The Testimony of Paul's conversion

INTRODUCTION

1. Are you someone who has contemplated becoming a Christian, but

wondered...

a. Would God forgive you for the terrible things you've done?

b. Could you live the kind of life God desires of you?

2. There is a man who serves as an example for you...

a. Of the grace and mercy that is available for you

b. Of the faith and love that you can have in Jesus

[His name is Paul, and in

1Timothy 1:12-17

“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; 13Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. 14And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 15This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. 16Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. 17Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

I. DEMONSTRATING THE GRACE OF OUR LORD

A. NOTE PAUL'S FORMER LIFE...

1. He was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent (violent) man

a. Consenting to the death of Stephen

 Acts 7:60

“And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

b. Persecuting Christians even to Damascus

 Acts 9:1-2

“And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.”

. Enraged against Christians, compelling them to blaspheme

- Acts 26:9-11

“I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them. 11And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.”

2. His goal was to destroy the church of God

 Galatians 1:13

“For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:”

3. He was indeed "chief" of sinners

-- Yet the grace of the Lord was "exceedingly abundant" and he

obtained mercy!

B. WHAT ABOUT YOUR LIFE...?

1. Yes, you have committed sin

 Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

a. Perhaps you are a good, moral person like the Eunuch,

Cornelius, or Lydia

b. Perhaps you are a murderer and blasphemer like Paul was

2. In either case, Jesus came to into the world to save sinners

- 1Timothy 1:15

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”

a. The grace of the Lord is exceedingly abundant

b. The Lord is long-suffering

 2Peter 3:9

“he Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

-- Will you not let Paul's pattern move you to believe on the Lord

for everlasting life?

1Timothy 1:16

“Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.”

[There is no sin too great, no crime so heinous, that cannot be forgiven

by the grace of the Lord!  The conversion of Paul serves as evidence

that no matter who you are or what you've done, you can be saved.  Paul

also serves as a pattern...]

II. DEMONSTRATING THE FAITH AND LOVE IN JESUS

A. NOTE PAUL'S SERVICE TO CHRIST...

1. The Lord put Paul into the ministry

 1Timothy 1:12

“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.”

 To turn people from the power of Satan to God

 Acts 26:18

“To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”

2. He became a pattern of the faith and love that is possible in

Christ

 Striving to be the best he could be

 Philippians 3:12-15

“Not as though I had already attainted, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as be pefect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.”

 Learning contentment, finding strength

 Philippians 4:11-13

“Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

-- Paul provides the example of a life of faith and love that

leads to peace

 Philippians 4:9

“Those things, which ye have both learned and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.”

B. WHAT ABOUT YOUR LIFE...?

1. If you are already a Christian

a. Are you experiencing the faith and love that is Christ?

1) Faith that comes from the Word of God?

 Romans 10:17

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

2) Love that comes by being taught of God?

 1Thessalonians 4:9-10

“But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;”

b. Are you following the pattern of Paul...?

1) Cooperating with the grace of God to turn from sin?

2) Ever pressing onward toward spiritual maturity?

3) Faithful to whatever ministry the Lord places upon you?

2. If you are not yet a Christian

a. Why not take the step of faith like Paul did?

1) He did what the Lord commanded him

Acts 22:16

“And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”

2) He started anew, walking by faith and not by sight

 2 Corinthians 5:7

“(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)”

b. Why not accept the love that is available in Jesus?

1) The love of God, your heavenly Father

 1John 4:10,11

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”

2) The love of Jesus, your wonderful Savior

 John 15:9,10

“As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.”

Consequences from foolish decisions

Proverbs 3:5

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”

I love to read proverbs, for it speaks soley on spiritual wisdom and the cause and effects of what foolish and fleshly decisions can bring. God specifies in His holy word how important it is to make sure that we read and instill the truth in our walk with Him. As we read the bible, you can learn from the many achievements and the unfortunate failures, that a numerous amount of people have made along the way.

