All right, Acts, we'll begin
with verse, with chapter 21 for the moment. Acts 21. These religious leaders, the
Pharisees and the Sadducees, had talked the Romans into arresting
the Apostle Paul. They wanted him imprisoned, they
wanted him killed. It says in verse 27 of Acts 21,
that when the seven days were ended, the Jews, which were of
Asia, when they saw Paul in the temple, they stirred up the people
and laid hands on him, crying out, Men of Israel, help! This is the man that teacheth
all men everywhere against Israel." That wasn't so. Paul didn't teach
people against the people of Israel. He said, I am an Israelite. I'm a Hebrew of Hebrews, born
of the tribe of Benjamin. And then their second charge
was this. He teaches men everywhere against the law. Paul, like our
Lord Jesus, said, I didn't come to destroy the law. but that
the law be fulfilled. By grace, the law was fulfilled. He didn't teach it. And the teachers
against this place, where was he? He was in the temple. And
they were bringing the charge against him that he was teaching
against Israel, against the law, and against the people. And further,
brought Greeks also into the temple and had polluted the temple. They might have had reference
to Timothy or Titus. And then on down here in verse
40 of Acts 21, they arrested Paul, the captain of the guard
was in charge. And so Paul said in verse 39
of Acts 21, Paul said, I'm a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city
in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city. And I beseech thee, suffer
me to speak unto the people. Let me defend myself. So the captain, the captain of
the guards, chief captain, the chief captain of the Roman soldiers,
verse 40, he gave him license to speak. And Paul stood on the
stairs and beckoned with the hand unto the people. And when
there was a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew
tongue. saying, verse 1, chapter 22,
men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense which I make now
unto you. And when these Jews heard that
he spake in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept them over
silence. And he said, I am verily a man
which am a Jew, born in Tarsus." Here's his first word. He tells
them before he came to know Christ, before he came to know the gospel
of God's grace in Christ, he was a very, very religious person. And these are his religious credentials. He said, I'm a Jew. I was born
in Tarsus, the city of Cilicia, and brought up In that city,
in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, Gamaliel there were two great facilities or places of education
among the Jews. Gamaliel was one and there was
another one. But Gamaliel was the most famous
teacher of the Jewish law. And Paul said, I'm a Jew and
I was educated in the highest and best circles among Jewish
people. And then he said, I was taught
according to the perfect manner of the law, the ceremonial law,
the moral law. He was a Pharisee. He held one
of the highest offices you could hold in the Jewish religion,
except high priest. He was never a high priest, but
he held Pharisee, member of the Sanhedrin. I was taught according
to the perfect manner of the law. I was zealous. Toward God, now watch this next
line, as you all are this day, he's speaking to these people
who are accusing him of being against Israel and against the
law and against the temple. He said, I was brought up just
like you were. And I was zealous towards God
just like you are this day. I was zealous towards the law,
the traditions of my nation, the Sabbath day, the tithe, the
circumcision, all of these things. In fact, over in Romans chapter
10, he deals with that again. In Romans chapter 10, he said,
talking about the people of Israel, talking about himself. He said
in Romans 10, verse 1, Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer
to God for Israel is they might be saved, might come to know
the true God through Christ the Savior. I come to know and love
the Messiah. My heart's desire and prayer
to God for Israel is not that they be put down or destroyed,
but that they come to know God. I bear them record, verse 2.
They have a zeal of God. I was zealous toward God as you
are this day. I know where you are because
that's where I was too, he said. But not according to knowledge.
Your zeal towards God is not according to a knowledge of God
or even a knowledge of his word. We might say that to this generation.
This is a religious generation like that one. Zealous toward
God. Enthusiastic toward God. And here's the problem, verse
3. They being ignorant of God's righteousness, God's holiness,
and the righteousness not only of God himself, but the righteousness
which he has provided through Christ for sinners. And what
they're doing is going about to establish their own righteousness. That's what these people were
doing, and that's what Paul was doing before he met Christ. Going
about to establish his own righteousness, his own holiness, his own morality,
to find acceptance with God by law and duties And look at the
next line. And they have not submitted themselves
unto the righteousness of God. They have not, they will not,
they would not submit themselves to the righteousness of God which
is in Christ Jesus the Lord. Now look at verse 4. For Christ,
Christ Jesus, Christ our Redeemer, Christ our Messiah is the end
of the law. What does that mean, the end
of the law? Well, it means this. He's the goal of the law. Paul
said to the Galatian church, he said, we were kept under the
law as a schoolmaster to teach us, to bring us to Christ. That was the purpose of the law.
