Rejoice!
Carl
Christ. With that is going on around us and to us, Christians sometimes need
to be reminded of this joy. And we need to rejoice in the Lord, too. Aaron
Kilbourn's sermon presented below is timely and beneficial for Christians.
His congregation benefitted when they heard his message and I hope you will
benefit as well when you read it.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
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Rejoice!
by Aaron Kilbourn
Philippians 4:4-7 reads, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say,
rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be
anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through
Christ Jesus." Blessed be the reading of God's Word this morning.
In AD 61 Paul, the author of this letter was sitting in a Roman prison where
he was chained to a guard. He wound up in jail eventually because he refused
to listen to the warnings of his church brother and sisters. He felt
compelled to go back to Jerusalem and preach the Word despite their warnings
of possible prison time. He went and preached in the Jewish Temple and some
Jews from Asia Minor had started to hassle him. They accused him of speaking
against Jewish people and the law. He also got in trouble for bringing
Greeks into the temple itself and making it unclean. There was a
disturbance, a small riot then the Roman commander came in and arrested
Paul, putting him in prison.
Yet, in spite of these difficulties, he writes tot eh church in Philippi. "I
thank God that you're the type of people up there in Philippi who have been
supporting me with prayers and finances. And I want to send a thank you note
with Epaphroditus, thanking you for backing me. Thank you for your lives and
for being a constant source of encouragement." And that's how he begins this
letter to the Philippians.
So what is really happening here? What is the cause of such a positive
outlook and attitude? The key was that Paul was able to look far beyond the
immediate confining circumstances. Through the Spirit of God, he was able to
interpret beyond the immediate. He could see that because he was in prison
he could see that many more things were happening. The Gospel was moving
forward. And he said, "Rejoice! I want you to rejoice. Good things are
happening."
I understand that many of us at times are weary, like Paul, and we get
lonely at times and we don't realize what's going on, that there are things
that happen to us that we are confused about. And yet despite all of these
things - the shipwreck, the prison, the trumped up false charges, all these
things laid on Paul's back, he is able to say, "Listen, it's all right, it's
okay. All is well."
The source and secret to Paul's attitude comes in four ways. In chapter 1
Paul says, "Jesus Christ is my life." In Chapter 2 Paul says, "Jesus Christ
is my example." Chapter 3, he says, "Jesus Christ is my confidence." And in
this chapter four, in his thank-you note he writes, "Jesus Christ is my
strength."
You see Jesus Christ was Paul's very life and he realizes that he's in
prison so that he can spread the message of Jesus Christ to Europe and many
who don't know the Way to Salvation. That's why he has the thrill of saying,
"Rejoice in the Lord! Rejoice in the Lord, not in my strength or my positive
attitude, not in my cleverness, but rejoice in Jesus Christ. Realize who He
is! Realize who you are! Put the two together and you'll come out saying,
"Well, praise the Lord! Rejoice!"
You see joy in the Christian life is as vital as oxygen is to breathing. We
need to be called again and again and again to it as believers. If you do
not rejoice in Jesus Christ, I would dare to say you need to repent of a
joyless life. Being genuinely happy because of who Jesus is in your life is
a mark of a real Christian. This authentic joy is not slap-happy silliness,
not warm-fuzzy feelings. This happiness and joy comes from understanding, as
Paul did, that Jesus is what you truly live for the rest of your life.
The attitude of being happy, because of Jesus, is what will produce that
gentleness that Paul talks about in the next verse. If people cannot sense
your gentleness and rejoicing in Jesus then you need to listen to this
revealed secret:
"As a third-century man was nearing death, he wrote these last words to a
friend: It's a bad world, and incredibly bad world. But I have discovered in
the midst of it a quiet and peaceful people. They have found a joy which is
a thousand times better than any pleasure of our sinful life. They are
rejected and despised, unpopular and persecuted, but they don't care. They
are masters of their souls. They have overcome the world. These people are
the Christians-and I am one of them."
Rejoicing about Jesus - That is our first step to dealing with that one
poison in our life. You and I know what it is. It is not an accidental
poisoning that happens to us. It is a poison of choice. Kind of like
nicotine. We know smoking is bad for us but some of us here have ignored the
warning that is right on the cigarette package itself and went ahead and lit
up.
