The reading of God's word will be found again in the 26th chapter of the book of Acts. Hear now the word of the Lord. Then Agrippa said to Paul, you are permitted to speak for yourself. So Paul stretched out his hand and answered for himself. I think myself happy, King Agrippa, because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things which I am accused by the Jews, especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews. Therefore, I beg you to hear me patiently. My manner of life from youth, which was spent from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem, all the Jews know. They knew me from the first, and if they were willing to testify, that according to the strictest sect of our religion, I lived a Pharisee. And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers. To this promise, our twelve tribes, earnestly serving God night and day, hope to attain. For this hope, say, King Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews. Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead? Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison. Having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities. While thus occupied, I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priest. At midday, O King, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. And when I had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads. So I said, who are you, Lord? And He said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people as well as from the Gentiles to whom I now send you. To open their eyes in order to turn them 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 are sanctified by faith in me. Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do the work befitting repentance. For these reasons the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come, that Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles. This is the Word of the Lord. Let us pray. Our gracious Heavenly Father, we come before You as Your saints. Thankful for the gift of life that we have in your Son, Jesus Christ, and thankful for the Holy Spirit who has been poured out to empower us and give us understanding of your Word and of the life that you would have us live. Help us to be obedient today to all that you would teach us. We ask and pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son, and all of God's people said, Amen. You may be seated. Well, as we've been studying for several weeks now, Paul has been given an opportunity to speak before quite a gathering of magistrates who have come with much pomp and circumstance. And he does so with a very clear purpose. One that he would later give to young Timothy as a command and priority for him and for all of us. Reading in 1 Timothy chapter 2, Paul wrote, Therefore, I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercession, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of our God and Savior. who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Paul is here to preach the gospel and to call these men and women to repentance for their own sake and for the sake of those who they rule over. Last week, we saw Paul's confession of his sins. His sins of pride and legalism as a Pharisee. And this week, we will see him give an account of his conversion. His testimony, if you will. And next week, we will see the impact and the power of what he shared. Now, this is the third account of Paul's conversion. that is given by Luke under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit here in his orderly account. And I've provided in your order of worship a side-by-side comparison that I want to say just a word about this before we look at the details of what's given today in our text in the final account. And the reason is that this touches on one of those places where the truth and authority of God's Word is called into question. Something that we need to understand and something that we need to be sure that our covenant youth understand. Now there's three accounts. The first in chapter 9 is the historical account given by Luke. The second is Paul's testimony before the hostile Jewish crowd in Jerusalem. And the final one today is given before King Agrippa. So much is made of the differences in these accounts when it comes to liberal scholars or worldly skeptics who do not believe that the Bible is inspired truth that has been communicated to us by God. Thus they claim that these accounts are full of contradictions and do not accurately reflect what happened. Now, I've provided this comparison so that you can take some time as families or as groups of individuals to discuss them and to discuss why such attacks are made, remembering that our attitude always affects what we see. For example, if I'm a skeptic and I'm looking for contradictions, And I see that Luke says that the other men stood speechless in chapter 9, and that Paul says they fell down in the text today. Well, there you have it. That's a clear contradiction. They can't be standing and falling at the same time. And I wouldn't stop there in the old days. Because Luke's first account says that everyone heard the voice from heaven, but to the Jews, Paul says, they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. And in the final account, he says the voice spoke only to him. Contradictions would be their cry. And you'll find them on any list of Bible contradictions if you look it up on the internet. But you see, on the other hand, if I believe that the Bible is the Word of God, then I assert that it's true and that it would not contradict itself. But you see, I do not do this with blind faith. I'm going to believe whatever's there no matter how much sense it makes. But rather by honestly asking how we should reconcile these three accounts of a historical event. One that is given by the historian Luke in an orderly manner, there in chapter 9 with most of the details. The second given by an eyewitness to an event before hostile Jews, so that he focuses on the faithful Jew Ananias. And a second account from Paul which focuses on the authority of Jesus before King Agrippa. So that's why there's three, and here's how I would tell a skeptic if he were asking the question honestly, how I could reconcile these supposed contradictions. Paul and his companions are on the road, and a great light appears