Introduction:
A. The story is told of a family from the back woods, who many years ago, made their first visit to the big city.
1. As they checked into a grand hotel, they stood in amazement as they looked at all the new and impressive things they saw.
2. As dad checked them in at the reception desk, the mother and the children stood near the elevators.
3. Now they had never seen an elevator before, and didn’t know what it was used for.
4. As they stood there watching, an old man hobbled towards the elevator and went inside.
5. The door closed, and a minute later, the door opened and out came a stunningly handsome, young man.
6. The mother stared, and without turning her head, patted her daughter’s arm and said, “Quick, go get your dad, this is some kind of miracle transformation machine, and we gotta put your dad in it.”
7. Don’t we wish transformation was that easy?
B. Christianity is supremely a religion of conversion and transformation.
1. Everything we say and everything we believe is built upon one fundamental and revolutionary premise: You don’t have to stay the way you are.
2. Our lives can be radically changed by God.
3. When we allow God to enter our lives, then our lives will never be the same again.
4. Until we allow that to happen, we may be religious and we may be a very good person, but we have not been converted.
C. See, religion is one thing, but conversion and transformation is something else entirely.
1. It is the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that brings conversion and transformation.
2. As the Gospel does its’ job in our lives, then long-held prejudices are overcome, lifetime habits are broken, and deeply ingrained patterns of sin are erased over time.
3. Gospel conversion and transformation guarantees that what we were does not determine what we are, and what we will be.
4. Through the Gospel, we can be changed, we can be different, our lives can move in an entirely new direction.
D. Of all the conversion stories in the Bible, none is greater or more profound than the conversion of the man called Saul of Tarsus, who became the apostle Paul.
1. Raised a Jew, trained as a rabbi, he became a violent persecutor of the early Christian church.
2. He hated Christ and his followers so much that he did his best to eradicate the new religion as if it were some sort of dreaded virus.
3. He was a terrorist who did his evil deeds in the name of the God of the Bible.
4. But then one day he met Jesus and his life was permanently transformed.
5. What happened to him made such an impact on Christianity that the New Testament contains at least four separate accounts of his dramatic conversion – Three of them are in Acts, chapters 9, 22, and 26, and the fourth account is in our text here in Galatians.
E. Last week, we began a new sermon series called “Set Free – A Study of the Book of Galatians.”
1. The reason that Paul wrote this letter to the churches of Galatia, was because some Judaizers had come into that region and were attacking both Paul’s apostleship and Paul’s message.
2. If you were here last week, then you know that the main point Paul focused on in verses 1 – 10 was “don’t mess with the message.”
3. The gospel of Jesus Christ needs no changing.
4. The Judaizers had changed the gospel and in so doing changed it from good news to bad news!
F. So, if last week’s message was “don’t mess with the message,” we might summarize this week’s message as “don’t mess with the messenger.”
1. In essence, the Judaizers claimed that Paul’s message wasn’t true and he himself could not be trusted, because he wasn’t a real apostle like the original 12.
2. That raises an interesting question: How do you prove that you are trustworthy and authentic?
3. The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to prove his trustworthiness and authenticity by telling his story, and therefore, letting his story speak for itself.
G. Let’s pick up Paul’s telling of his story at verse 11, 11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. (Gal. 1:11-12)
1. These verses emphasize two important truths.
a. First, the gospel was not Paul’s idea; it was God’s idea.
b. Second, because the gospel comes from God, it must be true.
2. Paul is merely the conduit for the truth, and not its source.
3. The gospel message is truly Good News because it is God’s News.
H. With that established, Paul now proceeds to tell his own story.
1. If you have ever participated in an evangelism class, then you will remember the three part outline for giving your testimony.
2. Part 1: Your life before conversion.
3. Part 2: How you came to Christ.
4. Part 3: Your life since coming to Christ.
5. That’s precisely the outline Paul follows in our text and so that’s the outline we will use for this sermon.
I. Paul’ s Life Before Conversion (Gal. 1:13-14)
A. Let’s look at Verses 13 and 14: 13 For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. 14 And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.
1. These verses tell a chilling story.
2. Before Paul came to Christ, he was perfectly happy in his career as a rising Jewish leader and an avid Christianity-hater.
3. He felt no remorse over his persecution of the followers of Christ, and in fact regarded it as his service to God.
4. His religion satisfied him in every way and he saw no need for anything else.
B. In Acts 8:1-3, we learn that Saul (Paul’s pre-conversion name) went from house to house in a sort of reverse evangelism.
1. Knock, knock. “Any Christians here?” If the answer was yes, he dragged them out of their homes and had them put in prison.
2. His heart was full of murderous rage against anyone who claimed to follow Jesus of Nazareth.
3. He approved of the stoning of Stephen and when other Christians were put to death, he cast his vote against them as well.
3. The Bible says that he was “breathing out threats against the Lord’s disciples” when he was on his way to Damascus to root out the fledgling Christian movement in that great city (Acts 9:1-2).
4. In his mind, the best way to defeat Christianity was to persecute and kill all the Christians - In his zeal he had no peer.
