Bread of His Presence

Lechem Panim #167 “God's Re-Shaping Word” (Acts 10:23-33) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! Over the past couple of weeks we have been looking at the Roman Centurion Cornelius, who we see in Acts 10 was serving God the best he knew how; but he did not yet know Jesus. And so an angel appears to him in a dream, telling him to send men to Joppa to find and bring a man by the name of Simon Peter who was lodging there. And so Cornelius obeys and sends men to find Peter. Now while all of this is happening, Peter himself has a vision, in which he is given from heaven a lot of food (some of which is unclean; not kosher) and a voice from heaven tells him “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” (v.13) But Peter refuses, saying in verse 14, “Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.” Yet the voice persists, saying “What God has cleansed you must not call common.” And this scenario is repeated 2 more times before the food is lifted back to heaven. Now Peter, no doubt puzzled by this vision, is pondering what this means when the men sent from Cornelius show up at his gate. And the Holy Spirit says to Peter  “Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.” (v.19-20) And so Peter goes down to meet them, listens to their explanation of Cornelius’ being instructed by an angel to send for him. And it says…

Acts 10:23a (NKJV)— 23 Then he invited them in and lodged them.

Barriers Toppling— And in that last phrase we already begin to see the barriers coming down because no self-respecting Jew would ever invite a Gentile into their home, and especially not a soldier of the extremely hated Roman army. But Peter receives both the two Gentile servants and the soldier into that home and then (on the next day) begins to journey with them from Joppa to Caesarea. It says…

Acts 10:23b (NKJV)— On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him.

Leaving With Witnesses— And we see later in 11:12 that these brethren who accompanied Peter were six Jewish believers who in v. 45 of this chapter are identified as “those of the circumcision”. And these were men that Peter himself had selected to come along with him as witnesses; and it’s interesting (in light of just how big and controversial this whole scenario is) he chooses to bring three times the official number of witnesses needed. And so he and this whole party begin their two-day, 30-mile trek from Joppa to Caesarea. It says in…

Acts 10:24 (NKJV)— 24 And the following day they entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends.

Already A Witness— And this is great; because here we see already in Cornelius a recognition that whatever blessing he is about to receive, that blessing is not just for him. No, it’s something to be shared. He has already gathered his relatives and friends (those closest to him) so that they also can hear the message of life. Even before becoming a Christian Cornelius is already being a witness. Now it says in…

Acts 10:25-26 (NKJV)— 25 As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. 26 But Peter lifted him up, saying, “Stand up; I myself am also a man.”

A Humble Peter— So once again (just as when Peter had healed Aeneas and gave all the glory to Christ) we find (unlike in the Gospels) a humble Peter; a Peter who is unwilling to accept the glory, praise, and worship and who is instead very careful to re-direct all that attention where it belongs; on Jesus and Jesus alone. And it says in…

Acts 10:27-29a (NKJV)— 27 And as he talked with him, he went in and found many who had come together. 28 Then he said to them, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean. 29 Therefore I came without objection as soon as I was sent for. I ask, then, for what reason have you sent for me?”

An Honest Peter— Now I love how honest Peter is here. He doesn’t disguise the fact that God has recently challenged and corrected his worldview in regards to his way of treating non-Jewish people. And as you know, it takes a lot of guts to admit when you are wrong; to say you believed one way but God said, “No, that’s not right.” How willing are you and I to receive the correction of the Lord and (more than that) to be open with others about how God is changing and re-shaping us? And this is important because before even beginning to preach, we see that Peter is demonstrating (and highlighting) for them what obedience to Christ looks like. And similarly, if you and I want our witness to be effective, there also ought to be an obedience to the Lord that is demonstrated in our lives as well.

Lee’s Example— [One Sunday morning in 1865, a black man entered a fashionable church in Richmond, Virginia. When Communion was served, he walked down the aisle and knelt at the altar. A rustle of resentment swept the congregation. How dare he! After all, believers in that church used the common cup. {And nobody wanted to share a cup with a black man. But then} Suddenly a distinguished layman stood up, stepped forward to the altar, and knelt beside the black man. {And that man was Robert E. Lee. And} With Robert E. Lee setting the example, the rest of the congregation soon followed his lead.] Sometimes all it takes for real change to take place is for one Christian to choose to set the example; to obey God even even if it might ruffle a few feathers. And you and I will never know what an impact our own personal obedience can have.

An Amazed Crowd— Now what these non-Jewish men and women hear Peter saying to them absolutely astounds them. We cannot even being to imagine the shock and amazement (and even the rejoicing) that came over them when Peter announced to them that he no longer saw Gentiles as untouchables; because for centuries up until this point the Jews (on the basis of Old Testament law) had declared them to be unclean, some even going so far to refer to Gentiles as “dogs.” So to hear that barrier and hatred is now being erased must have moved them in such a real and profound way. Now Peter (although he gets that part) he amazingly still doesn’t know why he is there, because he says in…

Acts 10:29b (NKJV)— I ask, then, for what reason have you sent for me?”

Shouldn’t Peter Have Known?— And the reason this is remarkable is because it seems to show that Peter is still not really dialed in when it comes to the full scope of Christ’s mission for him. I mean, shouldn’t he have known that Jesus had called him there to preach the Gospel? You would think that would be pretty obvious, especially in light of Acts 1:8, in which Jesus had commissioned His Disciples to go to “the uttermost part of the earth”. And what this shows us is that while we have kind of this birds-eye picture of what God was doing, remember that those who were living in the midst of all of this didn’t not know where God was taking His Church, even though it seems to us (especially in light of what Jesus’ Great Commission) to be so obvious. But that’s always how it is. It’s often only after we obey God in taking a step in a new direction that we then (at a later time) look back at scripture and realize that that command was there long before that; and we wonder why it took us so long to get there.

An Obedient Couple— I once knew a man and woman whose beliefs were directly challenged when an African-American woman started coming to their Church. Up until that point that was something they would not have been okay with. Now they had been Christians for many many years; they had read all the passages about God’s making no distinction and how in Christ all races are equal and ought to be able to worship together, but it never clicked. But the Holy Spirit began speaking to them in and through their pastor’s preaching and one day in their home they sat down together and said (as a couple) “We are no longer going to be against black people coming to our Church.” For the first time, it just clicked and they realized that they (although they had been faithful Christians for such a long time) God had a new level of Christ-like-ness that he wanted to draw them into. And so they (like Peter) chose to take that step of obedience and to no longer make a distinction. But it took a while for those pieces to come together. And the same was true with Peter, and really ALL of the Jerusalem Church who (in 11:1-18) question Peter as to his actions, which shouldn’t have but DID alarm them. And we’ll see in Acts 15 that they even call for a conference to deal with the place of the Gentiles in the Church. This whole process took some time, and Peter’s eyes have not yet been opened to what God is doing on a larger scale. So he asks them why they have sent for him. And it says in…

Acts 10:30-33 (NKJV)— 30 So Cornelius said, “Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing, 31 and said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your alms are remembered in the sight of God. 32 Send therefore to Joppa and call Simon here, whose surname is Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea. When he comes, he will speak to you.’ 33 So I sent to you immediately, and you have done well to come. Now therefore, we are all present before God, to hear all the things commanded you by God.”

The First Missionary to Gentiles— And so the floor is now open for Peter to speak as the first real missionary to the Gentiles, as he has before him a captive audience of foreigners; foreigners who had customs very different from his own; they had their own culture and way of doing things, some of which were going to be changed in a radical way.

Re-Shaping Us— But that is what the Gospel and the Word of God does. It challenges us. And the reason it challenges us is because it comes from the mind of God rather than the mind of man. If Christianity were just another man-made religion of the world, it (like all the other religions) would simply be a reflection of what we already believe, aligning with all our natural prejudices and warped ways of seeing the world. But the very fact that it moves us beyond all of these is evidence that there is a God behind all of this; a God who is much more loving and much more wise than we are. And if we are to become like Him, we have to allow His Word and His Worldview to shape us. And so this week, as always, I want to challenge you to read His Word; and to do so in prayer with a spirit of humility, being willing to allow His Word to read and re-shape you; to teach you. If we can foster that ability (by His grace) there is no doubt that (just like here with Peter) God can use you and me in incredible ways to bring His light to the world. Let’s allow Him to reshape us today. Amen.

Lechem Panim #166 “God Prepares Cornelius & Peter” (Acts 10:3-23) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! In our study of Acts chapter 10, we have been taking a look at a Roman centurion by the name of Cornelius, who we see is striving in every way that he can to follow God. But he does not yet know about Jesus. But he is drawing near to God in the best way that he knows how. And that is something that God will always honor. God promises in…

James 4:8a (NKJV)— 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

Well that is what Cornelius has been doing. And so therefore Jesus is preparing to draw near to him in a powerful way. Now it says in…

Acts 10:3-8 (NKJV)— 3 About the ninth hour of the day {([3:00 p.m.])} he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius!”
4 And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, “What is it, lord?”
So he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God. {(So we see that God is acknowledging that what Cornelius intended has in fact been the reality. [Cornelius’ prayers, devotion, faith, and goodness were like a fragrant offering rising up to God.] And God is about to reward him. Now the Angel continues, saying:) 5 Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter. 6 He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must do.” 7 And when the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier from among those who waited on him continually. 8 So when he had explained all these things to them, he sent them to Joppa.

The Right Servant— Now you can definitely sense how military-minded Cornelius is. After the angel gives him these instructions, he immediately obeys. Now God could have had him send for Philip, who was already in Caesarea (Acts 8:40), but he doesn’t; because remember [it was Peter, not Philip, who had been given the “keys.” {And what this shows us is that} God not only works at the right time, but He also works through the right servant, and both are essential.] There are people God isn’t sending to others because His intention is to send them to you. You are the one He wants to open the door for them. The question is, are you and I going to respond to that call?

Peter’s Preparation— Now it was not only necessary for Cornelius to be prepared for this event; Peter had to be as well. After all, [he had lived as an orthodox Jew all of his life (Acts 10:14).] And because of that (being a product of his culture) he did not see the Gentiles as a part of God’s salvation plan. For the Jews of the time there was a strong barrier between them and the Gentiles; and they considered them aliens and strangers [as far as the Jewish covenants and promises were concerned (vv. 11-13).] However, we know that that barrier was [broken down at the cross (Eph. 2:14–18).] And now [“There is no difference” either in condemnation (Rom. 3:22–23) or in salvation (10:12–13).]

