Now turn again in your Bible
to the book of Acts chapter 17. Acts 17. The apostle was sent
of God. God called him to preach the
gospel of saving grace. And Paul plainly, boldly declared
the gospel wherever God sent him by his sovereign providence. He said, in one place, seeing
that we have such a hope, we use great plainness of speech.
He said, in another place, I'm determined not to know anything
among you, but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. As he came to
this city of Thessalonica, and as he went into the synagogue
of the Jews, it says there in verse 2 and 3 that he reasoned
with them out of the Scriptures, showing that Jesus of Nazareth,
that He is the Messiah, that He is the Christ, opening the
scriptures to them and showing that Jesus of Nazareth is indeed
the Christ, opening, presenting, alleging that we must have a
sacrifice for sin, that the Lord Jesus Christ is that sacrifice
for sin, that it is His blood atonement that puts away the
sin of His people. It says there that Christ must
suffer for our sin. He must come, He must die, and
He must be raised again. He was delivered for our offenses
and raised again for our justification. And you know what happened? Two
things, verse 4 and 5. Two things happened. They all
heard the same thing. They all heard the same message.
But there are two different results. Some believed and joined up with
Paul. That word consorted means associated. They identified with Paul in
the Gospel. They identified with believers.
Some believed, it says there, these Gentiles, a great multitude. How many? Maybe several hundred. I don't know. And chief women,
men and women, were saved by God's sovereign grace. But then it says in verse 5,
now here's the flip side of that. Now remember, they all heard
the same message. They all heard the same man. They all didn't
hear from God. Some just heard Paul and got
angry. Some heard from God and were
made to rejoice in the message. They believed God. They believed God and God gave
them salvation. But these Jews who just heard
Paul speak, who were left in the rebellion of their sinful
nature, depraved nature, they believed not. And their unbelief moved them. See that word there? It moved
them. It moved them to anger. They
got angry. They got angry with Paul. But
you know what? Their anger, although they could
get at Paul, their anger goes beyond Paul. You know who they
were angry at? You know who they were mad at?
They were mad at Almighty God. You see, they didn't receive
God's messenger, nor did they receive God's Word. Paul was
sent of God to tell them the truth, and they got mad. Some
got glad. And some were made and moved
with envy, and so much so that they hired out these street thugs,
these lewd fellows, it says in verse 5, lewd, base, base. It was above their dignity to
go out and publicly show a demonstration of rebellion against God. So they hired these street thugs
to cause a riot. God put the whole city in an
uproar, so much so that they assaulted the house where they
thought Paul and Silas and Timothy were staying. And they couldn't
find the apostles, but they found this dear believer named Jason
and drew him to the court and would charge him with sedition
against Caesar. And that was actually the charge
here, wasn't it? Sedition. Now verse 6 and 7,
the charges they brought against him were meant to disgrace Paul. They were meant to discredit
his ministry. They didn't have anything good
in mind. Their intentions were pure evil,
pure wickedness. Look what it says in verse 6,
When they found them not, they drew, they physically removed
this brother from his own house, and other of the brethren, and
brought him to the rulers of a city. And here's what they
cried, These, these that have turned the world upside down,
they've come here. They've come here to do us harm. Now the charges they brought
against them were meant to, as I said earlier, not to honor
them, they were meant to disgrace them and to discredit their ministry. Now what they said here, these
men turned the world upside down. Turn the world upside down. Now underscore that in your mind
anyway, if you don't underscore it in your Bible. These turn
the world upside down. Now did Paul really do that? Who can turn the world upside
down? Who can turn your world upside down? Who holds all authority
and power to turn all things on their head? upside down. God, Almighty God, turns the
world upside down. Now this is exactly what the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is meant to do. Some of you have
experienced this first hand. God turns you upside down. Turns your heart inside out and
turns your religious world upside down. Puts you on your head.
Put your head in the dust to bow to God as God. You see, that's what the gospel
is meant to do, to make us new creatures in Christ Jesus. You
see, the way up, the way up is not up. The way up is not up. The way
up is down. Down. Here's old Saul of Tarsus
on his white horse All those religious authorities that he
had in his pocket to bind those who called on the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ, and here he goes. He thinks he's getting
up. He thinks he's going places. You read the record in Galatians
chapter 1, he said, concerning zeal, boy, I was zealous more
than any. He thinks he's going up in religion.
He was successful in his religion, but you know what happened? God
said the way up, solitarsis is down. God unhorsed him. That's an old term. You ever
been unhorsed? I have literally been unhorsed.
