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to Acts chapter 9, we finish 
the consideration of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Acts chapter 
9 verses 1 to 30 record that wonderful event in the history 
of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not that God needed Saul 
of Tarsus, but God certainly prepared Saul of Tarsus and used 
him mightily to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, to plant 
churches, and of course, to write much of the New Testament under 
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. I wanna pick up reading in Acts 
chapter nine at verse 10. This is after Jesus meets Saul 
of Tarsus on the road to Damascus. Verse 10, we read, now there 
was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. And to him, the 
Lord said in a vision, Ananias. And he said, here I am, Lord. 
So the Lord said to him, arise and go to the street called Straight 
and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, 
For behold, he is praying, and in a vision he has seen a man 
named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might 
receive his sight. Then Ananias answered, Lord, 
I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has 
done to your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from 
the chief priest to bind all who call on your name. The Lord 
said to him, go, for he is a chosen vessel of mine to bear my name 
before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will 
show him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake. And 
Ananias went his way and entered the house, and laying his hands 
on him, he said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared 
to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive 
your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Immediately 
there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received 
his sight at once, and he arose and was baptized. So when he 
had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with 
the disciples at Damascus. Immediately he preached the Christ 
in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. Then all who 
heard were amazed and said, Is this not he who destroyed those 
who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, 
so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests? But Saul 
increased all the more in strength and confounded the Jews who dwelt 
in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ. Now, after 
many days were passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their 
plot became known to Saul. And they watched the gates day 
and night to kill him. Then the disciples took him by 
night and led him down through the wall in a large basket. And 
when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, 
but they were all afraid of him and did not believe that he was 
a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. 
And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road 
and that he had spoken to him and how he had preached boldly 
at Damascus in the name of Jesus. So he was with them at Jerusalem 
coming in and going out. And he spoke boldly in the name 
of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they 
attempted to kill him. When the brethren found out, 
they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him out to Tarsus. Then 
the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace 
and were edified. And walking in the fear of the 
Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied. 
Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, thank 
you for the written word of the living and true God, Thank you 
for this book of the Acts of the Apostles, where we see Christ 
operating, Christ working from the right hand of the Father 
to make disciples and to plant churches through his apostles. 
We give you thanks and praise for the missionary enterprise 
and for local churches and for the reality that you have established 
such for the propagation of the Christian faith message. And 
we pray, God in heaven, that you'd bless our hearts again 
as we Study this passage of scripture as we consider the conversion 
of Saul of Tarsus, as we see how you used him so powerfully 
in the gospel ministry. Fill us with the spirit, forgive 
us for our sins, and we pray these things through Jesus Christ, 
our Lord. Amen. Well, what we're dealing 
with in verses 26 to 30 primarily is Paul's first post-conversion 
visit to Jerusalem. Now, probably prior to his conversion, 
well, we know that he had gone to Jerusalem. We know that he 
was active in persecuting the people of God. But this is his 
first visit to Jerusalem after having been saved by grace through 
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. I kind of want to just sketch 
the chronology as to what is happening. Remember that according 
to Galatians 1.17, not long after he was converted, he went to 
Arabia and he spent three years there. So when we look at verses 
20 to 22, I take this as a first visit to Damascus. He immediately 
goes, he immediately preaches the gospel. and then he goes 
to Arabia, and he's there for three years. After that time 
in Arabia, he comes back. So if you look at Acts 9, between 
verses 22 and 23, there's a three-year period. He comes back to Damascus, 
and there he ministers, and we see that the unbelieving Jews 
plot to terminate him. They want to execute him. They 
want to kill him. So he escapes the city. Remember, 
he's lowered down in this basket outside the city wall. And so 
then he spends, after the three years, he goes to Damascus. And 
then from that point, he goes to Jerusalem. So he's been converted 
for about three years now. This is the first visit to Jerusalem 
after he had in fact been converted. And he spends just 15 days there. So verses 26 to 30, according 
to Galatians chapter one, he just spent 15 days there. And 
he met with Peter primarily and James, the half brother of our 
Lord, Jesus Christ. So that's sort of the chronology, 
that's what's happening in verses 26 to 30. First, post-conversion 
visit of Saul of Tarsus to Jerusalem. Let's look first of all at his 
attempt to join the disciples and then secondly the ministry 
of Saul in Jerusalem in verses 28 to 30. Then we'll look at 
finally that summary statement in verse 31 concerning all the 
churches of Christ and the regent at that particular time. Notice 
his attempt to join the disciples according to verses 26 and 27. 
It says, when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the 
disciples. It's a good and legitimate thing. 
The people of God were never intended to go it alone. There 
is no such thing as maverick Christianity in the Bible. You'll 
find people like that at times. They say, well, I don't need 
the church. I don't need ministry. I don't need preaching. I've 
got me and the Bible. Well, that's a pretty dangerous 
place to be because your Bible tells you that you need the people 
of God. Even in the imperfection of the people of God, even in 
the imperfection of churches, there is safety. And God has 
ordained the church of Christ and the people of God as a means 
for the people of God to grow. and to help others grow. So he 
has this desire to join the disciples. It is a good desire, one he's 
already expressed in Damascus in that initial phase of ministry. 
When he goes to Damascus, it says, according to verse 19, 
he spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. Here in verse 26, 
he tries to do the same. When Saul had come to Jerusalem, 
he tried to join the disciples. The new convert wants the people 
of God. The new convert wants to be surrounded 
with like-minded brethren. The new convert wants to be where 
his faith is appreciated, where it's encouraged, and where it 
is exhorted to grow. John Gill says, Grace had made 
a strange alteration in Saul. Those whom he hated and was exceeding 
mad against, he now loves. They are the excellent ones in 
the earth, in who is all his delight. And whom he persecuted 
to strange cities, he now courts their company and attempts to 
get among them." See, he had initially wanted to bind them, 
men and women, and he wanted to drag them off to prison. He 
had initially gotten his marching orders to go to Damascus for 
that very purpose, but now as a man saved by grace through 
faith in Jesus Christ, he wants to spend days and time with the 
disciples in Damascus. When he comes to Jerusalem on 
this first visit after he's been converted, he goes to the disciples, 
he goes to the church, he goes to the people of God. One of 
the marks of the grace of God in the hearts of God's people 
is that very thing. We know that we have passed from 
death to life, according to John the Apostle, if we love the brethren. If there's no love of the brethren, 
it's suspected whether or not there's any justifying grace 
in our hearts. Again, that doesn't mean we're 
all everybody's best friends, but we love the people of God. 
