WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.879 And one of the things I'm looking forward to in heaven is I want to meet the people who divided the Bible into chapters. 00:00:05.879 --> 00:00:09.480 ! I want to ask what on earth were they thinking? 00:00:09.480 --> 00:00:10.880 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:42.000 These events took place. You can go to the place where these events happened. Acts 22 took place in the year 57. 00:00:43.439 --> 00:00:51.960 And we're not dealing with fairy stories. This isn't Rapunzel. It's not Shrek. It's not Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It's not Toy Story. 00:00:52.120 --> 00:00:55.539 These are historic events that took place on God's earth. 00:00:55.539 --> 00:01:05.939 And we're going to look at chapter 22. And over the next few weeks we're going to see that what Luke does in the writing of Acts is he shows us Paul speaking for himself. 00:01:07.620 --> 00:01:10.799 And tonight Paul speaks in front of a murderous mob. 00:01:12.519 --> 00:01:17.400 And next week Paul will speak in front of a Jewish council, a Supreme Jewish council in the fortress of Antonia. 00:01:18.500 --> 00:01:21.680 Next to the temple in Jerusalem. And then Paul will speak to Felix. 00:01:21.680 --> 00:01:25.840 And then before Festus. And at last he'll speak before Agrippa. 00:01:27.800 --> 00:01:31.780 Our people have just come and grabbed Paul in the temple with a view to killing him. 00:01:32.760 --> 00:01:35.380 So of course you don't kill people in temples. 00:01:35.600 --> 00:01:37.520 So do you notice what they did? They shut the doors. 00:01:38.120 --> 00:01:39.860 They dragged him out and then they shut the doors. 00:01:39.859 --> 00:01:48.439 They thought that he had brought into the holy precincts of the temple Gentiles. 00:01:49.780 --> 00:01:50.879 It's untrue of course. 00:01:51.280 --> 00:01:52.039 But they're out to kill him. 00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:57.340 And they're in the act of killing him when the Roman garrison intervenes. 00:01:57.579 --> 00:01:59.260 And the force of the mob is so great. 00:01:59.379 --> 00:02:04.159 The soldiers, you remember, they carry him above their heads. 00:02:04.379 --> 00:02:05.620 So he's out of the reach of the mob. 00:02:05.620 --> 00:02:10.400 He's put down. He stands on his feet. 00:02:10.480 --> 00:02:13.240 And he says to the commander, 21 verse 37, can I speak to you? 00:02:15.060 --> 00:02:22.319 And of course this Roman commander is astonished because Paul speaks in perfect Greek. 00:02:25.640 --> 00:02:31.599 The man who's intervened, he thought, I thought he was some Egyptian kind of insurrectionist, a revolutionary. 00:02:31.599 --> 00:02:33.919 Who seems to be very well known. 00:02:34.539 --> 00:02:36.699 And he did last come to the surface. 00:02:36.819 --> 00:02:38.740 We thought you were the man we'd been hunting for. 00:02:39.579 --> 00:02:41.740 And that the Jews were in the act of killing him. 00:02:42.079 --> 00:02:48.439 But the fact that this man speaks to him in perfect educated Greek leaves him speechless. 00:02:48.680 --> 00:02:49.479 Can you speak Greek? 00:02:51.039 --> 00:02:54.120 Aren't you the Egyptian that we arrested, we were looking for a few times ago? 00:02:54.120 --> 00:02:58.460 And Paul says, doesn't he, I am a Jew. 00:03:00.300 --> 00:03:02.080 That must have fascinated him straight away. 00:03:03.759 --> 00:03:06.420 If he was a Jew, what on earth was all the fuss about? 00:03:06.520 --> 00:03:09.159 Why were the Jewish people trying to kill you if you are a Jew? 00:03:09.920 --> 00:03:11.700 I am a Jew from Tarsus and Cilicia. 00:03:11.920 --> 00:03:14.540 It's fascinating, isn't it, that Paul describes himself in that way. 00:03:17.140 --> 00:03:18.580 I'm from Tarsus and Cilicia. 00:03:18.860 --> 00:03:20.280 It's a city, it's no mean city. 00:03:20.280 --> 00:03:23.319 And I implore you, permit me to speak to the people. 00:03:30.860 --> 00:03:35.120 People who doubt the Bible say, well this is an evidence, isn't it, that surely this is just a made up story. 00:03:36.740 --> 00:03:40.379 Surely the commander who's just stepped into this baying moor wouldn't let him speak. 00:03:41.060 --> 00:03:42.180 But stranger things have happened. 00:03:43.500 --> 00:03:46.120 And this is the Roman Empire, although it's Judea. 00:03:46.180 --> 00:03:47.479 And the Romans are in charge. 00:03:47.479 --> 00:03:49.039 And he doesn't know anything about this man. 00:03:50.280 --> 00:03:54.020 And if there are going to be charges against this guy, well he obviously doesn't know him. 00:03:54.080 --> 00:03:55.919 He's got to get some evidence, some facts. 00:03:58.140 --> 00:04:01.860 Besides, he's a little bit astonished, isn't he, that he is an educated man. 00:04:02.439 --> 00:04:03.139 To you that he is. 00:04:04.900 --> 00:04:06.420 It's all in the providence of God, of course. 00:04:06.460 --> 00:04:07.520 So he allows the man to speak. 00:04:09.620 --> 00:04:11.219 And we have one of those references, isn't it? 00:04:11.580 --> 00:04:13.460 If I was going to write a PhD, do you know what I would write? 00:04:13.460 --> 00:04:16.139 I would write it on Paul's hands. 00:04:17.139 --> 00:04:17.960 They seem to be everywhere. 00:04:19.100 --> 00:04:19.840 Paul's hands. 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:23.040 Like I can't get why Luke keeps talking about his hands. 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:28.139 So there he is in front of this great crowd. 00:04:28.480 --> 00:04:29.319 They're baying for his blood. 00:04:29.420 --> 00:04:31.439 He stands on this makeshift pulpit. 00:04:31.560 --> 00:04:33.480 And then we read he motions with his hands. 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:34.819 I'd love to know what the motions were. 00:04:35.719 --> 00:04:37.060 I think they're this motion. 00:04:37.659 --> 00:04:38.139 I don't know. 00:04:39.839 --> 00:04:40.819 There's great silence. 00:04:42.680 --> 00:04:44.279 He speaks to them in the Hebrew language. 00:04:44.959 --> 00:04:45.519 He speaks Greek. 00:04:45.620 --> 00:04:46.159 He speaks Hebrew. 