The law wasn't given to Israel to save them, because when Moses
brought that law down from the Mount Sinai, they were at that
time worshiping a golden calf. dancing around a pagan idol.
The law which God gave to Moses on Sinai, I couldn't save a people
who at that time were worshiping another God. The law was given
to bring them to Christ who can save. Christ is the goal of the
law. He's the end of the law. He's
the consummation of the law as a covenant. Do this and live. Can't be. I can't do it. Well,
believe this and live. Oh, that's different. That's
the law of of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus delivers me from
the law of sin and death. He's the goal of the law. He's
the consummation of the law. He is the end of the law for
righteousness. To whom? Listen, to everyone
that believes. So he said, men and brethren,
I know where you are. I'm a Jew. I was brought up in
the traditions of the elders. I defended these positions and
these traditions and all these laws. I was zealous toward God,
just as you are this day, in ignorance. I did it ignorantly. He said, I obtained mercy. I
did it ignorantly. I did it in unbelief. I did it
not knowing what I was doing. Not knowing what I was doing.
But men and brethren, now turn back to my text. Verse 4, I'm
a religious, I brought up a religious man. Before I met Christ, steeped
in religion, zealous in religion, moral. And I persecuted, verse
4, Acts 22, I persecuted this way unto death. What's he talking
about this way? Well, that word is used over
and over again in the book of Acts, signifying the way of Christ. the way of grace, the way of
faith, the way of redemption. Let me just quote a scripture. In Acts 3, it says, And Saul
of Tarsus, in Acts 8, verse 3, And Saul of Tarsus made havoc
of the church, just made havoc of the church of Jesus Christ,
entering every house, putting men and women who believed in
Christ in prison. And Saul went to the high priest
and desired letters to the synagogues, that if he found any, any of
this way, that he might bring them men or women bound into
prison. This way, this way. I persecuted
this way unto death. And the religious people of our
day persecute this way. Brother Pastor, how would you
define this way as opposed to Paul's way? Paul was religious,
zealous toward God, enthusiastic toward God, the law, religion,
organization, ceremonies. How would you describe this way
in relation to Paul's way? Well, this way, Christ's way,
is the way of free grace. the way of free grace and mercy
in Christ Jesus. Paul's way is the way of law
and duties and deeds. This way is the way of faith,
faith in Christ as our atonement, as our righteousness, as our
hope. Saul's way is the way of works and rewards. This way is
the way of Christ's righteousness, He is the second Adam in perfect
obedience and holiness, perfected for us before God, a holiness,
a righteousness with which God can be well pleased. That's this
way. Saul's way is the way of human
merit and human deeds and human morality. This way is the way
of the Lamb. This way is the way of the Passover. This way is the way of the blood
that maketh atonement for the soul. This way is the way that
God said, when I see the blood, I'll pass over you. He was made
sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God
in Him. That's this way. Saul's way is the way that they
pleaded judgment. Lord, we preached in your name,
cast out devils in your name, we did many wonderful works in
your name. That's our plea. That's our hope. That's our trust. That's our
foundation, what we did. But this way is what he did.
Our Lord Jesus Christ in answering Thomas' question in John 14. He said, I go to prepare a place
for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I'll come again
and receive you unto myself that where I am there you may be also.
And Thomas said, Lord, We know not where you go, how can we
know the way?" He said, Thomas, I'm the way. I'm the way. I'm the truth. I'm the life. No man cometh to the Father but
by me. That's the way. And that's the
way Saul of Tarsus hated and persecuted and did all he could
against it. Christ said, He that heareth
my word and believeth on me hath everlasting life. and shall not
come into condemnation, he's passed from death unto life.
That's the way. That's Christ's way. That's God's
way. This is the record. This is it. Write it down. God hath given to us eternal
life. And this life is in his Son.