It hurts. I'm talking here about spiritually.
God put him face in the dust before God. God turned him upside
down. Upside down. Now this is conversion. Back to chapter 9. This is conversion. Upside down. You see, we have
an upside down religion. We have an upside down salvation. You see, man in his nature thinks
the way is up. It's up! It's not. It's down. God be merciful to me, these
sinners. God must put us in the dust.
We'll never bow to Christ. We'll never believe Him until
God enforces us. takes us off our broad road to
destruction and puts us in the narrow way, in the dust, upside
down. Acts chapter 9, Saul, yet breathing
out threatening and slaughter against the disciples of the
Lord, went unto the high priest, desired of him letters to Damascus,
to the synagogue, that if he found any of this way, oh, this
way, the way of Christ, the way of grace, Whether they be men
or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. And as he
journeyed, he came near Damascus. Suddenly there shined round about
him a light from heaven, and he fell to the earth." You see
what happened there? Upside down. God put him in the
dust. Turned him off that horse upside
down in the dust. He fell to the earth and he heard
a voice saying unto him, Why do you persecute me? He said,
Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am that I am. It's the same one who spoke from
the burning bush. I am the Savior whom you persecute. It's hard for you to kick against
God's purpose. Pricks. He trembling, astonished,
said, Lord, what would you have me to do? You see, God turned
him upside down. Notice, if you will, chapter
9, look at verse 20, when God turned His religious world upside
down, verse 20, and straightway He preached Christ in the synagogues
that He is the Son of God. And all that heard him were amazed
and said, Is not this He which destroyed them, which called
on His name in Jerusalem? And He has come here for that
intent, that He might bring them bound unto the chief priests?
But Saul increased the Moor in strength, confounded the Jews
which dwell at Damascus, proving that this is the very Christ."
See how God turned His world upside down. He was going this
way in rebellion. And God unhorsed him, put him
in the dust, taught him the truth, made him a preacher of the gospel. You see, the way up is down.
Before God clothes us with His blessed righteousness in Christ
Jesus, He must strip us. Strip us naked before God and
to show us that we are sinners, that we are guilty before God. God must strip us. We call that
conviction. Holy Spirit conviction. Before
God heals us, He must wound us. Operate on us. It's a hard operation. God must do that. And then He
turns our world upside down by His grace. Now, turn to 1 Thessalonians. 1 Thessalonians. Here's what happened to these
people in Thessalonica. We read this last week. 1 Thessalonians
chapter 1. Verse 9, They themselves show
of us what manner of entering in we had unto you. 1 Thessalonians
1 verse 9. How you turn to God from idols
to serve the living and true God. You turn. You see, God turned
them upside down. From idols, they turn to God
away from idolatry. Now, has God turned you upside
down? as God turns you upside down.
This is exactly what happened to Saul of Tarsus. We read in
Philippians chapter 3 his own testimony. He said, before I
knew the truth, before I knew the Savior, I was very religious,
but I was very lost. But when God taught him the truth,
he said, I count all my religious past as rubbish that I might
win Christ. and be found in Him. Has Almighty
God turned you upside down? You see, our thoughts, our thoughts
about God are all wrong by nature. Our thoughts about God are all
wrong. We think high thoughts of self
and low thoughts of God. God must turn our world upside
down. Our thinking, our theology needs
to be changed because by nature we believe a lie, not the truth. I want you to find some scripture
on this, our thoughts. Now stay with me, Isaiah 55.
Our thoughts need to be turned upside down. God is not who you think He is.
He's who He is. as He reveals Himself in the
Word of God. Isaiah 55. Our thoughts need
to be turned on their head. And we need our thoughts corrected. Isaiah 55, look at verse 6. Seek ye the Lord while He may
be found. Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake
His way, the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return
unto the Lord. He will have mercy upon him.
And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not
your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. There is a way that seems right
unto man, but the end thereof is a way of death. For as the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your
ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Our thoughts need be
turned upside down. Has God turned your thoughts
upside down? Secondly, notice this. The refuge
in Isaiah turned to Isaiah 28. Isaiah 28. Man by nature builds a refuge,
and you know what God calls it? A refuge of lies. You see, our
refuge needs to be destroyed. It needs to be turned upside
down. Isaiah 28, look at verse 14. Isaiah 28, verse 14. Wherefore,
hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men, that rule this
people which is in Jerusalem, because you have said, We have
made a covenant with death and with the grave. Hell, we are
in agreement. When the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, it won't come nigh to us, for we have
made lies our refuge, and in our falsehood have we hid ourselves.
