EXTREME MAKEOVER, SPIRITUAL EDITION
Acts 9:1-19
S: Salvation
C: Change God brings
Th: A People with Purpose
Pr: GOD CAN AND WILL BRING CHANGE TO OUR LIVES.
Type: Inductive
I. FURY (1-2)
II. CONTACT (3-5)
III. INSTRUCTION (6-8)
IV. CONNECTION (9-16)
V. FELLOWSHIP (17-19)
PA: How is the change to be observed?
• Let God bring the change that you need.
Version: ESV
RMBC 21 May 06 AM
INTRODUCTION:
1. Have you ever wished you could live those before and after situations?
This has been the premise of the Extreme Makeover shows.
Someone is dissatisfied with their looks and then several doctors, exercise gurus and fashion experts get a hold of you.
And voila!
You have been changed into someone stunningly beautiful in the eyes of the world.
When it comes right down to it, there are no easy answers to getting the change we desire in our lives.
Even on these shows – it involves operations and changes in exercise, diet and clothing habits.
I do believe this to be true, though, that…
2. Many times what keeps us from changing is our own arrogance.
Consider this…
ILL Arrogance
A woman boarded a plane after a busy week, hoping to get some rest.
But before she could settle in, her seatmate started a long-winded conversation about his business, in¬sinuating that as a woman, she probably wouldn’t understand his job.
After a pause, he then asked her what she did for a living.
With a smile she simply said, "I’m a brain surgeon."
The remainder of the trip was quiet.
Sometimes, we need to take a hard look at ourselves and examine what needs to change.
It takes humility to do that, because we have to face the fact that where we are at this point in time, is not where we ought to be.
But how do these changes occur?
Where do you think the change comes from?
ILL Change: GIVE ME MY CHANGE
A Buddhist approached a hotdog vendor and said, "Make me one with everything." The Buddhist gave the vendor a $20 bill and waited. Finally he said, "Where’s my change?"
The vendor replied, "All change must come from within."
Well, that is the Buddhist philosophy – that change comes from within.
And at first glance, we might agree with that.
But, as Christians, we have discovered that an individualistic attitude toward our ability to change is full of inadequacies.
We are not an independent people.
Rather, we are dependent.
It is a lie when we are told we can do anything we put our mind to.
It sounds nice, but it leaves out someone.
Do you know who it is?
Yes, it is God.
And…
3. God has a certain expertise when it comes to transformation.
In fact, over and over again, He has shown that He can change that which seems impossible.
Consider this…
Do you believe that terrorists can change?
Those that are fanatical and extreme in their beliefs, so much so that they will do violence to people, even to the point of death.
Well, we know that these kind of people exist in today’s world, don’t we?
In the book of Acts, where we have been studying of late, Luke tells us a story about this kind of person.
He was a man that used religion to mask his hatred of those that he did not agree with him.
The change that takes place in this man is so intense and so profound that Luke tells the story three times.
Here is how it begins…
OUR STUDY:
I. FURY (1-2)
But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Saul was born a Jew, and this heritage has given him a deep love and appreciation for his Jewish faith.
Saul, though, is also a Roman citizen, having been born in Tarsus in Asia Minor.
So, he was well versed in both the Aramaic and Greek languages.
When it came to his faith, this was a man that was passionate about his beliefs.
He was a Pharisee, and knew the Hebrew Scriptures forward and backward.
He was the up and coming star, having studied under the most respected rabbi of the day.
In fact, he was so zealous for what he believed, that if you did not agree with him, he believed you ought to die for your heresy.
And that was what happened in the passage that was just read.
Saul was the apparent mastermind and ringleader of Stephen’s death.
When the cloaks were laid at his feet, it meant that Saul was giving the official sanction to his execution.
You see…
1. Saul had become a religious terrorist.
Saul lived by a code, a strict code.
It said that if you followed Jesus, your were a heretic and you had to be removed – beaten, placed in jail, or killed.
So, he began his mission of persecuting Christians, and it consumed him.
It became his whole life.
2. He was hunting Christians.
Saul was after those belonging to “The Way.”
It is an appropriate self-description of the early church.
After Stephen had died, many in the church moved out in fear of their safety.
Saul was going after them.
And apparently, quite a few were making their way to Damascus.
So he decided that he would do some clearing out in this northern city.
The text describes Saul with words that describe the activity of a wild animal.
Because he has a heart filled with hatred and a mind poisoned by prejudice, he has become a raging fury.
But something funny happened on the way to Damascus…
II. CONTACT (3-5)
Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. And falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”
3. A new perspective is forced on Saul.
You see, God knows how to get your attention.
And that is what happens here.
Jesus makes the contact, with a light so bright, it literally knocked Saul down off his high horse.
Flat on the ground, blinded and flung down, it is time for him to listen.
And Saul hears the voice, “Why are you persecuting me?”
