Hallelujah! And thank you for tuning into this message by David Entry at Karis Church.
! As we journey in this season of great awakening, may God pour fresh life into you through his word
! And align you more deeply with his purpose. Acts chapter 22, I will just read from verse 1 to 5.
Verse 1. Men, brethren and fathers, hear my defense which I make now unto you.
And when they heard that he spoke in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept the more silence.
And he said, I am verily a man which I'm a Jew born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in the city
at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of our fathers,
and was zealous towards God, as ye all are this day. I persecuted this way unto death, binding and
delivering unto prison both men and women, as also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the
estates of the elders, from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there,
bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished. Here ends the reading of God's word. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the privilege of being together to hear your word.
To hear your word. We pray that as we get into your word, you'll get into us, and reveal Christ to us.
Heal our hearts. Heal us.
Turn our hearts to you.
Draw us closer to yourself,
and impact us
with your wisdom,
with your power,
and your glory.
In Jesus' name.
Amen.
Thank you, Jesus.
Last week, we spoke about how we saw Paul.
He was so bent on going to Jerusalem,
and the reasons why he wanted to go to Jerusalem.
And he successfully, in Acts chapter 21, verse 17,
he successfully got to Jerusalem.
So, his dream of getting to Jerusalem had been fulfilled.
Now, the mission in Jerusalem.
So, he went to greet the brethren,
because Paul believed in the brethren life.
He believed that wherever you find yourself,
look for believers,
and have fellowship with them.
Because that is the normal Christian life.
It's abnormal to be living a Christian life
without being in fellowship with other believers.
When you become a Christian,
one of the things that happens to you,
once you believe in Jesus,
is you stay in fellowship
with the one and others,
others who have believed in Jesus.
And it becomes the foundation of your community life.
It even influences who you choose to marry.
It influences the names you give to your children.
It influences to those who are very serious
in their work with Christ.
It influences your choice of place of location.
If you even want to relocate,
you begin to look out for
how is it going to help my fellowship life.
You don't do that purely based on economic purposes.
You do that when you're a serious Christian,
fundamentally first,
based on your spiritual journey.
When you're a believer,
you even make marital commitment,
not purely because of your feelings,
even though it matters,
but as well because of your spiritual understanding
and your vision and mission.
So, as soon as Paul arrived,
he began to look for fellowship.
But the Bible says the next day,
say the next day.
There are a few next days
or the day following in the scriptures.
The next day, the day following,
he went to James,
and I explained why James
and who James was at that time.
But it's very significant,
the position James occupied
in the church of Jerusalem,
which was the source
or the place where the church was born,
the body of Christ,
started Jerusalem.
And James had become
the leader of the church of Jerusalem.
And it's interesting
because in Galatians,
the Bible says that
certain brethren came from James.
Galatians chapter 2 from verse 11,
Peter played the hypocrisy
because there was nothing really wrong
as long as God's purpose was concerned
in fellowshipping with people
of different races,
different ethnicities.
Once your person is in Christ,
the Bible says there's no Jew or Greek.
There's no male nor female.
But Christ is all and in all.
Colossians 3, 11.
When it comes to Christianity,
there are no racial boundaries,
segregation.
There are no gender boundaries.
There are no even age boundaries.
We are all,
once we are in Christ,
we are all one.
It says that there's no
social class boundaries
because of my class.
I can't fellowship
with this kind of people.
When it comes to Christianity,
no, it says that,
but Christ is all and in all.
Peter knew it.
And so he was fellowship
with the Gentiles in Galatia.
Galatians chapter 2, please.
Peter played the hypocrisy
until some brethren came,
certain men came from James.
Verse 12 said,
before they came,
he would eat with the Gentiles.
But when they came,
he withdrew himself
and separated himself,
fearing those who were the...
There was a problem
with the James territory.
You have something.
Everything was okay
until certain people came from James.
James town.
Yeah, I like that.
James town.
That's a good one.
Now,
James was the head,
as I explained,
of the church in Jerusalem.
He was a prominent...
In fact,
Bible calls them,
in verse 8 and verse 9
of the same chapter,
Bible calls them
those who seem to be peerless.
Verse 9 says that,
for when James and Cephas and John,
who seem to be peerless,
that's the way in Jerusalem.
These are big guys.
So,
people came from James.
James was not really traveling.
He was based there.
And Peter,
as soon as Peter saw
the brothers have come from James,
he knew
there are Jewish
or Judaistic expectations.
You are not supposed
to have fellowship
with Gentiles.
Even though that problem
was solved
in Acts chapter 15,
when the Jewish believers,
those of the circumcision,
who came from Jerusalem,
the problem was in Jerusalem.
I'm telling you.
He says that,
certain men came from Judea,
that's Jerusalem,
and taught brethren
in Antioch
that except you are circumcised
according to the custom of Moses.
Custom.
That's what I say,
custom.
Custom.
You cannot be saved.
Where is this coming from?
So,
they had to go back
to Jerusalem
to meet the elders,
verse 2.