This poison has divided families. It's brought shame to the body of Christ
and shame to our families. This poison puts us into predictable convulsions,
doing things we know we shouldn't but do anyway. This poison steals joy from
our lives, sucks happiness from our souls and cuts life short by causing
heart failures, brain aneurysms and high blood pressure. The poison I am
talking about is ANXIETY.
A John Hopkins University doctor says, "We do not know why it is that
worriers die sooner than the non-worriers, but that is a fact." But I think
I know. We are made in nerve and tissue, brain cell and soul, for Faith and
NOT fear. God made us that way. To live by worry is to live against reality.
Now I am not saying that you should never worry but take this mental note
down. Self-centered, unproductive worry without legitimate cares and
concerns for the way Jesus wants us to follow is anxiety that is harmful.
You see anxiety is faith in the negative, trusting in the unpleasant,
assurance of disaster and belief in defeat.
Paul tells us to be anxious for NOTHING! Did you hear that? He didn't say to
be anxious for your children, to be anxious for your family, to be anxious
for your future, to be anxious for your snow removal, to be anxious for your
church construction. We are to be anxious for NOTHING! Because you see being
anxious is the great poison of the mind that slowly kills your faith, slowly
killing the real joy of life. We become unsure of life. We stop trusting
people, we stop trusting God.
So what are we to do? Do we continue to let worry and anxiety cast a big
shadow over something so small? Paul gives us the answer. Pray. That's it,
prayer. You see anxiety and prayer are the two greatest opposing forces in
the Christian life. Like fire and water. Think of it. You talk to God less
about things and you end up having more time to worry about them. You talk
to God more about things and you have less time to worry. You see, God will
help us when we are in trouble. When we worry we are on our own.
And Lord help us when we're on our own. That's why we need to come to Him in
prayer. Anxiety has no place in the Christian life because in everything
there can be prayer. That is why Paul says to be anxious for NOTHING. If we
are anxious for nothing, we will pray for EVERYTHING.
But it is the kind of prayer that we need to refine. We need to tune-up our
prayer life. Some people have turned their prayers into a ritual, without
any meaning. Like the three-year old who was taught the Lord's Prayer over
and over again and finally when her mother thought she had it down heard her
pray at the end, "Lead us not into temptation but deliver us some e-mail.
Amen." Our prayers may lose meaning if we forget the meaning of the words.
Some people might slingshot prayers to God. You know, a little request here,
a little thanks there. Never giving long enough time for God to get their
name, let alone their sentence of prayer. Or are you like the person who
comes to Santa Claus, I mean God, when you need something? Do your prayers
start like this, "Dear Lord I really need." "Dear Lord could You.?" "Dear
Lord please bless."?
God made the heavens and the earth. He gave breath to babies and puts all
things in perfect order in the physical universe. The sun is just the right
distance from the earth. The earth rotates just fast enough to keep life
going and slow enough to keep it from shooting into space. Our God already
knows our needs better than we can tell Him. But what He really needs is our
thankfulness. He needs our gratitude, our worship for the things that He has
done for us. Like author John Macks puts it in his book, "Heaven Talks
Back" - "You should pray everyday not in begging but in gratitude for all
you have been given. I'm just like everybody else; I like a little
appreciation now and then. Nothing big, no plaques, just a nice, "Hey God,
good job today."
That is why Paul says in verse 6 that we pray with, 'thanksgiving.'
Literally, this means that we tell God why He has made our hearts warm. I k
now some people who have some of the warmest hearts I have met. They have
endured more than most before they were seventeen years old. They would
never ask, but I will: Have you lost your family to civil war? Have you seen
childhood friends die horribly right next to you? Have you gone insane,
having no reason or mind? Have you been shipped to another country, forced
to learn a new language - separated by thousands of miles from friends and
family? These young men are Christians from the war-torn country of Sudan
and they have warm hearts, warm enough to burn past all the stuff we hide
under as Americans.
Let us start by telling, Him thanks for the life He's given you. Tell Him
thanks for people who love you. Tell Him thanks for Jesus and saving your
life. That is how we are to let our requests be made known to God - with
thankfulness. If we would spend out time thanking God more we would spend
less time worrying about what He has given.
