Saul and The Power of Obedience | Acts 9:1-31

Good morning, Watermark. Is anybody glad to see the sun out this morning? Man! It's pretty great. Hey, my name is Tyler. I'm on The Porch team, and it's just a joy to be with you this morning. I want to tell you about a guy whose name you probably don't know, but he's integral to me being on this stage today. What's crazy is I actually didn't know his name until just recently.

November 1, 1934, Mordecai Ham preached a tent revival. He was a preacher. He preached a tent revival, and a 15-year-old boy was in the audience who heard the gospel and surrendered his life fully to Jesus. That boy's name was Billy Graham. Now fast-forward a few decades, and a hippie named Benji invited a girl named Marilyn to go to a Billy Graham crusade.

Marilyn invited her single mom, her sister Patty, and her little brothers Tom and Jim. They went to this Billy Graham crusade, and they heard the gospel, and the whole family's trajectory was changed forever. They surrendered to Jesus. Fast-forward a few more decades, and that little boy Jim, the youngest brother, becomes a husband and a father to me. It's my dad.

As I look back on that story, I just think that a guy I'd never heard of, Mordecai, and a hippie named Benji played an integral role in me standing on this stage today. I tell you that because the reality is God saves people that no one expects through servants no one would choose to accomplish what no one can stop. That's what we see happening in the book of Acts today. We're going to watch God do this very thing through his servant Saul today. Let me pray for us, and then we'll dig in.

If you would, would you take a minute and pray for yourself that God would open your eyes to the beauty of Jesus. Then, would you pray for those around you that their eyes would be open to the gospel. Then, would you pray for me that I would preach God's Word with boldness, clarity, and grace.

Come, Holy Spirit. Father, thank you that you have decided to intervene in a mighty way despite what any of us could see in all of our lives. So, Father, we invite you this morning through the work of the Holy Spirit and the person of Christ… God, would you work in us? Would none of us be able to leave this room unchanged after an encounter with you. We love you, we trust you, and we need you. In Jesus' name, amen.

We're working through the book of Acts as a church this year, so if you have a Bible with you, turn to the book of Acts. We're in Acts, chapter 9, today. If you remember, going back, the whole book of Acts can be summarized in Acts 1:8. It's from Jesus. He says to his disciples, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you to be my witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth."

They receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and they're beginning to move in power, except they're staying in Jerusalem until suffering and persecution come and they're scattered to all of the known regions in the area. Yet, the church continues to thrive and multiply and spread. Today, we'll watch the continual spreading of the church through the miraculous saving and conversion of the person of Paul. In Acts, chapter 9, we'll see four movements in Saul's story of grace, and we're just going to walk through these one by one.

1. God's radical intervention. Look at chapter 9. We're going to start reading in verse 1. We'll read a little bit, talk, read a little bit, and talk. It says, "But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem."

So, Saul (many of us know Saul) was a religious Pharisee whose mission in life was to stop the Jesus movement that was spreading throughout Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. When you read this, you go, "Man, what did Paul have against the Christians? Why did he hate them so much?" You have to understand the story of the Old Testament. In the story of the Bible, God said, "No idols but me," yet what are his people constantly doing? Yeah, they're running to idols.

So, Paul and these Pharisees are going, "We're going to be radical in the fact that we're going to crush anybody who tries to say they're God or lead us away from God." So, when this guy Jesus says, "I am the Messiah. I am God," and this movement begins to grow, he says, "Not on my watch. I'm willing to go 130 miles from Jerusalem to Damascus to crush what's growing out there."

The irony is that what he thinks he's doing for God… He's about to meet God on that road to Damascus. Let's see verse 3. "Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?'"

So, he's on his way, confidently going. "I'm going to crush this movement that's growing." A light shows up from heaven. He falls to the ground, and he hears a voice saying, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" What he thought he was doing for God… He was actually persecuting God. Look at verse 5. "And he said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.'"

Again, Saul is on his way. He falls to the ground. He sees a light. Then he hears the voice. "I am Jesus." Now, did you catch what he says first after he sees this light? He says, "Who are you, Lord?" This is a guy who has spent his whole life studying, memorizing the whole Old Testament. He has been crushing anybody who thinks they know God better than him. Now here he is going, "Who are you? I don't even know who you are."

