Throughout this series, we have been examining some of the questions Jesus asked during His earthly ministry. That may seem a little unusual at first because we often think of Jesus as the One who provides answers. People came to Him with questions about God, life, eternity, forgiveness, marriage, money, and countless other subjects. Yet when you read the Gospels carefully, you discover that Jesus frequently responded to questions by asking questions of His own. In fact, one scholar estimated that Jesus asked more than 300 questions during His ministry. He understood something that every good teacher understands: answers can inform the mind, but questions have a way of revealing the heart.

When Jesus asked a question, it was never because He lacked information. He already knew the answer. Instead, His questions invited people to examine themselves. They exposed assumptions, uncovered motives, and forced individuals to confront truths they might otherwise avoid. And the same is true today. The questions Jesus asked two thousand years ago continue to echo into our lives because they are not merely questions for the people in the story; they are questions for us.

Billy Graham was arguably one of the most respected Christian leaders of the twentieth century. When he passed away, during his funeral service, his son, Franklin Graham shared something significant to those of us whose vocation and calling is to preach. He said one of the defining characteristics of his father's ministry was his absolute confidence in the Word of God. He recalled countless occasions when his father would stand before thousands of people, hold up his Bible, and simply declare, "The Bible says..."

For generations of Christians, that phrase was the foundation of preaching. The preacher's authority wasn't found in his personality or his opinions. It wasn't found in his education. It wasn't even found in his experience. The authority came from one simple conviction: "The Bible says."

And yet today, there are rising voices - even from those who preach - suggesting that this phrase "The Bible says" should be cast aside because it is essentially outdated. Some preachers claim that since modern people are suspicious of authority, when we appeal to Scripture AS authoritative in one's life, we are in danger of creating barriers rather than bridges to faith. There is one prominent modern-day preacher who has even suggested that portions of the Bible, particularly the OT, are outdated, embarrassing, or largely irrelevant to modern believers.

So which is it? Is the Bible still relevant? Does it still matter? Can we still confidently say, "The Bible says"? Or has the Bible become little more than a religious artifact that we respect but rarely open?

This morning we are beginning a brand-new summer sermon series that we're calling "Questions Jesus Asked* (And We Must Answer)."

When most people think about Jesus, they think about His answers. They think about His teaching, His miracles, His parables, and the incredible wisdom He shared with those around Him. And certainly, Jesus gave some remarkable answers.

But what many people don't realize is that Jesus was also a master question-asker. In fact, when you read through the Gospels, you discover that Jesus asked questions everywhere He went. Some of them were simple questions. Some were uncomfortable questions. Some were questions that cut straight to the heart. He asked questions like, "Why are you afraid?" "Who do you say that I am?" "Do you want to get well?" "Where is your faith?" and "Do you love me?"

And here's what makes those questions so powerful: Jesus wasn't asking because He needed information. Jesus' questions are rarely about information. They are about revelation.

He asks questions not because HE needs answers, but because WE do. And Jesus' questions are powerful in that they reveal what is happening in our hearts. They expose our fears, our assumptions, our priorities, and sometimes even our idols. In many ways, spiritual growth begins when we become willing to answer honestly the questions Jesus asks.

So throughout this summer, we're going to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen carefully to some of His questions. Because if we're willing to wrestle with them honestly, they have the power to transform us.

Have you ever noticed that one of the very first words children learn is the word "mine"? Mine; my toy. Mine; my blanket. Mine; my cookie. Mine; my seat. Nobody has to teach a child to say "mine." In fact, my dad did NOT do me any favors when he himself taught my kids that word. (Thanks, Dad!) It seems to come naturally, our obsession of ME. What takes years to learn is another word: "ours."

Some people never really learn that word, I'd say. We live in a culture that constantly teaches me to think about ME. My career. My house. My plans. My retirement. My comfort. My happiness. Couples who go through pre-marital counseling with me learn that one of the biggest helps for a healthy marriage is being willing to turn the M upside down, from ME to WE, where our decisions and paths we forge aren't only about ourselves alone anymore. God put us into communities like families and tribes and congregations so that we can experience the power of WE, OUR, US.

The concept of turning the M upside down can be easily played out in Christian communities called "The Church." I'm going to make the statement that it's absolutely crucial for us to learn it, in fact, because it's easy to see that churches can fall into exactly the same trap. We can become focused on our worship, our programs, our budget, our building, our ministries, and our preferences. And before long, the church exists primarily for the people already inside it rather than the people Jesus wants to reach outside it.

