THE FEAR OF CHANGE
Acts 9; Acts 26
Someone once said that there are 572 known phobias or fears. Let’s see if you have any of these fears? Acrophobia – fear of heights. Arachibutyrophobia – fear of having peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth. Ballistophobia – fear of bullets. Homilphobia – fear of sermons. Novercaphobia – fear of your mother in law. Peladophobia – fear of bald people. Tropohobia – fear of making changes.
The fear of change. Most of us fear change in every aspect of our lives. I heard recently someone say, that the only people who like change are babies with wet diapers. That is probably true. We fear change. We fear change in our daily routines. I hate it when I have to get up earlier than normal. Interrupts my normal routine. We fear change in our families.
We certainly fear change in the church. The favorite phrase in the church is “we’ve never done it that way before.” By the way, how many people does it take to change a light bulb in the church? Four. One to install it and three to reminisce about how good the old one was. We definitely fear change to our personal lives. We are afraid to make the necessary changes to our lives.
We are completing a series of sermons today entitled, Putting a Problem Behind Us. We are talking about the enemies of change. We’ve discussed the things like apathy, denial, procrastination, the fear of failure which prevent us from changing our lives. Today I want to talk about one last enemy of change. And that is the fear of change itself. The reason so many people don’t change is they are afraid of what will happen when they do finally change. The last step in putting a problem behind us: I Must Not Fear Change.
In the book of Acts we read of man by the name of Saul of Tarsus who was afraid to change. Saul, was a man trapped by sin but he fought change with a passion.
I. WHO WAS SAUL?
This man, Saul was a TERRORIST of the worse kind. Saul was the first century equivalent of Osama Bin Laden. Saul had the habit of breaking into churches, dragging out the Christians and having them stoned. He was on crusade, traveling from city to city, sniffing out anyone who claimed to follow Christ.
Saul was a DEVOUT JEW who sincerely believed that Christians were blasphemers who had turned their back on traditional Judaism. He was a young man on the rise in certain circles of Jerusalem and by defending the Jewish faith he was making a name for himself.
Saul was also WELL EDUCATED in religion, theology and philosophy. He was from Tarsus a city known for having one of the best universities in the empire. To say, "I’m of Tarsus University" was like saying, "I’m from Harvard or Yale."
Saul was also known for his RAGE AND TEMPER. In Acts 8:3 Saul is described as "destroying the church". The word for "destroying" there, is a word used in those days to describe the ravaging of a body by wild animals. John Calvin described Saul as "a cruel wolf." In Acts 26:11 Saul himself spoke of "a raging fury that obsessed him" to kill Christians. Saul was the worst of the worst. An enemy of Christianity. Dave Stone says, “Saul was not the dude you wanted to invite to your baptism.”
But on one particular journey, Saul would be confronted with his need to change. He was heading to Damascus, a city in nearby Syria to find Christians. Acts 9:2 says that Saul "went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus so that if he found any there who was a Christian he could take them as prisoners to Jerusalem."
II. SAUL’S ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS
While traveling on the road from Jerusalem to Damascus, Saul was interrupted by a bright light; that froze him and his men in their tracks.
Acts 9:3 says, "As they neared Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. And Saul fell to the ground." Saul looked toward heaven and heard a voice, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" And Saul replied, "Who are you, Lord?" "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. Saul, it is hard for you to kick against the goads." (Acts 9; Acts 26).
This phrase, “kick against the goads” is a peculiar phrase. Goads were sticks used to prick a young ox as it was being broken or trained to pull a cart or plow. A rebellious ox not wanting to serve its master would kick against the goads and every time he did he’d be jabbed until finally his will was broken. Perhaps Jesus had been goading Saul. Pricking his conscience. Breaking his will for sometime. We don’t know.
But to kick against the goads meant that Saul was fighting change. Jesus was working on Saul but Saul was resisting the change like a stubborn ox.
Jesus was trying to tell Saul, “Saul I’ve been working on you and you still refuse to change.” Many of us are like Saul. The Lord is goading us about something we need to change but we are resistant to making that change.
III. WHY WAS SAUL AFAID TO CHANGE?
Why do you think Saul was so resistant to change? Why was he afraid to change? Well for one reason he was PROUD. Saul was a devout religious man, he was Jew in high standing. He maintained a prestigious image and to follow Christ would mean that he would have to admit that he wasn’t all he had portrayed himself to be. He would have to swallow his pride.