And he that hath the Son of God hath life. And he that hath not
the Son of God hath not life. And Saul said to these people,
I'm religious just like you are, zealous after the traditions
and legalism and laws of my father. And I persecuted this way. And
that's what's happening today. Men and women today, in all forms
and names of religion today, are just of the same mindset. Now listen to the same mindset.
I believe in God. but not the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ. I believe there's a God, I believe
God created the heavens and the earth, but I don't believe that
he's the God and Father of only one Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Though the scripture says that,
but I don't believe that. I worship God, I'll go to church,
and I worship God, but not this way. Not in the sun, through the sun,
by the sun, for the glory of the sun. I will not do it that
way. And I worship God, Muslims, Mohammeds, Confucius, whoever
they are, Seventh-day Adventist, United Nations. I worship God,
but not through the sun. He cannot be my Lord. He cannot
be my only Savior. He cannot be my substitute, my
high priest, my intercessor, my advocate. I will not have
it. I'll speak for myself. I'll take forgiveness. I'll even
profess to be saved, but not by his blood and not by his righteousness. That's what Paul's saying, I'm
religious, zealous toward God as you are this day, yet that
way was not my way. Christ said I am the way, but
that's not my way. I'll go to heaven when I die,
just like everybody else, but not that way, not the way of
the cross, not the way of the blood, not the way of the mercy
seat, not the way of the communion of the body and blood of Jesus
Christ. I'm telling this whole generation this fact. You and Jesus Christ are on a
collision course. I mean a real collision course. Because he said, I am the way,
and you say he's not. God has highly exalted him and
given him a name above every name which is in heaven, earth,
under the earth, and all tongues shall confess and all knees will
bow to him. He has the preeminence. You say,
no, he doesn't. That's a collision course. And
you're going to lose. That's just fact. And Saul had
to be brought to know that. R.S. Reid on chapter 22. And the high priest also bared
me witness and the state of the elders from whom I received letters
unto the brethren and went to Damascus to bring them which
were there bound unto Jerusalem to be punished. And it came to
pass. I love that statement. It came
to pass. And brethren, it will. Everything
that's recorded in this word, it'll come to pass in due time. All that our Lord decrees and
all that our Lord purposes and all that our Lord declares, it
will come to pass. He declares the end from the
beginning and from ancient times the things that are not yet done,
saying, My counsel shall stand and I'll do all my pleasure.
It came to pass. This is good news for him. Listen.
That as I made my journey, My journey, he was on his journey.
A man's heart deviseth his ways, but God ordains his steps. As
I came near to Damascus about noon, suddenly, suddenly there was shone from
heaven a great light round about me. You know, there are two things
that a blind man has to have to see. Number one, you've got
to have eyes. But eyes are not worth much without
light. You've got to have both. You've
got to have eyes and you've got to have light. And what's happening
here is described over here in 2 Corinthians chapter 4. 2 Corinthians
chapter 4. What's happening to Saul of Tarsus
is what he described over here in 2 Corinthians chapter 4. 2 Corinthians 4, verse 3. If our
gospel be hid, it's hid to them that are lost. And Saul of Tarsus
was certainly one of those people, in whom the God of this world
hath blinded the minds of them which believe not. He can blind
it with religion as well as anything else. Lest the light of the glorious
gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto
For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and
ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded
the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts to give
us the light of the knowledge. There's got to be a light of
knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus.
And Saul of Tarsus said suddenly, and that was sudden to him. He's
40 years old. 45 years old. He'd been rambling
down the road of his own choosing all these years. And suddenly,
it was sudden to him, but it wasn't sudden to God. God planned
this time from all eternity. God knew him before the foundation
of the world. God marked every step he took
those 45 years after he came from his mother's womb. It wasn't
sudden with God. God declares the end from the
beginning. It's sudden to Paul. It'd be sudden to you. It'd be
sudden to you. I never knew that before. I tried. You sure didn't. You had eyes,
but no light. I tried. You had eyes, but no
light. Saul is one of God's sheep. You believe that? I know that.