They went and met the elders
and they had to
sort this matter up.
And James,
in the verse 13,
said,
brethren,
I perceive that
when we listen to what Peter said,
God is really working.
So,
let's not put,
so James was the one
who is like the judge.
After everybody came,
James said,
okay,
now,
let me summarize everything.
Let's not put,
so James,
Judas.
Now,
Paul went to Jerusalem,
went to salute James
and the brethren,
and then when he got there,
and they reported
all that God had done
in the Gentile territories.
Bible said they were all happy
and glorified God.
As soon as they finished
glorifying God,
he said,
now,
let's advise you.
They turned on Paul
and advised him
that there are thousands of Jews
who have come from
all over the world
and some of them
have heard about you
and they said,
this,
that.
So,
they advised him
what he should do.
And so,
he went into the temple.
Now,
this is the picture
I want to paint for you.
For your information,
Paul wrote,
the New Testament are,
we have 27 books
in the New Testament.
13 or 14 of them
were written by Paul.
Okay.
I said 13 or 14
because Hebrews,
some scholars believe
that it's Paul,
others believe it's not Paul.
So,
it's a mystery
no one really knows,
but the styles seem to be Paul.
So,
then 14.
The first few letters,
like Galatians,
1 Thessalonians,
2 Thessalonians,
1 and 2 Corinthians,
and Romans,
these six letters
were written by Paul
during his missionary journeys.
So,
he wrote them
during his missionary journey.
Now,
you remember,
his being in Jerusalem
was at the end
of his missionary journeys.
So,
by the time he got to Jerusalem,
he has written Galatians,
he has written Romans,
he has written 1st and 2nd Corinthians
and 1st and 2nd Thessalonians.
They have been written already.
So,
him coming to Jerusalem,
you can understand
his understanding
of how Jews and Gentiles
can have a problem
fellowshipping together.
How Galatians dealt heavily
about the law.
You don't need to serve God
according to the law.
You remember Romans?
That for all have sinned
and fallen short
of the glory of God.
321,
verse 21 says that
the law,
there's a way you can be justified
outside of the law.
So,
verse 20,
Romans 3,
20,
Paul had written
all these things before.
He says that,
therefore,
by the deeds of the law
shall no flesh
be justified
in the sight of God
for by the law
is the knowledge of sin.
Then he says that,
verse 21,
but now the righteousness
of God
outside of the law
is revealed
being witnessed
by the law
and the prophets.
And now,
he explained it
and then in verse 24,
he spoke about
how we have justification,
we have propitiation,
we have redemption
through the blood of Jesus
but not through adherence
to a law.
So,
he has explained it.
No wonder he wanted
to go to Jerusalem
to go and make sure
as the Jews
come from all around the world,
he begins to interpret
the system
and the economy of God
to them properly.
Now,
he gets to Jerusalem
and he was advised
that there are some people
who want to do the custom,
they want to do the ritual,
Nazareth vows,
four of them,
for a month
you do it
and then the last seven days
you stay in the temple
for six days
and then the seventh day
you sacrifice some lamb
and shave your hair
and wait for a priest
to come
and accept your sacrifices
and take you through
the ritual.
I felt like
titling that message,
what is Paul doing
in the temple?
Why would Paul
go there?
So,
can you imagine,
so for the last
seven days,
for the six days
after I went to James,
they advised him
and for six days
he was in the temple
doing what?
People who were doing rituals.
It wasn't against God,
it wasn't sinful,
but God has done with this.
That's not the system
you need to get to God.
God himself
was about to pull down
the temple
because the temple
didn't exist again
after those times.
The Romans destroyed the temple
because God said,
you don't need the temple
to have a relationship
with me.
So,
Paul was the one
who was given
the responsibility
to make sure
that Judaism
is separated
from Christianity
because what was happening
is that
the Jews
were mixing
Christianity
with Judaism.
So,
when you come
as a Gentile,
then they saddle you
with Judaistic responsibility
but because
that problem
was taken care of
in Acts chapter 15,
they now accepted,
James and his team
accepted that
Gentiles
can also be part
of Christian worship
without circumcision
and Jewish tradition.
However,
as for you Jews,
you have to do it.
You see where it's going from.
As for the Jews,
no,
you have to do it.
So,
Paul,
he was advised,
get into the temple.
Join them.
Go through the ritual.
For six days,
Paul will be in the temple
doing whatever they do.
Can you imagine?
That's why last week
I said he will feel
being imprisoned.
It was almost like
a prison situation
for Paul.
God said,
I will not allow
my apostles
to stay in prison
under this condition.
So,
God had to intervene
by removing Paul
from this prison
and changing the system.
So,
the arrest
and the commotion
that happened
in the temple,
it was inspired
and engineered
by the sovereignty
of God
because God
had to save
an apostle.
There's bigger
job for him
to do
than staying
in the temple
and going
back and forth
and then maybe,
I don't know what.
Listen,
you don't need
any,
what do you call it?
Talit or that thing.
