October 13, 2024 SERMON

 A Blueprint for Success
Acts 9

We're continuing our series in the book of Acts, entitled "That Old-Time Religion," and today, we'll be looking at Saul, who later becomes the Apostle Paul. So, open your Bibles to Acts chapter 9 and when you've found it, look up here. I want to ask you a question.

If you could meet Jesus Christ face to face, I don't mean talk to Him in prayer, although He's real in that way. But, I mean, if you could meet Him face to face. Here is Jesus Christ standing there in a body, literally, face to face with you and you could ask Him anything you wanted to ask Him, what would you ask Him?

I think you would ask Him the same thing that the Saul asked Him. "Lord, what do you want me to do?" "Lord, I want to know your will for my life and please dear Lord, tell me what it is you want me to do."

Look at this passage of Scripture, beginning in verse 1. "And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way"—that is any who were followers of the Lord Jesus—"whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem."

When they were put in fetters and chains and brought to Jerusalem for trial and perhaps imprisonment or even death. "And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" (Acts 9:1-6).

That is the text that I want to use this morning. "Lord, what will thou have me to do?"

What is success in life? If you had to write a definition of success, what would it be? May I suggest what success is? Success is the progressive realization of the will of God for your life. That's what it is. Let me repeat that, Success is the progressive realization of the will of God for your life.  

It's not how much money you have; it's not how famous you are; it's not how healthy you are; it's not how many friends you have, how many toys you have acquired. Success is nothing more, nothing less, than the progressive realization of the will of God for your life.

Here's what Saul said to the Lord Jesus when he had an opportunity to ask Him face to face, "Lord, what do you want me to do? Lord, what would you have me to do?"

He did not ask, "Lord, what do you want others to do?" Many of us are pretty good at that. Or not, "Lord, what do others want me to do?" But, "Lord, what would you have me to do?"

So many times as a pastor I’ve been asked this question, "How can I know the will of God for my life?" And, I dare say that if you are a spirit-filled Christian, if you are a person serious about serving God, then that is a question that is paramount in your life. And, yet we have so many people floundering around not knowing the will of God.

Somebody said, "We live in an age of guided missiles and misguided men." And man has been described as a clever creature that has lost his way in the darkness. And the reason is that we are not asking the question that the Saul asked.

Jeremiah 10:23 puts it this way. "O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.". The way of man is not in himself. "Lord, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?"

I want to talk about how to know success in life which is the progressive realization of the will of God for you.

Or we could just put it in other words, "How can I know God's will for my life?" That's really what I'm talking about. When I'm talking about success it is for you to know the will of God for your life and to accomplish that will, day by day.

There are several things I want us to notice as we look at this. First of all, God has promised to reveal His will to us. Put that in your mind and put it in your notes if you're taking notes. God has promised to reveal His will to us.

Notice in verse 6: "And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do."

God doesn't want us floundering around like a ship without a mast or rudder or compass on a dark and stormy night. God has a plan for our life.

Let me just give some other verses. Ephesians 2:10 the Bible says, "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."

That means that God has a plan for your life. He has before ordained certain good works for you. Or, let me put it this way. Psalm 37, verse 23: "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way."  Isn't that wonderful? "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, he delighteth in his way." God has a plan for you step by step.

Or, how 'bout Psalm 32:8: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." That is, God's eyes are going to be over you, guiding you step by step along the way.

What about Isaiah 58:11: "And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not."

It cannot be plainer than this. God told Saul, "I will show you what you must do."

Proverbs 3:6: "In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall..." he shall, he shall, "direct thy paths."  We have the Father controlling all things. We have the Savior beside us directing our footsteps. We have the Spirit within us impressing our heart to know the will of God.

May I say that God has a plan, and it is just for you? God's Will really comes in three forms. First of all, there's God's sovereign will. That's just where God rules in the affairs of men. And, whether you choose God or not makes no difference. God's ultimate sovereign will, will be done and God will work out His purposes.

Many times, we do not understand the sovereign will of God. It is strange and mysterious, and we cannot know we just simply see it. Deuteronomy 29:29: "The secret things belong unto the Lord our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law."

