WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.480 Good morning, Watermark. The scripture reading today comes from Acts chapter 9, verses 1-20. 00:00:07.480 --> 00:00:12.080 ! 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Come grab a seat with me. 00:05:47.079 --> 00:05:48.419 And so he goes inside. 00:05:49.079 --> 00:05:52.759 And to his amazement, he found that he could understand everything the preacher said. 00:05:52.759 --> 00:05:56.240 But what's more, he didn't just understand it, he believed it. 00:05:56.779 --> 00:06:00.779 And that night, for the first time in his life, his life was turned around. 00:06:01.339 --> 00:06:05.939 His heart was flooded with peace, and he said a lightheartedness overcame him. 00:06:06.819 --> 00:06:11.839 As he left church that night, the man who had invited him in introduced him to the preacher's wife. 00:06:11.920 --> 00:06:13.459 Her name was Bethan Lloyd-Jones. 00:06:13.939 --> 00:06:18.079 And the man invited him and says, Mrs. Lloyd-Jones, this is Staffordshire Bill. 00:06:18.079 --> 00:06:21.659 And at that, Mrs. Lloyd-Jones recounts the story. 00:06:21.779 --> 00:06:26.319 She says his whole body flinched as if somebody had struck him with an almighty blow. 00:06:26.680 --> 00:06:31.879 He says, oh no, oh no, that is a bad old name for a bad old man. 00:06:32.319 --> 00:06:33.959 I am William Thomas now. 00:06:34.899 --> 00:06:37.680 And for the next three years, Staffordshire Bill was 70 years old. 00:06:37.759 --> 00:06:44.860 For the next three years, he becomes a joyful, contributing, integrated member of not only the community, but of the church. 00:06:44.860 --> 00:06:49.180 And he dies at the age of 73, a beloved member of the church community. 00:06:49.920 --> 00:06:52.520 Friends, what makes somebody a Christian? 00:06:53.540 --> 00:06:56.300 How does God change people deeply? 00:06:57.280 --> 00:07:03.699 How does God take somebody that's so far away from him and bring him near, in fact, make him his friend? 00:07:04.699 --> 00:07:08.080 Many of us here would consider ourselves Christians, followers of Jesus. 00:07:08.220 --> 00:07:10.340 But I also know that many of us here are not. 00:07:10.340 --> 00:07:14.199 Many of us are still on a spiritual journey, wondering about the claims of Christ. 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:21.939 No matter where you are in your faith journey, do you know what does it mean, what does it take to make someone a Christian? 00:07:22.259 --> 00:07:24.620 For somebody to change deeply and profoundly? 00:07:25.400 --> 00:07:27.040 And this is a very important question. 00:07:27.540 --> 00:07:29.280 And it's important for three reasons, I think. 00:07:29.639 --> 00:07:33.500 The first reason is, as I said, many of us here would consider ourselves followers of Jesus. 00:07:34.160 --> 00:07:36.040 But is that really the case? 00:07:36.280 --> 00:07:37.259 Are you sure of that? 00:07:37.259 --> 00:07:45.620 Jesus, at the end of his very famous Sermon on the Mount, he says, there are many, many people who will say to me one day, Lord, look at all the things we did in your name. 00:07:45.620 --> 00:07:48.480 And I will turn to them and say, I never knew you. 00:07:49.019 --> 00:07:53.339 Just because you think of yourself a Christian doesn't mean you really are a follower of Jesus. 00:07:53.939 --> 00:07:55.819 So it's an important question for us to consider. 00:07:55.819 --> 00:08:00.480 But secondly, it's an important question for those of us that are followers of Jesus. 00:08:00.959 --> 00:08:06.319 Maybe we felt that God changed us a long time ago, once upon a time. 00:08:06.680 --> 00:08:09.480 And yet that change has kind of dissipated. 00:08:10.360 --> 00:08:12.259 It's no longer real to us. 00:08:12.379 --> 00:08:14.139 And it feels like a distant memory. 00:08:14.279 --> 00:08:17.719 And yet God wants that to be real and alive in our hearts constantly. 00:08:17.980 --> 00:08:20.560 To be aware of the power of God to change our lives. 00:08:20.560 --> 00:08:25.639 And then, of course, the third reason is, as I said, many of us here are still on a journey of faith. 00:08:26.040 --> 00:08:29.420 You're not a Christian, but you're wondering, what does it mean to be a Christian? 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:33.679 And for you, you too need clarity on what does it mean to be a follower of Jesus? 00:08:33.820 --> 00:08:36.659 How does God take someone and change us deeply? 00:08:37.360 --> 00:08:41.460 Now, as a church, we're continuing to work through the book of Acts, as Iris read to us. 00:08:41.460 --> 00:08:44.679 And the book of Acts is this wonderful, wonderful book in the New Testament. 00:08:44.679 --> 00:08:51.759 About how the gospel, the good news of Jesus, spreads from Israel and Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. 00:08:52.439 --> 00:08:59.819 And God's plan was for the gospel not just to stay in Jerusalem, but to go all over the Roman Empire and to the ends of the earth. 00:09:00.439 --> 00:09:07.279 But in order for it to do that, God needs a man, a person, someone to lead his global mission. 00:09:07.519 --> 00:09:11.059 To take his gospel to the non-Jewish world outside of Jerusalem. 00:09:11.779 --> 00:09:13.919 And so God does a very surprising thing here. 00:09:13.919 --> 00:09:20.439 He chooses the most unlikely, questionable, dodgy character that he can find in the whole of Israel. 00:09:20.699 --> 00:09:23.899 And he turns this enemy into his ally. 00:09:24.479 --> 00:09:31.059 He turns this opponent into an instrument of his grace, a messenger of the gospel to go to the ends of the earth. 00:09:31.139 --> 00:09:34.059 And so the main point here is this is what we see in this passage. 00:09:34.059 --> 00:09:43.559 That like the account of Staffordshire Bill, the living Lord Jesus Christ changes deeply one of his greatest opponents and turns him into his ally. 00:09:43.919 --> 00:09:46.379 In order to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. 00:09:46.919 --> 00:09:50.099 Friends, how might the living Lord Jesus Christ want to change us? 00:09:50.579 --> 00:09:54.079 In this passage, we're going to see how God changes people deeply. 00:09:54.219 --> 00:09:56.879 And we're going to see it in five simple ways, okay? 00:09:57.139 --> 00:10:00.399 Five simple things about how God changes us deeply. 00:10:00.539 --> 00:10:01.979 So let's look at it together. 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:05.159 Firstly, how does God change us and how do we know Christ deeply? 00:10:05.659 --> 00:10:07.220 Firstly, personally. 00:10:08.060 --> 00:10:08.460 Personally. 00:10:08.759 --> 00:10:11.620 This is, I think, one of the most obvious things about this passage. 00:10:11.740 --> 00:10:14.480 And yet it's amazing how, I think, easily it's overlooked. 00:10:17.060 --> 00:10:19.980 Saul's personal encounter with the Lord Jesus. 00:10:20.720 --> 00:10:22.920 Now, this is obviously a great surprise to Saul. 00:10:22.919 --> 00:10:26.419 In his mind, Jesus of Nazareth was nothing but a charlatan. 00:10:26.559 --> 00:10:28.379 He was a false messiah type figure. 00:10:28.860 --> 00:10:33.219 Somebody who made all sorts of outrageous claims but couldn't back them up. 00:10:33.699 --> 00:10:38.159 And so, for him, Jesus is somebody that's corrupting the Jewish faith. 00:10:38.319 --> 00:10:41.939 And so Saul's ambition in life is to stamp it out, to destroy it. 00:10:42.459 --> 00:10:46.219 But what changes Saul here is not a logical argument. 00:10:46.879 --> 00:10:50.039 It's not more evidence that is presented to him. 00:10:50.039 --> 00:10:54.659 It's a personal encounter with the living Lord Jesus Christ. 00:10:55.299 --> 00:10:56.559 Look at the interaction here. 00:10:56.740 --> 00:10:57.779 Look at, I think it's verse 4. 00:10:58.439 --> 00:11:00.000 Look at Jesus' words to him. 00:11:00.059 --> 00:11:04.199 He says, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? 00:11:04.559 --> 00:11:06.079 Look at the personal pronouns there. 00:11:06.659 --> 00:11:08.860 When Saul looks around and says, who are you? 00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:13.599 Jesus says, I am Jesus, the one that you are persecuting. 