1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,119 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark 2 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:12,680 Waffer, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland, County 3 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:16,400 of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,720 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:40,480 Whenever we look at their testimony and see how they lived 6 00:00:40,480 --> 00:00:44,760 and and how they stood strong and, and Paul continually 7 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:48,400 reminded us through his teachings that the strength he 8 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:52,480 needed was made perfect in his weaknesses, that the power of 9 00:00:52,480 --> 00:00:56,320 Christ would rest upon him. He knew that he needed the power 10 00:00:56,320 --> 00:01:00,560 of Christ to rest upon him, to do what he he was called to do, 11 00:01:01,000 --> 00:01:04,920 and to continually be faithful to what it was that God put on 12 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:07,480 his heart. Paul couldn't have had the 13 00:01:07,480 --> 00:01:10,640 impact on the world for God's Kingdom that he had had without 14 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:13,880 God's help. God is the one who softened his 15 00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:17,360 heart in the 1st place. Paul knew God was leading him 16 00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:20,920 and he trusted God to provide for any need along the way. 17 00:01:21,480 --> 00:01:24,320 Today, Pastor Clark is going to encourage you to have the same 18 00:01:24,320 --> 00:01:27,160 faith in God. You can be sure that when you're 19 00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:30,920 going where God calls you, God will also give you everything 20 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:33,800 you need to accomplish what He wants you to do. 21 00:01:34,240 --> 00:01:36,880 Just trust Him to do it and be faithful to His Word. 22 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:41,440 Now here's Pastor Clark in Acts Chapter 9 with today's edition 23 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:45,160 of Living Waters of Grace. We are in the book of Acts 24 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:48,840 today, Acts Chapter 9. If you have your Bibles, turn 25 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:54,040 there to Acts Chapter 9 and we're studying about the Apostle 26 00:01:54,040 --> 00:01:57,800 Paul and his beginning stages of ministry. 27 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:02,000 We were talking about his experience on the road to 28 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:05,840 Damascus and how the Lord got a hold of him and apprehended him 29 00:02:05,840 --> 00:02:09,639 miraculously. Saul at that time was named. 30 00:02:09,639 --> 00:02:15,120 Saul was not really seeking God. He was interested in pursuing 31 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:19,600 and persecuting children of God who understood Jesus Christ to 32 00:02:19,600 --> 00:02:22,600 be the Messiah. Saul, up until the point of this 33 00:02:22,600 --> 00:02:25,920 encounter, was a persecutor of Christians. 34 00:02:25,920 --> 00:02:29,840 He didn't have time for them. All he wanted to do was imprison 35 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:31,960 them and torture them and torment them. 36 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:36,120 And as we studied about Paul's life and how this all came to 37 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:42,000 pass, it ceases to cause me to wander and also be amazed that 38 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,880 there's nothing that God isn't able to do whenever He 39 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:50,080 determines to do it. His divine election, His 40 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:53,320 sovereignty, He is in control of everything. 41 00:02:53,640 --> 00:02:57,680 And even that fact of the souls of each person that's been born 42 00:02:57,680 --> 00:03:01,200 into this world. Saul was the last person who was 43 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:04,720 looking for truth at the time. He thought he had the truth as a 44 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,800 Pharisee and as a member of the Sanhedrin in the Hebrew of 45 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,960 Hebrews, he bragged at one time of all the designations he had. 46 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:18,000 And he studied under the leading of Gamaliel, who was a very 47 00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:20,960 famous teacher at the time in Judaism. 48 00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:24,360 He studied from the age of 12 to approximately 21. 