Okay, today we're looking at
a glorious conversion story and every conversion story is glorious
because it's the Lord's doing and it's marvelous in our eyes.
Acts chapter 9 verse 1, and Saul yet breathing out threatenings,
Saul of Tarsus, threatenings, slaughter. against the disciples
of the Lord. He went to the high priest asking
for permission, not only to persecute those people there in Jerusalem,
but to go to Syria, Damascus, and there find anybody that's
believing the gospel of Christ and put them in prison as well. The title of the message, The
Persecutor became the preacher. That's a miracle, is it not?
The persecutor became the preacher. The hater of the Lord Jesus Christ
became a lover of the Lord Jesus Christ. The same mouth that spewed
out slaughter against the Lord, now it says in verse 20, look
over there, Acts chapter 9 verse 20, and straightway he preached
Christ in the synagogue that he is the son of God. How do you account for such a
radical change? It wasn't that Ananias reformed
him, or it wasn't that Ananias told him he ought to straighten
up, do the thing that's right. God intervened and made him the
apostle, made him a believer. How did such a radical change
and conversion take place? Well, with the Lord, all things
are possible. Never despair of God saving any
vile sinner. With God, all things are possible. There is nothing too hard for
the Lord. You often heard of people, well,
he's a hard nut. No one can crack him. He's not
met the Lord. The Lord can crack any sinner.
I love what Paul said later. as he became the Apostle Paul,
and when he's in prison for the gospel, he writes back to young
Timothy and reminds him not to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ
or of me, his prisoner, for it's God who called us and saved us
and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, BUT
ACCORDING TO GOD'S OWN PURPOSE AND GRACE GIVEN US IN CHRIST
BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD. LATER ON, HE SAID, HE
COUNTS ALL THINGS LOST FOR CHRIST'S SAKE. OH, THAT I MAY WIN CHRIST
AND BE FOUND IN HIM. NOW, IN THIS CHAPTER, WE SEE
THE AMAZING CONVERSION STORY OF THIS MAN KNOWN AS SAUL OF
TARSUS. He was a Pharisee of Pharisees
by his own admission. He was a self-righteous Jew who
hated the Lord Jesus Christ. We first met him at the stoning
of Stephen. He heard Stephen preach the gospel
of the Lord Jesus Christ, and when that pack of wolves, those
Pharisees, ran on him like a pack of dogs, gnashed on him with
their teeth, and then picked up stones to dash his brains
out, You know who held the coat of those that did that deed? Saul of Tarsus, standing there,
giving full consent, watching that man die such a brutal death,
Stephen, as he stoned, and he said, Amen. I'm glad to see another
follower of Christ with his brains dashed out. He became a hardened
hater of the Lord Jesus Christ. He did his best zealous efforts
to stamp out the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and to kill
everyone who believed the gospel. You remember in Acts chapter
8 verse 1, Saul was consenting unto his death, that is the death
of Stephen. Verse 3 of Acts 8 says, and Saul
made havoc of the church ENTERING INTO EVERY HOUSE AND ARRESTING
MEN AND WOMEN AND COMMITTED THEM TO PRISON. THIS MAN WAS A MAN
FULL OF RAGE AND HATRED. YOU JUST SEE THE OOZING OUT OF
HIS MOUTH AND OUT OF HIS HEART HOW HE HATED THE LORD. UNTIL
ONE DAY BY THE SOVEREIGN, GOOD, DIVINE PROVIDENCE OF GOD, SAUL
OF TARSUS MET THE ONE whom he was persecuting, the Lord Jesus
Christ. Now, who's gonna win that battle? Who's gonna win that battle?
He's facing now the almighty God, the Lord Jesus Christ. And when he meets the Lord Jesus
Christ, he's unhorsed, put in the dust, and he cries out, Lord, what would you have me to do?
