Sermon Notes; a Daily Devotional

Acts 22:5&6 "5 As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished. 6 And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me." When God calls someone, He gives them a new heart and a new spirit, responsive and able to love and obey Him. We are studying God’s call of Saul of Tarsus. Standing before an angry Jewish mob in Jerusalem, the Apostle Paul defends himself by recounting his former life as a persecutor. He establishes his credentials as a devout Jew: raised and educated in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel, one of the most respected rabbis of his day. Paul explains that the high priest and the entire Sanhedrin can testify to his past zeal. He received official letters from them authorizing him to...

Acts 22:3&4 "3 I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day. 4 And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women." We are studying how God calls His followers. We began with a reluctant Moses at the burning bush, then saw Queen Esther fully surrender and risk everything to save her people. Yesterday Ezekiel showed us God’s radical intervention: giving His people a new heart and a new spirit, responsive, able to love and obey Him. Today we turn to God’s call of Saul of Tarsus. Saul once had a heart of stone, so hard, so determined to crush Jesus’ followers. In these verses, the Apostle Paul stands before an angry Jewish mob in Jerusalem and defends himself by recounting his background and former life as a persecutor. Paul establishe...

Ezekiel 36:26 "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh." Last week we studied Queen Esther, who fully surrendered to God and risked everything to save her people. From her example we learn that God has a mission for each of us. It may not be as dramatic as Esther’s, but it is no less important. Whether raising children, serving the church, or blessing your community, your obedience can make an eternal difference. This week we turn to another dramatic calling. But first, we look at God’s promise in Ezekiel of a radical, divine intervention. The “heart of stone” represents our natural, hardened, rebellious, and spiritually dead condition—resistant to God, insensitive to sin, and unable to obey Him. God promises: •A new heart: A transformed inner being with new desires and affections aligned with Him. •A new spirit: The renewal and empowerment of our hu...

Esther 8:15-17 "15 And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad. 16 The Jews had light, and gladness, and joy, and honour. 17 And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them." Mordecai had urged Queen Esther to approach King Xerxes and plead for the Jews facing annihilation under Haman’s decree. God had placed her in the palace “for such a time as this.” Aware she could be put to death for entering the king’s presence uninvited, Esther declared, “I will go to the king, though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.” She fully surrendered to God and risked everything for her people. What followed was a comple...

Esther 4:15-17 "15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer, 16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish. 17 So Mordecai went his way, and did according to all that Esther had commanded him." Mordecai had urged Queen Esther to approach King Xerxes and intercede for the Jews, who faced annihilation under Haman’s decree. God had positioned her “for such a time as this.” He warned that silence would not thwart God’s deliverance of the Jews, but she and her family would perish. Esther responded by calling for a three-day city-wide fast among the Jews in Susa, no food or drink, day or night. She and her maidens would join them. Then, fully aware of the death penalty for entering the king’s presence uninvited, she declared: “I will go to the king...

Esther 4:14 "For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?" Mordecai urged Queen Esther to approach King Xerxes and plead for the Jewish people, who faced annihilation under Haman’s decree. He reminded her that her rise to queenship was no accident: God had likely placed her in this position precisely for this crisis. Mordecai warned that if she stayed silent, God would still deliver the Jews, affirming divine sovereignty, but she and her family would perish. The verse is a powerful call to courage and responsibility. Though approaching the king unsummoned carried the risk of immediate execution, Mordecai challenged Esther to embrace her divine purpose and act in faith. Context of the Risk: Persian law decreed that anyone entering the king’s inner court ...