00:04:47.699 --> 00:04:48.939 Paul speaks to the murdering mob. 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:50.319 And he tells his story. 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:51.079 Do you have a story? 00:04:53.100 --> 00:04:55.600 Every single one of us has got a story to tell tonight, haven't we? 00:04:56.360 --> 00:04:57.120 What's your story? 00:05:00.620 --> 00:05:01.539 Paul tells his story. 00:05:01.699 --> 00:05:03.459 He says, this is what the Lord has done for me. 00:05:05.420 --> 00:05:07.439 I want you to see, first of all, the aim of his story. 00:05:10.139 --> 00:05:11.199 What is Paul aiming at? 00:05:11.240 --> 00:05:14.959 What is Paul trying to do is he stands on the steps and he waves his hands and he speaks in the Hebrew language. 00:05:15.459 --> 00:05:17.319 He waits for the crowd to go quiet. 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:19.620 Why is he telling a story? 00:05:21.139 --> 00:05:24.579 If Paul is trying to defend himself, he's actually not doing a very good job. 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:29.860 He doesn't make any references to the accusations that are against him. 00:05:29.860 --> 00:05:35.939 If he's giving his testimony to set the record straight, actually, he doesn't do a very good job of it. 00:05:35.939 --> 00:05:42.699 Because he actually speaks about God sending him to the Gentiles and that incenses the crowd. 00:05:44.040 --> 00:05:47.379 Who think that he's brought the Gentiles into the temple. 00:05:47.519 --> 00:05:49.600 That's why this all kicked off in the first place. 00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:57.660 And if he's trying to evangelize them and win them, his testimony is a bit strange. 00:05:59.020 --> 00:06:01.560 Because nowhere in Acts 22 does he appeal to them. 00:06:01.640 --> 00:06:04.320 Nowhere does he speak about repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. 00:06:04.319 --> 00:06:08.019 So why is he telling the story? 00:06:08.099 --> 00:06:09.279 Try and get your head into this. 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:12.860 What is Paul's aim? 00:06:15.159 --> 00:06:21.199 It seems to me that Paul's aim was to show the Jewish crowd in front of him and the Gentiles behind him 00:06:21.199 --> 00:06:24.079 that there is someone to reckon with. 00:06:26.000 --> 00:06:29.680 That there is someone who is above them, who is greater than all of them. 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:31.219 And who is Lord of all. 00:06:31.220 --> 00:06:35.080 And there is somebody who is the Lord of the Jews. 00:06:35.660 --> 00:06:37.660 And there is somebody who is the Lord of the Gentiles. 00:06:37.780 --> 00:06:41.200 And there is someone who is the saviour of the Jews and the saviour of the Gentiles both. 00:06:43.140 --> 00:06:45.320 Paul's aim is to lift up Jesus Christ. 00:06:47.140 --> 00:06:48.920 To make him great in the eyes of the people. 00:06:51.140 --> 00:06:55.400 And to speak about the Lord Jesus in such a way that they would have great thoughts about him. 00:06:56.700 --> 00:06:58.780 Even if they don't come to submit themselves to him. 00:06:58.779 --> 00:07:02.819 He is standing on these steps to glorify Jesus Christ. 00:07:06.139 --> 00:07:07.439 It is the aim of any sermon, isn't it? 00:07:09.299 --> 00:07:12.000 It is the aim of any opportunity that you might have this week. 00:07:14.119 --> 00:07:15.359 It is to speak of Jesus Christ. 00:07:15.360 --> 00:07:22.600 Why might God give you that opportunity in your school, in your workplace, amongst your neighbours, at the school gate? 00:07:22.680 --> 00:07:23.620 Why might he do that? 00:07:24.280 --> 00:07:25.960 Well, so that you might lift up Jesus Christ. 00:07:29.360 --> 00:07:33.699 Paul was given this opportunity to show that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. 00:07:34.300 --> 00:07:35.400 And he is rich. 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:36.600 He is generous. 00:07:37.400 --> 00:07:38.420 To all who call upon him. 00:07:38.639 --> 00:07:40.520 Whether you are a Jew or whether you are a Gentile. 00:07:41.580 --> 00:07:42.900 Let's look at the content, secondly. 00:07:43.220 --> 00:07:44.280 Three points in the content. 00:07:44.279 --> 00:07:46.559 Three points to the content. 00:07:46.659 --> 00:07:47.599 So look at verses 1 to 5. 00:07:47.759 --> 00:07:49.199 And his first point is really simple. 00:07:49.339 --> 00:07:49.639 It's this. 00:07:51.019 --> 00:07:52.899 Where you are now, I have been. 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:57.919 Where you are now, he says to the crowd, I've been. 00:07:58.579 --> 00:07:59.979 It's more than that, but it is that. 00:08:01.359 --> 00:08:03.679 It's where you are now, I have been. 00:08:03.779 --> 00:08:04.719 Even more so. 00:08:04.719 --> 00:08:04.799 Amen. 00:08:07.859 --> 00:08:10.359 Men and brothers, fathers. 00:08:11.339 --> 00:08:12.139 Hear my defence. 00:08:12.859 --> 00:08:14.000 That I know make before you. 00:08:14.279 --> 00:08:20.659 When they heard that he was addressing them in Hebrew, they become even more quiet. 00:08:21.619 --> 00:08:24.019 And he said to them, I am a Jew. 00:08:26.299 --> 00:08:27.599 And why were they trying to kill him? 00:08:27.659 --> 00:08:29.759 They thought that he was an unfaithful Jew. 00:08:31.719 --> 00:08:35.819 He says, I'm a Jew who was born in Tarsus and I've been brought up in this city. 00:08:37.179 --> 00:08:39.059 The crowd is suddenly becoming more attentive. 00:08:39.059 --> 00:08:44.239 He says, I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel, the greatest Jewish teacher of the first century. 00:08:45.839 --> 00:08:47.759 And Paul had been his personal student. 00:08:48.359 --> 00:08:53.879 He had all the qualifications, all the credentials any Jew would have wanted. 00:08:55.239 --> 00:08:59.959 He says, I was taught according to a strict manner of the law of our fathers, verse 3. 00:08:59.960 --> 00:09:03.580 And I was jealous for God as you are today. 