Has God destroyed you, religious refuge of lies? Are you still
hiding in it? Now notice what it says here,
verse 17. Isaiah 28, 17. Judgment also
will I lay to the line. I lay to the line righteousness
to the plummet. You block layers know about the
line and the plummet. No variance. Straight line. of
God's judgment will sweep away the refuge of lies. And the water
shall overflow your hiding place, and your covenant with death
shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell will not
stand. When the overflowing scourge shall pass through, you shall
be trodden down by it." Has God destroyed your religious refuge
and turned it upside down and taught you the truth? The truth
is found in verse 16, Isaiah 28, Therefore thus saith the
Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone." Here's
God's refuge. A stone. A tried stone. A precious cornerstone. That's
Christ Jesus crucified. A sure foundation. He that believeth
on Him shall not make haste. And that phrase there means never
be forced out. Has God turned your world upside
down? I pray that He has. How about this one? Turn to Isaiah
64. Isaiah 64. How about your righteousness? Do you think it's pretty good?
Do you think you're a pretty good fellow? Do you think, well,
you know, I look at folks around me and I'm just as good as those
folks down there at church? You probably are. You're probably
a little bit better than most religious folks because most
religious folks are plain hypocrites. I'm not talking about God saved
people. I'm talking about most religious
folks who are just playing church most of the time. How about your
righteousness? Will it stand in the day of judgment? Look what God says about your
righteousness. You see, our righteousness needs
to be turned on its head and destroyed. And God needs to teach
us the truth of righteousness provided in Christ. Isaiah 64,
verse 6, we're all as an unclean thing. That's pretty graphic,
isn't it? We are all as an unclean thing. Does that include you? Yep. Does that include me? Yep. There's
none righteous, no not one? That includes all of us? Yep.
All of our righteousnesses, the best you've got, at your best
point, your best thought, Man in his best state is altogether
zero. Vanity. All your righteousnesses
are as filthy rags. They all do fade as a leaf. Our
iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. There is none
that call upon my name that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee.
For thou hast hid thy face from us and has consumed us because
of our iniquities. But now, O Lord, thou art our
Father. We are the clay. Thou art our
potter. We are all the work of Thy hand.
You see, my righteousness is as nothing. I must have a righteousness
that will stand before God Almighty on the day of judgment. A righteousness
that will stand is the only righteousness that He will accept, and the
righteousness that He will accept is that righteousness provided
in the Gospel. You remember what Paul said in
Philippians 3? I can all but loss that I might win Christ
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness which is
of the law, but that which is through the faithfulness of the
Lord Jesus Christ." You see, to the believer, he is my righteousness. Has God turned your world upside
down and shown you and revealed to you that the best you have
is nothing but sin? My best thoughts, my best deeds,
everything I think, everything I do, everything I touch is contaminated
with sin. That's what I am. That's why
God says, away with it! Stilty rags. If righteousness
comes by the law, Christ is dead in vain. You see, the best you've
got won't do. As God turns your world upside
down, I pray that He has. Isaiah 45. That's what happened
to me. I was born in religion. Turn
to Isaiah 45. I was born in religion. Raised
in the religion of a filthy dreamer. As we studied from the book of
Jude. Cut my teeth on works religion. Bondage of legalism. One day
God turned my world upside down. And he showed me I was a sinner.
And he taught me that the Lord Jesus Christ is salvation. He is the Savior. As God turned
your world upside down. Look at Isaiah 45. Look at verse
20. Assemble yourselves and come
drawn near together, ye that are escaped from the nations.
They have no knowledge that set up wood of their graven image,
and pray unto a God that cannot save. You see, an idol god can't
save. It's only the true and the living
God. We must be turned upside down, away from idols to the
true and the living God. Tell you, verse 21, bring them
near. Yea, let them take counsel together. Who hath declared this from ancient
times? Who hath told it from that time? Have not I, the Lord? There is no God else beside Me. Just God. I'm a just God and
Savior. There is none beside Me. Now
look to Me. Look away from your deeds. Look unto Me and be saved. Look away from your works. Not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to
His mercy He saved us. Now look unto Me. You see that word there in verse
22? L-O-O-K. Pretty simple word, isn't it?
