A DIVINE APPOINTMENT

A DIVINE APPOINTMENT

Ephesians 2:1-10; Acts 21:27 – 22:21

Dr. Wm. J. Maxwell

First Presbyterian Church, Newport, RI

August 19, 2007

I wonder if you have noticed. I certainly have. Have you noticed how many books of “Christian fiction” are being published today? Just walk into a Christian bookstore or even our own Fellowship Hall, for example, and notice how many books of Christian fiction are there.

I don’t see this as a bad thing. The content of such books is certainly much better than it was a few years ago. Such books are written for entertainment, with action and plots and often surprising endings. But the agenda is there as well, one of bringing forth the Gospel in the midst of the relationships and situations at hand.

When I read the New Testament book of Acts, I see Christian non-fiction at its best. What we have here is a factual reporting by Luke of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the apostles, the Church, and the movement of getting the Gospel out into the world. It’s intriguing and captivating reading, and the drama in our passage for this morning is but an example of this.

THE PASSAGE

Although Paul never desired nor intentionally provoked the hostile opposition from Jews in the province of Asia, he certainly experienced it! And coming to Jerusalem and to the Temple, there were to be found Jews of Asia and Jews of Judea who were all extremely zealous in their beliefs.

We’ve read how the Asian Jews “stirred up the whole crowd and seized (Paul)”, shouting words about the apostle that inflamed their zeal and their passion: “Men of Israel, help us! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the Temple area and defiled this holy place.”

Of course, absolutely none of this was true or factual. But it was more than enough to cause a mob, a riot, and practically the whole city turning into a chaotic uproar. Roman troops from the Fortress of Antonia nearby were called out and rushed into the crowd as the crowd was beating Paul nearly to death. The violence was extreme and Paul was the focus of it all.

The drama of this moment is intense to say the least and it doesn’t slow down at all. Once in the hands of the Romans, Paul explained to the Roman tribune who he was and he also requested that he might be given permission to speak to the crowd. Being given permission, Paul then spoke in the familiar language of Aramaic, a language commonly spoken by Jews in that time.

He had their attention as he spoke to them of his journey of faith and his call from the Lord Jesus to take the Gospel to Jews and to the Gentiles. That’s when it got “ugly” again, as we’ll find in next week’s passage. But for this morning, as we look at Paul’s speech, I want us to consider two aspects of Paul’s life that can surely relate to ours. The first has to do with his conversion to faith in Christ and the second has to do with his call to a special ministry.

PAUL’S CONVERSION TO FAITH IN CHRIST.

As Paul addressed the crowd, he explained to them in vivid detail his journey of faith. Paul explained how, as a Pharisee trained under the famed Gamaliel, he had been “just as zealous as any of you are today.” His record of having “persecuted the followers of this Way to the death” was indisputable as even the High Priest and the Supreme Jewish Council could testify.

But an encounter with the Risen Lord, Jesus of Nazareth, changed completely and forever the direction of his life. Blinded by the brilliance of the light of the presence of the Messiah, Paul regained in time not only his physical sight, but he gained his spiritual sight as well. Of course, Paul was not expecting this encounter – not in the least! But as Ananias had said to Paul, “The God of our fathers has chosen you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from His mouth.”

From that day on, Paul could look back in utter amazement as to what the Lord had so graciously done in his life. He could look back and acknowledge that it wasn’t he who had deliberately sought and found the Lord Jesus, but actually the reverse of it – the Lord Jesus had sought out Paul and had brought Paul to Himself. It was all sheer and amazing grace!

This is precisely how Paul described it in his first letter to his dear friend Timothy in saying, “Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” [i]

There are many ways in which a person may come to trust in Christ. Some come to Christ in a rather dramatic way, while others come to Him in a gradual, unassuming way. Nevertheless, it is all of God’s grace and mercy in various means to draw people to Himself.

We’ve heard a lot lately about the life of William Wilberforce with the help of the recent film, Amazing Grace. One of his contemporaries was a man by the name of Charles Simeon, one of the great evangelical preachers in the Church of England. But no one could have expected it, looking at Simeon’s upbringing and background.

At the age of 19, Simeon went to King’s College at the University of Cambridge. In the first four months, Simeon came into a living, abiding relationship with Christ. But it was clearly against all odds and for several reasons. His mother had died when he was quite young; his father was an unbeliever; and the boarding school he had lived in for so many years was a corrupt and degenerate place. As for King’s College, there were virtually no orthodox Christians there – Simeon did not find another orthodox Christian on the campus for another 3 years.

What happened was that, upon arriving at the school, Simeon was told by the Provost that he had to attend the Lord’s Supper. Simeon was terrified because He knew enough about the Lord’s Supper to know that it was dangerous to eat the Lord Supper as a hypocrite or unbeliever. So he began to read a few books about it.

