THE DAMASCUS ROAD

IT'S TIME TO ACT · WEEK 11 OF 12 THE DAMASCUS ROAD Acts 9:1–19 (ESV) Sunday , August 9, 2026 · 10AM · Imagine Church USA — Pembroke Pines bridge from last week: Acts 8:26–40 · bridge to next week: Acts 9:20–31 BIG IDEA (Repeat 3–4 times throughout) "Nobody is too far gone for God to stop." Supporting line: "The road that's taking you away from God can become the road where God gets a hold of you." OPENING HOOK (Walk up with fire. Start in the tension of someone everybody else gave up on.) Let me ask you something today . Has there ever been someone in your life you gave up on?

Not because you stopped loving them — because they were too far gone. Too hard. Too angry . Too committed to the wrong road for you to believe they'd ever turn around. Church, I need you to meet a man named Saul. We've met him before in this series.

Two weeks ago, when Stephen was on his knees getting stoned to death for preaching Jesus, Scripture told us a young man was standing there — holding the coats of the men throwing the rocks — giving his approval to the murder (Acts 7:58, 8:1). That was Saul's introduction. Now, in chapter 9, he's not holding coats anymore. He's leading the charge himself. Verse 1 — "still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord." Not cooling of f.

Not having second thoughts. Breathing it. Like oxygen. Like it was keeping him alive. He goes to the high priest.

Gets legal letters. Authority to hunt down men and women who love Jesus, drag them out of their homes in chains, and bring them back to be destroyed. This is not a man searching for God. This is a man hunting God's people. And on the road — while he is doing it, in the middle of the mission, full speed, full rage — God stopped him.Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 1

Not in a church. Not on his knees. Not after he ran out of anger . On the road. Mid-stride. Mid-mission.

Mid-sin. Church, hear me — Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. Not the man with the letters in his bag. Not the person in this room today who thinks they've gone too far . Nobody . THE TEXT (Read it steady .

Let the light hit before you explain it.) Set the scene: Saul is on the road to Damascus with legal authority to arrest and imprison Christians. He is not looking for Jesus. Jesus is about to look for him. Acts 9:1–19 (ESV) "But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the W ay, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he went on his way , he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.

And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?' And he said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city , and you will be told what you are to do.' The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing.

So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, 'Ananias.' And he said, 'Here I am, Lord.' And the Lord said to him, 'Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.'

But Ananias answered, 'Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.' But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how much he must suf fer for the sake of my name.' So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'

And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened." (Pause. Look up.) Watch the movement of this chapter . Verse 1 — a man breathing murder .

Verse 19 — a man sitting at a table, eating, strengthened, filled with the Holy Spirit. Same road. Same day . Two different men. Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 2

POINT 1 — GOD CAN STOP YOU IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR WORST MOMENT (Foundation point. Build the confidence that God doesn't wait for you to clean up.) Look at verse 3 again. "Now as he went on his way , he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him." Not after Damascus. Not after the arrests.

On the way . God didn't wait for Saul to finish the mission and feel guilty about it. God didn't wait for Saul to hit rock bottom. God stopped him at the top of his rage — full speed, full commitment, full certainty that he was right. Church, write this down — You don't have to find God. Sometimes God finds you in the middle of running from Him.

And notice how God calls him — "Saul, Saul." Said twice. That's not anger . That's intimacy . It's the same pattern you see all through Scripture — "Martha, Martha." "Simon, Simon."

God knew his name before Saul ever surrendered his life. God wasn't confused about who Saul was. God was never confused about who Saul was becoming. (Real life: think about the moment you were the most hardened — the middle of the addiction, the middle of the affair , the middle of the anger you couldn't put down. You thought you had to get right before God would show up. But God has never waited for clean.

He shows up in the middle of the mess and calls your name.) Maybe you're the parent who lost it on your kids again last night and you're sitting here this morning ashamed. Maybe you're the one scrolling through something at 1am you know you shouldn't be looking at. Maybe you haven't opened your Bible in six months and part of you thinks you're too far behind to start now . Maybe it's the bottle, the pills, the vape, the thing you keep telling yourself you have under control.

Whatever road you're on right now — God is not waiting for you to pull over first. This week: stop believing the lie that you have to fix yourself before God will meet you. He met Saul on the road, not after he repented. Let Him meet you where you actually are. (Preaching moment — lift it.)

Somebody in this room has been running so hard, for so long, in the wrong direction — and you've convinced yourself God gave up watching for you. Hear me — He didn't lose track of you on the road. He's been waiting for the exact moment to stop you. Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. Repeatable line: "God doesn't wait for you to slow down.

He'll stop you at full speed." POINT 2 — GOD SEES WHO YOU'RE BECOMING, NOT JUST WHO YOU'VE BEEN (Conviction point. This is the heart. Get personal about who we write off.) Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 3

Now look at Ananias. God tells him to go find Saul. And Ananias does something very human — he argues with God about the man's résumé. "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name." Ananias isn't being rebellious.

He's terrified. Every believer in Damascus had heard Saul's name and locked their doors. Ananias is doing math based on Saul's past. God is doing math based on Saul's future. And listen to God's answer — He doesn't correct the facts. He doesn't say "you've got the wrong information."