that stuns them all, and it throws them down to the ground. Jesus, in a voice that thunders from heaven, speaks only to Paul. who rises when Paul tells him to, while the others have stood up because they can hear a voice, but do not understand what is being said." Now, somebody could say, well, how do you know that that's pretty close to what happened that day? Well, I know that because that's what you get if you put all of these accounts together, assuming that they're truthful. And you see, we need to remember that this is important. Because if the Bible is wrong with these types of historical facts, why should we believe what the Bible tells us about spiritual things, like our salvation? If these accounts are not telling us the truth when it comes to details that we can see, Somebody's on the ground or somebody's standing up. Somebody hears a voice or somebody does not hear a voice. Then why should we trust the Bible when it says something regarding how the Apostle Paul's sins can be forgiven? Something we can't see. So I hope this comparison will lead to many other good discussions in the coming weeks and months. And as we do, We as saints must remember that the writer of Hebrews tells us in the great chapter about faith. Without faith it is impossible to please Him. For he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Those who come questioning the existence of God in a skeptical manner or the authority of His Word will certainly find lots of problems in the Bible. And they will get no answers or rewards. Those who come in faith do not have to leave their minds at home, but can expect God to not only reward them, but to show them the way of truth. So with that in mind, let's consider the text before us this morning. In verse 12, Paul begins with, while thus occupied, referring to his rabid persecution of the church. Paul's desire was to crush this new movement. But Jesus had other plans. So at midday on his way to Damascus, Paul says, I saw a light from heaven brighter than the sun shining around me and those who journeyed with me. Now I've mentioned this before and I hope some of you have carried out this scientific experiment. It's fun with the kids. If you get a light, it's hard to find the old ones. Mark tells me 100 watt light bulbs are now illegal, but that used to be fun when you could get a really bright one. But you get a lamp with just the bulb and you take the kids and you have them see it in a room. It lights up the whole room and it's even too bright to look at, especially if it's 100 watt. But you take that same lamp outside at noonday, at the brightest time of the sun, and you hold it over a sidewalk, lit. And that same 100 watt light bulb casts a shadow. A shadow. Because the light of the sun is so much greater. And what Paul says here is that they saw a light brighter than the sun. Something that's hard for us to even imagine. Imagine something that would cause the sun to cast a shadow. So it's no wonder that they all fell to the ground. This was quite a shock. Just ponder a light greater than the sun. Then Paul says that I heard a voice speaking to me, Jesus did speak directly to Paul, and saying in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads. Now remember that Paul's direct appeal here in this auditorium is to King Agrippa. And thus we see that mentioning the fact that Jesus spoke in Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament and of the Jews, would have been important to King Agrippa. And that's why it's mentioned here and not in the other accounts. I'm going to comment on the concept of kicking against the goads in a moment when we talk about testimonies. But Paul knows that he is in the presence of God. He might have been in rebellion, but he figured this part out. So he asks, Who are you, Lord? Obviously, I've got something wrong. And the Lord said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of which the things that I will yet reveal to you." Paul here gives much more detail on the commission that he received that day from Jesus, because it is relevant again to King Agrippa and all of the Gentile rulers who have gathered in this auditorium. Verse 17, he says, I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes in order to turn you from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, and that you may receive the forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me. The commission from Jesus was powerful and very poignant. It is a picture of a blind man. A blind man or woman stumbling around in the dark, doing all sorts of destructive things under the power of Satan. This is now true of both the Jews and the Gentiles in Paul's day, because rather than share the light of salvation with the Gentiles, as the Jews had been commanded, they had rejected that light even for themselves. And yes, such was Paul's state as he traveled that day to Damascus. Paul had been blinded by his pride and his legalism, and he was now stumbling about trying to crush God's people, working under the power of Satan. On that road, he met the light that came into the world. Jesus. And He would now be given clear direction and the power to overcome sin and death with the gospel. Paul was a changed man. And as we will see more clearly next week, he wanted the same for all of those who were present that day. In verse 19 he continues, Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, and then in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do the works befitting repentance. For these reasons the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both too small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come, that Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles." Paul's appeal is simple. Come to the light. and be saved. Or as the psalmist challenges the civil magistrates, kiss the son, lest he be angry, and you perish. Next week, we will look at the various reactions to this message. But for today, I want to consider the power and the importance of our testimonies. This is the second time that we see the Apostle Paul use the account of his conversion in his witnessing. What I want us to remember this morning is that each of us have a testimony, and that using it as part of our witnessing can be very important. And brothers and sisters, if you're thinking to yourself, well, I