Jesus reveals himself. "I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. Those Christians who you think are off the path are my bride. They're my body. When you're persecuting them, you're persecuting me." I don't know if you caught verse 6. He starts telling Saul what to do. He says, "Rise, enter the city, and you'll be told what to do. You're no longer taking papers, authority, from the high priest. You have a new high priest, and he's telling you where to go." This is Captain Phillips. "I am the captain now." Right? That's what's happening here. Look at verse 7.

"The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank."

It's interesting. Saul is having this encounter with God, this moment with God, and his friends are watching. They hear the voice, but they can't understand or perceive what's happening. How often is that true in our lives? We're having this moment, this encounter with God, and the people closest to us don't get it. That's what's happening here.

From there, his physical eyes are blinded, but his spiritual eyes are opened to the beauty of Jesus, and he sees Christ, God, for who he really is. We see God has radically intervened in Saul's life, and it will completely change him. Now, this story is unique. I know God has done crazy things in this room.

Not many of us have had the experience of walking along the road, seeing a bright light, being physically blinded, saying, "Who are you?" hearing Jesus, and then surrendering to him. Some of us, but not many. Also, many of us are not like Saul in that we didn't write 13 letters of the Bible and catalyze a global movement throughout the world. So, this is unique.

Yet, it's so important we understand all salvation from a holy, sovereign God in our lives is radical intervention. All of it. God doesn't just take bad people and make them a little better. I mean, this is what we believe. God takes dead people and makes them come to life. That is radical intervention 100 percent of the time. You're not a Christian in here if not for God stepping in and saving you despite you, and that's what we have here.

The other takeaway, though, is God still does do radical works of intervention in our lives. Some of you can say, "I grew up in church, and I was taught the gospel, and I followed it. God has had to work on some sin, but I've been walking the road." For others of you, it's kind of wild that you're in a church right now. Like, you look at your story and go, "God just had to step in in a mighty way."

I think back to when I was a pastor at a church down in Houston and got an email from a guy named Callum. Callum was a professional runner, and he was running on a Sunday morning outside of our church in Houston. As he ran by, he just had this overwhelming sense of "I should step in there. I should go to that church." It was 9:00 a.m. The first service was happening.

What's crazy is Callum was an atheist and wanted nothing to do with God, but he obeyed that voice. He went home, showered, put on a polo, and came to the second service, 11:00 a.m. He said he walked through the doors, sat on the back row, and just cried through the whole service. Just the whole time, saying, "I need this. I need this."

So, by the time Callum and I actually sat down, it was like the easiest gospel presentation ever, because he was like, "Man, I sat in church, and I feel like I need God." I was like, "Yeah, man. You need God. Let me tell you about it," and just walked him through the gospel. He was like, "Yes, it's that. That's what I want." I went, "All right." So, we started walking together. I was a little skeptical. It was too easy, you know. We walked through it.

A few months later, he hears about baptism at our church, and he goes, "Hey, can I do that? I want to be baptized." I'm like, "Yes, you can be baptized, but I've got to know…Is it real? This means the old you is dead; the new you is raised to life. Callum, is that true for you?" He just looked me dead in the eyes, and tears started coming down. He said, "Tyler, the old Callum is dead. I am raised to new life." I got to baptize him, and I was just thinking, "Oh, this is amazing. It's amazing what God has done."

Some of you have the story of Callum. The fact that you're in church today is amazing, because God decided to step into your life and woo you to himself. Others of you are Callum before he realized what God was doing, and God right now is after you in a powerful way. He wants you not to come to some religious system but to surrender and say, "My way is not working. I need a new way. There's not enough success. There's not enough money. There's not enough relational pleasure. Nothing. God, I need you."

I would just say that's like Saul, that's like Callum…God radically intervening in your life. For some, as you pray for those you love who are far from God, maybe you'd start praying the kind of scary prayer of "God, would you do whatever it takes to intervene in their life in a powerful way?" and trust that God will answer that prayer in his time, in his way.