5. Saul was truly a religious fanatic, and a zealot.
6. He was a man who hatred Christianity and he would stop at nothing to prevent it from spreading.
C. Paul tells his story this way because he wants us to understand that he wasn’t what we like to call a “seeker.”
1. He wasn’t seeking anything—except more Christians to throw in prison.
2. He had no sense of his need of salvation and no inner voice calling him to come to Christ.
3. It would be hard to imagine a more hopeless case.
4. Why bother praying for a man like that? He’ll never be saved.
5. We can sum it up by saying he was on a collision course with eternal judgment.
6. What he desperately needed—but would not admit—was a strong dose of divine intervention.
D. Paul paints the picture so bleak and black so that the brilliant light of the gospel can be clearly seen against that backdrop.
1. Not everyone has a story as dramatic as Paul’s, although some do.
2. But what we all have in common is that we were lost in our sin, we were separated from God, and we needed conversion and transformation.
3. Those of us who have believed, obeyed and received the Gospel have had our sins washed away, we have been forgiven, justified by grace, reconciled to God, redeemed, restored, converted, and our lives are being radically changed.
4. That’s the wonder and power of the Gospel – it sets us free!
5. Let’s hear about how that happened in Paul’s life.
II. Paul’s Conversion (Gal. 1:15-16a)
A. Look at Verses 15 and 16a: 15 But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles… (Gal. 1:15-16a)
1. Focus for a moment on the first word of verse 15- “But.”
2. This is the great interruption.
3. All that happened in Paul’s life afterward came because of that one little word and what followed it.
a. Paul was a sinner. But God.
b. Paul hated Jesus. But God.
c. Paul killed Christians. But God.
d. Paul wanted to destroy the church. But God.
e. Paul wasn’t looking for a new life. But God.
B. Note also the change in subjects.
1. When Paul talked about his pre-Christian life, it was always “I … I … I.”
a. He was totally self-absorbed.
2. But when he talked about his conversion, the focus shifted.
a. Now it was God who moved into action and became the focus.
3. And notice why he did it.
a. “[God] was pleased to reveal his Son to [or in] me.”
b. This is an example of God’s sovereign choice.
4. Notice another part of this sovereign choice - God “set him apart before he was born.”
a. God had his eye on Paul while he was still in the womb.
b. Then while he was a toddler, God was watching his every step.
c. During his rambunctious teenage years, God kept him in sight.
d. During the long years of rabbinical training, God was calling him to salvation.
e. Paul didn’t know it, didn’t feel it, was totally unaware of it, and in fact couldn’t see it at all until after he came to Christ.
f. Then he could look back and see God’s fingerprints in every part of his life.
g. Can you see that when you look back in your life?
5. When the time had fully come, God reached down, slapped him down on the Damascus road, and brought him into the Kingdom.
C. We might wonder, “But does this not destroy the concept of freewill?”
1. Not at all. I believe that God gives us choices to make and then he holds us accountable for those choices.
2. There is an old hymn called “The Hornet Song” and the chorus includes the words “He doesn’t make us go against our will, he just makes us willing to go.”
3. God brought Paul to a place where he had no other good choice, but to freely choose Christ.
4. The truth of the matter is that salvation always begins with and comes from the Lord.
5. God is always seeking us way before we are seeking Him.
6. And when we say that we have found the Lord, we must remember that if the Lord hadn’t found us first, we never would have found Him.
7. And so, in the end, God gets all the glory for our salvation.
8. That is certainly how Paul felt as he looked back on his own amazing conversion.
9. Paul knew that he was chosen for a task – to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles.
10. He was not chosen for honor and glory, but to bring honor and glory to God, through his service.
11. And the same is true for us.
III. Paul’s Life After Conversion (Gal. 1:16b-24)
A. Let’s continue our reading in Galatians 1: I did not immediately consult with anyone; 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord's brother. 20 (In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie!) 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. 23 They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” 24 And they glorified God because of me. (Gal. 1:16b-24)
1. Paul’s emphasis in these verses is on what he didn’t do.
a. He didn’t immediately go to Jerusalem to be trained by the apostles.
b. And he didn’t start an evangelistic ministry right away.
2. What did he do?
a. He dropped out of sight for a while by going to Arabia.
b. We would have put him on Christian radio and TV.
c. We would have had him write a book and hit the Christian talk-show circuit.
d. But that wasn’t God’s plan.
3. After spending time in Arabia—evidently in personal study and meditation.
a. Then he went back to Damascus.
b. Then he made a brief trip to Jerusalem to meet Peter.
c. Then he went north to Syria and Cilicia to preach the gospel.
B. Paul’s point in this section of the letter is to show the Galatians that Paul’s apostleship was firmly rooted in God’s revelation and call, and that he was dependent upon God alone for his message and for the authority and power to be an apostle.
1. None of this must have been easy for Paul.
2. It must have been hard to change sides and go from a persecutor of the Gospel to a promoter of the Gospel.
3. It must have been hard to separate himself in the quietness of the desert.
4. It must have been hard to return to Damascus the place of his conversion experience.
5. It must have been hard to go to Jerusalem where he would have been treated with anger and persecution by his former Jewish friends, and treated with suspicion by the Christians.