He said, God who separated me from my mother's womb, called
me by His grace, was pleased. Suddenly! to reveal his son in
me. Forty years old, steeped in religion,
ceremony, total ignorance, unbelief. He wasn't seeking the Lord. He
didn't come to that situation there at that particular time
and place to be changed. He couldn't change himself. He
had no thought of change. He liked what he was, satisfied
with what he was, proud of what he was. no good, persecutor of
God, a hateful religious man. But God was seeking him. He wasn't
seeking God. Suddenly, in God's time, in due
time, out of the oven there, a light from heaven. What is
that light? It's the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus. It's the Word
of God. It's the voice of God. That's
right. What happened? Look over here.
And suddenly, it shined about me from heaven. That's where
the word comes from. He speaks from heaven. A great
light round about me. What happened? I fell to the
ground. And you will. He did. And he will. Everyone who meets God, who has
an encounter with God, He's not going to do it standing up. Everybody
who has any kind of encounter with God always falls to the
ground. Job fell to the ground and worshipped
God. John on the Isle of Patmos heard
his voice and fell as a dead man. Mary sat at his feet. The leper, when Christ came down
from the mountain, the leper fell at his feet. The Lord God
will bring a man down before he exalts him. That's just right. The Lord God will slay a man
before he says to him, live. He's going to be down. The Lord
God will strip a man before he clothes him in the righteousness
of Jesus Christ. God saves them that are of a
broken heart. broken in the contrite spirit.
Pride goes before destruction, the Holy Spirit before the fall.
Six things God hates. Six things God Almighty hates
with a passion. Yea, seven are abomination to
him. The first one named is a proud
low. And that's what this fellow was
on that white horse headed for Damascus. A proud, arrogant,
self-centered, self-righteous Pharisee. And the light shone,
the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, the voice of
God. And he fell to the ground. I fell to the ground. That always
precedes rising. You can't rise if you've never
been down. You can't be lifted if you haven't fallen. I fell
to the ground. And I heard a voice. Saul? Saul, why persecutest thou me?
This is the one who spoke to Adam in the garden of Adam, where
are you? This is the same one. This is
the one whose voice Adam heard and hid himself. This is the
one who appeared to Abraham. Abraham, touch not the land. I know you love me. Abraham saw
my day, and he was so glad. This is the one who appeared
to Moses at the burning bush, take off your shoes. I am. This is the one who appeared
to John on the Isle of Patmos. Who art thou, Lord? I am Jesus
of Nazareth. Now brethren, if any verse of
Scripture in the Bible ought to reveal to my generation the
God with whom we have to do It's this one right here. A voice,
a light from heaven, such a light that the sun had to take a back
seat. This was noon. Did you know that?
Noon in the deserts of Damascus. And the light from heaven far
out shone the sun. A great light from heaven. Yeah,
but heaven's got a light, the sun. Greater than that, Jesus
of Nazareth, the Son who comes with healing in His wings, the
Son of God, the well-beloved. I'm sorry. There's one advocate
between God and man, and that's the man Christ Jesus. I'm not
sorry. I'm sorry you don't see it. People
today don't see it. I'm not sorry. I'm glad. God
help us if we didn't have Him. It's one million acres. Who art
thou? I'm Jesus of Nazareth. Tell it
to the world that I don't believe in Jesus of Nazareth. Then you'd
forget God. I mean, wipe it out, brother.
Forget God. There ain't no God for you. Jesus
Christ is God. He's the only revelation of God
a man will ever see. That's right. No man knoweth
the Father but the Son. He to whom the Son will reveal
Him. No man has seen God at any time. The Son reveals him, Jesus
of Nazareth. That's who I am. That's who I
am. What about all those people around
him? Verse 9, they that were with me saw the light, and they
scared them to death. What happened to them? They didn't
hear the voice. People today see a whole lot
of light. You can't live on this earth
and not believe there's a God, unless you're stupid. Heavens
declare the glory of God, but heavens do not declare the grace
of God. Creation, you can look at creation
and see the light, unless you hear Him speak, who speaks through
His Word. You can't know the will of salvation,
the way of salvation. That's only revealed through
the word, through Christ, through the person and work of Christ.
