Shabbat Shalom, everyone. I would like you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Acts. In Hebrew, we call it Maasei Shlichim, the Acts of the Holy Spirit of God. We are today going to read in Acts chapter 22 and verse 1 to 21. Let's just read that first. And please just follow me and listen to the reading. "Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense, which I make now unto you." And when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew language to them, they kept the most silence. And he saith, "I am verily a man which am a Jew." "Born in Tarsus, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous towards God, as ye all are this day.

"And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prison both men and women. "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. "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. "And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Shaul, Shaul, why persecutest thou me?" "And I answered, Who art thou, Lord?" "And he said unto me, I am Yeshua of Nazaret, whom thou persecutest." "And they that were with me saw indeed delight, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me.

"And I said, What shall I do, Lord?" "And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus, and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do." "And when I could not see for the glory of the light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus." "And one Hananiah, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelled there, came unto me and stood and said unto me, Brother Shaul, receive thy sight." "And the same hour I looked up upon him, and he said, The God of our Father hath chosen thee, that thou shouldst know his will, and see that just one, and shouldst hear the voice of his mouth; for thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard." "And now why tarriest thou?

Arise and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." "And it came to pass, that when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance, and saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem, for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me." "And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned, and bit in every synagogue them that believed on thee." "And when the blood of the martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him." "And he said unto me, Depart, for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles." "And I'm stopping here, in verse 21, because immediately following these remarks of the Apostle Paul of Shaul, we have the response from the Jewish people in the temple at the time when the Apostle Paul was preaching there." "Now, let me just make a few remarks, beloved brothers and sisters, for those of you that have not been with us in our previous meetings together.

And we have been reading the book of Acts, the Acts of the Holy Spirit, in Hebrew we call it Maasei Shlichim, the Acts of the Apostles." "We arrive to a portion of Scripture, chapter 21 and 22, in which the Apostle Paul finalized his third missionary journey." "You remember the Apostle Paul was called by the glorified Messiah to preach the message of the Gospel to the Gentile world." "In fact, actually, if we read in chapter 9 and verse 15, the Apostle Paul was chosen a vessel to bear the name of Yeshua the Messiah before Gentiles, before kings, and also before the children of Israel." "And wherever the Apostle Paul preached the message of the gospel, in

those three missionary journeys, he always, first of all, gone to the Jew first." "You can see that in every passage, every time that you read in those chapters of the book of Acts." "In fact, in Romans chapter 1 and verse 16, the Apostle Paul gave us a principle upon which we learn that in the preaching of the gospel, he always make it right before God in sharing the message with his Jewish brethren, the Jewish people." "You remember he said in Romans 1:16, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of the Messiah, for it is the power of God unto salvation, to everyone that believe, to the Jew first, and also unto the Gentiles." "Now, that

was his practice.

Everywhere he had gone, he had gone to the Jewish brethren first, in the synagogue, and then he preached to the Gentiles." "Now, when he concluded his third missionary journey, he actually arrived to the city of Jerusalem." "Assuming that when he is going to share the message with his brethren in the city of Jerusalem, he will win them to the Messiah Yeshua." "They will win them to become part of the church of the assembly, at least many of them will come to acknowledge that Yeshua, that Jesus is truly their Lord and Messiah." "So, we find out in chapter 21, Paul was warned by some not to go to Jerusalem." "Some have warned him, Paul, Shaul, don't

go to Jerusalem." "And if you notice in chapter 21 in verse 4, finding disciples there in Tyre, and listen, the disciples said to him, "Paul, through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem." "Some have said to him, Paul don't go to Jerusalem, because they have sensed that there will be a persecution of the apostle in the city of Jerusalem." "And in chapter 21 in verse 10, there was another man by the name of Agabus, who was a prophet." "He said in verse 11, when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, he bound his own hand and feet, and he said, the Holy Spirit said this way, "So shall the Jews

in Jerusalem bind the man that owns this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles." "But Paul, for one reason or another, loved his brethren, the Jewish people, and he wanted to go to Jerusalem." "First of all, to bring the gifts that he had for them, for the Jewish believers, but also to share the message of the Gospel." "So notice what he said in chapter 21 in verse 13." "What mean ye to weep and to break my heart?" "For I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah." "So he was ready to give his life over for the

name of Yeshua in the city of Jerusalem." "That's why, brethren, sometimes believers kind of feel there are two ways of looking at it." "Some says Paul was wrong in going to Jerusalem." "Other says, no, Paul was right in going to Jerusalem." "Because that, in a sense, concluded his third missionary journey by being captured in Jerusalem." "And so, whichever way one leaned to, we know that the Apostle Paul was a man of God who wanted to please our Lord Yeshua the Messiah." "So he had gotten to Jerusalem, have gone into the temple." "He had the vow of the Nazarite with other four individuals." "And then he was captured by the Jewish people who were in the

temple." "Specially those Jewish people who came from Asia Minor." "They heard about this man by the name of Paul." "And they captured him as we read here in chapter 21 verses 28 to verse 30." "And the last thing to mention about chapter 21, it was the Roman captain who really delivered him from the hand of his own Jewish brethren who wanted to actually kill him." "He delivered him and brought him into what we know today as the Antonia Fortress, which I actually just came from there." "I've just been in the Antonia Fortress area, in the Temple Mount in Israel, right by the Wailing Wall." "And Paul, Shaul, was captured by his brethren, ultimately delivered by