A Seed In The Declaration— And you know, a very similar circumstance took place when the United States was founded. God no doubt inspired Thomas Jefferson to write these incredible words into our Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Now you’d think that this would mean that America (from the moment it was conceived when that Declaration was signed on July 4, 1776) would be a nation free of racism and slavery (which is often a product of that racism). But no, it took a long time for that to trickle down. It wasn’t until almost a hundred years later that the Thirteenth Amendment finally abolished slavery in 1865. And it wasn’t until 1870 (5 years later) that the Fifteenth Amendment gave African Americans the right to vote, which was a landmark decision. And then in 1954 there was another landmark decision made by the Supreme Court. And that was the Brown vs. the Topeka Board of Education, which ended segregation in public education. And then in 1964 of course you had the Civil Rights Act, which gave equal opportunity to all. Now did any of these decisions fix all our problems or completely eradicate racism? No. But each of them was another step in the right direction. And when you take a step back you can see how God placed a seed in the minds of our founding founders (some of whom owned slaves) and caused that seed to grow and eventually bring freedom and desegregation to our land and a recognized equality that has become so complete that on January 20, 2009 we inaugurated our first African-American president. And whether you liked his politics or not, that (for many people) was a milestone because it revealed just how unified the United States had become under the idea that all of us are equal. Now we have a long way to go still, but that equality (for much of our history) has been recognized as having its roots in the very the nature of God Himself, in whose image we are created.

Losing The Seed— Now unfortunately that concept has been vehemently attacked in recent years. And that is sad, because it was that concept that got the ball rolling in the right direction to begin with. And without that foundational belief in our being created in the image of a loving God, we will always be open for that racism to creep back in. Because without God, there is nobody to hold us accountable for how we treat one another. And if naturalism is true (the belief that we were only created through natural processes) and we are all just highly evolved primates, who is to say that one race is not better than another? Actually that’s exactly what Evolution teaches in its doctrine of the Survival of the Fittest. There are some people who are lower on the evolutionary food chain and may even need to die so that the fittest can survive. That was one of the key fundamental ideas that drove the Nazis. And they ended up committing the most heinous acts imaginable on other human beings not because they were insane (though many of them were) but because they took these evolutionary ideas to their logical conclusion. Now not everyone who rejects God will embrace that kind of hatred, because all of have demonstrated at least some of the effect of our having been created in the image of God; but anywhere from which the fear of God has been removed, history will always repeat itself. Because you will have lost the very foundation that supports every individual’s inherent worth. And furthermore, it is only through Jesus that we can be renewed in the image of our Creator and receive the spiritual equipment we need to overcome our evil tendencies and defeat racism. And that is what was starting to happen in our passage today; and things will eventually progress to the point where Paul can write in…

Colossians 3:11 (ESV)— 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

But this was a big transition; one that God had to prepare Peter for. And so it says in…

Acts 10:9-16 (NKJV)— 9 The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour {(12:00 noon)}. 10 Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance 11 and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth. 12 In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. 13 And a voice came to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.”
14 But Peter said, “Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.”
15 And a voice spoke to him again the second time, “What God has cleansed you must not call common.” 16 This was done three times. And the object was taken up into heaven again.

Unclean— Now what was going on with this vision, and why did God choose to use this imagery to teach Peter to start to see the Gentiles as He did? Well, keep in mind that the text says Peter was hungry. And so what better way to “speak to his condition” (as the Quakers used to say) than to give him a vision involving food. He’s longing for food and so God gives him food; just not the food he was expecting. He is given food that (according to Jewish dietary regulations) was ceremonially unclean. And [the distinction between “clean and unclean foods” was a major problem between the Jews and the Gentiles in that day. In fact, {we will see in the very next chapter that} Peter’s Christian friends {actually} criticized him for eating with the Gentiles (Acts 11:1–3)! {And so} God used this centuries-old regulation (Lev. 11) to teach Peter an important spiritual lesson.]

Peter Refuses— Now (though it shouldn’t have) this command to eat ceremonially unclean food came as quite a shock to Peter. And he politely but vehemently refuses God! And though he meant well, it was still wrong for him to respond the way he did. As Dr. W. Graham Scroggie wrote, “You can say ‘No,’ and you can say ‘Lord’; but you cannot say ‘No, Lord!’” If He is truly our Lord, then we can only say “Yes!” to Him and obey His commands.] But God is very merciful and patient with Peter, which should be an encouragement to us because He is just as patient with us. But the angel responds to Peter. Verse 15…

Acts 10:15 (NKJV)—15 And a voice spoke to him again the second time, “What God has cleansed you must not call common.”

Both Unclean— Now I want you to hear this, because this is very important. The lesson here is not that the Jews were clean and the Gentiles were just as clean. No, it was that both Jew and Gentile alike are unclean in the sight of God. Both needed cleansing. The Jew is just as unclean and in need of the cleansing of God as the Gentile is. And the reason that is important for us to understand is because what this [meant {was} that a Gentile did not have to become a Jew in order to become a Christian.] The Jew was not at some kind of higher spiritual level just by being a Jew. No, ALL of us need the cleansing work of Jesus Christ. Now Peter doesn’t understand the meaning of the vision right away, but (as we saw with Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch, God’s timing is perfect. It says in…

Acts 10:17-20 (NKJV)— 17 Now while Peter wondered within himself what this vision which he had seen meant, behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius had made inquiry for Simon’s house, and stood before the gate. 18 And they called and asked whether Simon, whose surname was Peter, was lodging there. 19 While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are seeking you. 20 Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.”

Doubting Nothing— And that [phrase “doubting nothing” (Acts 10:20) means “making no distinctions.” You find it again in Acts 11:12, and a similar word is used in Acts 11:2 (“contended with him” = “made a difference”). Peter was no longer to make any distinctions between the Jews and the Gentiles.] And it says in…

Acts 10:21-23a (NKJV)— 21 Then Peter went down to the men who had been sent to him from Cornelius, and said, “Yes, I am he whom you seek. For what reason have you come?” 22 And they said, “Cornelius the centurion, a just man, one who fears God and has a good reputation among all the nation of the Jews, was divinely instructed by a holy angel to summon you to his house, and to hear words from you.” 23 Then he invited them in and lodged them.

Who's Your Cornelius?— You know, this story has so much to say to us about allowing God to challenge and re-shape our world-views. Even we as Gentiles who (by God’s grace) have been grafted into His family can still look down on others. We can become exclusive in our thinking. And I don’t think there are many of us here today (if any) who are openly racist or prejudice; who would say there is a person or a people group that we hate or openly reject. But I don’t think this passage is just about not openly rejecting people. Sometimes we reject by neglect. And the way we reject by neglect is by simply choosing to overlook people. And I think that for each of us, there probably is a Cornelius in our life that needs what we have in Christ Jesus, the Good News of the Gospel. The question is, are we willing to go to them? Are we willing to cross whatever barriers we have to in order to introduce them to Jesus? As we close today, I want to challenge you to ask God to show you the Cornelius in your life; and after revealing that person to you, ask Him to give you the courage and strength to reach out to them with the love and message of Jesus Christ. Because if you do, they will be blessed, you will be blessed, and the Church will be blessed. Let’s do so. Amen.

Lechem Panim #165 "Cornelius Seeks The Truth” (Acts 10:1-2) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! You will remember that last week we talked about God’s raising a woman by the name of Tabitha from the dead. And he does this through Peter, who is following the leadership of the Holy Spirit speaking both to him but also through the believers around him. Now the healing of the lame man Aeneas (immediately prior) had been a great miracle. The raising of Tabitha had been a greater miracle. And now in our passage today we come to the greatest miracle, as the way of salvation becomes opened to a gentile by the name of Cornelius.

The Most Important Chapter— Now I don’t think I’m overstating things a bit when I say that for us, this is the most important chapter in the book of Acts. In fact, I would go so far to say that no other chapter of scripture (outside of those chapters that tell us of the redeeming work of Jesus) is more directly relevant to us than this one. There are very few (if any) of you tuned in today who would be a part of the family of God if it were not for what happened in this chapter, because in it we have God revealing to (or I should say “making more clear to”) Peter that we (Gentiles) are also part of His salvation plan. Jesus is not just for the Jew, but for the Gentile as well. And you will remember that Jesus had told Peter that he would be given the keys to the kingdom of heaven, which meant that Peter would be the one to open up the way of salvation for every major people group. He opened the door of faith to the Jews in Acts 2; for the Samaritans in Acts 8, and now God was telling him to use his keys for the third and last time to open up the way for Gentiles also to be brought into the Church (see Gal. 3:27-28; Eph. 2:11-22).

After 10 Years— Now it may surprise you to know the length of time that has transpired between Acts chapter 2 and our chapter today. [This event {actually} took place about ten years after Pentecost.] And that is surprising because we wonder why it took the apostles so long to try to reach the Gentiles. In John 3:16 Jesus had clearly said that God loved the whole world and had sent His Son for whosoever would believe in Him. And in the Great Commission Jesus had given to His disciples, He so clearly said…

Matthew 28:19-20 (NKJV)— 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Door 3— So we see that clearly there was no mistaking what Jesus had told them to do. And yet we see they had not yet broken into that third phase of outreach. Now God is patient; and no doubt things are moving according to His timetable. But it is fascinating to me how (for some reason) that had not yet clicked in the minds of these Jewish Christians, especially when it seems (at least in hindsight) so clear. It makes me wonder at the things I don’t yet understand simply because my own worldview constrains me from really hearing the things Jesus is saying. Do I approach scripture with a theological lens through which I have already (whether intentionally or intentionally) what God can say to me and what He couldn’t possibly be saying? Something to think about. But we see here that (in the mind of God), the time has come for Peter to use his keys for a third time to open the door of faith to the Gentiles (Acts 14:27). And in this incredible drama that plays out, there are four major “acts” (you might say). In verses 1-22 you have The Preparation, in verses 23-33 you have The Explanation, in verses 34-43 you have The Proclamation, and in verses 44-48 you have The Vindication. And today we will be looking at the first of these acts: The Preparation. Go ahead and look with me, starting at…

Acts 10:1 (NKJV)— 1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment,

A Certain Man— Now there’s Luke’s key phrase “a certain man” again, signaling to us that Cornelius is a non-believer, just like Aeneas had been. And this “certain man” was a centurion. And of course a centurion is Roman officer who commands 100 soldiers. And he is stationed in Caesarea, which was then [sometimes called Palestinian Caesarea, {and} was located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, 32 miles north of Joppa.] It was [The largest and most important port city on the Mediterranean in Palestine], [boasted of many beautiful public buildings.], and [served as the capital of the Roman province of Judea.] This would be [the first city to have Gentile Christians and a non-Jewish church.] Now Cornelius was probably not going to be in Caesarea too much longer. It is very likely that he would soon be returning to Rome. And when we think about that (and how God of course foresaw that) we can begin to see how God orchestrated the circumstances leading up to his conversion because He wanted to use Cornelius as a key stepping-stone to further the spread of the Gospel into the empire’s capital city. Now we know a few things about this man Cornelius. It says that Cornelius was (verse 2)…

Acts 10:2 (NKJV)— 2 a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always.

