On the road to Syria–on his way to kill and exterminate Christians–with the world at his command….Paul was radically changed and became part of the greatest “religious” movement of all time……..

 

Romans 2  1 You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2 Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3 So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? 4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?

 

I cannot fathom how hard it must have been for Paul to begin breaking down the very foundations of the traditions, the education, and the resume and that he had built.

 

I am sure that God had him do many things that he was not willing to do on his own accord.  After all:

  • He had followed these traditions all of his life.
  • He had spent years in his education.
  • He had built an incredible resume.

 

But none of those things meant ANYTHING to the Lord.  In fact, most of those things flew in the face of ALL that Jesus stood for…. And He had to throw all of it in the trash and begin again……

 

Imagine changing your mindset to a place that not only welcomed your enemies in…..but put them in as equals.  The Gentiles could receive Christ and now walk in the same faith?…..This must have been a life-change that only blindness could bring about….

 

And so it is with us……

 

God does not CARE about your traditions.

You can not IMPRESS him with your education.

He will not even LOOK at your resume.

 

And thank God that He doesn’t…..

  • If He CARED about your traditions, He would have to care about the sins that were passed down from generation to generation.
  • If He was IMPRESSED with your education, then He would have to give you “credit” for all the things you learned from the world.
  • If He had to LOOK at your resume, He would not be able to OVERLOOK all of the things that you have done.

 

I want to finish today by challenging you to put a new filter in……it is the end of the year and many of us should be changing the filter on our furnace…..so let’s do it on our spiritual furnace.

 

The filter is what all of our living air must run through….and it must be the Lord….

 

Job Change?  Not money, not benefits, not prestige—the Lord

More Kids?  Not wife or husband, not convenience—the Lord

College Choice?  Not prestige, not what would my friends think—the Lord

Buying Something?  Not the sale, not the value, not the debt—the Lord

 

All of our decisions, if we want to live our life in freedom and to the fullest, must go through Him…..He must be our lead, our counselor, our number one confidant.  He must be the filter by which we can breathe……

 

This was the radical thing that happened for Paul—he had to realign with God.

 

And that is my word to you today:

 

REALIGN—change your filter and your mindset and run all of your life through Him…….

 

And when you do—-be ready to walk into the best greatest season that you have ever experienced.

 

He….and only HE….can give you the greatest things you have ever laid eyes on or even thought about….

 

In The Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

 

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Coach J