49 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:28,880 And he was steeped in the in the Jewish culture, in the Jewish 50 00:03:28,880 --> 00:03:31,800 religion. And so he believed that he knew 51 00:03:32,240 --> 00:03:37,080 everything that there was to know about spirituality. 52 00:03:37,880 --> 00:03:41,320 Of course, we know as we study this, and most of us here are 53 00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:48,160 believers today, that Paul was lost and he was an enemy of 54 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:51,400 Christians. And sometimes when we look at 55 00:03:51,400 --> 00:03:54,160 people and we realize where they come from and what they've been 56 00:03:54,160 --> 00:03:58,320 through, especially in our world today, we live around so much 57 00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:02,400 Pagan influence and so much darkness and so much evil that 58 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:07,920 we can have a tendency to judge and criticize and and be hateful 59 00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:10,880 toward people that don't know Jesus Christ. 60 00:04:11,680 --> 00:04:18,040 But the Lord wants us to have hearts like he has, and that God 61 00:04:18,040 --> 00:04:24,440 never gives up on anybody. He works daily to apprehend the 62 00:04:24,440 --> 00:04:27,760 hearts of lost people and to bring them to Himself. 63 00:04:28,640 --> 00:04:31,960 And none of us know when he's going to surprise someone and 64 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:34,480 open their hearts and their minds and their eyes to their 65 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:37,920 need of Jesus Christ. And you have many loved ones, 66 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:41,160 friends, neighbors, relatives, I'm sure, like I do, that you 67 00:04:41,160 --> 00:04:44,680 would love to see come to have a saving relationship with Jesus 68 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:48,160 Christ, to be born again, to understand God's love. 69 00:04:48,920 --> 00:04:50,680 But you and I can't make that happen. 70 00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:54,840 We can't force that to happen. That has to be a work of the 71 00:04:54,840 --> 00:04:59,800 Holy Spirit, as we've studied in this chapter thus far, and so we 72 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:05,280 pick it up somewhere around 19. Whenever Paul had received his 73 00:05:05,280 --> 00:05:09,040 sight again from Ananias, when Ananias prayed and laid hands 74 00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:12,200 upon him and says that he had some food. 75 00:05:12,200 --> 00:05:14,560 At that time he had not eaten for three days. 76 00:05:15,240 --> 00:05:19,760 He had not drank anything for three days and he received the 77 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:22,200 food. He was strengthened and then he 78 00:05:22,200 --> 00:05:26,120 was also baptized. It tells us in verse 18. 79 00:05:26,120 --> 00:05:30,440 And, and everybody that gets saved and gets born again needs 80 00:05:30,440 --> 00:05:33,240 to be baptized. This is a commandment of Jesus 81 00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:37,800 that we would be baptized. And so Paul was baptized and, 82 00:05:37,800 --> 00:05:42,240 and then immediately after that, in verse 20, it says he preached 83 00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:46,360 the Christ in the synagogue's that he is the Son of God. 84 00:05:46,600 --> 00:05:51,000 So Paul, because of his influence and because of his 85 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:54,760 background in Judaism, he would be respected in the synagogue's. 86 00:05:54,760 --> 00:05:59,000 He would be allowed to go into any synagogue on any Saturday 87 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:03,000 and visit and also be given the opportunity to speak because of 88 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:08,480 his spiritual pedigree at the time of of being a a Jew and 89 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:12,040 also steeped in in the religion of Judaism a little. 90 00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:14,840 Did anybody know, though, whenever he came in there, that 91 00:06:14,840 --> 00:06:17,920 he was going to have a different message than he had ever had 92 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:20,320 before in the midst of the synagogue? 93 00:06:21,080 --> 00:06:24,080 There might have been rumors at this time that something 94 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:27,080 happened to him. People maybe didn't know clearly 95 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:30,560 that he had just become a believer in Jesus Christ. 96 00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:34,600 They maybe were assuming that he would just have another message 97 00:06:34,600 --> 00:06:38,600 like he's had many times before on religion and what it means to 98 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:43,040 be a Jewish follower of of Jehovah. 