There're certain secret things. You're not going to figure them out. Who hath known the mind of the Lord? Or, who hath been His counselor? That's God's sovereign will, that's God's mysterious way.

But then God has a standard will. God's standard will applies to all of us. I mean, there's certain things in the Bible God says, "Thou shalt and thou shalt not." It's God's will, for example, that you live a clean life, that you don't commit adultery. It is God's will, for example, that you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. It is God's will that you do this, and you don't do that.

There are certain things that are very plain, very simple, in the Word of God. You don't have to pray and say, "Lord show me your will." God says, "There it is. That is my standard will." So, there's God's sovereign will. There's God's standard will.

Then, there is God's special will. God's special will is His desire for you and I. For example, He had a particular thing that He had called Saul to do in verse 15 of this same chapter.

"But the Lord said unto him..."—that is to Ananias who is going to be a messenger to Saul—"... Go thy way: for he..."—that is Saul—"... is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel" (Acts 9:15).

God took a man named Saul and said, "I have a special will for him. He is to be the apostle to the Gentiles. He is chosen, I have a special will for him."

In my own life I can see God's sovereign will, God's standard will, and God's special will for me. Let me just choose an example. I was born into my father and mother’s family, I didn't choose them. They didn't choose me. We both got what we got. I was born into their family and God in His sovereign will put those particular genes and chromosomes together and gave me to them and them to me. That's God's sovereign will.

We're all here by the sovereign choice of God. We didn't plan that; we just accept that. That's God's sovereign will.

But then there was God's standard will. God wanted me to know the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal Savior and Lord. The Lord is "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). That “standard will” for me is the same as for you or anybody else. God wanted me saved. It was God's will that I be saved. God is not willing that any should perish.

Now, I have the choice to reject that will, but thank God I had the grace, oh, thank God He opened my heart to receive that will and to be saved. That's God's standard will.

Then there's God's special will. I believe that God called me be a pastor in His Kingdom. I believe that was one of God's special will for me.

God has a special plan for every man, woman, boy and girl. You say, "How could God be interested in me? The great God who made the universes, how could He be interested in me?" Well, He is interested in you because He loves you; you are special to Him. You are not an accident. You are an incident. You are special in the mind of God.

Like that little girl who was endeavoring to pray what we call The Lord's Prayer. She prayed it this way, "Our Father which art in Heaven, how doe

s He know my name?" Oh, but He does. He knows us down to the nth degree.

The Bible says, "But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered" (Luke 12:7).

God does not normally deal with people as in a mass; He primarily deals with us individually. He has as many plans as He has people to fit into His plan. He has as many methods as He has people.

There are some common mistakes that people have concerning success and knowing the will of God. One of these is that God's going to give you a road map for your life. He's going to say, "This is what you're going to be doing. When you're twenty you'll do this and when you're thirty you'll do this and you'll go to this city and you'll do this and so and so and so."

I don't believe that for one moment. God's plan for us is not a road map; it is a relationship. God does not reveal the future to us, God simply reveals Himself to us.

When God led the children of Israel in the wilderness, they didn't know where they were going. The Bible says, "And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire" (Exodus 13:21). Sometimes it seemed like they were going around in circles. But that was none of their business. The only thing they had to know was to keep that pillar of cloud and that pillar of fire in sight.

Do we understand all that's happening to us right now?" probably not. It may not make any sense at all. It doesn't have to make any sense to us. Is that pillar of cloud and that pillar of fire in sight? Don't make the mistake of thinking God's gonna give you a road map.

Secondly, don't make the mistake of thinking that God is some sort of a celestial killjoy. So many people don't know the will of God because very frankly, they're afraid of it. They say, "If I were to give my heart to the Lord, no telling what He might do." I mean, if I were to say, "Lord, here I am You can do anything with me, anywhere, any place, any cost, any time, no telling, I might end up as a missionary in darkest Africa."

You might say, "That'd be terrible." No, that'd be wonderful. God's will, when you understand it is what you really desire to do when He reveals it to you. Anybody who gets to do what he desires to do is really a fulfilled person. Don't be afraid of the will of God. God is a loving Father. The Bible says, "Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart" (Psalm 37:4).