And God doesn't care how big your worries are or your problems. That is why
Paul writes, "But in EVERYTHING by prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving.. Let your requests be known to God." Aren't you tired of
worrying about everything that nobody's doing? Aren't you weary from
worrying about what you haven't done on your 'to do' list? Wouldn't you like
to rest your mind, heart, and your body from the anxiety that racks your
body and robs your sleep? Aren't you ready to trade the poison of anxiety
for the peace of God?
I wonder how many people lost their lives on 9/11 because they were on their
cell phone talking to their next business deal. I wonder how many people
died on 9/11 making sure that they didn't get their hands dirty. I wonder
how many people lived because they knew that seconds counted and it didn't
matter if they got dirty, it didn't matter if the customer was on hold, it
didn't matter because life was hanging in the balance. You see, our very
souls hang in the balance when we substitute the poison of anxiety for the
prayerful peace of God.
This God-given peace that comes through thankful prayer acts as a security
guard over our hearts and our thinking. This peace keeps the Christian's
mind and emotions from being overwhelmed by the sudden onrush of fear,
anxiety, and temptation. Without this guard of peace it is easy for anything
else to break in and destroy our hearts and minds.
Right now I want us to pray silently. I want us to practice the prayer of
thanksgiving. Yes I know it is not the holiday yet, but do we have to wait
once a year to give thanks to God?
Let us pray:
Thank You God for Your beautiful creation.
Thank You God for giving us this day.
Thank You Lord for giving us the freedom to worship you in this country.
Thank You Lord for this sanctuary.
Thank You Lord for everyone here.
Thank You Lord for the life You've given me
Thank You Lord for Your son Jesus.
Thank You Jesus for listening to us.
Thank You Jesus for loving us.
Thank You Jesus for dying for us.
Thank You Jesus that we will see you once again.
Thank You God.
Thank You Lord.
Thank You Jesus.
Zadok
Jesus - big gap - Hallucination - Ananais (may be the high priest) - Saulus
Can anyone here fill in that big gap??
Can anyone tell us why we should believe Saulus, who never met Jesus, never
studied with Jesus
and never knew Jesus??
Jesus told us in Matthew 24 -
Take heed that no man (Saulus) deceive you.
For many (Saulus and his minions) shall come in my name,
saying, I am Christ (have the authority to make laws); and shall deceive
many
(including Carl).
Smile
Carl
Carl
Paul.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
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LIGHT SHALL SHINE OUT OF DARKNESS
by Ron Ritchie
On Friday last I did one of my favorite things: I visited my local bookstore
and spent time browsing through the best-selling books. I'm very interested
in what people are writing about and what the public is reading. I
discovered there is a slew of biographical and autobiographical works which
seem to be popular these days people writing books about themselves or
others so that people like you and me can read about them. As I browsed, the
words of Solomon came to my mind, " . . . my son, be warned; the writing of
many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the
body" (Ecc. 12:12). Despite this warning, however, in my heart I wished I
had the entire bookstore to myself so I could read every book on the
shelves.
Many are curious about the lives of famous people and keen to learn their
secrets for living. A sampling of book titles will demonstrate just where
people are looking these days. Being a World War II buff, Eisenhower at War,
1943-45, by David Eisenhower, caught my eye. There seems to be a big market
for the following works on big-name people: The History of the Kennedys,
Monty, The War Years, Yeager, Pat Nixon, The Untold Story', Betty: The Glad
Awakening. Then there are two books by Shirley MacLaine, Out On A Limb and
Dancing in the Light. Others high on the bestseller lists include Mayflower
Madam: The Secret Life of Sydney Barrows; two books on Marilyn Monroe,
Marilyn: The Life of Norma Jean and Goddess: The Secret Life of Marilyn
Monroe, and a book on John DeLorean, entitled DeLorean.
One thing that all of these books have in common is that they list an
amazing amount of details concerning the personal lives of these public
people. But many of these famous individuals, unfortunately, lived wasted
lives and spent their days under the influence of the world, the flesh and
the devil. These are tragic accounts, for many of them were never willing to
acknowledge the very Author of life itself, Jesus Christ. They may have had
a momentary influence in our generation, and perhaps will have limited
influence for a couple of generations yet to come, but they will soon be
forgotten.