6. Finally, it must have been difficult for Paul to go to Tarsus, the city where he was born and where he grew up.
7. I’m sure he experienced what Jesus had said, “A prophet is without honor in his hometown, among relatives and in his own household.” (Mt. 13:57; Mk. 6:4)
C. So what had made the difference in Paul’s life?
1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ had made all the difference in the world.
2. Our passage for today ends on a wonderful note as Paul says that the churches in Judea (which he once terrorized in his pre-conversion days) recognized the amazing change in his life.
3. And they glorified God because of him.
4. Paul’s life pointed people toward God.
5. That leads me to a simple and profound question for us: Is anyone glorifying God because of you and because of me?
6. Are each of our lives pointing people toward God?
Conclusion:
A. Let’s conclude this sermon by summarizing some lessons to consider and apply to our lives.
B. First of all, let’s again remember that the Gospel comes from God, not from man.
1. This is a hugely important point because we live in a pluralistic society that teaches us—over and over again—that all religions are basically the same, that we are all going to the same place, and that no religious system can be thought superior to any other system.
2. This of course is nonsense, but many people accept it as the truth.
3. Paul’s words in verses 11-12 point us in the right direction.
4. The gospel is not the result of polling data or the work of a committee.
5. The gospel is based on the historical facts surrounding the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
6. The gospel is true because it comes directly from God.
C. Second, let’s marvel at the fact that conversion and transformation are miracles that depend on God alone.
1. God takes the initiative and the responsibility for the offer of salvation and transformation.
2. He arranges the circumstances so that we can know him personally.
3. We rarely see that in advance, but looking back we can clearly see how the hand of God was graciously drawing us to himself.
4. Conversion is a cooperative venture between God and people, but it is God who does so much of the work for us on our behalf.
5. Salvation is a gift of God’s grace.
D. Third, let’s marvel at the fact that the worst sinners often make the best saints.
1. Note the word “often.” Not every sinner comes to Christ, or makes the best saint.
2. Regrettably, some of the worst sinners do not come to Christ, and they remain lost.
3. Thankfully, there are many great saints of God who were raised in godly homes and never drastically rebelled against the Lord – you don’t have to be the worst of sinners to be a great saint.
4. But it is still true that God seems to delight in taking the worst of sinners and converting them and employing them in God’s kingdom work.
5. Amazingly, when God’s work is done, those same saints of God are a powerful testimony to a skeptical world.
E. Finally, let’s marvel at the fact that no one is beyond the reach of God’s grace.
1. Surely this is one reason that Paul’s story shows up so many times in the New Testament.
2. If God can save a man like Paul, Then God can save anyone.
3. That ought to encourage those of us who are praying for friends and loved ones to come to Christ.
4. Often we feel like our prayers just bounce off the ceiling.
5. We pray for months and for years with no apparent result.
6. But we must not despair, because God is not done yet.
7. No one would ever have predicted Paul’s conversion.
a. Ten minutes before it happened, it seemed impossible.
b. Five minutes before it happened, no one had any reason to expect anything.
c. Ten seconds before the light broke and the voice spoke, Paul’s heart was as hard as ever.
8. But God! Those words and that reality are so very powerful.
9. So, let’s keep on praying, and keep on witnessing, and keep on believing, because we never know what God will do and what a person will allow God to do.
F. God continues to be in the business of changing lives.
1. Through the Gospel, God is still in the business of rescuing, converting, saving and transforming men and women who are lost in sin.
2. There is no case too hopeless for the Great Physician.
3. The words of 2 Corinthians 5:17 are still true: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
4. So, what about you? Have you heard and felt God’s call?
5. Have you believed and been baptized?
6. Are you experiencing God’s blessed transformation?
G. Let me end with a true story from Lee Strobel, who is a great example of modern day conversion.
1. He was a devoted skeptic of Christianity, who is now a full-time Christian minister and writer.
2. He tells how that his daughter was 5 years old when he became a Christian.
3. She had lived for her first 5 years of life with a father who was profane and angry.
4. She had seen her dad do things like come home from work and kick a hole in the living room wall just because he was so frustrated with life.
5. Lee says that he is ashamed to think of the times when his little girl hid in her room to get away from him and his anger.
6. But five months after he became a Christian, his daughter went to his wife (her mother) and said, “Mommy, I want God to do for me what he’s done for Daddy.”
7. She didn’t know much about God at that point, but she knew that her dad used to be really bad, and now he was becoming really good.
8. And she thought “If that’s what God does for people, then sign me up.”
9. What God did for Saul of Tarsus, and Lee Strobel, he can do for me and for you.
10. What a difference the Gospel makes!
Resources:
How a Terrorist Became an Evangelist: The Amazing Story of Paul’s Conversion, Sermon by Ray Pritchard, www.keepbelieving.com
What a Difference, Sermon by Guy Caley, SermonCentral.com
Where Your Credentials Come From, Sermon by Paul Decker, SermonCentral.com
Galatians, Maxie Dunnam, The Communicator’s Commentary, Word, 1982.
The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians, William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series, Westminster Press, 1976.