00:09:05.840 --> 00:09:08.080 Where you are, I once was. 00:09:09.860 --> 00:09:12.720 Where you are, I have been, but even more so. 00:09:12.720 --> 00:09:16.879 You are jealous for the law, I was more jealous. 00:09:17.680 --> 00:09:22.480 You are doing what you're doing for God. 00:09:22.700 --> 00:09:24.860 Well, what I was doing, I was doing for God. 00:09:26.259 --> 00:09:28.259 You're doing what you're doing because God's law had been insulted. 00:09:29.120 --> 00:09:30.820 Where you are, I have been. 00:09:32.240 --> 00:09:34.379 Verse 4, I persecuted the weight of the death. 00:09:34.379 --> 00:09:37.559 It's exactly what they were doing, isn't it? 00:09:37.580 --> 00:09:40.559 Remember this morning, they were binding, they were delivering to prison. 00:09:41.779 --> 00:09:42.820 They were wanting to kill. 00:09:42.960 --> 00:09:45.820 He says, I bound and I delivered to prison both men and women. 00:09:47.120 --> 00:09:49.139 Well, actually, what they were doing is they were trying to kill him. 00:09:51.500 --> 00:09:54.620 I wonder if in verse 5 he spots a high priest in the crowd. 00:09:54.720 --> 00:09:56.620 And then as he glances, he spots the elders. 00:09:56.620 --> 00:10:03.120 And he says, as the high priest and the whole council of the elders can bear me witness from them, 00:10:03.179 --> 00:10:04.220 I receive letters. 00:10:04.440 --> 00:10:05.419 They know who I am. 00:10:06.419 --> 00:10:09.919 And I journeyed towards Damascus and to take those who were there 00:10:09.919 --> 00:10:13.320 and bring them in chains to Jerusalem to be imprisoned. 00:10:18.500 --> 00:10:21.259 It really is, isn't it, a wonderful thing to be a Christian. 00:10:21.259 --> 00:10:29.819 When the atheist comes to say to you, and you're speaking with the atheist, 00:10:29.960 --> 00:10:32.200 and they say, well, I just have times where I don't believe in God. 00:10:32.259 --> 00:10:33.360 We can say, can't we? 00:10:34.019 --> 00:10:35.500 I've had those thoughts myself. 00:10:38.039 --> 00:10:42.019 When people say, I don't believe the word of God. 00:10:42.960 --> 00:10:44.759 I don't believe the Bible is the word of God. 00:10:44.860 --> 00:10:47.100 We're able to say, well, I've struggled with that. 00:10:47.100 --> 00:10:53.279 When people say, it's just a fairy tale, 00:10:54.120 --> 00:10:56.580 we can say, there have been times in my life when I've thought that. 00:11:04.580 --> 00:11:08.639 All Christians can say to those who are not Christians, 00:11:08.800 --> 00:11:09.740 I've been where you've been. 00:11:09.740 --> 00:11:14.580 The non-Christian cannot say to the Christian, 00:11:15.220 --> 00:11:18.000 I've been where you have been, where you are. 00:11:21.539 --> 00:11:22.879 We've been where they are, haven't we? 00:11:23.220 --> 00:11:24.340 We've been in unbelief. 00:11:24.419 --> 00:11:25.080 We've been in error. 00:11:25.299 --> 00:11:26.560 We've been stubborn. 00:11:29.700 --> 00:11:30.700 People who sit in sermons, 00:11:30.840 --> 00:11:33.620 I'm deliberately trying to think of anything to distract them. 00:11:34.879 --> 00:11:36.000 In the church I grew up in, 00:11:36.000 --> 00:11:39.480 there was a beautiful pipe organ behind the pulpit. 00:11:40.740 --> 00:11:42.180 It had 46 pipes. 00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:45.940 In the middle column, in the fourth pipe along, 00:11:46.159 --> 00:11:47.560 there was a kink in one of the pipes. 00:11:49.139 --> 00:11:52.060 I would study how many pipes there were, 00:11:53.320 --> 00:11:56.100 how many it would be until I got to that kink, that one there. 00:11:57.799 --> 00:11:59.440 Maybe you're here now, and you're in this sermon, 00:11:59.560 --> 00:12:01.820 and you are desperately trying hard to think about something else. 00:12:02.039 --> 00:12:04.399 Do you know those feelings in a sermon where your conscience pricks you, 00:12:04.399 --> 00:12:07.659 and you'll do anything but to think of what's being said? 00:12:09.740 --> 00:12:13.080 Where you are, we've been. 00:12:15.840 --> 00:12:17.480 Where you are, I've been. 00:12:17.620 --> 00:12:19.700 Second point is, and the Lord Jesus intervened in the content. 00:12:19.840 --> 00:12:20.879 Look at verse 6, now it happened. 00:12:21.299 --> 00:12:22.080 He was in unbelief. 00:12:22.159 --> 00:12:22.620 He was stubborn. 00:12:23.539 --> 00:12:26.419 Some of us were worse than the worst we've met. 00:12:27.460 --> 00:12:29.379 The Lord Jesus intervened and tells this story. 00:12:29.680 --> 00:12:32.419 Verse 6, his conversion is sudden. 00:12:32.659 --> 00:12:33.299 It is visible. 00:12:33.519 --> 00:12:34.100 It is dramatic. 00:12:34.279 --> 00:12:34.820 It is audible. 00:12:34.820 --> 00:12:35.440 It is witnessed. 00:12:35.860 --> 00:12:36.760 Let me really be clear here. 00:12:36.879 --> 00:12:38.660 Not all conversions are like that. 00:12:39.900 --> 00:12:42.760 In all likelihood, your conversion isn't like that. 00:12:42.820 --> 00:12:45.920 If you are a covenant child who's been brought up in the Christian faith, 00:12:46.060 --> 00:12:48.460 it's unlikely that your conversion is like that. 00:12:51.500 --> 00:12:54.680 But nonetheless, in every person who's trusting in the Lord Jesus, 00:12:55.020 --> 00:12:57.520 we can say that there was a moment when the Lord Jesus intervened. 00:12:57.519 --> 00:13:00.840 Paul says, I fell to the ground. 00:13:00.939 --> 00:13:02.220 I heard a voice I'd not heard before. 00:13:02.299 --> 00:13:03.039 What did the voice say? 00:13:03.079 --> 00:13:03.539 Saul, Saul. 00:13:05.139 --> 00:13:09.439 Why does he hear the voice say, Saul, Saul? 00:13:09.620 --> 00:13:10.600 Well, we know, don't we? 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:13.419 Because the Lord Jesus Christ knows his sheep by name. 00:13:17.159 --> 00:13:19.799 I've never heard in a sermon, Paul, Paul. 00:13:22.379 --> 00:13:23.360 I've never heard that. 00:13:24.159 --> 00:13:24.840 Paul Levy. 00:13:25.159 --> 00:13:25.659 Paul Levy. 00:13:25.659 --> 00:13:26.699 I've never heard that. 00:13:28.439 --> 00:13:30.699 But I've heard a voice speaking right to me, my conscience. 