the Roman chief captain." "And brought into the Antonia Fortress, which was overlooking the Temple Mount by the Romans who were in charge at that time." "So he was brought in, and now, beloved brothers and sisters, we are coming into our chapter itself." "Chapter 22, where we have the Apostle Paul's testimony to his Jewish brethren in the city of Jerusalem." "This verses 1 to 21 is the testimony of the Apostle Paul to his brethren." "We have a few points that I want to mention here in these verses." "The first thing that we want to point out today is in verses 1 to 5, the Apostle introduced himself to the multitude." "Notice that, first of all, he

began to speak in the Hebrew language." "And this is very interesting because he wanted the attention of the people." "And he did not speak to them in Greek." "He did not speak with them in Aramaic even." "Because it's very clear from these verses that he spoke with them in the Hebrew tongue." "Let me read verses 1 and 2." "He began, he says, 'Men and brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense, which I make now unto you.' "And when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew language to them, they kept the most silence." "He began to say, in Hebrew we say, Achim, brethren, fathers, avot." "He was speaking the same way that Stephen was speaking

when he was facing, in chapter 7, the leadership of Israel." "He also called them brethren and fathers." "This is a Hebrew expression which we who are Jewish often speak in such a way to each other." "They are the brethren because of our affiliation as a nation." "They are the fathers because of the one that led the nations over the years." "So he was speaking to them and he began to speak to them in Hebrew." "Be'ivrit we say it." "And they heard him and they quiet themselves down when they were beginning to listen to what he had to say." "And just imagine, multitude in the temple seeking to run against him and to kill him." "He

was delivered by the chief captain of the Roman legion there." "And now he asked him to be able to speak to the multitude." "Paul wanted to share with his brethren how he became a believer in Yeshua, the Messiah." "So now notice what he does and it's very interesting." "In the third verse the Apostle Paul points to his background." "And that is very important in our testimony to share with others about who we are." "Where we came from." "What happened to us as we became believers in our Lord Jesus the Messiah." "And he pointing out to them his background by saying a few things to his brethren." "Number one in verse three." "I am verily a

man which am a Jew." "Notice, he doesn't say I was a Jew." "But he says I am a Jew." "Now remember, Paul was already for many years a believer." "A Christian, a Messiah follower." "But he never for a moment said I used to be a Jew." "He saying I am a man which am," present tense, "a Jewish man." "In Romans 11 he says I am an Israeli." "In Philippians chapter 3 he say I am from the tribe, I'm a Benjaminite." "I'm a Hebrew of the Hebrews." "He never said I was a Hebrew." "He never said I was a Jew." "He never said I was an Israeli." "He was at all times a Hebrew, an Israeli,

and a Jewish man." "But a believer in our Lord Jesus the Messiah." "So the first thing he says to them, I am a Jewish man." "Secondly, he's saying to them that he came from a city that is called Tarsus." "Tarsus is present day Turkey." "He says I am a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia." "In other words he was born in the diaspora, in the dispersion." "He was a Jewish man who was born outside of the land of Israel." "Today when the Jewish people who were born in Israel, they are called Tzabarim or Sabra." "These are born Israeli Jewish people." "But he was born in the diaspora, in the

dispersion." "There are Jewish people born in Canada, in the United States, in Europe, all over the world." "They are born outside of the land, but they are part of the Jewish community in that foreign land." "So he was born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia." "He is telling them, this is a testimony." "Look, I'm a man who is a Jew, but I was born in the diaspora." "Thirdly, in verse 3, he is telling them, even though I was born in the diaspora," "He says to them that I," as it says here in verse 3c, "I was brought up in this city at the feet of Gamliel." "Now, this city is the very city where he

was preaching, where the temple was, the city of Yerushalayim." "In other words, that even though he was born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, present-day Turkey," "he was growing up and taught in the city of Jerusalem." "The center of Israel, where all the schooling concerning the things of God were being taught." "In the temple and perhaps outside of the temple area." "But the point here, that even though he was a Jew of the diaspora," "he was, as it's mentioned here, brought up in this city." "And this city is the city of Jerusalem." "Fourthly, in this verse, he is pointing out to the fact that he was taught by Rabban Gamliel." "Notice, I was taught at

the feet of Rabban Gamliel." "The word rabbi is for a rabbi, but a high rabbi called Rabban in Hebrew." "We don't have the word Rabban here, but we call him today Gamliel." "Gamliel was a very important rabbi for the people of Israel." "And he was sitting at his feet and learning from Rabban Gamliel." "This Rabban Gamliel, we hear of him already earlier when Peter was persecuted." "If you turn for a moment to Acts 5, just for a second." "In Acts chapter 5 and verse 34, Rabban Gamliel's name is mentioned there as well." "It says here in verse 34," "Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee by the name of Gamliel." "A doctor