Jonah Learned the hard way when he used his fleshly wisdom against God’s wisdom and instructions when it came to the judgement/repentance of the people of Ninevah. Throughout his journey he learned no matter what tactics he tried to avoid going to Ninevah, God’s way will always prevail all the time. The reason of Jonah’s defiance of the people of Ninevah, was that they were in constant battle against the Israelites and therefore the Israelites suffered for it. But regardless of what Jonah thought and felt about it, God is a merciful and loving God and wanted to give them a chance for redemption.

Jonah 1:1-17

Jonah Sent to Nineveh, Flees to Tarshish

Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. 3But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.

The Great Storm

 4But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. 5Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. 6So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not. 7And they said every one to his fellow, Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. 8Then said they unto him, Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us; What is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou? 9And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land. 10Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him, Why hast thou done this? For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.

Jonah Cast Into the Sea and Swallowed

11Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. 12And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. 13Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. 14Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee. 15So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging. 16Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows. 17Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.”

Ninevah repents

Jonah 3:5-10

“So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. 6For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water: 8But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. 9Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not? 10And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.”

Jonah's Anger at the Lord's Compassion

Jonah 4:1-11

1But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. 2And he prayed unto the LORD, and said, I pray thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil. 3Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live. 4Then said the LORD, Doest thou well to be angry? 5So Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city. 6And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd. 7But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered. 8And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live. 9And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death. 10Then said the LORD, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night: 11And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?” 

(My life lesson shared)

I would like to share an analogy with you guys, as it has pressed deeply in my mind. (in a good way) First I would like to ask, have we done something foolish then after doing it, say why did I do that? I’m sure 100% of you would agree. For example: We all have to go grocery shopping to put food in the house, and the worst part of the shopping day is bringing all of the food in the house. We say to ourselves,  don’t worry we are going to use our incredible superhuman strength and carry as many groceries in the house as we can so there would be less trips. Well, in our version of superhuman strength, we end up with the risk of truly injuring ourselves; whether it being our back, arms or simply falling by the weight of what we are carrying. I know, because I made the mistake of taking more than I can simply handle and seriously hurting myself. I was carrying probably around 3-4 bags of soda bottles and what made it more trivial is that I was walking up the steps to my house. Well I guess I lost my grip of the bags while trying to open the door when all of a sudden the weight of the bags twisted in a way and fell on top of my right ring finger. I instantly heard a crack/rip sound, and I thought that I broke my finger because when I looked down at my hand my finger was really crooked (turned to the right). I cried and regretted my decision of doing something so foolish, and at that time I was trying to figure out if I needed to go to the hospital for a broken finger. After examining the finger I didn’t see any bones sticking out but I was still concerned. Later that night I notice that my right hand was so swollen, that it looked like a baseball mitt; so at this point there it was an immediate prayer session between my dad and I. By the grace of God, my hand had healed with no hospital bill. (Thank you Jesus!) I strongly believe that I had injured tendons and no bones were touched. Now don’t get me wrong, just like any injury there will be a time when they will flair up when triggered, but that Is apart of life. We are reminded everyday that we are only human and we live in an imperfect world; the total opposite of Heaven. In heaven we don’t get sick, we don’t age, we don’t hurt, but we are in peace to rejoice and praise our Lord Father for eternity.

To this day where all of my fingers bend and relax like normal, the one finger likes to stay slightly bent (nothing too serious). And If I use my right hand a lot through strenuous work (cleaning, writing,etc) that finger tightens and it tends to get a little sore; I would just massage my hand a little bit and then it would be alright again.

Putting aside injuries, and fingers, my whole point was to show how we make such foolish decisions that always results in consequences. Throughout the word of God, He tells us to Seek Him, to Trust Him, and to Lean upon Him through everything that we do. Where my foolish decision to carry everything in sight that led to my injury, I should have taken my time where I would have avoided all of that trouble. Which brings to where God talks of wisdom as we live in this crazy world….

Proverbs 28:26

“He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.”