

The person he thought was the false Messiah is actually Lord, as he refers to him.

Lord.

What would it take for Paul, as zealous as he was, to not to do anything other really than what the law says?

It took Jesus coming with a bright light, blinding him, so that he could then listen to the authority of Jesus.

And this gives us some application for us as well, who have our identity rooted in Christ.

Paul asked one of the most important questions that we can ask, and that is, what shall I do, Lord?

What we see is Paul's obedience begin to shift.

This is really the question that all of us should be asking.

Because when our identity shifts, we need to be asking, What shall I do, Lord?

Not what do I want to do, or what's pleasurable for me?

No.

Or for Paul, he might ask, what does the law tell me to do?

Or what do the Pharisees order me to do?

No.

We ask, what shall I do, Lord?

Because when our allegiance begins to change, so does our identity.

You see, there will be moments and times, maybe this week, maybe tomorrow, where you are faced with temptation.

And we have to choose who are we going to be?

Who are we going to be?

We have to remember our identity.

And a good way to do that is to submit to Jesus and say, What shall I do, Lord?

Every day.

And that will help give us direction.

It helps Paul.

You look at Acts 22, look at what happens in verses 12 through 16.

And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well spoken of by all the Jews who live there, came to me and standing by me said to me, Brother Saul, receive your sight.

And at that very hour I received my sight and saw him.

And he said, The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the righteous one, to hear a voice from his mouth.

For you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard.

And now, why do you wait?

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

So notice who he's talking to, right?

He says Ananias here, and he frames Ananias in a different way than Acts 9, which is very interesting.

Paul knows who he's talking to.

So the details matter.

He's like, hey, this is a devout man according to the law, well spoken of by the Jews.

He covers his bases.

But I want you to look at verses 14 through 15.

Because at this point, this is where the will of God begins to enter into Paul's testimony.

And what is that for him?

To be a witness, it says in verse 15, a witness for Christ to everyone of what Paul has seen and heard.

And again, it opens up even more application for us.

This is something that all of us, all of us, should do and can do.

What all of us should be, a witness.

Now we are not apostles.

There are not apostles today.

And we physically have not seen what we read about in the scriptures.

We're not martyrs.

However, as Christians, we can make a defense of the hope that is within us.

We can be a witness to what we read about in God's Word.

We can be a witness to the change that Jesus has brought to our lives and the lives of our brothers and sisters.

And so when it comes to our identity in Christ, this is what all of us are: witnesses to the hope that we live by and the change in our lives.

We are walking witnesses of the gospel and the power of the gospel.

And of course, that journey starts when we are baptized.

You know, Paul had sins, sins that he needed to be washed clean of.

It doesn't matter how closely he may have followed the law, he needed to be baptized for the forgiveness of his sins.

It doesn't matter how good of a person I may think I am, how good and how nice I am.

It doesn't matter how just I may think my cause is.

And so it tells us, tells us something.

Paul's talking, he's talking to the zealous Jews, and he's letting them know this is what I did, and it's what you should do as well.

Be baptized, washing away your sins.

Because it is out of the water.

When we rise out of the water, we rise with a new identity.

We rise to be like Christ.

And this is Paul's new identity.

Beyond being a Jew or a Pharisee of Pharisee or even a Roman citizen, no, Paul's purpose is given to him through Christ.

And that is what Paul tells us the next few verses.

He stays in constant communication with Jesus, living constantly by what Jesus has been telling him to do.

Look at verses 17 through 22 of Acts 22.

When I had returned to Jerusalem, I was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance and saw Jesus saying to me, Make haste, get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.

And now here he is telling his testimony, verse 19.

And I said, Lord, they themselves know that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you.

And when the blood of Stephen, your witness, was being shed, I myself was standing by and approving and watching over the garments of those who killed him.

And he said to me, Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.

Up to this word, they listened to him.

Up to that word, the Gentiles, that's when they stopped listening to him.

And they raised their voices and said, Away with such a fellow from this earth, for he should not be allowed to live.

Wow, that is quite the reaction.

But what's Paul's purpose here?

Paul's purpose is to go to the Gentiles, Jesus says.

And then once he says Gentiles, that is when abruptly his testimony, his speech ends.

Why?

We have to remember why the Jews are so upset with Paul in the first place.

Remember in Acts 21?

They're upset because of everything he's doing against the Jewish nation, because of his connection with the Gentiles.

And so when they hear that word Gentiles up to that word in verse 22, that's when they get upset.

And they say Paul shouldn't even be allowed to live or walk on this earth.