2. Ananias' reluctant obedience. Let's keep going. Verse 10: "Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, 'Ananias.' And he said, 'Here I am, Lord.' And the Lord said to him, 'Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.'"

Ananias is a disciple of Jesus, and he's praying. He has a vision. He hears his name, and we hear his mentality. He says, "Here I am, Lord." He's going, "I'm openhanded, God, whatever you want to say." God is about to throw a wrench in Ananias' mentality when he says, "Well, there's a guy named Saul. Behold…" Which means "Check it out." "…Saul is praying. Oh, and by the way, Ananias, I told Saul you're coming to him." I mean, can you imagine this moment for Ananias?

We see his response. Look at verse 13. "But Ananias answered, 'Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.'" He hears this. His "Here I am" mentality has taken a bit of a hit when he's like, "Man, God, I don't know. Do you understand who this guy is?" Which is a pretty bold thing to say to the Creator of the universe.

"Do you understand? Not only do you understand who he is; do you understand who he's after? He wants to kill people like me." We see that God doesn't flinch at this. Look at verse 15. "But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.'"

God hears some of Ananias' reservations, and rather than go, "Oh, yeah, man. That's a good point," or "Oh, yeah, I didn't really think about it," or "Yeah, that would be tough if I was in your situation," he doesn't. He just gives him a single word: "Go." Not a suggestion…a command. He tells Ananias, "I don't just want you to go. I want you to tell Saul, 'I have a purpose for your life, and you're going to suffer.'" Which is a bold thing for a guy to say to the person he thinks wants to kill him.

So, what does Ananias do? Look at verse 17. "So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'"

Ananias not only departs, but he does exactly what God tells him to do, and he takes it beyond. He puts his hands on Saul and calls him brother. God will use this simple but difficult act of obedience to radically change Saul's life and to change the trajectory of the gospel in the world. Listen. God saves people no one expects through servants no one would choose, and sometimes that servant is you.

I was just thinking back to when I was in high school. I'm not very tall, but I played football down in Katy in the Houston area, west of Houston. Not at Katy but in Katy, if that makes sense. Katy is great at football. We played against Katy every year. For some reason, I was able to start as a junior on varsity. I played pretty well, outside linebacker.

Then, the summer between my junior and senior year, I went away to a summer camp for a few weeks and had my phone off. I came back, and my defensive coordinator was just blowing up my phone. Just, "Where are you? What's going on? I'm demoting you. You're never going to play for me again," and all this. I'm like, "Oh, wow."

I remember, right before my senior year of high school, I just bow down on my bed on my knees, and I'm like, "O God!" I'm feeling all of these thoughts. I don't know how this works, but as an almost senior in high school, I felt like I heard from the Lord. "Tyler, what if I don't want you to play football your senior year?" Those of you who played football or sports are like, "No way." Like, "Sorry, God. The answer is no. I will not do that."

It was like this subtle, gentle, but firm word from God where I heard back, "Great. Then we know who your god is." I remember hearing that, talking to my parents, going up to my coaches, and just telling my coaches in their faces, "I fear you more than I fear God, and I'm not comfortable with that, so I don't think I'm supposed to play football my senior year."

They are shocked. I mean, shocked. I'm shocked just walking through this process. But I just go, "I feel like God is telling me I'm not supposed to play." Through a radical situation, a guy in my church, who was a pastor, reached out and ended up discipling me my senior year. I'm in ministry now because of that experience.

A crazy thing happened. What brought this to mind studying this was a few years after this moment, I got a message on Facebook. I was in college at the time. I got a message on Facebook from one of the coaches on the defensive staff, Coach Osborne. He sent me this text. He said, "Hey there, Mr. Moffett. I had the opportunity to go on a church retreat this past weekend." He said, "I've never done that before."

He said, "I gained an understanding of how you always remained so positive in high school." He said, "I think I, at 38, finally found God. It's amazing, the best feeling I've felt in years. I'm not sure why I needed to tell you that, but you crossed my mind a few times while I was there. I wish you the best. Thanks for being a younger role model for me." Crazy.

See, God did beyond what I could have ever dreamed. Listen. You have no idea what's on the other side of your obedience to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in your heart. I could have never thought this act of obedience would, years later, result in one act in a grand scheme of things to bring this coach, Coach Osborne, to him, yet he does.