00:13:32.939 --> 00:13:35.120 For all of us who have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:13:35.240 --> 00:13:37.959 there was a time when the message that came generally 00:13:37.959 --> 00:13:40.100 came to me particularly. 00:13:42.360 --> 00:13:44.839 There is a time for every Christian 00:13:44.839 --> 00:13:47.139 where the message that went out to everybody 00:13:47.139 --> 00:13:49.459 comes to you individually. 00:13:52.459 --> 00:13:52.819 Personally. 00:13:52.820 --> 00:13:55.640 There was a time when the message, 00:13:55.780 --> 00:13:57.000 which seemed so blunt, 00:13:57.740 --> 00:13:58.660 became sharp. 00:14:04.360 --> 00:14:06.000 Why are you persecuting me? 00:14:07.060 --> 00:14:08.000 So I answered. 00:14:08.520 --> 00:14:10.400 Can you see the strangeness 00:14:10.400 --> 00:14:11.720 of how he answers? 00:14:11.920 --> 00:14:12.520 What does he answer? 00:14:13.460 --> 00:14:15.000 Who are you, Lord? 00:14:15.000 --> 00:14:15.059 Lord? 00:14:18.139 --> 00:14:19.600 Who are you, Lord? 00:14:21.779 --> 00:14:23.700 When that great call comes from God, 00:14:23.759 --> 00:14:25.539 our consciences know very well who's speaking. 00:14:26.960 --> 00:14:28.960 Your conscience tonight knows who's speaking to you. 00:14:32.220 --> 00:14:33.639 It's the most terrible thing, isn't it, 00:14:33.639 --> 00:14:35.879 when we know that Jesus Christ is speaking to us 00:14:35.879 --> 00:14:37.759 and we remain stubborn and hard-hearted 00:14:37.759 --> 00:14:39.620 and we deliberately refuse to listen. 00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:42.580 Paul knew who was speaking. 00:14:42.759 --> 00:14:44.000 Who are you, Lord? 00:14:44.700 --> 00:14:45.820 Such a funny question. 00:14:46.740 --> 00:14:47.980 Why did he call him Lord 00:14:47.980 --> 00:14:49.139 if he didn't know who he was? 00:14:49.940 --> 00:14:51.460 It's because he did know who he was. 00:14:53.899 --> 00:14:55.539 He asked, who are you, Lord? 00:14:56.639 --> 00:14:58.440 It was because he did know who he was 00:14:58.440 --> 00:14:59.500 that he asked, who are you, Lord? 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:01.019 I am Jesus of Nazareth, 00:15:01.100 --> 00:15:02.019 whom you are persecuting. 00:15:04.659 --> 00:15:05.840 Tells us those who were with me, 00:15:05.899 --> 00:15:06.580 they saw the light, 00:15:06.680 --> 00:15:07.960 but they did not understand the voice 00:15:07.960 --> 00:15:08.960 of the one who was speaking to me. 00:15:09.900 --> 00:15:10.700 It's often the case. 00:15:13.139 --> 00:15:15.139 People who sit side by side, 00:15:15.259 --> 00:15:16.360 they hear the same sermon, 00:15:16.480 --> 00:15:18.060 one is converted, the other one isn't. 00:15:19.740 --> 00:15:21.560 They go to the same Hope Explored course, 00:15:21.620 --> 00:15:22.480 they sit next to each other, 00:15:22.540 --> 00:15:23.740 they hear the same great talk, 00:15:23.800 --> 00:15:24.920 they engage in the same discussion, 00:15:25.300 --> 00:15:26.340 one is converted, one isn't. 00:15:26.820 --> 00:15:28.519 They sit in the same Sunday school class 00:15:28.519 --> 00:15:31.060 and one believes and one refuses to believe. 00:15:37.960 --> 00:15:39.300 Maybe tonight as you hear God's word, 00:15:39.360 --> 00:15:40.220 God is speaking to you 00:15:40.220 --> 00:15:42.120 and doing his work in you, 00:15:42.180 --> 00:15:43.100 but the person next to you, 00:15:43.280 --> 00:15:44.160 he's not doing his work in. 00:15:45.660 --> 00:15:46.480 They're hearing something, 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:47.960 but they're not having dealings 00:15:48.660 --> 00:15:49.400 with the living God. 00:15:51.320 --> 00:15:52.379 A Christ who's intervening, 00:15:52.460 --> 00:15:53.860 what should I do, Lord? 00:15:53.960 --> 00:15:55.860 His heart is being changed, isn't it? 00:15:58.860 --> 00:16:00.440 That's the last thing he would have said 00:16:00.440 --> 00:16:02.180 a few moments ago, 00:16:02.300 --> 00:16:03.860 to say to Jesus of Nazareth, 00:16:03.860 --> 00:16:05.259 Lord, and then to say to him, 00:16:05.379 --> 00:16:06.919 what shall I do, Lord? 00:16:08.460 --> 00:16:10.000 To call him Lord suggests 00:16:10.000 --> 00:16:10.980 that he is God, 00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:12.120 it is God's name, 00:16:12.180 --> 00:16:12.620 and to say, 00:16:13.039 --> 00:16:14.300 what shall I do, Lord, 00:16:14.320 --> 00:16:15.180 it suggests submission. 00:16:15.360 --> 00:16:16.200 There's a desire there, 00:16:16.259 --> 00:16:17.159 his heart's being changed. 00:16:18.980 --> 00:16:20.840 That I am not going to go the way 00:16:20.840 --> 00:16:22.340 of trying to murder Christians, 00:16:22.419 --> 00:16:23.539 but I'm going to go your way now, 00:16:23.680 --> 00:16:24.740 from now on. 00:16:24.960 --> 00:16:26.440 He's been converted by Jesus Christ. 00:16:26.500 --> 00:16:27.159 Look at verse 10. 00:16:29.680 --> 00:16:30.500 He tells us, 00:16:30.560 --> 00:16:31.379 listen to him in verse 10, 00:16:32.320 --> 00:16:33.200 what shall I do, Lord? 00:16:33.200 --> 00:16:33.820 And the Lord said to me, 00:16:33.860 --> 00:16:35.259 rise and go into Damascus, 00:16:35.320 --> 00:16:36.480 and there you will be told 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:38.639 all that is appointed for you to do. 00:16:40.659 --> 00:16:42.120 And since I could not see 00:16:42.120 --> 00:16:43.600 because of the brightness of that light, 00:16:43.659 --> 00:16:44.820 I was led by the hand of those 00:16:44.820 --> 00:16:45.379 who were with me, 00:16:45.600 --> 00:16:46.879 and I came into Damascus. 00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:49.440 There I met one Ananias, 00:16:49.500 --> 00:16:50.080 a devout man, 00:16:50.120 --> 00:16:50.759 according to the law, 00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:52.019 well spoken of all by the Jews 00:16:52.019 --> 00:16:52.399 who lived there, 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:53.759 came to me and standing by me, 00:16:53.860 --> 00:16:54.519 said to me, 00:16:54.759 --> 00:16:55.120 brother, 00:16:57.300 --> 00:16:58.259 receive your sight. 