Saul really did do all of that. God simply says: "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel." Chosen. While the whole church was calling him "dangerous," heaven was already calling him "chosen." (Slow down. T ender .)

Church, don't miss this — Don't let somebody's past convince you God doesn't have a future for them. Somebody in your life has a reputation that follows them into every room. Your family already decided who they are. Your church already decided who they are. You already decided who they are. And you might be right about their past.

But you don't get the final word on their future. God does. (Real life: the family member everybody's stopped praying for . The friend whose name makes people sigh. The person from your past you still flinch at. God isn't asking your opinion of who they've been.

He's already decided who He's making them into.) This week: think of the person you've already written of f as "too far gone." Repent of your verdict, and start praying God's plan over them instead of your assessment of their past. (Preaching moment — full voice.) Somebody today is the "Saul" in somebody else's story — and somebody today is the "Ananias" who's been too afraid to go find them. And if we're honest — some of you are both.

You've already written somebody of f. And quietly , you've believed the same verdict about yourself. God sees who you're becoming, not just who you've been. Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. Repeatable line: "Heaven doesn't gossip about your past.

Heaven prophesies over your future." POINT 3 — OBEDIENCE THAT COSTS YOU SOMETHING UNLOCKS SOMEBODY ELSE'S DESTINY (Breakthrough point. Let it climb into boldness and immediate response.) Now watch what Ananias actually does with his fear . Verse 17 — "So Ananias departed and entered the house."Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 4

He didn't get a guarantee. He didn't get a bodyguard. He walked into the house of the man who had legal paperwork to arrest people who looked exactly like him. That takes real courage — not the absence of fear , but obedience in spite of it. And listen to the very first word out of his mouth when he lays hands on the man who came to destroy his church — "Brother Saul." Not "prisoner ."

Not "murderer ." Not "the man everybody's afraid of." "Brother ." Ananias extended family before Saul had earned it. Grace before proof. Love before evidence it was safe to love.

(Don't rush this next part. This is the heart of the whole story .) And the moment he obeys — "immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened." Sight. Baptism.

Strength. In one verse. Church, if Ananias stays home — if fear wins that day — there's no Apostle Paul. No thirteen letters in your New Testament. No gospel carried to kings and Caesar's household and the nations of the earth. One obedient act, from a man history barely remembers, released the ministry of the man who would shape the entire church.

Somebody's calling is waiting on your obedience. (Preaching moment — lift it, let it land.) There is a "Saul" in your life right now — somebody intimidating, somebody with a reputation, somebody you'd rather avoid than approach — and the only thing standing between them and their calling — is somebody willing to walk into the house anyway . Maybe it's the family member you haven't called since the blowup, and every time their name comes up your stomach tightens. Maybe it's the friend from your old life who just got out of rehab, and everybody's waiting to see if it sticks before they'll trust them again.

Maybe it's the coworker whose reputation walks into the room before they do. Maybe it's texting the person who hurt you first, and being the one brave enough to say "brother" or "sister" again before they've earned it. This week: identify the uncomfortable assignment God has been nudging you toward — the hard conversation, the person you're avoiding, the "Saul" you're scared of — and take the step, even shaking. Repeatable line: "Somebody's calling is waiting on your obedience." Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 5

Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. BRINGING IT HOME Look at where this story goes. The same hands that once carried arrest warrants to drag Christians out of their homes — would go on to carry letters that built the church for two thousand years. The same voice that once breathed threats and murder — would go on to write, "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21). The same man who stood approving as Stephen was stoned — would one day be stoned himself for the name of Jesus, and get back up. God didn't just save Saul.

God repurposed everything Saul already was. His zeal didn't disappear — it got redirected. His boldness didn't disappear — it got redirected. His relentless drive didn't disappear — it got redirected. (Land the picture.

Slow . Let it settle.) Whatever is in you right now — the intensity , the drive, the fire, even the parts of you that have been pointed the wrong direction your whole life — God isn't asking you to become someone else. He's asking to redirect who you already are. That's not just Saul's story .

That's your comeback. So let me ask you. What if the road you're on right now — the one you're ashamed of, the one you thought disqualified you — is the exact road God is about to meet you on? Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. The road that's taking you away from God — can become the road where God gets a hold of you.

Your comeback starts now . WHAT DO I DO THIS WEEK? Action steps from the message: 1. Stop waiting to clean up. If you've been holding God at arm's length until you "get it together ," stop.

Bring Him exactly what's happening right now — mid-road, mid-mess. 2. Name your Saul. Think of one person you've quietly written of f as too far gone — and start praying God's future over them instead of repeating their past. Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 6

3. Be an Ananias. Identify the uncomfortable assignment — the conversation, the visit, the outreach — God's been nudging you toward, and take the step this week, even if your hands are shaking. 4. Call somebody "brother" or "sister" before they've earned it. Extend grace first.

That's what breaks reputations and builds families. 5. Let God redirect, not erase. Ask God to take your drive, your intensity , your fight — and point it at your calling instead of your past. LIVE THE ACT CHALLENGE — FILLED. SENT.