The reason so many of us make changes is because we will have to swallow our pride and admit we aren’t all that tough. Our pride keeps us from going to counseling. Our pride keeps us from opening up in small group. Our pride keeps us from expressing our grief. Our pride keeps us from walking down the aisle and being baptized. Our ego is keeping us from making changes. Someone once defined ego as “Edging God Out.”
Proverbs 18:12 says, “Prideful people are on the way to ruin because they won’t admit they need help.” That was Saul. Sadly that’s us.
Saul was also afraid to change because was he was FEARFUL OF WHAT OTHERS MIGHT THINK. He had made a nice life for himself amongst the Jews. He had a growing career as a lawyer, he was a well standing member of the religious community, he had a degree from the best university and he was comfortable. Becoming a follower of Jesus would end any chance of him maintaining those things. He would be ostracized from all his friends, maybe even his family. But especially his way of life.
Many of us don’t want to make changes for the same reason. We’re afraid of what others will think? If we came out an admitted we had a sexual addiction, what would people think? If we told our small group we have a drug problem, what would they do? If we were sleeping around with our boyfriend, how would our parents react? If we tell our husband we’ve been baptized, he may be upset! And we don’t want to open up and admit anything because we are fearful of how people are going to react. Saul had a lot of influential people who would not look favorably upon him becoming a follower of Christ!
Saul was also afraid of change because there was MUCH TO GAIN FROM HIS CURRENT LIFESTLE. Saul was gaining popularity in the community as a Christian killer. He was a hero of the religious community and his name was well known as a defender of the Jewish faith. The reason he was murdering Christians was because it was benefiting him.
We too fear changing our ways because we currently reap some benefit from a particular habit or sin we struggle with. Our lifestyle currents works for us. I read about a prison inmate who received a letter from his wife who had a few questions about things that needed to be done around the house. One main question she had was “is it time to dig up the garden and plant the potatoes yet?”
Knowing that his mail was being monitored, the inmate wrote back to his wife, “No it’s not time to plant the potatoes. And by all means honey, don’t dig in the old garden it’s where I buried all my guns.” In her next letter the wife told how federal agents had come to the house and dug up every square inch of the garden but could not find his guns anywhere. The inmate wrote back, “Now it’s time to plant the potatoes.”
That inmate had learned to make his problems work for him and so have we. Our character flaws and sin work for us, they benefit us in some way.
One last reason Saul was resistant to change: SATAN HAS HIS GRIPS ON HIM. As I mentioned Saul was described as a wolf, and it was apparent that Satan was using Saul. Now we aren’t to blame Satan for all our problems, but many times we don’t elect to change because we have bought into Satan’s lies. The last thing Satan wants you to do is change your ways. 1 Peter 5:8 reads, "Be self-controlled and alert your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." Satan was controlling Saul.
IV. SAUL’S CHANGE!
Well, despite all those factors preventing Saul from changing. He had been goaded by Jesus. Lying their on the ground, with dust in his face, the educated, arrogant, advantaged, Saul of Tarsus had only one option, to submit himself to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. He could no longer kick against the goads. The Bible says that Saul became blind and someone had to lead him into the city of Damascus. This proud man was now broken. He couldn’t even walk himself into the city. He had planned to ride into Damascus triumphantly as a hero of the faith. Now he enters on his knees.
While in the city a blind Saul would be instructed to do a few things and after doing these things he would be changed forever. His change would not be immediate because some changes take time. But no longer would he be Saul of Tarsus, murderer. He would be Paul, the apostle, an evangelist of Jesus Christ. He would have a new life. There are few things we see Paul doing here in Acts 9 that will help prepare us to make changes.
V. HOW TO MAKE CHANGES!
First if you want to make a change in your life: SWALLOW YOUR PRIDE; ACCEPT JESUS AS LORD AND BE BAPTIZED. In Damascus, Saul met a man named Ananias who was a Christian. Ananias came to Saul and told him to be baptized. Baptism is a symbol that a person is starting a new life. It is an act of dedication in which you say, I am turning from my old life and now I am going to follow Christ. When Saul was baptized, he was saying, “I am no longer going to be a zealous murderer of Christians. I am turning from that lifestyle. I want Jesus Christ to come into my life and change me.” And something almost miraculous happens when a person is baptized. It is a benchmark that signifies a new start.
