Title Sunday Faith Training (4/15)-I became a believer
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Title: I Became a Believer
Text: Acts 9:1~9
Date: 2012. 4. 15. Sunday Day Worship
1 Saul still went to the high priest with threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord.
2 I asked for an official letter to be taken to the synagogues in Damascus, because if I find anyone who follows that way,
to bring men and women into bondage and bring them to Jerusalem.
3 As Saul was on his way, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.
4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"
5 He answered, "Who are you, Lord?" He said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
6 Arise, go into the brook, and someone will tell you what you should do.
7 The people who were with me stood there speechless, hearing only the sound and seeing no one.
8 Saul got up from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he could not see anything, but he was dragged by the hand into Damascus.
9 For three days he did not see, neither ate nor drank.
Christian Population / The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism compiled the 2007 data of the Protestant General Assembly, and the total number of Protestants reached 12 million (11,944,174). However, according to Statistics Korea data in 2005, the number of Protestants was 6.32 million. Considering that the downward trend of growth has been drawn since 1995, 12 million seems to be an inflated number. The actual Christian population is about 15 to 18 percent of the total population.
★ In the world, we are classified as 'religious people who chose Protestantism according to their religious orientation'. Is it because of our religious orientation that we become Christians? How does the Bible answer this question?
1. It was not in my plan that I became a believer.
Before his conversion, Paul was a persecutor of the church. He was going up to Damascus with an arrest warrant issued to arrest the believers (vv. 1-2). He was an active persecutor. When he arrives in Damascus, he experiences a special and shocking event. A brilliant light from heaven shone upon him, and he heard the voice of Jesus (verses 3-4).
★ He went to Damascus to arrest those who believed and followed Jesus (verse 2). He didn't go there to meet Jesus. There he heard the voice of the Lord (vv. 4-5). Jesus said to him, "Why are you persecuting me?" After hearing this voice, he became blind (vv. 8-9). He could no longer go according to plan. His plans were in vain.
To summarize, this is how it goes: He did not go to Damascus to meet Jesus. His plan was to arrest those who believed in Jesus. But there, he met Jesus whom he was persecuting. and became a believer. Something happened that was not in his plan. It was not in our plan that we came to believe in Jesus.
★ Has anyone become a believer with the intention of believing in Jesus from the beginning? none. It was not my plan to become a believer, nor was it because of my religious taste (or inclination).
2. What is the root cause of my becoming a believer?
Paul had no plans, but God had a plan to meet him. Meeting him in Damascus was God's plan. God welcomed him with a brilliant light and voice. When he asked, "Who are you?" He kindly replied, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting" (v. 5). After seeing the bright light, he was temporarily blinded. All his plans were shattered. I couldn't do anything on my own. Then God spoke to him. “Arise, go into the brook, and someone will tell you what you are going to do” (verse 6).
★ God prepared a man named Ananias for him (verse 10). In the process of preparing Ananias, when Ananias refused to go to Saul the persecutor, God revealed a plan for Saul (verses 15-16). Paul (Saul) was a vessel prepared for Gentiles, kings, and Jews. He was a person who suffered a lot of persecution for preaching the gospel. He persuaded Ananias by saying this. As you can see here, he made a plan for Paul and called him.
★ Isaiah 43:1, "Now, Jacob, the LORD who created you speaks. He who made you, Israel, speaks. Do not be afraid. I have redeemed you, I have called you by name, and you are mine. "
★ Jeremiah 1:4-5, "The word of the Lord came to me, saying, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart, and I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.
★ Romans 8:28~30, "We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. To make those whom God foreknew also be conformed to the image of His Son. For those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified."
★ It is no accident that we came to believe in Jesus. We came to believe in Jesus not because we came to believe in an unwanted circumstance. God loved me from the beginning and called me through various situations and events to make him his child. The root cause of my faith in Jesus is God. Without God's call, our faith would be impossible. Being a believer is proof that God lives and loves me.