99 00:06:43,640 --> 00:06:50,440 And so it says in verse 21 as he was preaching about Christ being 100 00:06:50,440 --> 00:06:54,120 the son of God. It says that all who heard were 101 00:06:54,120 --> 00:06:58,880 amazed and said is this not he who destroyed those who called 102 00:06:58,880 --> 00:07:03,120 on the name on his name on this name in Jerusalem and has come 103 00:07:03,120 --> 00:07:06,960 here for that purpose so that he might bring them bound to the 104 00:07:06,960 --> 00:07:11,680 chief priest. This is staggering to the people 105 00:07:11,680 --> 00:07:14,960 who are listening, because just a little while ago he was going 106 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:19,800 to go to Damascus to persecute Christians and to destroy them 107 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,880 and throw them in prison. People were frightened and 108 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:24,360 afraid. Of course the people in the 109 00:07:24,360 --> 00:07:28,160 synagogue would applaud what he was going to do, because they, 110 00:07:28,320 --> 00:07:30,920 for the most part in the synagogue at this time, didn't 111 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:32,920 believe that Christ was a Messiah. 112 00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:37,240 They thought that Christianity was a false religion, and so 113 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:43,040 they were the staggered at the fact that Paul Saul of Tarsus 114 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:48,040 right now is preaching in this name of Jesus Christ. 115 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:52,160 But in verse 22 it says. But Saul increased all the more 116 00:07:52,160 --> 00:07:55,760 in strength and confounded the Jews who dwelled in Damascus, 117 00:07:55,760 --> 00:08:00,080 proving this Jesus is a Christ. So he had the knowledge and the 118 00:08:00,080 --> 00:08:02,560 expertise to take the Old Testament Scriptures. 119 00:08:02,800 --> 00:08:04,760 There was no New Testament written at this time. 120 00:08:05,040 --> 00:08:09,000 And he was able to pinpoint specifically everything in the 121 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:12,600 law and the prophets regarding the Messiah and the prophecies 122 00:08:12,600 --> 00:08:16,560 that were fulfilled by Christ's life and that truly He's the one 123 00:08:16,720 --> 00:08:20,240 that had been proclaimed from the beginning of time to be the 124 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:24,560 Savior of the world. Now we see there's a break in 125 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:29,240 between verses 22 and 23. We talked about that in 126 00:08:29,240 --> 00:08:34,840 Galatians chapter 1. It talks about God sending Saul 127 00:08:34,840 --> 00:08:39,280 into the deserts of Arabia for approximately 2 to three years 128 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:43,840 to hear from the Lord himself regarding the truth of the 129 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:46,640 gospel. He would go there and, and be 130 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:51,080 alone and just sit and be ministered to by the Holy Spirit 131 00:08:51,640 --> 00:08:55,080 regarding all the things that Christ wanted him to know. 132 00:08:55,080 --> 00:09:01,120 This was a a time of preparation and he was not involved in any 133 00:09:01,120 --> 00:09:03,960 real ministry at the time. This was a time of, of this 134 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:06,840 being still before the Lord. And it's interesting. 135 00:09:06,840 --> 00:09:11,680 He's a mighty man of God, and yet God has him in a holding 136 00:09:11,680 --> 00:09:15,440 pattern, as He has many of us in holding patterns in different 137 00:09:15,440 --> 00:09:18,160 times of our lives. We think we're all ready to go 138 00:09:18,160 --> 00:09:21,920 serve God or do whatever, and that God has other plans many 139 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:25,120 times for us. And so that period of time 140 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:29,680 between verses 22 and 23, it talks about that in the book of 141 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:33,840 Galatians. And so then after that period of 142 00:09:34,160 --> 00:09:38,840 time, he comes back to Damascus, and it says in verse 23. 143 00:09:38,840 --> 00:09:43,120 Now after many days were passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, 144 00:09:43,840 --> 00:09:48,200 but their plot became known to Saul and they watched the gates 145 00:09:48,200 --> 00:09:52,280 day and night to kill him. So the plan of the enemies at 146 00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:56,080 this time of the apostle, that the persecution was beginning to 147 00:09:56,080 --> 00:10:00,200 occur toward him. Paul, whenever he had 148 00:10:00,200 --> 00:10:03,560 encountered Christ on the road to Damascus. 