I love radical stories of change and transformation.
Whether it's people changing their lives or rebuilding a house
or someone taking an old rusty tool and fixing it up.
TV shows that have these things are always really popular.
I don't necessarily like the drama of them,
but I love the before and after shots.
One thing is central to these TV shows.
They take something that was not fit for purpose
and they change it so it is fit for purpose.
The dad who can't run and play with his kids,
he goes on Biggest Loser and he drops all this weight
and now he can play with the kids.
The house that's falling apart, it's derelict,
it's due to be destroyed,
but then the team comes in and they transform it,
they rebuild it,
and then the family can move in and it's now fit for purpose.
I wonder if it's possible that we don't think that real and radical change
can happen in our lives.
Is it possible that we doubt the impact of God on our lives?
Maybe if I went on a Christian TV show,
then God could do something.
Maybe if I had 10 weeks on The Biggest Christian,
I was going to say Loser, but that doesn't sound right,
just The Biggest Christian TV show,
maybe then God could do something in my life.
But do we actually expect God to bring any real change
or to do anything in our lives?
It's incredibly hard in this season
because it just feels like we're treading water.
I want to see change in my heart.
I want to see change in the way I relate to people.
I want to love people more than myself.
I want to sin less.
I want to bring more glory to God.
But all of this seems really hard at the moment.
Today, we're going to see the best transformation story.
We're going to see a radical story of change
and how it is on offer for all of us.
A change that has a purpose that makes us fit for purpose.
We've been going through the book of Acts in this season,
and we've seen that the gospel is for all people.
It's also been wonderful to be celebrating and praying
for what our missionaries are doing overseas,
and it was good to see what the clean sauces are doing.
Even though they are struggling, seeing radical change.
In the book of Acts, in what we're up to,
we've seen that Paul has moved across different regions.
He has preached.
He has trained and taught leaders.
He has planted churches.
And now, God is calling him to go back to Jerusalem,
back to his home,
and we're going to see how God has radically transformed Paul
and called him, how he has made Paul fit for purpose.
And the challenge for us today will be to see if God has made any change in our lives.
Has God changed our lives, and how is he changing us
so that we are fit for purpose of responding to his call to love other people?
So there'll be two points today.
Firstly, radical change.
Secondly, radical call as we go through Acts 22.
But let's pray before we jump in.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word to us here from Acts 22.
Lord, help us to listen well to your word.
Change us that we would be like you,
and let us respond to your call to love people like you love us.
Amen.
In Acts 22, Paul has come back to the city of Jerusalem,
and he has accidentally caused an uproar.
Jews from across Asia, which we saw in chapter 19,
had all heard the gospel.
They see Paul going into the temple and assume, wrongly,
that he is taking a Gentile with him.
They get angry.
You don't take Gentiles into the temple.
The temple was only for Jews, only for those who were ceremonially clean.
And so they assume Paul is doing this terrible thing,
taking a Gentile in, and they get angry.
They want to rip him apart.
And so the people riot.
Paul is grabbed by Roman soldiers just before he is killed,
and he talks to this unruly crowd.
He speaks to them, those who are intent on shedding his blood,
and he gives a defense, and he preaches.
And this is our first point today.
He preaches of the change in his life, the radical change.
Now, Paul is very mindful of the crowd here.
He speaks to them so that they can hear him.
He speaks to them in Aramaic.
He explains how much he is like them before he gets to the change.
So please, have Acts 22, verse 1 open,
so we can be looking at God's word together.
From verse 1,
Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.
When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic,
they became very quiet.
Then Paul said,
I am a Jew born in Tarsus of Cilicia,
but brought up in this city.
I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors.
I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.
I persecuted the followers of this way to their death,
arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison,
as the high priest and all the council can themselves testify.
Now there are three key parts to how Paul is describing himself.
He describes his ethnic identity,
his education and his job or his mission.
Firstly, his ethnic identity.
He says that while he was born outside of Jerusalem,
he is a child of this city.