A third mistake that people make is that God only speaks to certain categories of people. You say, “Certainly God has a will for the missionary and God has a will for the pastor and God has one for these kinds of special people." Let me say, God has a plan for the plumber as well as the preacher. God has a plan for the mason as well as the minister. God's plan is for the salesman as well as for the singer. It makes no difference. God has a plan for everyone.

Another mistake that people make is they think they have to have some sort of a dramatic experience like Saul had. Saul did have a dramatic experience. But that's not God's normal way. As we read the book of Acts, we find out that while God sometimes does the unexpected, many times He does what we could describe as a normal thing.

1 Kings 19:11, 12. This concerns Elijah and he was seeking the will of God. "And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice." And that still small voice was the voice of God.

It may not be the cyclone, it may not be the earthquake, it may not be the inferno that shows you the will of God. It may be just that still small voice.

Another mistake that people make is that God is hiding His will. People think that the will of God is like an Easter egg hunt. My dad used to go off to work and say, "Now Terry, you and Tommy"—that's my brother—"clean the yard, do this and that and if we didn't do it, when he got home, there was that time of reckoning.

But wouldn't it be strange if my dad had said, "Now, Terry there's something I want you to do and if you do it, I'll reward you, and if you don't do it I'm gonna punish you." I'd say, "Dad, since you explained it, what is it you want me to do?" Well, "I'm not gonna tell you, that's for you to find out." What kind of a father is that? What kind of a Heavenly Father has a will and a plan for us but He doesn't reveal it to us?

God is not hiding His will from us. He says in Psalm 32, verse 8: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye."  The reason that many of us do not know the will of God for our lives and do not find real success in our lives is that we do not do what Saul did.

His very first statement in verse 10: "What shall I do, Lord?" And, the Lord said to him, "Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do." God didn't tell him all His will. But God told him go to the city. He didn't tell him anything else. He said, "You get there, I'll show you something else."

The way to know the will of God that you don't know is to do the will of God that you do know.  You go do what I told you to do now. Go to the city, that's all, just go to the city.

God wants to guide us. Can God guide you? Listen, He says, "I will guide thee with mine eye." God guides, He doesn't shove.

If you’ve had kids, you can understand how eyes can guide you. Many times, it would only take a look and your kids would stop messing up.

That's the kind of relationship that we're to have with the Lord; a ready, willing, watchful, and submissive attitude.

The Bible says in John 7:17: "If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." You must will to do the will of God.

Psalm 25:9 says, "The meek will he guide in judgment." Do you know what the word meek means? It means those who are teachable. We're to be open to the Lord.

Romans 8:14: "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." Are you leadable? The Holy Spirit is a still, small voice. He doesn't shove and He doesn't shout.

Do you have a quiet time where God can speak to you? It’s for us to get useable and yieldable. For us to get meek and God will speak to us. A lot of people want to be filled with the Holy Spirit but they're not useable, they're not yielded, they're not ready.

If you really want to know the will of God, if you're serious you’ll say, "Lord, I will do it, I’ll sign the contract at the bottom. Lord, unroll the scroll. I've already signed it at the bottom."

That's gonna include your children. It's gonna include your finances. It's gonna include your health. It's gonna include your profession. The Bible says, "... the meek will he teach his way" (Psalm 25:9). A meek person is somebody who is yielded to the Lord.

When you present yourself, the Bible says in Romans 12:1: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Then you will know, He says, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind..." And then He says, "... that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Romans 12:2). You say, "But Pastor, I want to know about it first." O.K., I'll tell you about it.

It is good, perfect, and acceptable. That's all you need to know. It is good, it is perfect, and it is acceptable. It is the will of God.

Let me give you six very practical ways that God will speak to you just as He spoke to Saul. Saul said, "Lord, what will you have me to do?"

Number one, God may speak to you through miracles, through visions, God may speak to you in a dream. God may do to you what He did to the Saul. He may. But He does not normally do that.

Second way that you know the will of God is by the Word of God.

I can tell you about the Apostle Paul, he was Saul beforehand. Even though he did not understand the Scriptures at first, he was steeped in the Scriptures. That's the reason after he met the Lord, he immediately became a preacher of the Word of God. He had an incredible knowledge of the Word of God. And it was the Word of God that had spoken to him even prior to this.