149 00:10:03,560 --> 00:10:07,880 It says in verse 16 of this 9th chapter, this is Jesus speaking. 150 00:10:07,960 --> 00:10:12,520 It says For I will show him how many things he must suffer for 151 00:10:12,600 --> 00:10:16,360 my name's sake. Now, if we go over to the book 152 00:10:16,360 --> 00:10:21,160 of second Corinthians Chapter 11, it the the subtitle in verse 153 00:10:21,160 --> 00:10:25,880 22 says suffering for Christ. Now, when you read this or you 154 00:10:25,880 --> 00:10:28,880 think about this, we, we live in a time where we think we're 155 00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:33,360 suffering because of the culture that we live in. 156 00:10:33,680 --> 00:10:37,400 And it seems to be very combative against Christianity. 157 00:10:37,400 --> 00:10:42,320 And it is different things are occurring, different problems 158 00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:46,000 are beginning to happen. There seems to be an assault 159 00:10:46,080 --> 00:10:51,320 against marriage for sure, against human sexuality, against 160 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:53,440 what kids may learn in school now. 161 00:10:53,440 --> 00:10:56,040 And all the woke ISM that's out there. 162 00:10:56,040 --> 00:11:00,720 Today is just a very, very challenging time to be alive as 163 00:11:00,720 --> 00:11:02,560 a Christian, especially in America. 164 00:11:03,320 --> 00:11:06,040 But we're certainly not experiencing what the early 165 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:09,200 church went through because of their commitment and their 166 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:13,160 faithfulness to the Lord. And Paul reviews some of the 167 00:11:13,160 --> 00:11:16,640 suffering. Jesus said that he was going to 168 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:20,400 reveal to him the things he had to suffer for his name's sake. 169 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:24,040 The Bible says all who live godly in Christ Jesus will 170 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:27,920 suffer persecution. I think the persecution that 171 00:11:27,920 --> 00:11:32,680 maybe most of us suffer now is more mental and internal and has 172 00:11:32,720 --> 00:11:36,840 to do with our heart and how we maneuver the challenges of life. 173 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:41,120 The enemy, the, the, the, the warfare that we experience, I 174 00:11:41,120 --> 00:11:45,400 believe as Christians is, is between our temples and our, and 175 00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:47,960 our mind. And it's very real at times to 176 00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:51,800 try to cause us to be discouraged or despondent or try 177 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:57,360 to cause us to want to quit or be less committed or maybe not 178 00:11:57,360 --> 00:11:59,520 do the things that God has called us to do. 179 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:02,840 There's all kind of, you know, stuff coming at us all the time. 180 00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:06,800 The Bible talks about the devil being the Prince of the power of 181 00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:10,400 the air, the media, the radio ways, the television ways, the 182 00:12:10,400 --> 00:12:13,920 majority of what comes in your home through media and and 183 00:12:13,920 --> 00:12:16,560 Internet. And these kind of things are 184 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:21,080 designed and controlled by the Prince of darkness to try to 185 00:12:21,080 --> 00:12:25,800 influence us and to 'cause our minds to be distorted and that 186 00:12:25,800 --> 00:12:28,800 we would begin to think things that aren't true and we would 187 00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:33,120 begin to believe lies. And so, but anyway, Paul in his 188 00:12:33,120 --> 00:12:37,440 days not any was he suffering I'm sure internal struggles like 189 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:40,680 we do, but these are some of the things that he went through in 190 00:12:40,680 --> 00:12:43,680 verse 22. He's giving a little bit of 191 00:12:43,680 --> 00:12:46,600 background. Are they Hebrews So am I are 192 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:50,080 they Israelites? So am I are they the seed of 193 00:12:50,080 --> 00:12:53,440 Abraham? So am I are they ministers of 194 00:12:53,440 --> 00:12:56,920 Christ And then the question mark, I speak as a fool. 195 00:12:57,120 --> 00:13:00,400 I am more and these are the things he struggled with and 196 00:13:00,400 --> 00:13:04,520 laborers more abundant in stripes above measure. 197 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:09,080 This represents the beatings in prisons, more frequently in 198 00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:13,640 deaths, often the Jews. Five times I received 40 stripes 199 00:13:13,640 --> 00:13:20,400 -1 three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three 200 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:23,720 times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day I have been in 201 00:13:23,720 --> 00:13:26,400 the deep, just out in the middle of the ocean. 