Truth’s Funeral— So here we have a Roman who is worshipping the God of Israel. How he came to do so, we are not told. But Rome of course had a whole Pantheon of gods to choose from (if you wanted to choose). And this was because the people Rome would conquer were often deeply committed to their gods. And so in order to help integrate people into Roman society and culture, they would simply absorb into their Pantheon the gods of those nations they conquered. It was a way to keep everybody happy. And that is what we have done in the United States today. We have absorbed all the false of gods of the world, allowed idolatry to thrive, and call it multiculturalism. Now we think we are helping people by doing this; that we’re being tolerant and accepting. But what is ending up happening to us here in the United States is exactly what had happened to Rome. When all things (particularly religions) are true, then nothing is really true anymore. And I want you to remember that. When all things are true, then nothing is true anymore. Remember what Pilate had asked Jesus in John 18. It says…

John 18:37-38a (NKJV)— 37 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?”
Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” 38 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?”…

Seeking Hope In Judaism— Now that’s a pretty scary thing to hear your leader say, isn’t it? But you see, Pilate (in the interest of what could have been called tolerant multiculturalism) had distanced himself from the one true God; and in doing that he lost the very concept of absolute truth that is necessary to even come to God. And Cornelius knows this. He knows the religious bankruptcy of his culture and has become tired of the myths and empty religious rituals of Rome and has therefore turned to Judaism in the hopes that in that belief system he might find salvation. And really he [was as close to Judaism as he could get without becoming a proselyte. There were many “God fearers” like him in the ancient world (Acts 13:16), and they proved to be a ready field for spiritual harvest.] And note how he is already demonstrating the fruit of a heart that is genuinely seeking God. It says that he was (verse 2)…

Acts 10:2 (NKJV)— 2 a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always.

Close To Salvation— Now here we see demonstrated clearly just how close somebody can be to the salvation and not have it. I mean Cornelius had a lot together spiritually; and you can find a lot of similarities between him and the centurion that Jesus had encountered back in Luke 7:1-10. He is being faithful to lead his household in the fear of God, he is giving generously to the needy, and he is praying to God (the text says “always”). And keep in mind that he [was not permitted to offer sacrifices in the temple, so {what he did was} he presented his prayers to God as his sacrifices (Ps. 141:1–2).]

Psalm 141:1-2 (NKJV)— 1 Lord, I cry out to You; Make haste to me! Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You. 2 Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

A Model Religious Person— So that is what he’s doing. And [In every way, he was a model of religious respectability—and yet he was not a saved man.] But he was different from many other religious people both in his day and ours because he knew that his religious devotion was not enough to save him. Whereas people so often try to earn their way to heaven through good works and sometimes even character, Cornelius knew that that wasn’t enough; and so we find him praying fervently before God, asking Him to reveal to him the path to salvation.

Like John Wesley— One author wrote that: [In many respects, John Wesley was like Cornelius. He was a religious man, a church member, a minister, and the son of a minister. He belonged to a “religious club” at Oxford, the purpose of which was the perfecting of the Christian life. Wesley served as a foreign missionary, but even as he preached to others, he had no assurance of his own personal salvation. On May 24, 1738, Wesley reluctantly attended a small meeting in London where someone was reading aloud from Martin Luther’s commentary on Romans. “About a quarter before nine,” Wesley wrote in his journal, “while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed, I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death.” The result was the great Wesleyan revival that not only swept many into the kingdom, but also helped transform British society through Christian social action.]

Those Who Haven’t Heard— Now sometimes people ask the question (and it is a valid one); “What will happen to the unsaved men and women who have never heard about Jesus? And that’s an important question; one that we often grapple with in relation to the justice of God. But note here that while Cornelius wasn’t a believer, he was still seeking God and living a God-pleasing and God-seeking life as best he knew how; demonstrating both reverence for God and generosity towards others. And scripture promises that God will make Himself known to people who are actively seeking Him like that. It says in…

Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)— 6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

James 4:8a (NKJV)— 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

Well here we see God keeping He promise. He uses some pretty extraordinary means to reach Cornelius and make Himself known to him (which we will see later in this chapter) because Cornelius is already seeking (in everything) to draw near to God. And that is the message of hope I want to leave you with today. If you have a heart that is earnestly seeking God, He will make Himself known to you.

Jeremiah 29:13-14a (NKJV)— 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord,…

So I encourage you today, seek the Lord. No matter what you are going through, what questions you might have, or where you are on your spiritual journey. God will not leave you in the dark. If you are seeking Him, He will reveal Himself and His truth to you, just as we see He will do for Cornelius. So seek Him today. Amen.

Lechem Panim #164 "Tabitha Is Raised” (Acts 9:35-43) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! You will remember that last week we talked about Peter’s healing of a lame man by the name of Aeneas and how for (Aeneas) that healing completely changed the way he would live his life forever. And today Peter will perform another healing; and in many ways it is a healing that grows out of the people’s response to the healing of Aeneas. It says in…

Acts 9:35 (NKJV)— 35 So all who dwelt at Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.

People Established— Sharon is the plain surrounding Lydda and Joppa, and which extends N to Caesarea.] And so, as we see so often in the book of Acts (cf. ch. 3), this healing leads to the further spread of the Gospel, as [The news spread beyond the town of Lydda to the whole coastal plain of Sharon.] And I mean just seeing this man {walking} was enough to convince everyone who saw him that Jesus was indeed alive and that they needed to place their faith in Him (See John 12:10–11 for a similar instance.). And Peter no doubt was engaging these people, teaching them; discipling them; moving them beyond just the fireworks of the healing to their being able to actually experience in their own lives the presence of God in and through Jesus Christ and the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit as well. And so Peter was being faithful to the commission Jesus had given him in John 21:15-17 to care for the sheep and help them to get established in the faith. And if we are to truly be the Church, that must always be our focus as well. Now it says…

Acts 9:36a (NKJV)— 36 At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas.

Joppa— Now Joppa was a seacoast harbor town that is known today as Jaffa/Yaffa, and is S of Tel Aviv and 11 miles (18km) northwest of Lydda. It [sits 125 feet above sea level overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. {And it may interest you to know that} Joppa was the town into which the cedars of Lebanon had been floated to be shipped to Jerusalem for use in the Temple construction (2 Chronicles 2:16; Ezra 3:7 ).] But perhaps even more emblazoned in your memory is the fact that it was from the port at Joppa that Jonah left in his attempt to flee from God’s call to go to the Gentile city of Nineveh (Jonah 1:3). And that was both because of Jonah’s hatred of the Ninevites, but also (more generally) because of his nationalist attitude when it came to his faith. In his mind God was for Israel and Israel alone. But God has such a wonderful sense of humor; and sometimes we don’t notice it unless we step back and look at the overall spread of human history. Because (as we will see in our passage next week) it is in Joppa that Peter receives his call to go to the Gentiles! The Jews of the time probably immediately picked up on the irony here. And in both stories God sends a mighty wind. In Jonah’s story it took the form of a storm that causes the Gentile sailors to tremble in fear. But we will see that here it will be the “wind of the Spirit”, who will bring to the Gentiles joy and peace. Such an amazing and beautiful contrast.

The Gazelle— Now in Joppa it says there was a certain disciple named Tabitha. And she may have been [more commonly known by her Gr. name, “Dorcas.”]  Now while we don’t know too much about her, if she is anything like her name, she was a very beautiful person because “Tabitha” (like Dorcas) [means Gazelle, "the creature with the beautiful look" (or eyes)… {If you know a bit about ancient writings, you’ll know that} The gazelle was a favourite type for beauty in the orient (Song of Solomon, Acts 2:9, 17; Acts 4:5; Acts 7:3).] But I don’t think it was her outward beauty that most attracted people. It says in the rest of verse 36…

Acts 9:36b (NKJV)— This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did.

Who God Uses— And so we see that the way Tabitha impacted her community was by [“always doing kind things for others and helping the poor,” by making “coats and other clothing” (9:39). {And we see that} When she died, the room was filled with mourners, very likely many of the people she had helped.] And you know that speaks volumes to us about the nature of how and who God uses.

Kelcie Huffman’s Funeral— I remember being part of a funeral service for a man from our former church in Ohio; a man by the name of Kelcie Huffman; the kindest, sweetest guy you could ever meet. When I think of men who truly embody what it means to live a godly life, his life will ever be a picture to me of what that looks like. A man always looking for ways to help others. In fact right when I got to that Church he asked me if he could come with me on hospital visitations to help be an encouragement to those in the church who needed it. And looking back, I could count on one hand the people who have ever offered to do that. And I remember just how astonished I was; of all the ministries to volunteer for, that can often be one of the most difficult and (at times) disheartening. But he didn’t care. He wanted to be right where the greatest needs was. Now you know what position he held in the Church? He was our janitor. And yet at his viewing would you guess it, the line of people who came to see him and say their goodbyes stretched around our huge sanctuary and out into the parking lot. And usually you’d expect the lines to dissipate after a while, which is what I expected. But hour after hour the line of people continued to move in through our double doors in the back; people who had been impacted by this tiny little man. It was the largest gathering I ever participated in in all my years of pastoral ministry. And for who? Not a big church leader; not a mighty evangelist; but for a quiet and assuming man who was simply willing to show God’s love to other people. And what this shows you and me is that while God can (and often does) use great preachers like Peter and Paul, he also uses the Tabithas; the Kelcies of the world as instruments of His kindness and healing in the world. And so maybe rather than looking around and wanting the gifts of other Christians, we ought instead to ask God to help us to make good use of the gifts God has already given us.

Now it must have seemed so tragic to lose such a beloved person like Tabitha, especially because people like her are so greatly needed by the Church today.  But it says…

Acts 9:37 (NKJV)— 37 But it happened in those days that she became sick and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room.

Irreplaceable— You know, in recent days we at our Church here at Renton Park Chapel have faced a very similar loss as a couple of weeks ago we had a memorial service for a very dear member of our congregation. And that is a hard blow to take. During ministry over the years I have seen heaven gain so many great men and women who were very difficult to replace; never were really replaced, honestly. And in times like that, all we can can really say is what Job proclaimed in Job 1:21: “The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD”. But death can be hard to process. And it was no different here.

The Interment— It says that when they had washed Tabitha, they laid her in an upper room. [This arrangement was similar to that of the upstairs room in 1:13; 2:1.] [It was a Jewish custom first to wash the dead body, and then to anoint it with spices for burial.] And it is important to note that the interment was not hurried as it probably would have been in Jerusalem, where it was customary to bury the body immediately, as they did with Ananias and Sapphira. Here they take their time, even though the final result they expected to be the same. However, then comes a wonderful bit of news. It says in…

Acts 9:38 (NKJV)— 38 And since Lydda was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them.