This is where he grew up.
He is central to this town.
He knows this city.
He is a Jerusalemite,
just like the rest of the people here.
He's saying,
I'm just like you all.
He speaks of his education.
He was trained by Gamaliel.
He was the most prominent of the teachers of the law.
Paul took the law seriously.
He had the best education.
It's like saying that he studied law at Harvard University.
Paul had the very best education that could be offered at Jerusalem.
And not only was he of the city,
not only was he educated,
but he was zealous.
He was passionate.
He was passionate about the law,
so much so that he persecuted Christians,
persecuted the people of Jesus, the way.
That was his mission.
That was the job that he set out to do.
He had his work approved by the elders.
His job in his eyes was to get rid of Christianity.
If Paul stopped speaking here,
you know what?
This crowd probably would have applauded him.
Oh, yes, very well said.
This boy, he's one of ours.
Yes, isn't he great?
He's just like us.
We're very proud of him.
But Paul no longer found his identity in his former life.
It wasn't his ethnic identity,
his education or his work that shaped who he was.
Something had changed.
Something powerful and radical must have grabbed him by the neck
and given him a good shake.
Something massive must have happened to change him so drastically.
Paul identifies with this crowd firstly
so that he can show how great the change is.
How did Paul's life change?
How did his life get turned upside down?
He met Jesus.
Have a look with me.
Verse 6.
Now, this isn't just a vision or a prophecy.
Jesus actually appears to him.
His companions could see the light,
but they couldn't understand the voice of Jesus.
This is just like the rest of the crowd
that Paul is preaching to at this point.
They could hear what he was saying,
but they couldn't understand it.
Jesus interrupts Paul's life,
interrupts his mission.
He was the perfect Jewish man,
the ideal son.
He had the best education.
He had the ethnicity like everybody else.
He was on a passionate path,
but Jesus steps into his way
because he was going down the wrong path.
Jesus says,
I am the one you were persecuting.
And so Jesus sends him on to Damascus
to find out what Jesus was going to send him to do.
And there he meets Ananias,
who gives him a message from the Lord.
Verse 14,
Then he said,
that's Ananias,
the God of our ancestors
has chosen you to know his will
and to see the righteous one,
to hear words from his mouth.
You will be his witnesses
to all people of what you have seen and heard.
And now,
what are you waiting for?
Get up,
be baptized,
and wash your sins away,
calling on his name.
Ananias makes it very clear.
Paul has seen the righteous one,
God himself,
the same God he worshipped,
has actually interrupted his life
to bring change,
to call him to something new,
to call him to be his witness,
just like the apostles,
to all that he had seen and heard.
And at that,
he's baptized.
He sets aside his former identity,
Jewish,
well-educated,
passionate to persecute Christians,
and he takes on the identity
of a Christ follower.
But can you imagine how Paul would have felt
on the way to Ananias?
He was there,
partially responsible for Stephen's death.
He was on his way to arrest and kill more Christians.
And he meets Jesus,
who points out that Paul is in the wrong.
Can you imagine the depth of shame
and guilt he would have felt?
Everything that I was passionate about,
everything I thought I knew,
it was all wrong.
But Jesus sends him to Ananias,
who preaches God's good news.
The gospel is for you,
even this enemy.
Your sins are forgiven.
They are washed away
because of Jesus' death and resurrection.
In Paul's baptism,
he sets aside his former way of life.
As he went to arrest Christians,
Paul was arrested by Jesus.
And his life would be forever changed.
There's a quick note here,
that Paul's name actually doesn't change.
The name Paul and Saul are the same name.
They're just different languages saying the same name.
It is much like how a person moving to Australia
from another country will pick a name in English
that sounds similar to their name.
Or if I'm introducing myself in Chinese,
I would say my name is Jan Wuxi.
It is the same thing.
Whilst everything in Paul's life is radically changed,
his name is actually not one of them.
But his life is changed by meeting Jesus.
God took Paul from being his enemy
and has saved him.
