From Enemy to Instrument: Hope for Every Life

Thesis: We should never give up hope, because the enemy of today can be God’s instrument tomorrow.

ILLUSTRATION: Chris Carrier’s story. At age 10 in Florida, Chris was abducted, stabbed with an ice pick, shot in the head, and left for dead. Miraculously, he survived. Decades later, when his attacker lay dying, Chris visited him — and forgave him. He even shared the gospel, and the man trusted Christ before he died.

The man who had been his enemy became a redeemed soul, just like Saul of Tarsus.

Point 1: God Interrupts the Enemy’s Path (Acts 9:1–9)

1. Saul is on his way to destroy the church, but God confronts him on the Damascus road.
   1. Then Saul: We last saw Saul in Acts 8:3, where it says:
   2. “But Saul was trying to destroy the church; entering one house after another, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.”
      1. Here in chapter 9, he continues and expands this work toward the city of Damascus (about 130 miles or 210 kilometers northeast of Jerusalem; a six-day journey altogether).
   3. The high priest mentioned here was Caiaphas. In December 1990 an ossuary (something like a burial urn; essentially a bone box) was discovered in Jerusalem. The ossuary was inscribed with the name of this Caiaphas and positively dated to this period. Inside were discovered some of the remains of a 60-year-old man, whom many researchers believe was this same Caiaphas. If true, these are the first physical remains (such as bones or ashes) of a specific person mentioned in the New Testament.
      1. The ossuary discovery (in a cave south of Jerusalem) provided strong archaeological evidence that Joseph Caiaphas was a real historical person, from a wealthy priestly family in Jerusalem, consistent with the Gospels.
         1. Mariam Ossuary 2011
      2. Since then, Caiaphas’ historicity as high priest (AD 18–36) has been firmly established. Even skeptical scholars now accept he was a real figure who presided over part of Jesus’ trial.
   4. If he found any who were of the Way: Here, Christianity is referred to as the Way. This seems to be the earliest name for the Christian movement, and a fitting one – used five times in Acts.
      1. The name the Way means that Christianity is more than a belief or a set of opinions or doctrines. Following Jesus is a way of living as well as believing.
      2. It is significant to see that there was a Christian community large enough in Damascus for Saul to be concerned about. Christianity – the Way – was spreading everywhere.
   5. No one is too far gone for God to reach.
      1. God often turns the greatest threats into the greatest testimonies.
      2. Galatians 1:13-14 – “For you have heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I was savagely persecuting the church of God and trying to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my nation and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my ancestors.“
      3. 2 Corinthians 5:17 – “So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away—look, what is new has come!”
      4. 1 Timothy 1:12–17 (NLT) – “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus. This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’—and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.”
   6. ILLLUSTRATION: Peace Child – Don and Carol Richardson.
      1. In Papua New Guinea, the Sawi tribe honored treachery as a virtue. The Richardsons were on the verge of giving up. Then they learned the tribe had a custom: a man could offer his own son as a “peace child” to end war. That became the bridge to explain Jesus as God’s Peace Child. The very culture that resisted the gospel held the key to receiving it. God had prepared it all along.

Point 2: God Transforms the Enemy into His Instrument (Acts 9:10–19)

1. We worship a miracle worker, but often have no expectation of miraculous works.
   1. The persecutor becomes a preacher. The destroyer becomes a disciple-maker.
2. The insertion of it is hard for you to kick against the goads and Lord, what do You want me to do? in Acts 9:5-6is accurate, but not in Luke’s original text. They were added by scribes, based on Acts 22:10 and 26:14, who thought they were doing God a favor by putting it in here.
3. Charlie Kirks basic platform of faith and family, held up by Christ is king, don’t murder your babies, and men are not women and women are not men, are not fundementally political statements, they are biblical ones.
   1. Colossians 1:16–17 – “for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him… all things were created through him and for him. He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him.”
   2. Revelation 19:16 – “He has a name written on his clothing and on his thigh: ‘King of kings and Lord of lords.’”
   3. Philippians 2:10–11 – “so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow — in heaven and on earth and under the earth — and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”
   4. Psalm 139:13–16 – “Certainly you made my mind and heart; you wove me together in my mother’s womb… your eyes saw me when I was inside the womb.”
   5. Genesis 1:27 – “God created humankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them, male and female he created them.”
4. Saul, Saul, When God repeats a name twice, it is to display deep emotion, but not necessarily anger.
   1. Acts 9:4 – “He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’”
   2. Luke 10:41 – “But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.’”
   3. Matthew 23:37 – “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would have none of it!”
5. Why are you persecuting Me?
   1. As the heavenly light overwhelmed him, Saul was confronted by the true nature of his crime: He persecuted God, not man.
      1. Acts 9:4 – “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
   2. Saul thought he was serving God by attacking Christians — but he discovered he was fighting God Himself.
   3. Galatians 1:13 – “For you have heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I was savagely persecuting the church of God and trying to destroy it.”
6. Notice not only the “Me” but also the “why”: “Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Jesus’ question shows the futility of Saul’s mission.
7. I am Jesus, Though Jesus was a fairly common name in that day, the ascended Jesus of Nazareth needed no further identification.
   1. Acts 9:5 – “So he said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ He replied, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting!’”
   2. Saul knew exactly which Jesus this was. In all probability, he had heard Jesus teach in Jerusalem; and as a likely Sanhedrin member, he may have been present at Jesus’ trial.
8. Who are You, Lord? … Lord, what do You want me to do?
   1. Saul responded with two of the most important questions anyone can (and must) ask.
   2. Acts 9:5–6 – “So he said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ He replied, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting! But stand up and enter the city and you will be told what you must do.’”
9. Most people have questions they’d like to ask God. A Gallup survey in the 1990s found the most common were:
   1. “Will there ever be lasting world peace?”
   2. “How can I be a better person?”
   3. “What does the future hold for my family and me?”
   4. “Will there ever be a cure for all diseases?”
   5. “Why is there suffering in the world?”
10. It is striking that God has already addressed these questions in Scripture. But Saul asked the truly essential ones:
    1. “Who are you, Lord?” (identity of Christ)
    2. “What do you want me to do?” (obedience to Christ)

Point 3: God Uses Transformed Enemies to Advance His Kingdom (Acts 9:20–22)

1. ILLUSTRATION: Peace Child 1962, West New Guinea, Indonesia. Sawi Tribe and Haeman tribe

Point 4: We all were enemies of God

1. Romans 5:10 – “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, since we have been reconciled, will we be saved by his life?”
   1. Paul directly says we were enemies of God until reconciliation through Christ.
2. Colossians 1:21 – “And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds.”
   1. Our sinful thoughts and actions made us alienated and hostile toward God.
3. James 4:4 – “Adulterers, do you not know that friendship with the world means hostility toward God? So whoever decides to be the world’s friend makes himself God’s enemy.”
   1. Living in allegiance to the world’s system places us in opposition to God.
4. Ephesians 2:3 – “…among whom all of us also formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest.”
   1. While not using the word enemy here, Paul stresses our natural state apart from Christ is under God’s judgment.
5. Luke 7:47 – “Therefore I tell you, her sins, which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved much; but the one who is forgiven little loves little.”

Jesus is not saying that some have little to forgive, but rather that if you do not recognize the fullness of what you’ve been forgiven, you will not express the fullness of love you were shown.