By contrast, in this series of messages we will examine the life of a man
who has influenced the lives of people in every generation since the first
century, and he will continue to influence for good the lives of every
generation until Jesus Christ comes again. We will study the life of the
apostle Paul as it is revealed in the New Testament. This is not an easy
task, for the life of the apostle does not come in a nice chronological
outline as do the stories of those whose books are so popular these days. We
must search the New Testament diligently for the details. Paul did not leave
an autobiography because, following his conversion on the Damascus Road, the
only person he wanted to talk about was Jesus Christ. From that day on, the
apostle's mission was to make known the grace and mercy of the Lord toward
him, and how that grace and mercy were available to all who would place
their faith in Jesus.
Before we begin our first message (from Acts, chapter 9) in the life of Paul
we will set the stage for our study by observing three different backdrops
to the drama of the apostle's life. The first backdrop is the gospel of
Luke, the account which Dr. Luke wrote to his friend Theophilus telling him
"all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day He was taken up." Luke
was a Gentile whom Paul befriended in the city of Troas during the apostle's
second missionary journey. From 51 A.D. until Paul's death in Rome in 65
A.D. these men were fellow-workers in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The second backdrop to our story of the life of Paul is the book of Acts,
also written by Luke and also dedicated to Theophilus. Acts is the account
of the activities of the apostles and disciples over a period of some thirty
years, as the risen Lord fulfilled his promise, "I will build my church and
the gates of Hades shall not overpower it" (Matt. 16). We have a concise
outline to the book in the words of Jesus which he uttered before his
ascension into heaven. Here is what he said in response to the disciples'
question, "Lord, is it at this time that you are restoring the Kingdom of
Israel?":
It is not for you to know the times and the seasons which the Father has
fixed by his own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit
has come upon you and you shall be of me witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in
all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth (Acts
1:6-8).
The third and most important backdrop to the story of Paul is an event that
occurred on the day of Pentecost. Ten days after the Lord's ascension into
heaven, the Holy Spirit came into the lives of the apostles and disciples.
Since that day in 30 A.D., all followers of Jesus Christ in every generation
have lived and ministered in the age of the Spirit, which will last until
his physical return to earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. During this
age of the Spirit, our Lord, through his Holy Spirit, is calling out a
people from among the nations of the earth for his name s sake. And sharing
this good news is the task which is to occupy every Christian in every
generation until Jesus returns.
We could say that the Book of Acts is like a coat jacket which was woven and
sewn together by the Holy Spirit in the first century. A close look at the
jacket will show that its many different colored threads have been carefully
woven together so as to give the church the final product. In our study in
the life of Paul we will see the many beautiful threads that have been woven
of his life and the lives of his fellow-workers in order to bring them to
spiritual maturity as they labored to fulfill their parts in God's plan of
redemption.
Here are some of the "threads" we will see in the Book of Acts. First, we
see the "thread" of our Sovereign God and Father. He is the Father of
creation, of Israel, of Jesus Christ, and of all believers in every age. It
is he who moves people and circumstances, opening and closing doors of
opportunity as history unfolds. Then there is the "thread" of our invisible
but always present Lord. He is the Giver of life, the Head of his Body, the
church, the Shepherd of the sheep, the Intercessor for his people, the
Preparer of his bride. He is the one who challenges and encourages his
followers to trust him and walk by faith, for he is with them to direct them
in the age of the Spirit. Then there is the "thread" of Jesus' promise, that
the Holy Spirit would indwell and empower believers, and through them
convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment.
Then we see the "thread" of the evil one, Satan himself, and his followers
who are forever seeking to destroy the work of the Lord and his disciples.
In the long run, however, Christians know that Satan will not succeed, for
he has been defeated at the cross of Jesus Christ. Finally, we see the
"thread" of joy, adventure and suffering awaiting those who are willing to
follow Jesus in the age of the Spirit.