00:11:14.120 --> 00:11:18.159 This is what drives the wedge between Paul's former life 00:11:18.159 --> 00:11:21.059 and the newfound person that he becomes later on. 00:11:21.459 --> 00:11:24.679 This is what rocks his world and brings about a complete turnaround. 00:11:25.039 --> 00:11:27.719 Because even though Saul had an incredible mind 00:11:27.719 --> 00:11:31.259 and was intellectually and theologically very, very astute, 00:11:31.559 --> 00:11:35.139 what changes him is not just a theological argument, 00:11:35.500 --> 00:11:39.199 but a personal encounter with the living Lord Jesus Christ. 00:11:40.179 --> 00:11:42.360 And friends, that's true for anyone that wants to know God. 00:11:42.360 --> 00:11:45.340 It may come through a sermon, maybe come through Bible reading, 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:48.180 maybe some other personal encounter, 00:11:48.279 --> 00:11:51.480 but it must be a personal encounter with the living God. 00:11:52.379 --> 00:11:55.220 When I was in, I think it was 8th grade or 9th grade, 00:11:55.379 --> 00:11:58.820 long, long, long, long, long time ago in high school, 00:11:59.220 --> 00:12:04.159 my English teacher, we read a poem together by Francis Thompson. 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:05.019 You might know the poem. 00:12:05.100 --> 00:12:06.200 It's called The Hound of Heaven. 00:12:06.879 --> 00:12:08.700 And I'll never forget sitting in that classroom. 00:12:08.860 --> 00:12:10.420 This poem really gripped me. 00:12:10.419 --> 00:12:16.059 But Francis Thompson, his early life was one of one dead end after another. 00:12:16.379 --> 00:12:17.939 He studied to become a priest, 00:12:18.299 --> 00:12:21.019 but he failed that and dropped out pretty soon. 00:12:21.459 --> 00:12:23.699 Then he decided to become a doctor like his father, 00:12:24.139 --> 00:12:27.519 but he failed that and also dropped out of his medical studies. 00:12:27.899 --> 00:12:30.579 He then joined the military, but he was fired after one day 00:12:30.579 --> 00:12:33.959 for not being a very courageous soldier type of person. 00:12:34.639 --> 00:12:37.279 And he went to London, but he was very interested in poetry. 00:12:37.939 --> 00:12:38.919 And he had a back pain, 00:12:38.919 --> 00:12:41.779 and so he started taking opium to deal with the pain in his back. 00:12:41.959 --> 00:12:43.620 And he soon became an opium addict 00:12:43.620 --> 00:12:46.120 and was living under the bridges in the streets of London 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:47.419 next to the Thames River. 00:12:48.139 --> 00:12:49.659 But while there, he would write poetry. 00:12:49.740 --> 00:12:50.860 And one day he writes this poem, 00:12:50.899 --> 00:12:52.259 and he sends it into a magazine. 00:12:52.839 --> 00:12:56.099 And the editors of the magazine are so astounded by this poem 00:12:56.099 --> 00:12:57.799 that they take him into his home, 00:12:58.059 --> 00:12:59.059 and they nurse him, 00:12:59.120 --> 00:13:01.059 and they look after him for the next couple of years. 00:13:01.659 --> 00:13:04.139 But the poem that he writes is called The Hound of Heaven. 00:13:04.819 --> 00:13:05.519 Listen to it. 00:13:05.519 --> 00:13:06.259 He says this. 00:13:07.019 --> 00:13:10.620 He's writing about how God's unrelenting, 00:13:11.120 --> 00:13:13.579 unwavering way that God has set his heart upon a man. 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:13.960 He said, 00:13:14.019 --> 00:13:16.980 I fled from him down the nights and down the days. 00:13:17.120 --> 00:13:19.939 I fled him down the arches of the years. 00:13:20.120 --> 00:13:23.100 I fled him down the labyrinth ways of my mind 00:13:23.100 --> 00:13:24.319 and in the midst of tears. 00:13:24.720 --> 00:13:25.720 I hid from him, 00:13:26.120 --> 00:13:27.819 from those strong feet that followed, 00:13:28.319 --> 00:13:29.100 followed after, 00:13:29.100 --> 00:13:31.200 with unhurrying chase, 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:33.279 with unperturbed pace, 00:13:33.940 --> 00:13:35.139 deliberate speed, 00:13:35.700 --> 00:13:37.000 majestic instancy. 00:13:37.600 --> 00:13:38.220 They beat, 00:13:38.800 --> 00:13:42.019 and a voice beats more instant than the feet. 00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:43.700 It's the introduction to this poem. 00:13:43.759 --> 00:13:44.800 It goes on and on and on 00:13:44.800 --> 00:13:46.399 about the Hound of Heaven, 00:13:46.580 --> 00:13:49.920 this God that has set his sights on him 00:13:49.920 --> 00:13:51.180 and is honed on him 00:13:51.180 --> 00:13:52.860 and is chasing him down 00:13:52.860 --> 00:13:55.540 and is calling him to be one of his own. 00:13:56.219 --> 00:13:57.179 And the point here, friends, 00:13:57.219 --> 00:13:58.860 is that how does God meet us? 00:13:59.299 --> 00:14:01.500 It's not just in theological arguments. 00:14:01.579 --> 00:14:03.319 It's not just in philosophical arguments. 00:14:03.419 --> 00:14:04.279 It's in the person, 00:14:04.360 --> 00:14:06.019 the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:14:06.419 --> 00:14:07.339 the Hound of Heaven 00:14:07.339 --> 00:14:09.179 that sets his sight on you 00:14:09.179 --> 00:14:11.019 and calls you and draws you in 00:14:11.019 --> 00:14:12.639 and he changes you. 00:14:13.279 --> 00:14:15.539 Friends, have you encountered the living God like that? 00:14:16.339 --> 00:14:18.159 Have you heard the voice of the Hound of Heaven 00:14:18.159 --> 00:14:19.019 calling you, 00:14:19.179 --> 00:14:20.039 confronting you, 00:14:20.559 --> 00:14:21.419 challenging you, 00:14:22.159 --> 00:14:22.639 calling you? 00:14:22.679 --> 00:14:24.259 Can you say that Jesus himself, 00:14:24.259 --> 00:14:26.819 the person of Jesus is real to you? 00:14:27.519 --> 00:14:28.419 Friends, if you're a Christian, 00:14:28.620 --> 00:14:30.100 is the person of the Lord Jesus 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:31.700 still real to you? 00:14:32.080 --> 00:14:34.319 Or is that a distant memory from long ago? 00:14:35.360 --> 00:14:37.659 When last did the living Lord Jesus 00:14:37.659 --> 00:14:38.620 speak to you 00:14:38.620 --> 00:14:40.059 through his word 00:14:40.059 --> 00:14:41.439 and prayer 00:14:41.439 --> 00:14:42.899 calling you? 00:14:43.919 --> 00:14:45.759 This is what it means to be a follower of Jesus, 00:14:45.879 --> 00:14:47.879 to know the real living Lord Jesus 00:14:47.879 --> 00:14:49.240 and to have him speak to you, 00:14:49.279 --> 00:14:50.819 to be moved by his presence 00:14:50.819 --> 00:14:52.179 and his grace. 00:14:52.779 --> 00:14:53.679 How do we meet God? 00:14:53.679 --> 00:14:54.799 How do we change deeply? 00:14:55.539 --> 00:14:56.679 Meeting Christ personally. 00:14:56.799 --> 00:14:57.699 But not only personally, 00:14:58.019 --> 00:14:59.239 but also powerfully. 00:14:59.939 --> 00:15:03.059 I think this account of Paul's life in Acts 9, 00:15:03.199 --> 00:15:04.319 we see one of, 00:15:04.559 --> 00:15:06.179 is a story full of surprises. 00:15:07.019 --> 00:15:08.339 Many of us will know the story 00:15:08.339 --> 00:15:09.519 because it's so famous. 00:15:09.979 --> 00:15:11.659 But for the first century readers 00:15:11.659 --> 00:15:13.059 who read this for the first time, 00:15:13.120 --> 00:15:14.919 this story would have been utterly shocking. 00:15:15.500 --> 00:15:17.099 And the reason is pretty obvious. 00:15:17.219 --> 00:15:19.319 We meet Saul a couple of times in the book of Acts. 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:20.879 And as we've met him before this, 00:15:21.460 --> 00:15:23.800 Saul is the one that is persecuting Christians. 00:15:23.940 --> 00:15:24.840 He hates Christians. 00:15:25.100 --> 00:15:26.340 He wants to destroy them. 00:15:26.820 --> 00:15:28.120 But the person that we meet 00:15:28.120 --> 00:15:29.280 at the beginning of the chapter 00:15:29.280 --> 00:15:30.940 is not the same person we meet 00:15:30.940 --> 00:15:31.820 at the end of the chapter. 00:15:31.960 --> 00:15:33.320 Look at how the chapter begins. 00:15:33.320 --> 00:15:35.080 Verse 1. 