Reading: Acts chapter 21 verse 40- chapter 22 verse 30.
Ill:
Insurance claim forms (Saying it clear)
On 3 separate occasions between Paul’s third missionary journey & his trip to Rome:
• He stood before different audiences and presented Christ to them.
• Often he stood alone.
• The audience that he addressed was made up of unbelievers,
• Many of whom were hostile and rude.
Question: Do you know the method Paul used each time?
Answer: His personal testimony.
Each time he spoke:
• He simply shared how his own life had been changed,
• By the risen, glorified Lord Jesus Christ.
• Not once did he argue or debate with them.
• Not once did he preach a sermon.
Question: Why did he share his testimony?
Answer:
• Because one of the most convincing,
• Unanswerable arguments on earth regarding Christianity is one’s personal story.
Ill:
Like the blind man in John chapter 9.
• People might not believe your words,
• But they will have no answer for your changed life or different lifestyle.
• The events surrounding Paul sharing his first testimony,
• Can be divided into four sections.
The first section concerns the presentation itself.
(1). Pauls credentials:
Chapter 21 verse 35 to 39:
• Last week Paul was rescued from a rioting crowd by Roman soldiers,
• Climbing up the stairs that lead into the military barracks:
• The Apostle asks the Roman commander,
• If he can speak to the hostile crowd that is still calling out for his death.
And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the stairs:
• Motioned to the people with his hand; and when there was a great hush,
• He spoke to them in the Hebrew dialect, saying (chapter 21 verse 40):
Having received the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic: 22:1“Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.”
The Hebrew dialect Paul used was Aramaic:
• The language of the Jews in Palestine:
• By using their tongue and calling them “brothers and fathers,”
• He was immediately identifying himself with his hearers.
• The first lesson anyone must learn in the art of communicating with to others.
• Trying to win over the crowd so they will listen to his testimony, his message,
• Paul wins them over by giving them his credentials.
Ill:
‘The Net’.
• Lecture on ‘Creation vs Evolution’.
• Don’t ask Fred the car park attendent to come and share his thoughts.
• For an audience of non-Christian men, we call in an expert.
• Who starts of by giving his qualifications, his knowledge & research on the subject.
• This simply shows our non-Christian men that this guy is worth listening to.
• He is credible, he knows ‘his onions’, what he is on about.
Chapter 22 verses 3-5 - Pauls credentials:
I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. 4I persecuted the followers of this Way to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, 5as also the high priest and all the Council can testify. I even obtained letters from them to their brothers in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished.
The story of Pauls conversion:
• Is found several times in the New Testament.
• Three times in the book of Acts.
(1).
• In Acts chapter 9 it is presented historically.
(2). In this chapter (22):
• We have a Hebrew version, spoken in Aramaic.
• Highlighting the things that would appeal to a Jewish audience.
Ill:
Martin.
• Men that he does a physically demanding job. The fact he likes sport, especially squash.
• More mature audience that he is a gardener, talk about the plants.
• Ladies: That he likes knitting & crocheying.
(3).
• In Acts chapter 26 Paul is before Roman governors Festus & Felix,
• There it has a Roman slant, it is a Gentile version.
(4).
• In Philippians chapter 3, we have the theological version,
• It is not majoring on the facts, but on the changes in Paul’s thinking.
(5).
• Then there is a brief version in 1 Timothy chapter 1,
• Here we have the hor-ta-tory version (you what?)
• That means to exhort, to encourage, to build someone up.
• Timothy was being urged on by Paul to make a stand, to be a witness for the truth.
Now Here in Acts chapter 22:
• Paul was speaking to almost exclusively Jewish people,
• So look at 7 ways Paul deliberately builds a bridge between himself and them,
He does this by emphasizing his Jewish credentials:
• (1). He speaks their language (21:40).
• (2). He declares his culture & background “I am a Jew” (vs 1)
• (3). He name drops,
• He was a Rabbi, and his teacher was the highly respected Gamaliel (vs 3).
• (4). He informs the crowd of his energetic zeal to keep the Law (vs 3)
• (5). How he was a persecutor of Christians (vs 4).
• (6). How he was a representative, authorized & approved by the Sanhedrin (vs 5).
• Who can bear witness to Paul’s credentials and actions.
• (7). He doesn’t accuse them of participating in a riot,
• Instead he commended them for their zealousness.