Prayer shore.
You don't need,
you don't need
to go to Jerusalem
to be a strong Christian.
You don't need
to be baptized
in the river Jordan
in order to be
a strong Christian.
You don't need it.
Ah,
pastor,
you are saying that
because you've never
been to Jerusalem.
Yes,
I have never been.
You should have been
preaching
if you have been there.
You don't need,
now,
these all kinds
of things
that we are
importing Judaism
into Christianity
because Moses
was praying
with prayer shore.
You're also going
to import,
please,
I'm not knocking
against anybody.
I'm not knocking
against anybody.
I'm just preaching.
But I understand you
because James
would have been
very happy with you.
a lot of things
that are being practiced
that can be practiced
or that some
might be tempted
to practice.
It's not necessary.
Don't read
the Old Testament
and see
just the Old Testament.
Many Christians
are reading
the New Testament
with the Old Testament
lenses.
rather,
you should read
the Old Testament
with the New Testament
lenses.
Read the Old Testament
like you are reading
the New Testament.
Look into the Old Testament
and read it
in the light
of the New Testament.
Don't read
the New Testament
in the light
of the Old Testament.
So Paul,
he was basing up and down
doing his
religious ritual.
I'm sure they danced
and everything
he was doing.
Hey, Paul,
can you,
with a prayer show,
thank you.
Paul,
what are you doing
in this temple?
It's like
he told me
to go to
certain
religious organizations
and then go
and be bowing.
Let us pray.
Bowing to what?
Where am I?
With my understanding
of New Testament
Christianity.
So Paul,
God had to
intervene
and deliver Paul.
How did he do it?
Let me give you
some background.
You know,
I made a statement
a few months ago
when we were talking
about Stephen
and I said,
the church owes
Stephen
for the life of Paul
and the ministry of Paul.
You might take it
for granted
how severe
Stephen
radically impacted
Saul of Tarsus.
How?
Now,
you will see
from the text
when he
beckoned them
and they came,
and he was about
to make
a submission
of his testimony.
Bible says that
he
made reference
to how
Jewish
he has been
and not just
Jewish.
Let's look at the text.
I want to draw attention to it.
Acts chapter 22.
It says that
so after they
arrested him
and they were carrying him,
Paul was being carried
by soldiers.
That's nice though.
So,
the Bible says that
verse 36,
that for the multitude
of the people
followed after crying,
away with him.
That's how bad
they didn't want him.
Away with him.
And as Paul
was led
into the castle,
he said to the
chief captain,
may I speak
to you?
And he said,
do you speak Greek?
He said,
are you not the Jewish
apostle?
No, I'm not.
I am a man
which is a Jew
of Tarsus,
city of Cilicia,
a citizen of
no mean city.
I beseech you,
suffer me to speak
to the people.
And when
he had given them
license,
Paul stood on the stairs
and beckoned
with his hand
unto the people.
And when they were
made a great silent,
he spoke unto them
in the Hebrew
tongue,
saying,
now,
he said,
verse 20,
chapter 22,
men,
brethren,
and fathers.
That's so nice,
a nice,
respectful way
of addressing
his audience.
Men,
brethren,
listen,
I'm one of you.
I'm not a stranger,
I'm one of you.
Men,
brethren,
and fathers,
hear ye my defense.
Permit me to
defend myself.
They are accusing
me wrongly,
and you might not
know where I'm
coming from.
Hear ye my defense.
And when they heard
that he spoke
in Hebrew tongue
to them,
they kept
the more silent.
And he said,
so when they heard
the guy speaking
in Hebrew,
they were like,
oh, wow.
No, no, no.
Everyone, listen.
So the place
went quiet,
silent.
And this is why
Paul came to
Jerusalem,
to come
and speak forth
his doctrine.
He said,
the place went quiet.
Then he spoke
to them and said,
I am verily
a man
which
I am a Jew.
He didn't say
I was a Jew.
Because they said
he's speaking
against the Jewish
custom,
as though he was
a foreigner.
He said,
I'm a Jew.
I am still a Jew.
And I was born
in Tarsus,
a city of Cilicia,
yet brought up
in this city.
So I was born
outside,
but I was brought up
in this city,
talking about
Jerusalem,
at the feet
of Gamaliel,
and taught
according to
the perfect manner
of the law
of my fathers
and was zealous
towards God.
Yes.
As he had today,
I'm ahead of you.
Philippians chapter
three,
verse six,
he said,
I was zealous
concerning zeal.
He said,
concerning zeal,
I was persecuting
the church.
Paul said,
I was zealous.
What are you
talking about?
I was zealous.
So I know you
people are zealous
in Acts chapter
21,
verse 20,
when they advised
him that there
are people,
Jews,
who are very
zealous for
the law.
So he knew
that he was
dealing with
some,
and they are
zealous of
the law.
He knew he
was dealing
with people
who are very
zealous.
And so,
all they were
doing,
it wasn't
purely based
on hatred
for his person.
It was zeal
for the law
as Jews.
