Steven Furtick - But When God Changes Everything
This is an excerpt from: When God Gets Ready
Have you been imprisoned in your previous? This is the scary thing about consulting with people. People will put you in the prison of your previous. In Saul’s case, it wasn’t a life of sin; it was a life of self-righteousness. See, to them, he was a Christian killer, so they could never forget what he represented to them. That’s why it was important that he went straight to God. I heard a story one time about three baseball umpires. They were talking about their philosophy of calling balls and strikes. Well, one of the baseball umpires said, «I call it like it is». The next umpire said, «I call it like I see it».
The third umpire said, «It ain’t nothin' till I call it». I believe God is saying today, «It ain’t nothin' till I call it. You might think you’re really something. Your résumé… It ain’t nothin' till I call it». Paul who was so credentialed, Paul who was so capable, Paul who was so incredibly charismatic, said, «You heard about my previous way of life».
Now get ready, because this is a really powerful reflection from the apostle. He said, «You heard how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my own people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers». Now, I want to show you verse 15, because it’s what really lit my spirit on fire for somebody in the room today. Paul says, «After all of that that you’ve heard about me, after all of that that I did against Jesus… I was fighting against him; now I’m following him. I was fighting against him; now I am filling the world with his teaching. I am filling the world with the message I used to fight against».
This is how big God can do it. This is how drastic of a change God can make. It is too soon for you to give up on anybody. It is too soon for you to give up on you. It is too soon for you to give up on freedom. I was telling somebody the other day, «This is the way I am, and it will never change, » and they said, «It’s too soon for you to say that. You’ve got too many experiences. You’ve got too many valleys. You’ve got too many mountains. You’ve got too many tomorrows. You’ve got too many next months. You’ve got too many next years. It is too soon for you to say that. It is too soon for you to say, 'I’ll never.' It is too soon for you to say, 'I’m not.' It is too soon for you to assume that what you’ve seen so far is all there is to you».
Paul, who was called Saul, thought, «I’ve done it; this is it, » and God laughed, because where he put a period, God put a comma. He said, «You heard about my previous way of life. You heard how I advanced. You heard how zealous and passionate I was». Then verse 15 says something very powerful. «But when God [comma]…» I know it’s going to take a minute, but you’re going to get it. «But when God [comma]…» Take those three words and get them in your spirit. Now put them in your mouth and say them. «But when God…» I want to see the chat light up right now with those three words. «But when God…» One of the favorite phrases for us to shout about in church is «But God…» This is a little different. But God means it seemed to be going one way; now it’s going another. It looked like this; it was really that.
«I was dead in my sins and transgressions, but God made me alive». Paul wrote that, by the way. Paul wrote that after he had spent his whole life fighting against the thing he was now following in. Paul wrote that, by the way. Don’t you dare tell me you’re done. Don’t you dare tell me that nothing good is going to come from you. Don’t you dare tell me it’s over. Paul wrote that. «But when God [comma]…»
I wish you could see this on the screen. You’re listening to this on a podcast. If you are listening to this sermon and not watching it, pull the car over and look at the screen right now or pull up this verse in your YouVersion app. Pull up Galatians 1:15, because I want you to see «But when God…» Which means…what? That it’s on his schedule, not mine.
«But when God…» I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore, but when God… They wrote me off, talked about me like a dog, said I was annoying, but when God… I was up to my neck in it. I didn’t think I could take another phone call or text message with bad news, but then a light shone from heaven and knocked me off my horse and knocked me off my rightness. But when God… People said, «He’ll never get up». People started planning my funeral. People started writing my obituary. People started talking about me behind my back, but when God [comma]… I was thinking about this.
When did Saul’s name change to Paul? I know when Abraham’s name changed. I know when Abraham’s name changed. Genesis, chapter 17. Check this out. The Lord took this man named Abram, and he said, «I’d like to buy a consonant, a consonant, Vanna. I’d like to call him Abraham». Look at this. Genesis 17. «Abram fell facedown…» Abraham…what? Somebody else fell that we were just talking about. Oh, so sometimes the fall signifies that there’s a call coming. There’s a call coming. There’s a call coming. I don’t know what you fell into this week. Some of you fell back into something this week that you thought you walked away from, but after the fall there is a calling. You’re going to help somebody get set free from it. I know y’all don’t like this, but sometimes it takes wrong to get you ready. It takes wrong to get you ready. Stop beating up on yourself.
Paul said, «By the grace of God I was called». It’s time for you to fall into calling. Now, Abraham fell face down. He wasn’t called Abraham yet. He was called Abram. Abram means exalted father. That’s a pretty good name. He’s called Abram. Why does he need an upgrade? But when he fell face down, God said to him (that’s the call after the fall), «As for me, this is my covenant with you: you will be the father of many nations». Abram means exalted father; Abraham means father of many. So, now we see that God is exchanging a name as a setup for expansion. «I don’t want you to just be a father; I want you to be a father of many nations». Who else?
