Introduction
In Ephesians 1:17-20 Paul prays that believers would know “what is the immeasurable greatness of his [God’s] power toward us who believe.” He equates this power with the work of raising Christ from the dead (v. 20). His thought then continues into chapter 2 where he states that you were dead (2:1), but God made you alive with Christ (2:4-5) so that He might show the riches of his grace to all (2:7). Paul is praying that believers would recognize that every genuine conversion is like a resurrection. That means every new birth is a miracle. God shows his amazing power by bringing life where death had dominion. Since salvation is a miracle of God, we should expect that no one is beyond God’s amazing power to save.
… every genuine conversion is like a resurrection & every new birth is a miracle.
A Notable Conversion
Paul knew that every conversion is a miracle of God because his own testimony confirmed it.
Saul of Tarsus was a notorious antagonist to the gospel of Jesus Christ. In his religious zeal he was determined to stamp out Christianity by persecuting all who claimed to be followers of Christ (Acts 9:1-2). Saul’s fervent rejection of Christ was so prominent that Ananias, a believer in Damascus, was skeptical of his conversion and understandably nervous about a face-to-face meeting (Acts 9:13-14). A credit to his love for Christ, Ananias obeyed the Lord and sought out Saul, but perhaps he was thinking as he went, “Can Saul of Tarsus actually be a follower of Christ? It would be a miracle.”
Are there any “Sauls” in your life? People you may think are too hard to be saved? While we may never admit out loud that someone is too hard for God our actions might betray us as we avoid sharing Christ with certain people. We can think to ourselves, “It would be a miracle if that person ever came to faith in Christ!” and yet that is precisely the point of Christ saving people. It is his miraculous work that points to his amazing power to save.
Contemporary Illustration
By the time he was in his mid 20’s Sam (not his real name) had already been in legal trouble been in a drug rehab program and had sought for answers in many different religions. Sam was confused, hopeless and empty. If you had met Sam, you might be tempted to think he is uninterested in Christ and perhaps agree with him that he seemed beyond hope. He relayed the following testimony to a gathering of believers on Easter Sunday.
“My salvation is not unique. Although my background may look different than many of yours, there is one glaring commonality; I am a sinner and I was separated from my Creator because of that sin. God orchestrated, through his providential timing, a series of events that led me to saving faith.
I didn’t decide one day to pick up a Bible and start reading it rather the Lord placed me at a job where he had already planted two believers. They invited me out to play a pickup football game, although they didn’t know much about me. Unbeknownst to these two, I was really struggling. I was desperately trying to understand why I felt so empty and hopeless.
After that football game I was prompted to read Gods word, which I did. Mind you this wasn’t the first time reading his word, but this time, the words stuck out on the pages – I couldn’t get enough. I don’t know if I can ever prove it, but I truly believe that reading Christ’s conversation with Nicodemus in John’s gospel is what truly pierced my hardened heart.
This all came to a head when God brought me to the most broken I have ever felt in my life. And it was in that moment as I wept that I asked, “God please save me, I can’t do this on my own anymore.” It was in those moments of brokenness over my sin, realizing that I had separated myself from my Heavenly Father, and the overwhelming sense of grace and Spirit that was poured out upon me, that I accepted Christ as my Lord and savior.
God had protected me for years, to bring me to the point of saving faith. I could have been another statistic, after drug use and anger landed me in jail, but God protected me. That same drug that was killing people by the thousands in this country, could have killed me. But God protected me, leading me to get help again and again until I found Christ. Praise the Lord for sending his Son, to save a sinner like me.”
Sam has experienced new life. Today he is married to a believing wife, has two young children and is active in serving Christ in his local church and is a testimony to the miracle of salvation and that no one is too hard for God.
Conclusion
Since salvation is a miracle of God, we should expect that no one is beyond God’s amazing power to save. We should pray as Paul did in Ephesians 1:17-20 that we would recognize what is the greatness of his power to bring people to new life and that this conviction would move us to confidently share Christ with even the foremost of sinners (1 Timothy 1:12-15).
Matt Fagan is the Lead Pastor at Heritage Baptist Church of Windham, New Hampshire and serves as an Exchange Trainer. Contact Matt about leading an Exchange Training Event or to discuss this article at [email protected]