A New You

Acts 9.19-22

Touch of the Master’s Hand is my favorite song by Wayne Watson. Let me read it to you.

Well it was battered and scared, and the auctioneer felt it was hardly worth his while to waste much time on the old violin, but he held it up with a smile. “Well it sure ain’t much but its all we got left I guess we ought to sell it, too. Oh, now who’ll start the bid on this old violin? Just one more and we’ll be through.” And then he cried, “One give me one dollar; who’ll make it two; only two dollars who’ll make it three? Three dollars twice, now that’s a good price! Now who’s got a bid for me? Raise up your hand, now don’t wait any longer; the auctions about to end. Who’s got four; just one dollar more to bid on this old violin?”

Well the air was hot, and the people stood around as the sun was setting low. From the back of the crowd, a gray haired man came forward and picked up the bow. He wiped the dust from the old violin, then he tightened up the strings. Then he played out a melody, pure and sweet, sweeter than the Angels sing. And then the music stopped, and the auctioneer with a voice that was quiet and low, he said, “Now what is my bid for this old violin?” and he held it up with a bow. And then he cried out, “One! Give me one thousand! Who’ll make it two, only two thousand, who’ll make it three? Three thousand, twice, you know that’s a good price. Come on, who’s got a bid for me?”  

And the people cried out, “What made the change? We don’t understand.” Then the auctioneer stopped, and he said with a smile, “It was the touch of the Master’s hand.”

As I was pondering this morning’s passage, this song came to my mind. I like it. Saul of Tarsus, as we left off, had met the Savior on the road. God had then asked someone to do something that seemed, at least from Ananias’ point of view, quite dangerous, as if he was asked to shoo away a rattlesnake. Ananias, however, didn’t know that Saul was not the same person who headed to Damascus days before. He was changed. He was open to accepting the Lord. Ananias arrived, healed him, then baptized him, and then we have our text this morning:

It is said that most new growth within the body comes from new growth. Saul seems to exemplify that axiom. Here he is, with the disciples of Damascus and instantly proclaiming Christ. Now from here, or somewhere between verses 25 and 26, 3 years will have passed for Saul, for even our journey through the book. In the letter to the churches of Galatia, he says that he didn’t go to Jerusalem right away in his faith. Instead after 3 years of walking, then he became associated with the Apostles. But that story is for next week. This week, having been touched by the Master’s hand, he is new.

He was excited and telling others about Jesus. So often anymore, we have somehow come to believe that we need to study to know how to tell people who they need to see them through life’s storms. But here we see Saul, untrained in matters of Christianity. Perhaps he may have picked something up watching and battling the Christians the previous years. But for the most part, he accepted Christ. He was clothed in Christ. He was a new creation. He was new. And now he had a new mission, a new message.

What keeps us from sharing the message with others? Personally, there are a couple of reasons. First, but perhaps not foremost, is that of fear. Fear of what others would think of us. Yet let us consider something. We live in an area that is prone to have an occasional tornado. It is a scary time. Yet who of us would not make sure our neighbors knew of the impending doom? As soon as our smart phone apps alert us, or perhaps the TV station or the siren itself, do we not call loved ones?

Yet I say that there is something worse than a tornado coming. Well not for me, perhaps not for you, but for those who we love and are not in the faith, will they be able to weather the storm coming? Aside from being in Christ, the answer is no. We fear our temporary standing in our own worlds, but others in our spheres are hell bound.

This brings up another reason we do not tell others about Christ. Our culture has lead us to believe, and perhaps many of our churches are also guilty by being complicit. If we stand for truth, we are being judgmental. That is a lie. It is not judgmental when we say that God created a man and a woman to become one, a husband and a wife. It is not judgmental to say that life begins at conception, and anything that brings that life to an end prematurely is wrong. It is not judgmental to say that men and women are different, that God has specific roles for each in the kingdom.

Yet we do not want to be judgmental. Here is an example of being judgmental. Bob, because I don’t like you, you’re going to hell.” That is judgmental. Or this, a bit more subtle: “Bob wouldn’t be interested in hearing the gospel. He’s set in his ways.”  When the church, when we, when you and I start standing for the truth, we are not being judgmental, but we are perhaps bound to save souls.  Do we have new life? One sign of new life would be how we handle the good news. We don’t need to know more than Jesus saves, gave me hope to get through my troubles.