Saul was there when Stephen preached one of the greatest sermons ever preached. And it was that sermon that got Saul convicted. As a matter of fact, Jesus said to Saul on the road to Damascus, "it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks" (Acts 9:5). What He meant was, "It's hard for you to kick against that scriptural, spirit-filled sermon that Stephen preached before he was stoned."

Thank God, most of us have something better than the Apostle Paul had. We have this complete canon of Scripture. I mean, we have the Old Testament and the New Testament and thank God, we can hold it in our hands. And God is going to guide us through Scripture.

Psalm 119:105: "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."  Thank God you can take the Bible and just shine it along as you go. The Bible says, "Be careful, don't step there." You say, "Thank you Lord." The Bible says, "Look at that opportunity." You say, "Thank you Lord." Thy Word, it's a lamp, it's a light, and it just shines as you go.

The Lord will show you how to go and where to go. Thy Word, thy Word, thy Word is a lamp.

Are you serious about knowing the will of God? Don't tell me you are if you're not serious about the Word of God.

And, then a third way that God will guide us. Not only through miracles, and not only through the Word of God, but God will guide us through providence.

Here's Saul, he's just gotten saved; he's not yet the Apostle Paul. Look in verse 23, what happens to him. "And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him: But their laying await was known of Saul. And they watched the gates day and night to kill him. Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket" (Acts 9:23-25).

Here's this once great proud Pharisee, I can see him huddled up in a little wicker basket. And they're lowering him down over the wall. How did he know they were going to kill him? God showed him. What we often think is a happenstance was really God's providence.

As a matter of fact, the Apostle Paul later on in 1 Corinthians 16:9 speaks of how God led him. He said, "For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries."

I've seen God open doors in my life. I am here because God opened a door for me. Had I not been here when Chase spoke back in, I think, April and Rhonda shared that God wanted her to return to this church building to start a Bible study I wouldn’t be here.  God opened a door. I've seen God open doors in small things and big things in my life.

And sometimes a door may seem closed when it's not really closed. It doesn't mean that it's all honey and no bees. The Apostle Paul said, "There's an effectual door open unto me, but there are many adversaries." Many adversaries.

The door to the room of opportunity swings on the hinges of opposition. So, there is what I want to call the providence of God.

Then there's the Spirit of God that leads. Look in verse 17. When Ananias came to this man Saul, we read: "And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.

Thank God that sometimes He speaks through miracles. Sometimes He speaks through His Word. Sometimes He speaks to us by open doors and providences.  But, oh, how He leads by His Spirit.

Romans 8:14, Saul, who received the Holy Spirit had learned something and he wrote this: "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."

Then that same Paul wrote later on in Galatians 5:18: "But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law."  The Holy Spirit is like a gentle dove. He does not shove, He does not shout, He whispers, and He guides.

Number five, He leads us by the people of God. Look in verse 26-27. "And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple."  Notice this. "But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord"—that is, how Saul had seen the Lord—"in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus."

I'm so grateful that there was a man named Barnabas who laid his hand on the shoulders of the Apostle Paul to make a way for him. I've had people, friends, to guide me many times in my life. Proverbs 24:6: "For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety."  But always remember, even though you have human counselors, the Holy Spirit of God is the final counselor.

Next there is the wisdom of God to guide you. Look in verse 20-21. "And straightway he..."—that is Saul—"... preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. But all that heard him were amazed, and said; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests?"

But notice verse 22: "But Saul increased the more in strength and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ."  It was this same Paul later on who wrote in Ephesians 5:15, 16: "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil."

All of these are ways that God will speak to us to know and to do His will. Now, I'm finished but let me say, God's will is for our welfare as well as for His glory. God's will is what you would choose for yourself if you had enough sense to choose it. Don't be afraid of the will of God. The will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you.

You are free to choose the will of God. You are free to choose against the will of God. But you are not free to choose the consequences if you choose against the will of God.

God's will is best. "Lord, what will you have me to do?"     In Jesus’ Name,   Amen!