Faith-filled Believers— Now it is very clear that these early Christians recognized [that an unusual level of the Holy Spirit’s power was present in the apostles.] But at the same time, this shows a tremendous amount of faith because there is no record in Acts that any of the apostles had raised the dead. And yet here they are convinced that the God who would heal a lame person in Lydda could also raise a dead woman in Joppa. And their logic was probably very simple; like the faith of a child. If Jesus raised the dead during His ministry on earth, is He any less powerful now that He is sitting on His heavenly throne? No, if anything, you would think He was MORE powerful. And you know what, I just LOVE that rationale. What could God do through us if we were to believe like that? Now does that mean that God will raise every dead person; that He will heal every lame or sick person. No it doesn’t. Note that Stephen (whom you could also argue was greatly needed by the Church); God didn’t choose to raise him. And there were sicknesses and infirmities in Paul’s life that God allowed him to struggle with. But that doesn’t mean we should believe in God’s power any less. It just means that God is going to be glorified differently in that situation or circumstance. But this passage does reveal to us that God will be faithful to do whatever He impresses upon our hearts to ask Him to do; whatever He is leading you to pray for. Remember that Peter wasn’t acting on the basis of his own wishes; but rather was being led by the Holy Spirit into doing what God already intended to do from the start. And not just through the Holy Spirit speaking directly to him; but also the Holy Spirit speaking to him through other believers.

Serving The People— And something interesting that can often times get overlooked about Peter’s ministry (and really that of all the apostles) is the fact that while at times they may have told other people what to do, we see that [often the people commanded them!… {I love how here in this verse, not only do they send two men to implore Peter to come, but to come without delay. In other words “Don’t be tardy! Get here quickly!” And Peter obeys. You see Peter was a leader who {recognized that he} served the people and {therefore he} was ready to respond to their call.] That (in and of itself) is an incredible picture to me of what godly leadership looks like. It says in…

Acts 9:39 (NKJV)— 39 Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them.

The Widows— So we see that [When Peter arrived in the upper room where Dorcas lay in death, he finds a group of weeping widows who had been helped by her ministry. Keep in mind that there was no “government aid” in those days for either widows or orphans, and needy people had to depend on their “network” for assistance. {Well, Tabitha was a part of that network. And we must never forget that} The church {still} has an obligation to help people who are truly in need (1 Tim. 5:3–16; James 1:27).] Government programs can sometimes do some good; but no entity is as powerful and effective at ministering to the poor and needy as the Church; because the Church is the very extension of the hand of God. And you can’t beat God when it comes to loving the poor and disenfranchised.

Garments— Now as these widows are standing around Peter, weeping, they are presenting (literally pointing to) the garments she had made. And these were both inner garments (which were worn underneath), but also outer garments (very similar to the Latin tunica and toga). And I mean this was such a heart-breaking scene. But it says…

Acts 9:40-41 (NKJV)— 40 But Peter put them all out {(just as Jesus had done when He was about to raise Jairus’ daughter; Peter is following the pattern of his Master. And then it says}, and knelt down and prayed {(which, by the way is very similar to what Elijah had done before raising the dead son of the widow in 1 Kings 17:20 and what Elisha had done before raising the Shunammite’s son in 2 Kings 4:33) Peter didn’t just somehow know what to do; no, he followed the pattern of Jesus, which was also the pattern given in scripture. And it says…}. And turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. 41 Then {(just as Jesus had done with Jairus’ daughter)} he gave her his hand {(not being afraid to be defiled)} and lifted her up {(By the way, [The Greek verb for raised her up is the same word used throughout the NT for Jesus’ resurrection (Gk. anistēmi). {And so} Though her restoration to life was not permanent, it served to remind Christians of their promised resurrection in Christ.] Now after Peter lifted her up, it says…)}; and when he had called the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

Joyous Celebration— And we cannot even begin to imagine the eruption of joy this created amongst all the people. I mean imagine the celebration; the partying. They probably had the funeral dinner all ready and set to go (probably with all of Tabitha’s favorite foods) and (lo and behold) she gets to partake of it. How awesome is that! And I would even say that this was a blessing for Peter as well, who was not only excited that God had raised Tabitha, but that He was willing to do so through him just as He had done through His Master Jesus. And let me tell you, we need to learn exactly what Peter learned that day; that God is willing to move in and through us as well to do His mighty works. Now it says of this miracle…

Acts 9:42 (NKJV)— 42 And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord.

And of course those believers needed a Shepherd; a discipler. And so the kind-hearted, Jesus-like Peter does exactly what he had done in Samaria. It says in…

Acts 9:43 (NKJV)— 43 So it was that he stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.

​Peter’s Preparation— And so we see that (because a faith based on miracles is not enough) Peter takes the opportunity to ground these new believers in the truth of God’s Word. And it is a good thing he tarried here in Joppa, because (as we will see) God meets him here in an amazing new way, instructing him to use his keys to the Kingdom of Heaven to open up the kingdom to the next group of people; the Gentiles. And even now we see God breaking down the barriers Peter had previously had for certain types of people, as we see that he is staying with a man by the name of Simon, a tanner. Not only was this a smelly job (because it involved working with animal hides; which would explain his location close to the ocean breezes (10:6), but this also meant he was often left in an unclean state,]  which is why it was [an occupation despised by Jewish society because the tanner dealt with the skins of dead animals. The local synagogue probably shunned Simon.] [One of the rabbis said: "It is impossible for the world to do without tanners; but woe to him who is a tanner." A Jewess could {actually} sue for divorce if she discovered that her husband was a tanner.] But lo and behold Peter (once again, just like Jesus) is willing to break out of the prejudice in order to meet the needs of people. And so God is already at work in Peter’s heart. And as we close today, let us also ask God to work in our heart; to make us like Peter and like Tabitha; to (no matter what ministry He calls us to) to keep at the forefront the needs of people; and for us to have the faith that God can and is willing to do whatever He is calling and leading us to do in the lives of those around us. Let’s do so. Amen.

Lechem Panim #163 "Closing The Door Behind Us” (Acts 9:32-34) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! Over the past several weeks we have been looking at the beginning of the ministry of Paul. But at this point in the book of Acts there is a shift back to the ministry of Peter. And during our time together today we will be beginning to take a look at the miracle ministry of Peter, which is highlighted in a special way in 9:32-10:48. In verses 32-35 we have first a great miracle; the healing of Aeneas. Then in verses 36-43 we have a greater miracle; the raising of Tabitha from the dead. And then in 10:1-48 we have the greatest miracle; that of lost sinners coming to faith in Jesus Christ; and not only sinners, but Gentile sinners at that, which we will see even in this passage God is already making His Church (and particularly Peter) ready for. Now the Church is currently experiencing a time of peace. It says in…

Acts 9:31a (NKJV)— 31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified.

The Church Universal— Now [There must have been hundreds of churches in the small cities and towns throughout this large region, but all of them together can be called a “church” (Gk. ekklēsia, {and it’s actually} singular in the earliest and best manuscripts of this verse, though some later manuscripts have the plural). {But this is significant because now} The NT can apply the singular word “church” to the church meeting in a home (Rom. 16:5 ; 1 Cor. 16:19), in an entire city (1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 1:1), in a large region (as here), or throughout the whole world (1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 5:25 ).] Wherever the people of God is, there Christ’s Church is. Now it says of these churches (or the Church)…

Acts 9:31b (NKJV)— And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.

“they were multiplied”— And this description of the growth of the Church is Luke’s key way of signaling the closing of a section. At every major transition of the Church here in the book of Acts, you find at the end some phrase like this describing the resulting blessing of God as seen in the growing fruitfulness of the Church (1:15; 2:41, 47; 4:4; 5:14; 6:7; 9:31; 12:24; 13:49; 16:5; 19:20). And though this is a God thing, we see that the believers were not idle. They were taking Jesus admonition that the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few very seriously. They themselves see that the fields are white for harvest and are now actively seeking to bring the Gospel to those places that have yet to hear it. And that is what we find Peter doing. We last saw him witnessing to the Samaritans in 8:25, having come there after Philip was used by God to spark a massive response to the Gospel there in Samaria. But now Peter sets his sights on and moves into the fertile coastal plain of Sharon, where we will witness the next two recorded miracles taking place. And this is important because it shows that Peter is already moving outwards from Jerusalem. It says…

Acts 9:32 (NKJV)— 32 Now it came to pass, as Peter went through all parts of the country, that he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda.

Lydda— Now Lydda was actually known as Lod in the Old Testament. It was a regional administrative town (toparchy) for Judea, and was on an important trade route. Located about 10 miles Southeast of Joppa, it was a hub that serviced roads from Egypt to Syria and from Joppa to Jerusalem. And while Peter is here it says…

Acts 9:33 (NKJV)— 33 There he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was paralyzed.

“a certain man”— Now that phrase “a certain man” that is used to describe this man named Aeneas is actually a key phrase that Luke uses here to clue us in to the fact that Aeneas was an unbeliever. In the following miracle, involving Tabitha, we see that she is described not as “a certain woman” but as “a disciple named Tabitha” (v.36). You can also look back earlier in this very chapter to a similar description given to us of Ananias. In verse 10 he is described as “a disciple at Damascus” (v.10). So this man Aeneas Luke is careful to distinguish as an unbeliever. And for some reason or other, he has become paralyzed and bedridden.

A Hurting Member— You know, as I was beginning preparation for this message I had an interesting situation develop involving a dear member of our Church here at Renton Park Chapel. A gentleman, as a result of a terrible fall off a tall ladder onto solid concrete many years ago was on the road to becoming paralyzed. Doctors said that he would be paralyzed within a few months if he did not get a vital surgery on his neck. And I took him to that surgery; it was a three-hour surgery that took two doctors working very carefully to place a metal rod in his neck and attempt to stem the coming paralysis. Now thankfully that surgery was a success, but he still has a long road of recovery in front of him. And in the months that have followed I have witnessed first-hand both the ongoing struggles he has had to face in that recovery process, but also have gotten to see the miracles of modern medicine that we have available to us today. I got to see him slowly begin to improve; and I got to see the ex-rays in which you can see (clearly visible) this rod that has been inserted to help straighten his neck. It is truly incredible what doctors are able to do today. But having gone through this experience with my friend, it kind of helped me to see through new eyes the situation of Aeneas in our passage today. Now we don’t know what his story is; what treatments he had possibly gone through; certainly nothing like what we have today. But there is no doubt that for him the game is over. There were no modern surgeries like there are today that can sometimes correct these kinds of issues. No, he is incurably paralyzed. And yet it says in…

Acts 9:34a (NKJV)— 34 And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you.

