Sylvania Wesleyan Church 1
Sunday Morning 6/7

      • James 5:14–16NIV2011

  • The first time you got a call from a Girl or a boy.
    I remember we had to put in a second line because of my older siblings.
    Now days we just buy another cell phone for someone.
    Let’s look at a call that God made to Abram a long time ago.
    Genesis 12:1–9 NIV
    1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there. 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. 9 Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.

    Abram’s Call

    Could you imagine what it was like for Abram in this moment.
    Hey this is God. You need to leave everything to go here.
    Abram Followed willingly.
    Now here is the thing. Abram wasn’t young. He wasn’t set up perfectly in life.
    Yet he was willing
    Now days would we be willing though.

    Screening our Calls

    Would we be willing if God called us to go to answer the call.
    Problem is today most people screen their calls
    I have an 816 number which throws everyone off
    At the end of our day are we screening our calls.
    Other people have calls but sometimes they come with some uncertainty.
    Acts 9:1–9 NIV
    1 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” 5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

    Saul’s Conversion

    Left him blind and speechless
    He was lost all he knew is he was supposed to go to the city and wait.
    What do you do in those moments?
    Saul wasn’t the only one with some confusion.
    Acts 9:10–14 NIV
    10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. 11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.” 13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

    Ananias Was Scared

    Ananias was scared of what he was being asked to do.
    how many of us are we afraid to be a part of something bigger?
    Do we let our fear of what he might call us to get in the way
    Acts 9:15–19 NIV
    15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” 17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.

    Responding in trust

    We are called to respond. Sometimes God has to hit us over the head with it.
    I wish the call was as simple as here is a checklist.
    Sometimes he gives us clear direction. Others we have to follow in faith the commands he has laid out before us.
    Yet, when we hvae faith and trust the answers will come.
    Transition to communion.

      • Genesis 12:1–9NIV2011

      • Acts 9:1–9NIV2011

      • Acts 9:10–14NIV2011

      • Acts 9:15–19NIV2011

Sylvania Wesleyan Church 1
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