Like likes to be around like. We like to be around the people 
that are most like us and those who share our orientation in 
terms of God and in terms of this world around us. So for 
Saul of Tarsus, he goes there and he wants to join himself 
with the disciples. Now note the reaction of the 
disciples in verse 26b, but they were all afraid of him and did 
not believe that he was a disciple. And that's the same thing Ananias 
said, isn't it? When Jesus comes to him and says, 
I want you to go to that street called Straight. I want you to 
go to the house of Judas. I want you to find this Saul 
of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. And I want you to lay 
your hands on him so that he can receive his sight and so 
that he can be useful to me in the ministry. What does Ananias 
say? He said, I've heard about this man. I've heard about how 
much harm he's done. I've heard about the sorts of 
ways that he has attacked and persecuted the people of God. 
Same thing happens in Damascus. When Paul or Saul immediately 
preaches Jesus Christ, the people in the synagogues in Damascus 
are saying, isn't this the one that came here to kill us? Isn't 
this the one that came here with extradition papers to take us 
from this place back to Jerusalem so we could be further punished? 
It was a mind-blowing thing. And some might ask the question, 
well, it's been three years now. Wouldn't they know that his conversion 
was legit? No, they wouldn't necessarily 
know that. They didn't have email. They 
didn't have Facebook. They didn't trace and track everybody's 
jot and tittle every single day of the week. I mean, do you realize 
we know more about what's happening on the other side of the world 
than persons in Paul's time knew what was happening in the very 
next city? They wouldn't know about a flood in Myanmar. They 
wouldn't know about a man named Peter in Myanmar. They just wouldn't 
have that readily available information. But they may have suspected that 
Saul of Tarsus was an agent provocateur. Maybe he's faking it. Maybe he 
wants to come in among us and not only bring extradition papers, 
but he might want to come in among us and pretend to be one 
of us so that he can ruin our lives. Isn't that what happened 
to one of the families that we've been praying for in the Far East 
for many, many, many years? It wasn't the Feds that initially 
got him. It was somebody within. It was 
within the ranks that reported him to the Feds, and they are 
the ones that then came and captured him. See, we've got threats from 
outside, but oftentimes there's threats from the inside, and 
we need to be very careful. So on the one hand, they're concerned. 
They're concerned that he's going to come in and do more damage 
to them. And it says that they didn't believe he was a disciple. 
They didn't think that was possible. They didn't think that was the 
case. And I think from that, we learn two things. In the first 
place, never underestimate the grace of God. Never underestimate 
the grace of God. The biggest foe out there, the 
biggest enemy out there can fall in subjection to the Lord Jesus 
Christ. Wasn't this exactly and precisely 
the problem at the time of Saul? Not this Saul, but Saul of the 
Old Testament, when Goliath was out in the field of Elah, the 
valley of Elah. What was Saul and all Israel 
doing? They were afraid, they were cowering, 
they were hiding. They thought, there's no way 
we can best this Philistine giant. And then this young shepherd 
boy comes along and says, who is this uncircumcised Philistine 
taunting the armies of the living God? He knew and believed and 
trusted that through God's grace, Goliath could fall. So what we 
find in this instance is that on the one hand, I'm not picking 
on them, I'm just saying we ought to learn from this, never underestimate 
the grace of God. But as well I think we learn 
something about church membership. You're not supposed to be in 
the church in terms of a disciple of Christ, in terms of a member 
in the church, unless you've been born again, unless you're 
a disciple, unless you believe the gospel. It's not a social 
club. It's not the Elks Lodge. It's 
not the Lions. It's the church of the Lord Jesus. 
And the way of access into the church of the Lord Jesus is by 
grace alone, through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. That's 
the emphasis. And these persons are right when 
they want to make sure that Saul of Tarsus is in fact the real 
deal. Now, with reference to this attempt 
to join the disciples, the response or reaction of the disciples, 
notice the ministry of Barnabas in verse 27. It says, but Barnabas 
took him and brought him to the apostles. I would suggest in 
the first place, he was blessed by God to have a Barnabas in 
his life. He was blessed by God to have 
a Barnabas in his life. I'll later argue, I guess I can 
now, that God doesn't just use Saul of Tarsus. He uses Barnabas. He doesn't just use the Apostle 
Paul, he used Ananias. He doesn't just use the preacher 
missionary, he uses everybody, and Barnabas was key and fundamental 
to him facilitating the usefulness of the Apostle Paul in gospel 
ministry. So all these people are afraid, 
all these people are curious, all these people are wondering, 
is he the real deal? Is he legit? So what does Barnabas 
do? Barnabas says to Saul, come on, 
I want to introduce you to the apostles. Those men will be able 
to scrutinize. Those men will be able to examine. 
Those men will be able to render verdict as to whether or not 
you're truly one of us. It's a beautiful thing, isn't 
it? The ministry of the church. See, God doesn't just snap His 
cosmic fingers and make everything happen. He uses means. And in 
this book, He shows that Christ is at the right hand of the Father, 
Christ is pouring out the Spirit, Christ is building His church, 
and Christ is using the means in order to accomplish this. 
the means of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, the means of 
an Ananias to bring them together, the means of a Barnabas in order 
to facilitate his reception in the life and context of the church. 
That is precisely what Barnabas does. He was brought to the apostles 
by Barnabas. likely all 12 of the apostles. 