That is the story of the Book of Acts, the history of the early church. But
no matter what century a believer in Jesus Christ tries on this "jacket."
the fit is always perfect. All the truths written down in the first century
form a perfect fit for 20th century man. Yet not all the truth that is
needed for our Christian walk is found in the fabric of this jacket. Within
the jacket we find the many letters written by Paul and the apostles. These
letters were written to fill in details on how to wear the jacket, how to
keep it ,.lean. how to share it, how to avoid robbers who would try to steal
it. and how to protect it from moths that would destroy the fabric. \written
by the Holy Spirit through the apostles, these letters are as relevant to us
in our day as they were to the Christians in that first century day.
Hopefully, as we wear this jacket in our own century, we will find our
hearts and minds prepared to listen to the Holy Spirit as he seeks to direct
our lives, as he directed the lives of the writers of these documents. Let
us strive to be part of God's plan of redemption in this age of the Spirit
until Jesus returns again to earth!
I have entitled this message, "Let light shine out of darkness," words taken
from chapter 6 of Paul's second letter to the Corinthians. We begin our
study in Acts, chapter 9. Here, then, is the story of the activity of Jesus
Christ in and through the apostle Paul.
I. Blinded by Unbelief Acts 9:1, 2
Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the
Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the
synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both
men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
By this time the gospel had already been preached both in Jerusalem and
Samaria for a period of three years, but not without persecution and threats
by the Jewish supreme court. In spite of the threats however, the apostles
and disciples of Jesus continued preaching that Jesus was the Messiah. One
of the disciples was Stephen. a man of grace and great power, who was
performing great signs and wonders among the Jews. This caused the wrath of
the Jews from the Synagogue of the Freedmen in Jerusalem. In time they
brought a charge of blasphemy against Stephen, charging that he spoke
against the law of Moses and had preached that Jesus would destroy the
temple. As a result, Stephen was brought before the supreme court. There, he
gave a wonderful testimony to the Lord. He told the court that they were
resisting the Holy Spirit and that they were the murderers of the Righteous
One. Jesus. As a result of his testimony Stephen was taken out of the city
and stoned to death. Standing among the crowd watching his death was a man
named Saul, and those who were about to stone Stephen laid their robes at
his feet. ' . . . and Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to
death," Acts records.
Who was this man, Saul, who approved the death sentence on Stephen? He
traces his background for us in his own words in Acts 29:39: "I am a Jew of
Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city." Tarsus was a
Hellenistic city, located on the southeast corner of Asia Minor, known for
its commercial and intellectual contributions to the Roman Empire. Saul's
father was a Pharisee, and a man of some means, apparently, because he
purchased a Roman citizenship, which covered every member of his family.
(Saul would use this citizenship to his advantage in years to come.) He had
a sister who lived in Jerusalem with her son, and Saul may have stayed with
her when he lived there as a young student under the famous first century
rabbi, Gamaliel.
In chapter 3 of his letter to the Philippians, many years later. Saul, who
was then known as Paul, lists seven credentials which he possessed. "/ was
circumcised on the eighth day, "he says. He was under the covenant of
Abraham. "/ was of the nation of Israel. "He was neither a slave nor a
convert to Judaism, but a pureblooded Jew from the loins of Jacob. "/ was of
the tribe of Benjamin. " He may have been named after King Saul. who was
also of the tribe of Benjamin and who reigned some one thousand years
earlier. "I am a Hebrew of the Hebrews. " Although he was born and raised in
a Greek city, he spoke Hebrew (and also Greek and Aramaic) and kept the
Jewish law and customs. "As to the Law, I was a Pharisee. "He followed in
the footsteps of his father and joined the party of the Pharisees, the
separatists, rather than the liberal Sadducees. Thus, he sought to obey the
letter, rather than the spirit of the Law. "As to zeal, I was a persecutor
of the church. " He was a zealot who regarded followers of Jesus as a threat
to Judaism. Paul would later write in Galatians: "I was advancing in Judaism
beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely
zealous for my ancestral traditions." Finally, Paul said of himself, "as to
the righteousness which is in the Law, I was found blameless. " He had
carried this righteousness so far as to appear perfect before men. Later.
however, he would write to the Philippians, " . . . whatever things were
gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ." So
there we have young Saul's appraisal of himself as a Pharisee.