202 00:13:26,800 --> 00:13:30,600 In journeys often in perils of waters, and perils of robbers, 203 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:34,240 and perils of my own countrymen, and perils of the Gentiles. 204 00:13:34,240 --> 00:13:37,400 And perils in the city, and perils in the wilderness, and 205 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:41,000 perils in the sea, and perils among false brethren. 206 00:13:41,200 --> 00:13:44,600 And weariness, and toil, and sleeplessness often. 207 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:48,960 In hunger and thirst and fastings often, and cold and 208 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:52,240 nakedness beside the other things that come. 209 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:56,000 What comes upon me daily? My deep concern for all the 210 00:13:56,000 --> 00:13:59,360 churches, Who is weak? Am I not weak? 211 00:13:59,560 --> 00:14:02,640 Who has made the stumble? And do I not burn with 212 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:06,360 indignation? And so he he talks about these 213 00:14:06,680 --> 00:14:08,800 difficulties, and then he goes on. 214 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:11,800 If I must boast, I will boast into things which concern my 215 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:14,480 infirmity. The God and Father of our Lord 216 00:14:14,560 --> 00:14:17,960 Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I'm not 217 00:14:17,960 --> 00:14:20,920 lying. And Damascus, the governor under 218 00:14:20,920 --> 00:14:24,560 Arethas, the king was guarding the city of the Demas scenes. 219 00:14:24,560 --> 00:14:26,800 And this is what we're reading in Acts right now, with a 220 00:14:26,800 --> 00:14:30,960 Garrison desiring to arrest me, but I was let down in a basket 221 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:35,280 through a window in the wall and escaped from his hands. 222 00:14:36,160 --> 00:14:42,040 And so I can't comprehend personally as a pastor what this 223 00:14:42,040 --> 00:14:44,960 man had to go through and his calling. 224 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:49,600 I think if God revealed everything to us, and if he 225 00:14:49,680 --> 00:14:52,160 showed Paul everything at the time that he said he would 226 00:14:52,160 --> 00:14:54,440 reveal to him the things he would suffer for his sake, 227 00:14:54,840 --> 00:14:57,320 name's sake, it would make any of us say, boy, you know, I 228 00:14:57,320 --> 00:14:58,960 don't think I want to do this right. 229 00:14:59,520 --> 00:15:01,000 I don't want to go down this path. 230 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:04,120 I don't want to suffer this heartache, this challenge. 231 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:11,000 Yeah, but you think about the apostles and the prophets and 232 00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:15,960 what they went through because of their allegiance to the Lord, 233 00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:23,440 the suffering, the martyrdom. Someone once told me years ago 234 00:15:23,440 --> 00:15:26,200 in Bible college, and we talked about spiritual warfare, He 235 00:15:26,200 --> 00:15:28,080 said. As a young guy, I was only in my 236 00:15:28,080 --> 00:15:30,880 early 20s. Clark, you haven't seen this 237 00:15:30,880 --> 00:15:32,920 smoke. You haven't smelled the smoke, 238 00:15:32,920 --> 00:15:37,960 let alone seen the fire yet. So we're reading the legacy of 239 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:42,680 the people that God used to establish Christianity in the 240 00:15:42,680 --> 00:15:46,320 early stages. And whenever we look at their 241 00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:50,560 testimony and see how they lived and and how they stood strong 242 00:15:51,280 --> 00:15:54,280 and and Paul continually reminded us through his 243 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:58,560 teachings that the strength he needed was made perfect in his 244 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:01,960 weaknesses, that the power of Christ would rest upon him. 245 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:06,600 He knew that he needed the power of Christ to rest upon him to do 246 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:11,320 what he he was called to do and to continually be faithful to 247 00:16:11,320 --> 00:16:13,320 what it was that God put on his heart. 248 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:17,200 And so we read here that after many days were passed and verse 249 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:21,040 23 of Chapter 9 of Acts and the Jews plan to kill him. 250 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:24,600 The plot became known to Saul and they watched the gates day 251 00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:26,440 and night to kill him. They were waiting for him. 252 00:16:26,720 --> 00:16:28,480 And then this is we read in Corinthians. 