So he said,
when you talk
about zeal,
I was zealous
to the extent
that I was
persecuting the
church.
My zeal took
me farther
than you can
give me credit
for.
Persecuting the
church.
But you know,
he said something,
I was brought
up in this city.
I'm not a foreigner
in this city.
There are a lot
of corners I know
some of you
don't even know.
I was brought,
even though I was
born in Cilicia,
I was brought
up in this city
and he dropped
the big theological
word,
or intellectual
word,
I was brought
up in this city
at the feet
of Gamaliel.
Now,
I told you
some time ago
that there are
certain people
in Jerusalem
or among the
Jewish community,
they are called
rabbi.
They teach,
they are teachers,
rabbis.
So that's why
they used to
call Jesus
rabbi,
because they're
teacher.
But some
were rabbi
par excellence.
So their
rabbi is higher.
So rabban,
they call them
rabban.
So Gamaliel
is a rabban.
If you are
trained by Gamaliel,
everybody respects
your theology,
respects your
philosophy,
and respects
your submission.
And he said,
so for Gamaliel
to train you,
you must be
top,
it's like the
creme de la creme
of those who
teach our society.
And so he
said,
listen,
I sat under
the feet of
Gamaliel,
so I'm not
an ignorant man
at all.
Why am I
bringing you
to this?
I want to
draw your
attention to
Stephen.
Paul was
so deeply
theological,
passionate for
his religion
and his God,
anything that
crosses it,
he will give
it.
He stopped
working on it.
He left
everything to
just look for
those who
were practicing,
some Jews
who were practicing
what was not
necessarily Judaism.
To do,
to kill them
and to arrest
them,
to bring them
to Damascus.
That was his
testimony.
And so he was
in the synagogue
once upon a time
and there's this
young Jewish
guy called
Stephen and he
was a member
of the church.
He wasn't an
apostle,
he was a
deacon.
He was
acceptable,
but he used
to preach and
the miracles were
followed and he
got, you know,
Acts chapter 6
from verse 9,
it got the
attention of
the synagogue
of the
Libertines
and the
Cyrenians
and the
Alexandrians
and so they
disputed with
him, but they
couldn't resist
his wisdom.
Then they
hired liars
to lie
against him.
And then,
so in Acts
chapter 7,
now this is why
I'm saying
this, in Acts
chapter 7,
if you remember,
Stephen was
asked to defend
himself or speak.
You are free to.
The high priest
said,
are these things
so?
And Stephen,
watch this,
he takes the
Torah or the
subterranean or
the Old Testament
and tore it
apart and show
Christ is
everywhere.
He explained,
and this Paul
grew up under
the feet of
Gamaliel.
For the first
time, he knew
he knew everything
about Judaism.
For the first
time, somebody
explained Judaism
in a way that
he couldn't deny
and he didn't
want to accept
it, out of
his pride.
So from that
day forward,
in fact, he
oversaw the
guy's execution.
But he knew
he had encountered
the Jewish
scriptures in a
way no one
had ever taught,
not even Gamaliel.
So Paul,
that thing left
an impression on
him and it
always stayed on
his mind and
he was always
resisting it.
I'm going to
kill the
priest.
That's why when
Jesus appeared
to him, he
said, it's
difficult to
kick against
the ghost.
You can't
fight against
your ghost.
Stephen left
a major impression
in two ways.
number one,
his message
about Christ.
Paul saw that
the thing is
true.
Christ is in
the Old
Testament.
This whole
Old Testament
thing is about
Christ.
He couldn't
deny it until
he met
Jesus.
When he met
Jesus, Jesus
said, why are you
persecuting me?
Oh, that's
true.
It's you.
So he said, go to
Damascus, they will
tell you.
That was his
confession.
Because he had
already heard the
gospel from
Stephen.
Is someone
following me?
He had already
heard the gospel
from Stephen.
So two things
that have impacted
him from Stephen,
number one, the
message, and
number two, Stephen's
dedication.
He wasn't an
apostle.
He was so
dedicated, committed
to death.
So since that
time, Paul knew
that if somebody
who is not even an
apostle was ready
to die, me, I am
ready to go
further.
Now, Paul is an
apostle.
When he wrote the
book of Romans, his
introduction was Paul
an apostle.
When did he become
an apostle?
In Acts chapter 13,
verse 2, as they
ministered to the
Lord and fasted, the
Holy Spirit said,
separate unto me
Barnabas and Saul, for
the work which I have
called them.
So they said, what
God has called them
and they were
operating as prophets
and teachers.
So they were
separated.
But Romans chapter
1, he said, me,
Paul, an apostle.
So before he got to
Jerusalem, he already
knew he was an
apostle because I
told you, Romans was
written during the
missionary journey, before
he finally came to
Jerusalem.
So he knew he was
an apostle.
If Stephen was able
to die for the
truth, then I
have much more
than me an apostle.
So Stephen gave
him a platform or
gave him a model he
couldn't resist.