00:15:35.480 --> 00:15:36.020 Now Saul, 00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:37.740 breathing threats and murder 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:39.260 against the disciples of the Lord, 00:15:39.620 --> 00:15:40.760 went to the high priest 00:15:40.760 --> 00:15:41.920 and asked for letters 00:15:41.920 --> 00:15:43.700 to the rulers of the synagogues 00:15:43.700 --> 00:15:46.400 that if he found any belonging to the way, 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:47.600 that's the way of Jesus, 00:15:48.020 --> 00:15:48.600 men or women, 00:15:48.860 --> 00:15:51.060 he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:52.660 Later on in Acts, 00:15:52.700 --> 00:15:53.740 he tells us that his goal 00:15:53.740 --> 00:15:54.900 wasn't just to arrest them, 00:15:54.940 --> 00:15:55.940 but to have them executed, 00:15:56.080 --> 00:15:56.740 to kill them. 00:15:57.400 --> 00:15:58.880 But look at how the chapter ends. 00:15:58.940 --> 00:15:59.260 Well, actually, 00:15:59.440 --> 00:16:00.400 halfway through the chapter, 00:16:00.500 --> 00:16:00.980 verse 20. 00:16:00.980 --> 00:16:04.180 And he immediately proclaimed Jesus 00:16:04.180 --> 00:16:05.180 in the synagogues, 00:16:05.480 --> 00:16:05.980 saying, 00:16:06.500 --> 00:16:07.820 he is the Son of God. 00:16:08.720 --> 00:16:10.879 What accounts for this radical, 00:16:11.019 --> 00:16:11.899 radical change 00:16:11.899 --> 00:16:13.639 in this man Saul? 00:16:14.279 --> 00:16:14.920 Now, of course, 00:16:15.019 --> 00:16:17.420 not everyone who encounters Jesus 00:16:17.420 --> 00:16:18.860 is going to do so in the same way. 00:16:19.460 --> 00:16:20.399 Some people's transformation 00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:22.600 is slow and gradual. 00:16:23.220 --> 00:16:25.399 Some is radical, 00:16:25.560 --> 00:16:26.519 dramatic and sudden. 00:16:26.960 --> 00:16:28.820 But for all who are going to encounter 00:16:28.820 --> 00:16:30.259 the living Lord Jesus, 00:16:30.259 --> 00:16:32.279 it means being changed deeply 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:33.779 and profoundly 00:16:33.779 --> 00:16:36.120 in a way that does not leave you the same. 00:16:36.939 --> 00:16:37.879 I once heard a story, 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:38.799 I might have shared it before, 00:16:38.879 --> 00:16:39.580 of a man who, 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:41.539 this is like many years ago 00:16:41.539 --> 00:16:42.659 in the ancient world, 00:16:43.019 --> 00:16:44.700 would travel from city to city, 00:16:45.240 --> 00:16:46.600 maybe on work 00:16:46.600 --> 00:16:47.720 or whatever it was, 00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:48.960 but in each city, 00:16:49.080 --> 00:16:50.039 he had a lover, 00:16:50.539 --> 00:16:51.840 someone that he would visit 00:16:51.840 --> 00:16:53.179 and spend the time, 00:16:53.259 --> 00:16:54.439 the weeks in the ancient city 00:16:54.439 --> 00:16:55.639 at her house 00:16:55.639 --> 00:16:56.819 or they would spend together. 00:16:56.820 --> 00:16:58.600 And so maybe not so 00:16:58.600 --> 00:17:00.800 unlike modern people as well. 00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:02.660 But then and one day 00:17:02.660 --> 00:17:03.520 he becomes a Christian. 00:17:03.720 --> 00:17:04.840 He becomes a follower of Jesus. 00:17:05.660 --> 00:17:06.620 And so he's on his travels 00:17:06.620 --> 00:17:08.140 and he goes to one of the cities 00:17:08.140 --> 00:17:10.559 where he previously had had a lover 00:17:10.559 --> 00:17:12.860 and he walks past her. 00:17:13.559 --> 00:17:16.100 And she recognizes him 00:17:16.100 --> 00:17:17.400 and she goes up to him, 00:17:17.460 --> 00:17:19.160 but he kind of shoos her away 00:17:19.160 --> 00:17:21.140 and he kind of doesn't really engage with her. 00:17:21.640 --> 00:17:22.440 And she thinks, 00:17:22.840 --> 00:17:24.080 he must not recognize me. 00:17:24.160 --> 00:17:25.060 Maybe it's been so long. 00:17:25.560 --> 00:17:26.620 And so she says, 00:17:27.000 --> 00:17:27.360 you know, 00:17:27.580 --> 00:17:28.000 Pedro, 00:17:28.160 --> 00:17:28.800 whatever his name is, 00:17:28.840 --> 00:17:29.520 it's me. 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:30.440 It's me. 00:17:30.759 --> 00:17:32.000 Don't you recognize me? 00:17:32.540 --> 00:17:33.720 And he says, 00:17:34.120 --> 00:17:34.720 I know, 00:17:35.340 --> 00:17:36.580 but it is no longer me. 00:17:37.240 --> 00:17:38.860 The man you once knew is gone. 00:17:39.420 --> 00:17:41.259 I'm someone altogether new now. 00:17:42.460 --> 00:17:42.900 Friends, 00:17:42.900 --> 00:17:44.120 this is the story 00:17:44.120 --> 00:17:45.900 of the gospel, 00:17:46.040 --> 00:17:47.620 what God does time and time again. 00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:49.259 It's the story of Staffordshire Bill. 00:17:49.839 --> 00:17:51.859 It's the story of Saul who became Paul. 00:17:52.460 --> 00:17:54.019 It's the story of millions of people 00:17:54.019 --> 00:17:54.759 around the world. 00:17:55.279 --> 00:17:57.039 That when God meets with us, 00:17:57.400 --> 00:17:59.500 he doesn't just slightly improve us. 00:17:59.819 --> 00:18:02.599 He powerfully and radically reorientates us 00:18:02.599 --> 00:18:04.099 and changes us deeply. 00:18:04.740 --> 00:18:06.160 And one of the reasons for this 00:18:06.160 --> 00:18:07.220 is because sin, 00:18:07.420 --> 00:18:09.299 which is our rebellion against God, 00:18:09.980 --> 00:18:12.440 sin is such a deep and pervasive thing. 00:18:12.440 --> 00:18:14.299 It's something that takes over our hearts, 00:18:14.379 --> 00:18:15.059 our identity, 00:18:15.240 --> 00:18:15.879 our being. 00:18:16.859 --> 00:18:19.200 Often we think of sin as just a bad action. 00:18:19.259 --> 00:18:19.500 Right? 00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:20.019 I lied. 00:18:20.140 --> 00:18:21.839 I stole something from the cookie jar. 00:18:22.299 --> 00:18:22.559 I, 00:18:22.700 --> 00:18:23.319 you know, 00:18:23.759 --> 00:18:25.240 was dishonest. 00:18:25.420 --> 00:18:26.519 But actually the Bible says 00:18:26.519 --> 00:18:27.759 that sin is such a deep 00:18:27.759 --> 00:18:28.799 and pervasive thing. 00:18:28.920 --> 00:18:30.720 It originates in our hearts 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:31.619 and it manifests 00:18:31.619 --> 00:18:33.299 in the actions of our lives. 00:18:33.900 --> 00:18:34.579 But Jesus, 00:18:34.700 --> 00:18:35.700 when he wants to change us, 00:18:35.740 --> 00:18:37.500 he's not just trying to change our behavior. 00:18:37.900 --> 00:18:39.299 He wants to change deeply 00:18:39.299 --> 00:18:39.900 our heart, 00:18:40.019 --> 00:18:40.559 our being, 00:18:40.660 --> 00:18:41.379 our identity, 00:18:41.539 --> 00:18:42.319 our personality, 00:18:42.740 --> 00:18:43.480 our character, 00:18:43.480 --> 00:18:45.180 the people where we've become. 00:18:45.960 --> 00:18:46.599 Sin has corrupted 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:47.679 not just our actions, 00:18:47.859 --> 00:18:48.699 but our hearts, 00:18:48.759 --> 00:18:49.779 our central being, 00:18:49.919 --> 00:18:52.119 the kind of control center of our lives. 00:18:52.559 --> 00:18:53.939 And therefore it affects our identities, 00:18:54.439 --> 00:18:55.240 our personalities, 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:56.079 our characters, 00:18:56.219 --> 00:18:57.379 every part of our being. 00:18:58.119 --> 00:18:58.980 But the Bible says 00:18:58.980 --> 00:19:00.819 that where sin abounds, 00:19:01.039 --> 00:19:02.759 God's grace super abounds. 00:19:03.439 --> 00:19:04.480 Where sin is pervasive, 00:19:04.980 --> 00:19:06.659 God's grace is even more pervasive. 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:08.099 God is able to take 00:19:08.099 --> 00:19:10.219 the very deepest parts of our lives 00:19:10.219 --> 00:19:11.119 and change that. 00:19:11.119 --> 00:19:13.239 God's redeeming power 00:19:13.239 --> 00:19:14.159 and pervasive grace 00:19:14.159 --> 00:19:15.639 abounds all the more, 00:19:15.939 --> 00:19:16.539 which means that 00:19:16.539 --> 00:19:17.899 Christ's liberating power 00:19:17.899 --> 00:19:20.059 is never a superficial thing. 00:19:20.739 --> 00:19:21.379 It's never just 00:19:21.379 --> 00:19:22.379 an intellectual thing. 00:19:22.839 --> 00:19:23.779 It's a deeply, 00:19:23.939 --> 00:19:25.459 deeply transformative thing. 00:19:25.859 --> 00:19:26.839 It must take hold 00:19:26.839 --> 00:19:27.619 of all of us. 00:19:28.159 --> 00:19:29.099 It's why when Jesus, 00:19:29.500 --> 00:19:30.519 in speaking to Nicodemus, 00:19:30.579 --> 00:19:30.819 says, 00:19:31.119 --> 00:19:32.500 we must be born again. 