of the law." "And he had a reputation among all the people." "And he commanded to put the apostles forth a little space." "You remember when the apostles were captured by the Sanhedrin." "And they ultimately wanted to judge them, to condemn them." "But Rabban Gamliel apparently was a Pharisee." "And he was a doctor of the law." "And he was a teacher among our people Israel of old." "There were very much respected men among the people of Israel." "And Gamliel was the one who held the persecution of the apostles." "Already in the earlier part of the book of Acts." "The name Gamliel is a very interesting name." "The name simply means 'my recompense is of God.'" "Gamliel

means 'my recompense is of God.'" "Apparently he was a respected man among the Jewish people in the city of Jerusalem." "And then finally notice that in the same verse, verse 3." "And I'm back to chapter 22 and verse 3." "The apostle Paul pointed out that he was taught exactly in the perfect law." "That Israel, the Jewish people were taught by the leaders of Israel." "Because he said in verse 3." "I was taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers." "So Paul, Shaul wanted to show his Jewish brethren before he tell them about his faith in the Messiah." "He was born though a Jew of the diaspora." "He was taught in the

city of Jerusalem." "He was taught by Rabban Gamliel." "He was taught according to the perfect manner of the law of our fathers." "He wanted them to know who he was and what he had in the past history of his life." "He also told them finally in verse 3 that he was zealous towards God as they were zealous." "You see, when Paul came into the temple in Jerusalem, he came and they knew that he was a believer in Yeshua the Messiah." "They assumed that he was teaching against the law, against the temple, against the God of Israel, against the commandments of God, against Moses." "So they wanted to capture him and actually to kill him because

he violated, as far as they were concerned, that which God had given to Israel." "And Paul is saying to them, listen, I had the same kind of zealousness towards the God of our fathers, just like you have today." "I was just like you because I myself was zealous towards God as you are today." "Zealous towards the God of Israel and you want to capture me and to kill me." "So in verse 3, beloved brothers and sisters, Paul pointed to his background and to what he had done before he became a believer in Yeshua the Messiah." "And now notice that in verse 4, the Apostle Paul is saying to them also how he had persecuted the

assembly, the church." "And notice it says here, I persecuted this way." "Listen to this verse 4, I think this thing haunted him all his life." "Because he always felt guilt in the fact that before he became a believer in Yeshua, he was persecuting his Jewish brethren who believe in that way." "It haunted him." "And he's telling these Jewish brethren of his in the temple in Jerusalem." "He said, I persecuted this way unto the death." "I bound them." "I delivered them into prisons, both men and women." "He's looking back at his history." "You remember that before he became a believer, you know, he was persecuting his Jewish brethren." "But when we say that he persecuted Christians,

I want us to understand the Christians that he persecuted were not Gentile believers, but Jewish believers." "Because he didn't care whether Gentile believers believed in Jesus the Messiah at that time." "The importance for him was to persecute the Jewish people who came to faith in Yeshua the Messiah." "That's why he took letters from the high priest to go to the synagogue in Damascus in order to bring Jewish believers in Jesus and to imprison them and ultimately to cause them much harm." "I want you to turn with me for a moment to 1 Timothy chapter 1." "Paul said about himself when he spoke to younger Timothy." "He spoke about himself." "He was speaking concerning the glorious

gospel that he was preaching." "He says in verse 11, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed unto my trust." "And then he says, I am thankful to Christ Jesus, to Messiah Yeshua our Lord who has enabled me for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry." "Listen brothers and sisters in verse 13, who was before a blasphemer." "And I persecuted and injurious, but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly and in unbelief." "See, Paul writes to Timothy and says, listen, God entrusted unto me this glorious message of the gospel." "And who am I?" "I am one that was a blasphemer." "I am one that persecuted the believers."

"Before I became a believer in Yeshua." "And it must have hurt him all his life." "When he remembered of what he had done to his Jewish brethren who became believers in Yeshua the Messiah." "And that's why brothers and sisters in verse 4, the apostle Paul was repeating this when he was standing there in that Antonia fortress on the step there and speaking in the Hebrew language to his Jewish brethren who were in the court of the temple of the city of Jerusalem.

"And so now in verse 5 as he continued to introduce himself to the multitude he says in verse 5, as also the high priest does bear me witness and all the estate of the elders from whom I also received letters unto the brethren and I went to Damascus to bring them which were there bound to Jerusalem for to be punished." "For he's telling can you imagine he's standing before multitude of his Hebrew brethren confessing the fact that he himself was the one that persecuted the ones that believed in this way." "You notice the expression here in verse 4 it's called this way." "In first century you know the word this way was really the name of those who follow this way." "Yeshua said I am their way the truth and the life." "The word Christianity or Christians was not as much known among the Jewish people it was known as this way, the way to follow Yeshua the Messiah." "And so in verses 1 to 5 he is introducing himself before the multitude in the city of Jerusalem in the temple area when he was there being caught and delivered by the temple.

and delivered by the chief captain of the Roman army." "So now we are moving on to the second section of this chapter." "In verses 6 to 16 the Apostle Paul testify of his salvation experience on the Damascus road." "You know it is very important for us as believers to share with others how we became believers in Yeshua the Messiah." "We might not remember theology every passage in the Bible. We might not remember every verse in scripture. But one thing we have that no one can take away from us and this is our personal experience. We can always tell others how we became believers and what happened to us when we have turned by faith and became believers in this rejected Messiah.