Quote:
“A good communicator builds bridges between themselves and their hearers,
a bad communicator builds walls”.
• Paul is wisely forging links between himself and his hearers,
• These credentials give him needed credibility with his audience.
• So far in his speech he has the crowd with him, they are impressed by his Jewish-ness.
• But his speech isn’t over yet!
Notice again:
• That Paul uses plain simplistic language,
• Not fancy theology or religious jargon.
• These people are with Paul and so he is able to take them on to another level,
• Which will allow him to share the next part of his testimony, his experience of Jesus.
(2). Pauls conversion (Verses 6-16):
(a). Blinded (Verse 6):
“About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me. 7I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’
8“‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.
Paul starts his testimony by sharing the facts:
• (1). The time of day “Noon”.
• (2). His location “Near Damascus”.
• (3).. What happened (notice he moves from the natural events to the supernatural).
(b). Confronted (Verses 8-11):
“‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied.
This is the crucial point in Paul’s presentation:
• For now the crowd has to come to terms with the fact that Jesus Christ is alive.
• They thought he was an imposter, who was dead and buried.
• They thought this Jesus was an exaggerated myth created by the Christians,
• But Paul is saying, “No, I saw Him alive and He has changed my life.”
Notice: Verses 9:
“My companions saw the light,
but they did not understand the voice of him who was speaking to me”.
As the crowd are listening to Paul:
• He realized that it is good to have witnesses to corroborate his story,
• So he mentions those witnesses who saw the light but did not hear the voice.
• Its always good to be able to say to skeptics,
• If you don’t believe me then you can check it out.
(c). Encouraged (Verses 12-13):
A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there. 13He stood beside me and said, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I was able to see him.
• Having been led by the hand to the city,
• Paul waited there until God brought Ananias to him,
Every Christian, especially new Christians:
• Needs to find Christian fellowship, and experience regular fellowship.
• No such thing in the new Testament as a lone Christian.
Ill: ill:
Lone Ranger had Tonto!) B-B-Q coals (single coal goes cold quicker than the cluster).
Again notice:
• How Paul builds another piece of the bridge, from himself to his audience,
• By emphasizing the Jewish elements regarding Ananias.
Verse 12:
• Listen to how Paul describes Ananias,
• He is “A devout Jew who kept the law”.
• He is “Highly respected”,
• By the Jews of his community.
• This “devout Jew who kept the law” called Saul his brother (verse 13).
• Again the link is there.
Verse 14:
• This “devout Jew who kept the law” attributed Saul’s experience of Jesus to;
• “The God of our fathers”.
Then in verse 14 another piece of the bridge is built:
• Paul uses the name “Righteous One”,
• Which was a title for the Messiah,
• So Paul has linked the living Christ,
• With the Jewish title ‘Righteous one’ & The God of our fathers
(d). Chosen (verse 14):
“Then he said: ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth”.
Every Christian is chosen:
• Doctrine of election.
• Ill: Door – One side “Whosoever” and on the other side “Chosen in Christ”.
(e). Called (verse 15):
5You will be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard.
• But Paul was chosen for a specific task,
• To take the message of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles non-Jews.
• Every Christian is also called to be a witness.
• And every Christian also has a specific calling,
Quote: Ephesians chapter 2 verse 10:
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do.
(f). Baptized (Verse 16):
Despite what some of you might think baptism is not my favourite subject:
• Favourite subject is “Come to Christ”.
• Second favourite is mission, both local & world.
• My third favourite is topic is growing closer to Jesus, and that will involve:
• Baptism, member of a local church, using your gifts, understanding your Bible.
Verse 16:
And now what are you waiting for?
Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’
• Paul didn’t have baptism explained to him,
• He wasn’t asked; “Do you think you are ready for it?”
• The fact is he became a Christian,
• Therefore the next thing to do is to be baptized!
• As night follows day,
• Baptism follows conversion.
• I wonder if verse 16 is a message for someone tonight?
• “What are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized”.
Ill: ill:
Booklet! Talk to me afterwards.
(3). Pauls commission (Verses 17-29):
(a). A vision (verses 17-21).
• Paul relates in these verses a part of his conversion story,
• That we didn’t hear about from Dr Luke in historic account of Paul’s conversion,
7“When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18and saw the Lord speaking. ‘Quick!’ he said to me. ‘Leave Jerusalem immediately, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’
19“‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these men know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. 20And when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’
That was what Paul did in his old life, when he was called Saul:
• He imprisoned, beat, and approved of the stonings of Christians.