He's dealt with his sin and shame
and brought him into his family.
Paul has put aside his ethnic identity,
his education and his work,
all because Jesus offers something better.
His new identity is better.
My testimony is the same as Paul's.
I was his enemy until Jesus stepped into my path
and said, come and follow me.
If you're following Jesus,
your story is the same as Paul's.
Sure, Paul is one of the most influential
Christian leaders of all time,
but our stories are actually the same.
Our stories are just as amazing and awesome as Paul's.
That God would forgive.
That he would deal with our pain and our shame.
Sure, we may not go from being a radical terrorist
to a missionary leader,
but the heart of the change is still the same.
God takes us from enemy to family,
from shamed to saved,
from forsaken to forgiven.
If you don't know Jesus yet,
you might be feeling in the same position
that Paul may have before he met Ananias,
feeling the weight of sin.
Hearing about the love of Jesus might be hard
because maybe you feel like you are not worth God dying for you.
Not good enough.
Stuffed up too many times.
I've made too many mistakes.
I've hurt too many people.
My heart is too rotten for God to even love me.
The wonderful reminder of this part of the Bible
is that God would love even someone like Paul,
a radical terrorist who was his enemy.
And he would bring in someone far worse than us.
The gospel is for all people,
even us who are like Paul,
to be part of God's family.
God radically changed Paul's life,
brought him into his family.
And now Paul has been given a new identity.
He's now a Christian.
He's been given a new education.
He has seen Jesus and heard from him.
And now God gives him a new job.
This is our second point today, radical call.
Paul is given a radical call.
Be on mission.
Go and be a witness to all people.
On Paul's first visit back to Jerusalem,
Paul raised doubts about his fitness to do this.
Chapter 22, verse 19, have a look.
Lord, I replied,
these people know that I went from one synagogue to another
to imprison and beat those who believe in you.
God, you have got the wrong guy.
It's not gonna work.
How can I do this?
They know who I am.
But God confirms his mission.
Verse 21.
Go.
I will send you far away to the Gentiles.
And that's what Paul did.
God sent him far away.
And Paul spread the gospel,
preached for years and saw the gospel spread all across Asia
as we saw in chapter 19.
Paul obeyed God's call,
even when it was difficult,
even when he wasn't sure about it,
because his life had been captured by Jesus
and changed to follow him.
In Paul's speech to this rioting crowd,
he appealed to them.
He identified with them.
I am just like you.
I speak your language.
I'm zealous for the Lord,
just like you are.
Spoke of his own hatred for Christians
before he met Jesus.
But his language started to change.
He met Jesus, the righteous one.
God himself commissioned him
and sent him out to the rest of the world.
All of this,
the crowd listened to,
it says,
right up until this last point.
Now,
they get violently aggressive again.
They've turned back into that mob,
trying to rip Paul apart.
What's so offensive about what he said?
Well,
Paul is saying that
God not only wanted the Jews,
but God also wanted to bring
all of the Gentiles
in to God's family.
The Gentiles were the enemies of the Jews.
They were unclean.
They couldn't get into the temple.
They were the bad guys
who were in control.
Paul,
and the Jews
couldn't stomach this.
They reviled.
They hated the Gentiles.
And anyone like the tax collectors
who worked with them,
the Gentiles would ruin the temple.
They were their harsh overlords.
And Paul is saying
that the Holy God
wants to bring them in.
It would be as if Joe Biden,
the President of the United States,
got up and said
that he was going to welcome
all members of the Taliban
into the US.
People would riot.
They were the hated enemies.
And it's no wonder
the Jews get angry at this point.
Because Jesus is doing something radical.
If he can bring in
an enemy like Paul
into God's family,
he is going to bring in
all of those
who are far away from God.
That is the mission
that God sent Paul to,
to bring people
into God's family.
And God has so radically
changed Paul
that he would follow his call
even to go back to Jerusalem,
to preach this,
even if he would end up
in chains.