We don't need to be scholars. We don't need to be theologians. We don't need to know every verse. We should know verses from the Bible but we don't need this in order to share our testimony with others. We can simply recollect the experience of how we became believers. Some of us got saved through our parents. Some of us got saved from a friend at school or at work. Other of us have accepted the Messiah because we have gone through emotional experience or something happened in our lives that caused us to turn to the Lord Jesus the Messiah. To Shaul Paul it happened the same thing.

We call it the Damascus experience. The Damascus experience it is experiential something that happened to him in his life that brought him to his knees to become a believer in Yeshua the Messiah. We don't read him reading a text in Romans chapter 5 or Romans chapter 3 or the prophet Jeremiah as we have read earlier. He had the Damascus road experience. Something happened to Shaul in his life that brought him to believe that Yeshua was the Messiah. And I want to point out here that this section is really divided into two points. First verses 6 to 11 Paul tells what happened to him on the way to Damascus. And then from verse 12 to 16 Paul tells what happened to him in the city of Damascus.

And let us look at this for a few minutes together. First of all notice in verse 6 it says that Paul as he was speaking in Hebrew he said. And it came to pass that as I made my journey and I was come nigh unto Damascus about noon. Suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me. Paul began. He says listen I was going to Damascus. And we know very well why he was going to Damascus because there were Jewish believers in Damascus. He took letters from the leaders of Israel in order to go to captured those Jewish believers in the city of Damascus.

And as he was traveling he was getting closer and closer to Damascus. Suddenly about noon time there shone from heaven a great light round about me. That great light often time in scripture speak to us about the Shekinah glory the Shechina we call it in Hebrew. We find the Shechina the glory of God manifest many times in biblical accounting. For example when Yeshua was born there was a star that was moving from one place to the other. Until it shone right above the babe or the child that was born in the city of Bethlehem. We find the Shekinah glory many times mentioned in scripture. When the temple was built the Shekinah glory rested upon the temple.

When Israel were walking from Egypt to the promised land to Canaan it was the Lord's manifesting himself in the cloud by day and with a fire by night. This is the Shekinah the presence of God that going along and leading the people of Israel as they were moving into the promised land. Well here we find the great light that was round about Shaul as he was on the way to the city of Damascus. I want to point here something that I thought is very interesting. Because we have three times in the book of Acts the apostle sharing with men of the Holy Spirit sharing with us Paul conversion how he became a believer in a Messiah.

We have his actual experience in chapter 9 of Acts. We have his sharing this with his Jewish brethren in Acts chapter 22 where we are today. And we have it mentioned again in Acts chapter 26 as he was defending himself before King Agrippa. But there is a growth, there is a process in which we see how Shaul, Paul, sees that light. Go back for a moment to chapter 9 and verse 3 we see the actual experience of Paul. And we read in verse 3 as he journeyed he came near Damascus and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven. Now back to chapter 22 and verse 6. And it came to pass that as I made my journey.

And I was come nigh unto Damascus about noon. Suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me. Now turn to chapter 26 and then read with me verse 13. It says and at midday O king I saw in the way a light from heaven above the brightness of the sun. Now when I was reading this I remember from years ago when we were studying this passage. How the apostle seemed to add something to this light every time. In other words in chapter 9 it was light. In chapter 22 it was a great light. In chapter 26 it was a light from heaven above the brightness of the sun.

Now do you think that Pastor Paul does not know what he have experienced? But what I would like to suggest that his appreciation of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah grew as he was sharing with others what he really experienced when he became a believer in our Lord Jesus the Messiah. In other words he appreciated the person and the work of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah. And I wish this in my life and I wish this in your life that as we walk with the Lord that our spiritual growth will be in such a way that we will appreciate what the Lord is and what he has done for us as we walk with him here in this world.

It was a light that is brighter than the sun at noonday. This is amazing. Beloved brothers and sisters how precious to see what the Apostle Paul have appreciated what the Lord have done for him. So I am back in chapter 22. Verse 6. He journeyed on the way to Damascus and he saw that light. He called that great light round about me. The Shekinah. The Shekinah. Glory. Then in verse 7. What happened to him when he saw that great light? He fell under the ground. And he heard a voice saying unto him. Shaul. Shaul. Why persecute us down me? See here he is recalling the Lord speaking to him and call him Shaul.

Shaul. Twice he is calling Shaul Shaul. And he says why do you persecute me? Now Paul did not persecute the Lord. The Lord was in heaven. He was at the right hand of the Father. But he persecuted the believers. And by persecuting the believers. The body of Christ. The body of Messiah. You are actually persecuting the Lord himself. And the Lord called him from heaven. And he said Shaul. Shaul. Why do you persecute me? He heard the voice of Yeshua from heaven. And so as he was falling to the ground from seeing such a light. He heard this wonderful voice of the Lord mentioning this to him in verse 7.