The New Saul also showed us something else: He is different. The people were surprised to see the stark difference between what they had heard and what they were seeing. They marveled at this. It reminds me of Matthew 5.16 where Jesus tells us that since we are the light of the world, then let our light so shine before men that they see our good deeds and praise our Father in heaven. That is what Saul was doing here.

Of course, then we must remember Paul’s words to the Romans, 10.14, “How can they believe unless they hear, hear unless someone tells them?” Too often, in our non-judgmental efforts, we have taken Peter’s words to wives to win their husbands through quiet action as our role, our plan to save the nation, through the silent actions of the church. But that is a gross misapplication of Peter’s words. Rather, we need to realize that it is not enough to just do good, to pay it forward. We need to tell the person why we are the way we are.

Of our neighbors, do they know that we are different because of Jesus? Have we told them that? Or do we assume that they know because they see us travel to church on Sundays? Worse yet, do they even know that we are different? There was once a bumper sticker popular 20 years ago: “If you were accused of being a Christian, would you be convicted?” That can stop us up short.

In what ways are we living apart from the world around us, besides being here this morning? Do we laugh at the same jokes, even tell them? Do we hold the same values that are found in the world? If we are new, then it should, like with Saul, make a stark contrast with the world around us. It’s like being able to spot the hunter in his camouflage because he’s also wearing that bright orange vest. It makes him stand out, just as Christ wants us to stand out in our world.

Final sign of a new Saul is that he matured in the faith. That is what Luke, the writer meant when he penned the last verse, “and Saul grew more and more powerful…” (NIV). The Christian Standard says, “He grew more capable…” He matured in the faith. Maturity in the faith is something that comes by spending time in the word. See where Saul kept confounding the Jews by proving Jesus is the savior. Proving implies strongly that he was using the Old Testament Scriptures to show who Jesus is, how he is the Messiah. I believe also the mere exercise of debate helped Saul to grow in the fiath.

Now let me say this about maturity in the faith: It is expected of us. Paul chastises the church in Corinth for not being more mature, needing the elements of Jesus all over again. It’s similar to the accusation the writer of Hebrews made to his readers, that thought they ought to be eating steak, they still need milk.

Growing in the faith is not like physical growth. For my children, (Flower) has no choice when her legs lengthen, her head hardens, her teeth drop through the gums. It happens naturally. Even now, her reliance on milk is less than half as she is on to eating solid foods. Growing spiritually is something that takes desire and purpose.

I have had people tell me that after so many years walking with the Lord, they feel they still need the basics of the Gospel. I wanted to tell them, “Grow up! Stop being infantile.” When the desire to stay at a particular plateau, we become stagnant. We lose our saltiness. We cease being the light.

Now my signs of a new you are done, how we handle the Gospel message, that we are different, and that we mature in Christ, I feel a little beat up. I don’t like feeling beaten, and I don’t like to beat up. Sometimes, bluntness is called for. Sometimes when a child is reaching for that hot burner, we need to be harsh to grab the attention, rather than loving, because being all loving and emotionally sensitive might make us too late to keep that child from burning himself.

So here is the good news. If you and I are still breathing, it’s not too late to be new you. We can still rise up and be intentional, telling others the good news. We can start living differently, living for Christ immediately. We can decide now is the time to grow up.  This comes from the Grace that God gives us every day. Yes, we won’t always get it right, but God does give us His Spirit to guide us, if we but truly rely upon him. Paul, being an apostle, having written well over half of the New Testament, admitted to the Romans that he still messed up. He still found himself committing sins he knew better not to. Then to the Philippians, 3.13, “This is I know, forgetting what is behind me, I press onward to the goal.” All things have passed. We can look forward, to be new every day. Are you ready for a new you?

Before I close with the invitation,  I didn’t finish the lyrics of the song. Let me continue:

You know there's many a man with his life out of tune, battered and scared with sin; and he’s auctioned cheap to a thankless world much like that old violin. Oh, but then the Master comes, and that old foolish crowd, they never understand: The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought just by one touch of the Master’s hand. And then he cried out, “One! Give me one thousand! Who’ll make it two, only two thousand, who’ll make it three? Three thousand, twice, you know that’s a good price. Come on, who’s got a bid for me?” 

And the people cried out, “What made the change? We don’t understand.” Then the auctioneer stopped, and he said with a smile, “It was the touch of the Master’s hand.”

So this morning, which are you? Are you the old fiddle, battered, needing a healing, a gracious touch from the Father? Would you like to be that nice violin, making a sweet melody for the Kingdom? If so, and you need prayer, or just desire prayer