When Paul says in Galatians 1, that in this particular meeting, 
this 15 day meeting, he spoke only to Peter and James, that 
could only mean that it was private, it was more in depth, it was 
more sort of below the surface. What Barnabas is doing in terms 
of bringing them to the apostles is to make sure that he is in 
fact not an agent provocateur, that he's not there to do harm 
to them, and that he is in fact a true disciple of the Lord Christ. 
Now Barnabas is a very interesting man, a very interesting fellow 
in the book of Acts. We first meet him in Acts chapter 
4. He's a wealthy fellow and he sells property and he gives 
the money to the apostles so that they can distribute it to 
the poor. We will meet with Barnabas again when we meet with Saul 
again. At the end of verse 30, we're not gonna see Paul the 
Apostle again until Acts chapter 11. And in Acts chapter 11, Barnabas 
goes to Tarsus to find Saul specifically, and then they go and minister 
in Antioch. As well, Barnabas accompanies 
Paul the Apostle on the first missionary journey. Barnabas 
accompanies Paul the Apostle, well, even before that, on the 
second visit to Jerusalem that they make, it's what's called 
the famine relief visit. So Barnabas goes with Paul then, 
he goes with him on the first missionary journey, he goes with 
him to the Jerusalem council, and then toward the end of Acts 
chapter 15, we see a breach between Barnabas and Paul. Now, some 
get really worked over on this. I don't. Good men at times disagree. It happens. It's not something 
we should lose it over. Now, it's not the best possible 
thing, and I don't think it was permanent, because Paul refers 
to Barnabas later in his epistles and not as that dirty, rotten 
scoundrel. He doesn't do that. There are 
times in the history of the church where good men may disagree and 
part ways for a time. Now, again, there's probably 
sin. Some say, well, it was sin on Barnabas' side. No, no. It's 
always probably sin on everybody's side. I think that's an easy 
assumption to make. But there might be strategic 
reasons as well involved so that two teams can thus go out. But 
Barnabas at this particular time in the life and ministry of Saul 
of Tarsus is crucial. Barnabas took him, verse 27, 
and brought him to the apostles. And he, this is Barnabas declaring 
to them, the apostles, how he, Saul, had seen the Lord on the 
road. He rehearses what we find in 
the first part of Acts chapter 9. He tells the apostles that 
this Saul of Tarsus persecuted the church, was going to Damascus 
armed with letters of extradition so he could continue to persecute 
the church. And he doesn't stop there. He 
says, on that road, he heard Jesus. Jesus spoke to him. Again, 
he's satisfying the requirements for what will ultimately be Paul's 
inclusion among the apostolic ministry. You had to have seen 
the resurrected Lord. So he saw Jesus on that road 
to Damascus, he heard Jesus on that road to Damascus, but then 
he goes on to say he also preached Jesus. So the way that Barnabas 
facilitates Saul of Tarsus' acceptance among the apostles is not by 
saying, he's a great guy. No, I don't doubt that Paul was 
a great guy. He doesn't say it by appealing 
to their emotions. Look at this pitiful creature. 
We should allow him entrance into... No. He talks about his 
miraculous conversion and his ministerial fidelity. Apostles, 
this man is the real deal. He saw Jesus, he heard from Jesus, 
and then he immediately preached Jesus. That's the emphasis of 
Barnabas to the Apostles in verse 27. He declared to them how he 
had seen the Lord on the road and that he had spoken to him 
and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. And I love this emphasis again. Verse 27, Saul of Tarsus preached 
boldly. Notice what it says in verse 
29 when he starts to preach there in Jerusalem, he spoke boldly. Now, When it comes to preaching, 
I'm not saying every preacher needs to scream, yell, rant, 
and rave, but there needs to be a boldness about the proclamation 
of God's truth. There needs to be something about 
which God said to the prophet Isaiah, cry aloud, spare not, 
lift up your voice like a trumpet. Sinners are sleepy, sinners are 
dead. And the only thing that's gonna 
wake them is that voice of the Lord that is mighty to break 
the cedars of Lebanon. People today don't need chatty 
preachers. They don't need anecdotes. They 
don't need to hear about the minister and his life. They don't 
need to hear half the stories that men tell in pulpits. They 
need to hear that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living 
God. And they need to hear that boldly. This word, this idea 
comes up over and over again in the book of Acts and then 
elsewhere in Paul's letters. Look at Acts chapter 13. Acts 
chapter 13, verse 46. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold 
and said, it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken 
to you first, but since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy 
of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. Again, 
we're not talking about yelling at people, or berating people, 
or screaming at people, or hurting people, or hitting people, but 
there's a boldness that the gospel is about, or that ministers must 
have in presenting the gospel as well. Notice in Acts chapter 
14. Acts 14, we'll pick up at verse one, because I think the 
connection is beautiful. Now, it happened in Iconium that 
they went together to the synagogue of the Jews and so spoke that 
a great multitude, both of the Jews and of the Greeks, believed. 
It almost sounds like it was due to their speaking, doesn't 
it? It almost sounds like they so spoke as a result of their 
so speaking that a great multitude believed. Now that's sandwiched 
between two passages that highlight the absolute sovereignty of God 
in the salvation of sinners. Look at 1348. 1348 now when the Gentiles heard this 
they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord and as Many 
as had been appointed to eternal life believed that's the sovereignty 
of God Isn't it as many as had been appointed to eternal life? 