253 00:16:28,480 --> 00:16:32,360 Paul talked about the experience the disciples took him by night 254 00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:36,640 and let him down through the wall in a large basket. 255 00:16:37,160 --> 00:16:41,640 What a way to escape, huh? The famous apostle at this point 256 00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:44,720 in time was given the ability to to get out. 257 00:16:44,720 --> 00:16:47,360 It wasn't his time to be imprisoned yet. 258 00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:49,320 Of course, he would be eventually imprisoned and 259 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:51,960 eventually be martyred. But this is just the beginning 260 00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:54,920 stages of of his Apostolic ministry. 261 00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:58,480 And then it tells us about him and his experience in Jerusalem 262 00:16:58,680 --> 00:17:01,280 in verse 26. And when Saul had come to 263 00:17:01,280 --> 00:17:04,920 Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all 264 00:17:04,920 --> 00:17:08,480 afraid of him and did not believe that he was a disciple, 265 00:17:08,960 --> 00:17:10,760 so that they were probably confused. 266 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:15,760 They heard stories about his preaching in Damascus in the 267 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:19,319 synagogue, and then all of a sudden they don't hear about him 268 00:17:19,319 --> 00:17:20,839 for a couple years. He's gone. 269 00:17:20,839 --> 00:17:23,720 He's off the radar screen. They're probably wondering like, 270 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:25,640 what was he up to during those two years? 271 00:17:25,920 --> 00:17:30,520 You see, Paul didn't go after he had gotten saved up to Jerusalem 272 00:17:30,520 --> 00:17:35,320 to speak to the apostles. He was called to go into the 273 00:17:35,560 --> 00:17:39,360 desert and hear from the Lord directly regarding the the truth 274 00:17:39,360 --> 00:17:42,240 of the gospel. Eventually when he met up with 275 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:47,480 the apostles in Jerusalem, they knew that he understood the same 276 00:17:47,480 --> 00:17:49,040 message that Christ had given them. 277 00:17:49,040 --> 00:17:50,480 He didn't have a different message. 278 00:17:50,720 --> 00:17:54,040 He had the same message, but they were apprehensive because 279 00:17:54,040 --> 00:17:58,600 of what his example was. Prior to his conversion. 280 00:17:58,600 --> 00:18:02,200 He was a dangerous man and he had nothing planned good for 281 00:18:02,200 --> 00:18:04,280 anybody. So they didn't want to hang out 282 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:05,640 with him. They didn't want to see him. 283 00:18:05,640 --> 00:18:08,720 They didn't want to be with him. But then in verse 27, we read 284 00:18:08,720 --> 00:18:12,880 about this guy that we read about in Acts 4 named Barnabas. 285 00:18:13,440 --> 00:18:16,560 And that name means encourager. And we all need a Barnabas in 286 00:18:16,560 --> 00:18:20,480 our life, someone who encourages us and supports us and stands 287 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:23,760 beside us. And so Barnabas took him and 288 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:27,120 brought him to the apostles. Now Barnabas was respected. 289 00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:30,680 Remember he gave a lot of property to the early church and 290 00:18:31,280 --> 00:18:34,320 they were able to be able to do more things because of the 291 00:18:34,640 --> 00:18:37,360 wealth that he had provided for the church at the time. 292 00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:40,480 So he was a trustworthy man. He had a good testimony. 293 00:18:40,680 --> 00:18:44,280 So when Barnabas brings him in, they they probably think, OK, we 294 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:48,480 need to consider what is going to be talked about here. 295 00:18:48,880 --> 00:18:52,560 And so Barnabas brings him in to the apostles. 296 00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:56,920 And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, 297 00:18:57,400 --> 00:19:01,280 and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly 298 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:03,840 at Damascus in the name of Jesus. 