00:19:32.599 --> 00:19:33.099 You must become 00:19:33.099 --> 00:19:34.719 a whole new kind of person. 00:19:35.299 --> 00:19:35.559 For instance, 00:19:35.639 --> 00:19:36.479 why in the ancient world, 00:19:36.639 --> 00:19:37.419 not in the ancient world, 00:19:37.479 --> 00:19:38.579 in previous times, 00:19:38.839 --> 00:19:39.899 when people got baptized, 00:19:39.900 --> 00:19:41.019 they would often be given 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:41.700 a new name. 00:19:42.120 --> 00:19:43.259 You are baptized, 00:19:44.040 --> 00:19:44.580 Sarai. 00:19:45.040 --> 00:19:46.019 Welcome, Sarah. 00:19:46.259 --> 00:19:47.560 Or whatever your name 00:19:47.560 --> 00:19:48.280 wants to be, right? 00:19:48.900 --> 00:19:49.840 If you don't like your name, 00:19:49.880 --> 00:19:50.380 there's a good chance 00:19:50.380 --> 00:19:51.780 you can choose a new name, right? 00:19:53.220 --> 00:19:54.120 But why? 00:19:54.340 --> 00:19:54.620 Why? 00:19:55.180 --> 00:19:56.920 Because when God changes us, 00:19:56.980 --> 00:19:58.200 when God saves us, 00:19:58.220 --> 00:19:59.400 when you encounter God, 00:19:59.720 --> 00:20:00.720 it's powerful, 00:20:00.900 --> 00:20:01.440 it's deep, 00:20:01.880 --> 00:20:02.759 it's transformative. 00:20:04.000 --> 00:20:04.640 This is, of course, 00:20:04.660 --> 00:20:05.580 what happens to Saul. 00:20:06.080 --> 00:20:07.540 Jesus doesn't just improve him 00:20:07.540 --> 00:20:08.340 or modify him 00:20:08.340 --> 00:20:09.200 or restrain him. 00:20:09.200 --> 00:20:10.720 He changes him. 00:20:11.340 --> 00:20:12.299 We meet God personally, 00:20:12.440 --> 00:20:13.240 meet God powerfully. 00:20:13.559 --> 00:20:13.980 But thirdly, 00:20:14.019 --> 00:20:14.819 look at what Saul does. 00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:16.600 He meets God painfully. 00:20:16.819 --> 00:20:17.900 I'm sorry there's all these P's, 00:20:17.980 --> 00:20:18.100 okay? 00:20:18.160 --> 00:20:19.120 It's just the way I am. 00:20:19.500 --> 00:20:19.940 I'm sorry. 00:20:20.080 --> 00:20:22.080 But Saul meets God painfully, 00:20:22.259 --> 00:20:22.660 painfully. 00:20:23.840 --> 00:20:24.480 Notice here, 00:20:24.600 --> 00:20:24.940 for Saul, 00:20:25.039 --> 00:20:26.600 his encounter with the living Lord Jesus 00:20:26.600 --> 00:20:28.200 is not an easy thing. 00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:31.220 When Jesus meets Saul 00:20:31.220 --> 00:20:32.180 and confronts him, 00:20:32.640 --> 00:20:33.620 it's a painful thing. 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:34.220 Look what he says. 00:20:34.319 --> 00:20:35.019 Saul, Saul, 00:20:35.019 --> 00:20:37.180 why are you persecuting me? 00:20:37.960 --> 00:20:38.299 And Saul, 00:20:38.380 --> 00:20:38.740 after that, 00:20:38.799 --> 00:20:39.960 falls to his knees. 00:20:40.700 --> 00:20:41.279 In the Bible, 00:20:41.400 --> 00:20:42.720 to be brought to your knees 00:20:42.720 --> 00:20:44.840 is coming to the end of yourself. 00:20:45.400 --> 00:20:46.860 It's like being almost being brought, 00:20:46.940 --> 00:20:47.740 being made dead. 00:20:47.840 --> 00:20:49.799 Remember John on the Isle of Patmos? 00:20:49.920 --> 00:20:50.740 He sees God, 00:20:50.799 --> 00:20:51.759 he's a revelation of Jesus, 00:20:51.920 --> 00:20:54.180 and he falls down as though dead. 00:20:54.840 --> 00:20:55.700 Being brought to your knees 00:20:55.700 --> 00:20:57.720 is like coming to the end of yourself. 00:20:58.220 --> 00:20:59.220 And the reason is 00:20:59.220 --> 00:20:59.519 because, 00:20:59.660 --> 00:21:00.200 as we said, 00:21:00.519 --> 00:21:02.279 Jesus doesn't just want to improve 00:21:02.279 --> 00:21:02.840 Saul's life, 00:21:02.839 --> 00:21:04.779 but to completely reconstruct it. 00:21:05.399 --> 00:21:06.039 It's like those 00:21:06.039 --> 00:21:07.720 home improvement programs 00:21:07.720 --> 00:21:08.559 you see on Netflix, 00:21:08.759 --> 00:21:08.980 right? 00:21:09.259 --> 00:21:10.220 Where they take a house 00:21:10.220 --> 00:21:11.079 and they completely 00:21:11.079 --> 00:21:13.639 reconstruct the entire thing. 00:21:14.159 --> 00:21:14.439 Actually, 00:21:14.500 --> 00:21:15.099 home improvement 00:21:15.099 --> 00:21:16.019 is a terrible name. 00:21:16.099 --> 00:21:16.679 It's almost like 00:21:16.679 --> 00:21:18.299 a demolition project. 00:21:18.699 --> 00:21:20.139 And it rebuilds it completely. 00:21:20.759 --> 00:21:21.799 And listen to how C.S. Lewis 00:21:21.799 --> 00:21:23.019 explained this in his book, 00:21:23.139 --> 00:21:23.720 Mere Christianity. 00:21:24.099 --> 00:21:24.419 He says, 00:21:24.819 --> 00:21:25.759 imagine yourself 00:21:25.759 --> 00:21:27.519 as a living house. 00:21:28.099 --> 00:21:29.179 God comes in 00:21:29.179 --> 00:21:30.639 and rebuilds that house. 00:21:30.640 --> 00:21:31.900 At first, 00:21:32.259 --> 00:21:33.040 you can understand 00:21:33.040 --> 00:21:33.720 what he's doing. 00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:35.520 He's getting the drains right 00:21:35.520 --> 00:21:36.540 and stopping the leaks 00:21:36.540 --> 00:21:37.200 in the roof 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:37.900 and so on. 00:21:38.280 --> 00:21:39.440 You knew that that house, 00:21:39.740 --> 00:21:40.680 that those jobs 00:21:40.680 --> 00:21:41.560 were needed doing, 00:21:41.759 --> 00:21:42.840 and so you're not surprised. 00:21:43.460 --> 00:21:44.140 But then, 00:21:44.520 --> 00:21:45.520 he starts knocking 00:21:45.520 --> 00:21:46.460 about the house 00:21:46.460 --> 00:21:47.960 in a way that hurts 00:21:47.960 --> 00:21:49.200 abundantly 00:21:49.200 --> 00:21:50.620 and does not seem 00:21:50.620 --> 00:21:51.560 to make any sense. 00:21:52.100 --> 00:21:52.720 What on earth 00:21:52.720 --> 00:21:53.280 is he up to? 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:54.960 The explanation is 00:21:54.960 --> 00:21:56.060 that he is building 00:21:56.060 --> 00:21:57.520 quite a different house 00:21:57.520 --> 00:21:58.360 from the one 00:21:58.360 --> 00:21:59.120 you thought of. 00:21:59.580 --> 00:22:00.440 You thought you were 00:22:00.440 --> 00:22:00.840 being made 00:22:00.840 --> 00:22:01.440 into a decent 00:22:01.440 --> 00:22:02.180 little cottage. 00:22:02.559 --> 00:22:03.440 But he is building 00:22:03.440 --> 00:22:04.900 a new house altogether, 00:22:05.420 --> 00:22:06.680 one that he intends 00:22:06.680 --> 00:22:07.240 to come 00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:08.799 and live in himself. 00:22:10.120 --> 00:22:11.400 That's a great analogy. 00:22:12.100 --> 00:22:12.960 Jesus is not just 00:22:12.960 --> 00:22:13.740 coming to modify 00:22:13.740 --> 00:22:14.559 a little bit of our lives. 00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:15.320 He wants to meet us 00:22:15.320 --> 00:22:16.000 profoundly, 00:22:16.340 --> 00:22:16.680 deeply. 00:22:17.100 --> 00:22:17.820 But that means 00:22:17.820 --> 00:22:18.860 it's going to challenge us. 00:22:18.900 --> 00:22:19.880 That's going to be confronting. 00:22:20.380 --> 00:22:21.420 It's going to hurt. 00:22:22.080 --> 00:22:22.320 Now, 00:22:22.380 --> 00:22:23.039 why is that? 00:22:23.480 --> 00:22:23.960 I think there's 00:22:23.960 --> 00:22:24.500 a couple of reasons. 00:22:24.580 --> 00:22:25.420 I think one reason is 00:22:25.420 --> 00:22:27.019 Jesus is going to challenge 00:22:27.019 --> 00:22:27.720 our pride 00:22:27.720 --> 00:22:28.820 and our self-sufficiency 00:22:28.819 --> 00:22:30.299 because he says 00:22:30.299 --> 00:22:31.240 that in order to know 00:22:31.240 --> 00:22:32.059 him deeply, 00:22:32.059 --> 00:22:33.539 we need to firstly 00:22:33.539 --> 00:22:34.879 acknowledge our need for him. 00:22:35.240 --> 00:22:35.960 We need to acknowledge 00:22:35.960 --> 00:22:36.939 that he is the center 00:22:36.939 --> 00:22:37.619 of the universe, 00:22:37.779 --> 00:22:38.259 not us. 00:22:38.779 --> 00:22:39.679 And human beings, 00:22:39.799 --> 00:22:40.419 by nature, 00:22:40.539 --> 00:22:41.539 we want to be the center 00:22:41.539 --> 00:22:42.039 of the universe. 00:22:42.159 --> 00:22:42.980 We want to be the center 00:22:42.980 --> 00:22:44.000 of our lives, right? 