In chapter 21,
whilst Paul was still
heading to Jerusalem,
Christians,
through the Spirit,
knew what was going
to happen to Paul,
knew that he would be bound
and arrested,
and they tried to stop him.
But Paul's response
is really awesome.
In chapter 21,
verse 13,
Paul says,
I am not only ready
to be bound,
but also to die
in Jerusalem
for the name
of the Lord Jesus.
Paul has gone
from someone
who was ready
and willing to kill
people who follow Jesus,
and now he is ready
to die for Jesus.
Paul knew his call
to follow God
and to be a witness,
and he was going
to do that.
Paul had all
that he had in life
interrupted.
Jesus turned him around
and called him
to follow him,
and Paul follows him,
even if for the rest
of his life
he is going to be bound
and in chains.
When we meet Jesus,
like Paul did face to face,
or when we meet Jesus
in the pages
of the Bible
as we do,
he totally changes
our lives.
but he also calls us
to be on his team.
We are also
to be witnesses
to what we have seen.
We are to be witnesses
to who Jesus is
in the Bible.
God doesn't just save us
and then go,
great,
now you're part of the team,
you go sit
and warm the bench
for the rest of your life.
He sends us out
to be part of his team,
to be on his mission.
Paul didn't think
it was going to work,
there was too much baggage
to who he was,
but that didn't matter.
God used him
and he wants us
to be on his mission too.
We are all called
to be on God's mission.
He has taken us
from being his enemy
to being his emissary,
from sinner
to sharer
of the gospel.
Now it's lockdown,
I hear you saying.
How is God going
to use me
to be his witness?
I'm not legally allowed
to really go out
of my house.
I can't go to work,
I can't see people.
It's really hard
to share the gospel
over a team meeting
at Zoom
because there's no chit-chat.
How am I supposed
to witness?
I can't go out
like Paul did.
That's fine,
I'm not going to tell you
to break the law,
trust me,
I'm definitely not going
to tell you
to break the law.
But how are we going
to follow God's call,
not only to follow him
but also to witness
to other people
in this season?
Well there's four things
that we can do.
We can pray,
we can give,
we can look out
for our neighbours
and look out
for our family.
First of all,
pray.
Be praying.
God is the one
who saves lives.
God is not in lockdown.
There is no border closure
that can stop
the gospel spreading.
Get the mission booklet
in the links below,
open that up,
be praying for our missionaries,
be praying for our
cleansosers
that we heard about today,
be praying for
Sam and Sally Lowe
in the Gold Coast
who we're raising money for,
be praying for
the Nepali theological students
who are training
to be pastors.
Pray that God
would use them
to impact those nations.
that not only
South Africa
would be impacted
by the work
of the cleansosers,
but all of Africa.
Be praying for our
mission partners
in Germany
and in Japan.
Next week,
come to our prayer afternoon
as we bring these
partners
and our desire
for God
to change
people's lives
to Him
in prayer.
Pray for your neighbours,
pray for your colleagues,
and pray,
God,
what do you want of me?
Where do you want me
to be, Lord?
Do you want me
to stay here
and be the best witness
I can be
to my family,
to my friends,
to my colleagues?
Or are you calling me
to do something like Paul
to go on mission?
God,
where do you want me?
Do you actually want me
to uproot my life
like Sam and Sally
for the benefit
of your kingdom?
We need to be willing
to not just
tell our family,
but do something radical
like Paul did.
Change his identity
and make the priority
Christian
to follow his call
in our lives.
Secondly,
give.
Give to the mission account.
You can find the mission account
details on our website.
While it is difficult
for us to do mission,
it is not impossible.
Right now,
we can be supporting
the ongoing mission work
of the Lowe's
in the Gold Coast.
We're seeking to raise
20 grand.
We're seeking to do
something radical
to impact the Gold Coast.
We're raising money
to do that,
and this is something
wonderful.
Last time I checked,
seven and a half grand
from about 20
different households.
This is wonderful.
Thank you, church.
Thank you so much
for your generosity.