299 00:19:04,680 --> 00:19:09,600 And so here's Barnabas and Paul didn't even really need to speak 300 00:19:09,600 --> 00:19:13,080 for himself. This witness, eyewitness 301 00:19:13,080 --> 00:19:18,520 Barnabas knew Paul, heard him, saw the results of what was 302 00:19:18,520 --> 00:19:22,400 happening as a as a result of his conversion and saying this 303 00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:27,320 guy's a real deal. You need to trust what God's 304 00:19:27,320 --> 00:19:31,880 done in his life and get to know him and spend some time with 305 00:19:31,880 --> 00:19:35,840 him. And after they had had that 306 00:19:35,840 --> 00:19:40,440 experience there with a few leaders in the church in 307 00:19:40,440 --> 00:19:44,760 Jerusalem, it says he was with them at Jerusalem coming in and 308 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:47,040 going out. So he was given the freedom to 309 00:19:47,040 --> 00:19:50,480 hang out and to go out and do some things regarding some 310 00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:52,720 degree of ministry. At the time, he wasn't really 311 00:19:52,880 --> 00:19:57,000 fully engaged in what the calling was yet, but it says he 312 00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:02,160 spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against 313 00:20:02,160 --> 00:20:04,360 the Helenus. Now, Paul had a Greek 314 00:20:04,360 --> 00:20:06,360 background. He had a Greek culture. 315 00:20:07,600 --> 00:20:11,600 He grew up in Tarsus and Tarsus had a major university that was 316 00:20:12,080 --> 00:20:16,800 this is profound and prolific as as the universities in in 317 00:20:16,800 --> 00:20:19,360 Athens. And he was also steeped in the 318 00:20:19,800 --> 00:20:23,920 Pagan culture, the arts, you know, he was very well-rounded. 319 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:27,760 And so when Christ chose him to be a witness to the Gentiles, 320 00:20:28,040 --> 00:20:30,960 primarily this was going to be his audience, people that ran 321 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:34,160 with this crowd and people that understood these kind of things 322 00:20:34,480 --> 00:20:38,480 that Paul was exposed to growing up as a young man. 323 00:20:39,560 --> 00:20:45,480 So he's preaching Christ and he's speaking to these Jewish 324 00:20:46,600 --> 00:20:50,800 followers of Judaism that were impacted by Greek culture at the 325 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,800 time. These people didn't really want 326 00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:56,760 to hear what he had to say. And it says, but they attempted 327 00:20:56,760 --> 00:21:00,200 to kill him. So right away it it isn't like a 328 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:03,160 real easygoing opportunity for Paul. 329 00:21:03,160 --> 00:21:06,680 He's struggling to be able to do the ministry. 330 00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:09,520 Not an easy way to start ministry. 331 00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:14,200 Lots of times people think everything needs to be smooth if 332 00:21:14,200 --> 00:21:17,680 God's in it, or there should be no problem and everybody wants 333 00:21:17,680 --> 00:21:19,880 to hear the truth and this kind of stuff. 334 00:21:20,360 --> 00:21:24,440 Paul wasn't experiencing that at the time, never really did. 335 00:21:24,440 --> 00:21:26,800 There was different times and seasons where there was 336 00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:29,000 outpourings of the Holy Spirit and people believe. 337 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:33,480 But for the most part, Paul was struggling against a culture 338 00:21:33,680 --> 00:21:37,440 that was Antichrist, very much like the culture that we live in 339 00:21:37,440 --> 00:21:39,880 today. Fortunately, no one's trying to 340 00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:42,680 kill any of us yet. But in other countries they have 341 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:47,080 been martyring and killing witnesses of Jesus Christ for 342 00:21:47,080 --> 00:21:49,800 centuries. And we know as the last days 343 00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:54,320 dawn in the end times that there will be more of these activities 344 00:21:54,560 --> 00:21:57,600 in other parts of the world, perhaps even in the in the 345 00:21:57,600 --> 00:22:00,440 country that we live. We pray not by the grace of God, 346 00:22:00,440 --> 00:22:04,280 but we need to to be prepared and to be strong in the Lord. 347 00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:09,520 And So what the church did at the time, they knew that Paul 348 00:22:09,520 --> 00:22:14,640 had to get out of town, so they brought him down in verse 30 to 349 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:17,000 Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus. 350 00:22:17,200 --> 00:22:21,240 So Paul is being sent back home out of Jerusalem, or most of the 351 00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:23,920 activity is at the time, and he's going to be there for 352 00:22:23,920 --> 00:22:29,520 approximately 812 years, studying, preparing, perhaps 353 00:22:29,520 --> 00:22:34,800 working with some of the early church plants in Cilicia and 354 00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:38,080 Tarsus in Syria, that region. But the Bible doesn't give a lot 355 00:22:38,080 --> 00:22:41,680 of details on that time that he was there. 