What part did Saul play in the persecution of the church? Acts 8 tells us
that immediately following Stephen's death, a great persecution of the
church began in Jerusalem. All followers of Christ in that city (except for
the apostles) were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Some twenty-five
years later, when Paul appeared in chains before King Agrippa in Caesarea,
here is what he said of his role in the persecution:
"I thought to myself that I had to do many things hostile to the name of
Jesus of Nazareth. And this is just what I did in Jerusalem; not only did I
lock many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief
priests, but also when they were being put to death I cast my vote against
them. And as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force
them to blaspheme; and being furiously enraged at them, I kept pursuing them
even to foreign cities . . . " (Acts 26:9-11)
Acts 9:2 tells us what he did with the Christians he captured: " . . . if he
found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them
bound to Jerusalem."
What was the cause of Saul's murderous attitude toward Christians? We must
remember that he believed the Old Testament prophecies that God would one
day send his Messiah to Israel. The Jews of Saul's day divided history into
three divisions: the age of chaos, the age of the law, and the age of the
Messiah. Saul's problem with Christians, therefore, did not hinge on belief
in a coming Messiah but on their belief that Jesus was that Messiah. How
could he be the Messiah? Paul demanded, considering the teaching of
Deuteronomy 21:
"If a man guilty of a capital offense is put to death and his body is hung
on a tree, you must not leave his body on the tree overnight. Be sure to
bury him the same day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's
curse. . . "
Saul knew that Jesus had died by crucifixion, on a tree; therefore,
according to Deuteronomy, he died under the curse of God. Thus he could not
possibly be the Messiah upon whom the blessings of God rested in unique
measure. To claim that Jesus was the Messiah was blasphemous, Saul reasoned,
and those who followed him deserved to suffer as blasphemers. They were not
only deluded fools, they were deceivers and impostors. Furthermore, in
Saul's mind the story that Jesus arose from the dead could not possibly be
true because the divine curse could not be reversed. Saul's theology,
therefore, was the motivating factor in his zeal to stamp out the heresy
that followers of the Way were spreading. He had a clear conscience (almost,
as we will see later) in his service to God and to the law of Moses.
Thirty years later, however, it was quite a different story. Here is what
Paul wrote to Timothy:
. . .I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a wanton aggressor.
And yet I was shown mercy, because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the
grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are
found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full
acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among
whom I am foremost of all.
This is the place in a sermon when a preacher looks for an illustration
which will help in the application of what he is saying. I spent much of
last week seeking an illustration but failed to come up with one. But late
one night the Lord whispered in my heart, 'Ron, you are the illustration.
You were my enemy once. You were a God-hater, a Christ-hater and a
Christian-hater. You helped crucify the Messiah by your sins." Once we were
all enemies of God, according to the letter to the Romans. We were ignorant
and blinded by unbelief. We knew just enough truth to be confused. And yet,
like Saul, we were shown mercy because we acted ignorantly in unbelief.
Thus we have some of the background of Saul the Pharisee, the religious
zealot. He was blinded by unbelief, his heart filled with
self-righteousness, hatred and murder. What a candidate for the grace and
mercy of God!
We pick up his story again in Acts 9. This time we find him 150 miles
northeast of Jerusalem, on his way to the city of Damascus. in hot pursuit
of some followers of the Way.
II. Blinded by the Light Acts 9:3-S
And it came about that as he journeyed, he was approaching Damascus, and
suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground,
and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
And he said, "Who art Thou, Lord?" And He said, "I am Jesus whom you are
persecuting, . . . "
Here in this section we come to the conversion of Saul. We will get a
clearer picture of that if we look at two other passages in Acts, namely
Acts 22:5-10, which is Paul's defense to the people of Jerusalem at the time
of his arrest, and Acts 26:13-18, his defense before King Agrippa.
First. Paul's account which he gave to King Agrippa:
"And it came about that as we journeyed we were approaching Damascus about
noon time, suddenly a very bright light flashed from heaven, brighter than
the sun shining all around me and those who were with me. And when we had
all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew
dialect, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick
against the goads.' And I answered and Said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And He
said, 'I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.' And those who
were with me beheld the light to be sure, but did not understand the voice
of the One who was speaking to me."
