Sermon preview, week of August 13, 2024
Our Watchword: Witness (Evangelism)
This Sunday’s order
- Sunday
- Reading
- Acts 9:1-19
- Preaching
- Jonathan Balmer
This is a sermon preview for the fourth week of our Watchword series. You can see FBCM's current watchword and goals at fbcmuncie.org/about-us
The readingActs 9:1-19
Visit FBCM’s YouTube channel to view video live stream (live) or audio version of the sermon (published the week after).
"Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord, Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” - from Acts 9:1-19 (NIV)
Read Acts 9:1-19
1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord. He approached the high priest 2and requested letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women belonging to the Way, he could bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As Saul drew near to Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” 5“Who are You, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” He replied. 6“Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless. They heard the voice but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could not see a thing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was without sight, and he did not eat or drink anything. 10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Here I am, Lord,” he answered. 11“Get up!” the Lord told him. “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” 13But Ananias answered, “Lord, many people have told me about this man and all the harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. 14And now he is here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.” 15“Go!” said the Lord. “This man is My chosen instrument to carry My name before the Gentiles and their kings, and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.” 17So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength. And he spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.
Berean Standard Bible, public domain
It is hard to imagine a more direct conversion experience than Paul's (or Saul, as he is referred to in this passage). He falls to the ground and hears the voice of Jesus calling to him. Jesus gives him direct, audible, instruction. He calls him by name.
And yet, it would be a mistake to think that there was no role for the witness of others in Saul's conversion. Even here, when Jesus is most direct, he has a role as the witness of a believer named Ananias.
The Lord is perfectly able to act directly. And indeed he does act directly. He is our great high priest, our true prophet, the only true King. Even so, he also calls each of us to participate in his work.
Ananias arrives on the scene, an unsure messenger of God.
Trepidatious, one might even say scared, because he knows what Saul has been doing. And he knows the trouble for the church which Paul has been responsible for spreading. But it is through his obedience, that Saul's sight is restored physically and spiritually. Saul also comes to also see the role Christ has in his life more clearly.
The idea of witnessing, of inviting people to know the power and love of Christ at work in their lives, can be a fear-inducing calling in our lives as well. Perhaps we are afraid of not having all the answers. Perhaps we worry that we will say something or do something wrong. Maybe we're even afraid of the response. It could even be we are afraid of the people we are called to witness to themselves.
As we gather for worship this week, we will consider the indispensable calling of witnessing. And in so doing, see that to witness is to be obedient to God's call: not to know all the answers or to be the most impressive in our knowledge. To witness is to walk alongside, to point people to the mercy of God, and the restoration found in the Lord Jesus, even in scary circumstances. This calling is not to manipulate. It is not to corner someone. It is not to win the argument. Witnessing the goodness of God and inviting others to know Christ is also an expression of our Watchword, where we seek "Not to be served, but to serve." (Mark 10:45).
Reflection Questions:
- What makes it most difficult for you to talk about your faith with others?
- If you were to share what God has done in your life, what are three things you would share?
- Does it relieve some of the pressure of living as a witness to know what is required is not to win an argument but to simply speak about the Lord's goodness which has met us in Jesus?