just don't have much of a testimony, or if you're wondering if you even have one, I hope you will please listen very carefully. In the Scriptures, we'll see that there are basically three types of testimonies that we can find there. The first is where we have men like Peter or Paul who were converted through first-hand encounters with Jesus. No one today can claim such a testimony. Truthfully, I think there are some that still try. So if we think to ourselves, well, I don't have a testimony just like Paul's, that's a very true statement. None of us can say that we met Jesus on the road to Damascus or walked with Him as one of His disciples. However, the second type of testimony that we see in the Scriptures comes from those who are converted at some point from a life of sin by those who testify or witness to them about the reality of Jesus and His work. Examples of this would be the Philippian jailer or the other Jews and Gentiles that the apostles and others have preached to down through the ages. The witness of these witnesses did not cease with their death. Think about that. Their witness didn't cease with their death. Just as we can know, as good Reformers, that Luther led the Reformation in Germany, even though all of those who verified that he lived or met him, and what he did, are now dead themselves. John speaks of this near the end of his Gospel. He says, and truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples which are not written in this book. But these are written that you, anyone who reads their Bible, these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing in Him you may have life in His name. That's the witness that we have. The final type of testimony that we find in the Scriptures is where we have a faithful saint raised in the covenant community. Examples of this would be young Timothy, who knew the Scriptures from a very young age, or saints like Mary, the mother of Jesus, or Simeon, who came to pray, who seemed to have been faithful all the days of their lives. Now, many of the older members here at Church of the King, including myself, were converted later in life. We would have the conversion testimony. We have a story to share. And I guess part of my purpose this morning is to have us share that more often and to realize, following Paul's example, that it might often vary. Sometimes, when we're dealing with people who are struggling with obedience or following the Lord, when I tell my testimony, it's really more my wife's testimony. God was doing a great work in Linda's life at the time that I was saved. And that's an important part. And sometimes I'll spend more time talking about that than I do about what happened to me. Other times, if I'm dealing with a skeptic like myself, Just as Paul was dealing with proud magistrates here in this room, I go right at them with what God did to me. Because that's the testimony. We need to learn to be unashamed to share that. Sometimes it's hard. Some of us don't like what we were before. And telling our testimony kind of brings some of that back. But the fact that God changed us, is important. You know, you probably heard me, you know, talk about humanists and skeptics and I get kind of excited when I do and the reason is I was one. I know exactly how these people think because that's how I thought. You know, everybody gives me a hard time about 2001 Space Odyssey and I remember the movie because I was a pagan sitting there thinking when those apes discovered tools, wow, that's how it happened. I was believing it. But you see, just as the Apostle Paul, God had other plans for me. He brought people into my life that gave me the gospel. And you know, sometimes your testimony is difficult. You know, I can't point to a time that I bent my knee and prayed the sinner's prayer. So whenever I'm in an evangelical service, I get a little nervous. Am I really saved? But you see, what I do know is that there was a night down in Fremont that I took a walk, skeptic that I was, at the high point of my life. David was on his way. We hadn't met him yet. Our children were in what we thought was a great school. I had the best job I'd ever had. They were promoting me and giving me raises faster than I could keep up with. We'd just bought a new home. There was nothing wrong that would cause me to cry out to God. And yet here I was, walking in my neighborhood, debating the God who I said didn't exist. Struck me as strange. And I mean, I remember it, because I literally walked by this one lady's house who was kind of crazy. I said, Lord, what are you doing with me? I don't have any problems. Go help her. She's a mess. Literally. For two or three days, I don't remember exactly how many, a couple at least, that we were sitting in our living room with a Baptist couple that had come over who were real quick with, tell me your testimonies. And we sat there. Linda knew that I had never put on airs. I had never hidden the fact that I was a skeptic, even though I took her and the kids to church because I thought it was good for them. So here we are that night. She's talking to this man's wife and he turns to me and he says, So how long have you known the Lord? And that was the first time I confessed Jesus. I said, just a few days now. Of course, poor Linda just about fell off the couch. And I could go on for an hour in terms of how the Lord had used her and the things that had happened that led up to that. But the one that I think I should share Because I think it goes to Paul's point of sharing about kicking against the goads. And it gives us hope when we think something's totally impossible. Well, I mean, think about it in the story there, Ananias. God goes to him and says, I saved Paul. And he says, wait a minute. You don't mean that Paul, do you? I mean, there's no saving that guy. And yet Jesus could. And years before my conversion, I met a pastor in Linda's early life. He was a very wise man. He knew exactly what I was and what I thought. He didn't spend hours arguing with me. He just was patient. Probably shared the gospel, I'm sure. But the one thing he shared that I remember is he looked at me at one point in the conversation. He said, you know, John, he had a pretty nice watch. I haven't gotten the Rolex or anything yet, but he took off a pretty fancy watch. And he said, John, you