Glory To Jesus— Now I love this because though we usually think of Peter (now at least) as this awesome rock in the Church, he is much more humble than he was during the earthly ministry of Jesus. Peter understands that it is not him but Jesus who is invisibly working to build the Church. And this is such a key thing for us to remember; and is a criteria we should apply to any Christian leader before deciding to follow them. False prophets always point to themselves. But true prophets of God (like John the Baptist) always point away from themselves to Jesus (“Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”); seeking Him to receive all the glory and praise. And that is something we need to watch in ourselves in all we do. What are our intentions? Are we seeking to bring glory to ourselves or glory to Jesus. Because (honestly) God will never work through you as fully as He might if you are not willing to recognize and give glory to Him for what He is doing through you. Humility is the gateway to being usable by God. Now, following Peter’s saying to Aeneas “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you…”, Peter adds to this…

Acts 9:34b (NKJV)— Arise and make your bed.” Then he arose immediately.

Make Your Bed— Now I don’t know about you, but here Peter almost sounds like a mom; “Make your bed!” And, honestly, Peter sounds very much like Jesus here; because Jesus had said similar things to the lame people that He healed. But it wasn’t until my study of this passage that I really asked why? Why this phrase “make your bed.”? I mean, what a mundane thing; to make your bed. Why not just say, “Arise! Be healed!”, which would have involved enough faith for Aeneas to be healed; as he would have obeyed enough just to attempt to stand up. Why this imperative (and that is what it is in the Greek); why this imperative for him to make his bed, which [probably refers to folding the mat on which he was lying.]? Well, I raised this question recently to my secretary (Miss Donna, a very insightful woman who has walked with the Lord for many many years) and she said something that really kind of got me thinking. And I think she hit the nail right on the head. She said that “When you make your bed, there’s no going back.” And you know I thought; my goodness, she’s absolutely right. There is an arising; a step of faith into the healing of Jesus, but there is also a closure behind him of the door to his old way of doing life. And one of the best NT commentaries I read, confirmed this. It said that the phrase here means [Literally, spread thy bed for thyself (dative case), what others for eight years have done for thee.] There is a transformation not just of his legs, but in the whole way he is to view and live his life.

Samuel L. Brengle: "I had to go forward”— Now all of this struck a chord with me because I have been reading a book by Samuel Logan Brengle, a mighty man of God in the Salvation Army who described in his book “Helps to Holiness” the very moment that (following his salvation) God moved him beyond mere forgiveness from sin and into an experience of actual deliverance from the power of sin; to freedom from sin where God actually purges you of your old self and creates in you (as the Psalmist anticipated) a clean heart; a united heart that is made altogether new. Listen to what Brengle writes; and I love how he knows precisely when this work of grace happened for him. He says: [On January 9, 1885, at about 9 o'clock in the morning, God sanctified my soul. I was in my own room at the time, but in a few minutes I went out and met a man and told him what God had done for me. The next morning, I met another friend on the street and told him the story. He shouted and praised God and urged me to preach full salvation and confess it everywhere. God used him to encourage and help me. So the following day I preached on the subject as clearly and forcibly as I could, and ended with my testimony. God mightily blessed the Word to others, but I think He blessed it most to me. That confession put me on record. It cut down the bridges behind me. Three worlds were now looking at me as one who professed that God had given him a clean heart. I could not go back now. I had to go forward.] And you know, that is what the Christian life is all about; leaving your life of sinfulness and embracing a transformed life. And that is what we are called to do as well. And that is what we see Aeneas does. He arises, finds himself healed, and makes his bed.

Have You Made Your Bed?— Now let me ask you, have you made your bed? Not your physical bed (though that is important), but your spiritual bed. Have you closed the door behind you to that old way of life? Have you allowed Jesus to do more in your life than just forgive you of your sin? Have you surrendered to Him fully and completely; allowing Him to actually empower you to rise against/out of that old way of life and begin to walk (un-crippled) in holiness before Him? If not, I want to tell you that there is no greater joy than allowing Him to create in you a clean heart (as the Psalmist says) and to walk in that “newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Ask for Him to do that for you today and He will do it, by His grace through your faith in Him. Amen.

Lechem Panim #162 "Saul Begins His Ministry” (Acts 9:23-31) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! As you know, we have been talking about the conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus in Acts chapter 9. Saul encounters Jesus; and that encounter forever changes the course of his life. And we see that right after he leaves the presence of Ananias, through whom God gave Saul the Holy Spirit. Saul goes out and (as anybody who truly encounters Jesus is always compelled to do) he immediately begins sharing the Good News of the Gospel. It says…

Acts 9:20-22 (NKJV)— 20 Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God. 21 Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” 22 But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ.

The Jews— Now the phrase [The Jews does not mean all Jews, of course, since many Jews had believed in Jesus and Paul himself was a Jew. But from this point forward in the book of Acts, Luke often uses the phrase “the Jews” as a shorthand expression to refer to Jewish people who opposed the gospel (see esv footnote; see also 12:3; 13:45,50; 14:4; 17:5,13; 18:12; etc.). Often it is the leaders of communities who are involved in this rejection.] But after these unbelieving Jews are confounded by Saul’s witness and testimony, it says…

Acts 9:23a (NKJV)— 23 Now after many days were past,

Saul’s Arabian Ministry— And that period of many days was very likely a period of 3 years; a period Paul writes about in his epistle to the Galatians. And many believe this period of three years actually took place between verses 21 and 22. Saul, rather than immediately traveling to Jerusalem to be instructed by the apostles, instead went to minister in Nabatean Arabia, which was a wilderness desert that stretched east of Damascus all the way down to the Sinai peninsula. Now why God wanted him to go there, we don’t really know fully. But it seems that God wanted to get him to a quiet place where He could teach him His Word through the new lens of Christ Jesus; to instruct him and prepare him to be an effective apostle. And he did this to Saul directly, because Saul says very clearly of this experience in…

Galatians 1:16b-17 (NKJV)— …I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.

A Time of Preparation— So the first part of Saul’s Christian education seems to have been given by God Himself. And this was because God knew that Saul was not yet ready for ministry. No, he had to re-process the Old Testament through the lens of Jesus. Until he did that, he was not ready for the full ministry that God had called him to. And you know, that is a lesson to us as well. While Saul did not wait to evangelize, there was a time of preparation that was necessary to his overall ministry. That is why if you want to go into full-time Christian ministry, you will most likely want to go to seminary. That’s not to say God can’t use a non-seminary grad. But you will never be able to give people what you don’t already know and what you haven’t already experienced. That is why it is so important for Church leaders to be educated. And I’m telling you, you don’t know what you don’t know. When I got to seminary, I was blown away with how little I actually knew and how much more there was for me to learn in order to be not just a Christian leader, but even just an informed Christian. I remember feeling (as I sat in those classes) “There is not a Christian alive who doesn’t need to hear what I am hearing right now.”

Church Education— And that is why it is so critical that the Church as a whole re-capture an emphasis on Christian education; even (and especially) inside the Church itself. Church is supposed to be more than just a place of worship; it is to be a place of teaching. You ought to come to Church and not only be fed, but taught how to be able to find nourishment and strength in God’s Word yourself. You ought to be taught how to do Bible Study; how to apply your Christian worldview to your understanding of the times and the culture; how to witness and contend for the faith. Church was (and is) just as much a place of the mind as it is the heart. In fact in Hebrew you cannot separate those two concepts. Heart and mind always go together. This is why Paul, in writing to the Philippian Church, writes in…

Philippians 1:8-9— 8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.

Love To Learn— You see, if you want to be an effective Christian, you need to cultivate a love for learning, which always always always accompanies a Christ-like faith. There is a transformation; a renewal of the mind that accompanies the renewal of the heart (which Romans 12:2 talks about). And that is something Saul definitely experienced in his own life; and in a special way during his wilderness experience.

In The Wilderness— Now it is possible that during this time Saul went to the area near Mount Sinai (Gal. 4:25), which was a journey that would have taken a considerable amount of courage and strength. It may have been during this time that he experienced the “perils of robbers” and “perils in the wilderness” that he writes about 2 Corinthians 11:26). We don’t know for sure. But it seems likely that he also did some evangelizing because when he returns to Damascus after that 3-year period in Nabatean Arabia (and wherever else he journeyed during that 3-year stint), we find that he is already a marked man. So once again I want to emphasize that while there is a time of preparation, we should never wait to share the Gospel. Saul was sharing the Gospel from the moment he first received Christ (Immediately); and he started doing so right where he was, first in Damascus and then in the wilderness. And that is what we are to do as well. Don’t wait to share the miracle of what Christ has done for you. Yes, God may call you somewhere else; He may call you into the ministry or as a missionary (both of which require a lot of prep); but we can also begin sharing Christ right away. In fact we have to. If we don’t, our faith will always wither. It is often when we are sharing Christ (participating with Him in His ministry) that we are most growing in our walk with Christ.

Now at this point Saul returns to minister in Damascus; and the narrative in Acts picks up here in verse 23. It says…

Acts 9:23-25 (NKJV)— 23 Now after many days were past, the Jews plotted to kill him. 24 But their plot became known to Saul. And they watched the gates day and night, to kill him. 25 Then the disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall in a large basket.

Basket— And this [“Basket” was a large woven hamper suitable for hay, straw, or bales of wool.] It’s an unusual but effective means for his escape. And after this we are not sure about the time gap. Some actually place Saul’s 3-year stint at this point (between verses 25 and 26) instead of earlier. But regardless, it is not until 3 years after his conversion that Saul finally makes it to Jerusalem. And it says…

Acts 9:26-30 (NKJV)— 26 And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. {And we know from Galatians 1:18-19 that he actually only met two of the apostles at this point; and these two apostles were Peter and James. And it says} And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. {And after hearing this, they receive Saul into their fellowship, which is made clear in verse 28, which says} 28 So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out. {And Galatians 1:18-19 also reveals that this was a period of only 15 days. But in that time, Saul is witnessing. It says in…} 29 And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him. 30 When the brethren found out, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus.

Caesarea— Now Caesarea was [An important port city on the Mediterranean located 30 mi. N of Joppa. As the capital of the Roman province of Judea and the home of the Roman procurator, it served as the headquarters of a large Roman garrison.] And so it was a safe place for Saul to withdraw to. And then from there it says the disciples sent him out to Tarsus. And it is at this point that [Paul disappeared from prominent ministry for several years, although he possibly founded some churches around Syria and Cilicia (15:23; Gal. 1:21).] And then it says in…

Acts 9:31a (NKJV)— 31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified.

A Time of Peace— And this was due in large part to Saul’s conversion (which in itself greatly reduced the persecution the Church had been facing); but also there were a number of key political changes that also contributed to this time of peace and rest. You had a stricter Roman governor and also Herod Agrippa’s authority also was extended; and both of these served to help restrict the persecution. And this just shows how God can use evil people to work out His plan in the world. But even if the political climate didn’t change, the early Christians would not have been phased a bit. For it says in…

Acts 9:31b (NKJV)— And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.