00:22:44.419 --> 00:22:44.899 And so, 00:22:45.099 --> 00:22:46.099 Jesus comes and says, 00:22:46.220 --> 00:22:47.079 you are not the center. 00:22:47.200 --> 00:22:47.740 I am the center. 00:22:47.899 --> 00:22:49.159 You are not worthy of worship. 00:22:49.359 --> 00:22:50.659 I am worthy of worship. 00:22:50.799 --> 00:22:51.879 You are not majesty. 00:22:52.059 --> 00:22:53.000 I am majesty. 00:22:53.599 --> 00:22:54.639 And that's very challenging. 00:22:54.640 --> 00:22:56.500 And I think that's one of the reasons 00:22:56.500 --> 00:22:58.240 why Paul is struck blind here 00:22:58.240 --> 00:22:59.680 is because in a way, 00:22:59.840 --> 00:23:01.300 he then needs to be led 00:23:01.300 --> 00:23:01.980 into the city. 00:23:02.400 --> 00:23:03.400 We know that Saul 00:23:03.400 --> 00:23:04.080 is a young man. 00:23:04.140 --> 00:23:05.380 He's rising through the ranks. 00:23:05.560 --> 00:23:06.700 He's getting a name 00:23:06.700 --> 00:23:08.080 and a reputation for himself. 00:23:08.400 --> 00:23:09.500 And what does Jesus do? 00:23:09.740 --> 00:23:10.780 He's struck some blind. 00:23:10.920 --> 00:23:12.000 Now Saul needs to be led 00:23:12.000 --> 00:23:13.259 by the hand into the city 00:23:13.259 --> 00:23:14.740 and found where to sit 00:23:14.740 --> 00:23:16.540 and where to lie down. 00:23:16.800 --> 00:23:18.100 He's being brought to his knees. 00:23:19.040 --> 00:23:19.840 Encountering Jesus 00:23:19.840 --> 00:23:21.440 brings him to his knees. 00:23:22.120 --> 00:23:23.080 Many commentators say 00:23:23.080 --> 00:23:23.980 that at the beginning, 00:23:23.980 --> 00:23:24.920 when it talks about 00:23:24.920 --> 00:23:26.200 Saul was still breathing 00:23:26.200 --> 00:23:27.380 murderous threats, 00:23:27.559 --> 00:23:28.500 it's the language 00:23:28.500 --> 00:23:29.940 of like a wild animal 00:23:29.940 --> 00:23:31.720 that's kind of enraged. 00:23:31.920 --> 00:23:32.960 And it's this animal 00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:33.740 that is gnawing 00:23:33.740 --> 00:23:35.360 and challenging everybody. 00:23:35.819 --> 00:23:36.779 But how does Saul end? 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:37.640 The chapter ends 00:23:37.640 --> 00:23:38.960 with him blind 00:23:38.960 --> 00:23:40.579 being led into the city 00:23:40.579 --> 00:23:42.539 hand in hand 00:23:42.539 --> 00:23:44.039 like a gentle child. 00:23:44.680 --> 00:23:45.900 And that's very humbling. 00:23:46.519 --> 00:23:47.720 And that's not easy. 00:23:48.339 --> 00:23:49.660 Friends, this is what happens. 00:23:49.700 --> 00:23:50.680 This is what must happen 00:23:50.680 --> 00:23:52.319 for anyone that encounters Jesus. 00:23:52.319 --> 00:23:53.919 To be confronted 00:23:53.919 --> 00:23:54.939 with our lostness, 00:23:55.000 --> 00:23:55.759 with our sinfulness. 00:23:56.480 --> 00:23:57.119 To be confronted 00:23:57.119 --> 00:23:58.500 with the fact that we ourselves 00:23:58.500 --> 00:23:59.619 are enemies of God 00:23:59.619 --> 00:24:00.279 by nature 00:24:00.279 --> 00:24:01.879 brought to our knees. 00:24:02.819 --> 00:24:03.339 And think also 00:24:03.339 --> 00:24:05.439 about Paul's reputation here. 00:24:06.159 --> 00:24:07.379 He's the rising star 00:24:07.379 --> 00:24:08.559 of Judaism in Israel. 00:24:08.740 --> 00:24:09.539 Everybody knows 00:24:09.539 --> 00:24:10.639 why he's gone to Damascus. 00:24:11.159 --> 00:24:12.039 He's gone to arrest 00:24:12.039 --> 00:24:12.899 and kill those Christians. 00:24:13.480 --> 00:24:14.740 And now they're going to find out 00:24:14.740 --> 00:24:15.839 that he's become one. 00:24:16.460 --> 00:24:17.259 And later on 00:24:17.259 --> 00:24:17.679 in the chapter 00:24:17.679 --> 00:24:18.799 in verse 30, 00:24:18.799 --> 00:24:19.919 it says that 00:24:19.919 --> 00:24:20.980 after a while 00:24:20.980 --> 00:24:21.960 they took him down 00:24:21.960 --> 00:24:22.859 to Tarsus. 00:24:23.619 --> 00:24:24.599 Tarsus is the city 00:24:24.599 --> 00:24:25.339 that he comes from. 00:24:26.099 --> 00:24:26.680 How do you think 00:24:26.680 --> 00:24:27.500 it was for Saul 00:24:27.500 --> 00:24:28.599 to go to his parents, 00:24:29.079 --> 00:24:30.119 his brothers and sisters 00:24:30.119 --> 00:24:30.539 and say, 00:24:30.659 --> 00:24:31.220 Mom and Dad, 00:24:31.240 --> 00:24:31.759 I've got something 00:24:31.759 --> 00:24:32.399 to tell you. 00:24:33.079 --> 00:24:34.500 I've become one of them. 00:24:35.759 --> 00:24:36.099 Friends, 00:24:36.200 --> 00:24:37.279 encountering the Lord Jesus 00:24:37.279 --> 00:24:38.139 is painful. 00:24:38.779 --> 00:24:39.639 It's difficult. 00:24:40.500 --> 00:24:41.339 But here's the other way 00:24:41.339 --> 00:24:41.680 that I think 00:24:41.680 --> 00:24:42.419 encountering Jesus 00:24:42.419 --> 00:24:43.079 is difficult. 00:24:43.839 --> 00:24:45.079 It will confront 00:24:45.079 --> 00:24:46.579 your entire worldview. 00:24:46.579 --> 00:24:48.379 Sometimes everything 00:24:48.379 --> 00:24:49.659 you've ever believed in 00:24:49.659 --> 00:24:50.899 will be questioned 00:24:50.899 --> 00:24:52.419 and turned on its head. 00:24:53.000 --> 00:24:53.720 Towards the end 00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:54.439 of the book of Acts, 00:24:55.179 --> 00:24:56.299 Saul is on trial. 00:24:56.819 --> 00:24:57.619 And when he's on trial, 00:24:57.799 --> 00:24:59.819 twice he tells the story 00:24:59.819 --> 00:25:00.559 of how he became 00:25:00.559 --> 00:25:01.259 a follower of Jesus. 00:25:01.399 --> 00:25:02.099 So actually we hear 00:25:02.099 --> 00:25:03.619 this occasion three times 00:25:03.619 --> 00:25:04.220 in the book of Acts. 00:25:04.599 --> 00:25:05.639 One in chapter 9, 00:25:05.779 --> 00:25:06.240 this morning, 00:25:06.319 --> 00:25:07.179 one in chapter 22 00:25:07.179 --> 00:25:08.259 and one in chapter 26. 00:25:08.819 --> 00:25:09.859 But in chapter 22, 00:25:10.240 --> 00:25:11.119 some people have kind of 00:25:11.119 --> 00:25:11.799 arrested him 00:25:11.799 --> 00:25:13.939 and he's defending himself 00:25:13.939 --> 00:25:15.220 and he tells the story 00:25:15.220 --> 00:25:15.859 of how he became 00:25:15.859 --> 00:25:16.319 a Christian. 00:25:16.859 --> 00:25:18.079 And he's telling the story 00:25:18.079 --> 00:25:18.859 and they're all listening 00:25:18.859 --> 00:25:19.799 intently and then 00:25:19.799 --> 00:25:20.960 at one point he says, 00:25:21.480 --> 00:25:22.559 and God sent me 00:25:22.559 --> 00:25:23.359 to be a messenger 00:25:23.359 --> 00:25:24.919 and apostle to the Gentiles 00:25:24.919 --> 00:25:26.480 that the non-Jewish people 00:25:26.480 --> 00:25:28.220 can hear about this God 00:25:28.220 --> 00:25:28.720 of Israel. 00:25:29.460 --> 00:25:31.079 And Acts 22 says this, 00:25:31.139 --> 00:25:32.199 up until this word 00:25:32.199 --> 00:25:33.199 they listened to him 00:25:33.199 --> 00:25:34.779 but when they heard this 00:25:34.779 --> 00:25:36.220 they raised their voices 00:25:36.220 --> 00:25:36.740 and said, 00:25:37.079 --> 00:25:38.279 away with such a fellow 00:25:38.279 --> 00:25:38.960 from the earth. 00:25:39.179 --> 00:25:40.119 He should not be 00:25:40.119 --> 00:25:40.960 allowed to live. 00:25:41.679 --> 00:25:42.539 When Saul says, 00:25:42.779 --> 00:25:43.699 hey the Gentiles 00:25:43.699 --> 00:25:45.000 are being welcomed by God, 00:25:45.199 --> 00:25:46.500 that's too much for them. 00:25:47.019 --> 00:25:48.240 Get rid of this guy. 00:25:49.220 --> 00:25:50.319 And then in chapter 26 00:25:50.319 --> 00:25:51.399 he's standing before 00:25:51.399 --> 00:25:52.279 Felix the governor, 00:25:52.419 --> 00:25:53.039 he's arrested, 00:25:53.159 --> 00:25:53.839 he's on trial 00:25:53.839 --> 00:25:55.339 and he tells Felix 00:25:55.339 --> 00:25:56.139 his story of how 00:25:56.139 --> 00:25:56.779 he became a follower 00:25:56.779 --> 00:25:57.199 of Jesus. 00:25:58.039 --> 00:25:58.720 And then he says, 00:25:59.259 --> 00:26:00.539 and Felix is listening, 00:26:00.679 --> 00:26:01.240 listening, listening 00:26:01.240 --> 00:26:02.699 and then when Paul says, 00:26:03.259 --> 00:26:04.379 and the risen Lord 00:26:04.379 --> 00:26:05.279 Jesus Christ 00:26:05.279 --> 00:26:06.059 who died 00:26:06.059 --> 00:26:06.980 rose again, 00:26:07.419 --> 00:26:08.079 Felix the governor 00:26:08.079 --> 00:26:08.899 interrupts him 00:26:08.899 --> 00:26:09.220 and says, 00:26:09.339 --> 00:26:09.859 Paul you're out 00:26:09.859 --> 00:26:10.460 of your mind. 00:26:10.460 --> 00:26:11.700 all your great learning 00:26:11.700 --> 00:26:12.660 has made you mad. 00:26:13.140 --> 00:26:14.640 You've become insane. 