In football, they have the huddle. The whole purpose of the huddle is to give the team about thirty seconds to call the next play. That’s it. Now, here’s what’s funny—sixty thousand people might be watching that huddle. And they don’t mind. They understand. You’ve got to get organized. The quarterback needs to know where he’s going. The ends need to know their route. The backs need to know their assignment.

But let me tell you something obvious: nobody pays between 250 and 1000 bucks just to watch the huddle. People come to see the team break the huddle, snap the ball, and move down the field against a defense doing its darnedest to stop them. The 60,000 plus Number 12s ("fans", for the uninitiated) want to know: did your practice actually make a difference? Will it work?

Now, here’s where we as Christians get into trouble. We get high on our huddles. Sunday morning, Worship Nights, Sunrise Services — we go nuts over the huddle. “Man, worship today was amazing!” “Our quarterback calls plays better than any other quarterback in the league!” We end up critiquing the music, the sermon length, whether or not people were friendly.

But the huddle only exists so we can play the game. The effectiveness of your church cannot be measured by how well you do on Sunday morning. It's when you get out there - in the world - in your own unique harvest field, if you will. THIS is what we see in the Book of Acts, chapter 8.

There are certain people in life who leave a lasting impression on you.

Spend enough time around someone and eventually you begin to sound like them. You start using their phrases, picking up their habits, laughing at the same things they laugh at. Sometimes married couples do this so much that they can practically finish each other’s sentences. Children pick up expressions from their parents without even realizing it. Why? Because proximity leaves its mark. Time spent together changes us.

That is exactly what happened in our text this morning.

Remember the old tv game show Name That Tune? Where you are given a certain number of notes and you have to figure out what song is being played? Well this morning I want to play a version of that game. We’ll call it Name That Person.

I’m going to give you some clues, straight out of Scripture, and you keep track of the amount of clues it takes for you to guess the person

“I am like one born at the wrong time…”

“I am less than the least of all God’s people…"

“I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin…”

“I know that nothing good lives in me…”

“For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do…” So...who does that describe?

Alright, let’s shift the clues.

A man who breathed out threats and murder against the followers of Jesus…
A man who went from house to house dragging men and women off to prison to face possible execution…
A man who was on the scene approving of the lynching of first Christian martyr…

Name that person.

Same answer. Saul… who would later be known as Paul.

Do you see the tension? In the last set of clues you have a man who seems to be so confident of his convictions and commitment to doing the right thing. But on the other hand, you get this man who recognizes his brokenness - like the tax-collector in the parable who goes to the temple and can't even look up at God, he is so cognizant of his sinfulness. He is humble, he acknowledges his weakness, he is no longer self-righteous.

And somehow, those two realities live in the same person. Which raises the question: what happened in between? What made this self-righteous, confident persecutor of the church become a selfless, humble servant --- one who would actually go from NUMBER 1 persecutor of the Early Church to the NUMBER 1 missionary to the Gentile world?

The answer, of course, is Jesus. But more specifically, the answer is that Jesus refused to leave Saul where he was. And that really is what spiritual growth is all about.

Let me start with a confession. I like being independent. I really do. I like making decisions without asking for help. I like solving my own problems. And at times I see that tendency creeping into how I do ministry. I mean, I'm the pastor --- I should be able to do all these things on my own. It doesn't impose upon other people, it's just easier for me to do it by myself, me and God, man, we got this covered.

Sounds holy, doesn't it? Problem is… it's not biblical. It's not beneficial. And it's not sustainable.

Years ago, when communism fell in Romania, the world was introduced to something heartbreaking. There were thousands of children living in overcrowded orphanages. Their basic needs were technically being met — food, clothing, shelter — but they were rarely held. Rarely touched. Rarely spoken to. There was no consistent love. No family. And doctors began to notice something; they called it “failure to thrive.”

These children were alive… but they weren’t developing. Months would go by, even years, and they still functioned like infants. Not because they lacked nutrition, but because they lacked connection. They didn’t just need food. They needed family.

And in a very real way, the same thing can happen spiritually. A person can come to faith in Jesus… be genuinely saved… and yet, if they try to live the Christian life in isolation, disconnected from other believers, they begin to stall out. They don’t grow. They don’t mature. They struggle to persevere. They begin to experience a kind of spiritual “failure to thrive.”

So today, as we continue our CONNECT series, we're going to see that connecting to Christ is first—but connecting to each other is how we grow up.