They saw the Lord and they were afraid, scared to death, but
they never heard the voice of faith to me. And that happens
in congregations. This is a large congregation
well taught in the word through a lot of years and most everybody
here is redeemed and knows God. But there's a difference. in
seeing the light of nature and conscience and love and hearing
his voice who speaks to Christ. That's revelation. They didn't
hear the voice, consequently they never met the person. They
didn't hear the gospel, consequently they never met the Savior. They
saw a whole lot of things that God had done and is doing and
will do, but they never saw what he did on the cross. That comes with the gospel. And
I said, Lord, what shall I do? Verse 10, what shall I do? And
the Lord said, arise and go to Damascus, and there it'll be
told you what you're to do. And verse 11, he said, I rose,
and I couldn't see anything but that light. That's all I could
see. I couldn't see all the things round about me. I saw that light
though. I heard that voice. And that's
still, that's still the glory of Christ revealed to a true
believer. And when he sees that light and
hears that voice and comes to know that person, everything
else takes second place. It really does. It just takes
second place. That light is all-consuming. Just all consuming. That's the
difference in preaching the doctrine of grace and preaching the Christ
of grace. You've got to see Him, hear Him. That's right. I came to Damascus, and there
in verse 12, and one Ananias, a devout person according to
the law, having a good report of the Jews which dwelt there,
he came to me, he came to me. How shall they hear without a
preacher? How shall they preach except they be sent? He came
to me, in whom you trusted after you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation. He came to me, and you know what
he said? He said to me, Brother Saul,
receive your sight. And the same hour I looked upon
him, and he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee.
You didn't choose God. This thing is not a work of your doings. It's all God's doings. You're here by His grace. You're
chosen by His grace. You're elected by His grace.
That's just so. That's the way it started. You start that way with sinners,
that's the only way to start with a sinner. We didn't choose God, he chose
us. And the God of our fathers hath
chosen thee that thou shouldest know his will. You know, Saul
knew the will of command. He could recite the scriptures,
he could recite the law better than you or I can. He knew the
law, he was steeped in the law, raised in the law, educated in
the law, a teacher of the law. Thou shalt not, thou shalt not,
thou shalt. I know it all, the law. He knew
the law, the will of command. He didn't know the will of redemption. Christ gave us that will. He
said, All that my Father giveth me shall come to me, and him
that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. I came down from
heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent
me. And this is the will of him that
sent me, that of all which you have given me I lose nothing,
but raise it up at the last day. This is the will of him that
sent me, that he that seeth the Son and believeth on him may
have everlasting life, and I raise him up at the last day. Saul,
the Lord our God hath chosen thee, that you should know that
will, the will of redemption, and that you should see the just
one, Christ died to just for the unjust to bring us to God.
Christ died to just one that God may be just and justify folks
like you and me. It's easy for a man to get religion. It's impossible for a man to
be saved except by the power of God. The easiest thing in the world
for me to do is get a sermon appealing to man's flesh the
death of his loved ones, and meeting Mother in glory, and
changing his life, and teaching all these things about what people
should do, and then sing an emotional song and a sentimental story
and get him to come down the aisle and get safe. Ain't nothing
to it. But for a man to be lifted from
the dunghill, his heart changed, his will changed. washed in the
blood of the Lamb, clothed in the righteousness of Christ,
raised from darkness to light, from death to life, seated at the right hand of God
in Christ Jesus. That's a miracle only God can
perform. That's what this is. It's you.
God chose you that you might know His will. and see Christ,
the just one. And you should hear the voice
of his mouth, his message, his gospel. And you'll be his witness. He didn't say, now you ought
to. He didn't say that. He said, for thou shalt! God
chose you that you might know his will, see Christ, hear his
voice and you shall be his witness unto all men." What you going
to tell them? You going to tell them what you've
seen and what you've heard and what God did for you. That's
what you going to tell them. Now then, don't just sit there. Arise and confess Christ. Be baptized. in order to put
your sins away, but confessing that he's the one who did it.
But the remission of sins, the revelation of Christ, took a
miracle to put the stars in place. It took a miracle to hang the
world in space. But when he saved my soul, cleansed
and made me whole, it took a miracle. of glory, mercy, kindness, love,
power, wisdom, death, obedience, of grace. Thank God.