Thus was Saul, the arrester, himself arrested by the risen Son of God. The
light which flashed around him was "brighter than the sun," he says. In
Scripture, light is a symbol of the holiness of God, the totality of his
righteous character, the symbol of truth, guidance, revelation, even life
itself. This light was first seen at the creation of the world, when God
said, "Let there be light." The light that enveloped Saul was like the light
seen by Moses at the burning bush; the light that accompanied Israel in the
wilderness; the light that accompanied the birth of Jesus; the light that
the disciples saw on the Mount of Transfiguration. This light was so bright
that it penetrated the darkness of Saul's heart and filled him with the
revelation that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. the Son of God, resurrected
from the dead. Paul wrote of this light years later in his letter to the
Corinthians:
For God who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has
shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in the face of Christ.
Notice that the voice said to Saul, " . . . why are you persecuting me?" The
resurrected Lord is keenly aware of how his body. the church, is being
persecuted and who is doing the persecuting. Thus, to persecute the church
is to persecute the Lord himself. Augustine said of this incident, "It was
the Head in heaven crying out on behalf of the members who are still on
earth."
Then the voice said to Saul, "It is hard for you to kick against the goads."
Jesus was referring to the promptings of the Spirit which Saul was
resisting. A goad was an eight-foot long stick. sharpened at one end, used
by ploughmen to keep their oxen in line as they ploughed. The Lord was
saying to Saul, "You had the law and the prophets to tell you who I am. You
heard of me during my three years of earthly ministry, my preaching and
healing. You heard of me in the messages of my apostles and converts. You
heard of me from Stephen. Don't you find it hard kicking against so much
evidence?" How many of us are still kicking out, like oxen, against the
goads of Christ'? Every time God brings yet another word of testimony about
himself we resist the pricking of the goad.
All those in Saul's party on the Damascus road "fell to the ground," Acts
says, and all heard the voice, but only one. Saul. asked the question, "Who
are you, Lord?" The voice answered. "I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are
persecuting. I am Jesus who was hanged on a tree, who was buried and rose
again from the dead. I am the resurrected Messiah, the Righteous One of
Israel." The disciples of Jesus had been right all along. Jesus. the man who
was crucified on a tree, had indeed risen from the dead and had to be
acknowledged as Messiah and Lord. The pronouncement of the divine curse on
the crucified man still stood in the law, however. Messiah had indeed
incurred that curse. Paul would later write to the Galatians,
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us.
For it is written, "Cursed is every one who hangs on a tree," in order that
in Christ Jesus the blessings of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that
we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Paul looked at the cross and agreed that it was the ground of his
justification, the means of his sanctification, the subject of his witness,
and the object of his boasting. The apostle recognized that Jesus had taken
upon himself the wrath of God.
We continue with Luke's account of what Jesus said to Saul during this
incident on the Damascus Road.
III. Blinded, But Enlightened
Acts 9:6-9
. . . but rise and enter the city, and it shall be told you what you must
do." And the men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the voice,
but seeing no one. And Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were
open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him
into Damascus. And he was there three days without sight, and neither ate
nor drank.
Paul himself, in his testimony again before King Agrippa fills in other
details on this occurrence. Acts 26:16-18 gives his account of what Jesus
said to him.
"But arise, and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you,
to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you
have seen, but also to the thing in which I will appear to you; delivering
you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you,
to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the
dominion of Satan to God, in order that they may receive forgiveness of sins
and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me."
Though Saul's eyes were open he could see nothing. He was physically blinded
by the glorious light of the presence of the Son of God. But at that very
moment in time he turned completely around to the truth that Jesus was the
Messiah, and that now, by faith, he was his Messiah too. Saul had been in
darkness, held captive by Satan, but now by faith he had turned to Jesus and
was enlightened by his Holy Spirit. He was taken to Damascus and there he
remained, blind, fasting for three days, and spending the time in prayer. He
had a vision that he would meet a man named Ananias and from him he would
receive back his sight. Saul spent the time praying for forgiveness, but his
heart must have been filled with praise and joy when he realized he had
spoken to the Messiah, Jesus. He would later say to the Galatians:
"But when He had set me apart, even from my mother's womb, and called Me
through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach
Him among the Gentiles. . . " (Gal. 1:15, 16)
As he looked back on his life, Paul could see that God was guiding him from
the moment he was born, so that all of his experiences in life were leading
him ultimately to become a preacher of righteousness among the Gentiles.
