AMAZING GRACE

1. Perhaps one of the greatest songs has ever been written is Amazing Grace.

2. While we know the words so well, other matters related to the hymn may not be well known.

3. John Newton, the author of this song, started out as an infidel (unbeliever).

4. Mr. Newton had also been a slave trader. He captured and collected people that he later sold as slaves.

5. Newton did some very bad things, and he believed Amazing Grace sumed up his life story.

6. I once was lost, but now am found; Was blind but now I see.

7. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound! That saved a wretch like me.

LONG BEFORE JOHN NEWTON CAME ALONG WE FIND OTHERS WHO HAD A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE.

One of the passages for our Scripture reading was Lk. 9:52-55.

Jesus sent some messengers into a Samaritan village to make advance preparations for His arrival.

The members of one community didn’t respond too well to the messengers.

James and John saw what had happened (verse 54), and they made an offer:

They said they could call down fire from heaven and burn up the people in the village.

Jesus didn’t allow that to happen.

We can take this account and link it with some material from Acts 8.

Peter and John went to “Samaria” (the same region described in Lk. 9).

The John in Lk. 9 is the same John in Acts 8.

John is now with Peter instead of James, but John has returned to the same region.

Guess what John is now doing: Acts 8:25 says he is preaching the gospel in Samaritan villages.

The man who wrote Amazing Grace saw a monumental change in his life.

He went from a slave trading infidel to a preacher.

John went from wanting to instantly killing some Samaritans to saving their souls.

IN A FEW WEEKS WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A GOSPEL MEETING THAT WILL DEAL WITH ISSUES SUCH AS GOD’S EXISTENCE, CREATION, AND THE CREDIBILITY OF THE BIBLE. TONIGHT I WANT US TO START THINKING ABOUT SOME OF THE MATTERS THAT RELATE TO OUR UPCOMING MEETING.

a) There are several ways for us to prove the truthfulness of Christianity and the existence of God.

b) No speaker can cover all the material in a week.

c) One aspect of the discussion that will not be covered is the uniqueness of Christianity.

2) Christianity is in a class all by itself for several reasons.

3) No other value system, religion or philosophy changes people like God’s word.

4) It is one thing to change a person’s mind.

5) We may say “no” to buying a certain product today but be persuaded to buy that product tomorrow.

6) Christianity doesn’t stop at changing a person’s mind.

7) A few weeks ago we looked at the word heart.

8) Christianity is a system that involves altering the heart (the core of who we are).

9) This alteration of the human heart comes from someone called Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

10) Who was Jesus? He might be called a religious leader.

11) Being a religions leader did not make the Lord unique.

12) Several others have been religious leaders.

13) We have heard of Buddha, Confucius, and Muhammad.

14) If we look at Buddha, Mohammed and Confucius we find that all these men lack something.
None of them claimed to be God; Jesus, however, did make this claim.

15) In addition to making this claim, Jesus demonstrated that it was true.

16) Aside from His performing the miracles described in the gospel, He proved Himself through brevity.

17) Jesus lived a short life—about 12,000 days. His “ministry” lasted about 1,200 days.

18) In the gospels we have about 34 days of the Lord’s early life recorded.

19) Jesus was someone who never wrote a book or commanded an army.

20) He didn’t make lots of money or travel around the world.

21) Jesus did not do the things people do to achieve greatness, but His system is still greater than any other.

22) Christianity is great and I would say of divine origin because it is so different.

a) Have we ever stopped to consider how Christianity is dissimilar from all other religions?

b) Pick a religion and I can practically guarantee that it has man seeking God.

c) A classic example of this is idolatry: man is seeking a God so he makes a statue.

d) What does Christianity say: God seeks man—the roles are reversed.

e) Jn. 3:16; Rev. 3:20 (I stand at the door and knock).

23) In the world, religion focuses on temples, shrines, and cathedrals.

24) Christianity is radically different. Jesus said He would build a “church” (Mt. 16:18).

25) What is the church? Not a building of bricks and mortar.

26) In Mt. 18:17, Jesus said “tell it to the church” (the people).

27) Men build structures; Christ established a special body of people.

28) What happens in the after-life? Most religions say “reincarnation” or man ceases to exist.

29) God promises an everlasting existence either in His presence or in eternal punishment.

30) Another example.

31) Man has devised all kinds of ideas about the home: There are no rules, polygamy, same gender, etc.

32) Christianity says: one man, one woman, in a home, for life.

33) In previous lessons we have noted how many institutions have been built by Bible believing people.