Why do you persecute me? And brothers and sisters. Whenever a believer is being persecuted by the world. By Satan. By the enemies of God. Really that person have to answer to the Lord Jesus. To Yeshua the Messiah. Who is sitting at God's right hand. A persecution of the people of God. Is a persecution of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah himself. As he mentioned it here in verse 7. And so what Shaul is saying in verse 8. He responded to this voice of the Lord. And he said who art thou Lord? And he said unto him I am Yeshua of Natseret. Whom thou art persecuting. He responded to the glorified Messiah.

And he said to him who art thou Lord? Notice he calling him Lord here. In a sense we can see here. That he recognized the lordship of the Lord Jesus. That he is adorned. That he is Lord. That he is master. That he is his servant. He recognized. And he says who art thou Lord? Even though he is saying who art thou. But he calling him Lord. Recognizing uniqueness in that person. And look what the Lord Jesus answered him. He said to him I am Yeshua of Natseret. Whom you persecuting. Now here we see the humanity of the Lord Jesus. He is called Jesus Yeshua from the city of Natseret.

Actually I have been in Natseret just three days ago. One of the last things we have done before we came to Canada. It was the city of Natseret. And we sat down in the center of the city of Natseret. Where Yeshua the man was living and serving and ministering in the city of Natseret. And we can just imagine how he lived in that city. A city that was foreign. In a sense it was oblivious city in the north of Israel. Unimportant city of Natseret. The important people came from Judea. The important people came from the city of Jerusalem. But he says I am from Natseret.

I am from the city of Nazareth. You can see he is speaking about his humanity. And his humility. When he lived here on earth. The rejected one. The despised one. We call him Yeshua HaNatseret. The one that was rejected and despised by men. He is now seated at the right hand of God the Father. But he came once in humility. He was despised and rejected of men. And Shaul here was really persecuting him. By persecuting his own people. So he is rehearsing before his Jewish brethren. The fact that he responded to the Lord. Who told him I am Jesus. I am Yeshua from the city of Natseret.

And you by persecuting the believers. The believers actually persecute me. And so in verses 9. Paul companion responds. It says here in verse 9. And they that were with me saw indeed a light. And they were afraid. But they heard not a voice. Of him that spake with me. So those that have been with him. Who traveled with him. They saw the light. They have been very much afraid. But they didn't hear what the Lord was telling Shaul. And so finally in verse 10 and 11. Paul's words to Yeshua. And Yeshua's answer to him. He says what shall I do Lord. He said in verse 10. And the Lord said unto him arise.

Go to Damascus. And there it shall be told thee. All things which are appointed for thee to do. You see he asked him. What do you want me to do? I guess when the Lord spoke with him on the way to Damascus. And he challenged him. Why do you persecute me? And he said well Lord what should I do now? And the Lord Jesus. The glorified Messiah. Had given him instruction. He said to him. You get up. You go to Damascus. There in the city of Damascus. You will be told what you are going to do. And then we find out what happened to Paul.

To Shaul. Because when he got up. He discovered that he became blind. He couldn't see. So he needed somebody to lead him by the hand. All the way to the city of Damascus. When he could not see for the glory of the light. Being led by the hand of them that were with him. He came. And he arrived to the city of Damascus. He finally arrived to Damascus. But he needed to be led by men. You know the brightness of the light. That shone around him. Have literally blinded him. And made him incapable to walk. And he needed the help of others. To take him by the hand.

And to move him into the city of Damascus. I found it kind of interesting. That we never read of the others. That they became blind. But we read that he became blind. And yet we see that they saw the light. In verse 9. Those that were him saw the very same light that he saw. And yet they did not become blind. And he became blind. Well there was a message for him. From the glorified Messiah. The Lord in a sense. Stroke him. To show him. That he is in total dependence upon him. That he cannot do anything. Against the Lord. And against the Lord's people. Should the Lord want to stop him from doing it.

But yet in grace. He allowed him to be led by the very people who saw that light. To be brought to the city of Damascus. Because there. Yeshua had a message for Shaul. In order for him to be a servant. Of the Messiah. And so here in verses 6 to 11. We find Paul. Sharing. With his Jewish brethren. In the temple in Jerusalem. What happened to him. As he was journeying. From Jerusalem. To the city. Of Damascus. Now brothers and sisters. Listen to the next verses. Verses 12 to 16. Now he is telling them. His experience. In the city. Of Damascus. A few points here. First of all. We hear about a man.

By the name of Ananias. In Hebrew. We call him. Chanania. Come from the word grace. Chanan. Mercy. Grace. We find this. Man. Himself living. In Damascus. One. By the name of. Chanania. A devout man. According to the law. Having a good report. Of all the Jews. Jews. Which dwell. In this. City of Damascus. Apparently. This man. By the name of. Chanania. A believer. In the Lord. Yeshua. The Messiah. He apparently. Had a good report. Among all the Jewish community. Both believers. And unbelievers. They looked at this man. By the name of. Chanania. He had a good testimony. He had a good report. He had a good testimony.