00:16:58.259 --> 00:17:03.860 He was told that God the Father 00:17:03.860 --> 00:17:05.140 had chosen him. 00:17:06.519 --> 00:17:06.879 Again, 00:17:07.059 --> 00:17:08.039 what have we seen in Acts? 00:17:08.099 --> 00:17:09.660 I think we have seen this choosing 00:17:09.660 --> 00:17:11.379 again and again and again 00:17:11.379 --> 00:17:13.119 of God in eternity 00:17:13.119 --> 00:17:15.240 that is played out in time. 00:17:15.240 --> 00:17:19.240 If God the Father had not chosen him, 00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:20.480 he would never have been converted. 00:17:22.640 --> 00:17:24.720 And he wasn't just seeing Ananias' face, 00:17:24.819 --> 00:17:29.539 he was seeing the just one. 00:17:30.500 --> 00:17:31.859 He saw the Lord Jesus by faith, 00:17:31.920 --> 00:17:33.579 he's hearing the voice of his mouth, 00:17:33.660 --> 00:17:35.019 he's in fellowship with Jesus Christ, 00:17:35.279 --> 00:17:36.200 Jesus intervened, 00:17:36.420 --> 00:17:37.519 and then he's baptised. 00:17:38.460 --> 00:17:39.220 His sins are forgiven, 00:17:39.380 --> 00:17:40.400 he calls on the name of the Lord, 00:17:40.480 --> 00:17:41.720 Jesus Christ intervenes. 00:17:41.720 --> 00:17:43.440 That's the content. 00:17:45.100 --> 00:17:46.440 Where you were, 00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:47.440 I once was. 00:17:47.700 --> 00:17:48.220 Where you are, 00:17:48.360 --> 00:17:49.019 I once was. 00:17:49.480 --> 00:17:50.180 Jesus intervenes. 00:17:50.220 --> 00:17:51.200 The third part of his gospel 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:52.120 is that it is, 00:17:52.200 --> 00:17:52.640 and again, 00:17:53.000 --> 00:17:54.059 this pattern of acts 00:17:54.059 --> 00:17:55.339 to the Jew first 00:17:55.339 --> 00:17:56.440 and also to the Gentile. 00:17:58.339 --> 00:17:59.259 Paul begins his speech 00:17:59.259 --> 00:17:59.600 and says, 00:17:59.740 --> 00:18:00.720 I am a Jew. 00:18:03.140 --> 00:18:04.299 They needed to know that. 00:18:06.240 --> 00:18:07.440 When he talks about Ananias 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:08.100 in verse 12, 00:18:08.200 --> 00:18:08.440 he says, 00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:09.160 as a devout man, 00:18:09.240 --> 00:18:09.960 according to the law, 00:18:10.019 --> 00:18:11.180 he was a Jewish person. 00:18:12.579 --> 00:18:13.920 All the early Christians 00:18:13.920 --> 00:18:14.579 were Jewish. 00:18:17.660 --> 00:18:18.839 And now he mentions something 00:18:18.839 --> 00:18:19.740 that's not mentioned anywhere 00:18:19.740 --> 00:18:20.180 in the Bible 00:18:20.180 --> 00:18:21.319 from verse 17 on. 00:18:21.620 --> 00:18:22.799 Not long after his conversion, 00:18:22.920 --> 00:18:23.720 it's about three years, 00:18:23.839 --> 00:18:25.220 sometimes after his conversion, 00:18:25.339 --> 00:18:25.900 he's in Jerusalem. 00:18:27.160 --> 00:18:28.220 And this converted Jew, 00:18:28.299 --> 00:18:28.980 where was he? 00:18:30.460 --> 00:18:31.700 In the very temple 00:18:31.700 --> 00:18:32.799 from which he'd been kicked out. 00:18:35.339 --> 00:18:36.200 And what was happening, 00:18:36.360 --> 00:18:37.319 Paul is in the temple, 00:18:37.420 --> 00:18:38.000 verse 17, 00:18:38.140 --> 00:18:38.900 he was praying 00:18:38.900 --> 00:18:40.460 and he was in a trance. 00:18:41.720 --> 00:18:43.759 I don't know what 00:18:43.759 --> 00:18:45.539 really that means. 00:18:47.240 --> 00:18:48.140 I don't know what kind 00:18:48.140 --> 00:18:49.259 of spiritual experience 00:18:49.259 --> 00:18:49.880 that is. 00:18:51.059 --> 00:18:51.799 He certainly 00:18:51.799 --> 00:18:52.860 doesn't say 00:18:52.860 --> 00:18:53.740 anywhere in the Bible 00:18:53.740 --> 00:18:54.420 that we need to have 00:18:54.420 --> 00:18:55.039 that experience. 00:18:57.039 --> 00:18:57.480 And once more, 00:18:57.539 --> 00:18:58.339 God is dealing with him, 00:18:58.420 --> 00:18:58.680 isn't he, 00:18:58.700 --> 00:18:59.660 as a converted man. 00:19:01.100 --> 00:19:01.559 Make haste, 00:19:01.660 --> 00:19:02.420 get out of the temple, 00:19:02.680 --> 00:19:03.380 because they, 00:19:03.500 --> 00:19:04.259 that is the Jewish people, 00:19:04.319 --> 00:19:04.960 will not receive 00:19:04.960 --> 00:19:05.480 your testimony 00:19:05.480 --> 00:19:06.200 concerning me. 00:19:06.200 --> 00:19:08.319 And he has the audacity 00:19:08.319 --> 00:19:09.920 to argue with God. 00:19:12.779 --> 00:19:13.100 Lord, 00:19:13.319 --> 00:19:14.360 they themselves know 00:19:14.360 --> 00:19:15.120 that in one synagogue 00:19:15.120 --> 00:19:15.640 after another, 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:16.340 I imprisoned them, 00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:17.559 beat those who believed in you. 00:19:17.900 --> 00:19:18.740 And when the blood of Stephen, 00:19:18.799 --> 00:19:19.140 your witness, 00:19:19.200 --> 00:19:19.680 was being shed, 00:19:19.740 --> 00:19:21.000 I myself was standing by 00:19:21.000 --> 00:19:21.480 and approving 00:19:21.480 --> 00:19:22.620 and watching over the garments 00:19:22.620 --> 00:19:23.460 of those who killed him. 00:19:23.779 --> 00:19:24.059 Lord, 00:19:24.120 --> 00:19:25.319 they know what I used to be. 00:19:26.380 --> 00:19:27.220 And he said to them, 00:19:27.380 --> 00:19:27.680 go, 00:19:29.200 --> 00:19:29.940 for I will send you 00:19:29.940 --> 00:19:31.059 far away to the Gentiles. 00:19:31.360 --> 00:19:32.200 The point has been made. 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:35.880 Those early believers 00:19:35.880 --> 00:19:36.420 were Jewish. 00:19:39.319 --> 00:19:40.319 Stephen the martyr 00:19:40.319 --> 00:19:41.080 was Jewish. 00:19:41.720 --> 00:19:42.400 Christian church 00:19:42.400 --> 00:19:43.460 was born in Jerusalem. 00:19:44.880 --> 00:19:46.080 The message is 00:19:46.080 --> 00:19:47.360 for Jewish people. 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:50.000 But it doesn't stop there. 00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:52.740 He was traveling 00:19:52.740 --> 00:19:53.900 with the Jews 00:19:53.900 --> 00:19:54.559 to Damascus 00:19:54.559 --> 00:19:55.559 to arrest Jews 00:19:55.559 --> 00:19:56.900 who would dare believe. 