00:26:16.000 --> 00:26:17.220 So think about that. 00:26:18.039 --> 00:26:19.440 Saul tells a story, 00:26:19.519 --> 00:26:20.100 everyone listens, 00:26:20.240 --> 00:26:21.140 but there's two things 00:26:21.140 --> 00:26:22.160 that are highly offensive. 00:26:22.680 --> 00:26:23.680 That God would want 00:26:23.680 --> 00:26:24.880 to welcome in the Gentiles 00:26:24.880 --> 00:26:26.019 and non-Jewish people 00:26:26.019 --> 00:26:27.900 and that Jesus died 00:26:27.900 --> 00:26:28.779 and rose again. 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:30.640 No Jew's going to believe that. 00:26:31.500 --> 00:26:31.860 But friend, 00:26:31.980 --> 00:26:33.519 Saul just a few years before 00:26:33.519 --> 00:26:34.559 was one of them. 00:26:35.500 --> 00:26:36.220 To Saul, 00:26:36.220 --> 00:26:37.120 that would have been 00:26:37.120 --> 00:26:37.839 ridiculous. 00:26:38.420 --> 00:26:38.860 Nonsense. 00:26:39.680 --> 00:26:40.019 In fact, 00:26:40.299 --> 00:26:41.339 if you told Paul 00:26:41.339 --> 00:26:42.740 that God was welcoming 00:26:42.740 --> 00:26:43.600 the Gentiles 00:26:43.600 --> 00:26:45.640 and that Jesus 00:26:45.640 --> 00:26:46.920 had died and risen again, 00:26:47.380 --> 00:26:47.819 Paul would have 00:26:47.819 --> 00:26:48.460 flipped his lid. 00:26:49.019 --> 00:26:49.519 In fact, he did. 00:26:49.600 --> 00:26:50.160 That's why he wants 00:26:50.160 --> 00:26:51.140 to kill these Christians, 00:26:51.259 --> 00:26:51.480 right? 00:26:52.059 --> 00:26:53.100 And yet now, 00:26:53.240 --> 00:26:54.039 Paul is standing 00:26:54.039 --> 00:26:55.120 before all these people 00:26:55.120 --> 00:26:55.519 saying, 00:26:55.860 --> 00:26:56.600 it's true. 00:26:57.339 --> 00:26:58.059 It's true. 00:26:59.860 --> 00:27:01.200 Saul's entire worldview, 00:27:01.460 --> 00:27:02.240 everything that he's 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:02.759 believed in, 00:27:02.819 --> 00:27:04.059 his entire intellectual 00:27:04.059 --> 00:27:05.559 framework and worldview 00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:06.980 for how the world lives 00:27:06.980 --> 00:27:08.419 is turned on its head, 00:27:08.539 --> 00:27:09.339 turned upside down 00:27:09.339 --> 00:27:11.440 as he starts to rethink life 00:27:11.440 --> 00:27:12.619 in light of the person 00:27:12.619 --> 00:27:13.319 of the Lord Jesus. 00:27:14.279 --> 00:27:15.019 And in many ways, 00:27:15.079 --> 00:27:15.740 that can be deeply 00:27:15.740 --> 00:27:16.539 disorientating. 00:27:16.720 --> 00:27:17.859 Everything you've been told, 00:27:18.000 --> 00:27:18.799 everything you brought up 00:27:18.799 --> 00:27:19.619 believing is suddenly 00:27:19.619 --> 00:27:20.519 brought into question 00:27:20.519 --> 00:27:22.099 and you realize God 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:23.139 is the center of the world 00:27:23.139 --> 00:27:24.539 and that has implications 00:27:24.539 --> 00:27:25.279 for our lives. 00:27:25.839 --> 00:27:26.559 The way we live, 00:27:26.679 --> 00:27:27.579 the way we spend our money, 00:27:27.779 --> 00:27:28.339 the way we steward 00:27:28.339 --> 00:27:29.079 our sexuality, 00:27:29.659 --> 00:27:30.740 the way we go about work, 00:27:31.259 --> 00:27:32.259 the way we forgive those 00:27:32.259 --> 00:27:33.119 that have hurt us. 00:27:34.279 --> 00:27:34.679 Friends, 00:27:34.680 --> 00:27:35.519 in many ways, 00:27:35.700 --> 00:27:36.620 encountering Jesus 00:27:36.620 --> 00:27:38.120 is not always a walk 00:27:38.120 --> 00:27:38.759 in the park. 00:27:39.220 --> 00:27:39.980 It's challenging. 00:27:40.160 --> 00:27:40.680 It's difficult. 00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:41.299 It's painful. 00:27:42.120 --> 00:27:43.000 Rosaria Butterfield 00:27:43.000 --> 00:27:43.980 in her excellent book, 00:27:44.080 --> 00:27:44.840 The Secret Thoughts 00:27:44.840 --> 00:27:45.920 of an Unlikely Convert, 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:47.019 writes this. 00:27:47.080 --> 00:27:47.480 She says, 00:27:47.660 --> 00:27:48.980 My coming to Jesus 00:27:48.980 --> 00:27:51.240 was messy and dangerous, 00:27:51.660 --> 00:27:52.880 a complete train wreck. 00:27:53.400 --> 00:27:54.799 To say that those early years 00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:55.560 were rough on me 00:27:55.560 --> 00:27:57.120 is a great understatement. 00:27:57.560 --> 00:27:58.539 I lost friends 00:27:58.539 --> 00:27:59.500 and cultural capital. 00:27:59.960 --> 00:28:01.320 I did not lose my job, 00:28:01.320 --> 00:28:02.200 but that's because 00:28:02.200 --> 00:28:03.259 I was a tenured professor. 00:28:03.259 --> 00:28:04.660 But I did have to go 00:28:04.660 --> 00:28:05.720 before the tenure board 00:28:05.720 --> 00:28:07.140 and explain what happened to me. 00:28:07.619 --> 00:28:08.160 She, by the way, 00:28:08.220 --> 00:28:09.079 was a professor 00:28:09.079 --> 00:28:10.240 of queer ideology 00:28:10.240 --> 00:28:11.920 and LGBT studies 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:13.200 at Syracuse University 00:28:13.200 --> 00:28:13.799 in New York 00:28:13.799 --> 00:28:15.339 and was a tenured professor. 00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:17.539 And she had to explain 00:28:17.539 --> 00:28:18.400 to her tenure board 00:28:18.400 --> 00:28:19.680 why she had changed her mind. 00:28:20.460 --> 00:28:20.799 She said, 00:28:20.879 --> 00:28:21.859 I was now despised 00:28:21.859 --> 00:28:22.859 by the people I loved, 00:28:23.079 --> 00:28:24.319 but one thing was clear. 00:28:24.680 --> 00:28:25.759 I was once God's enemy. 00:28:26.359 --> 00:28:27.599 Now I was his friend. 00:28:28.200 --> 00:28:28.640 Friends, 00:28:29.200 --> 00:28:29.940 meeting Jesus 00:28:29.940 --> 00:28:30.860 personally, 00:28:31.360 --> 00:28:31.799 powerfully, 00:28:32.360 --> 00:28:32.840 painfully, 00:28:33.740 --> 00:28:34.059 falsely, 00:28:34.220 --> 00:28:34.500 quickly, 00:28:35.140 --> 00:28:35.720 purposefully. 00:28:36.440 --> 00:28:37.380 Look at verse 15. 00:28:38.039 --> 00:28:39.279 Saul's been taken to Damascus. 00:28:39.480 --> 00:28:40.400 There he is waiting 00:28:40.400 --> 00:28:41.559 and there he is waiting 00:28:41.559 --> 00:28:42.440 for the Lord Jesus 00:28:42.440 --> 00:28:43.539 to tell him what to do. 00:28:44.100 --> 00:28:45.019 And at the same time, 00:28:45.140 --> 00:28:46.400 God speaks to another disciple 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:47.360 called Ananias. 00:28:47.500 --> 00:28:48.460 The Lord tells Ananias 00:28:48.460 --> 00:28:49.820 to go and find Saul, 00:28:50.100 --> 00:28:50.880 lay hands on him, 00:28:50.980 --> 00:28:51.779 which is a way of kind of 00:28:51.779 --> 00:28:53.039 blessing or anointing, 00:28:53.480 --> 00:28:54.059 giving favor. 00:28:54.779 --> 00:28:56.340 And Ananias says, 00:28:56.340 --> 00:28:56.620 God, 00:28:56.700 --> 00:28:57.580 you've got to be kidding me. 00:28:57.680 --> 00:28:59.080 Do you know who Saul is? 00:28:59.559 --> 00:29:00.199 And Jesus says, 00:29:00.240 --> 00:29:00.419 yes, 00:29:00.439 --> 00:29:01.059 I do know, 00:29:01.159 --> 00:29:01.740 verse 15, 00:29:01.839 --> 00:29:02.720 but the Lord said to him, 00:29:03.159 --> 00:29:03.439 go, 00:29:03.919 --> 00:29:05.679 he is my chosen instrument 00:29:05.679 --> 00:29:06.879 to carry my name 00:29:06.879 --> 00:29:07.919 before Gentiles 00:29:07.919 --> 00:29:08.799 and before kings 00:29:08.799 --> 00:29:10.339 and the children of Israel. 00:29:10.859 --> 00:29:11.199 Now, 00:29:11.240 --> 00:29:11.919 as we said earlier, 00:29:12.019 --> 00:29:12.720 on the one hand, 00:29:12.939 --> 00:29:14.019 Saul is somewhat unique. 00:29:15.480 --> 00:29:17.079 Saul is uniquely called 00:29:17.079 --> 00:29:17.779 to be an apostle 00:29:17.779 --> 00:29:18.599 to the Gentiles. 00:29:18.740 --> 00:29:18.879 Okay, 00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:19.639 bad news, 00:29:19.839 --> 00:29:20.699 none of us here 00:29:20.699 --> 00:29:21.699 are going to get that calling. 