Do you want to see Jacob? Genesis 32. He’s wrestling with God all night. He doesn’t know it’s God. He’s fighting, and then he falls, and he says, «I’m not letting go until you bless me». When he falls, God says, «I see you struggling with God and humans, and you have overcome. So you’re no longer going to be called Jacob, which means heel grabber. Now your name is Israel, which means overcomer, because you struggled with God and with humans and have overcome». Wow! He got a new name, because he was not just carrying himself; he was carrying a nation. He was all that. All that was coming forth out of him. All of that was meant to be from him. All of that. Abram; Abraham. Jacob; Israel. Who else?
Simon; Peter. Well, he makes a confession. Jesus says, «Who do you say that I am»? Matthew 16:15. He said, «I know who you are. You’re the Christ, the Son of the living God». He said, «Blessed are you, Simon bar Jonah (son of Jonah), because flesh and blood has not revealed this to you». «You can’t figure this out by thinking it. You can’t figure this out by studying it. You can’t figure this out by doing a DNA test. What is it called, 23andMe? You can’t do 24 or 25 me. The only way you can know me is the Father in heaven revealed, and I’m going to reveal who you are now that you see clearly who I am. I say you are Peter, Petros, Cephas, rock, and upon this rock of the revelation that you have of who I am, I’m going to show you who you are. I will build my church».
So, every time God gave someone a new name, he was building something. Every time God gave them a new name, he was enlarging something. Every time God gave… Their new name represented a new assignment, a new sphere, a new domain, a new level of weight. So, when did Paul become Paul? «Saul, Saul». Now, I have to confess to you here. I would like to tell you that I learned that in Bible school and I never forgot it, but my limited mind just always thought that when God touched him on the road to Damascus… Because he went blind, and then he met a man named Ananias. He got his sight back, and he was able to see, and then he went into the desert to prepare for three years.
I always thought that somewhere in Acts, chapter 9, somebody, God or Ananias or somebody, said, «And verily, verily, I say unto thee, Saul, you will no longer be called Saul; you will now be called Paul». So, I read all through Acts, chapter 9, and I was like, «Wait. I missed it. Where is it? Maybe I’m reading the wrong version». It took me about two hours. I just kept reading. I read Acts, chapter 9, where Saul got knocked down and fell and God told him, «I’m going to call you to be a chosen vessel».
I read Acts, chapter 10; Acts, chapter 11; and Acts, chapter 12. I read the whole rest of the book of Acts, and God never changed his name. I was shocked, because I thought surely, if he’s going to be representing Jesus now as the apostle Paul, God must have given him that new name. Well, it’s not until Acts 13:9 that we see when Saul became Paul. Pause real quick. Comma, comma, comma, comma. Pause, pause, pause.
I’m telling you this because sometimes we don’t know when we’re changing. Sometimes it’s 14 years later when you’re writing the book of Galatians that you realize, «Oh! It wasn’t a fall; it was a calling. What looked like falling was actually calling. What looked like a disability was actually my unique gift. What looked like a learning disorder was actually my brilliant mind just firing a little different than everybody else’s. What looked like a rejection from people was God’s redirection for something that he called me uniquely to do».
Why aren’t you helping me preach? I’m trying to help you recategorize, reclassify some stuff, because it ain’t nothin' till God calls it. You can’t call it good; you can’t call it bad. You can’t call it success; you can’t call it failure. It’s nothing until he calls it. And here is the mighty apostle Paul, saying, «God, who called me from my mother’s womb…» Then I realized, in Acts 13:9… Oh, this is the most anointed verse I’ve read all year. Oh, this will change your life. Oh, this will set you free, because everybody is waiting for this change to come.
You know, «When I’m going to feel better and be better and do better and get taller and get richer, and everything is going to be going my way, and everybody is going to be nice to me and smile at me, and I’m not going to struggle with this anymore». Acts 13:9. Here it is. «Then Saul, who was also called Paul…» What? You mean God didn’t change his name? Nope. Saul was his Hebrew name. Paul was his Roman name, because he was all that. I said he was all that. To be born in Tarsus of Cilicia, where Paul was born, gave you a unique advantage. «Although I am Jewish by heritage, I am Roman by citizenship. So, it means I’m Saul and I’m also Paul. Saul isn’t bad. Paul isn’t bad. I’m just both. Saul is the life I built until I met Jesus. Paul is my name I’m going to take the gospel to the Gentile world with».
So, God is saying to somebody… I don’t know your given name. I don’t know your legal name. I don’t know what God has you standing on the precipice of. I don’t know what you’re shaking about. I don’t know what you’re dealing with. I don’t know who’s talking to you about it. I don’t know whose counsel you’re keeping, but God has somebody here so you can hear today, «You already are». You already are. You already are. Stop trying to be that. You already are. Stop trying to give sex to get love. You already are loved. Stop trying to give yourself away to people who do not have the capacity to receive it.
The Bible says when it came time for the Gentiles to hear the gospel, Saul, who was also called Paul, stepped forth. The book of Acts never calls him Saul again. Listen to this. Listen to this. It’s time for you to use your other name. It’s time for you to step into what God already called you. Didn’t it just bless your socks off to realize that there was not a moment where he said, «You shall no longer be Saul; you shall be Paul»? He said simply, «I just want you to use what I already gave you». Maybe that’s the calling in this season of your life: to start using what he already gave you, to start using the resources your heavenly Father has already placed in your spirit through a deposit. I’ll tell you one thing about it. Everything I’ve got that’s worth having I got it by grace.