know, if you were walking through the desert, and you bent down and you saw this watch and you picked it up, there would be one thing that you would know. Somewhere, there's a watchmaker. He just put it back on his arm and we went on with our conversation. Boy, did that trouble me. Not in the way you would think. I actually, as an evolutionist, tried to use it. I said, well, of course, there's a watchmaker. And that watchmaker didn't begin by making that watch. He started as a young man, toying around with things in his garage and came under somebody's tutorship and learned to make watches. It was evolutionary. It's not a Christian example. It's good proof of evolution. But you see, the goad, and for you kids, a goad is a big old iron pokey thing. that they used to use to make cows and oxen go where they wanted them to go. And they would kick and they would fight, but they were pointy and the cow ended up going where it was supposed to go. So that's what the Lord is saying. Paul, I've been pushing you. Maybe it was Stephen's speech. Maybe it was something that Nicodemus shared. We don't know. But Paul had been confronted with the gospel before this. He knew it, just as I did. And all through those years, as much as I tried to twist that example, as much as I tried to use it to my own ends, his basic question kept haunting me. Somewhere, there's a watchmaker. You can't have a watch without a watchmaker. And then that night, I was walking, arguing with my maker, and I'm sure that was part of what's there. So, if I'm an example, as many of us are, of a man converted later in life, do we have examples of faithful saints who can give a testimony here at Church of the King? Those like Timothy, or Mary, or Simeon. It's a blessing because as we look at our second and third generation of families here at the church, we can see those who have never known a day where they did not acknowledge Jesus as their Savior. Think about that. But you see, they have no quote-unquote conversion story. or testimony. But rather, they can testify about God's faithfulness. And we need to ask ourselves, in this age of testimonies in the church, which of these types of testimonies should get the most attention? Now, if a biker who broke all ten commandments on a regular basis, was somehow converted in a Damascus Road experience today, we could be rightly excited, should be excited, to see God work in that way. And we would give God all of the glory. And we should not fear to have such a man use the account of his conversion as part of his testimony and his witnessing, as I've even done here this morning. However, the point that I think we sometimes miss is that we should give God no less glory, we should be no less excited, and we could even expect God to use the testimony of what happened here today in more powerful ways. You see, today we baptized. over his objections, little James Maximus. We gave him a new name. His faithful parents, knowing that they had no power to save their child, who was born as a member of Adam's race, dead in his trespasses and sins, brought him to the church. And they confessed publicly their dependence on Jesus. And by baptizing James in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, we as a congregation have claimed God's promise that His gracious salvation is unto us and to our children. We have joined with these parents in vowing to raise James in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Now, Lord willing, Isaiah and Valerie will be faithful in teaching James and their other children about their new names and their new life. When James is tempted by the flesh, they will use the rod and the word to direct him in the paths of the new life that he has. in Jesus. As he grows, James will learn the joy of gathering each week with God's people to be ministered to by God's Word and God's Sacrament. Lord willing, James from this pulpit will learn to hear and obey Jesus. From this table, Lord willing, James will learn to know and to love Jesus. So I ask again, which testimony should get the most attention? If you ask anyone who is converted late in life or later in life, they will tell you of the sorrow they have of pondering what are often called the lost years. I was converted at 26. I know it's been 36 years, but I always get my age mixed up. I think it was 26. So that's time in my life, in the life of those that are converted later, where they did not serve Jesus. Now yes, we have the right theology of salvation which teaches that we were all indeed elected and saved from the foundation of the world. Not disputing that. But all of those lost years are among of necessity the wood, the hay, and the stubble that will be burned away when God evaluates the quality of our Christian walk and life. But you see, James and the other covenant children who have walked with Jesus from their earliest memories have the opportunity, if they're faithful, to love and obey Jesus all the days of their lives, amassing gold and silver and precious stones Treasures that Paul talked to the Corinthians about. That Jesus will refine and make more glorious when their Christian life is evaluated. Thus, they most certainly should have the more glorious testimony. And we should be unashamed to share it. The Hebrews Hall of Faith in chapter 11 is full. of such people, and I would commend it steady to you this week. The writer then encourages and challenges all of us to think about those who have gone before, these faithful people, to consider how we should serve Jesus in this coming week and the rest of our lives. I'll close with his words. Therefore, we also Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. For the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. May we faithfully serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Let's pray. Our gracious Heavenly Father, we thank You for the testimonies of those who have gone before, of faithful saints like Simeon and Mary and Timothy, of converted saints like Paul and Peter, who teach us the faithfulness that You have in your gospel. We thank you for the grace that has been poured out here on us. We thank you for the grace that was poured out with little James this morning. May we all serve you well as we thank you for this great salvation. We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.