Don't we all understand the concept of that word? Look. Look. Look to the Lord Jesus
Christ for everything in salvation. That's what He said. Look to
Me. Our Lord said, Come unto Me. I'll give you rest. And be
ye saved. All the ends of the earth, I
am God and there is none else. Look at verse 23. I've sworn
by Myself. The Word's gone out of my mouth in righteousness,
and shall not return, that unto me every knee will bow, every
tongue will swear." You see, they'll all confess in that day
of judgment that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
But God's people, they've been turned upside down by His grace. Their knee is bowing, their head's
in the dust. We make our headquarters in the
dust, verse 24, and they'll say, Surely shall one say in the Lord,
have by righteousness and strength. Even to him shall men come, and
all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. In the
Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall glory." Salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ
is by His grace. Turn back to the text. These
men have come hither, have turned the world upside down. What I'm saying today, and what
I've tried to say these many years that I've been here, salvation
is in the Lord Jesus Christ. And God saves sinners by His
sovereign grace. It's the work of God for us and
it's the work of God done in us. He must turn us. He must
save us. Salvation is of the Lord. It says in verse 7 of our text,
Whom Jason hath received, these all do contrary to the decrees
of Caesar, saying, There is another king, one Lord Jesus Christ. Now, what did Paul preach? He
preached Christ and Him crucified. I want to show you something.
Stay with me here. Find 1 Corinthians 9. 1 Corinthians chapter 9. 1 Corinthians chapter 9. Look at this. Paul was God's
servant. sent with God's gospel, God's
message, 1 Corinthians 9, look at verse 16. 1 Corinthians 9,
16. For though I preach the gospel,
and he did, I have nothing to glory of, for necessity is laid
upon me. Now, he said, yes, yea, woe is
unto me. Woe is unto me if I preach not
the gospel. Woe is unto me, and I take this
personally, woe is unto me if I compromise God's gospel. Woe is unto me if I preach not
the gospel. Now listen to this. Let me turn
that on you. Let me turn the table on you.
Woe is unto me if I don't preach the gospel. But woe unto you
if I preach the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and you refuse
to hear it. Now it's well one to you. He
that believeth on the Son hath life. He that believeth not the
Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. Now back to the text. Let me
show you one other thing and I'll wind this up. It says in verse 7, these all
do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, and thank God they did. But they did preach the gospel
according to the decree of God, and the decree of God is that
there is another king, there is one king, the king, the Lord
Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ. These
preachers sent by God were not following the decrees of Caesar,
no Jewish tradition, but those decrees of God. Preaching the
decrees of God. God had made that same Jesus
whom you crucified, God had made Him Lord and Christ. Him being
delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of
God. We preach the decrees of Christ. That He is King of Kings
and Lord of Lords. Last Scripture. Revelation 19. Now, you remember the wise man
in Matthew 2? You find Revelation 19. The wise
man in Matthew chapter 2, when they came to seek God's Messiah,
being led by God, they said, where is He that is born King? He is King by God's decree. Now,
Revelation 19, look at verse 11. He is King of Kings and Lord
of Lords. And what we need for this King
to do is turn us upside down. If we're going the wrong way,
I want to know now. I want to know right now. And
I pray God will turn us upside down and point us in the way
of salvation in Christ. Revelation 19, 11, I saw heaven
open and behold a white horse. And he that sat upon him was
called Faithful and True." Notice, capital, Faithful and True. In righteousness, he doth judge. And in righteousness, he does
make war. He makes war with his enemy.
He's called a man of war. His eyes were as a flame of fire.
On his head were many crowns. And he had in his name written
that no man knew but he himself. He was clothed with a vesture
dipped in blood, and His name is called the Word of God. In the beginning was the Word,
the Word was with God, and the Word was God, John 1, 1. And
that Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And the armies
which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed,
notice this, verse 14, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
What is that fine linen? a symbolic of, symbol of. Look at verse 8, Revelation 19
verse 8, And to her, this is the bride, the Lamb's wife, to
her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean
and white, for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And that's Christ. That's that
robe provided by the Lord Jesus Christ. Back to verse 15, And
out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should
smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron.
And he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness of wrath of
Almighty God." That's what happened at Calvary. The fierceness of
the wrath of Almighty God fell upon him. Without any mixture
of mercy, he drank the cup of God's wrath dry. The cup of God's
wrath, it was due to me. He took it and drank every one
of my sins and put them away. the fierceness of the winepress
of the wrath of God. And it says in the book of Isaiah,
He did this alone. Verse 16, And He hath on His
vesture and on His thigh a name written all over, King of kings
and Lord of lords. He is King. He is King of all
the earth. He is King in salvation. I pray the Lord will give us
grace to bow to the Lord Jesus Christ and confess He is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.