I believe Stephen was
his puppet role
model, ministry role
model.
I would die for this
and I will prove it
as we go further.
I will die for this
thing.
So when he was
going to Jerusalem,
his mission as
someone who has been
trained by Gamaliel
was to go and
reinterpret the truth
of God to his
people.
That is why he said,
come, let me speak
to you.
Am I communicating?
Now, he calls the
people and the people
come together and he
begins to speak to
them and he uses his
credentials first.
There's a way, isn't
it not interesting how
when God wants to use
you, I'm about to say
something interesting.
God always prepares
people before he uses
them.
God always prepares
people.
You might be going
through a stage in
your life.
If you are genuinely
working with God, it's
part of your
preparation program.
God is preparing
you.
God is preparing.
Don't abort the
preparation program.
Sometimes he will
prepare us in ways
that we never
expected.
Like Joseph found
himself in prison
and you'll be thinking,
what am I doing
here?
But God, you told
him, but that's the
preparation.
God was preparing
him because he was
going to Pharaoh.
So they kept him in
the prison of where
the politicians were.
So you can start
interacting with
politicians before you
go to their king.
So God prepared, God
had prepared Saul.
How did he prepare
Saul of Thessalon Paul?
By virtue of his
birth.
He was born in
Cilicia and historians
believe that his
parents, that might have
done something for the
Roman authority and so
they awarded him with
citizenship.
So Paul was born
a citizen.
God needed someone
with that kind of
credential.
He, Cilicia, he
schooled in Alexandria
and because of that
he could speak Greek
fluently.
He spoke to the
Roman soldier,
captain in Greek,
spoke to him in Greek.
Then when the Jews
came, he spoke Hebrew.
So he could speak
Hebrew, he could speak
Greek and he was a
Roman citizen.
That's why he was
very versatile.
God needed that person
as the gospel was
going into Gentile
territories.
Am I communicating
something to you?
And so Paul says
that I am Jew.
Let's look at the
text again.
Acts chapter 22,
verse 3.
It says that I am
verily a man which
am a Jew, born in
Tarsus, a city in
Cilicia, yet brought
up in this city at the
feet of Gamaliel and
taught according to the
perfect manner of the
law of our fathers and
was zealous towards
God as you.
So you see his
credentials.
Then he went on to
say that I persecuted
this way, talking about
the church, what you
are doing, I've done
it already.
I persecuted the
church unto death,
binding and delivering
unto prison, both men
and women, as also the
high priest bear me
witness and not only
him, but the elders who
are seated here, they
also bear witness.
They know me.
They know.
And he said they bear
witness that from them
I also received letters
unto the brethren and
went to Damascus to
bring them which were
there bound to Jerusalem
for punishment.
They know what I was
doing.
This is not strange.
So you know what Paul
did?
It's very interesting.
When on the day of
Pentecost, Peter preached
to the Jews who were
assembled.
And then in Acts
chapter 3, he preached
that when a crippled man
was raised.
And in Acts chapter 4, he
got to preach to the
elders.
He says that there's no
name given amongst men
by which we might be
saved.
He preached to them.
And then in Acts
chapter 4, Cornelius,
Peter goes to the, Stephen
preaches in Acts chapter
7.
Peter preaches the house
of Cornelius and to
Gentiles for the first
time.
And he began to explain
the gospel to the
Gentiles.
Not from Judaism point of
view, but from
existential point of view
how Jesus Christ was
raised from the dead.
And then he said we
should go and preach.
And as he was speaking,
the Holy Ghost fell on
all those who were
listening.
So that's the few
preachings that were
occurred.
It was to the Jews
then.
It goes to Gentiles.
And in chapter 13, Paul
began to preach in the
synagogue to Jews.
A long preaching.
And then the Gentiles
who were in the
synagogue said, come
and preach to us again
next week.
You know.
So the preaching was
going on.
But this particular
place was similar to
what happened in the
day of Pentecost.
just that on the day
of Pentecost, Peter
was just preaching
from the Old
Testament, explaining
the Old Testament.
In this instant, Paul
was not preaching from
the Old Testament.
He was using his life,
his testimony,
referring them to the
authenticity of the
message they've been
aware of about Christ.
He was saying that,
listen, I was so
zealous and I was
persecuting the church.
I followed them to
other cities.
I arrested them.
Then he continues to
tell his story.
And then he says that
verse 6, and it came
to pass.
As I made my journey to
Damascus about noon
day, suddenly there
shone a great light from
heaven around about me.
And I fell onto the
ground and had a voice
saying unto me,
Shaul, Shaul, why
persecuted thou me?
And I answered, who
art thou?
And he said unto me, I'm
Jesus whom thou
persecuted.
This is the first time
Paul was narrating his
story.
He narrated this story
about how he persecuted
the church four times
in scripture.
This is the first time.
The first time was to
the Jews.
The second time is Acts
chapter 26, to the
Gentiles.
The third time in
Philippians chapter 3,
when he was talking
about how he persecuted
the church, and he was
making a doctrinal case.
