A KILLER COMES TO CHRIST
TEXT: Acts 9:1-9
Acts 9:1 9 -- And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unt the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.
l. SAUL OF TARSUS
A. Marked by Separation
-Paul was marked by separation. It was a separation that went beyond the ordinary. Consider:
Romans 1:1 -- Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,
Galatians 1:15 -- But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace,
-Perhaps when the common man saw Paul, dressed almost shabbily, living his life among the poor, they might have taken him for what he appeared to be; but when they came to know him, they found an unequaled intensity about his mission.
B. It Was Not Always So
-But it was not always so. It was the terrible Saul of Tarsus before he became the Apostle Paul. The tremendous capabilities of his mind stretch into an understanding that was not rivaled by his peers. They sat in utter amazement as Saul would quote the whole portions of Job, of Isaiah, of Ezekiel, and then enlighten their own minds as to the content.
-He was a student who sat at the feet of Gamaliel. Gamaliel, the greatest teacher of the Law in that era, found himself challenged by the remarkable young student, this Saul of Tarsus. But there was something so significant about his Saul of Tarsus in that he lived in ignorance and unbelief (which are his own words, not mine).
-The finest of minds, the best of educators, the finest of books, and yet still this man lived in spiritual darkness. It brings a chill to the soul, to realize that here in this room right now, are those who week in and week out attend places of worship. They are seemingly involved in worship and all the trappings of church and never have understood the importance of being filled with the Spirit.
-For it was this Law of God that Paul:
Reasoned out so well.
Debated with such mastery.
Taught with such skill.
Preached with such intensity and feeling.
-But all of it to Paul:
So full of life yet so empty.
So full of passion yet so empty of his emotions.
So full of conviction yet no conversion.
So full of concepts but void of love.
So full of hope yet so troubled.
-All of that was to change. It changed on the day that a killer came to Christ. For you see, the great Saul of Tarsus hated the young church. As of yet it is only two or three years old and growing very quietly in Jerusalem. At first the authorities had been inclined to persecute it, but having checked with the teachers of the day, decided to let it live and it would die out as quickly as it had been born.
-It was sort of a truce that developed between the church and the teachers. Under the advice of Gamaliel, the leaders quietly observed and the Christians made as little offense as possible. But the Church never has been and never will be able to keep a truce. For locked up inside of the apostolic church is a world-conquering drive that forces it to touch, almost as the leaven of Matthew 13, everything it comes into contact with.
-After a short while, there arose a man in the apostolic church who was as aggressive because the Bible says that he was "full of the Holy Ghost." On the fateful day he stood up to preach. Preach with force and preach with power. His message led to his execution. The offenders of the church herded him to outskirts of town and hurled stones on him until he had been killed.
-Standing on the edge of that wild scene was Saul of Tarsus, involved and with the mass of persecutors, the killers, unknown as of yet to his full life’s purpose. The pile of robes at his feet, his eyes riveted on that bloody, yet serene face of Stephen, kneeling, with words that would reach into Saul’s heart: "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge."
-But it was Saul’s zeal on this occasion that probably secured him a seat among the Sanhedrin, where one will soon find him embarking on a fight against the early church.
-Terrible were the scenes that followed. He flew from synagogue to synagogue, from house to house, dragging men and women, and throwing them into prison and other punishment. The church at Jerusalem was broken in pieces and those remaining scattered throughout the country. Saul threw himself into the persecution of the church with unmatched intensity convinced that it was God’s work.
-Having heard that Damascus had become a safe haven for the church, he pursued northward, with letters in his hands, and murder in his heart, he walked onto the road that would forever mark him.
-He had nearly completed his journey. Having crossed the burning flatlands and now moving into the hills north of Galilee, he began to walk the lush valley watered by the Abana and Pharpar rivers. It is about high noon, when all is quiet, that the event that changes his entire life comes about.
-A blinding light from heaven, slammed him to the ground, the stupefied friends of the Pharisee heard a roaring, they could not understand. Saul heard what they did not hear; he saw what they did not see.
-The burning light of the vision blinded him and he entered Damascus, not at the head the group, no longer bent on schemes of violence and destruction, but led by the hand, as if he were a prisoner. There for three days he fasted, prayed--passed seventy hours in darkness, in silence, alone, alone with God.
-God changed Saul of Tarsus into the Apostle Paul:
He falls down a sinner, but will rise a saint.
He falls an unbeliever, but rises a champion.
He falls a hater of the Gospel, but rises an apostle.
He falls a blasphemer, but rises a martyr.
He falls a hater of the Savior, but rises so that for him to live is Christ.
-Radical transformation.
C. What Causes Those Marks of God?
-What caused the marks of God in the life of Paul?
If it were disappointment, then the marks would just be of failure.
It if were punishment, then the marks would just be of sin.
If it were the culture, then the marks would be of education.
If it were suffering, they would not be authenticate, for some men suffer and their sufferings separate them from God.
-What was it that caused those marks? . . . . . . . . Paul affirms that his marks were caused by the Lord Jesus. He gained them by surrendering his will. He gained them in the path of obedience.
-Only God can heal the wounds that He makes. Paul’s blindness prior to his conversion, Paul’s thorn placed there by God. . . . used by God. . . . healed by God.
-God uses trials to mark our lives with the marks of commitment. When these wounds began to mark our lives, we cannot afford to allow them:
To become infected with bitterness.
To be torn by jealousy.
To be crippled by malice and wrath.
To be destroyed by resentment.
To be hobbled by anger.
Nor to began to harbor the works of darkness in the deep recesses of the soul.
-Never, never, never, for a moment think that your darkest trial, your most difficult task, the most hurtful situation in your life is without purpose. There is indeed purpose in the pain that God allows men to walk through.
ll. WHAT MUST I DO?
-A crucial question in Acts 9, is uttered from the lips of the Saul. "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?"
-The question was personal. Not, Lord what do you want my family to do? Not, Lord what do you want the church to do? Not, Lord what do you want the man down the street to do? But, Lord what do you want ME to do?
-One may expect that God wants men to do something so great and fantastic after they meet with Him, but it is not so.
Jacob -- After meeting the Lord in the dream that night, rose up the next morning, built a memorial and went on the journey.
Namaan -- Was sent simply to the river Jordan to dip seven times.
The Fisherman -- Men who were to convert the world, were merely asked to leave their nets.
The Healed Leper -- Told simply to go home.
The Young Man who came to the Lord, expecting great sacrifice -- Sent home to give to the poor.
lll. PSALM 51 -- THE PRAYER OF REPENTANCE
Psalm 51:1 19 -- Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling
Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling, Calling for you and for me; See, on the portals He=s waiting and watching, Watching for you and for me.
Why should we tarry, when Jesus is pleading, Pleading for you and for me? Why should we linger and heed not His mercies, Mercies for you and for me?
Time is now fleeting, the moments are passing, Passing from you and from me; Shadows are gathering, deathbeds are coming, Coming for you and for me.
Oh! For the wonderful love He has promised, Promised for you and for me; Tho’ we have sinned, He has mercy and pardon, Pardon for you and for me.
Come home, Come home, Ye who are weary, come home; Earnestly and tenderly Jesus is calling, Calling, O sinner come home!
Philip Harrelson
barnabas14@yahoo.com