Where are you not obeying so you're holding back the opportunity to get involved in what God is doing in the world? You can't thwart his plan, but he's inviting you into it. Where, just like Ananias, is your reluctance potentially keeping you at bay but your obedience getting in the game? Where is God inviting you to step in?

One of my favorite quotes is from a guy named Oswald Chambers. He says, "What an astonishment it will be to find, when the veil is lifted, the souls that have been reaped by you, simply because you had been in the habit of taking your orders from Jesus Christ." I love that.

3. Saul's redirected purpose. Let's go back to verse 15 and see it from a new lens. "But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.'" It's amazing if you think about what Saul was before.

Saul will say about himself… He's going to eventually become the person of Paul, the apostle Paul, and he's going to write this in 1 Timothy 1:13: "…though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent." Yet here, in verse 15, God says, "All right. That's how he sees himself. The way I see him is a chosen instrument to carry my name before three groups of people: before Gentiles, before kings, and before the Jewish people." Saul is uniquely wired in his upbringing to reach all three.

Then it says in verse 17 again, "So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'" Look at verse 18. "And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened. For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus."

So, we find out here that Ananias lays his hands on him. Then something like scales fall from Saul's eyes. Physically, we don't know what that was, but spiritually, we know exactly what it was. This is "Amazing Grace." "I was blind, but now I see." "That which was blinding me to who Jesus was is opened up, and now I'm free to see." We see what happens next. It says in verse 18 that immediately, scales fell from his eyes, and he began to proclaim Jesus. Look at verse 20.

"And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, 'He is the Son of God.' And all who heard him were amazed and said, 'Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?' But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ."

Immediately, he goes to the same place where he was planning to go, the synagogue in Damascus, except now…think about it…rather than going in and saying, "This is a false religion, an idolatrous religion, and I'm binding you all and murdering you," he's saying, "Jesus is the Son of God." Everybody is watching this, like, "Wait, wait, wait. Is he not the one we were just fearing? Is he not the one who was just coming with letters from the high priest?" Yet, rather than hearing that criticism and getting insecure, he's strengthened, and the Word of God goes out.

The last part we'll read… Look at verse 23. "When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket."

So, in this last part we see it didn't take long. We don't know how long many days is, but a few days pass, and the Jews are going, "All right. We've got to take him out." He was just on their team, and now they're going, "All right. He's off the team. We're killing him." We see here Saul already has disciples. He gets his disciples together and goes, "All right. I know their scheme. They're going to come through the front door, so here's what I want you to do. Cut a hole in the side and lower me down in a basket. We should be good to go. Ready? Break."

You're going, "What? What kind of strategic move is going on here?" But think. Saul was on this team. He was working for the people who were wanting to kill the Christians. Now he has switched, and God is sending him in the midst, in the belly of the beast, to share the good news and to be able to strategically work in that setting.

So often, God will send you back to the very thing you came out of because you're uniquely wired and positioned to carry his name there. That doesn't mean, if you're an alcoholic, you get free and then run back to the bar, but after your time of healing, or whatever you need, God will use your story to uniquely save people with that same story if you're willing to share it rather than hide it in shame. I love what TA says from this stage all the time. He says, "We do not have a story to hide; we have a story to tell." Saul had a story to tell, and you have a story to tell. You can hide it or you can let it free.

I've talked before about some of the time I've gotten to spend in prisons, visiting (not there indefinitely). Much of the time I got to spend there is because of this guy who was my connection into the prison. I remember going a few times and getting to see God do amazing things. Finally, this guy said, "Hey, Tyler, I'd love to take you to lunch. I want to tell you my story." I'm like, "Great. I'd love to hear it."

So, we go to lunch at Saltgrass. He's buying. It's amazing. We sit down, and he goes, "Hey, pull out your phone and Google my name," which is a pretty bold way to start a story. So, I pull out my phone and Google his name. Sure enough, a Wikipedia page with his face and his name comes up. He goes, "Read it." I start to read it and find out he was a government spy who sold secrets to China as a double agent and got put in federal prison for years.