God made him willing in the day of his power. WHAT WE SEE IN THIS CONVERSION
STORY IS A DIVINE PATTERN OF HOW GOD CALLS OUT HIS SHEEP AND
MAKES THEM NEW CREATURES IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. PAUL WRITES
LATER, HE SAID, IF ANY MAN BE IN CHRIST, HE IS A NEW CREATURE,
A NEW CREATION. ALL THINGS ARE PASSED AWAY. ALL
THINGS ARE PASSED AWAY. BEHOLD, ALL THINGS HAVE BECOME
NEW. We read a moment ago that Paul
said, "'Howbeit for this cause I obtain mercy, "'that in me
first Jesus Christ might show forth "'all longsuffering for
a pattern.'" He's a pattern of how God saves sinners. "'To them
which should hereafter believe on him, "'to life everlasting,
now to the king eternal, "'immortal, invisible, the only wise God,
"'be honor and glory.'" dominion forever and ever. Amen. Saul of Tarsus knew that he was
saved by the grace of God. Now, five things I want to point
out in this conversion story. I believe it's true. OF EVERY
SINNER WHOM GOD SAVES. FIRST OF ALL, THERE IS A DIVINE
ELECTION OF GOD'S GRACE. DIVINE ELECTION OF GOD'S GRACE. YOU'LL NOTICE IN THIS STORY,
IN ACTS CHAPTER 9, VERSE 15, THE LORD SAID TO ANANIAS,
GO THY WAY, for Paul, that is Saul of Tarsus, is a chosen vessel
unto me, to bear my name, or to preach the gospel before the
Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel." God had
what? chosen him to salvation. No one has ever been saved and
justified in the Lord Jesus Christ who was not first chosen to salvation
in that eternal covenant of grace. We are bound to give thanks to
God for you brethren Beloved of the Lord, because God has
from the beginning chosen you unto salvation. God has blessed
us with all spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ,
according as he has chosen us in him before the foundation
of the world. Preacher, you got to preach election
to preach the gospel? Absolutely. Absolutely. You cannot preach the gospel
without preaching the sovereign Christ who will have mercy on
whom he will. Our Lord said to this, to those
men in his day, in his earthly ministry, he said, you didn't
choose me, I chose you. He said, no man can come to me,
the Lord said, except the Father which sent me. Draw him, blessed
is that man, David write, to whom God chooses and calls us. to approach unto him. No one
has ever truly believed the gospel without God's divine electing
grace. And I love what the old timers,
they called it God's electing love. God will have mercy upon
he whom he will have mercy. No one has ever truly believed
the gospel without the divine command of God. Apostle Paul,
when he preaches his first message in Acts chapter 13, we read,
as many as were ordained to eternal life, they believed the gospel
of God's grace. Faith in Christ. Now listen,
I can help you here. Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ
is not the cause of salvation. It's not. It's the fruit of God's
saving grace in Christ Jesus. Knowing, brethren and beloved,
your election of God How? Our gospel came not in you in
word only, but also in power, and in assurance, and in much,
much blessedness of faith in Christ. The apostle Paul later
declares this very thing that God had chosen. Turn to Acts
chapter 22, when he's recounting his conversion story. Turn to
Acts chapter 22, verse 14. He said, Brother Saul, verse
13, received thy sight, and the same hour I looked upon him,
and he said, the God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest
know his will, and see that just one, and hear the voice of his
mouth. God had done what? Paul said
later, God chose me. He chose me unto salvation in
the Lord Jesus Christ. ELECTION DOES NOT KEEP ANY SINNER
FROM CHRIST. IT'S NOT HIS ENEMY, IT'S HIS
BEST FRIEND. HAD GOD NOT CHOSEN A PEOPLE UNTO
SALVATION, NO SINNER WOULD EVER BE SAVED. BECAUSE BY NATURE WE
LOVE DARKNESS, WE HATE GOD. HAD GOD JUST LEFT SAUL OF TARSUS
IN HIS BLIND REBELLION, HE WOULD HAVE NEVER BELIEVED THE GOSPEL. NO ONE COULD HAVE... YOU RECKON
THAT ANANIAS, APART FROM THE WORK OF GOD AND THE SPIRIT OF
GOD AND THE POWER OF GOD, YOU RECKON THAT ANANIAS COULD HAVE
SHOWED UP TO THE HOUSE OF JUDAS IN THAT STREET CALLED STRAIGHT
AND CONVINCED HIM OUT OF LOGIC TO BELIEVE THE GOSPEL? HE WOULD
HAVE BOUND UP O'ANANIAS AND HAULED HIM TO JERUSALEM TO BE PUT TO
DEATH. You see, it took the power of
God. No different today, my friend. It takes the power of God. That's
why Paul later writes, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
it's the power of God and the salvation to everyone that believes,
and we only believe the gospel according to the working of His
mighty power. Where there is no election of
grace, where there no election of grace, and there is, BUT WHERE
THERE NO ELECTION OF GRACE, THERE WOULD BE NOT ONE SINNER SAVED.
