What we're saying when we say that Paul was converted. on the Damascus Road. is there came a moment on that day and in that place, when confronted by Jesus Christ, confronted with a sense of his sin, He turned from his sin. To Jesus Christ, in repentance and faith. There are a number of ways that the Apostle Paul is unique among God's people.
He authored many books in the Bible, he performed miracles, and even had a vision of the glories of heaven. And yet, just like every other Christian, Paul was a sinner who was converted by God's grace and called to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm glad to have you with us for another Saturday edition of Renewing Your Mind. I'm your weekend host, Josh Mann, and we're going to be continuing our study with Dr. Guy Waters in his series, The Life and Theology of Paul.
This is such a helpful series from Dr. Waters that introduces key concepts in Paul's writing. concepts like justification. sin and growth in the Christian life. For your donation today, you can get digital access to all 12 messages.
You'll also receive the companion e-book and a digital study guide. You can give online today at renewingyourmind.org.
Now, here's Guy Waters on the conversion and the calling of the Apostle Paul. In this lecture, we're going to look at what happened. to Saul of Tarsus, Outside Damascus. We've seen that Paul's whole life up to that point was a grand preparation for the man that God would make him by grace. And now we want to see how grace burst into the life of Saul of Tarsus.
Now for Paul himself Damascus Road was the decisive moment. In his life, he reflects on it in no fewer than three places in his letters. He looks back on it to the Galatians in chapter 1. He looks back on it to the Philippians in chapter 3. And then at the very end of his lie, In 1 Timothy chapter 1, he thinks back on the Damascus Road with Timothy.
And in each case The theme is the same. What happened to Paul was the undeserved mercy of God to a sinner. and Paul never tired of rehearsing that theme.
Now, for Luke as well, as he tells the story of the early church. The Damascus Road was a watershed experience in the life of the church. One way we see that is that he tells the story of Paul's conversion on three occasions. There is the account itself in chapter nine. And then in chapters 22 and 26, Paul himself before Roman officials in 26 and before the Jews in 22.
tells what happened to him on the Damascus Road. There are only a few things that Luke recounts three times, and each of them. is important to loot. And so this is Luke's way of saying this is. a watershed moment.
in the events of the Gospel From Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.
Now, scholars in the last 50 years have seriously questioned. whether Paul was actually converted. on the Damascus road. Strange as that may sound to our ears. They don't question that Paul was called on the Damascus Road, that he received a summons, a commission.
to testify, to be a witness to Jesus Christ. But they question whether he was converted from one way of living. to another way of living. And they have especially accused Protestants of trying to thread Paul through the eye of the Augustinian and Lutheran needle. And The argument goes something like this.
Both Augustine and Luther. were men of very sensitive consciences. And they bore the burden of Gil. And both men came to the Apostle Paul. And in reading the letters of Paul, they found release from that guilt.
But these scholars say this is really more a reflection on the introspective consciences of these men. than on the writings of Paul himself. And so the charge is, you're just imposing. Religious sensibilities of an Augustine or a Luther on De Paul. There is no apparent religious conversion.
Yeah. His letters or in the account of the Damascus Road in Acts. And this argument has persuaded a number of people. To be sure, Paul's call is clear. And the word Convert or converted does not show up in these chapters.
But in reply, We need to know two things to start. We need to be clear first what we mean and what we don't mean when we say that Paul was converted on the Damascus Road. And we very much affirm that he was converted on the Damascus Road. We're not saying that Paul had to have had a dramatic religious experience.
Sometimes that comes with conversion. But sometimes it doesn't. Nor are we saying that Paul spent his whole life in Judaism burdened by guilt. There may have been periods when he was, but that need not have been the case. What we're saying when we say that Paul was converted on the Damascus Road.
Is there came a moment on that day and in that place, when confronted by Jesus Christ, confronted with a sense of his sin, He turned from his sin, To Jesus Christ, in repentance and faith. That's what we mean when we say that Paul was converted. And that's what we'll see is borne out by the testimony of the scripture.
Now These scholars have regrettably separated what Scripture does not separate. They say Paul was not converted. But he was called. It's not an either or. We happily recognize that Paul was called to bear witness to Jesus Christ on the Damascus robe.
And we also say that he was converted by the grace of Christ. on the Damascus Road. Paul's conversion and his call are two cords woven together. And you can't separate them.
So let's give thought to what Scripture says about this call and conversion, and we need first to set the scene.
Okay. Scripture sets the scene with the martyrdom of Stephen. Remember the account in Acts chapter 7, on into chapter 8. And he was uh brutally murdered. Martyr.
Bye, Mom. Yeah. And that precipitated, Luke tells us, a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem. And the whole church, except the apostles, they scattered.