I'm reading this, having an out-of-body experience looking at this guy so normal, eating his steak. I'm like, "You're a spy? What?! There's no way." He starts laughing. He goes, "I know. I know." And he tells me his story. He said, "You know, not only was I a double agent, but I was living a two-faced life in every way. I was cheating on my wife. I was addicted to pornography. I was getting drunk every night. I was…" In his words. "…a scumbag. That's who I was."

He gets arrested. He gets charged. He gets sent to federal prison, and his first night, a guy puts his hand on him and says, "Don't kill yourself." He said, "I know it, because that's what I wanted to do." He said, "Don't do it. Trust in Jesus." He just shares the gospel with him there in prison. It was a slow process, but eventually, this man surrendered his life to Jesus.

Years later, when he got out, he tried to have a normal life, but it would just gnaw him, the guys in there who were feeling the same way he felt when he first got in. He goes, "I've got to get back." So he got trained. He got set up. He worked with a ministry called Alpha, and he worked his way back into the prison. He has seen hundreds of men give their lives to Jesus and get baptized, all because of his ability to go back into the very place of his darkness and brokenness.

For some of you, God is inviting you to go back to the place where he saved you from. Not out of temptation or wanting to go back into that lifestyle. No, with wholehearted conviction. "Jesus is better, and the people who were in the spot I was in need to hear about his way." It's Saul's redirected purpose that allowed him to have such a powerful work in this world.

Some of you feel like you're too far gone. You're even wondering why you're in a place like this, going, "Oh, man. I feel like I'm too far gone." Just think of Saul's story. It perfectly positioned him, in the midst of all the mess, the sin against God… God was weaving together a story in the midst of all that to have a radical impact on this world. Do not count God out and what he wants to do through your story.

4. Barnabas' risky encouragement. Look at verse 26. "And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple." So, Saul is done with his time in Damascus. He goes all the way back to Jerusalem. He's going to see all of the Christians. He goes there, and he's like, "Hey, I'm one of you." They're like, "Uh, no. Wolf in sheep's clothing at best or a mole at worst. Get out of here."

Look at verse 27. "But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he [Saul] went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord."

It says at the beginning of verse 27, "Barnabas took him." Literally, in the Greek, it's the idea of took hold of him. Saul was rejected by the disciples and was going away sad, and it's like Barnabas took him and went, "No, man. I know about what God has done in your life. Let me put my reputation behind yours and vouch for you in front of the disciples." And he does. The disciples listen to Barnabas, and they go, "Okay." They welcome Saul in, and Saul preaches boldly about the gospel.

It just begs this question: Where have you in your life had a Barnabas who stood up for you, who put their character, their reputation, on the line for yours? Maybe it was a sponsor in recovery who, in the midst of your darkness, stepped up and said, "I'll link my saddle up with his. Through this process, I'm with him."

Maybe it was a small group leader when you were growing up in youth group who, in the midst of your crazy relationships and all your drama, just linked in with you. They were like, "No, I'm with you to the end." By the time you graduated, they were like, "Oh, praise God," and they let you go. But they were just with you.

Maybe it was a parent or a friend or a disciple-maker or a mentor or a coach or a teacher who saw something in you. It was risky because you were crazy back then, but they linked up with you, and you are who you are today because of them.

I remember, a few years ago, I was setting up some online account for a bank, or something, and they asked me to fill out one of those security questions. One of the security questions was "Who was your favorite teacher?" I was like, "Oh, my favorite teacher." So I put "Ms. Arnoldi," my sixth-grade teacher. I screenshotted it, and then I found her on Facebook at the time and DM'd her. I sent it to her on Facebook.

I wait about 15 minutes, and I get a response back. She said, "I hate you!" in all caps. Then she said, "I've been sobbing the past 15 minutes." She said, "You wouldn't believe it, but most people never say 'Thank you.'" It just hit me. As I look back on my life, there are so many people who invested in me, who saw something in me and said, "Man, I'm going to hook up and latch my wagon with yours, even though it's rough right now, because I see a trajectory of what God has in your life."

Have you ever taken time to thank whoever that person is in your life? Maybe you need to take your phone out at some point in this service and text that person and say, "Thank you for being a Barnabas for me." Or send them an email or a letter or find them on Facebook or Instagram. Just find them and be like, "Hey, you ministered to me."

