Illus: Conversion is generally a religious word. However, through life we have many conversions, such as:
• Some are converted in politics from one party to another
• Some are converted in the sports world from one team to another
• Some are converted in the music world from one style of music to another
• Some are converted in the food world from liking one food to another
• Some are converted in the car industry from one brand of car to another
• Some are converted from one form of religion to another
But one thing you can say about Baptists is that they will tell you up front, “I was born Baptist and I will die Baptist!” And they mean it! They do not plan to convert.
Illus: They are set in their ways, and like the old cigarette commercial, they had rather fight than switch!
When it comes to being set in their ways, someone said this about Baptists:
• They think God’s presence is strongest in the back 3 pews
• They think fellowship and food go together
• They think Amazing Grace should be the National Anthem
• They dream of fried chicken and have the urge to get up and preach
• They judge the quality of the sermon by the amount of sweat on the preacher’s face
• They know all the words to, "Just As I Am”
It is good to be set in our ways about some things, but there are some things in this life that we do have change, “FROM THIS TO THAT!”
Spiritually, when we are converted we are no longer the same old sinful creature we have always been, we become a NEW CREATURE.
In our text, we have an unusual conversion account of the apostle Paul. We can truly say that he changed, “FROM THIS TO THAT!”
At one time he literally hated Christianity, yet we see him switch from JUDAISM to CHRISTIANITY!
How did this happen? Before we see how he switched from a CHRISTIAN KILLER to a CHRISTIAN LOVER, let’s look at his life BEFORE and AFTER!
The scripture tells us about his life before he was saved. We see he was -
I. A MEAN MAN
Look at Acts 9:1-2. “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto 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.”
This passage of scripture reveals that Saul (Paul) was a mean man before he got saved. The Bible says he was, “…breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord…”
I’d call that pretty mean, wouldn’t you? When people go around saying MEAN THINGS, they should not be surprised when they develop the reputation of being a MEAN PERSON.
Some people can be really mean, especially with their words.
In Prov. 12:18, we read, “There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword...”
The Bible reveals that Paul was a mean Jew before conversion, as he went around BREATHING OUT THREATENINGS!
If anyone says unkind things to us, we think of them as being a mean person. If a person went around the way Paul did before he was converted, destroying churches, we definitely would say he was a mean person.
Illus: Do you remember the woman they called, “The Queen of Mean”? She was a hotel owner by the name of Leona Helmsley. She died in 2007 and she was worth 5 billion dollars.
She had a flamboyant personality and had a reputation for her tyrannical behavior that earned her the nickname, "Queen of Mean."
The image of Helmsley was revealed when a former housekeeper testified that she heard Helmsley say: "We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes."
She was convicted of federal income tax evasion and other crimes in 1989 and served 19 months in prison (and two more months in house arrest), after receiving an initial sentence of 16 years.
She was rumored as mistreating her employees. Behind the scenes, she was considered arrogant, prone to shouting and firing employees on the spot. SHE HAD THE REPUTATION OF BEING A MEAN WOMAN!
Saul (Paul) had the reputation of being a MEAN MAN! We could say a lot more about Paul being a mean man before conversion, but we need to bring it down to where we live.
Illus: A fourth grade girl thought she was in love with a boy in her class. She put a love note on his desk asking him if he would be her boyfriend. The note gave three choices:
• Check yes
• Check no
• Check maybe
She even put two quarters with the note thinking that was gonna sway his decision.
He took the 50 cents and bought himself some candy, and sent the note back to her saying, "no".
I think we all would consider that boy MEAN!
Sometimes we see meanness in church. For example:
• I think it is mean when a Sunday School teacher does not show up, and the boys and girls have no one to teach them God’s Word. That is being mean to the boys and girls and that is being mean to God.
• I think it is mean when some will give certain people a handshake and a hug, and avoid others.
• I think it is mean when a pastor spends hours of preparation to teach and preach God’s Word, and the church members will not be there for him to hear what he has to say.
Illus: How would you ladies feel if you had spent hours and hours cooking, and the family did not show up and did not even apologize for not showing up?
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger had a song leader that was unkind to some of the members of the congregation. He would walk up to a group and speak to some and shake their hands, and absolutely refuse to shake hands with others. Some of the members came to the pastor and said it was difficult for them to worship in the song service knowing how he felt about them.