Now, Saul, who had witnessed and had approved of that horrific scene. In Stephen's death, Was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. Luke tells us at the beginning of chapter 9.
So, even that scene and the scattering of the church did not abate. his zeal to destroy the church and the gospel. And so Saul takes it upon himself to approach the high priest. And he asks for letters. to the synagogues in Damascus.
Now, Damascus is about 135 miles north of Jerusalem. You can't take a train or drive there, so it's a considerable expenditure of effort to go.
Okay. And Paul wants to go and arrest and extradite Christians who have fled for refuge in Damascus. And he wants to bring them back. and bring them to justice as he sees justice.
So Paul sets out. And scripture says he is within sight of Damascus. He is almost there. And then two things happen. First, a light from heaven shone around him.
In this slide, was brighter than the sun.
Now Paul tells us that when this light shone, it was midday.
So this is a supernatural lie. Paul not only sees this light, but he also hears a voice.
Now, there are people traveling with him. And they hear the sound. But they don't hear the voice distinctly.
Now what is Paul here? Saul Saul Why do you persecute me? Saul is struck to the ground. and he finds himself blind, He can't see. And so he's stumbling about in the dark.
in noonday. And men have to take him by the hand and lead him the rest of the way into Damascus. He fasts for three days. Reflecting on his life. reflecting on his sin, Reflecting on the words of Jesus Christ to him, on the Damascus Road.
And then a disciple by the name of Ananias is sent to Saul. And Inanias hesitates. Lord, do you know this man? Are you sure you want me to go to him? Yes, Ananias, you're to go to him.
And he comes to Saul. And he addresses him the first words that Saul hears as a converted man that scripture records: brother Saul. And through Ananias Saul receives his sight. And he's baptized. And he gets about work.
Now In this scene, Paul is not only dramatically wrought upon. But he is given a commission. And Luke records this commission in all three accounts. That commission Paul stresses to the Galatians comes directly from the mouth of Jesus Christ. It wasn't mediated through people.
It came directly from Jesus. And that commission boils down, To one thing. Saul, you are going to be my witness. You will carry my name. And he's going to go out.
To the children of Israel, But he's going to go out to the Gentiles as well. He's going to tell them about Jesus Christ. And Jesus says to Saul, Now, when you go and bear witness to me before the Gentiles, And this comes up. In chapter twenty six. Jesus says, I'm going to do something to those Gentiles.
What I'm going to do is I'm going to open their eyes.
Now, I want you to notice here the similarities between What Paul was commissioned to do. And what Jesus did to Paul. I want to reflect on this a bit. And this will give us, I think, clarity to see Paul's conversion. emerging.
in relief.
Now, the Gentiles are going to hear Paul. testify to Jesus. He is going to bear witness to Jesus. And that's exactly what Paul heard on the Damascus road. He heard the voice of Jesus summoning him.
Why do you persecute me? And then the Gentiles are going to have their eyes opened. They're going to be brought from darkness into light. And that's exactly what happened to Saul on the Damascus Road. He is bathed in the light of the glory of Jesus Christ, and he is struck blind.
But then he regains his side, When Ananias comes to him, and lays hands on him, and speaks the word of Jesus Christ to him.
So a voice And a lie. What Jesus will do through Paul. in the lives of Gentiles. This Jesus has first done. in the life of Saul.
So, I want us to think a little bit more about just what it is. That Jesus will do for the Gentiles, because if we understand that, that's going to help us understand what happened to Paul. And In chapter 26. We're told that Jesus will open the eyes of Gentiles. that they may turn from darkness to light.
and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive the forgiveness of sins. and an inheritance among those who were sanctified by faith in me. I want to look at that a little more carefully. They're going to turn from darkness to light.
Now that is exactly how Paul describes the new birth in 2 Corinthians chapter 4. He says the God of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers. to keep them from seeing the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. What does God say? Let light shine out of darkness.
And He has shone in our hearts. to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. You see, when a person comes to Jesus Christ, they are brought from darkness into light. And that is a work of new creation. It's why he quotes from Genesis in that connection.
But then he says, Jesus is going to open their eyes that they may turn from the power of Satan to God. that they may receive the forgiveness of sins. And that's exactly what Paul says. happened to the Colossians in chapter one. He says, you have been brought from the domain of darkness.
into the kingdom of his beloved son. You'd been brought from the power of Satan to God. And in Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Here is the new birth. And here is the forgiveness of sins.
And these things that Jesus Christ will do. in the lives of sinners. As the word goes out, as the word is preached. These are the very things that Paul himself experienced.
Well, what did Paul experience? How can we summarize it?
Well, he experienced the new birth. He was brought from darkness to light. This is a work of new creation. He was under the domain of darkness. under the reign of Satan.