Saul utters out a meager “who are you?” and hears a stunning revelation.
It is Jesus.
The very one he does not believe in.
The very one whose followers he has been chasing.
The very one he has been hating.
And what Saul discovers is that he had religion, but he did not have a relationship with God.
Jesus was revealing Himself to Saul, right there and then, demonstrating that He was fighting against God’s plan.
I think it is fair to say that Saul understood immediately.
Everything he was fighting against was turning out to be true.
It was a humbling blow to his ego.
Everything he has been doing to this point has been pointless.
So, note the choice he has…
4. Note that Saul has a choice “to hear” or “to hear and obey.”
He was put on the ground.
But he was not made into a robot.
His personality was not violated.
He is not compelled to perform.
But he does have a choice.
In Acts 22, where Saul is describing this story again, he asked the Lord what he should do.
The instruction is simple…
III. INSTRUCTION (6-8)
“But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.
5. He who was spiritually blind is now physically blind.
It is probably fair to say that God had been knocking on the door of Saul’s heart for some time, but He had been unable to get a hearing.
Something drastic had to be done to get him to turn around and understand the truth.
So, Jesus physically blinds Saul to tell him that he was spiritually blind as well.
Saul had not been seeing the truth.
Saul had not been seeing Scriptures correctly.
Saul had not been seeing the Way to God.
Now Saul has instruction to go to Damascus, so he continues his journey to his original destination.
And instead of entering into that city as a conquering hero and the scourge of the so-called Way, he enters helpless, blind, and led by hand.
He who was full of self-confidence, pride and prowess, is now humbled, crushed, and captive.
He has discovered that his fruitful, full life is really empty and worthless.
But, fortunately for him, the Lord Jesus was not yet done with Saul.
IV. CONNECTION (9-16)
And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”
Connections are starting to be made.
First...
6. Saul begins to come clean before the Lord.
In three days, Saul begins to reconstruct everything he was and did.
It is a time of evaluation.
It is a time or prayer and confession.
And it is a time of repentance.
Later, Saul would look back at this event and reflect on how God graciously arrested him.
For a long time, God had been pursuing him, prodding him, even pricking him, making it harder and harder to resist.
And yet, he continued to resist, until God threw him to the ground.
ILL Salvation
CS Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, describes God’s pursuit of him in his autobiography. He compares God’s pursuit…
“…to the great Angler playing his fish, to a cat chasing a mouse, to a pack of hounds closing in on a fox, and finally to the divine chess player manoeuvering him into the most disadvantageous positions until in the end he concedes ‘checkmate’.”
Saul is making the connection that God has been after him for a long time.
Now God keeps providing.
You see…
7. God provides people for us.
We are not called on to go this alone.
God speaks to a follower of Jesus called Ananias, and tells him to go to minister to Saul.
But if you were Ananias, you would probably react the same way he did.
“Lord, Saul is bad news!”
You would be wary too.
You would understand that to go to Saul was like an act of suicide.
This man kills the followers of Jesus.
But God graciously reaffirms the instruction.
God had called him.
God had extended His grace.
And Saul was receiving it.
V. FELLOWSHIP (17-19)
So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened. For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.
8. Saul is welcomed as a brother.
This is one of the most powerful and touching addresses in Scripture, “Brother Saul.”
Ananias does not pass judgment.
He does not accuse.
Instead, he simply accepts the word of the Lord, and thus he simply accepts Saul.
Saul is welcomed into the fellowship of “The Way.”
He now belongs to the community of faith.
And the blindness disappears.
He could see.
He could see physically.
He could see spiritually.
And he is now different.
All those long, built up prejudices of a Pharisee against Gentiles, all the bigotry, the pride, the prejudice that distorted and twisted his view of the Gentile world – it all disappeared.
He openly unites with those he had hated and persecuted.
His hated enemies became friends, while former friends instantly became enemies.
Jesus has changed him for eternity.
APPLICATION:
ILL Salvation
One of the magnificent 19th-century military expeditions conquered no new lands for Queen Victoria. You won’t find it mentioned in history books, but because of the monumental logistics, military historians compare the landing in Ethiopia in 1868 to the Allies’ invasion of France in 1944.
For four years Emperor Theodore III of Ethiopia had held a group of 53 European captives (30 adults and 23 children), including some missionaries and a British consul, in a remote 9,000-foot-high bastion deep in the interior. By letter, Queen Victoria pleaded in vain with Theodore to release the captives. Finally, the government ordered a full-scale military expedition from India to march into Ethiopia—not to conquer the country and make it a British colony, but simply to rescue a tiny band of civilians.
The invasion force included 32,000 men, heavy artillery, and 44 elephants to carry the guns. Provisions included 50,000 tons of beef and pork and 30,000 gallons of rum. Engineers built landing piers, water treatment plants, a railroad, and telegraph line to the interior, plus many bridges. All of this to fight one decisive battle, after which the prisoners were released, and everyone packed up and went home. The British expended millions of pounds to rescue a handful of captives.