Saul's story is the story of every one of us before we came to Christ. We
were born into this world as enemies of God, blinded by unbelief. Were it
not for the grace and mercy, the patience and love of God extended to us we
would have remained so for all eternity. Saul, the very man who had such a
struggle accepting the necessity of the cross and the goads of the crucified
One. would later write, "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer
I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life that I now live in the
flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and delivered himself
up for me." When we come to the cross we must die to all our hopes and
dreams and pleasures so that Christ may live through us. If we don't do this
our lives will be counted as lost. We will be just another unread book,
lacking impact on our own generation.
Let us stand and read the words of John 3:16, and let us think of the life
of Saul and of our own lives. Those who have already come to Christ will
find their hearts filled with joy and thanksgiving; those who are still
resisting the Lord Jesus will once more feel the prick of the goad. If you
are one of the stubborn ones who needs to feel the goad one more time, in
order to forsake the kingdom of darkness and enter the kingdom of light,
then allow the goad to have that effect on you this time. God is patient,
loving and merciful. He wants you to die to yourself so that he can live
through you.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
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Carl
merely another heretic in a long line of heretics. He will suffer the
consequences if he does not repent so says Scripture.
He admits to rejecting John 1:1.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his
glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of
grace and truth.
He admits to rejecting John the Baptist & John 1:16,17.
From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after
another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through
Jesus Christ.
He admits to rejecting Acts 4:33.
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of
the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all.
He admits to rejecting Romans 5:15.
But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass
of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the
grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!
He admits to rejecting Philemon 1:25.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
He admits to rejecting Revelation 1:4,5.
Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and
from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the
faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of
the earth.
He admits to rejecting Revelation 22:21.
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people.
Zadok stated clearly, "I reject any books not written by an apostle"
therefore he rejects the entire Old Testament, the book of Mark (since it's
attributed to Mark, a cousin of Barnabas), the book of Luke, Acts, the
Epistle to the Romans, the First & Second Epistles to the Corinthians, the
Epistle to the Galatians, the Epistle to the Ephesians, Epistle to the
Philippians, the Epistle to the Colossians, the First & Second Epistles to
the Thessalonians, the First & Second Epistles to Timothy, the Epistle to
Titus, the Epistle to Philemon, the Epistle to the Hebrews, 2 Peter, and
even though John wrote it, apparently Zadok reject Revelation as well.
All that's left in Zadok's personally edited, cafeteria-style chosen verse
inclusion (e.g. -- a couple here, some from there, a few more from there,
etc.) is Matthew, John (although since he rejects Revelation he probably
rejects John as well in order to be consistent), the Epistle of James, the
First Epistle of Peter, the First, Second, & Third Epistles of John and the
Epistle of Jude. However since the Epistle of James is traditionally
attributed as being written by James, brother of Jesus and Jude Thomas and
the Epistle of Jude is traditionally ascribed to Jude Thomas, brother of
Jesus and James, Zadok may reject those as well depending upon if he
considers James & Jude Thomas apostles or not.
So the 66 books in the Bible that have been accepted as canon by Christians
for centuries has mostly been rejected by Zadok whose personal "bible" is 8
books or less. And even those 8 books are viscerated by Zadok's personal
choice to reject portions of even those books that oppose his worldly and
unholy views of such Godly things as Grace, Love, Joy, Peace, etc.
In short, Zadok rejects God's Word. This explains why he lacks any grace,
joy, peace, longsuffering, etc. and exhibits anger, bitterness, hatred, a
short temper and other attributes which God does not want Christians to
display.
Zadok's heart is quite hardened and dark and is also completely devoid of
the Holy Spirit. He has shown himself conclusively to be a heretic and since
he has been indeed warned properly according to Scripture yet refuses all
proper, Biblical correction, Christians should not have anything further to
do with him. Zadok's fate is dire unless he repents according to God's Word.
I beseech all of my Christian brothers and sisters to pray for Zadok and
continue to keep him in your prayers no matter how insulting, crude and rude
he becomes in his posts.