But what has Paul done other than expressing his real identity?

I've been baptized for the forgiveness of my sins.

I've been sent to go and preach the gospel to the Gentiles.

But this is something that they're listening to, but they can't accept.

This Paul, a disciple of Jesus, I can't accept that.

And what's true for us is that all of us who are disciples of Jesus is that there are many out there who cannot accept that for us as well.

They can't.

Some people cannot imagine themselves beyond who they already are.

They can't get past that.

There might be something greater in life.

There might be a king.

No, there is a king who rules their life and our life better than ourselves and this world.

And what Paul shows us is that by the end of this chapter, yes, we can identify with many different things, but it does not define who we are.

But those things alone cannot measure up to who Christ is.

If anything, my identity in Christ helps me be a better friend, be a better husband, be a better father.

Hopefully, hopefully, be a better preacher.

But the Jews can't see this.

And this is where we begin to shift to our third identity.

The Jews become even more angry, right?

Look at verse 23 of Acts 22.

As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, the tribune ordered him to be brought into the barracks, saying that he should be examined by flogging to find out why they were shouting against him like this.

If you think of the life of Paul up to this point, I mean, he has been beaten over and over and over again.

He has been through so much pain, it is not even funny.

Paul is very familiar with beating.

He's very familiar with being flogged.

You can imagine his body, his back just littered with scars, all for the sake of Christ, all for the sake of the gospel.

It's like those scars have almost become a part of his identity.

But here, here's an opportunity now in the text where he identifies with the Romans.

And he does.

And the last time this happened was in Acts chapter 16, when he was in Philippi.

Acts 16 · chapter mention

But notice how, notice how almost when our identity is rooted in Christ, helps him become a better Roman, it helps him become a better Jew.

Look at Acts 22, verses 20, 25 through 29.

Acts 22:20

But when they had stretched him out for the whips, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned?

When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said to him, What are you about to do?

For this man is a Roman citizen.

So the tribune came and it said to him, Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?

And he said, Yes.

The tribune answered, I bought this citizenship for a large sum.

And Paul said, But I was born a citizen.

I am a citizen by birth.

29.

So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him immediately, and the tribune was also afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.

To buy a Roman citizenship was very expensive.

Now we don't know how much it was, historians think maybe a couple years' wage.

We don't know.

What we do know is that it was a large sum.

But the fact that Paul was born a citizen in this respect and in this context automatically places Paul at a higher status in the Tribune here.

Which, of course, explains why the Tribune is afraid and everyone else is afraid that he's bound and about to be whipped.

But what all of this shows is that God's hand was at work in Paul's story.

And he's at work in your story as well.

As we close, I want us to focus on what we've been talking about tonight.

You see, we've all been born somewhere.

We all have a citizenship somewhere.

And often that connects us with others.

As an American citizen, I connect with other Americans naturally, right?

We just got finished with the Olympics, and I'm going for the Americans every time that was happening.

Paul connects to the Jews based on, well, that he was born a Jew.

He connects to the Romans based on that he was born a Roman.

But what makes him distinctly different from the world is his citizenship in heaven.

You see, when we are baptized, Jesus would say we are born again.

John chapter 3, verse 5, Jesus says, Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

John 3:5

And so what are we born into?

We're born into Christ, but we're born, born again with a citizenship of heaven.

Paul would say to the Philippians in Philippians 3, verse 20, but our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:20

And so our citizenship connects us to others who have the same citizenship at a deeper level than anything else.

When we zoom out and we look at Acts 22, Paul's telling his story, and in the middle of this chapter, he's detailing his identity in Christ.

And it's like a bridge, if you will, between his interactions with the Jews and his interactions with the Gentiles.

That no, there's actually something greater than being a Jew, there's something greater than being a Roman.

No matter how we today might identify, there's something greater than that because those things are fleeting.

No, you want to identify with something that is eternal, with Jesus.

And so Paul's life actually acts as an example for us that yes, we may identify with different things, but our purpose comes first from Christ.

And so, who are you?

If you are in Christ, the invitation is for you to be like Paul, like Stephen that was mentioned in this chapter, to be a witness for the gospel, but to every day ask Jesus, what shall I do, Lord?

But if you're not in Christ and you look at yourself and you don't see Christ, now's an opportunity to change.

As Ananias told Paul, what are you waiting for?

Rise and be baptized, washing away your sins.

Because when you come up out of that water, you're given a new identity.

You're given, you're born again and you're given a citizenship in heaven that lasts for eternity.

Don't miss out on that.

Come forward now while we stand and we sing.