THERE IS A REMNANT ACCORDING TO THE ELECTION OF HIS GRACE. HERE'S POINT NUMBER TWO. THERE
IS A DIVINE REVELATION OF CHRIST IN THE HEART AND IN THE SOUL
OF THE SINNER. NOW, IF YOU HOLD YOUR PLACE THERE
AND TURN OVER TO THE BOOK OF GALATIANS, RIGHT AFTER SECOND
CORINTHIANS IS GALATIANS, IS THAT RIGHT? Paul writes this in Galatians
chapter one, for you heard, verse 13, of my conversation in time
past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted
the church of God, I wasted it. Galatians 1.13, you got it? And profited in the Jews' religion
above many my equals in my own nation, being more exceeding
zealous of the tradition of my fathers, but when it pleased
God, who separated me from my mother's womb and call me by
his grace to reveal his son in me that I might preach him among
the heathen, immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood." Salvation
is a divine revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ to the heart
and soul of the sinner. Our Lord said this in Matthew
11, He said these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed
them unto babes, even so, father, for so it seemed good in thy
sight. I'm often reminded of what the
Lord said to Peter. Peter, whom do you say that I
am? Remember, Matthew 16, thou art the Christ, the Son of the
living God. Oh, blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and
blood did not reveal that unto thee, but my Father, which is
in heaven. Salvation is the divine revelation
of the light of God. Look what it says in the text,
Acts chapter nine, as he journeyed from Damascus suddenly. They
shine round about him a light from heaven. Now, this is not
just mere sunlight, S-U-N, this is S-O-N light, sunlight, a light
from heaven. Who is that light from heaven?
Well, it's none other than the Lord said, I am the light of
the world. And what was the response? He
fell to the earth. He made the dust his headquarters. And he heard the voice of God
calling to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? And he said,
who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I'm the Savior,
Jesus, the one you persecute. It's hard for thee to kick against
the pricks, the purpose of God. And he trembling, astonished,
said, Lord, What would you have me to do? And the Lord said, you arise
and you go to a city, and there you'll find out. You'll hear
some more instruction from my servant. Now he's not saying,
what do I do? What must I do to be saved? We
know that salvation is not by anything we do. Salvation is
by the grace, grace of God. But there is an instruction from
God that was given to him that he will and must obey, and he
did. Now who is this like? was the
same I am in verse 5 that spoke from that burning bush unto Moses. Moses said whom shall I say that
has sent me unto EGYPT TO REDEEM MY PEOPLE FROM BONDAGE. I AM
THAT I AM. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS THAT
GREAT I AM THE GOOD SHEPHERD. I AM THE GOOD SHEPHERD. I AM
THE BREAD OF LIFE. I AM THE WAY. I AM THE TRUTH.
THE SAME ONE WHO SPEAKS FROM HEAVEN TO THIS POOR GUILTY VILE
SINNER AND MAKES HIM A NEW CREATURE IN CHRIST. I AM THAT I AM. I will have mercy on whom I will
have mercy. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
just one that Stephen preached unto Saul. Saul heard this message
before from the mouth of Stephen, and now the Lord drives that
message home to his heart in effectual grace. Salvation comes
to the sinner when by the sovereign power of God we receive a revelation
of the glory of God in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ by the
revelation of God the Holy Spirit taking the word of God And he takes the things of Christ
and shows them unto us. When a person sees Christ and
is given a revelation of the glory and beauty of the Lord
Jesus Christ, he sees him as the absolute Lord of heaven and
earth. Lord! It's not sweet Jesus. We got a good thing going. He's
my co-pilot. It's Lord. He's Lord and Christ. here's what we see you remember
2nd Corinthians 4 God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness
that's what happened right here God commanded the light to shine
in his heart and what did he see he saw the glory of God in
the face of the face of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ Now
that's what happens when God saves a sinner. We see the glory
of his mercy, the glory of his love, the glory of his salvation,
the glory of redemption, where? In the person of the Lord Jesus
Christ. We see him as altogether lovely. We see him as the one who is
precious unto our soul. Now here's the third thing I
want us to see. The divine personal call he fell to the earth and
he heard this voice the voice of God in the light of God saying
unto him Saul Oh in case you didn't hear Saul You're persecuting
the one who is a Lord of heaven and earth. Here's a divine personal
call. Here's what happens when God
saves a sinner. The Lord calls his sheep by name. He has known there, the foundation