And he has been brought into the kingdom of Jesus Christ. And he has been forgiven. Of all his trespasses. And it is as one who has experienced these realities. that Saul will go from the Damascus road, and preach Jesus Christ to others.
and bid them come to Christ, that they might share in the blessings that Christ has poured out on him. First of all, In a word, What happened to the Apostle Paul? on the Damascus road, is that he was converted. The very same thing that happens to every Christian. at the beginning of his or her Christian life.
Trump's conversion for the Christian life generally. We are obviously not the Apostle Paul on the Damascus Road, but We have seen that Paul's experience is a kind of pattern or a picture of what it is that Christ is pleased to do. the lives of sinners. And I think we can draw at least three lessons as we begin to draw to a close. And the first and perhaps the most important to accent for our study, Is that Paul's conversion shows that salvation is by grace alone?
Salvation is by grace alone. All we've seen was a very capable an accomplished man. He had natural abilities. He had patting. He had accomplishments in Judaism, genuine accomplishments of which he was proud before his fellows.
But they were all directed in the service of sin. Paul thought that he was doing service to God. Making that trek to Damascus, arresting. These blasphemers, so he thought. bringing them to justice before the High Court.
of the priest. Paul thought that he was, he tells the Philippians, blameless. according to the law. That is a faithful keeper of God's covenant. And yet, in reality, as he would tell the Ephesians in the opening verses of chapter 2.
Like you I was serving the world. and I was serving the flesh, and I was serving the devil. All that Paul was was in the service of sin. And as Paul thinks on what happened to him on the Damascus Road, as he tells Timothy at the end of his life. In verse 15 of chapter 1, this saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. of whom I am foremost. Paul continued to have a deep impression of what it was to be a sinner. And of the reaches of grace in his life as it met him. on the Damascus road.
Paul experienced new creation. Paul was brought out of one dominion to another. Jesus Christ did not look on Paul. and see something morally lovely in him and so save him. The record says the contrary.
Neither do we see Paul taking steps to work with God to save him. Paul is in the heat of rebellion at the very moment that Jesus Christ reaches down to save him. It is clear. whether from Luke's account or Paul's own description. That it is God alone who saved Paul.
This is a sheer exercise of sovereign divine power and grace. And this truth becomes one of the very core principles of Paul's teaching. You get this, it unlocks his letters. You miss this. and they remain shrouded in darkness.
The human center is powerless to save himself. She is unworthy. of any favour of God. And the invincible might of God's mercy in Christ. is what Paul points to as alone saving the sinner.
We see a second thing as well. Those whom God saves. he puts into his family. What were the first words? That Saul heard as a Christian.
Brother Saul. Brother Saul. And what was Paul's first action when he came to Jerusalem? He attempted to join the disciples. knowing full well the discomfort that that encounter would bring.
The Christian life is personal. But it's not solitaire. We're going to see Paul stressing that in many ways. We are part of a spiritual family. We need one another.
our gifts, our graces, our fellowship and our encouragement. But then there's a third thing. Those whom God saves he puts into service.
Now We're not given the commission of the Apostle Paul. But each believer is given a calling. And each of us Is put into service, service of Jesus Christ in the places in which He has set us in Providence. And one thing that the scripture highlights is that Paul was obedient to that commission. Straight away, he goes into Damascus, Acts 9.20, and he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogue.
He is the Son of God. Then he continued. He increased all the more in strength, verse 22, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. And then he goes to Jerusalem. And he does the same thing.
He preaches Christ. Each of us is called to serve Christ. And what motivates us and what encourages us. In the very hard things that we face in the service of Jesus Christ, as Paul faced hard things in the service of Jesus Christ. is the knowledge of the grace of his Son.
And that's the great theme. of the gospel that Paul expounds. The gospel of grace in Jesus Christ. How are you serving Christ? That's a good question for each of us to ponder.
For Christians a calling to serve is not a matter of if, but how. no matter who we are or what our circumstances may be, If God has saved us by His grace, the then we're called to use our time. our talents and our very lives to serve him. You've been listening to the Saturday edition of Renewing Your Mind. Today's message was from Dr.
Guy Water's series on the life and theology of Paul. This teaching series has eight additional messages that we're not going to be able to get to in our study.
So if you'd like to continue enjoying this entire series, just make a donation in support of Renewing Your Mind today. you can get streaming access to all of the messages. along with a companion e-book. and a digital study guide. You can give online today at renewingyourmind.org.
As Christians, we live in the tension between two ages: the present age and the age to come. What exactly do these periods of time refer to? and what are the implications for how we should live the Christian life now? We'll consider these and other questions next Saturday, here on Renewing Your Mind.