Romans 6:3 says, “Don’t you know that all of us who are baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death. We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead we too may live a new life.” Folks, if you have not been baptized, that is always the first step to making changes. You cannot make changes without first accepting Jesus as Lord.
Secondly, if you want to make a change in your life: RELY ON THE POWER OF GOD; WHICH IS THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND NOT YOURSELF. Acts 9:17 says that Saul was filled with the Holy Spirit when he was baptized. The Holy Spirit is God’s power within each of us. We receive the Holy Spirit too, when we are baptized. The Holy Spirit is our comforter, our friend. Jesus called him the helper.
Back in my Mr. Universe days, back when I was buff and ripped. Believe it or not I used to lift weights everyday in college. But when you lifted weights there was a rule. You never lifted weights without a spotter. You know what a spotter is? He is a friend, who helps you lift the bar up in case you can’t lift the weight. He stands over you and encourages you. But he is there to help you keep the bar from falling on you. The spotter helps you when you are weak and you can lift the weight.
The Holy Spirit is your spiritual spotter. The main purpose of the Holy Spirit is to give us power when we are weak against sin. We cannot overcome the sin in our lives without the spirit’s reinforcement. Like the man who prayed. Dear Lord: So far today, I’ve done all right. I haven’t gossiped, lost my temper, lusted, been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish or over indulgent. However, in a few minutes I’m going to get out of bed. From that point on I’m going to need your help!
That describes us doesn’t ? We need God’s power to spot for us. We are weak. Romans 8:26 says, “the Spirit helps us in our weakness.” If you are trying to live life apart from God’s power you can’t do it. Relinquish control.
Thirdly, if you want to make a change in your life: FIND A GROUP OF CHRISTIANS; ASK FOR HELP, STICK WITH THEM. Acts 9:19 says that after Saul was baptized, “he spent several days with the disciples of Jesus in Damascus.” In other words, he joined up with SOME followers of Jesus. There was a church in Damascus that consisted of a small amount of people who met in a house. And they supported Saul.
The key to making changes is to have people in your life who support your Christian walk. No man or woman is an island and you cannot be effective as a Christian alone. I put it like this, you need God’s power, but you also need people power. People to help you. Rick Warren says, “A Christian without a support group is like a NFL football player without a team.” Useless.
Frankly, a lot of us don’t have that many close Christian friends who support us. The only time we hang out with Christians is on Sunday mornings for an hour but its mere acquaintance. Someone once defined an acquaintance as “a person whom we know well enough to borrow from, but not well enough to lend to.” Many of us have very few close Christian friends and it’s no wonder we are struggling in our walk with Christ.
That is personally why we have small groups in our church. If you ask the 40 or so people who currently attend a small group in our church. They will tell you that that group is vital to their walk as a Christian. And they will tell you that some of the closest friends they have ever had are in that group. Studies have shown that a person grows much faster spiritually if they are in some type of small group in the church. Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so people can improve each other.”
You need some good Christian people to help you improve in your walk with Christ. Marlene Dietrich says, “It’s the friends you can call at four in the morning that really matter.” If you are going to change you are going to need some friends you count on at all times. Ecclesiastes 4:9 reads, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!”
Finally, if you want to make a change for the better: FIND YOUR GOD GIVEN PURPOSE; SERVE OTHERS AND NEVER LOOK BACK! Acts 9:20 says, “At once Saul began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.” Saul had a ministry of preaching Christ. He had a purpose that God had given him. In fact, Saul would not just preach in Damascus but he would travel the entire Roman Empire in mass pursuit of winning souls for Christ. Paul went from being an antagonist to being an evangelist. He went from being a persecutor to being a preacher. Paul would go onto to be the most influential man in the history of Western Civilization, expect for Jesus Christ. He would write more than half of the New Testament. Paul had a purpose. And it changed him. Never again would he return to his old life.
And when you make a change, and a commitment to follow Christ and leave your old ways you make a decision to not look back. I understand Frank Howard, the former Athletic Director at Clemson University explained years ago to a reporter when asked why he didn’t have rowing as a sport in his college. He replied, “We won’t have any sport at Clemson, where people sit down and go backwards.”
Saul, had a lot of baggage but he never looked back. In Philippians 3:13 he wrote, “I must forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead.” If you want to change, you cannot look back. You follow Christ forward.