Among all the Jewish community. Even though. He was a believer. In Yeshua. The Messiah. He had some respect. Some. Acknowledgement. By the Jewish community. Then we find out. In verse 13. That he is the one. Who was used. To give. The sight. To Shaul. Because it says. In verse 13. He came unto me. And he stood. And he said. Unto me. Brother. Shaul. Receive thy sight. And the same. Hour. I looked up. Upon. Him. Now notice. He called him Shaul. He doesn't call him Paul. You know. Sometimes people say. You know. When he was. A Jew. He was Shaul. When he became a believer. He became Paul.

That is not correct. He was always. Shaul. Before. He became a believer. And after. He became. A believer. His. Jewish. Hebrew name. Was Shaul. His. Diaspora. Name. Was Paul. This is something. That is still. Practiced today. By the Jewish community. A Jewish person. Who live. In the diaspora. Live outside. Of the land. Has two names. His Hebraic name. To communicate. With his Jewish brethren. And his. Non-Hebraic name. A Gentile name. In which he uses. In his. Work. Or school. Wherever he is. Among. The non-Jewish community. Apparently. He already became. A believer. He called him. Brother Shaul. Receive thy sight. And at that moment. Shaul. Paul.

Receive his sight. And he could look. At this man. And he could see. This man. The name of Hananiah. Looking upon him. Seeing. This man. That was used. By the Lord. Yeshua. To give him. The sight. And now. Notice. What the message. That Hananiah. Gave him. From the glorified. Messiah. Look at the thing. That Hananiah. Saying. To Shaul. He said to him. Now. Verses 14. And 15. He said. The God. Of our fathers. Has chosen thee. That thou. Should know. His will. And that you will see. That just one. And that you should hear. The voice. Of his mouth. And that thou. Shall be. His witness. Unto all men.

And what. Thou. Has seen. And. Have. Heard. The Lord. Gave the apostle Paul. Or the Lord. Gave Shaul. Four things. That he. Pointing out. About. The call. Of the apostle Paul. Do you remember. When we read. Earlier. In the prophet Jeremiah. When Jeremiah. Yirmiyahu. Was called. For ministry. He was called. For ministry. Long. Before he was born. God. Already. Have. Purposed. That Jeremiah. Will be a servant. Of the Lord. God. Have. Already. A purpose. In a heart. Of the mother. Of Moses. Jesus. That even. Before. He was born. The child. Was called. To be a servant. To the God. Of Israel. The same thing. With Shaul.

Paul. Even. Before. He was born. He was. Chosen. By the Lord. To be a servant. In the body. Of Messiah. That word. For chosen. It's really. The word. For election. To be part. Of the people. Of God. To be part. Of the people. Of God. To choose us. Before. The world. Began. And he had. Brought us. In time. To be part. Of the people. Of God. Of the people. Of God. Can you imagine. The grace. Of God. To choose us. Before. The world. Began. And he had. Brought us. In time. To be part. Of the people. Of God. Same thing. With the apostle Paul. He was.

Chosen. By the God. Of our fathers. In order for him. To do. Four things. Number one. To know. God's will. Notice. Verse 14. That you should know. The will of God. God had chosen. Shaul. Paul. That he will know. The will of God. The amount of knowledge. That God had given. To Shaul. To Paul. That he had given to us. In the word of God. To know. The will of God. Paul was chosen. By the Lord. For this purpose. Number two. Shaul was chosen. To see. That just. One. You know. We believe. That the Lord Jesus. Is the Messiah. We read of him. In the Bible.

The spirit of God. Have revealed. The truth. Concerning the Lord Jesus. But. Who of us can say. I've seen the Lord. But Paul can say that. That's why. Do you remember. Earlier. In other passages. He reflect. Upon. The fact. That he was taken. To paradise. To the third heaven. And in chapter nine. He have actually. See the glory. Of the Lord. Shining right about him. Not everyone. Has seen. The glorified Messiah. But apostle. But Shaul. Could say. That he had been chosen. To see. That. Just. One. Thirdly. Notice that. In the same verse 14. That you should also. Hear the voice. From his mouth. Again. He's reflecting.

Of the experience. That he had. On the way. To Damascus. Who can say. The heavens were open. And I heard. The voice of God. Now. We can say. That we heal. His voice. Through the scripture. But. Apostle Paul. Literally. Have heard. The voice. Of that just one. The Lord. Yeshua. The Messiah. On the way. To Damascus. And in other. Experiences. That he had. In his life. He was a unique. Chosen vessel. By. The Lord. Jesus. The Messiah. And lastly. What. Tananiah. Is pointing out. In verse 15. That the Lord. Have chosen. Paul. To be a witness. Notice verse 15. That you shall be a witness. Unto all men.

And what you have seen. And what you have heard. So the apostle. Was chosen. To be a witness. Unto all men. No wonder. Why he was willing. To lay down his life. No wonder. Why he was willing. To be sold out. Totally. For the Lord. Because he had. Received this. Special. Unique things. That he. Should. See. The Lord. Know his will. Hear his voice. And to be a witness. Unto all men. He was an elect. He was an elect vessel. A unique. Elect. Vessel. He was an apostle. That was chosen. Not by the will of man. But he was chosen. By the glorified. Messiah. And by the way.