And then the fourth time
in 1 Timothy chapter 1,
when he was talking
about how he persecuted
the church, he was
using that to encourage
people.
It doesn't matter what
you have done.
God can still use you.
So Paul referred to his
story four times in
scripture.
This is the first time he
was talking about himself.
And then he told them,
he went to Damascus,
arrested them.
He had an encounter,
and he said he fell to
the ground.
He heard the voice saying
to him, so why are you
persecuting me?
And he said, who are you?
And he said, I'm Jesus.
Verse 9, and then he
says that the people who
were with him saw the
light, and they were
afraid, but they did not
hear the voice of him
that was speaking to him.
All right.
In Acts chapter 9,
verse 7, he said, they
heard the voice.
He said, they were so
genuine, they stood
speechless, hearing the
voice.
Here, Acts chapter 22,
verse 9, he said they
did not hear the voice.
Which is which?
Oh yeah, both is which?
When he said they heard the
voice, the second one that
they did not hear, they
didn't understand what was
going on.
They could hear, it's just
like John chapter 12, John
chapter 12, verse 28, when
Jesus said, Father, at the
time has come, glorify your
name.
The Bible said, it's a
Father, glorify.
Then, there, verse 28,
please.
Verse 28.
Then came a voice from
heaven saying, I have
glorified it and I'll
glorify it.
Then the next verse, the
people heard, they said,
they thought it had
standard.
Others also said, angels
spoke to him.
So they heard, they
didn't know.
So, those who were
traveling for, they heard,
but they didn't, they
couldn't, they didn't get
what was being said.
So that's what he meant
by they didn't hear it.
They didn't understand.
Does that make sense?
And so, said, those who
were traveling with me,
they did not hear the
voice that speak with me.
Verse 10 says that, and
I said, what shall I do?
Usually people are always
looking for, tell me, ABC,
ABC.
If you tell me this, I
will obey you.
As for you, you are the
boss.
And he said, no, no, go.
I won't tell you anything.
I rise, go to Damascus
and it shall be told thee
of all the things that is
appointed for you to do.
And then when I could not
see for the glory of the
light, being led by the
hand of them that were
with me, I came to
Damascus.
Because he was told,
can't imagine, he was
blind, but they said, go
to Damascus.
You have to find your way
there.
Stop giving excuses.
Just obey God.
Stop giving, I don't know
how I'm going to get there.
Just find your way.
God said, go.
That means there's a way
you can get there.
And so he was brought
there by people who were
with him.
And one Ananias, a devout
man, according to the law,
having a good report of all
the Jews which dwelt there,
came unto me, stood, and
said unto me, brother
Saul, receive thy sight.
And the same hour I looked
up upon him.
So he began telling them, I
was blind, but this
disciple came, he prayed for
me, and I was healed.
He was telling his story.
He's not a hypocrite.
What has happened is so
real.
He couldn't deny it.
He was trying to appeal to
the people with his story.
He said, I was zealous.
But look, look at me today.
And there's a reason.
Probably if it was you, you
probably would have even
done more.
So he was using his story as
a case to them.
And then verse 14, Ananias
then went out and told him
that, the God of our fathers
has chosen you, that you
should know his will, and
see the just one, that's
Jesus, and should hear the
voice of his mouth.
For thou shalt be a witness
unto, watch this, let's all
say witness.
Say thou shalt be a witness
unto all men of what thou
hast seen and heard.
this experience, it is going
to send you as a witness
that this thing, the
Christian's preach is real.
It's not just an ideology.
It's a reality.
Christianity shouldn't just be
an ideology.
It should be your reality.
So he said that, you tell
people, verse 16 says that,
and now, why are you waiting?
Arise, be baptized, call you
on the name of the Lord Jesus.
Because whoever shall call on
the name, from today's reading,
remember, whoever shall call on
the name of the Lord Jesus
shall be saved.
That's all it takes to be
saved.
And so he said, arise, be
baptized, call you on the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Watch this, this is where I
want us to get to.
Verse 17 says that, and it
came to pass that when I was
come into Jerusalem, even while
I pray in the temple, I was in
a trance.
And I fell into a trance.
And Jesus appeared to him.
Verse 18.
And I saw him.
That him is talking about Jesus.
Saying unto me, be fast.
Get out quickly of Jerusalem.
Get out of here.
For they will not receive your
testimony concerning me.
Then I started advising Jesus.
Jesus, I don't know, you're
getting this wrong.
The people know me.
They know what I used to do.
Once they see me, they will
even change more.
He said, hey, when it comes to
spiritual things, it's not in
just the realm of intelligence.
It might sound reasonable, but
even reasonable things, people
whose hearts are blind will
rise against reasonable things.
So I said, don't think that how
many of you have either
personally experienced that
before or somebody's testimony
where they were getting born
again and they knew, ask my
mother, I used to be a bad
boy and I used to be rough.
But when he knows I'm going to
find someone now in church, he'll
be so happy.
Only to realize that the
opposite is also true.
