From Religious Terrorist To Christian Evangelist: At Conversion

Galatians 1:15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s
womb, and called me by his grace,

Every Christian’s testimony is made up of our life before conversion, at conversion
and after conversion.

Galatians 1:13 For you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted
the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.
Galatians 1:14 And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my
own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.

“Other than the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there has been no greater influence on
the world than the conversion of Paul.”
Church historian J.L. Hurlbut, in The Story of the Christian Church writes
“In all the history of Christianity no single conversion to Christ carried with it such
momentous results to the whole world, as that of Saul the persecutor, afterward
Paul the Apostle”
Martin Luther, the Protestant reformer, called Paul the wisest man after Christ.
Quote “Paul is the first theologian in the early church and arguably the greatest in
the early church and arguably the greatest in the history of Christianity.”
Galatians 1:15 But when it pleased God …”

I. GOD DID THE CHOOSING.
Galatians 1:15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s
womb …”
Galatians 1:15 (NLT) But even before I was born, God chose me …”
Galatians 1:15 (ESV) But when he who had set me apart before I was born,
Galatians 1:15 (GWN) But God, who appointed me before I was born …”

Luke 1:13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your
prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall
call his name John.
Luke 1:14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
Luke 1:15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither
wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his
mother’s womb.
Luke 1:16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
Luke 1:17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the
hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just,
to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Isaiah 49:1 “Listen, O coastlands, to Me,And take heed, you peoples from afar!
The Lord has called Me from the womb; From the matrix of My mother He has made
mention of My name.
Isaiah 49:2 And He has made My mouth like a sharp sword;In the shadow of His hand
He has hidden Me, and made Me a polished shaft; In His quiver He has hidden Me.”
Isaiah 49:5 And now the Lord says, Who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant,
To bring Jacob back to Him, So that Israel is gathered to Him (For I shall be glorious
in the eyes of the Lord, And My God shall be My strength),

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were
born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

John 15:16 “You did not choose me, but I chose you …”

Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has
blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
Ephesians 1:4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that
we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Ephesians 1:5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself,
according to the good pleasure of His will,

* We did not choose when we were to be born.
* We did not choose our body type.
* We did not choose where we were to be born.
* We did not choose our parents.
* We did not choose our influences early in our life.
* We did not choose whether we were to be male or female.
* We did not choose our genetics.
* We did not choose our temperament.
* We did not choose our looks.
* We did not choose our physical abilities.

Proverbs 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.
Proverbs 16:33 (GW) The dice are thrown, but the Lord determines every outcome.
Proverbs 16:33 (TLB) We toss the coin, but it is the Lord who controls its decision.

Matthew 26:39 ” … nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

In life, there are things we can’t control and there are things we can control.

II. GOD DOES THE CALLING.
Galatians 1:15 “… and called me …

1 Corinthians 1:26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according
to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.
1 Corinthians 1:27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to
shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to
shame the things which are mighty;
1 Corinthians 1:28 and the base things of the world and the things which are
despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the
things that are,
1 Corinthians 1:29 that no flesh should glory in His presence.

God says I’ll take:
Fat kids, skinny kids, kids who climb on rocks;
Tough kids, sissy kids; even kids with chicken pox;

III. GOD DID IT ALL BY GRACE.
Galatians 1:15 “… and called me by his grace, .

2 Corinthians 4:6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness,
who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in
the face of Jesus Christ.

Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God …”

2 Timotthy 2:13: “If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.”

Romans 3:11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.
Romans 3:12 They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”

Philippians 1:6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work
in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;