356 00:22:42,200 --> 00:22:44,320 He was there, like I say, 8 to 12 years. 357 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:47,640 So think about this. He was in the desert for two to 358 00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:49,960 three years in a time of silence. 359 00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:54,480 And now he's going to be sent back home and he's really not 360 00:22:54,480 --> 00:22:58,040 going to be able to fully be engaged in what it is that's on 361 00:22:58,040 --> 00:23:00,760 his heart or what he sends God calling them to deuce. 362 00:23:00,920 --> 00:23:05,040 He had to learn patience. He had to learn the trust in in 363 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:08,400 God's plan and not his own. He wasn't striving. 364 00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:12,240 He didn't argue with these guys. He submitted and humbled 365 00:23:12,240 --> 00:23:15,520 himself. And so he goes down the Tarsus, 366 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:19,560 it says in verse 31. Then the churches throughout all 367 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:24,040 Judea, Galilee and Samaria had peace and were edified. 368 00:23:24,320 --> 00:23:28,440 So we remember the church at Pentecost started in Jerusalem. 369 00:23:28,640 --> 00:23:32,280 That's all we heard for a period of time in Acts, the city of 370 00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:34,840 Jerusalem. And now we see that the church 371 00:23:34,840 --> 00:23:40,360 has spread into these other regions in Judea and Galilee and 372 00:23:40,360 --> 00:23:42,120 Samaria. Remember the great Pentecost 373 00:23:42,120 --> 00:23:45,000 that says you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes 374 00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:47,720 upon you should be my by witnesses in all Jerusalem, 375 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:52,640 which they were at Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts 376 00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:54,920 of the earth, and this is happening. 377 00:23:57,200 --> 00:23:59,720 Thanks for joining us on this journey through Acts. 378 00:23:59,720 --> 00:24:03,680 On today's edition of Living Waters of Grace, Pastor Clark 379 00:24:03,680 --> 00:24:06,760 shares that one of the most remarkable things about the book 380 00:24:06,760 --> 00:24:10,360 of Acts is how it shows the disciples transformation. 381 00:24:10,760 --> 00:24:15,240 The followers of Jesus we meet here are very different from the 382 00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:19,040 often confused and fearful disciples in the Gospels. 383 00:24:19,680 --> 00:24:23,160 After Jesus's death and resurrection, and especially 384 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:27,320 through the power of the Holy Spirit, the apostles experienced 385 00:24:27,360 --> 00:24:30,800 a profound change in their hearts and boldness. 386 00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:34,640 Their faith became unwavering, and they moved forward with 387 00:24:34,640 --> 00:24:38,800 courage to spread the gospel despite opposition and hardship. 388 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:43,600 Acts reminds us that the same Spirit who empowered them is at 389 00:24:43,600 --> 00:24:48,280 work in US today, shaping our hearts and giving us strength to 390 00:24:48,280 --> 00:24:52,200 live boldly for Christ. Living Waters of Grace is a 391 00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:54,760 ministry of Calvary Chapel Westmoreland. 392 00:24:55,160 --> 00:24:58,440 If you're in the Greensburg, PA area, we invite you to join us 393 00:24:58,440 --> 00:25:03,080 this Sunday at 10:30 AM at 400 E Pittsburgh St. 394 00:25:03,120 --> 00:25:07,720 Unit 6B. Visit calvarychapelonline.com 395 00:25:07,720 --> 00:25:11,520 For more information or you can also join our e-mail list, 396 00:25:11,640 --> 00:25:16,240 submit prayer requests, give online and download our mobile 397 00:25:16,240 --> 00:25:18,720 app. If you are in the Greensburg 398 00:25:18,720 --> 00:25:23,160 area, you can listen to Grace FM on the new 91.7 frequency. 399 00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:26,680 Pray about helping support the new station that will reach 400 00:25:26,840 --> 00:25:31,160 thousands more listeners. Send gifts to Grace FMPO Box 401 00:25:31,160 --> 00:25:37,520 716, Greensburg, PA 15601. If you can join us in person, 402 00:25:37,520 --> 00:25:40,480 you can subscribe to the Calvary Chapel Westmoreland YouTube 403 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:44,160 channel so you'll be alerted when new material becomes 404 00:25:44,160 --> 00:25:46,440 available. We're so grateful that you 405 00:25:46,440 --> 00:25:50,000 joined us today in Axe TuneIn again soon for another edition 406 00:25:50,160 --> 00:25:51,880 of Living Waters of Grace.