Beloved brothers and sisters. In his lifetime. On earth. He have never seen. Yeshua the Messiah. Before he died. He never seen him. The early apostles did. Peter has. Handled him. John. Have handled him. And spoke with him. James. And Jude. And the others. Have seen him. And walked with him. And sat with him. And eaten with him. Studied with him. But not Shaul. Shaul have never seen. The Messiah. In his life. Here on earth. But what made him. Qualified. To be an apostle. Because he saw. The resurrected Messiah. And that's. How we have here. In these verses. 14 and 15. That he was chosen. By God. To be a vessel.

That will know. God's will. That will see. The just one. That will hear. The voice of the Messiah. From heaven. And that he will be. A witness. To all men. Of the person. And the work. Of Yeshua. The Messiah. And so here. In verse 16. Look what Ananias. Is telling Shaul. He's giving him instruction. And he says. Don't tarry now. Get up. Rise. And be baptized. And wash. Away. Your sins. Calling on the name. Of the Lord. You know. That there are people. Who believe. That baptism. Is that. Which wash. Away. Our sins. And that's why. They use this. Verse 16. To say. That when you get.

Baptized. Only then. This is water baptism. Only then. Your sins. Can be washed away. But. We have to be careful. That the Bible. Does not teach us. That. Water baptism. Wash. Away. Sins. But. Water baptism. Is. Identification. With. The rejected. Messiah. Yeshua. What shall. Wash away. My sins. Nothing. But the blood. Of Yeshua. The thief. On the cross. Never had an opportunity. To go. To be baptized. By water. But his sins. Were washed away. Because he trusted. In the. Upcoming. Finnish work. Of our Lord. Jesus. The Messiah. But I want to mention. That for a Jewish person. In first century. To identify. With the rejected.

Messiah. It was such. An important thing. Because he is now. By getting. Water baptized. He identified. With the Messiah. In his rejection. And he avoided. The year 70. Judgment. That was going. To come. Upon the people. Of Israel. When the Romans. Came. And destroyed. The temple. In Jerusalem. And burned. The whole city. It was really. A deliverance. From the coming. Judgment. That was going. To come. Upon the people. Of Israel. Well. Let's conclude. Here. With the last verses. Here. Verses 17. To 21. And this is. The final point. In Paul testimony. To his Jewish brethren. In verses 17. To 21. Paul share. About a vision. That he received. After he became.

A believer. In the Lord. In the Lord. Jesus. The Messiah. He is sharing. With them. Something. That we never. Read about. Before. But he shared. With them. Right now. And that is interesting. Because it says. In verse 17. He point. To them. That he. Received. A vision. After he. Became. A believer. It says here. It came. To pass. When I. Was come. Again. To Jerusalem. Even while. I prayed. In the temple. I was. In a trance. Apparently. He became. A believer. In Jesus. On the way. To Damascus. He served. In Damascus. For a little. While. And then. You remember. He came back. We read. About him.

In chapter 9. And verses. 29. And 30. He came. To the city. Of Jerusalem. And then. He was. Recognized. There. It says. That. Barnabas. Took him. And he. Brought him. To the apostles. In Jerusalem. And he declared. To them. How. He became. A believer. And when he. Came. To Jerusalem. We don't read it. In act. Chapter 9. But apparently. Here. He gives us. Information. That he received. An additional. Revelation. From Yeshua. The Messiah. What was the revelation. Now. In verse 18. It says. That he was. Praying. In the temple. He was. In a trance. And look. And I saw him. Saying unto me. He's speaking about. Yeshua. He saw again.

Notice that. He said. I saw Yeshua. And he said unto me. Make haste. Get thee. Quickly. For they will not receive. Thy testimony. Concerning me. Apparently. When Paul. Arrived back. To Jerusalem. The glorified. Messiah. Have revealed. Himself. To Shaul. Paul. And he told him. Shaul. Paul. Leave Jerusalem. Why? Because. They will not. Receive. Your testimony. About me. Shaul. Your Jewish brethren. Will not receive. The testimony. He wanted so much. To talk to his brethren. He loved. His Jewish brethren. He cared for them. He wanted to tell them. What happened to him. How his life. Was changed. And how he became saved. And how that Yeshua.

Is truly the Messiah. But. The Lord knew. That he will not. Be received. By the Jewish brethren. In the beginning. And that's why. The Lord. Called him. To be an apostle. To the Gentile world. The apostle Paul. Is called. The apostle. To the uncircumcision. While Peter. Is called. An apostle. To the circumcision. So the Lord. Gave him. That additional vision. And he told him. Get thee out. Quickly. From the city. They will not. Receive. Thy testimony. Concerning. Me. And look. What the answer. Of Paul. Verse 19 and 20. Paul answered. And he said. To Yeshua. He says. Lord. They know. That I imprisoned. And beat. In every synagogue.

Them that believe on you. He was speaking. To the Lord. He said. Lord. You know. They know me. They know my past history. They know. How I behaved. Before. I have trusted. That you were the Messiah. And you know. He always. Again. I want to say. These brothers and sisters. It always hurt his heart. Because he knew. How he behaved. Towards his own brethren. And how he hurt them. How he persecuted them. How he brought them into prison. And some. He even killed. They were even killed. Because of their faith. In the Messiah. In the Messiah. And it grieved him. It grieved him. It grieved him so much.