You changed and you said they're
going to church and the one who
said they were praying for you
to change, start fighting against
you going to church.
church because you assume that
they will understand.
Oh, my family is a Christian
family.
They will understand.
Oh, you are dealing with
spiritual matters.
They might be Christians, but
if they are spiritually dull,
dumb and comatose, they will
be the ones fighting against
God.
That should be a warning to all
of us, me inclusive, because
spiritual good credit is not a
permanent possession.
What I'm trying to say is you,
in your day of spiritual
laxity, when your water table
is low, sometimes you'll be
shocked the things you can do
against the church.
Over a period of time, you
realize you've been coming to
church, but you are still very
spiritually light.
Light.
I mean, light.
So, it's so important that when
people are in church, we allow
them to enjoy the fellowship
experience in the church.
It's so important.
Am I communicating?
Now.
So, Paul fell into a trance, and
Jesus said, get out of town.
Jesus told him, get out of town.
He said, yes, thank you for
reminding me.
He said, quickly.
Quickly, not next week.
Get out of town now.
The trance level is red.
Highest level.
Get out.
He was in the temple, praying.
Good God.
Fell into a trance.
Jesus said, oh boy.
Get out, get out.
Then he told Jesus, what did he
say they should get out of town?
He said, the reason why you should
get out of town is because they
will not receive your testimony
concerning me.
Get out of town.
Then, he told him, said, Lord,
they know that I imprisoned and
beat in every synagogue them that
believe on you.
They knew I did it.
Then he went on to say, you see
the impact of Stephen?
When he had an encounter with
Jesus, he made reference to
Stephen.
He said, and when your matai, the
Greek word translated matai, shares
the same root word with witness.
Paul was a witness and he said,
me and Stephen, there's no
practice.
The only difference is he died
for you and I made sure they
were killing him.
He said, when the blood of your
witness was being shed, I was
standing by approving and
watching out for the courts of
those who were killing him.
Me, I was there.
That thing never left the
gentleman.
I told you Stephen made a strong
impact on Paul by virtue of his
theology or his understanding of
God's word and his commitment
and dedication.
The next verse.
And he says that, then Jesus said
to me, leave.
Stop giving me reasons.
Leave.
You are not ready to die.
I'm not ready to let you die.
Leave.
For I will send you far from here
to the Gentiles.
These Jews.
Anytime you read the New Testament
and see Jews, most of the time,
especially during the time of
Jesus and John, when he said
the Jews sent, the Jews asked him,
most of the time he was talking
about the Pharisees and those who
were opposing Jesus.
Okay.
But sometimes they will use the word
the Jews.
But this one is all the Jews
people.
So he says that, you see, the Jews,
they don't like Gentiles, you know.
They don't like Gentiles.
They were happy until he mentioned,
God said, depart, for I'll send you
to Gentiles.
He said, this guy, they lost the plug.
Look, you mentioned Gentiles here.
God is sending you to Gentiles.
Why would God send somebody
to Gentiles?
Why would God?
This is Jerusalem.
And they listened until this word,
Gentiles.
Until this word.
And they raised their voices
and said, away with such a fellow
from the earth.
He is not fit to live.
These were religious people.
So sometimes when, I don't understand
when people can be so religious
and killing other people.
Religious people.
Zeal.
When it's not in the right direction,
you can cause a lot of harm
and a lot of havoc.
That's what happened.
Anyway, so they said,
away from me, he's not fit to live.
And there was a major uproar.
As they cried out
and tore their clothes
and threw dust into.
Can you imagine?
Just this small preaching.
They were okay to reset Gentiles.
But, what's the point here?
Should Paul not speak the truth?
There are some ways
if you use,
people will be upset with you.
So in our generation,
preachers can't even say some things
because it's not politically correct.
Sometimes it's not necessary
to go into it
if it's not part of your message.
Don't upset people
for the sake of saying my mind.
But if it's part of the explanation
of the message,
you don't also have to be afraid
because people...
Paul preached his message
unashamedly without fear.
And when he said it,
it brought more...
But did you know that
that was God's way of rescuing Paul?
I have to say this as I ran up.
God was rescuing Paul
from being absorbed
into this Judaism nonsense.
That will block...
Because Paul,
you said that the law
and grace are not together.
Why are you bringing back law?
Why are you getting to the temple?
Because they are advising you.
James has lost them.
James is good,
but he is still not fully there
because I have given the revelation to you.
For Paul to write Romans
and go into the temple
and practice those things.
For Paul to write Galatians
and then go into the temple.
That tells you that,
Paul, you are going too far down.
So God had to separate Christianity
from Judaism.
That's why...
Now what did God do?
There was April
and the soldiers had to come in quickly,
rescue,
and the officer said,
examine him.
So when the commander
ordered him to be brought
into the barracks
and then said that
he should be examined
under scourging.
What's the meaning of that?
Those days,
the Romans have a way of
whipping and beating you.
You speak the truth.
Because they knew
there was something wrong with him.