But I know
there are about
50 households
watching this stream
right now.
Imagine
if we all
did something radical.
If we all gave
out of what God
has given us
to continue
to support
the work of ministry.
Give to Sam
and Sally.
The money we give
does make
a difference
to the people's lives
in the Gold Coast
and to our hearts
to be growing
more generous
like a Heavenly Father.
So be praying.
Be giving.
And thirdly,
care for your neighbours.
Get to know
your neighbours.
I have been living
in my house
for three and a bit years.
I don't know
my neighbours that well.
But in the last couple of weeks
I had a chance
to go and pick up
some medicine
for a neighbour
which was wonderful.
Got to go into the shops.
They were a bit
cautious about that.
And then after
when I dropped it off
I had a half an hour
conversation
with one of my neighbours
and got to talk
about church
and Jesus
and all kinds
of wonderful things.
These opportunities
don't come up too often.
Take this chance
right now
to get to know
the people around you
because people
all around us
are doing it tough.
people need
Jesus
right now.
More so
almost than
any other time
in life
where we are
anxious about
the future,
where we are
considering
death and disease
when we can
share with them
the good news
that Jesus
is more powerful
than them.
Lastly,
be on the lookout
for your family.
Family members
are one of the
hardest groups
to convert.
I'm aware
of that
but there are
a number
of things
you can do.
Share this
YouTube link
with them.
You can say
this is the
church service
that I was
part of
this morning
I found
this really
encouraging
why don't
you watch
it as well?
Tell them
hey look
this is what
I've been
watching
this is what
I do
I go and hide
away in my
bedroom
and watch
church
I just want
to share
this with
you because
you're such
an important
part of my
life
watch this
as well.
Maybe
you could do
something a
little bit
scary
if you're
up for a
radical challenge
do something
scary
and ask
hey family
member
brother
sister
mum
dad
what was
I like
before
I became
a Christian
have you
seen any
change
in my
life?
Don't know
what they
will respond
with
have they
seen any
change?
You might
be scared
at their
response
but this
is a
wonderful
opportunity
to get
the people
around you
to reflect
on what
God is
doing
in your
life
so that
you can
share
how great
Jesus
is.
Pray
give
look out
for your
neighbours
look out
for your
family
there is
much we
can do
to respond
to God's
call
because
he has
changed
the direction
of our
lives.
Now at
this point
I could
tell you
all kinds
of stories
and motivate
you about
the change
in people's
lives
I could
tell you
about the
African
terrorist
who became
a missionary
I could
tell you
about the
devout
Chinese
atheist
who
became
a pastor
despite
much
persecution
there are
so many
wonderful
stories
of amazing
conversions
but they
can make
us think
that God
does
amazing
things
but not
really for
little old
me
my story
your story
is just
as amazing
and radical
as his
God
through
his
love
for us
sent
his
son
Jesus
to die
on the
cross
for me
and for
you
meeting
him
we would
be
radically
changed
to no
longer
identify
with the
former
things
of our
lives
with
work
and
education
and
our
chosen
fields
but
now
the most
important
thing
in our
lives
is
Christian
because
he has
taken away
our
sin
he's
taking
away
my
love
for
that
sin
and
he is
replacing
it
with
a
love
for
him
and
a
love
to
be
on
his
mission
God
in
his
love
for
you
is
making
him
more
like
you
every
day
fit
for
the
purpose
of
knowing
him
and
loving
other
people
let
us
pray
that
God
would
do
that
heavenly
father
I
thank
you
for
your
love
for
us
that
while
we
were
still
far
off
you
sent
your
son
to
die
for
us
heavenly
father
make
us
fit
to be
part
of
your
family
change
us
make
us
generous
make
us
love
other
people
like
you
love
us
and
heavenly
father
be
with
us
in
the
coming
weeks
as
we
seek
to
love
those
around
us
so
that
we
can
respond
to
your
radical
call
on
our
lives
we
ask
this
in
your
son's
name
amen