00:19:57.000 --> 00:19:57.559 But now the Lord 00:19:57.559 --> 00:19:58.299 has intervened 00:19:58.299 --> 00:19:59.000 and has saved him 00:19:59.000 --> 00:19:59.920 and is sending him 00:19:59.920 --> 00:20:00.660 to the Gentiles. 00:20:02.200 --> 00:20:06.220 The Lord of salvation 00:20:06.220 --> 00:20:07.759 to the Jews 00:20:07.759 --> 00:20:09.860 is the Lord of salvation 00:20:09.860 --> 00:20:10.600 to the Gentiles. 00:20:12.940 --> 00:20:13.539 The pattern, 00:20:13.660 --> 00:20:14.440 it seems to me, 00:20:14.480 --> 00:20:15.039 of the New Testament 00:20:15.039 --> 00:20:16.460 is to the Jew first 00:20:16.460 --> 00:20:17.279 and then to the Gentile. 00:20:17.340 --> 00:20:17.900 That hasn't changed. 00:20:17.960 --> 00:20:18.620 We need to think 00:20:18.620 --> 00:20:19.100 in London, 00:20:19.240 --> 00:20:20.319 how does that apply? 00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:22.600 How do we take 00:20:22.600 --> 00:20:23.019 the gospel 00:20:23.019 --> 00:20:23.860 to Jewish people? 00:20:27.460 --> 00:20:28.480 They have the promises. 00:20:28.660 --> 00:20:29.380 They have the covenant. 00:20:29.860 --> 00:20:31.059 The Messiah is theirs. 00:20:31.059 --> 00:20:32.480 There's a veil 00:20:32.480 --> 00:20:33.399 over their eyes. 00:20:33.519 --> 00:20:34.679 Of all people, 00:20:34.779 --> 00:20:35.740 they are the most privileged 00:20:35.740 --> 00:20:37.740 and yet they refuse to see 00:20:37.740 --> 00:20:39.319 and we have their Messiah. 00:20:40.899 --> 00:20:41.799 And he's the saviour 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:42.619 of the Jewish people 00:20:42.619 --> 00:20:44.480 and he's the saviour 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:45.159 of the Gentiles. 00:20:47.019 --> 00:20:48.440 There is no other saviour 00:20:48.440 --> 00:20:49.099 for the Jews. 00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:51.159 There is no other saviour 00:20:51.159 --> 00:20:52.019 for the Gentiles. 00:20:52.259 --> 00:20:53.279 It is Jesus Christ 00:20:53.279 --> 00:20:54.339 and all must hear 00:20:54.339 --> 00:20:55.179 this message too. 00:20:55.180 --> 00:20:57.740 The same Lord 00:20:57.740 --> 00:20:58.440 is rich to all 00:20:58.440 --> 00:20:59.200 who call upon him 00:20:59.200 --> 00:20:59.880 whether they are Jews 00:20:59.880 --> 00:21:00.400 or Gentiles. 00:21:00.460 --> 00:21:00.900 Three points. 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:03.660 Where you are, 00:21:03.740 --> 00:21:04.720 I once was, 00:21:05.600 --> 00:21:06.380 the Lord Jesus Christ 00:21:06.380 --> 00:21:06.920 has intervened 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:07.640 and this message 00:21:07.640 --> 00:21:09.480 of this Lord 00:21:09.480 --> 00:21:10.460 is to the Jew first 00:21:10.460 --> 00:21:11.460 and then to the Gentiles. 00:21:11.560 --> 00:21:12.340 Let's look at the manner, 00:21:13.560 --> 00:21:14.080 the aim, 00:21:14.180 --> 00:21:14.600 the content 00:21:14.600 --> 00:21:15.120 and the manner. 00:21:15.119 --> 00:21:21.239 Did Paul hide the truth 00:21:21.239 --> 00:21:22.259 that was unacceptable 00:21:22.259 --> 00:21:24.979 to his hearers? 00:21:26.339 --> 00:21:26.699 Did he? 00:21:27.119 --> 00:21:27.419 No. 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:30.719 He knows, doesn't he, 00:21:30.799 --> 00:21:31.559 that the moment 00:21:31.559 --> 00:21:32.739 that he mentions 00:21:32.739 --> 00:21:34.919 the word Gentiles, 00:21:36.079 --> 00:21:37.739 the riot will start again 00:21:37.739 --> 00:21:38.339 and it did. 00:21:40.799 --> 00:21:42.539 Certain things that we say 00:21:42.539 --> 00:21:43.759 will be offensive. 00:21:45.119 --> 00:21:48.339 They will be offensive 00:21:48.339 --> 00:21:48.819 to the people 00:21:48.819 --> 00:21:49.359 that we speak to. 00:21:51.259 --> 00:21:52.559 Our job as Christians 00:21:52.559 --> 00:21:53.839 is not to go through 00:21:53.839 --> 00:21:54.979 life offending people 00:21:54.979 --> 00:21:57.299 and we are not 00:21:57.299 --> 00:21:58.699 to deliberately 00:21:58.699 --> 00:21:59.659 offend people. 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:02.699 But there are things 00:22:02.699 --> 00:22:03.659 in our message 00:22:03.659 --> 00:22:05.219 which are offensive 00:22:05.219 --> 00:22:06.159 that are never 00:22:06.159 --> 00:22:06.779 to be hidden. 00:22:09.559 --> 00:22:11.239 And if you hide them, 00:22:11.500 --> 00:22:12.919 you are not preaching 00:22:12.919 --> 00:22:14.359 the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:22:15.119 --> 00:22:18.479 Paul knew that 00:22:18.479 --> 00:22:19.399 the same saviour 00:22:19.399 --> 00:22:20.659 saves the Gentiles 00:22:20.659 --> 00:22:21.659 in the same way 00:22:21.659 --> 00:22:22.479 by the same work 00:22:22.479 --> 00:22:23.559 that he saves the Jews. 00:22:27.500 --> 00:22:29.119 And a Jewish preacher 00:22:29.119 --> 00:22:29.879 is commanded 00:22:29.879 --> 00:22:30.819 to preach the gospel 00:22:30.819 --> 00:22:31.639 to the Gentiles 00:22:31.639 --> 00:22:33.539 and he knew 00:22:33.539 --> 00:22:34.339 that would make them 00:22:34.339 --> 00:22:35.159 furious 00:22:35.159 --> 00:22:36.439 but he didn't hide it. 00:22:36.440 --> 00:22:40.160 There are things 00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:41.120 that we have to tell people 00:22:41.120 --> 00:22:42.200 don't we? 00:22:42.360 --> 00:22:43.559 That is God's truth 00:22:43.559 --> 00:22:45.400 and they will object to it 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:46.360 but we tell them nonetheless. 00:22:47.980 --> 00:22:49.519 Did he use complicated words? 00:22:49.600 --> 00:22:50.299 No, he was simple. 00:22:51.000 --> 00:22:53.840 Did he practice his routine 00:22:53.840 --> 00:22:54.700 in front of a mirror 00:22:54.700 --> 00:22:55.580 like a performer, 00:22:55.720 --> 00:22:56.320 like an actor? 00:22:57.460 --> 00:22:58.220 No, he didn't. 00:22:58.220 --> 00:23:02.039 He's factual, 00:23:02.360 --> 00:23:02.900 he's serious, 00:23:03.819 --> 00:23:04.880 there's a sincerity, 00:23:05.079 --> 00:23:05.640 there's a simplicity 00:23:05.640 --> 00:23:06.539 about the way Paul preaches. 