Our Shield— You see, it was the Spirit of God who was their comfort and strength; not what was going on in the world. And that is why they thrived even when times weren’t so good. And you know, the same ought to apply to us even today. As bad as this world seems to be getting, for we who fear the Lord, we don’t have to be worried. We don’t have to pull our hair in anxiety and fear. We know that God has not abandoned His Church and that He will preserve and keep us. And that goes for the Church as a whole, which we see here in the book of Acts, but it also goes for us as individuals, which we see also here in the book of Acts. You and I may have to crawl into a few baskets ourselves here and there. But God will be faithful to be a shield and fortress for us as we continue to do His work.

Meet With Jesus— And so what we need to learn from this is that if we choose to strive for anything, we must strive for the experience that Saul had in this chapter. We need to strive to meet Jesus in every possible way; to meet Him in song; to meet Him in prayer; to meet Him in Church; to meet Him in our Bible Study; in our devotions; to meet Him in ministry to those who need His touch. If we meet Jesus, our lives will forever be transformed; and the world just might be impacted and forever changed because of you. And so let us be intentional to, as often as we can, meet with Jesus. Let’s do so. Amen.

Lechem Panim #161 "The Conversion of Saul: Part 3” (Acts 9:17-22) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! In our study of the book of Acts we have been looking at one of the great persecutors of the early Church, a man by the name of Saul. And in our passage last week you will remember that Saul has just met Jesus on the road to Damascus, where he was seeking to further his persecution of Christianity. And yet it is on that very road that he encountered Jesus; and that encounter marked the greatest turning point of his life as (being struck blind) he was commanded to go into Damascus and wait further instructions. And so he does, staying with a man named Judas. And Jesus then appears to a Christian named Ananias and tells him to go and tells him to go to Saul and lay hands on him so that he might receive his sight. And Ananias is obviously terrified, fearing Saul. But he goes. And it says…

Acts 9:17-18 (NKJV)— 17 And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized.

From Grey To Color— I recently watched quite a number of videos on YouTube of color blind people receiving a very special gift. Because of modern technology, special glasses that appear just like ordinary sunglasses have been developed that actually correct color blindness. And so these people in the videos (who often received these expensive glasses from friends or loved ones) would open up the special box they came in (often not knowing what they were) and (seeing these ordinary-looking glasses) prepare to put them on. I remember one old tough guy in particular kind of shrugging the gift off, saying, “Guys, I have gone 70+ years without seeing color and I don’t really care whether or not I see it now. This means way more to you guys than it does to me.” And he said he certainly wasn’t going to get emotional or anything like that (like other people he had heard of); he said “I was a body builder; I’m tough.” And then (kind of shrugging to himself) he put the glasses on. And after a few seconds he began to look around. And suddenly you could see the emotion welling up in him (even with the glasses on) and he began weeping. He could not believe how beautiful the world was. Up until that point all he had seen were different shades of grey. Can you imagine seeing color for the first time? And he kept crying because he could not believe what he had been missing. And he went over to his wife and embraced her, thanking her (through tears) for the gift that she had given him. That was only one of many videos I watched. I saw a young man on his wedding day receive the glasses from his fiancé and he got to see her in color for the first time. I saw a mother get to see her two children in color for the first time. Another woman had just gotten the glasses and had a picture of her daughter ready so that the first thing she would see would be the color of her daughter’s eyes. And she was expecting kind of a neat experience. But when she saw her daughter’s eyes for the first time, she suddenly had a hard times seeing through all the tears. Imagine what it would be like to have your whole view of the world changed in an instant. For Saul, that was very much like it was. When the scales fell from Saul’s eyes in those moments, it was more than just physical blindness that went away; Saul was awakened to a whole new way of seeing life; and that was seeing it through the lens of Jesus. In Jesus, Saul met (and continued in fellowship with) the very God whom He loved and worshiped. And from that time onwards His fellowship with God would never be the same.

A Personal Burial & Resurrection— It’s interesting how Ananias comes to Saul after 3 days of blindness. You see, God has a sense of humor. The sign of Jonah was 3 days in the belly of a fish; Jesus’ spent 3 days in the belly of the earth; and here (because Saul rejected the Gospel of Jesus) God put Saul right in the tomb where Jesus had been, so to speak. He had to endure three days of death before he could experience a personal resurrection; his own personal new beginning. And just like a humble person in mourning, he had not eaten or drunk for the entirety of those three day. But now that he has been given the the Holy Spirit, it is time for him to eat and drink. It says…

Acts 9:19 (NKJV)— 19 So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus.

Sauls Being Discipled— Now I can’t imagine what that must have been like. Here Saul is, in the midst of the very people he has been persecuting; and he’s not in the position of instructor, which he probably would have put himself in only a short while prior. No, he is the student, learning all about the life and ministry of Jesus. Now that is pretty incredible when you think about it. These ordinary Christians are discipling the great Saul of Tarsus. And that just goes to show that it doesn’t matter who you are talking to; how smart they are; what their pedigree is. If that person doesn’t know Christ, you have something to offer them; actually you have everything to offer them (even if you might feel small in comparison, by worldly standards). Think of Ananias (the one to whom God sent to Saul). He was one of the Christians we would never consider to be extraordinary; yet God used him in an amazing way to influence Saul. And Saul of course became one of the most significant figures in all of world history, which is something even secular historians admit. Now we don’t know much about this Ananias. But you know, that may be the point. There are always those Ananias-type people behind the scenes, quietly being used of God to move His Kingdom forward.

Kimball & Harrison— [On April 21, 1855, {a man by the name of} Edward Kimball led one of the young men in his Sunday school to faith in Christ. Little did he realize that Dwight L. Moody would one day become the world’s leading evangelist. The ministry of Norman B. Harrison in an obscure Bible conference was used of God to bring Theodore Epp to faith in Christ, and God used Theodore Epp to build the Back to the Bible ministry around the world.] You see, the Ananias’ of the world can have a great impact. And so maybe we need to cultivate the habit (the practice) of asking God on a regular basis, “Who can I influence for You today, Lord? Even if it’s just one person; Lord, help me to find a way to be that influence.” And be prepared to respond; because if you mean that with sincerity, He will lead people into your life. And who knows; the quietest word; the smallest nudge on your part might just be that nudge that ends up forever changing to the course of history.

Eyes Still Opening— Now Saul’s eyes have just been opened; but the spiritual opening of Saul’s eyes wasn’t finished when he left Ananias. No, they continued to be opened day by day as he dwelt with the disciples in Damascus and had poured into his life the message of Jesus Christ. Now anybody who truly meets Jesus can’t be quiet about it. Look at what it says. It says in…

Acts 9:20 (NKJV)— 20 Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.

"Son of God"— Now take a guess. How many times do you think that Jesus is referred to in the book of Acts as the Son of God. I asked somebody this just recently and they replied, “I don’t know. A hundred?” And you might think so. But you know, that’s not even close. It may surprise you, but interestingly this is the only place in the book of Acts where Jesus is called by that title. And it is so interesting how the one person who uses it in this book is a Jew zealous for the name of the Lord; a Jew who would have been the most reluctant to use that title out of fear of blasphemy. But it is a title that Saul used at least 15 times in and throughout his epistles. Now this was a shock to everyone who heard him; that Saul would claim a divine title for one he had up until that time persecuted. And that is why it says in…

Acts 9:21-22 (NKJV)— 21 Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” 22 But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ.

Proving With Scripture— Now Saul was proving that Jesus is the Christ in two ways. First and foremost, he is connecting the dots for people, helping them to see that the Jesus they crucified matched the identity of the Messiah prophesied about in the Old Testament. He knew scripture already like the back of hand. He no doubt could quote the entire Old Testament by memory; that was very typical of any highly educated Jewish man.

Proving With His Testimony— But there was also another way that Saul was proving that this Jesus is the Christ. And that was by His own conversion. And I don’t think we fully grasp how absolutely unbelievable this was. There was no less likely convert in all of history. And you know, that is why the conversion of Paul stands as one of the strongest testimonies to the truth of Jesus Christ’s resurrection because it doesn’t come from somebody who wished Jesus would rise; it came from one who was glad Jesus was dead and wouldn’t have it any other way. Yet not only did the desire of his heart change; not only did he himself become a Christian, but He (like many of those early Christians) was willing to undergo some of the most intense persecution, torture, and even death for what he believed (some of which we see right here; right at the outset of his ministry). Why is he willing to go through all of that? Well, it wasn’t because he believed in some merely religious idea that Christianity was true; no, it was because he had SEEN Jesus. He himself had encountered the resurrected Lord. And when doubters arose amidst his path, all he had to do was point them towards his own personal testimony and say, “Hey, just look at the difference this Jesus has MADE in my life!; where I was then and where I am now! You cannot explain it ANY other way than that I encountered the resurrected LORD; this Jesus of Nazareth!”

Our Testimony; Their Encounter— And you know, the greatest testimony that you and I will ever bear is that testimony born by the change that God has brought about in OUR lives; where we were then and where we are now. Because people can see it with their own eyes. In us the world encounters the Resurrected Lord! And so this week, let people encounter Christ in you. Live for Him and let His Spirit also work in and through you. Amen.

Lechem Panim #160 "The Conversion of Saul: Part 2” (Acts 9:10-28) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome to the show today! In our study of the book of Acts, we have been taking a look at one of the most important conversion stories in all of history, the salvation of Saul on the road to Damascus. Saul had been violently persecuting the Christian Church and was on his way to Damascus to further persecute Christians and prevent them from winning converts in the synagogues there. But something amazing happens to Saul on this road to Damascus in our passage today! He meets the risen Lord! And after he meets Jesus, he was no longer Saul the Jew! He was no longer Saul the Roman; Saul of Tarsus; Saul the highly educated; or even Saul the Pharisee of Pharisees. He was Paul, first and foremost, a what? Listen to…

Romans 1:1– 1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,

A Genuine Encounter— Saul became an apostle of Jesus Christ. And when you think about the power of that; how the unlikeliest convert (one who hated Christianity) became one of its chief advocates and missionaries, it really speaks to the genuineness and the power of the encounter that he had with Jesus there on that road to Damascus. And today I want you to see in Paul’s testimony what a true encounter with Christ ought to produce in the life of a person.

Point 1: Dealing With Sin— First, a Genuine Encounter with God Deals with Sin. The first thing God does is confront Saul with the sin that is at the heart of the issue. He first points out his sin in persecuting the Christians, which is (in essence) persecuting Christ Himself. Then he tells Saul to go into the city and await further instruction. And Saul gets up to leave and realizes he has been struck blind. Now this is an interesting part of the story because he is the only one who is struck blind. Why does Jesus strike him blind? What is the purpose of this?