of God stand assure having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that
are his. He said to Jeremiah, before I
formed you in the belly, I knew you and ordained you to be a
prophet. Well, that's true of Saul of
Tarsus, is it not? The Lord calls his sheep by name
and he leads them out. He knows you, he knows your name. He calls them out of darkness
into his marvelous light. He translates us out of the kingdom
of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son. That's what
happened to Saul of Tarsus. He was in the kingdom of darkness. Now he's been translated into
the kingdom of light. Christ. He calls them out of
the refuge of lies to Christ's city of refuge that we might
show forth the praises of him who called us out of darkness
and he called us under his marvelous light. This is a marvelous light. When the Good Shepherd calls
the sheep, they hear his voice and and they follow him. That's what
Saul was doing until the day he died. He's following the Lord
Jesus Christ. Now this call here is not a general
call. The old timers used to talk about
a general call and the effectual call of the gospel. This call
and the call of salvation to God's elect is not a general
call of creation. or of conscience. And there is
a general call of creation, the heaven declared the glory of
God. And there is that general call of conscience, the conscience
ourself, the conscience bears witness, the law of God's written
upon the conscience. But this call here is the effectual,
irresistible call of God the Holy Spirit with the gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ that always is effective and effectual and
is irresistible and it gets the job done. IT GETS THE JOB DONE. BEING CONFIDENT OF THIS VERY
THING, REMEMBER? GOD WHO HAS BEGUN A GOOD WORK
IN YOU, HE WILL PERFORM IT. SALVATION IS HIS PERFORMANCE,
NOT OURS. NO ONE WILL EVER BE SAVED OR
JUSTIFIED AND REDEEMED WHO HAS NOT BEEN EFFECTIVELY CALLED BY
GOD. THIS CALL, LET ME GIVE YOU FOUR OR FIVE THINGS ABOUT THIS
CALL. IT WAS A PERSONAL CALL. Those other men that were traveling
with him, they heard something, but they didn't hear the call
of God to their heart. It was a personal call. I'll
give you several examples of that. When the Lord walked in
front of the tomb of a dead man named Lazarus, who'd been dead
four days, who was so dead that his body was corrupting and said,
don't remove that stone. His body is a terrible smell. And the Lord Jesus walked in
front of the tomb of that dead man and said, Lazarus, if you
want to, maybe you would come out of there, out of that grave.
Lazarus come forth, and he that was dead came forth. God doesn't try to do anything. God doesn't try to save anyone.
He saves them by his grace. Matthew, he walked in front of
the table of that publican named Matthew. He said, Matthew, follow
me. He dropped his books, left his tax business, and followed
the Lord Jesus Christ. Zacchaeus up that tree, another
publican, chief of publicans. Make haste and come down." And he came down. Why'd he come down? He was one of those sons of Abraham
whom God had elected unto salvation. It was a personal call. Secondly,
it was a convincing call. Why are you persecuting me, the
Lord says. It was a convicting call. It's
hard to thee to kick against the purpose of God. And he trembling,
verse six, and astonished said, Lord, what will you have me to
do? It was a convicting call. It
was a humbling call. The Lord's nigh to them of a
broken heart. He makes them willing in the
day of his power. It was a stripping call, a humbling
call. He was broken hearted for God. It was a sovereign distinguishing
call. The other men knew something
was going on, but they did not know the Lord was calling out
to Saul. The Lord did not call those other
men. He left those other men to perish
in their sin, as far as we know. He will have mercy upon whom
he will have mercy. And it was an awakening call.
Once the Lord called him to life in Christ, Saul began to call
upon the Lord for mercy and in prayer, as it says over here
in verse 11. and Saul of Tarsus, you'll find
him. And he's now, he's in the house
and he's praying. Oh, he was religious before.
He was going through the motions of praying outwardly, but now
he's calling upon the Lord. Now he's crying for mercy, like
the publican, God be merciful to me, the sinner, whoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. What's he doing? Calling upon the Lord. Here's the fourth thing. We see
a divine mission and a message. The Lord sends Saul of Tarsus,
a faithful servant named Ananias, a preacher of the gospel, to
instruct him in the way of salvation by the grace of God. At first
Ananias, as it says in verse 13 and 14, Ananias said, I've
heard about this man. He's an evil man, and Ananias
said, I don't want to meet this man. God said, I've changed him. He's not the man he used to be.
He's been made a new creature in Christ. I've heard many, heard
by many of this man how much evil he has done in Jerusalem.