00:23:08.380 --> 00:23:10.100 He tells it as it is 00:23:10.100 --> 00:23:12.259 and as it was 00:23:12.259 --> 00:23:15.980 but there's a further point. 00:23:15.980 --> 00:23:21.500 By what sort of person? 00:23:22.200 --> 00:23:23.559 When the riot starts up again, 00:23:23.599 --> 00:23:24.059 what do they do? 00:23:24.079 --> 00:23:24.599 Verse 22, 00:23:24.759 --> 00:23:25.440 they listen to him. 00:23:27.140 --> 00:23:27.860 They listen to him 00:23:27.860 --> 00:23:28.680 up until this word. 00:23:28.740 --> 00:23:29.059 Which word? 00:23:29.339 --> 00:23:30.000 Up to this word 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:30.799 they listen to him. 00:23:31.460 --> 00:23:32.360 Verse 22. 00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:36.120 He said to me, 00:23:36.180 --> 00:23:37.240 go for I will send you 00:23:37.240 --> 00:23:38.579 far away to the Gentiles. 00:23:38.660 --> 00:23:39.259 There's the word. 00:23:40.299 --> 00:23:41.460 Up to this word 00:23:41.460 --> 00:23:43.000 they listen to him. 00:23:43.140 --> 00:23:44.059 Then they raised their voices 00:23:44.059 --> 00:23:44.539 and said, 00:23:44.620 --> 00:23:45.880 away with such a fellow 00:23:45.880 --> 00:23:47.760 for he should not be allowed 00:23:47.760 --> 00:23:48.280 to live. 00:23:48.380 --> 00:23:49.120 They're so angry 00:23:49.120 --> 00:23:50.140 they tear their clothes 00:23:50.140 --> 00:23:52.100 throwing them up in the air, 00:23:52.220 --> 00:23:53.600 throwing dust in the air. 00:23:54.400 --> 00:23:55.700 The commander orders Paul 00:23:55.700 --> 00:23:56.300 to be brought back 00:23:56.300 --> 00:23:57.520 into the safety of the barracks. 00:23:59.440 --> 00:24:00.360 And it says there, 00:24:00.420 --> 00:24:00.720 doesn't it, 00:24:00.800 --> 00:24:01.620 he should be brought back 00:24:01.620 --> 00:24:02.860 into the safety of the barracks 00:24:02.860 --> 00:24:05.060 in order to be examined 00:24:05.060 --> 00:24:06.160 under scourging. 00:24:07.840 --> 00:24:08.640 If I was preaching 00:24:08.640 --> 00:24:10.380 to the first century congregation 00:24:10.380 --> 00:24:11.220 at this point 00:24:11.220 --> 00:24:11.640 there would be 00:24:11.640 --> 00:24:12.660 a sharp intake of breath. 00:24:14.720 --> 00:24:15.740 Everyone would grow silent. 00:24:16.860 --> 00:24:18.160 Because everyone would know 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:19.180 what scourging was 00:24:19.180 --> 00:24:19.980 in the Roman Empire. 00:24:20.180 --> 00:24:21.300 There's a pillar 00:24:21.300 --> 00:24:23.500 or there's a table 00:24:23.500 --> 00:24:26.220 and on one side 00:24:26.220 --> 00:24:26.540 of the pillar 00:24:26.540 --> 00:24:26.960 or the table 00:24:26.960 --> 00:24:27.880 there are metal rings 00:24:27.880 --> 00:24:29.100 and on the other side 00:24:29.100 --> 00:24:29.520 of the table 00:24:29.520 --> 00:24:29.840 or the pillar 00:24:29.840 --> 00:24:31.160 there are metal rings. 00:24:37.280 --> 00:24:38.040 Someone's wrists 00:24:38.040 --> 00:24:38.920 were put into 00:24:38.920 --> 00:24:41.200 those kind of chains 00:24:41.200 --> 00:24:42.360 and their ankles 00:24:42.360 --> 00:24:43.080 put into the other. 00:24:45.220 --> 00:24:45.840 And so they cannot 00:24:45.840 --> 00:24:46.440 move their back. 00:24:46.539 --> 00:24:47.100 They're stretched 00:24:47.100 --> 00:24:47.819 over either a pillar 00:24:47.819 --> 00:24:48.580 or over a table 00:24:48.580 --> 00:24:49.779 and their back is bare. 00:24:52.500 --> 00:24:53.660 Here comes a centurion 00:24:53.660 --> 00:24:54.740 or a Roman officer 00:24:54.740 --> 00:24:55.880 with a little stick 00:24:55.880 --> 00:24:56.640 but attached 00:24:56.640 --> 00:24:58.080 to this little stick 00:24:58.080 --> 00:24:59.080 are cords. 00:25:00.380 --> 00:25:01.400 Little cords of cloth 00:25:01.400 --> 00:25:02.660 and the cords have 00:25:02.660 --> 00:25:04.000 things attached to them 00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:05.080 and those things are 00:25:05.080 --> 00:25:06.460 teeth, 00:25:07.220 --> 00:25:07.660 nails, 00:25:07.660 --> 00:25:09.440 bone, 00:25:10.440 --> 00:25:11.200 pieces of metal. 00:25:11.200 --> 00:25:14.299 And he would whip 00:25:14.299 --> 00:25:15.299 the person stretched 00:25:15.299 --> 00:25:16.180 out in front of him 00:25:16.180 --> 00:25:16.840 to get information 00:25:16.840 --> 00:25:17.319 out of him. 00:25:19.100 --> 00:25:20.779 After two or three strokes 00:25:20.779 --> 00:25:22.960 the back would be 00:25:22.960 --> 00:25:23.880 broken up 00:25:23.880 --> 00:25:24.860 like a piece of meat, 00:25:24.960 --> 00:25:25.559 bleeding flesh. 00:25:27.559 --> 00:25:28.279 It's a way of 00:25:28.279 --> 00:25:29.380 making people talk. 00:25:31.440 --> 00:25:32.740 Many people died 00:25:32.740 --> 00:25:33.480 under scourging. 00:25:33.600 --> 00:25:34.539 Our Lord Jesus Christ 00:25:34.539 --> 00:25:35.360 was scourged. 00:25:37.500 --> 00:25:38.039 And that's what 00:25:38.039 --> 00:25:38.740 Paul is facing. 00:25:38.880 --> 00:25:39.680 He's put over this pillar, 00:25:39.680 --> 00:25:41.019 he's tied down, 00:25:41.100 --> 00:25:42.080 he's about to be scourged. 00:25:42.900 --> 00:25:43.640 But listen to this, 00:25:44.960 --> 00:25:46.519 God does not call us 00:25:46.519 --> 00:25:47.360 to be a martyr 00:25:47.360 --> 00:25:49.440 if we don't have to be one. 00:25:50.519 --> 00:25:51.539 There's more to it than that. 00:25:53.120 --> 00:25:53.700 Paul is a Jew 00:25:53.700 --> 00:25:54.720 but he's also a Roman citizen. 00:25:54.920 --> 00:25:55.860 It is against the law 00:25:55.860 --> 00:25:56.400 of Rome 00:25:56.400 --> 00:25:57.019 to bind 00:25:57.019 --> 00:25:57.720 or to tie 00:25:57.720 --> 00:25:58.600 or to chain 00:25:58.600 --> 00:25:59.240 or to hang up 00:25:59.240 --> 00:26:00.200 any Roman citizen 00:26:00.200 --> 00:26:01.320 who is uncondemned. 00:26:01.360 --> 00:26:02.060 It was against the law 00:26:02.060 --> 00:26:02.519 of Rome 00:26:02.519 --> 00:26:03.900 and he was a Roman citizen. 