00:29:21.899 --> 00:29:22.099 Okay, 00:29:22.399 --> 00:29:23.720 you are not going to be called 00:29:23.720 --> 00:29:24.740 to be a great apostle 00:29:24.740 --> 00:29:25.619 to the Gentiles. 00:29:25.619 --> 00:29:26.179 That has, 00:29:26.379 --> 00:29:27.619 that office has already been taken 00:29:27.619 --> 00:29:28.859 and has come and gone. 00:29:29.480 --> 00:29:30.699 None of us are going to write 00:29:30.699 --> 00:29:31.960 books of the New Testament. 00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:32.399 Okay, 00:29:32.460 --> 00:29:33.379 the New Testament is done. 00:29:34.179 --> 00:29:34.619 But, 00:29:34.759 --> 00:29:35.659 on the other hand, 00:29:35.740 --> 00:29:37.059 what is true for all of us 00:29:37.059 --> 00:29:38.480 is that encountering 00:29:38.480 --> 00:29:40.019 the risen Lord Jesus Christ 00:29:40.019 --> 00:29:41.939 means re-looking at our lives 00:29:41.939 --> 00:29:42.980 through the lens 00:29:42.980 --> 00:29:44.500 of God's great mission 00:29:44.500 --> 00:29:46.159 to take the good news of Jesus 00:29:46.159 --> 00:29:47.859 to the ends of the earth. 00:29:48.480 --> 00:29:49.319 Another way of saying that 00:29:49.319 --> 00:29:50.339 is those who encounter 00:29:50.339 --> 00:29:51.079 the Lord Jesus 00:29:51.079 --> 00:29:52.379 start to see 00:29:52.379 --> 00:29:54.119 not just God's personal plan 00:29:54.119 --> 00:29:55.039 to save me, 00:29:55.039 --> 00:29:56.819 but God's cosmic plan 00:29:56.819 --> 00:29:58.059 to redeem the whole world, 00:29:58.519 --> 00:29:59.819 to bring about a new creation, 00:30:00.839 --> 00:30:03.159 to rescue not just me 00:30:03.159 --> 00:30:03.779 from judgment 00:30:03.779 --> 00:30:05.200 but to restore all things, 00:30:05.279 --> 00:30:06.240 to make all things new, 00:30:06.920 --> 00:30:07.779 to bring all peoples 00:30:07.779 --> 00:30:08.299 and nations 00:30:08.299 --> 00:30:09.180 into his kingdom. 00:30:09.879 --> 00:30:10.519 And that means 00:30:10.519 --> 00:30:11.460 that those who have met 00:30:11.460 --> 00:30:12.700 and encountered Jesus 00:30:12.700 --> 00:30:14.039 are now drafted 00:30:14.039 --> 00:30:15.920 into his global redemption plan. 00:30:16.899 --> 00:30:17.119 Friends, 00:30:17.139 --> 00:30:17.680 you see that? 00:30:18.220 --> 00:30:19.420 When Jesus reveals himself 00:30:19.420 --> 00:30:19.980 to you, 00:30:20.059 --> 00:30:20.619 it's never meant 00:30:20.619 --> 00:30:21.359 to end with you. 00:30:22.059 --> 00:30:22.299 Yes, 00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:23.099 he wants to save you 00:30:23.099 --> 00:30:23.819 and forgive you. 00:30:24.139 --> 00:30:25.099 That's just the start. 00:30:25.740 --> 00:30:26.299 He's bringing about 00:30:26.299 --> 00:30:27.240 an ever-expanding 00:30:27.240 --> 00:30:28.740 global cosmic plan 00:30:28.740 --> 00:30:30.039 to renew all things 00:30:30.039 --> 00:30:31.199 and you're saved 00:30:31.199 --> 00:30:32.879 into his global plan. 00:30:33.480 --> 00:30:34.659 Here's the last thing finally. 00:30:35.119 --> 00:30:36.179 When we meet God, 00:30:36.240 --> 00:30:37.419 how does God change us deeply? 00:30:37.599 --> 00:30:38.399 He changes us personally, 00:30:39.059 --> 00:30:39.519 powerfully, 00:30:40.099 --> 00:30:40.559 painfully, 00:30:40.759 --> 00:30:41.719 with a purpose, 00:30:42.240 --> 00:30:42.899 but finally, 00:30:43.480 --> 00:30:43.919 publicly. 00:30:45.439 --> 00:30:46.500 We see when 00:30:46.500 --> 00:30:48.500 Saul encounters Jesus here, 00:30:48.500 --> 00:30:49.919 it's not just personal 00:30:49.919 --> 00:30:50.559 and private, 00:30:50.839 --> 00:30:51.899 but it's also public 00:30:51.899 --> 00:30:52.539 and communal. 00:30:52.539 --> 00:30:53.259 And we see this 00:30:53.259 --> 00:30:54.220 in two different ways. 00:30:54.859 --> 00:30:55.460 Notice firstly, 00:30:55.579 --> 00:30:56.759 the role that Ananias plays. 00:30:57.539 --> 00:30:58.639 Ananias is not so sure 00:30:58.639 --> 00:30:59.339 about this, right? 00:31:00.420 --> 00:31:02.180 And so he says to Jesus, 00:31:02.299 --> 00:31:03.119 you've got to be kidding me. 00:31:03.180 --> 00:31:04.259 Do you know who this guy is? 00:31:04.359 --> 00:31:05.039 And Jesus says, 00:31:05.119 --> 00:31:05.960 yes, I do know. 00:31:06.119 --> 00:31:07.399 He's my chosen instrument. 00:31:07.899 --> 00:31:09.000 I will use him. 00:31:09.440 --> 00:31:10.539 And then in verse 17, 00:31:10.879 --> 00:31:12.920 how does Ananias address Saul? 00:31:13.579 --> 00:31:13.980 Remember, 00:31:14.440 --> 00:31:15.220 Saul is the guy 00:31:15.220 --> 00:31:16.859 that has come to his city 00:31:16.859 --> 00:31:18.779 with authorization letters 00:31:18.779 --> 00:31:19.839 to arrest him, 00:31:20.319 --> 00:31:21.539 drag them back to Jerusalem, 00:31:21.539 --> 00:31:22.039 Jerusalem, 00:31:22.259 --> 00:31:23.899 and possibly have him executed. 00:31:24.799 --> 00:31:25.519 Look at what he says 00:31:25.519 --> 00:31:27.460 in verse 17. 00:31:28.420 --> 00:31:29.359 Brother Saul, 00:31:30.000 --> 00:31:30.740 the Lord Jesus 00:31:30.740 --> 00:31:31.579 appeared to you 00:31:31.579 --> 00:31:32.059 on the way, 00:31:32.539 --> 00:31:33.680 has sent me to you 00:31:33.680 --> 00:31:34.399 so that you may 00:31:34.399 --> 00:31:35.319 regain your sight 00:31:35.319 --> 00:31:36.460 and be filled 00:31:36.460 --> 00:31:37.319 with the Holy Spirit. 00:31:38.319 --> 00:31:38.920 And then Saul 00:31:38.920 --> 00:31:39.659 is baptized. 00:31:39.819 --> 00:31:40.799 And baptism is the 00:31:40.799 --> 00:31:42.579 community's affirmation 00:31:42.579 --> 00:31:43.259 that this faith 00:31:43.259 --> 00:31:43.740 is genuine. 00:31:44.119 --> 00:31:45.319 Nobody baptizes themselves. 00:31:45.319 --> 00:31:47.299 The community baptizes you 00:31:47.299 --> 00:31:47.980 and says, 00:31:48.359 --> 00:31:49.200 you are one of us. 00:31:49.339 --> 00:31:49.679 Welcome. 00:31:49.859 --> 00:31:51.159 Baptism is the gateway 00:31:51.159 --> 00:31:52.899 into the church community. 00:31:53.240 --> 00:31:54.579 And they baptize him 00:31:54.579 --> 00:31:55.899 and authenticate his faith. 00:31:56.319 --> 00:31:57.259 And we see the same thing 00:31:57.259 --> 00:31:58.139 the next week 00:31:58.139 --> 00:31:58.819 with Barnabas. 00:31:58.980 --> 00:31:59.899 Welcome Saul 00:31:59.899 --> 00:32:01.259 into the community. 00:32:02.139 --> 00:32:02.899 Saul doesn't become 00:32:02.899 --> 00:32:03.319 a Christian 00:32:03.319 --> 00:32:04.019 and then go off 00:32:04.019 --> 00:32:04.519 on his own, 00:32:04.919 --> 00:32:05.519 but he's pulled 00:32:05.519 --> 00:32:06.359 into the community. 00:32:06.980 --> 00:32:08.079 His faith becomes public. 00:32:08.939 --> 00:32:09.500 And did you notice 00:32:09.500 --> 00:32:10.139 in verse 4, 00:32:10.140 --> 00:32:10.180 Saul, 00:32:10.420 --> 00:32:11.759 what does the risen Christ 00:32:11.759 --> 00:32:12.380 say to Saul 00:32:12.380 --> 00:32:13.020 in verse 4? 00:32:13.600 --> 00:32:14.120 Saul, Saul, 00:32:14.240 --> 00:32:16.160 why are you persecuting me? 00:32:17.040 --> 00:32:17.740 But in Saul's mind, 00:32:17.759 --> 00:32:18.840 he's not persecuting Jesus. 00:32:19.259 --> 00:32:20.520 He's persecuting Christians, 00:32:20.620 --> 00:32:20.840 right? 00:32:21.560 --> 00:32:21.820 I mean, 00:32:21.860 --> 00:32:23.200 Saul wants to kill Christians. 00:32:23.280 --> 00:32:24.000 He doesn't even believe 00:32:24.000 --> 00:32:25.080 in Jesus at this stage. 00:32:25.460 --> 00:32:25.880 And yet, 00:32:25.980 --> 00:32:27.000 in Jesus' mind, 00:32:27.460 --> 00:32:28.580 they're one and the same thing. 00:32:29.440 --> 00:32:29.620 Friends, 00:32:29.660 --> 00:32:30.420 you see what that means? 00:32:31.020 --> 00:32:32.440 Jesus so identifies 00:32:32.440 --> 00:32:33.560 with his people 00:32:33.560 --> 00:32:34.800 that the way 00:32:34.800 --> 00:32:36.160 you treat his people, 00:32:36.280 --> 00:32:36.880 his body, 00:32:36.980 --> 00:32:37.600 his community, 00:32:37.759 --> 00:32:38.440 his church, 00:32:38.759 --> 00:32:39.420 in some ways, 00:32:39.420 --> 00:32:39.820 is the way 00:32:39.820 --> 00:32:40.420 that you're treating 00:32:40.420 --> 00:32:41.360 Christ himself. 