• But then God interrupted that course of events and changed the direction of his life.
Again notice: how he connects with his Jewish hearers:
• Verse 17: He was in the temple at Jerusalem and he was praying.
• Both important and commendable things for a Jew to do.
• And while he was in the right place, doing the right thing,
• He experienced a vision from God.
(b). A Mission (Verse 21):
21“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”
• God explained to Paul His plan to use him in reaching the non-Jewish nations.
• So Paul recounts this to Jewish listeners what the Lord had told him:
Verse 21:
“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”
As soon as he used that word Gentiles!
• Red lights started flashing and sirens buzzed and wailed.
• In the minds of Paul’s zealously Jewish audience.
• And although Paul wasn’t quite finished with what he wanted to say,
• In their minds he was through.
(c). A conflict (Verses 22-23):
The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!”
23As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air,
• The possibility that God could relate directly to the Gentiles,
• Without them first becoming Jewish proselytes greatly offended them.
• That would make Gentiles spiritually equal to the Jewish people before God
• To the crowd this was a blatant heresy.
Ill: ill:
Red rag to an angry bull. Clue Klux Clan Rally & equal blacks.
Their fury at Paul re-ignited:
• This crowd would have torn Paul apart,
• Had it not been for the soldiers protecting him:
Reacting to Pauls words, Notice what was absent:
• They shouted, they stamped, they threw dust in the air,
• But no one countered Paul’s defense! His argument was unanswerable.
• He had presented a subjective account of his changed life,
• And had backed it up with the objective reality of Jesus Christ risen from the dead.
And when the crowd reacted:
• The Roman commander saw them becoming violent again,
• He reacted quickly to silence the riot.
(d). A prisoner (Verse 24-25):
The commander ordered Paul to be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and questioned in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this.
The Roman commander was Greek-speaking:
• So he had not understood a word Paul had said because he spoke in Aramaic.
• In his mind, he thinks Paul is some sort of criminal who has caused the crowd to riot.
• So he ordered him to be brought into the barracks, for questioning and a flogging!
• This s the normal way of extracting information from prisoners.
Quote: William Barclay explains:
“This was not a punishment,
It was simply the most effective way of extracting either the truth or a confession. The scourge was a leather whip studded at intervals with sharp pieces of bone and lead. Few men survived it in their right senses and many died under it.”
• However, there was a small problem with this method,
• Which Paul wasted no time in bringing to their attention.
(e). A Roman Citizen (Verse 25-29):
As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?”
26When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. “What are you going to do?” he asked. “This man is a Roman citizen.”
27The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?”
“Yes, I am,” he answered.
28Then the commander said, “I had to pay a big price for my citizenship.”
“But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.
29Those who were about to question him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.
Paul stops the soldiers in their tracks with these words:
“Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?”
• Paul was born in Tarsus but his citizenship was Roman.
• And it was illegal for a Roman citizen to be bound and beaten,
• Calm and in control of his faculties,
• Paul decides the time is right to change his situation.
Verse 26-28:
26When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. “What are you going to do?” he asked. “This man is a Roman citizen.”
27The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?”
“Yes, I am,” he answered.
The Roman commander knew if he flogged a Roman citizen:
• At best it would cost him his career,
• At worst his life.
Verse 28: Paul was actually one up on the commander:
• But Paul was born into citizenship, obviously his father had been given or acquired it.
• But the Roman commander had bribed someone to get his citizenship,
• Note his name Claudius Lysias,
• He had purchased citizenship when Emperor Claudius was raising funds.
Realizing their mistake:
• The Roman soldiers unbind Paul,
• And immediately release him.
Claudius the Roman commander:
• Must have been shocked by this little Jewish troublemaker,
• Who spoke Aramaic, Greek and now turns out to be a Roman citizen.
• He still had to hope Paul would keep quiet;
• Because it was illegal to put a Roman citizen in chains without a preliminary hearing.
(f). A witness (Verse 30):
30The next day, since the commander wanted to find out exactly why Paul was being accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul and had him stand before them.
The commander was determined to find out exactly what Paul was being accused of by the Jews.
• Failing to get an answer from the crowd.
• Not able to use torture to extract the truth.
• The Roman commander opts for a third way;
• Trial by the Sanhedrin, the supreme Jewish court.
And that’s where you pick up the story in a few weeks time……