Verse 14, and here he has authority to the chief, from the chief
priest to bind, all that call upon thy name." Verse 15, the
Lord said to him, you go, you go because he's a chosen vessel
to me. to bear my name, to preach my
name before the Gentiles and the kings and the children of
Israel. Ananias was fearful to approach
Saul because of all the evil he had heard of him, but the
Lord reassured him that Saul was indeed a chosen vessel of
mercy who would be sent to preach the gospel to many. I love what
Paul says later. I'M NOW READY TO PREACH THE GOSPEL
TO YOU WHO ARE AT ROME, FOR I'M NOT ASHAMED OF THE GOSPEL OF
CHRIST." WHAT A MARVELOUS CONVERSION STORY THIS IS. ANANIAS FAITHFULLY
DELIVERED THE MESSAGE THE LORD HAD GIVEN TO HIM. HIS BLINDED
EYES WERE HEALED. GOD USED HIM. as a means to give this man sight
by the gift, special gift of God, the Holy Spirit. And he
was filled with the gifts to preach the gospel of the grace
of God. Now, I want you to turn to Acts
chapter 22. Acts chapter 22, we have a little
more information when Paul again recites this conversion story. Acts 22 verse 13, He came to
me, that is Ananias, and stood and said unto me, Brother Saul,
receive thy sight. And in the same hour I looked
upon him, and he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee,
that thou shouldest know his will, that thou shouldest see
the just one, and to hear his voice. For thou shalt be witness
unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now, why
tarryest thou? Arise and be baptized, and wash
away thy sins, calling upon the name of the Lord. Now, water baptism didn't wash
away his sin, we know that, but baptism is a confession of Christ's
death, burial, and resurrection that puts away our sin. That had immediate effect upon
him, look at verse 18, immediately, immediately, there fell from
his eyes as it had been scales, And he received his sight, and
forthwith he arose and was baptized. And when he had received meat,
he was strengthened. Then Saul with certain days with
the disciples which were at Damascus, verse 20, and straightway he
preached Christ in the synagogue, that he is the Son of God. All
they that heard him were amazed and said, is not this he that
destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem? And came
hither for that intent that he might bring them bound unto the
chief priest. But Saul increased, he's growing
in grace and in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt
at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ. Amazing story of grace. Amazing story of grace. There was a divine conversion
because he was regenerated by the power of God. This is a miracle
of God's grace, a radical change. God gave him a repentant heart.
Saul now seeks fellowship with those whom he came to put in
prison, now one with them in the cause of God and his truth.
Saul is now preaching the very things he once hated and despised. Now he's lifting up the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ, declares the deity of Christ. He is a
son of God, declares he's the Messiah, the one sent of God
to accomplish salvation. He is the very Christ of God. HE PREACHED CHRIST, THE ANOINTED
MESSIAH, PROPHET, PRIEST AND KING. IT'S OBVIOUS SOMETHING
HAPPENED TO THIS MAN. HE WAS NEVER THE SAME AGAIN. IF YOU TURN TO ANOTHER PLACE
IN THE BOOK OF ACTS, CHAPTER 26, ACTS CHAPTER 26, VERSE 13, Paul again tells of his conversion
story. Acts 26, 13, At midday, O King,
I saw in the way a light from heaven above the brightness of
the sun shining round about me and them which journeyed with
me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice,
I heard a voice speaking unto me, saying in the Hebrew tongue,
Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick
against thy pricks. And he said, who art thou, Lord?
And he said, I am Jesus, whom ye persecute. Now watch this. But rise, stand upon thy feet,
for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee
a minister, a witness, both of these things which thou hast
seen, and of those things in which I will appear unto thee,
or show unto thee, delivering thee from the people, from the
Gentiles unto whom now I send thee, to open their eyes, to
turn them from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto
God, that they may receive the forgiveness of sins and inheritance
among them which are sanctified by faith, that is in the Lord
Jesus Christ. A marvelous, marvelous story. In Philippians chapter 3, he
says, Well, to wind this up, we know the rest of the story,
don't we? He was made the apostle of the
Lord Jesus Christ. He was used of God to write many
of the epistles that we love to read, Romans, Corinthian,
Galatian, Ephesian, so on, how he faithfully preached the gospel
to many others as a faithful missionary, saying, this is a
faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that the Lord
Jesus Christ came to save sinners. Thanks be to God, who is still
calling sinners out of darkness into his marvelous light. Thanks
be to God, he's still sending sinners to preach the gospel
of the Lord Jesus Christ around this world. He has not changed. He's the same yesterday, today,
and forever. He's still able to save them
to the uttermost that come to God by Him, seeing that He ever
lived, that is, the Lord Jesus ever lived to make intercession
for us. May the Lord be pleased to do
that for every one of us here. to work His mighty grace in our
heart.