Unforgettable Moments
Acts 22:1-21
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There are certain moments in life that are simply “unforgettable”. Many of you remember where you were when certain events happened. Events like:
o The attack on Pearl Harbor.
o The assassination of John F. Kennedy.
o The resignation of Richard Nixon.
o The attempted assassination of President Reagan.
o The explosion of space shuttles Challenger and Columbia.
o The terrorist attacks on September 11th 2001
I remember the first time I laid eyes on my wife (3 ½ years later she saw me!).
I remember the days that both my girls were born.
I remember the first time I ever preached in this church.
There are many events throughout our lives that we will never forget. The reason is that these events in some way change us. There is another day in my life that I will never forget. It was the day that changed me forever. I am referring to the day that I was born again. It was Sunday December 7th, 1997 at approximately 6:15 PM.
Do you remember the day you were saved? Can you tell me the time? Can you take me to the place? If you have truly been saved then yes you can. You may not remember the exact date and time but you remember that moment of conversion.
In our selected text we have an account where Paul is making a defense of his faith. In these verses he recalls the moment that changed his life forever. In fact, God did such a work on Paul that day that it had an impact on the entire world! I would like to join Paul as he shares his testimony of what Jesus did in his life. Let’s consider the thought “Unforgettable Moments”
1. Paul had been worshipping in the temple, when he was falsely accused of bringing a Gentile inside the temple - 21:27-29
2. A riot ensued - 21:30-31
3. The captain of the Roman guard broke up the riot, and bound Paul with chains - 21: 34
4. Paul asked the captain for an opportunity to speak up - 21: 39-40
5. Paul then shared his personal testimony - Acts 22:1 Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defence which I make now unto you.2 (And when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept the more silence: and he saith,)
As Paul shares his story there are 3 “Unforgettable Moments” that he describes. He speaks of:
• His Condition
• His Conversion
• His Calling
I would like to look at Paul’s testimony and ask 3 questions today. The first one is:
I. DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR CONDITION? - v3 I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day. 4 And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.5 As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished.
As Paul begins to make his defense, He started at birth and gave a brief biography of his life.
Paul was born a Jew. He was trained by the greatest Rabbi of his day, Gamaliel.He was immensely devoted to God & the Law. He was the top persecutor of the early church. He had bound and delivered both men & women into prison. At the very moment of his conversion he was headed to Damascus to bring believers bound to Jerusalem.Notice what he says in verse 3 ….I was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.Paul is saying, “I was where you are now before I met Jesus!”
We find more of his story in - Philippians 3:5 (Paul said he was) Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
Saul of Tarsus had a fantastic resume! Consider:
o He possessed the Religion - “He was a Jew”
o He observed the Rituals - “Circumcised the 8th day”
o He had the Reputation - “of the stock of Israel”
o He had the right Relations - “Of the tribe of Benjamin”
Paul remembered where he once was. On several occasions he shares his testimony and recounts where he was and what happened after he met Jesus. Today, I ask …do you remember your condition before salvation. Do you remember the hopelessness?Do you remember the guilt? Do you remember that search for something that could fill the void that was in your heart? Many of you were like me; you were “religious” before you were saved. Here in the Bible-belt this is a common phenomenon. But friend, I want you to grasp this fact, Religion will get you nowhere but hell. Jesus said that in order to see the Kingdom of Heaven we must be born again. Religion is man trying to get to God, Salvation comes when God reaches down to man! Some people are at that point right now… you are religious but you are not saved. I have good news! You can “lose your religion” today and leave this place TRULY BORN AGAIN!
But if you are saved, I think it is good to look back to where you once were and then look at where Jesus has brought you! So, Do You Remember Your Condition Before Christ? If so then let’s go a little further:
II. DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR CONVERSION? - v6 And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me. 7 And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 8 And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest. 9 And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me. 10 And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do. 11 And when I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus. 12 And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there, 13 Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.
Some time has passed since his conversion on Damascus Rd. But Paul remembers this event like it happened the previous day.It is interesting to note the great detail that Paul uses in this testimony. If you compare Acts 9 (the original account) with Acts 22 and Acts 26 you will find that they are basically carbon copies of each other.
1) He remembers the place - “as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus”
2) He remembers the time - “about noon”
3) He remembers what he saw - “suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.”
4) He remembers what he heard - “And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?”
5) Most importantly he remembers Who he met - And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.