Believed not that you believe and therefore you've been appointed 
unto eternal life You're appointed by God in the eternal decree 
and as a result of that you believe the gospel that's absolute comprehensive 
sovereignty and then in 16 when Paul the Apostle is in the city 
of Philippi. Notice in, I'm sorry, Acts 16 
at verse 14. Now a certain woman named Lydia 
heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira 
who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to 
heed the things spoken by Paul. So in 1348, 16, you've got these 
statements concerning the absolute sovereignty of God. And yet in 
14, you see, They so spoke that a great multitude believed. Well, 
which is it? Is it God's sovereignty, or is 
it the eloquence of the apostles? It's God's sovereignty using 
the eloquence of the apostles. It's God's sovereignty blessing 
a particular type of preaching, not a hands-in-the-pocket, latte-sipping 
chat, but the bold declaration and proclamation of Christ and 
Him crucified and resurrected. See, God has purpose, not only 
the ends, but the means by which we get there. And as we survey 
this book of Acts, we'll see that it's not chatty preaching, 
but it's bold preaching. It's declarative preaching. It 
is sound, faithful preaching that God blesses. Turn over to 
1826. 1826, just to get the flavor of this 
word and to see the emphasis in this particular book. This 
is the ministry of Apollos. Verse 26, so he began to speak 
boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard 
him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God 
more accurately. He spoke boldly. That's what 
God's blessing in this book of Acts. Notice in 19.8. 19.8 is intriguing as well for 
a variety of reasons. Look at the text. Verse 8, and 
he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, 
reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of 
God. We mentioned that last week. True preaching is argumentative 
in the best sense. I told you, it's rational, it's 
taking the text of Scripture, it's exegeting it, it's expounding 
it, it's applying it, it's showing how the Old Testament is fulfilled 
by our Lord Jesus Christ. He reasons, he persuades, he 
doesn't appeal to their feelings, he doesn't appeal to mysticism, 
he doesn't appeal to an existential moment. Rather, he goes to scripture 
and he preaches that. But now notice what happens with 
reference to this bold speaking. Verse 9. But when some were hardened 
and did not believe, but spoke evil of the way, Christianity, 
before the multitude, he, Paul, departed from them and withdrew 
the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. Brethren, 
this was probably a lecture hall that was set up for philosophers, 
and Paul plunked down his own money to rent it so he could 
preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. That's what he saw as absolutely 
crucial and imperative in the known world at that particular 
time. 2626, another emphasis on boldness, 
and this before Festus and Agrippa. Verse 24 of Acts 26. Now as he 
thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, 
you are beside yourself. Much learning is driving you 
mad. Things haven't changed much, has it? Isn't this what they 
tell us today as Christians? You guys are nuts. You guys are 
off your rocker. You think God actually created 
the world in six days? Come on. You think that your 
life, your salvation, your hope is built on the blood of Jesus 
Christ. You haven't entered into reality. 
You're like the ostrich that buries its head in the sand. 
You think that if people don't see you, or if you don't see 
them, then they must not see. You're just like that. These 
are the same sorts of things that we hear today. But the difference 
is, is how Paul responds. Today we get a little fearful 
and afraid and say, oh, they hurt my feelings. Paul, according 
to verse 25, says, I'm not mad, most noble Festus, but speak 
the words of truth and reason. What's the implication? You're 
mad, Festus. It ain't me. There may be one 
madman in this room, but it's not me. I speak the words of 
truth and reason. And then notice in verse 26, 
for the king before whom I also, here it is, speak freely. Same 
idea, boldly, freely, unction, power from on high, a demonstration 
of the Spirit and of power. 1 Thessalonians 2.2, the apostle 
highlights the same concept in the church with Thessalonica. 1 Thessalonians 2.2, but even 
after we had suffered before and were spitefully treated at 
Philippi, as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you 
the gospel of God in much conflict. And then go back to Ephesians 
6 for just a moment, because this is kind of the point I want 
to make here. When Saul of Tarsus started preaching, 
immediately he preached Jesus. Jesus is the Christ, the Son 
of God. He did so boldly, didn't he? It's an amazing and beautiful 
thing. You see, he never took it for 
granted that boldness would always be given to him. He didn't rest 
upon his own abilities. He didn't rest upon past graces. He didn't rest upon sort of past 
performances. And I don't mean, you know, take 
a bow and all that sort of thing. I mean, pastimes when he had 
proclaimed. Look at Paul's request for prayer 
in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 18. He says, praying always with 
all prayer and supplication in the spirit, being watchful to 
this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the 
saints and for me. that utterance may be given to 
me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery 
of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that 
in it I may speak boldly as I ought to speak." So he had a history 
of bold preaching. He had a history of preaching 
freely. He had a history of God's anointing 
upon the proclamation of the truth, but he doesn't rest upon 
that. He asks the people in Ephesus, 
pray for me that I will have this. Pray for me that I'll be 
able to do this. I wonder how many guys out there 
today that are not preaching boldly, it's due because their 
people never pray that God will give them the grace to do so. 
You see, brethren, you are absolutely required to pray for the men 
who preach to you. You pray that God will give them 
the ability to speak boldly. These aren't native things. Saul 
of Tarsus or the Apostle Paul, when he's writing to the Corinthians, 
He acknowledges. He wasn't an orator. That wasn't 
his job. There was nothing in his history 
that prepared him for the sort of ministry that he would have. It's not that God takes men out 
of the womb and gives them golden tongs and puts them in schools 
to learn rhetoric and logic and gives them many. It's not just 
that way at all. In order to speak boldly, we 
need grace. In order to speak boldly, we need courage. In order 
to speak boldly, we need the Holy Spirit, or it ain't gonna 
happen. And if I could imitate the Apostle 
Paul with reference to his request to the Ephesians, pray for me, 
especially in the private stuff. Sometimes we go, well, you know, 
we gotta fix this. Our minister, maybe he's a chicken, 
and maybe you ought to pray that God gives him some courage, God 
gives him some boldness, God gives him some ability. We want 
men to make bricks, but we don't even supply them with the requisite 
materials. We're like Pharaoh back in the 
day. Go ahead, Israel, do this, but we're not going to pray for 
you. We're not going to help you. We're not going to provide 
any encouragement to you whatsoever. You just shoulder it all, and 
you just do it all. Brethren, that's a surefire way 
to wear men out pretty quickly, a surefire way to exasperate 
men of God. I'm not saying I'm there. I thank 
God. I believe brethren in this church pray for me. I believe 
that with every fiber of my being. Why? Because I'm brilliant? No, 
because most often or more often than not, they tell me they're 
praying for me. That's a great encouragement. How else could 
we do this without prayer? How else could we do this without 
the Spirit? How else could we ever come on 
a Sunday and call on men to believe the gospel of our Lord and Savior, 
Jesus Christ, if we weren't dependent upon a sovereign God? Brethren, 
we are not Arminians, we are not Pelagians. We are absolutely 
indebted 100% of the time to the Spirit of the living and 
true God. I make no apology for saying that whatsoever. That 
is the reality. of the situation. Paul never 
took it for granted, but he wanted prayer for this. We saw this 
in Acts 4. In Acts chapter 4, the apostolic 
prayer meeting in verse 27, for truly against your holy servant 
Jesus, whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate with 
the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together 
to do whatever your hand and your purpose determined before 
to be done. Now, Lord, look on their threats and grant to your 
servants that with all boldness they may speak your word. Why 
do you think that's important? Well, I kind of think it goes 
like this. If you don't look like you believe what you're 
preaching, why would anybody ever take you seriously? You 
know who the most dangerous political candidates are? It's the weirdos 
that actually believe what they're saying. They're the ones we ought 
to be terrified of. I mean, others look at it as 
a means for money or as a means for control or as a means for 
power. It's the zealot who actually 
believes what he's saying, even though it's patently and demonstrably 
false. He's got the persuasive ability. 