00:32:42.300 --> 00:32:43.300 Jesus so identifies 00:32:43.300 --> 00:32:43.920 with his people 00:32:43.920 --> 00:32:44.720 that to reject 00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:45.240 or belittle 00:32:45.240 --> 00:32:46.660 or alienate his people, 00:32:47.100 --> 00:32:48.380 his body is in some ways 00:32:48.380 --> 00:32:49.000 to reject, 00:32:49.539 --> 00:32:49.740 belittle, 00:32:49.960 --> 00:32:50.840 or alienate him. 00:32:51.620 --> 00:32:52.380 And the reason is 00:32:52.380 --> 00:32:53.980 because Christ is present 00:32:53.980 --> 00:32:55.100 in his people. 00:32:56.160 --> 00:32:57.019 And so what that means 00:32:57.019 --> 00:32:58.380 is that when you get saved, 00:32:58.420 --> 00:32:59.420 when you get born again, 00:32:59.640 --> 00:33:00.779 you come into a relationship 00:33:00.779 --> 00:33:02.340 with the living Lord Jesus Christ, 00:33:02.480 --> 00:33:04.140 but you also come into a relationship 00:33:04.140 --> 00:33:05.519 with his people, 00:33:06.140 --> 00:33:06.940 with his body, 00:33:07.380 --> 00:33:08.140 his community, 00:33:08.340 --> 00:33:08.940 his church. 00:33:09.420 --> 00:33:10.279 And that means 00:33:10.279 --> 00:33:11.140 we are more important 00:33:11.140 --> 00:33:11.880 to one another 00:33:11.880 --> 00:33:13.220 and to each other's 00:33:13.220 --> 00:33:13.860 spiritual growth 00:33:13.860 --> 00:33:14.920 than you could ever imagine 00:33:14.920 --> 00:33:16.840 because to know Jesus 00:33:16.840 --> 00:33:18.680 is to not just know him personally, 00:33:19.100 --> 00:33:20.259 but to know him publicly, 00:33:20.920 --> 00:33:21.820 corporately as well. 00:33:22.860 --> 00:33:23.140 Friends, 00:33:23.180 --> 00:33:23.740 the conversion 00:33:23.740 --> 00:33:25.700 and calling of Saul of Tarsus 00:33:25.700 --> 00:33:26.759 is in some ways unique 00:33:26.759 --> 00:33:28.840 as the living Lord Jesus Christ 00:33:28.840 --> 00:33:30.100 changes him deeply, 00:33:30.460 --> 00:33:31.000 powerfully, 00:33:31.680 --> 00:33:32.200 profoundly, 00:33:32.740 --> 00:33:33.259 personally. 00:33:33.259 --> 00:33:35.400 and yet in other ways, 00:33:35.440 --> 00:33:36.240 what we see in Paul 00:33:36.240 --> 00:33:36.799 and what we heard 00:33:36.799 --> 00:33:37.680 in Staffordshire Bill 00:33:37.680 --> 00:33:38.839 and what we hear 00:33:38.839 --> 00:33:39.700 millions and millions 00:33:39.700 --> 00:33:41.140 of stories throughout the ages 00:33:41.140 --> 00:33:42.339 and all around the world 00:33:42.339 --> 00:33:43.619 in Rosario Battlefield 00:33:43.619 --> 00:33:44.680 and millions of others 00:33:44.680 --> 00:33:45.859 in every corner of the world 00:33:45.859 --> 00:33:46.879 is the same story 00:33:46.879 --> 00:33:48.299 over and over again. 00:33:48.839 --> 00:33:50.440 How the living Lord Jesus Christ 00:33:50.440 --> 00:33:51.379 changes us, 00:33:51.799 --> 00:33:52.960 draws us into himself, 00:33:53.619 --> 00:33:54.819 draws us into his family, 00:33:55.519 --> 00:33:56.500 changes us deeply 00:33:56.500 --> 00:33:57.640 and personally. 00:33:58.400 --> 00:33:58.660 Friends, 00:33:58.700 --> 00:33:59.460 have you encountered 00:33:59.460 --> 00:34:00.620 Jesus like this? 00:34:01.560 --> 00:34:02.300 Have you encountered 00:34:02.300 --> 00:34:03.300 the living God 00:34:03.300 --> 00:34:04.360 in this way? 00:34:05.420 --> 00:34:06.259 Do you know what it's like 00:34:06.259 --> 00:34:07.400 for the living Lord Jesus 00:34:07.400 --> 00:34:08.280 to call you, 00:34:08.400 --> 00:34:09.300 to confront you, 00:34:09.640 --> 00:34:10.820 to challenge you, 00:34:11.160 --> 00:34:12.400 to welcome you? 00:34:13.240 --> 00:34:13.539 Friends, 00:34:13.579 --> 00:34:14.700 have you met him like this? 00:34:15.500 --> 00:34:16.360 Are you able to say 00:34:16.360 --> 00:34:17.680 the person I once was 00:34:17.680 --> 00:34:19.280 is not the person I am anymore? 00:34:20.000 --> 00:34:21.160 That's what Jesus is able 00:34:21.160 --> 00:34:22.180 to do for all of us. 00:34:22.660 --> 00:34:23.940 That's what Jesus wants 00:34:23.940 --> 00:34:24.700 to do for us. 00:34:25.260 --> 00:34:26.360 That's what Jesus wants 00:34:26.360 --> 00:34:27.619 to do for us today. 00:34:28.239 --> 00:34:28.759 Why don't we come 00:34:28.759 --> 00:34:29.420 to now in prayer 00:34:29.420 --> 00:34:30.879 and ask him to do that 00:34:30.879 --> 00:34:31.679 once again. 00:34:31.879 --> 00:34:32.239 Let's pray. 00:34:34.539 --> 00:34:35.159 Lord Jesus, 00:34:35.279 --> 00:34:35.980 if there's one thing 00:34:35.980 --> 00:34:36.759 the Bible tells us 00:34:36.759 --> 00:34:37.400 again and again, 00:34:37.500 --> 00:34:38.059 it's that you are 00:34:38.059 --> 00:34:38.879 not just a theory, 00:34:39.079 --> 00:34:40.059 you're not just an idea, 00:34:40.839 --> 00:34:41.799 you're not just a philosophy, 00:34:42.039 --> 00:34:43.400 you are the living God, 00:34:43.839 --> 00:34:45.139 the living risen 00:34:45.139 --> 00:34:46.059 Lord Jesus Christ, 00:34:46.099 --> 00:34:47.239 the one who once was dead 00:34:47.239 --> 00:34:48.980 but now is alive again. 00:34:49.679 --> 00:34:50.039 God, 00:34:50.119 --> 00:34:51.319 you are changing people. 00:34:51.319 --> 00:34:53.839 You've been changing people 00:34:53.839 --> 00:34:54.839 throughout the centuries. 00:34:55.519 --> 00:34:57.079 You're changing people today. 00:34:57.639 --> 00:34:57.839 God, 00:34:57.900 --> 00:34:58.900 many of us here in the room 00:34:58.900 --> 00:34:59.679 have got stories 00:34:59.679 --> 00:35:00.639 of how you've changed us 00:35:00.639 --> 00:35:01.119 deeply, 00:35:01.460 --> 00:35:01.819 personally, 00:35:02.000 --> 00:35:02.500 profoundly. 00:35:03.139 --> 00:35:03.440 God, 00:35:03.500 --> 00:35:04.500 many of us are still 00:35:04.500 --> 00:35:05.799 longing for that, 00:35:05.900 --> 00:35:06.500 wanting that. 00:35:07.139 --> 00:35:07.440 God, 00:35:07.500 --> 00:35:08.059 I pray, 00:35:08.799 --> 00:35:09.460 I pray God, 00:35:09.519 --> 00:35:10.099 by your spirit, 00:35:10.199 --> 00:35:10.799 won't you come 00:35:10.800 --> 00:35:11.980 and meet with each one 00:35:11.980 --> 00:35:12.400 of us. 00:35:12.780 --> 00:35:13.039 Lord, 00:35:13.080 --> 00:35:13.760 those of us that have 00:35:13.760 --> 00:35:14.200 walked with you 00:35:14.200 --> 00:35:15.100 for many years 00:35:15.100 --> 00:35:16.160 and know your grace, 00:35:16.660 --> 00:35:17.400 come and meet with us 00:35:17.400 --> 00:35:18.060 once again. 00:35:18.680 --> 00:35:19.660 Meet with us deeply 00:35:19.660 --> 00:35:20.460 and personally. 00:35:21.140 --> 00:35:21.380 God, 00:35:21.420 --> 00:35:22.420 the worries of our hearts, 00:35:22.500 --> 00:35:23.720 the longings of our hearts, 00:35:24.220 --> 00:35:25.380 come and meet with us, 00:35:25.420 --> 00:35:25.800 we pray. 00:35:26.660 --> 00:35:26.920 God, 00:35:26.980 --> 00:35:27.720 those of us maybe 00:35:27.720 --> 00:35:28.860 that have been very religious 00:35:28.860 --> 00:35:29.460 like Saul, 00:35:29.560 --> 00:35:30.480 done all the right things 00:35:30.480 --> 00:35:31.640 but never known you, 00:35:32.280 --> 00:35:33.440 come God and meet us 00:35:33.440 --> 00:35:34.019 personally, 00:35:34.240 --> 00:35:34.760 profoundly. 00:35:35.480 --> 00:35:36.500 Come and change us, 00:35:36.600 --> 00:35:36.740 Lord. 00:35:37.460 --> 00:35:37.700 God, 00:35:37.740 --> 00:35:38.460 those of us that are 00:35:38.460 --> 00:35:39.780 very aware that we're 00:35:39.780 --> 00:35:40.559 still on a journey. 00:35:41.240 --> 00:35:41.599 Oh God, 00:35:41.679 --> 00:35:42.619 come and open the eyes 00:35:42.619 --> 00:35:43.220 of our hearts. 00:35:43.940 --> 00:35:44.119 Lord, 00:35:44.159 --> 00:35:44.940 let the scales 00:35:44.940 --> 00:35:45.960 from our eyes drop. 00:35:46.059 --> 00:35:47.119 May we see you 00:35:47.119 --> 00:35:48.460 and be changed. 00:35:49.260 --> 00:35:49.460 God, 00:35:49.720 --> 00:35:51.340 as Martin Lloyd-Jones 00:35:51.340 --> 00:35:52.480 said all those years ago, 00:35:53.420 --> 00:35:54.059 there is hope 00:35:54.059 --> 00:35:54.679 for everyone. 00:35:55.260 --> 00:35:56.220 No one is beyond 00:35:56.220 --> 00:35:57.159 your redeeming grace. 00:35:57.800 --> 00:35:58.039 God, 00:35:58.099 --> 00:35:58.780 may that be true 00:35:58.780 --> 00:35:59.780 for every one of us 00:35:59.780 --> 00:36:00.380 in this room. 00:36:00.820 --> 00:36:01.619 In your great name 00:36:01.619 --> 00:36:02.039 we pray. 00:36:02.720 --> 00:36:03.079 Amen. 00:36:03.760 --> 00:36:04.039 Amen.