Metamorphosis: God wants to change you.
Metamorphisis: The changing process. • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 3 viewsGod wants to change us.
Notes
Transcript
Introduction:
Javan’s story of metamorphosis.
Prayer:
1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Saul was one of the best if not the best persecutor there was in Jerusalem.
He was present at the stoning of Stephen.
He was breathing threats
Murder against the disciples of the Lord.
Now Saul launches a new strike against another area that is not in Jerusalem.
He asks the high priest in Jerusalem to allow him to persecute the people from the new sect entitled the Way and arrest them and bring them back to Jerusalem for persecution.
Anyone man and woman.
I often ask myself what did God see in Saul to have interest in changing him.
He was the leader that killed and persecuted God’s church.
He was a murderer not a very good person to have interest in change.
But that is the reason that God is God and I am not.
I would look at his resume and say no good from the get go.
But God in his wisdom can see the future and see what Saul can become and says yup.
Illustration of Car restoration.
God know what his intention was when He created us, but sin has come into our lives and corroded all of our relationships and life.
God is wanting and willing to restore us to His original plan and He sees our final product if we allow Him into be part of His process.
3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”
5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”
Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”
Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one.
The silver lining:
In the process of metamorphosis there is a time of a silver lining.
Saul had strength and determination but was being used for the wrong reason and purpose.
Jesus interjects Saul's plan -silver lining- and redirects Saul’s strength and determination for God’s purpose.
Jesus calls Saul.
God calls Saul. Saul did not choose to want to be on God’s side God called Saul.
The way that God calls Saul is challenging.
Jesus said- Saul, Saul why are you persecuting me.
In other words, what’s up Saul what do you think you are doing.
Saul responded.
Who are you Lord.
Saul calling Jesus Lord was not because Saul had accepted Jesus as his saviour but most likely because of respect.
Respect is not good enough.
Respect does not bring conversion.
Jesus resonds
Jesus represents himself and then says
It is hard to kick against the goads.
Goad is a tool used to train animals. It is a spike that helps trainers to train animal.
Imagine kicking one of those?
who would learn the lesson the goad or the person that kicked it.
Jesus compares himself as a goad.
A tool to train us for His work.
A tool to change us foe His glory.
Saul is now willing for God’s change to happen in his life.
Saul asks Jesus what do want me to do.
For true metamorphosis to happen I need to be willing to allow God to do what He wants to do in my life.
Not what I want to do.
Not what others want to be seen.
But what God wants to do in my life.
That is totally different in each person.
Also God will do the work when I do exactly what He asks me to do.
I have an active role to play in my metamorphosis process.
One of the most active role is to listen to the Spirit to talk to me to know what I should do for the next process of my Metamorphosis.
Jesus tells Saul what to do.
Arise and go into the city and you will be told what to do.
Many times God uses others to tell us what to do for our metamorphosis.
It must of been hard for Saul to be told what to do when he was used to tell other what to do.
Metamorphosis is about change from the inside out.
Saul’s crew stood speechless:
They heard the voice but did not experience the fullness of what Saul experience because they did not see the light.
The metamorphosis experience can be different for everyone. As a result, we have to be very careful in not passing judgement on the metamorphosis experience of someone else.
So is you are going through some challenging times it could be that God is trying to change you and challenging you to go through a metamorphosis experience.
Remember:
God does not always choose the perfect ones.
God does not look at your past but what you can be for His glory through the metamorphosis process.
God calls you to enter the metamorphosis.
He waits upon your response.
He can use others to tell me what to do. It is not always a secret process.
My experience on the metamorphosis process in my life is not always the same experience of the other people seeing in.
ADVERTISEMENT