Extreme Church – The Convert

Acts 9v1-31

God is interested in who we are, as individuals and as churches. He is interested in what we do together as a community. In fact, one of the distinctive things about the church is that together we are one body.  The church grows as individuals are added and communities of people are changed and transformed as individuals are transformed.

Perhaps the most significant conversion and transformation in scripture, and history in terms of its effects was that of Paul.

Trophy of Grace

Paul’s story is a story of the transforming of a Jesus-hater (Saul) into a devoted follower and powerfully sharp tool for the gospel (Paul).  We can see his story in Acts 9.

He was a passionate, angry man who claimed to follow God. He breathed threats with every breath, thinking, dreaming and plotting ways in which he could destroy people like you and me. He was actively against Jesus’ followers – not just holding the coats of those who threw the stones but actively seeking ways to destroy more Christians. After Stephens death we are told he was ‘going everywhere to devastate the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into jail.’(8v3)

He was aiming to devastate, eager to destroy and uttering threats every step of the way.

People have sometimes said – we mustn’t be too harsh on Saul. He was passionate and zealous for God, but his passion and zeal was misplaced.

Wrong.

The problem with passion and zeal that is misplaced is it makes you an enemy of Jesus Christ, a Jesus hater. The Bible is not sympathetic, and Paul speaks about himself and people who were like him as ‘evil’, ‘dogs’, ‘mutilators of the flesh’ and, the things they stand for are ‘rubbish’. (Phil 3)

He wanted to drag all the Christians in the City of Damascus the 150miles to Jerusalem chained up like slaves. He was a religious nutter, a monster who wasn’t going to stop.

Until God stepped in!

As he approaches Damascus, plotting and preparing for the hunt ahead he suddenly gets stopped in his tracks. A bright lighter, brighter than the midday sun stops him in his sandals. In fact, we soon learn that it is a Son, brighter than the sun. Saul, and everyone else with him are knocked to the ground.  He loses his sight as the Son of God speaks to him.

‘Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?’

I don’t know if you have ever thought about what a strange question this is. ‘Why are you persecuting ME?’ It is no mistake. When Saul asks who it is speaking, Jesus responds ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting’.(v5) Saul has been destroying Christians, and Jesus takes it personally.

This is so important. The church is not just some relatively important gathering of people we meet with every now and again when it suits us. It is a community of people who are Jesus' body. Are you unsure whether being a committed part of a church is important. Jesus seems to think so!

For Paul, this must have been such a terrifying experience for lots of reasons. The Jesus that the Christians he has been trying to murder claim was raised from the dead is with him now, speaking to him. He suddenly realises they were right! Jesus is alive, his claims are true and so should be obeyed.

So Paul obeys. He goes to the city, helped on his way in his blindness, and waits there without eating or drinking. No doubt he is hugely troubled.

Offended by God?

When you think about it, this is a difficult story to take. Does Saul deserve to meet the Risen Christ?

Is he worthy of what God is going to call him to do?

Why is God choosing to use him when there are plenty more worthy, faithful, honourable people around than Saul?

Steve Bruce, recently appointed manager of Sunderland AFC is a (reported) Newcastle fan, and has been employed to manage Sunderland. Do you think he would have been employed if he had a history of violence towards Makems?  I Don't think so, and we would be offended if he had been.

So, not surprisingly, Ananias is reluctant to go to Saul. He has heard the reputation.

‘But Lord’ (v13) would be running through all of our minds.

What God seems to be doing is almost offensive isn’t it.  But God’s plans and purposes are bigger than yours and mine. In fact, he is glorified by doing the unbelievable.

Saul is God’s ‘chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel.’ This is the most unbelievable grace. God takes the roughest, most wicked, vile people and makes them his. Why? Because he wants to show us something about himself. He gives people who, frankly deserve nothing but God’s anger and judgement, the great privilege of being used by him, as his instrument in significant ways. Why? Because he wants to show us something fundamental about his character.

God is unbelievably, amazingly, unexplainably, offensively gracious. He gives us what we don’t and could never deserve!

And this is encouraging and great news for us. You can know God and serve him, live for him, love him and spend eternity with him because he wants you too. The next time you feel that God can’t possibly accept you as his follower because of what you know you are really like, remember Saul. And remember what his story teaches about God’s character. You will not be as ‘bad’ as Saul, unless you start killing Christians. If that happens, start to worry – but God chose and accepted him because of his own character. We are in very good company!

Risking hurt?

Paul is healed, baptised and has something to eat. It is as though he has a new life and of course he does. But how deep does this new life go?

It transforms him

As is often the case, he started to preach again, but this time that ‘Jesus is indeed the Son of God’. People are amazed that this man, who used to persecute the church is so amazingly, radically transformed. God’s grace to Saul immediately starts to impact the wider community.

It also begins to impact him. This was no surprise – God had told Ananias that ‘I will show him how much he must suffer for me.’(v16)

Saul the persecutor becomes the persecuted as the Jewish leaders decide to kill him.

But imagine what it must have been like for the original Christians. We have already thought about how we would have done things differently and, not surprisingly, the Christians in Jerusalem struggle.

Read v26-31

What a risk it must have been to allow Saul into their circle. ‘They thought he was only pretending to be a believer’.

Barnabas was different. Barnabas acted as a bridge between the outsider Saul and the church.

Being a community of God’s people is a risk. Developing friendships and relationships with people with a history ‘feels’ like a risk. We are surrounded by people with major struggles in life that affect them now. We have those struggles. The implications of God being a God of grace for the individual are significant for the church. Saul persecuted Jesus by persecuting the church. How does Jesus show grace to people today? By the church showing grace.

This is crucial if we are to be NT Christians.

What might it mean for us to accept people who are, maybe be not a literal threat to us (like Paul) but a threat to our comfort, our security and our way of doing things? Put it this way – what has God forgiven, accepted, overlooked in You!?

Transforming grace means 2 things. Transforming the individual, but transforming the community too. We need to expect this and allow this to happen.  And we need to remember that no one is beyond the pale.  God transforms people not because they deserve it - in that sense we are all beyond the pale.  He transforms us because he is unbelievably, amazingly, unexplainably, offensively gracious.  Get it?!!!