34) It was the people who believed in Christ who have built hospitals and treatment centers.

35) How many times have we heard of a Hindu group building a hospital?

36) How many times have followers of Buddha constructed a treatment center?

CHRISTIANITY HAS CHANGED PEOPLE IN MANY AND UNUSUAL WAYS, AND I MEAN MANY AND UNUSUAL GOOD WAYS.

a) We have already cited two examples of how God’s word changed people, one from the Bible and J. Newton.

b) One of the greatest examples in the history of all the world is found in the Scriptures.

c) There was a man named Saul.

2) If others had described Saul, his life would still prove the case I am setting forth.

3) Saul described himself, and here are some of the things he said:

4) Gal. 1:13-14 has him saying he was “zealous for his father’s traditions.”

5) These traditions, of course, consisted of the Jewish way of life.

6) Paul had received training under a well known Jewish rabbi (Gamaliel), Acts 22:3.

7) While Paul was living as a Jew, Christianity began.

a) Thousands began to leave Judaism and convert to Christianity.

b) Paul was not ignorant about what was happening – listen to Acts 7:58.

c) Paul had some knowledge of Christianity.

d) At this stage in his life, he had his mind made up: Christianity had to be opposed.

8) Knowing Paul’s background helps explain why he believed as he did and acted as he did.

9) As a Jew Saul would have been very familiar with the Ten Commandments.

10) Ex. 20:3 told the Hebrews that they could have “no other God” besides Jehovah.

11) Moses said in Deut. 6:4 that God was “one God.”

12) Jesus claimed to be deity and to possess a oneness with the Father (Jn. 10:30).

13) These kinds of claims would have turned Paul against Christianity in every way.

14) To him it would have sounded as if there were more than one God and Jesus was guilty of blasphemy.

15) In fact, at various times in the Lord’s life this is exactly what Jews thought of Jesus.

a) Paul was also happy with the Jewish faith, and he was committed to it.

b) From Phil. 3:4-6 we have these words – READ.

16) Because Paul was so confident in his religious faith he did something.

17) He got some letters form a religious official, the high priest – Acts 9:2 - READ.

18) Paul was headed to Damascus to persecute Christians, but during the trip something happened.

19) He became interested in Jesus, and within a few days, he became a Christian.

20) Paul was not a man prone to mood swings, instability, or trickery.

a) From Phil. 3 we find that he was one of the best and brightest Jews.

b) As a Jew he had all that that way of life offered. He was well off.

c) What caused him to make such a radical change?

d) Why leave a way of life that offered peace and safety for persecution and death threats?

21) In 1 Cor. 15:7-8 Paul answered these questions – READ.

22) Jesus was not confined to the grave. He arose, and Paul witnessed the resurrection first hand.

23) Paul was one of the bitterest opponents Christianity has ever faced.

24) Yet, he became a Christian.

25) Not only did he become a Christian, he became a preacher.

26) He not only became a preacher, he became an apostle.

27) Not only did he become an apostle, he became an author for some New Testament books.

28) Not only did he become an author of New Testament books, he wrote about half the New Testament.

29) How could this man be changed so drastically?

30) He made a change that is so drastic that it is hard for us to fathom.

31) He altered his course because he learned that Christianity is true.

32) What this man did is a course that has also been taken by many others.

33) People began living their life one way, but Christianity changed people’s way of life.

34) It has changed a slave trader and a person who wanted to scorch an entire village with fire from God.

35) It has changed thieves, drunkards, liars, fornicators, and scores of others.

36) After being converted Paul did not try to convert people based upon a subjective faith.

37) He didn’t say, “Folks, I changed my mind because I wanted to life a different kind of life.”

38) Luke very carefully records some key points about Paul the preacher:

a) Paul “confounded and proved” the Christian message (Acts 9:22).

b) He “reasoned” with people (Acts 17:2).

c) He “explained and demonstrated” (Acts 17:3).

d) Acts 17:17 says he again “reasoned.”

e) He “persuaded and reasoned” (Acts 18:4 and 19:8).

f) Acts 28:23 says he “explained, testified, and persuaded.”

39) A long time ago Paul said the gospel is God’s power to salvation, Rom. 1:16.

40) Salvation and a change of life go together.

41) What the gospel does is proof that it is not a message which has been originated man.

42) Paul’s life is one way to demonstrate that the Bible is true in every respect.

43) Our faith is not based upon fable, myth, or superstition. It is based upon fact.

44) That should motivate us to live as a Christian and take this message to others.

45) This is what Paul did, and this is what we need to be especially think about the next few weeks.