00:26:04.200 --> 00:26:05.320 And if a military man 00:26:05.320 --> 00:26:06.279 took it upon himself 00:26:06.279 --> 00:26:06.960 to bind 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:07.720 or scourge 00:26:07.720 --> 00:26:08.400 a Roman citizen 00:26:08.400 --> 00:26:10.420 which was forbidden, 00:26:10.620 --> 00:26:11.480 he might lose his life. 00:26:12.740 --> 00:26:13.500 His own life 00:26:13.500 --> 00:26:14.259 could be taken 00:26:14.259 --> 00:26:15.660 as a punishment 00:26:15.660 --> 00:26:16.540 for degrading 00:26:16.540 --> 00:26:17.280 a Roman citizen. 00:26:17.640 --> 00:26:18.160 That's how strict 00:26:18.160 --> 00:26:18.860 Roman law was. 00:26:19.120 --> 00:26:19.920 Look how Paul comes out 00:26:19.920 --> 00:26:20.660 at verse 25. 00:26:21.040 --> 00:26:21.460 But when they'd 00:26:21.460 --> 00:26:22.060 stretched him out 00:26:22.060 --> 00:26:22.600 for the whips, 00:26:22.740 --> 00:26:24.040 Paul said to the centurion 00:26:24.040 --> 00:26:24.680 who was standing by, 00:26:24.740 --> 00:26:25.259 is it lawful 00:26:25.259 --> 00:26:26.060 for you to flog 00:26:26.060 --> 00:26:27.300 a man who was a Roman citizen 00:26:27.300 --> 00:26:28.100 and uncondemned? 00:26:30.180 --> 00:26:31.040 When the centurion 00:26:31.040 --> 00:26:31.420 heard this, 00:26:31.460 --> 00:26:32.500 he absolutely panicked. 00:26:33.040 --> 00:26:33.960 He went to the tribune 00:26:33.960 --> 00:26:34.480 and said to him, 00:26:34.620 --> 00:26:35.680 what on earth 00:26:35.680 --> 00:26:36.500 are we about to do? 00:26:36.500 --> 00:26:37.779 For this man 00:26:37.779 --> 00:26:38.720 is a Roman citizen. 00:26:39.500 --> 00:26:40.359 Here comes the commander. 00:26:40.500 --> 00:26:41.180 He comes into the room. 00:26:41.240 --> 00:26:41.440 He says, 00:26:41.480 --> 00:26:42.059 are you a Roman? 00:26:43.240 --> 00:26:43.619 Yes. 00:26:46.660 --> 00:26:47.059 Again, 00:26:47.160 --> 00:26:47.819 it's a shock. 00:26:48.480 --> 00:26:49.039 Perfect Greek, 00:26:49.180 --> 00:26:49.779 perfect Hebrew. 00:26:50.859 --> 00:26:51.920 He's also a Roman. 00:26:52.660 --> 00:26:53.839 This rabble rouser, 00:26:54.180 --> 00:26:55.640 this man 00:26:55.640 --> 00:26:56.259 who's caused 00:26:56.259 --> 00:26:57.579 absolute carnage 00:26:57.579 --> 00:26:58.119 that day. 00:27:01.000 --> 00:27:01.859 I'd buy 00:27:01.859 --> 00:27:02.680 my Jewish, 00:27:02.819 --> 00:27:03.680 my Roman citizenship 00:27:03.680 --> 00:27:04.680 with large sums 00:27:04.680 --> 00:27:05.000 of money 00:27:05.000 --> 00:27:05.960 like people do today. 00:27:05.960 --> 00:27:07.819 I had to 00:27:07.819 --> 00:27:09.500 obtain that citizenship. 00:27:09.640 --> 00:27:10.059 I wonder how much 00:27:10.059 --> 00:27:10.519 you paid. 00:27:11.620 --> 00:27:12.059 Paul says, 00:27:12.120 --> 00:27:12.940 I was born a citizen 00:27:12.940 --> 00:27:14.420 of Rome. 00:27:15.940 --> 00:27:16.799 Paul's integrity 00:27:16.799 --> 00:27:17.700 here shines through, 00:27:17.779 --> 00:27:18.160 doesn't it? 00:27:18.240 --> 00:27:18.980 If he endured 00:27:18.980 --> 00:27:19.759 the scourging 00:27:19.759 --> 00:27:21.000 and he might have lived, 00:27:21.059 --> 00:27:22.279 just think of the credit 00:27:22.279 --> 00:27:23.039 that would have been his. 00:27:24.539 --> 00:27:24.920 He would have been 00:27:24.920 --> 00:27:25.920 a sort of martyr 00:27:25.920 --> 00:27:27.240 figure. 00:27:28.579 --> 00:27:29.200 This man could have 00:27:29.200 --> 00:27:30.180 potentially been executed 00:27:30.180 --> 00:27:31.319 for doing it. 00:27:31.460 --> 00:27:32.180 Here's the integrity 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:33.180 of Paul shining through. 00:27:33.180 --> 00:27:36.420 this testimony, 00:27:36.580 --> 00:27:37.140 this story 00:27:37.140 --> 00:27:38.380 about the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:27:38.560 --> 00:27:39.400 The man who's saying 00:27:39.400 --> 00:27:39.920 to them, 00:27:40.240 --> 00:27:41.000 where you are, 00:27:41.060 --> 00:27:41.759 I once was. 00:27:42.740 --> 00:27:43.240 And then the Lord 00:27:43.240 --> 00:27:44.600 Jesus Christ intervened. 00:27:45.799 --> 00:27:46.759 This man is saying 00:27:46.759 --> 00:27:48.019 he is Lord of all 00:27:48.019 --> 00:27:48.940 and this gospel 00:27:48.940 --> 00:27:50.019 is for the Jew first 00:27:50.019 --> 00:27:51.620 and then for the world next. 00:27:53.039 --> 00:27:53.560 And this man 00:27:53.560 --> 00:27:54.380 who spoke factually, 00:27:54.560 --> 00:27:54.940 seriously, 00:27:55.160 --> 00:27:55.460 honestly, 00:27:55.560 --> 00:27:56.519 is a man of integrity. 00:27:56.519 --> 00:28:00.019 And that's what makes 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:00.639 his testimony 00:28:00.639 --> 00:28:02.940 so sincere 00:28:02.940 --> 00:28:04.819 and so powerful. 00:28:08.039 --> 00:28:09.200 And so here we are, 00:28:09.359 --> 00:28:10.039 2000 leaders. 00:28:12.079 --> 00:28:13.180 Do you have a story? 00:28:16.680 --> 00:28:17.779 Can you look the unbelieving 00:28:17.779 --> 00:28:18.480 crowd in the eye 00:28:18.480 --> 00:28:19.019 tomorrow morning 00:28:19.019 --> 00:28:19.299 and say, 00:28:19.379 --> 00:28:19.519 well, 00:28:21.039 --> 00:28:21.660 where you are, 00:28:21.700 --> 00:28:22.259 I once was. 00:28:22.259 --> 00:28:26.359 Can you stand up 00:28:26.359 --> 00:28:26.619 and say, 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:27.500 the Lord Jesus Christ 00:28:27.500 --> 00:28:28.019 intervened? 00:28:30.440 --> 00:28:31.680 Do you honestly believe 00:28:31.680 --> 00:28:32.220 that the gospel 00:28:32.220 --> 00:28:34.099 is for the Jew first 00:28:34.099 --> 00:28:35.420 and for all the world? 00:28:39.420 --> 00:28:40.279 And when you speak 00:28:40.279 --> 00:28:41.039 of Jesus Christ, 00:28:42.039 --> 00:28:43.839 is the aim 00:28:43.839 --> 00:28:44.879 to lift him up 00:28:44.879 --> 00:28:47.180 instead of 00:28:47.180 --> 00:28:48.319 making yourself sound good 00:28:48.319 --> 00:28:51.160 or making yourself 00:28:51.160 --> 00:28:51.579 the answer? 00:28:52.259 --> 00:28:54.500 Let's pray.