During Holy Week as Easter Sunday approached, the 19 year old found himself on a journey of faith. As he tells it,

In Passion Week, as I was reading Bishop Wilson on the Lord’s Supper, I met with an expression to this effect – ‘That the Jews knew what they did, when they transferred their sin to the head of their offering.’ The thought came into my mind, What, may I transfer all my guilt to another? Has God provided an Offering for me, that I may lay my sins on His head? Then, God willing, I will not bear them on my own soul one moment longer. Accordingly I sought to lay my sins upon the sacred head of Jesus; and on the Wednesday began to have hope of mercy; on the Thursday that hope increased; on the Friday and Saturday it became more strong; and on the Sunday morning, Easter-day, April 4, I awoke early with those words upon my heart and lips, ‘Jesus Christ is risen today! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!’ From that hour peace flowed in rich abundance into my soul; and at the Lord’s Table in our Chapel I had the sweetest access to God through my blessed Savior. [ii]

Again, it was against all odds that Simeon should ever become a Christian. But God used a book and circumstances to bring forth new life into his soul and a new relationship with God through Christ, unencumbered by sin, guilt and the fear of death.

Those who are true and sincere Christians can look back upon their lives and see as it were the fingerprints of God. If you have trusted in Christ, it is not unreasonable at all to expect that you can look back upon your life and see certain people, situations, circumstances, settings and details that have all worked together toward your salvation in Christ.

In this, there is no room for boasting whatsoever, for the major Architect behind all this is a God of amazing grace!

PAUL’S CALL TO SERVE CHRIST.

As it is very clear that God brought Paul to saving faith in Christ, it is just as clear that God had a purpose for Paul in mind. Paul described to the mob his conversation with the Risen Lord on the Damascus Road. “What shall I do, Lord?” I asked. “Get up,” the Lord said, and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.”

Paul, you see, not only had a God-given salvation, he had a God-given assignment for ministry. That God-given appointment was to be a witness for Christ to all of what Paul had seen and heard. In further revelation to Paul, Christ made it clear that he was being sent far away as a witness to the Gentiles. So, in all of this, Paul was declaring the wonder of God’s work in his life, in giving him a God-given salvation in an encounter with Christ and in transforming his heart; and then in giving him a God-given assignment in being a witness for Christ to all.

Now, we may say that this is fine for Paul, but it doesn’t really include us. But Paul simply wouldn’t let us get away with such foolishness, not even for a minute! In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul reminds us of the very same thing – that our salvation is all of grace … there is no room for boasting! We have been brought from death in transgressions and sins to a living faith in a living Lord. In looking to this God-given salvation, Paul writes: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, It is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”

At the same time, Paul continues in the very next verse in affirming the fact of a God-given ministry assignment: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” All of us are God’s workmanship. The English word “poem” comes from the Greek word used for workmanship so that we might see ourselves uniquely as God’s “poems” or “poetry.” We are the object of God’s wise, loving and powerful design, shaping and forming each one of us for a certain role in life and in ministry.

You may recall the popular book, The Purpose Driven Life,[iii] in which author Rick Warren makes the very same point. He states that one of the purposes of a “Purpose-Driven Life” is that purpose of being “shaped for serving God.” Using the acrostic SHAPE, he points to how God’s workmanship in us falls out, in the unique combination of our Spiritual gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality, and Experience.[iv]

God uses all of these to form and shape us in order to fulfill our unique God-given assignments in ministry. So with confidence, we can turn to the Lord and seek His will in both discerning and using our SHAPE for His kingdom purposes and for His glory.

In a very moving way, the Lord painted a canvas of this before me on Tuesday. As some of you know, a dinner was held that evening to celebrate the recent mission trip to New Orleans (“NOLA”). As that dinner was held, a vast multiplicity of “God’s workmanship” was clearly before me. A vision and gift of administration in our associate pastor was seen in getting this mission trip started, implemented and finished. But one person could never accomplish such a ministry alone.

There were the youth and the adults who stepped forward to actually go to New Orleans and minister in Jesus’ name. There were the people who helped financially and in fund-raising events. There were the people who prayed before, during and after the mission trip. There were the people who wrote cards of affirmation and prayer for the members of the team. There were the people who put a slide show together and who showed it Tuesday evening. There were the people who put the dinner together and those who cleaned up afterwards.

Ever so clearly, I saw before me the SHAPE of individuals, but not only that, I also saw the SHAPE of the Body of Christ, with such gifts as serving, teaching, encouraging, contributing to the needs of others, leadership and showing mercy.[v] Yes, that’s what it means to be the workmanship of God and to see the realization of a “God-given assignment.”

Oh, we can surely see in Paul the divine appointment of both salvation and ministry. But oh what joy there is to see it in our own lives and in our life together, as well!