God’s Light Taken— Well remember how the Jews viewed light and the ability to see? In scripture, God Himself is light and those who know Him walked in the light. In Egypt darkness covered the whole land, except for Goshen, where God’s people dwelt. Why did they have light? Because they followed God. And in and throughout the Old Testament those who are fools; those who reject God and his wisdom are said to be those who stumble in the darkness. Jesus even calls the Pharisees blind leaders of the blind, making the point that they do not know either God or His truth. So what I think Jesus is doing here is making Saul experience his own spiritual darkness; his own spiritual blindness. He is making him bear physically what he is spiritually. And so through this Jesus is saying to Saul, “You are so blind, you persecute the very God you claim to serve. You think you are walking in the light of truth when in fact you are lost. I want to communicate with you just how lost you are. Here, let me take away your sight. And then He says to him, “Now stumble on over into the city and you will be told what to do.”

Point 2: Producing Humility— Now the second characteristic of a Genuine Encounter with God is humility. Now picture this. Saul, who was expecting to come to Damascus in might and in strength, overwhelming the Christians there with his persecuting power, is now sent into that same city the weakest, most powerless person you could imagine. And sometimes this has to happen to us. We have to be humbled before God can do anything with us.

Two Ships Illustration— [In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn't a technology problem like radar malfunction—or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship's presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late.]

Humbling Ourselves— Now that story may sound may sound ridiculous to us. But let me ask you, are there areas in your life that you are not willing to humble yourself and submit to God? Are you so determined to grip the steering wheel of your own life that you are even willing to crash it into disaster just to escape from having to humble yourself and submit to God’s way; God’s plan for your life? Now even those of us who are followers of Christ still have to wrestle with this on a day to day basis. Are we going to obey God in humility; or try to do things our own way? And there was another man in this story that also had to learn this lesson. Look with me at verses 10 to 16...

Acts 9:10-16 [NIV]— 10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

Ananias’ Doubt— Now I really feel for Ananias. He is a Christian who has already heard that Saul is coming and he is possibly even in hiding. And God says to him, “You know Saul of Tarsus?”
“You mean that guy I and a lot of other Christians are hiding from; the guy who has every Christian he meets thrown into prison? That Saul of Tarsus?”
“Yes. That’s the one. I just revealed to him a vision of a man named Ananias coming to restore his sight.”
I Love God’s sense of humor here. He doesn’t say that Saul saw just anybody, but somebody in particular: a man named Ananias!  And Ananias is probably talking out loud, “Wow, God, that’s pretty specific. You know God, Ananias is a pretty common name. Why don’t you grab an Ananias who’s a little bit less me. I was on my way to get my name changed anyways. How about Sapphira’s husband?”
And God says, “Well, he can’t.”
“Why?”
“He’s dead.”
“Really?”
“Yes, he tried to deceive the Holy Spirit.”
And Ananias says, “God, I was seriously kidding about that whole name-changing thing. I wasn’t really on my way to change it.”
And God says, “Go!” So Ananias goes and finds the house Paul is staying in. Look at verse 17...

Acts 9:17-19 [NIV]— 17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Point 3: Being Brought To Repentance:— And this brings us to the third point, which is this: A Genuine Encounter with God leads you to Repentance. Paul not only had his sight restored, but his soul as well, as he received the Holy Spirit into his life. He arose and was baptized, becoming a follower of Jesus Christ; that very Jesus he had met on the road. Now look at the instant change that was wrought about in his life. It says in…

Acts 9:20-22 [NIV]— 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

Point 4: An Evangelistic Drive— And so we see that the fourth thing A Genuine Encounter with God leads you to is Evangelism. Anybody who has been genuinely touched by Christ and filled with His Holy Spirit will want to carry that new hope he has found to those who have yet to receive it. And the irony now is that Saul (who had been an enslaver of Christians) has now become an Evangelist for that very faith. Before he was the persecutor; now he is the persecuted, which we see in the very next section. It says…

Acts 9:23-26 [NIV]— 23 After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, 24 but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. 25 But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall. 26 When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple.

A Trojan Horse?— Now you can really understand where they are coming from. How would you know if he were telling the truth or not? What if he’s just faking it to gain information; information he can later use to cause great harm to the Church. Might be kind of a Trojan Horse situation; where you welcome in as a gift the very one who would destroy you. Well, that is what these early Christians were afraid of. And think about it, what are the chances that he would happen to have this kind of change of right now when you know he is seeking out Christians. I guarantee you most of you would not believe him. I probably wouldn’t. But what is remarkable is that he really was telling the truth! Yet nobody believes him. It just sounded too good to be true! But look at what is says. It says…

Acts 9:27-28 [NIV]— 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. 28 So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.

When We Avoid Encountering God— You know, Paul had a real, genuine encounter with God. And it changed his life forever. But you know, sometimes I feel we avoid genuine encounters with God. Because He’s like a mirror for our hearts, we often don’t want Him to be near enough for Him to reveal those areas in our lives we would prefer to keep hidden and un-dealt with. We often forget to humble ourselves before God and submit our way to His. It is not that we don’t want to be good Christians. We are just afraid to let God take the wheel of our lives. It’s strange. We think we can manage and steer our lives better than the One who made us. And we have all been guilty of this. But what the reality scripture points us to is that if we are to walk in the light as Christ is in the light, we must allow God to deal with our spiritual blindness. We must acknowledge our sins before Him. We must humbly accept His way. We must repent and turn from those sins we are clinging to in our lives. And lastly, we need to take the hope of the Gospel to those who need to hear it. And so today I want to encourage you (if you want to have a genuine encounter with God today) to humble yourself and confess your shortcomings and sins. Repent before the Lord now in this moment and ask Him to give you the strength to do the work He has for you. Let’s do so. Amen.

Lechem Panim #159 "The Conversion of Saul: Part 1” (Acts 9:1-9) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome again to Lechem Panim. In our study of the book of Acts, we have come to chapter 9, in which we read of the conversion of a man who was at one time one of the fiercest persecutors of early Christianity, and yet became God’s chief instrument in bringing the good news of the Gospel to the gentiles. And of course I’m talking about Saul, who was also known as Paul. I say “also known as” because there is a widely-spread belief that God (or Jesus specifically) changed Saul’s name to Paul. But that is not the case. Saul in fact always kept both names. “Saul" was his Hebrew name and “Paul” was his Greek name. And having that kind of duel name was actually very common during that time. Simon Peter’s name is another example: Simon/Shimeon (a Hebrew name), and Peter (a Greek name). Now there definitely is a shift from the use of “Saul” in the beginning of the book of Acts to “Paul” later in the book of Acts; but the reason for that shift has nothing to do with Saul's conversion. Rather it has to do with where he was ministering. In and around Jerusalem he would use his Hebrew name (“Saul”) and in Gentile regions he would use his Greek name (“Paul”). And you will note here that when Jesus confronts him here on the road to Damascus, he calls him by his Hebrew name; not his Greek one.

The Importance of Saul’s Conversion— Now the story of Saul’s conversion is very important for at least two reasons. First, it helps us to get to know who he is, the problems he struggled with, and how Christ changed who he was. Secondly, Paul’s testimony is important because his apostleship (which is the source of his authority) is based upon this very important encounter he had with Jesus while on the road to Damascus. In fact, Paul’s testimony is so important that the event is described three separate times here in the book of Acts (Acts 9:1-9; 22:3-21; 26:1-23). And what makes Paul’s testimony so important is that it shows us that he did not receive his authority from either himself or the other apostles. His authority came from the fact that he met Jesus face to face and was called (by Christ Himself) to go and be a minister of God’s word; a messenger who would carry His authority and do great things in His name. And over and over again Paul points back to Christ as the one who gave him this authority. He doesn’t consider himself worthy to do the work God has for him. In fact, he even describes how the other disciples met Christ in 1 Corinthians 15 (NIV) and then says in verse eight, “and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” You see, he recognizes that it is only by the grace of God’s love that he was chosen to be God’s special instrument.
    And I am sure that all of us here today recognize our own unworthiness in being chosen by God not only to be His special instruments, but His children. It was not because we were anything special, but because He is good.

Zealous Rage— Now although Saul became a mighty instrument for God, at this time Saul is violently persecuting the Christian Church. And behind this is a misguided zealousness for God, whom he thinks these Christians are in rebellion against. And so he is enraged (really) against these Christians. And you know, that is not very different from how the world often responds to you and to me in our day and age as well.

An Answer Forum— Some time ago I was looking something up online and I stumbled across this website where people could ask any question they wanted and other people could answer. And as I was looking through some of the religious questions people were asking and some of the answers other people were giving, I was struck with how easily you could tell who was a Christian and who wasn’t by how differently they responded. The Christians, though not always on track, were honestly trying to answer the questions while those who weren’t Christians were often flippant and rude. And not only that, they were vindictive, speaking hatefully and mockingly towards Christianity. And I found it interesting how people who reject the truth of Christ are rarely content to just say, “I respectfully disagree with you.” No, they often feel the need to lash out and vent their hatred, even when what they are venting about how little or nothing to do with the question that had been originally asked. And through my interactions with unbelievers in those kinds of forums (but even in person) I have really come to understand more and more that very often it is not merely a matter of respectful debate. No, there is an underlying hatred; an enmity that is working against you right from the outset. And you know, that is because of the truth of what Jesus expressed in…

John 3:20-21 (NIV)— 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

Thick Hide/Warm Heart— And so when we come to interact with people who are lost, we need to do expect that there are unseen emotions and forces at play in their lives that will be working against us. Satan will seek to deaden their reason and cloud their thinking. He will place before their mind’s eye a manufactured picture of Christians that would be detestable to anybody. He will seek to stir up their spirit against you. And so, as my mentor once told me, you need to “have a thick hide and a warm heart”. Be willing to take the abuse, remembering what we talked about last week; that those who often respond to us with the most anger are often those who are under the greatest conviction.