Here's the deal. Do you want to know how to know if someone needs encouragement? Check their pulse. If they're alive, they need it. Okay? We all need encouragement. We all do. Who has been a Barnabas for you, and then who are you a Barnabas for? One of my favorite verses in all the Bible (it's why I feel such a call to disciple young men) is 1 Corinthians 4:14-15.

Saul becomes Paul and writes the letter to the Corinthians, who are a crazy, wild church, and he says this in chapter 4: "I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel."

I love this verse because it's a reminder that the next generation… I'm with young adults at The Porch. The next generation doesn't need another voice. They don't need another TikTok. They don't need another sermon. They don't even need another clip or YouTube. Do you know what they need? They need a father. They need a mother.

They need someone to come alongside them and say, "Look. I'm not making you ashamed, but I'm admonishing you. I'm telling you to stop. I'm with you to the end because I love you." Are you that for somebody? Is there someone in your life that it's difficult to love them, but God is calling you to be a risky, encouraging Barnabas right now in this season?

All right. Let's end with this. Skip ahead to verse 31, the summary of this whole passage. "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied." I love this. Through all of this, Acts 1:8 is actually happening.

The Holy Spirit is working mightily through broken human beings to take the gospel from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria and the ends of the earth. The church is being built up in peace and in fear of the Lord and in comfort, and in these things it multiplies. Why? Because God is deciding to save people whom no one would expect through servants no one would choose to accomplish what no one can stop when everybody is playing their part.

Sharing the gospel and receiving the gospel is never one-dimensional. It has multiple dimensions and factors of people you never even know until eternity who have played a role in your story of grace. It's the Ananias who obeys even when it's difficult. "I don't want to do this, but, God, I'm going to do it." It's the Barnabas who encourages even when it's risky. "I don't even like this person, and I'm going to go partner with them and encourage them."

It's the Saul who follows his calling even when it gets costly, all fueled by the power of God deciding to intervene. When that happens, the church multiplies. We hang on that beautiful word that Jesus said in Matthew 16:18 when he said, "I will build my church, and the gates of hell cannot stand against it," because the multidimensional working of the gospel is at play through the power of the Holy Spirit.

I just want to say this. Don't count God out. Some of you have a prodigal who has walked so far from God right now. It's almost easier on your heart to go, "They're gone. I'm just medicating in the fact that I failed. It's done." The story of Saul is that God is never done. Don't count him out. Continue to hope. Pray bold prayers. "God, do whatever it takes to intervene in his life." Pray it.

Maybe some of you are on the precipice of a really difficult decision. Like Ananias, you're reluctant. "God, if I go all in, if I cut off this relationship, this affair, or if I cut out all my social media to deal with this pornography addiction, then I'll be ostracized. No one will care about me. My sin will come to the light." Praise God. Then God can actually deal with the darkness.

Some of us are like Barnabas. There's someone in your life you need to encourage right now. Don't give up. There's someone on the cusp of taking their own life, and your text, your reach-out, is going to redirect them, is going to save them. Don't count God out.

This has been my prayer as I've been preparing this week. The next Billy Graham could be in this room right now. The next Billy Graham could be passed out in a hotel right now, drunk, so far from God. Yet, the multidimensional working of the gospel wants to come in that darkness and use that person for radical things. Do we trust him for this? Maybe today is the day of salvation for you. Let's pray.

Father, thank you that in every one of our stories, you have been weaving together a multidimensional movement of gospel power that our little brains cannot even grasp. Yet you've been doing it, and you've been working it, and you are good. For some of us, part of that story has been revealed, and for others it's not. I pray that there would be radical faith in a God who can do beyond what we can ask or imagine to enlighten our hearts, to open eyes to the beauty of the gospel.

Lord, I just pray, would you do it again? Would you do it again? Restore hope that's lost. Remind us of the power of the Holy Spirit, and restore to us the joy of your salvation. Come, Holy Spirit. Intervene in our day, like you did in Saul's day, and work wonders throughout Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and now where we are, the ends of the earth. We love you. We trust you. In Jesus' name, amen.