He's got the power. Brethren, when we have the truth, 
we don't just sort of set it out there with a limp wrist. 
We seek by the grace of God to screw the truth in men's consciences, 
because it's crucial, absolutely imperative, because if sinners 
don't believe this truth, they go to hell forever. If believers 
don't continue to be fed this truth, they're gonna be discouraged 
forever. So it is absolutely requisite 
that men today preach the word of the living God in a bold manner. Now let's look at the ministry 
of Saul here in Jerusalem, and it's very similar to what happened 
in Damascus when he first visited there, or his most recent visit 
there. Notice, he was with the church. Verse 28, obviously Barnabas 
prevailed with the apostles. And in verse 28, we read, so 
he, this is Saul, was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going 
out. Daily affairs, conduct, coming in with them, going out. 
He's attached to them. He's integrated with them. They're 
no longer afraid of him. He has free movement among the 
people of God in the church of God. He is one of them, we might 
say. That's what the language suggests 
there in verse 28. And then again, he was preaching 
boldly. Verse 29, he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. 
He didn't speak boldly in the name of the Apostle Paul. He 
didn't speak boldly in the name of, you know, whatever other 
system there might have been. It was Christ. For Paul, everything's 
Christ, isn't it? It's very easy with reference 
to Paul. Spurgeon said of John Bunyan that if you pricked him, 
if you cut him, he'd bleed bibline. That's what made up his blood, 
it was Bible. He was so filled with Bible. You cut him and he 
bled Bible. Well, for Paul, it's Christ. 
And I'm sure for Bunyan too. Not saying there's a difference 
there, but that's what Paul was about. That was everything for 
Paul. When he first starts preaching, 
what does he preach? Well, I want to tell you about being a better 
you. No, immediately he preaches that Jesus is the Christ, the 
Son of God. Why is that? Because unless you believe that 
I am, you will die in your sins. John 8, 24. So for the Apostle 
Paul, when he preaches, he preaches boldly and he does so in the 
name of the Lord Jesus. I think Calvin's glossary or 
comment is beautiful. He says with reference to the 
name of the Lord. I take the name of the Lord in 
this place for the profession of the gospel in this sense that 
Paul defended Christ's cause Manfully. It's a word we don't 
use enough. Manfully. Because, of course, 
we defend everybody. How dare you? It's got to be 
womanfully. It's got to be peoplefully. You 
get the point. It means courage. It means bravery. The Apostle Paul tells the Corinthians, 
act like men. He doesn't mean to defeminize 
feminine women. He means to buck up, to have 
some courage, to engage in the Christian faith manfully. That's what Paul does when he's 
among them. He's not the sort of guy that 
is milquetoast. Now, notice what happened. He 
disputed against the Hellenists. We met the Hellenists back in 
Acts chapter 6. Essentially, a Hellenist was 
a Greek-speaking Jew. They were Jews outside of Judah. They were very much imbibed with 
Greek culture. They were very much imbibed, 
obviously, with the Greek language. They were Jews, but they had 
been Hellenized. They had become, in essence, 
Greeks to a degree. Not ethnically, but in terms 
of culture and whatnot. They obviously had a problem 
with Stephen according to Acts chapter 6, and here they have 
a problem with the Apostle Paul in Acts chapter 9. And we know 
that Paul bested them in the argument the same way that Stephen 
does. Remember when Stephen is disputing 
with these Hellenists? What do they resort to? They 
don't resort to superior argumentation. They don't resort to any sort 
of a rational or logical interchange or flow of ideas. They don't 
say, you know what, Stephen, you're right. We should probably 
listen to you a little bit. That's not what they do. They 
stir everybody up to oppose Stephen. And then they allege false things 
about Stephen. And then they deliver him up 
to the Sanhedrin or the religious council. And there they formally 
charge him with blasphemy. So they do the same thing with 
Saul in this very instance. They don't best him with argumentation. They don't have the Bible on 
their side. They don't have rationality. They don't have logic. They don't 
have that ability. So what do they resort to? Well, 
we'll kill him. We'll kill him. That's what it 
says. Notice, this is the second attempt on Saul's life in the 
space of three years. He already met with this in Damascus 
when they watched the gates day and night to kill him. That's 
the unbelieving Jews. And here in verse 29, he spoke 
boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the 
Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him. Now, I would suggest 
that this response evidences that you have the weaker argument. 
When your response is to kill the person you're arguing with, 
you've lost. You're not good. You have failed. You're the loser in that exchange. This is never to be the response 
of anybody when they're bested in an argument. If somebody is 
able to silence you, don't run home and get your gun or a knife 
and finish them off. That is never the Christian response. 
That's not to be a human response. We're supposed to not murder 
people. I know it's wacky, but we're 
really not supposed to end people's lives, even if they disagree 
with us on matters of religion. The advancement of religion with 
the power of the sword is not godly. It's not biblical. The people who have truth on 
their side do not need to advance it with the edge of the sword. 