I have been saved for over 16 years and I remember that day like it was yesterday. I had previously had an emotional experience ad had been baptized. I had felt for some time that something was missing in my life. I questioned for several years whether or not I was truly saved. It was a Sunday afternoon and I was riding with one of my best friends. He made a statement about how he knew that I was saved. That statement hit me like a cold glass of water in the face. I realized at that moment that I had everyone fooled… Everyone that is, except for God. The Holy Spirit convicted me of my sins and I struggled all afternoon long. Finally we went back to church that evening. The preacher preached and I didn’t hear a word he said. There was a spiritual battle raging deep within me. The service ended but the conviction did not. I went to my pastor and asked to speak to him in his office. I told him what I was going through and right there in the pastor’s office at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Talladega Alabama at approximately 6:15 PM I was BORN AGAIN.
There have been days since then when I haven’t “felt” saved! There have been many times when the enemy has told me that I am not saved! But every time that happens I go back in my mind to that place and remember what happened and I remember God’s promises to me and that is all I need to KNOW that I AM SAVED!!
What about you? Do you remember your conversion?
I am not asking if you are religious.
I am not asking if you attend church regularly.
I am not asking if you pray, and study your bible.
I am not asking if you have been baptized.
I want you to look at your life and honestly answer this question …HAVE YOU BEEN BORN AGAIN!! The word “conversion” means “a change in nature” - Paul’s says in - 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.When Paul met Jesus on Damascus road he did not continue to persecute Christians. Every aspect of his life changed that very moment! He went from being the greatest enemy of the Church to serving the Lord and bringing people into the family of God! If you have prayed a prayer, went through baptismal waters, join some church and there has never been a change in your lifestyle and your actions …YOU ARE NOT SAVED!!! If you can be honest and say “Preacher, I have never truly been saved” then you have taken the first step. Now I beg you to follow through and FULLY SURRENDER YOUR HEART AND LIFE TO JESUS CHRIST!
Maybe you are here and you can say without a doubt that you Do Remember Your Conversion. Then I have another question for you:
III. DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR CALLING? v14 (Ananias) said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth. 15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. 16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. 17 And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance; 18 And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. 19 And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee: 20 And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him. 21 And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.
In Paul’s testimony he shared who he was before Jesus. He has shared in great detail the moment that he met Jesus. Now he shares what Jesus wanted him to do. Jesus said in Acts 9:15 at Saul’s conversion that - “(Paul) is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel” - It is amazing to see who Jesus chooses to accomplish certain tasks. - 1 Corinthians 1:27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; Jesus looked at Saul of Tarsus; a man fervently opposed to Jesus and His church and said, “I am going to use that man to accomplish great things for my names sake”.
The very man who wanted to destroy the church more than anything was used to spread the gospel all over the world. In fact God is still using Paul’s work to bring people to Christ this very day! Jesus saved him and set him apart to do a great work. Jesus still does the same today! God has never saved anyone to warm a church pew. Folks, we are saved to serve! There is a work for each of us to accomplish for Jesus. Some of you have received a specific calling from God and you have refused to surrender to that calling. Friend, you are walking on dangerous ground… just ask Jonah! (Or me!)
Some of you have it in your mind that you just can’t accomplish that task that He has assigned you. Friend if He called you to it…He will equip you to do it! There is not one saved person that has any excuse not to serve the Lord:
In Romans Paul uses the Body to illustrate the function of the Church: Romans 12:5 …We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.8 if your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
There are some who once served faithfully, and now don’t even attend faithfully. There are some who used visit others who now need to be visited because they are inactive. There is never a shortage of work to do in the church and for the Kingdom I have never seen an occasion where I have had to say “there are just too many servants and not enough work”.' When you realize that God almighty has a work for you to do, it is a moment that you will never forget.
I was called to preach in 2002 and did not surrender to that call until 2005. But every single day I KNEW THAT GOD HAD CALLED ME TO PREACH HIS WORD! If you know what God has called you to do…DO IT! As we listen to Paul’s testimony I want you to notice that his story was real to him. He did not live his life with a hope so salvation. This man knew what had happened to him… HE KNEW THAT HE HAD MET JESUS! Paul had experienced some “unforgettable moments”!
What about you?
i. Do You Remember Your Condition?
ii. Do You Remember Your Conversion?
iii. Do You Remember Your Calling?
Are you certain of your salvation? Eternity lasts forever, without Jesus you will be cast into an eternal lake of fire. Don’t live this life hoping that you will make it, trust Jesus and allow Him to keep you! Harry Ironside stated that salvation was like Noah inviting a pagan in his day to place his trust in God's Word and come in to the ark. Some view salvation like Noah offering to put a peg on the outside of the ark. "If you just hang on through the storm, you'll be saved." Salvation is not dependent on our holding on to God, but on our being securely held by and in Christ.
If you are not 100% sure of your salvation, I beg you… don’t leave here until you KNOW that you KNOW Jesus! Maybe today will be an “Unforgettable Moment” in your life!