Jim Reapsome, Current Thoughts and Trends (May 1999)
How much expense does God have to go through to get to you?
Jesus has already gone through the agony of Roman torture and execution to provide salvation for you.
What else does he need to do to get your attention?
It is amazing to me that the greatest persecutor of Christians up to that time, became the greatest follower of Christ.
And this type of thing still happens today.
For…
9. GOD CAN AND WILL BRING CHANGE TO OUR LIVES.
ILL Personal Conversion
I was only 11 years old when I left religion and began a relationship with Jesus.
I would like to tell you just a short part of my story.
As a child growing up, I was a pretty decent kid, at least that is how my parents remember it.
But I remember that in the 5th grade, at the age of 10, more and more I wanted to be like my friends.
So I started taking on more of their habits.
I used bad language, became feistier and angrier, as well as sarcastic and mean.
But as the school year passed on, I became unhappy with myself.
I didn’t like what I was becoming.
So I tried to change.
I decided that I should try to be a better person.
But though I had some success, I was more frustrated at my lack of success.
I was troubled at what I had become.
I was troubled at what now seemed to be elusive.
I struggled.
Why couldn’t I change?
Why couldn’t I be a better person?
Why couldn’t I get rid of this stuff that people at church called sin?
During the summer of 1970, during a VBS class, I heard an invitation to become a Christian and follow Jesus.
I had heard such invitations before at other services from time to time.
But as I was sitting there in that circle of other students, for the first time, it hit home.
“This is what I need,” I thought. “I need Jesus.”
But they were asking me to raise my hand, and I did not want to.
If I was going to become a Christian, I was going to do it on my own was what I was thinking.
But I will never forget that moment, as I was thinking that, I opened my eyes and discovered that my hand was up.
And I remember thinking, “Get down before somebody sees you!”
I have always felt God helped me that day and grabbed my hand and put it in the air because He loved me, desired me and wanted me to be His, just like Saul.
That was the day I changed.
I may not have been as bad as Saul, but my need of Jesus in my life was just as great.
And may I add, your need is the same.
Saul’s story is our story.
The question is…what is He going to have to do to get your attention?
Or will you listen now?
Jesus says,
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.
Jesus is knocking at the door of your heart.
Will you let Him come in?
Let us pray.
I am going to ask everyone to bow their heads and eyes closed for the next few moments.
Let me ask you a question.
If you were to die today, would you be ready to meet God?
If you have that assurance right now, raise your hand and then put it right back down.
If you were to die today, and you are not ready to meet the Lord, I encourage you to pray this prayer silently as you sit there in your seat.
Heavenly Father, I want to be a real Christian.
I realize that my sins have separated me from You.
Please forgive me.
I believe in what Christ did for me on the cross.
I don’t completely understand it, but I accept it by faith.
I do want to be a child of Yours.
Please come into my life, Lord Jesus, and make me Your child right now.
I want to follow You forever. Amen.
Now with eyes still closed, if you prayed that prayer with me, would you raise your hand so I can see it and then place it back down.
Continue with concluding prayer.
Sing hymn.
For Further Study:
Acts 22.1-16, 26.4-18; Philippians 3.4-11, I Timothy 1.12-17
BENEDICTION: [Counselors are ]
If you prayed that prayer with me a little earlier, I want to encourage you to join me in the front (... will be joining us).
I want to pray with you and encourage you on your next steps on becoming a true believer in the Lord Jesus.
Or if you did not pray that prayer, but would like to or talk about it some more, please join us in the front.
As others go out, please join us in the front.
As Saul did, let us let go of our fury, and anything else that is keeping us from God, and let Him bring the change to us that He longs to bring.
As Saul did, let us hear the Word of the Lord speaking to our soul, accept it, receive it, and obey it, so that the change that God longs to bring will have its full effect.
As Saul did, let us rejoice in the community of faith that He provides, for He does not intend for us live alone, but rather, live the change that He brings within a community that will encourage and strengthen us for the days ahead.
Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
RESOURCES:
SermonCentral:
Ashcraft, Bob True Change
Newton, Glenn Before and After
Portis, Cedric What More Does the Lord Have to Do?
Rogers, David I am Blind So I Might See
Stedman, Ray C. Beloved Enemy
Warren, Doug A Terrorist Turns to Jesus
Books:
Bruce, F. F. Commentary on the Book of the Acts The New International Commentary on the New Testament, ed. F. F. Bruce. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1975.
MacArthur, John, Jr. Acts 1-12 The MacArthur New Testament Commentary. Chicago: Moody Press, 1994.
Stott, John R. W. The Spirit, the Church, and the World. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1990.