Dr. Belger met with the deacons and told them something had to be done about this rude man. He sent two of them to talk to him and told him he had to be nice to everyone or else he could no longer lead the singing.
Listen, he got mad and quit the church and it was the best thing in the world for the church, because God can not bless MEANNESS!
The church today, sad to say, is filled with people who claim to know the Lord, but it is obvious that they are still the same old sinful creatures they have always been. They are as MEAN AS THEY HAVE EVER BEEN!
Listen, once we come to know the Lord as our personal Savior, we are suppose to change FROM THIS TO THAT!
When Paul got saved HE CHANGED FROM BEING A MEAN FELLOW!
We have looked at WHAT HE WAS, but let’s now look at WHAT HE BECAME!
II. A HUMBLED MAN
Look at Acts 9:3-9, we read, “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.”
Paul was once a mean man, but he became a humble man.
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN? God had to knock him off his high horse (donkey).
One of the first things a lost person has to do before the Lord can save them is to be HUMBLED! As a lost person, they have lived their life as if they are gods, and God has to humble them.
They’ve been strutting around breathing out “threatenings” about what they are going to do for years, and God has to knock them down.
God wants to change us FROM THIS TO THAT! As Christians, there should be a difference in our lives from the lost world. Paul, before conversion, was a proud Jew, but the Lord had to humble him.
Illus: Animal lovers know there is a vast difference between a cat and a dog.
• A dog is a very humble creature. You can scold them and they will literally lay on the ground in humility.
• A cat is a very proud creature and you can scold them and they look at you as if you are dumb for scolding them.
• You can train a dog because they are humble enough to realize that when they are told to roll over, they need to roll over. But you can tell a cat to roll over and they will look at you like you are crazy.
It has been said about Cats:
• "Thousands of years ago, cats were worshipped as gods. Cats have never forgotten this." – Anonymous
• "In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats." - English proverb
• "As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat." - Ellen Perry Berkeley
• Ernest Hemingway said, "One cat just leads to another."
• "Dogs come when they're called; cats take a message and get back to you later." - Mary Bly
• God Created DOGS to LOVE man and CATS to teach him HUMILITY.
Cats are very proud, and they seem to think that you should feel honored if they allow you to touch them!
But people are also very PROUD, and before God can really work in their lives, they have to be humbled.
Before God could work in the life of Paul, God had to humble him.
The same is true for many people today. Before God can work in their life they are going to have to get knocked off their high horse and be humbled.
If you’ve ever been knocked down in some form, please realize that it might be the Lord trying to tell you something.
Paul, the proud Pharisee, became so humble that he said that he was the chief of sinners. 1 Tim. 1:15
We have been able from the scriptures to see Paul change. We see that he was A MEAN MAN but he became A HUMBLE MAN.
We also see . . .
III. A NEW MAN
Acts 9:15-19, we read, “But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake. And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus.”
Saul became a saved man, a new man.
I for one have had enough of people that claim to be saved and they still live like they are not saved!
After conversion, we should be able to say, “I HAVE CHANGED FROM THIS TO THAT!”
In 2 Cor. 5:17, we read, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
• Paul, the proud Pharisee, became Paul the humble servant of Christ.
• Paul, the man who wanted to silence the gospel, wanted everyone to know about his wonderful Savior after conversion.
• Saul, the persecutor of Christians, became Paul the preacher of Christ.
God wants to do a work in your life today. If you do not know the Lord Jesus as your Savior, I want to encourage you to humble yourself and recognize your need for a Savior, and humbly come to Him today asking for salvation.
Conclusion:
A man dies and goes to heaven. Of course, St. Peter meets him at the pearly gates. St. Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in."
• "Okay," the man says, "I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart."
•"That's wonderful," says St. Peter, "that's worth three points!"
•"Three points?" he says. "Well, I attended church all my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service."
•"Terrific!" says St. Peter, "that's certainly worth a point."
•"One point? Golly. How about this: I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans."
•"Fantastic, that's good for two more points," he says.
•"TWO POINTS!!" the man cries, "At this rate the only way I get into heaven is by the grace of God!"
• St. Peter says, "Come on in!"
Once you are saved by grace, your life should reveal that you have been SAVED FROM THIS TO THAT!
We have looked at:
I. A MEAN MAN
II. A HUMBLED MAN
III. A NEW MAN
