I'm going to mention a few names to you tonight. When I do, you will have very definite things come to your mind. So here we go... O.J Simpson, Billy Graham, Lebron James, Adrain Rogers, Tiger Woods, Chuck Swindoll, Barak Obama and finally Donald Trump. Wow, what a list of men. Each of them is known publicly, and even internationally for their exploits in life. Some good and others bad.
A man is know either by who he is or what he has done! For his character or his conduct, his attitude or his actions. This is true in reality for all of us. But if we have been known as being a bad individual, or for making some horrendous mistakes, is there any hope for us to ever change our course? Is it even possible that we can ever really change?
I heard recently this statement. It has been said that
Nature FORMS us, Sin, DEFORMS us, Education INFORMS us, Prison REFORMS us, but only Jesus TRANSFORMS us!
Oh, my dear friends, your past can and will dictate your future...unless you are transformed by the power of Jesus Christ. Let me show you a Biblical example of this amazing work of God.
The Apostle Pauls is perhaps one of the greatest examples of the change that Jesus Christ can make in one's life. The transforming power of Jesus is clearly evident in the scriptures and tonight we are going to study this great work of grace.
First we will look at Pauls testimony before he met Christ. In fact, his name was not Paul at this time, it was actually Saul. Let's look at what scripture reveals to us.
1) Saul is an OBSERVER of sin. (Acts 7:58) He we clearly see that while he was watching the events that surrounded Stephens death, he was not at this time an active participant.
2) Saul is now APPROVING of sin (Acts 8:1) Very quickly the narrative moves from him observing to him actually putting his stamp of approval on the killing of Stephen.
3) Saul is ENGAGING in sin. (Acts 8:3) He is now an active participant in the persecution of the early church and is sinning willfully against a Holy God. He has moved from Observing, to Approving, to now actually Engaging in the ravages of sin. It only gets worse.
4) Saul is now DEEPENING his sinful behavior. (Acts 9:1-2) He now continues his murderous rampage pursuing those believers who had fled his original persecution.
These are the steps of the degradation of sin. in fact we all have experienced this. We were born sinners in homes where often times we were observers of sin. It doesn't take long before we find ourselves approving of it. At some point in the near future we found ourselves actually engaging in sin ourselves and to make matters worse, we deepen our sinful patterns.
Sauls life journey is in reality our life journey.
Sin always promises us more than it can ever give....takes us further than we ever want to go....and costs us far more than we ever would want to pay.
But Praise God, this is NOT the end of the story.
Lets read Acts 9:3-6... Here we see that Saul has a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Remember this, sin is always a personal issue with God. And when Saul was sinning against the church and attacking God's children, Jesus, the Head of the Church rises to the occasion and pierces Sauls darkness!
Paul (Saul) gives his testimony about this encounter and God's transforming power in several places. He describes it throughout the books our Lord had him pen!
Romans 1:16, 1 Corinthians 1:18, Galatians 6:14-15, Ephesians 3:7-9, Philippians 1:12-14 & 27, Colossians 1:15-23 but none are greater that what he says in 1 Timothy 1:12-17. Let's look.
Pauls testimony after his encounter with Jesus Christ
1) God's grace OVERFLOWS in Salvation vs. 12-14
2) His life DISPLAYS God's power. vs. 15
3) His life REVEALS God's purpose. vs. 16
4) His life now brings PRAISE to God vs. 17
His past did not dictate his future, but rather Jesus Christ transformed his life! Philippians 3:4-11 gives us further testimony of this great work of God.
So, what should we do with this? Dear brothers and sisters, Pauls testimony is really the testimony of all of us. We were all sinners. All observers, approvers, engagers and ultimately deepening our sinful behavior. BUT GOD was Rich in mercy... We had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ through the gospel. We believed and HE dramatically transformed us just as He did the apostle Paul.
God's grace Overflows through salvation in us. Our changed lives Display His power. Our new lives Reveal His purposes and Our lips bring for His Praise. Hallelujah...what a Savior.
As we leave tonight...we shall leave with one more verse...
Matthew 5:16... "let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."