The Storm Before Salvation— I remember one time in the early years of my ministry trying to be there for a man who had lost his mother, who had gone to our church. But he himself was a drunkard who did not know the Lord; and it showed in his unsettled (and often angry) spirit and in the way he chose to grieve for his mother, without hope. He was one of those people you would look at and wonder if there really was any hope for him because of how incapable he had rendered himself of hearing God’s voice. How could God ever break through to a man like him? But I kept visiting him. And I would sit with him, listen, and try to offer the hope of Jesus wherever I could. But then one day something happened; he told me he didn’t want to see me anymore. He had misread a situation and thought I had said something to somebody else about him, which I hadn’t. But he said he didn’t want to see me anymore. Now I was a little stubborn and came back later anyway to talk to him and try to restore the relationship, but after I knocked on his trailer door and he opened it, I found that I had interrupted his cleaning of his rifle. And he very menacingly said he didn’t want to see me again. And so I got back into my car and left. But as I was driving down the road back towards the church, I just said, “Okay God, I can’t do anything else. He’s in your hands now. I turn him over to you.” One week later my phone rings and I pick it up and it’s him. And he said he wanted to see me. And so I went and saw him. And when I came to him and sat down with him, he began sharing his own personal despair; the darkness that had closed in upon him. And once again I offered him Jesus. And this time he said he was ready; and he received Christ that night, one week after saying he never wanted to see me again. Later he gave me a plaque that had a cross on it made out of railroad spikes. And I hung it in my office to remind me of what God had shown me through that experience; that there is nobody beyond His reach and ability to save. And even when somebody may be biting into you (as their conviction is at it’s worst), let them do so, all the while recognizing that that chastisement (like the stripes of Jesus) may just be the last croaking of the darkness before the sunrise. So let them bite. And perhaps even in their biting they might taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). Now Saul has definitely come to this turning point. His anger is at it’s peak. And so it says…

Acts 9:1-2 (NIV)— 1 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.

En Route To Damascus— Now what is happening is these Christians are spreading the Gospel by teaching in their local synagogues. And Saul wants to put a stop to this in order to prevent those people who come to the synagogue to debate and to learn from being led into what he perceives to be a wicked cult. So he receives permission and is on his way to Damascus in Syria, which [was the nearest important city outside the Holy Land. It also had a large Jewish population. The distance from Jerusalem to Damascus was about 150 miles, four to six days’ travel.] And he is at the end of his journey, drawing near to the city. Look at verse 3...

Acts 9:3-9 (NIV)— 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

Only Through Encounter— Now here we find that Saul, who thought he had had a clear vision of God and what He wanted; and who had intended on riding into Damascus in might and in strength, now has been rendered vision-less (physical blindness to match his spiritual blindness) that now necessitates his having to be led into the very place he had intended to bring persecution. And it was Jesus Himself who confronted Saul and (as we will see) works about a marvelous transformation in his life. And what that shows us is that it is the presence of Jesus that ultimately changes a person; not anything you and I say or do (though God will most certainly use that). But ultimately it is He who confronts, convicts, and brings people to repentance. Our job is simply to lead them to Him. And so this week, seek to bring the presence of Jesus to those around you. It may be in something you say; or it may be in how you respond to their mistreatment of you. Let them see reflected in you and me the presence of Jesus. Amen.

Lechem Panim #158 "Saul of Tarsus” (Acts 9) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome again to Lechem Panim. In our study of the book of Acts, we have come to chapter 9, which we will begin looking at during our time together today. But first, I want to tell you a little about a young girl I’m sure many of you have heard of named Anne Frank. Her story is one that has been remembered throughout the decades due to the tragedies that she faced and the sad and cruel way that her life came to an end during the World War II era. At the age of thirteen [she and her family went into hiding in Amsterdam. She kept a diary, which was given to her on her birthday, in which she chronicled the events of the war and her and her families suffering under the Nazi persecution. They had a hiding place called the Annex in which they concealed themselves. But then they were betrayed and captured and sent to the Nazi death camp Auschwitz in Poland in 1944. Anne, her sister Margot, and their mother Edith died in Bergen-Belsen, another camp. The father (miraculously) survived. But later [a friend of the Franks who had brought them food and clothing while they were in hiding, found Anne’s diary by her bed and saved it], giving it to Anne’s father who survived. It was later published and really [gave a voice and face to all those who suffered Nazi persecution.] Personally, I cannot imagine what it would have been like to live through the trials and persecutions that they faced. But you know, Anne’s story is not unique. Sadly, the story of the Jewish people is filled with stories like hers; stories of persecution and fear. There has been in almost every generation of God’s people a Pharoah, a Nebuchadnezzar, a Darius, a Haman, a Herod, a Nero, or a Hitler. And the same continues to be true today. And yet God showed His providence in each of those situations and often even used what those rulers intended for evil to actually produce or lead to the good of God’s people. God judged Pharoah and delivered Israel out of Egypt. God helped his people endure during the reign of Nebuchadnezzer, delivering Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the flames. He helped them endure the reign of Darius, during which He saved Daniel from the mouths of the lions (and the rulers who were trying to bring about his death). Haman tried to exterminate all the Jews much like Hitler did, yet God used a young girl named Esther to bring about deliverance and (in the end) it was Haman who died and Esther’s cousin Mordecai who came to rule in Haman’s former position as Grand Vizier to the king. In the New Testament Herod killed the Jewish boys in an attempt to kill the Messiah. But in the end, he died and the Messiah survived (the One who would bring God’s salvation to the world). Nero also failed to exterminate the Christians, whom he blamed for all the ills of Rome (including a fire which he himself started). And in the case of the Nazis, they were defeated and shortly afterwards a great and glorious prophecy was fulfilled for the Jewish people as they became a nation once again. Over and over again God’s people are attacked, yet God brings them through. And they (as a people) keep the celebration of that reality at the forefront of their lives. The Jews often sum up their history in three simple phrases: (1) They tried to kill us. (2) We won. (3) Let’s eat.

The First Great Persecutor of Christianity— Now I say all of this because in our passage today we encounter the first great persecutor of the Christian Church; a man by the name of Saul, a very important religious man who (in ignorance) set himself against Christ and His followers, who at that time were almost entirely Jews. And so this time the enemy came from within the Jewish people. And yet right on cue we see continued this glorious theme of God’s providence in working His salvation in the midst of (and even through) times of enormous trial and persecution.

The Stoning of Stephen— Now remember that not long before this, Stephen (one of seven church leaders selected to minister to the Hellenists) has just born witness to the Jewish leaders not only of the truth of Jesus being the Christ; the Son of God, but also of their guilt in putting Him to death. And the leaders are outraged at him and verse 7:58 (NIV) says they 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. And it says in verse 8:1 (NIV) And Saul approved of their killing him.

An Illegal Act— Now not only was the stoning of Stephen a morally evil act, but it was also an illegal one. Because [under Roman rule the Sanhedrin did not have the legal right to execute without Roman concurrence (see John 18:31).] But they did anyway. And the very first glimpse we have of this man named Saul is when he is standing by, passively watching these Jews murder this innocent man while he watches over their clothes. The very first place we meet Saul in scripture, he’s an accessory to murder. He doesn’t exactly sound like a pleasant sort of fellow. But he would have been very highly respected by his fellow Jews; and for good reason.

Paul’s Education at Tarsus— First of all, he was very highly educated. We know this for at least two reasons. First, he was from Tarsus. And [Tarsus was “no ordinary city” (Acts 21:39)] It was a city of intellectual elites; very highly educated people. In fact, [The inhabitants of Tarsus were so well known for learning that Strabo, the Roman geographer, remarked, “The people at Tarsus have devoted themselves so eagerly, not only to philosophy, but also to the whole round of education in general, that they have surpassed Athens, Alexandria, or any other place” (Geography 14.5.13).] And so here was a guy who, having studied abroad in Jerusalem under Rabbi Gamaliel (grandson of a famous Rabbi), has a mastery of Torah, as well as other fields of study normal Jews were not permitted to touch, such as Homer, Euripides, and other Greek literature that was normally considered unclean by the Jews. And that, by the way, would have prepared Saul to better be used by God to communicate the Gospel to the gentiles. But not yet.

He Was A Pharisee— Now on top of this Saul was also a Pharisee, which meant that he was a part of the religious elite in Israel. The name “pharisees” means [‘the separate ones’, i.e. the holy ones, the true community of Israel,] And so Saul was a very highly respected Jewish leader who would have been among the upper classes sociologically.

He was Roman— Now in addition to all of this Saul was also a Roman, which gave him an advantage in certain situations because he had more rights than the average person; such as rights to a trial.

The Road To Damascus— And so, all this to say, Saul was a very important and influential man. In fact he says later (after his conversion) in his epistle to the Philippians basically, “If anybody had anything to brag about, I did! As far as the world was concerned, I was doing pretty good. And I thought so too. And I thought I was winning extra points with God by squelching out this blasphemous new religion called Christianity.”

Zealous History— And by the way [The zeal Paul demonstrated in persecuting the church is not simply religious fanaticism. Paul saw his devotion for God and his law as part of a noble history in Israel, which lauded those who showed outstanding courage to defend and avenge what was holy.] So Saul is trying to do the right thing. But, because of ignorance of the Gospel and misplaced zeal, he believes he is doing God a service by persecuting these Christians, whom he believes are leading God’s people astray, never realizing that they are leading the people to God Himself; to the Messiah. And so it says that after the stoning of Stephen…

[Acts 8:1-4 (NIV)]— ...On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. {(As we said before, the Greek underlying this phrase sometimes describes the ravages of wild animals.)} Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison. 4 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

Not Scared Into Silence— Now I love how these Christian believers weren’t scared into silence. No, even though they were forced to scatter, they never stopped sharing the Gospel even though they knew that doing so increased their chances of getting caught or killed. And it makes me think about my life and my ministry. Am I far easily scared into silence? We sometimes think, “What if I offend the other person?” “What if they get angry?” And of course we don’t want to do so needlessly. But let me tell you, the message of the Gospel (that all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; that we are in desperate need of a Savior who can bring us forgiveness and change because we need changing because of how desperately wicked we are); that message is offensive. But you know, most people (at base) recognize the truth of this, which is why they sometimes respond the way that they do. It is the conviction of the Holy Spirit working through you that is causing them to get angry. But you know, we really shouldn’t worry about that. As long as we are presenting the Gospel in a Christ-like manner, we are doing our part. And often on the other side of that angry and malicious response is conversion.

Ministry Outside A Clinic— I used to be a part of a ministry that met outside of an abortion clinic. We weren’t there to protest, but just to offer help to the women and men going in and out and to encourage them to love their baby. And we shared the Gospel where we could and sang hymns together. Now some of these men and women would be infuriated with us. They’d storm past and say they didn’t need our religion. But then often they would come out of the clinic later and come up to us and say (often in tears) that because of us (or the hymn that they heard us sing while in there) they had decided to keep their baby. Some of them even came to faith in Jesus. Now over the years (we kept track) hundreds of babies were reported to us by their mothers as having been saved through that ministry. Some of these parents even came back later and joined our ministry, often with their babies, who then became young children. And what we found was that it was often those who got the angriest with us who were actually being convicted the most and who were the closest to making a decision to turn to Jesus and to love their baby.

Push Through!— Now remember that this week as you minister to that family member, friend, or stranger. Don’t get discouraged when things get rough. If you push through the anger (and sometimes even the persecution) you will often find that the darkness of their response was actually the smoke being produced by the fire of God’s conviction. And God can cause that conviction to bring salvation to that person’s life if you are faithful to share even when it’s tough. And so let us be faithful to always share the hope of the Gospel. Amen.