It's almost like torture.
They knew there was something wrong
with this guy,
but they couldn't find out
what it was.
So let's extract it.
Let's extract it from him
by scourging him,
beating him.
And sometimes,
some people don't even make it.
They bleed to death.
Because those Romans were wild.
So they said,
let's examine him
so we can know this truth
about by scourging
so that we might know
why the people are,
there's something
this guy is not saying.
Beat him
and bring it out of him.
And so,
just before they could beat him,
as they bound him,
they bound him with tongues
and about to beat him,
Paul said to the centurion
who stood by,
it's not lawful
to scourge a man
who is a Roman
and uncondemned.
Roman?
Do you know,
if you do that to a Roman,
you are supposed to be executed.
You will lose your life,
not just your job.
You can't afflict,
scourge a Roman
who is not condemned.
Being a Roman citizen
is better than any citizenship
we currently see.
It was a big privilege.
Hallelujah.
Anyway,
so,
look at the next verse quickly.
The next verse says that,
when the centurion heard that,
he went and told the commander,
saying,
take care of what you do,
for this man is Roman.
When he heard it,
the commander came
and said to him,
tell me,
are you a Roman?
He said,
yes.
The commander asked,
with a large sum,
I obtained my citizenship.
Yes.
I paid for it.
This thing started
a long time ago.
It's in the Bible.
So he said,
the last time,
I obtained my citizenship.
Paul said,
I didn't have,
I was born a citizen.
Because that's his background.
I was born a citizen.
Now look at what happened.
Then,
immediately,
those who were
about to examine him,
withdrew from him
and the commander
was also afraid.
After he found out
that he was a Roman citizen
because he had bound him,
not even scourged him,
bound him a Roman citizen,
the guy was in trouble.
He was not afraid.
You see,
it was good Paul
was a Roman citizen.
So now from that,
he enjoyed some protection.
His security men
were covering,
covering.
They protected him.
Now,
this is where the thing
is going.
The last verse,
the next day,
because he wanted to know
for certainty
why he was accused
by the Jews.
He released him
from his bound
and commanded
the chief priest
and all the council
to appear
and brought Paul down
and set him before.
So that's the end
of that text.
But then,
watch this.
This is the core point
I want to draw
to our attention.
God delivered him
because he wanted
to separate Christianity
from religion.
And then number two,
God delivered him
because from that time,
Paul was kept in prison.
He was in prison
for two years
and then he was released
on house arrest.
That was when he wrote
the epistle,
watch this,
epistle of Ephesians,
epistle of Philippians,
epistle of Colossians
and then Hebrews.
I just believe Hebrews.
Okay.
So that was when
he wrote these epistles
but these epistles
were some of the best
in Christology,
in the message about Christ.
In Ephesians,
he explained how we are,
who we are because of Christ
and how Jews and Gentiles
can be together
in one body.
And he explained
how God has given him
that message
to make the mystery
of God known
because he made it known
that this whole gospel
is a mystery in Ephesians.
And then in Philippians,
that's where he made his case
about who he used to be.
But Christ is the most important thing
and he elevated Christ
about Christ being God.
In Philippians chapter two,
even though he was God,
he became man,
he died and God has exalted.
He explained the Christ thing
and in Colossians,
he says that all the fullness
of deity dwelt in Christ.
He spoke about how
he's the beginning
of all things.
Without him was nothing
made that was made.
Colossians 1, 15 and 16.
And so he took his time
to explain and expose
Christ in prison.
God wanted him
to become somewhere.
He's been traveling a lot.
Now, Paul settled.
He was locked up in prison
and in his imprisonment,
he had the opportunity
to turn out some of the
deepest revelations
revelations about Christ
and the church.
That's when he wrote Hebrews.
Then when he was released
from prison and the house arrest,
he wrote First Timothy.
He wrote Titus.
He wrote First Timothy
and Titus
and that's the personal epistles.
Philemon was written
in the first prison.
He wrote First Timothy
and Titus.
And Hebrews as well
was also written
in the first imprisonment.
All right.
So Paul turned out
something so deep.
When you read these texts,
it's so strong
and that's one of the things
that has built the church.
God wanted,
watch this,
his apostle
to settle down
and have concentration
and pour out
the things that will secure
the future
of the church.
So when he was being arrested
in Jerusalem,
I believe
God was behind it.
Separate Judaism
from the church
and get his apostle
to be protected
and then isolated.
He wasn't traveling anymore.
He was in one place,
writing and writing
and he wrote Second Timothy.
Second Timothy was his last letter.
He wrote it just when he was
in prison,
just before he died,
he was taken back in Rome.
He wrote Second Timothy
and he told him,
now my life
is about to be poured out
as an offering.
I know the time
of my departure has come.
He wrote all those things
in prison
because he left a legacy
that would take care
of the church
for generations.
That's why Paul
and the mission was worth it.
The mission was,
did you receive something?
Hallelujah!
Praise God.
Thank you for listening
to this message
by David Entry.
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