The people who have truth on their side trust in the Spirit 
of the Living God. They do what they're supposed 
to do. They pray for bold preachers that will present the truth that 
Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. But these 
Hellenists couldn't argue against Paul, so they did what the unbelieving 
Jews in Damascus did, they attempted to kill him. So, you know, I'd 
love to be able to say this to everybody who disagrees with 
Christianity. When you want to end our lives, 
you have declared yourselves the loser. That'll be the last 
thing we say as we're checking out. Into your hands, I commit 
my spirit, and you lost. This is never the way to end 
an argument. But this is what happens to solitaricists 
in the space, not even of three years. This happens immediately 
with the man. This is sort of a foreshadowing 
of what we're going to see in the coming, in the rest of the 
book of Acts, but it's certainly a fulfillment of what Jesus says 
to Ananias. Notice in verse 15, go, for he 
is a chosen vessel of mine to bear my name before Gentiles, 
kings, and the children of Israel. We see him doing that. He's preaching 
the name of the Lord Jesus. And then verse 16, for I will 
show him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake. You 
say, well, they attempted to kill him. They didn't actually 
kill him. Oh, okay, yeah, I guess living with attempts on your 
life is somehow pleasant. That suffering, just like they 
attempted and plotted to kill Jesus, they ultimately do with 
Saul of Tarsus. It doesn't happen overnight, 
probably like 30 years later, but it happens. Where do we find 
Paul the Apostle at the end of his life? We find him in a prison. Not on a golf course, not in 
his private jet. Remember, he didn't leave Damascus 
via private jet. He left via basket going down 
the wall. And at the end of his life, he's 
in a jail cell. And we think of jail cells, perhaps 
you've been involved in prison ministry and you've gone to prisons 
and you've seen the rooms and whatnot and they have toilets 
and they get three hots and a cot, that's the verbiage for three 
meals a day and a place to sleep. And I'm not saying it's the Taj 
Mahal, it's not the Hilton, but it's certainly not what Paul 
the Apostle faced in his day. When he says to Timothy, I want 
my cloak, he needed it or he would die. It's just the way 
it was. When he praises the man called 
Epaphroditus in the Philippian church that sent Epaphroditus 
to Paul in his first imprisonment, it's for this reason. Because 
Epaphroditus brought me food. He calls it a gift. He doesn't 
say, you know, he brought me burritos and tacos and mangoes 
and avocados. He doesn't say that. But they 
didn't have the state making sure you had your three hots 
and a cot. If you didn't have friends, you'd starve to death 
in a jail cell. You needed Epaphroditus' in your 
life. You needed the Philippian church. You needed people that 
would actually care and minister unto you. It was a matter of 
life and death. That's where we find Paul the 
Apostle at the end of his life. Why? because of false charges, 
because of all these things, because of them turning him over 
to the civil government, and to a point where the civil government, 
Rome itself, turned against Christianity, and Paul the Apostle represents 
to them and to unbelieving Israel all that Christianity is. I mean, 
he's a likely candidate to have his head chopped off by Caesar 
in that timeframe, and that is precisely what happened. So the 
attempt here is ultimately realized in a way that is unfortunately 
shocking for the people of God. Gil says, since they could not 
conquer him by arguments, they were for slaying him with the 
sword. But notice what the disciples do, the brethren do. Verse 30. 
When the brethren found out, they brought him down to Caesarea 
and sent him out to Tarsus. The brethren found out about 
the Hellenist attempt on Saul's life. They brought him to Caesarea, 
which is the port city. I don't think it's Caesarea Philippi. 
It's the port city of Caesarea. They put him on a boat so that 
he can go to Tarsus, his hometown. Why? I don't know. I don't know, 
but he spends 11 years there. He speaks to this in Galatians 
chapter one. After the 11 years there, you've 
got a total of 14 years according to Galatians 2.1. That's when 
he does the famine relief visit. And that's the second sort of 
post-conversion visit of Saul of Tarsus back to Jerusalem. As I said with reference to the 
narrative here in the book of Acts, we don't meet with Saul 
again until Acts chapter 11, when Barnabas goes to Tarsus 
to seek Saul. And when he found him, he brought 
him to Antioch, verse 25 of chapter 11. So it was that for a whole 
year they assembled with the church and taught a great many 
people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. I've always thought that'd be, 
you know, the best Bible trivia question ever. What city was 
Christians first called Christians? What is Antioch? It's great. We should all know that. It's 
our history. The beautiful thing about the Book of Acts, we're 
connected to this. We're connected to Saul of Tarsus. We're connected to Barnabas. 
We're connected to Ananias. We have a great heritage. We 
have a great history. We have a great people. We have 
a great Christ who used these people. And then notice what 
the summary statement of verse 31 says concerning the churches. Luke does this all throughout 
the book of Acts. He gives us these reports. He 
gives us these summarizing statements and he highlights the description. 
of God's blessings to the churches. And then he highlights the disposition 
found among the people in God's churches. Verse 31, then the 
churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace 
and were edified. And walking in the fear of the 
Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied. 
The object of blessing is the churches. It's the church, brethren. Yes, God loves individuals and 
yes, God loves families, but he loves the gates of Zion more. So in Psalm 87, two says, the 
Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of 
Jacob. It's an idiom. It doesn't mean 
he hates the people who dwell in Jacob. It doesn't mean he 
hates the individuals. It just means that God's salvation 
is a group of individuals making up a church from every tribe, 
tongue, people and nation. And Luke tells us that the churches 
in these regions, we've got Judea, we've got Galilee, we've got 
Samaria. This is the object. These are 
the targets of God's blessings. And the blessings are threefold. 
First, they had peace. Some connect this very closely 
with the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, and you can see why. 
Now that the chief persecutor and enemy of the church is gone, 
well, now they have peace. I think there's a connection, 
but I don't think it's that tight. I don't think the one man Saul 
of Tarsus could have obliterated all of them at the same time. 