That he wanted now. To tell the brethren. I was behaving like this. Look what happened to me. But the Lord had to tell him. Listen. They will not receive your testimony. Time. Was not then. Notice in verse 20. The apostle adding in. He says. And when the blood of the martyr Stephen. You know. He's going back. To act chapter 7. When the first. Jewish. Jewish believer. In Yeshua. The Messiah. Became a martyr. His name was Stephen. He was a Jew. Of the diaspora. Who became a believer. In Yeshua. He. Shed. His blood. He died. For the name of Yeshua. He was stoned. And Shaul says. Listen. When he was stoned.

I also. Was standing by. And I was consenting. Unto his death. His death. In other words. Paul. Shaul is saying. You know. When they were throwing stones. At Stephen. I was standing by. I was watching it. I saw it. And not only this. I was consenting. Unto his death. I was in agreement. With this. So they should accept the message. That I tell them. Shaul. The Jew. The Hebrew. The Israeli. God. They know that. And then he said. I even kept. The raiment. Of them. That killed him. Do you remember. In Acts chapter 7. The last verses. Chapter 7. Verse 58. 59. And 60. They left. Their garments. Those who actually.

Were stoning Stephen. Before. A man. By the name. Of Shaul. I'll read it. Acts chapter 7. Verse. 58. It said. And. They cast him out. Quickly. Of the city. And they stoned him. This is Stephen. And the witnesses. Laid down. Their clothes. At a young man's feet. Whose name. Was. Shaul. In chapter 7. They say. That they laid down. Their clothes. By Shaul. But here. Shaul. Tell us. Not only. That they laid down. Their clothes. But I actually. Kept. For them. Yes. I participated. In the death. Of Stephen. And he was so. Grieved. In his heart. That he wanted. To share. The same message. With his brethren. That they.

Will become. Believers. In our Lord. Yeshua. The Messiah. Because he. Behaved. Like. They behave. Now. But he. Got saved. He became. A believer. In Yeshua. Longed. That they. Will believe. As well. And the Lord. Had to tell him. Paul. Shaul. Go quickly. Make haste. Go quickly. Out of Jerusalem. They will not receive. Your testimony. Concerning me. And so. The conclusion. Of this. Portion. In chapter. 22. It's found. In verse 21. Where. Yeshua. Answer. And Yeshua. Commend. To Shaul. Yeshua. Said unto me. Depart. For. I. Will send you. Far. Away. Unto. The Gentiles. The Goyim. Shaul. Leave. Jerusalem. I will send you. To be a testimony. To me.

And to the Gentile world. You. Are going to be used. As a vessel. To the Gentile world. I know your love. For your people. Israel. I love them. As well. But. You. Are called. To be a message. To the Gentile world. And dear. Brothers and sisters. Most of us. Are not Jewish. Some of us. Are Jewish. Here together. Today. Most of us. Have benefited. From the. Messenger. That was sent. By the Lord. Jesus. By the name. Of Shaul. Who became. An apostle. To the Gentile world. Everywhere. He went. He preached. The message. Of the gospel. Of course. He went. To the Jew. First. But he also.

Went to the Gentile. And he became. This vessel. That was chosen. By God. To become. A vessel. To the Gentile world. To let them know. That Yeshua. Jesus. Truly. That promise. Messiah. And redeemer. Of mankind. And I want to conclude. With this one verse. In Galatians. Chapter. One. So precious. To see. How the apostle. Paul. Was chosen. And he said. In verse 15. When it pleased God. Who separated me. From my mother's womb. And called me. By his grace. To reveal. His son. In me. That I might. Preach him. Among the heathen. Immediately. I conferred. Not with flesh. And blood. Neither. Did I go up. To Jerusalem.

To them. Which are the apostles. Before me. But I went. To Arabia. And returned. Again. To Damascus. Then. After three years. I went. Up to Jerusalem. To see Peter. And abode. With him. For fifteen days. But just notice. That one more time. When it pleased God. Verse 15. Who separated me. From my mother's womb. To be a testimony. To the Gentile world. That Yeshua. Jesus. Is the Son of God. The Messiah. The Savior. The Lord. And he called me. And he called me. By his grace. To reveal. His Son in me. That I might preach him. Among the heathen. Among the Gentiles. It pleased God. Who have chosen Shaul.

From his mother's womb. To be a testimony. To the Gentile world. That Yeshua. Jesus. Is the Son of God. The Messiah. The Savior. The Lord. The Redeemer. Of mankind. Shaul. Went. And he preached. That message. Among the Gentile world. When we read. Chapter 21. 22. He finished. In a sense. Three. Missionary. Journeys. And now. He coming to Jerusalem. Seeking. To. Share this message. With his Jewish. Brethren. And he did so. But it cost him. You will see the price. That he paid. By going to Jerusalem. To share this message. And his testimony. With his Jewish. Brothers and sisters. May the Lord help us. To have the same heart.

Like the apostle. Like Shaul. Paul. In sharing the message. Of the gospel. In testifying. Concerning this wonderful person. Whose name is Yeshua. The man from Nazareth. Who came. And gave his life. For you. And I am.