Face to Face with Christ
A Sermon on Acts 9:6
Originally preached Nov. 28, 1954
Scripture
6And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.
Sermon Description
“Lord, what will you have me to do?” This reveals the very heart of Paul. In this sermon on Acts 9:6 titled “Face to Face with Christ,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones presses that the beliefs of a Christian’s heart will be proven by what they practice. Before his salvation, Paul, previously known as Saul, went about persecuting Christians. But at salvation, just as every true believer must, he surrendered his will to God instead of arguing against the gospel or searching for loopholes to avoid obedience. Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains the powerful peace one receives when they are finally ready to listen and to learn. Just as a child is curious to understand the world around them, so are new believers hungry to understand their Savior. At salvation, Paul saw the utter failure of his efforts. His self-reliance vanished and he turned to God, humbly asking “Lord what wilt thou have me to do?” He surrendered his will to the one glorious Father who died for him and for all. The proof of salvation is in a willing and eager heart to do the will of the Father.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon focuses on Acts 9:6 which says "And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?". This verse shows that Paul's will was engaged in his conversion experience.
- A Christian is someone whose entire personality - mind, emotions and will - are involved with and engaged in their faith. Many people think being a Christian is just intellectual belief or emotional experience but it requires surrender of the will.
- God made humans for Himself and to glorify Him. The greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. Sin is disobedience to God. To be reconciled to God, we must surrender our will to Him.
- The surrender of the will is essential to prove we are truly Christian. Without it, we do not understand sin or repentance. We cannot accept Christ as Savior without accepting Him as Lord.
- The surrender of the will means:
- Ceasing to oppose or argue with God
- Being eager to listen to and learn from God
- Believing in Christ and His work, even without full understanding
- Being ready to obey Christ no matter the cost
- Telling Christ we submit to Him
- Proving our surrender through action and obedience
- Paul surrendered his will because:
- He realized his own failure and inability. He lost confidence in himself.
- He was overwhelmed by Christ's love, mercy and forgiveness
- He realized Christ had bought and ransomed him. He belonged to Christ.
- He was humbled by the glory and wonder of Christ's person. He wanted to follow Christ forever.
- We must see Christ by faith, know Him, and be captivated by Him. Then we will lose ourselves in Him, submit to Him and say "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?". The proof we believe Christ is our Savior is that He has become our Lord.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers about Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on Saul's Conversion
What was the key Bible verse discussed in Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' sermon about Saul's conversion?
The key Bible verse discussed in the sermon was Acts 9:6, where Saul, after encountering Christ on the Damascus road, says, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Lloyd-Jones notes that this verse appears in the Authorized Version (King James) though it's not in some other translations. He argues that this verse is authentic and crucial to understanding true conversion.
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, what are the three essential elements of true conversion as seen in Saul's experience?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the three essential elements of true conversion as seen in Saul's experience are: 1) Astonishment - becoming a problem to oneself and being surprised at oneself; 2) Trembling - experiencing a sense of alarm and fear about one's soul and eternal destiny; and 3) Surrender of the will - submitting to Christ with the words "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" All three aspects involve the entire personality - mind, emotions, and will.
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones reject the idea that someone can accept Christ as Savior first and then later as Lord?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones rejects this idea as "illogical" and "unscriptural" because sin itself is fundamentally disobedience and rebellion against God. He states: "If I accept Christ as my savior, what do I mean? How does he save me? What does he save me from? Says someone. He saves me from my sins. But what's my sin? My sin is rebellion against God." Therefore, accepting Christ as Savior necessarily means acknowledging Him as Lord, since salvation is precisely from the sin of rejecting His Lordship.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the true nature of sin?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies the true nature of sin as disobedience to God and putting one's will against God's will. He states that "sin is essentially disobedience" and "the natural mind is enmity against God." Sin is not merely about specific wrong actions but fundamentally about our wrong relationship with God - being "at enmity against God and not subject to his law." Sin is self-centeredness and asserting our own will instead of living to God's glory.
What practical signs show that someone has truly surrendered their will to Christ?
The practical signs that someone has truly surrendered their will to Christ include: ceasing to oppose and argue against the gospel; being ready and eager to listen and learn like a child; believing the truth about Christ and His work; obeying even when one doesn't fully understand; being ready to follow Christ whatever it costs; verbally committing oneself to Christ; and demonstrating the reality of surrender through action - forsaking worldly ways and identifying with God's people.
How did Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe what motivated Saul's surrender to Christ?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones suggested several motivations for Saul's surrender: 1) Realizing his own utter failure and inability; 2) Experiencing Christ's love, mercy and forgiveness despite his persecution; 3) Understanding he no longer had any right to himself since Christ had purchased him; and 4) Being captivated by the glory and wonder of Christ's person - "The glory of the person, the wonder of the person, the brightness of his face, the holiness of his visage, all this transcendent, glorious person."
What is the relationship between intellectual belief, emotional experience, and surrender of the will in Christian conversion?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, true Christian conversion involves the entire personality simultaneously - intellect, emotions, and will. He rejects the idea that mere intellectual assent to truth, or an emotional experience alone, or just moral living makes someone a Christian. He states: "The Christian is one who has put into practice willingly and with the heart of his heart the thing that he has believed and accepted with his mind. The whole man is involved. The entire personality is engaged."
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones believe so many people falsely think they are Christians?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones believes many people falsely think they are Christians because they misunderstand what sin truly is, seeing it only as particular bad actions rather than rebellion against God. They may give intellectual assent to beliefs without surrendering their will, or have emotional experiences without true repentance. They may think morality makes them Christian without addressing their fundamental rebellion against God's authority. Many don't realize Christianity requires the entire personality - mind, emotions and will - to be engaged.
Face to Face with Christ
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.