I think it's a general statement that finds a great connection 
and at least a thematic connection with the conversion of the chief 
enemy. But they had peace. They certainly still had persecution 
from without, but they had peace. They had peace with God, according 
to Romans 5.1. They had peace with one another. This is the 
kind of peace that Paul says in Ephesians 4, endeavor to keep 
the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Why do you think 
Paul emphasizes that? Because Paul knows that the absence 
of peace does not promote the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. When pastors know there isn't 
peace, when elders know there isn't peace, you don't typically 
expect the free flow of the Spirit. Brethren, there's a reality that 
we endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of 
peace. Notice, that's a command. It's not assumed. It's just going 
to happen. It's like a marriage. Do good marriages just happen? Wow, you got lucky. You married 
a wonderful human. Under your breath, you're saying, 
there's no luck about it, and they're not as wonderful as you 
may think. This has taken a lot of grace, help, and work in order 
to make this thing go. Now, I hope it doesn't sound 
quite that bad. I certainly don't think that. My beloved is awesome. 
But you know what? We have that idea. Your kids 
are so well behaved, you're sure lucky. The kids I got are messed 
up, you got the good ones. No, that's not it at all. In 
order to see kids that look somewhat presentable and halfway decent, 
there's a lot that goes into that. It's the same thing with 
the church. Peace doesn't just happen. There's 
so many different ideas and opinions and thoughts and preferences 
just here. We got to learn to shelve and 
table some of those things that aren't crucial. Not everything 
is a hill to die on. Not every issue is something 
that we're ready to fight for. Man, brethren, for some things 
we just need to let it go. We need to chill out a little 
bit. Sometimes the free flow of peace happens when we're not 
so hung up and we're not so wound up and we're not so tightened 
up. We need to just let peace happen and do so actively. As well, they were edifying. 
Alexander explains this as internal growth and spiritual progress. 
I would attribute this to spirit-wrought preaching. They were edified, 
they were growing, they were understanding truth. See, why 
the church needs to preach the Bible is for the edification 
of the people of God. Yes, the salvation of sinners. 
We pray that. That any sinner who comes here 
on a Sunday morning or evening would be saved by the glorious 
grace of God Almighty. But that doesn't mean the believers 
are forgotten. Believers need to be edified, 
you need to grow, you need to be strong, you need to understand 
doctrine, you need to make connection, you need to be able to explain 
the Trinity, justification by faith alone. Not just to explain 
it to unbelievers out there, but to speak peace and comfort 
to your own hearts. Edification was taking place, 
but then notice as well, the very end of the verse, what happens? 
They're multiplied. There was a great emphasis on 
church growth, I don't know, 10, 20, 30 years ago. I'm sure 
it's still going on. I gave up a long time ago trying to follow 
the trends and patterns and things that are happening outside of, 
you know, me. No, I'm not quite that narcissistic, 
but actually I might be. But thankfully the Lord God Almighty 
is gracious and good and all that. But this church growth, 
church growth, church growth. How do we get our churches to 
grow? Well, we have puppets, and that'll really please the 
children. We bring in ponies, and we put them on there, and 
they get to ride around. We bring an ice cream truck and send it 
up into the parking lot on a 90-degree day. That'll really promote growth. Who promotes growth in the church? 
It's God. It's Jesus, I will build my church 
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Christ is 
in charge of church growth. We're supposed to be faithful. 
1 Corinthians 4, 2, the apostle says, moreover, it is required 
of stewards that they be found, what, gimmicky, manipulative, 
the most charismatic fellows on the face. No, faithful, that's 
it. They had peace, they were edified 
and they were multiplied. Now let's see the disposition 
that they possessed. It wasn't ice cream trucks, it 
wasn't puppets, it wasn't ponies. I don't have anything against 
puppets. Puppets are kind of weird, but ponies and ice cream, 
I don't have anything wrong with that. But as a gimmick or as 
a tactic or as a technique to manipulate people to come to 
the church, that's just fundamentally wrong. Look at what the disposition 
was among the churches at that time. They continued in the fear 
of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Maybe if 
that's what we pursued as churches, maybe if that's what we sought 
as churches, maybe if faithfulness to our God, the fear of God, 
the comfort of the Holy Spirit, if those conditions prevailed, 
if that disposition was manifested, then God would send more people 
among us. Is that the tax that the church growth people typically 
appeal to? Not that I've seen. Okay, you 
gotta, as a church, fear God and continue in the comfort of 
the Holy Spirit. Oh, okay, that's what we're supposed to do. That's 
not what these books are filled with. It's ice cream trucks, 
it's puppets, it's ponies, it's manipulation, it's gimmick, it's 
charismaticism. And I don't mean tongue speaking, 
I mean the charismatic preacher, the ministry guy, the shaker, 
the mover, the CEO, no. Moreover, it is required of stewards 
that they be found faithful. The pathway, and I don't even 
like to say it like this because it almost sounds formulaic, not 
pathway, the way that we should be is to be walking in the fear 
of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. And in that, 
we can hope and pray that God will give us peace, that God 
will give us edification, and that God in his grace and mercy 
will multiply us. He will add more people, not 
because we have to have a million people, but because we want sinners 
saved. We want people to come to Christ. 
Numbers do matter because numbers are going to hell if they don't 
hear the gospel. So I've always been a bit put 
off by that mindset too. Well, if you have more than five 
people in your church, that's suspicious. Well, I don't know 
about that. It's men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, 
a great multitude that no man can number. You see, numbers 
are important if they're numbers that are going to go to hell. 
But the way to get those numbers isn't through puppets, ponies, 
and programs. The way to get those numbers 
is to be faithful to God, to pursue peace in our own context, 
to grow in the knowledge and the grace of God, to manifest 
that walking in the fear of the Lord, and that comfort of the 
Holy Spirit, that's the disposition that prevailed among the churches 
at this particular juncture. And I would submit that this 
is the kinds of churches that we need to see in our own day. 
If churches look like rock concerts, if churches look like, you know, 
stadiums, if churches look like a lot of things that churches 
do, brethren, what kind of multiplication is that? Give me 10, 5, 4, 2 
people that love scripture and love Jesus and believe the gospel. 
That's better than a multitude of people filling a stadium because 
of Joel Osteen. That's not cool. That's a lot 
of numbers, but what kind of numbers? People that are trying 
to be their best selves? I'd rather be around a bunch 
of people that accept that, hey, I'm not my best self. Jesus was, 
and I'm thankful for his blood and his righteousness. Not so 
that we can not try, entertain, gotta qualify it. but because 
of the reality that we accept who we are before a living and 
true God, and we seek to be faithful. I want to close quickly. First, 
the significance of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. Here I'm going 
to quote F. F. Bruce. I think he makes a 
good observation here. He says, with Luke's estimate of the importance 
of Saul's conversion, neither the historian nor the theologian 
can quarrel. The spread of Christianity in 
the Roman Empire cannot be imagined apart from his work. He was indeed 
a chosen instrument in the hand of the risen Lord, fitted for 
his life work before his conversion, set apart for it indeed as he 
acknowledges before his birth. Paul says that in Galatians 1.15, 
and there I think he connects himself to the prophet Jeremiah, 
not in some weird, I'm a Jer- no, no, but that's the same thing 
that obtained with Jeremiah. God called that prophet from 
his mother's womb, and Paul was the same in terms of Galatians 
1. Secondly, we never ought to underestimate the realities of 
Ananias' and Barnabas' in our midst. In other words, the church 
isn't just about preaching. The church isn't just about missions. The church is about a whole host 
of support operation as well. And, you know, I oftentimes or 
sometimes get these sorts of recommendations. I've got to 
fill out papers for kids that go to Christian school. They 
want a pastor's reference. And, you know, I'd fill it out 
and it typically says, how do the people serve in your church? 
Well, I know how, that could be answered in other contexts. 
Well, they dole out the ice cream in the parking lot, or they operate 
the ponies, and he carries the burro through the sanctuary, 
and the kids are on the back. That's kind of what I think they're 
looking for. I wonder if they ever get sort of put off when 
I say they really encourage the elders. They pray. They show up. They're faithful. So you don't 
have to be the bongo drum player at your local church for notoriety. Show up and be faithful and pray. Be an Ananias, be a Barnabas, 
be an encourager, be somebody that can be counted on. If there's not that, there's 
never gonna be a Paul, there's never gonna be a Spurgeon. Why 
did Spurgeon face success? Somebody asked him, why in the 
world are you so successful or your ministry so successful? 
He says, because my people pray for me. There's no puzzle. There's no mystery. There's no, 
well, I can't believe, no, there were people in the basement of 
the tabernacle praying for Spurgeon as he preached the gospel. It 
was no mystery to Spurgeon why God blessed his preaching. It 
was because of the prayers of the people of God. The point 
is, You may be an Ananias. You may be a Barnabas. You may 
never be a Saul of Tarsus. None of us may ever be an Amy 
Carmichael. We may never be a whoever famous 
person in the history of the church. But we're called to be 
faithful where we're at. We're called to be diligent where 
we're at. We're called to be the sorts of people that God 
has called us to be in this context and in this time. And then finally, 
I think we covered Paul's ministry. I don't want to overdo it. He's 
a hero and I certainly love to talk about Paul and his ministry. 
But in terms of the significance of the summary here concerning 
the churches, the blessings faithful churches ought to seek, the blessing 
that faithful churches ought to seek, peace. When you pray 
for the church, do you pray, oh God, give us peace? Or if 
we have it, God keep us in peace. Has anybody ever prayed for that? 
I don't want every hand up, every eye bowed. No, I don't want that. 
But do you ever pray for peace? Peace is a wonderful thing. Trust 
me, as a pastor who stands before the people of God to preach, 
it's nice to know that, at least to some degree, everybody kind 
of likes each other. That was an understatement. But when there's 
that sort of dissension, that lack of peace, that disunity, 
that's tough. Edification. God, I pray that 
as I go to church today, I'd worship and glorify you, but 
I'd be fed and I'd grow and I'd be more conformed under the image 
of Jesus. See, there's a purpose for our meeting together, isn't 
there? If you've ever exercised, you don't just walk in and pick 
up heavy stuff, there's a rhyme and a reason to picking up heavy 
stuff. You do it in a certain way, you exercise certain muscle 
groups, you've got to take time off in between exercise, because 
that's when the muscle groups actually grow. You've got to 
train wisely as well. Well, church is no different. 
When we come to church, you know, I've got to come to church, that's 
what we do. No, I want to come, God. I want to help promote peace. 
I want to grow and be edified and strengthened. I want to leave 
changed. I want to leave more conformed 
under the image of Christ. And then this prayer for multiplication. 
Again, not so we'll be the biggest church. but so that we'll see 
sinners come to Christ. We'll see saints made holy like 
Christ. We'll see good things transpire 
in the lives of people. These are the blessings that 
we ought to pursue and the disposition that we ought to have is to walk 
in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. 
Let this be a great encouragement and a great lesson to us, not 
just as individuals, though we are, but as the church, the Free 
Grace Baptist Church of Chilliwack, British Columbia. This ought 
to be what we are after, to walk in the fear of the Lord and to 
continue in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Those things are 
requisite. for the peace, for the edification, 
and ultimately for the multiplication of God's church in this particular 
place. And if you are not a believer, 
there would be nothing better than to see this church multiplied 
today. And the way that occurs is not 
by you getting better at life, not by you trying harder in your 
moral reform, but by you listening to the gospel, that Christ Jesus 
came into the world, sinners to save, and that those who look 
to Christ Jesus in faith will have everlasting life. That's 
the pathway to multiplication. It's when God gives grace, sinners 
believe, and then sinners, believing in Christ, join themselves to 
the churches of Christ. Well, let us close in a word 
of prayer. Father, thank you for your word, and thank you 
for your grace, and thank you for the way that you moved in 
the early church and the way