TOGETHER. (ACTS 17:6) A — ASK: Pray for one person by name every morning. C — COMMIT : Fast one meal every week for South Florida. T — TELL: Invite one person to church every Sunday . Download the FREE 12-W eek Acts Reading Guide and live the challenge daily: imaginechurch.us/act 🏠 Join an Imagine Group: Tuesday — Miami 7:30 PM · W ednesday — Cooper City 7:30 PM · Friday — Deerfield Beach 7:30 PM Come back next Sunday — Week 12, Series Finale (Acts 9:20–31): the persecutor becomes the preacher , and the church he tried to destroy is multiplied. ALTAR CALL (Warm.

Three moments — salvation for the one still running, salvation for the one doing this for the very first time, and a sending prayer for the believer God is calling to reach out.) Every head bowed. Every eye closed. Nobody looking around — this is between you and God. There are three kinds of people in this room today . 1.

THE ONE ON THE ROAD — A CALL TO SAL VATION You've been running. Maybe not from a church, but from God — full speed, full certainty , convinced you're too far gone or too far down the wrong road to ever turn around. Maybe you grew up knowing all of this and walked away from it. Maybe you've circled this decision for years and always found a reason to put it of f one more week. Today , the light is stopping you. Right here.

Right now . There is nothing you've done that disqualifies you from being chosen. If that's you, pray this with me, right where you're sitting: "Jesus — I've been running, and I didn't even know it was from You. I stop right here. I believe You died and rose for me. Forgive me.

Fill me with Your Spirit. Whatever I've been becoming, redirect it toward You. I'm Yours. Amen." 2. THE FIRST TIME — NEVER MADE JESUS LORD OF YOUR LIFE Now listen — this next one is dif ferent.

Maybe you've never done this. Not recommitting. Not coming back. Not "getting right" after wandering of f. This is the first time. Ever .

Maybe you've sat in church your whole life and nobody ever actually asked you this before today . Maybe you always assumed you were already in — because you were a good person, or your family was religious, or you just show up on Sundays. Hear me — none of that makes Him Lord. Only you can do that. And today can be the very first day of your life that you actually do. If this is genuinely the first time, pray this with me:Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 7

"Jesus — for the first time in my life, I'm making You Lord. Not my family's faith. Not my church attendance. Mine. I believe You are the Son of God, that You died for me, and that You rose again. T oday , for the first time, I give You my life.

Come in. Amen." 3. THE ONE GOD IS ASKING T O BE AN ANANIAS This one's for the believers in the room. You've been avoiding somebody — a conversation, a visit, a phone call — because they scare you, or their reputation scares you. Today , God is asking you to walk into the house anyway .

"God, give me the courage to call someone 'brother' or 'sister' before they've earned it. Send me to the person everybody else is afraid of. I'll go, even shaking. Here I am. Send me." THE WHOLE HOUSE — lift your hands.

Father — thank You that You never stop chasing the ones everybody else gave up on. For the one who just came home today — welcome. For the one who just made You Lord for the very first time in their life — welcome. And for every believer You're sending to a "Saul" — give us the courage to go. Stop us on our road today . Redirect everything in us toward You.

In Jesus' name. Amen. This is what IT'S TIME TO ACT looks like. Not a church that writes people of f. A church that believes nobody is too far gone.

The road that was taking you away from God — just became the road where He got a hold of you. Your comeback — and somebody else's — start now . 🍞🍷 COMMUNION MOMENT (Short. W arm. T ie it directly to the last line of today's text — don't rush this.) Before you sit down — look at the very last verse of our text today .

Acts 9:19 — after the light, after three days of blindness, after Ananias walked into that house and called him "brother" — "...and taking food, he was strengthened." Saul had just survived the most radical encounter of his entire life. Everything he built was gone in a moment. And before he ever preaches a sermon, before he plants a single church, before he writes a single letter — he sits down at a table and eats. Church, that's Communion.

Whatever road brought you into this room today — this table is where God strengthens you for what's next. (Have the elements distributed. Slow down. Let it be quiet.) In a moment, we're going to take the bread and the cup together .

This bread represents His body — broken for you, so that whatever's broken in you could be made whole. "This is my body , which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." — Luke 22:19 (Eat together .) This cup represents His blood — the new covenant, poured out so that nothing in your past could ever again be held against you. "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood." — Luke 22:20 Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 8

(Drink together .) Father — thank You for this table. Thank You that just like Saul, we can sit down after our own Damascus Road and be strengthened for what You're calling us to next. Strengthen every person in this room right now — body , soul, and spirit. In Jesus' name. Amen. 📣 ANNOUNCEMENTS 1.

JOIN THE TEAM — QUICK VISION (Shift the energy . Personal and direct — "let me pull back the curtain for a second.") Before you go — can I share something with you real quick? We are building a team. Hear me — we are not staying in this room. By January , we believe God is moving us into a new place.

That means these next five months are our growth months. There is a neighborhood around us right now that we have not reached yet — and we are not going to reach it by staying comfortable and staying small. Church, this is a Nehemiah moment. "Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suf fer derision... And they said, 'Let us rise up and build.' So they strengthened their hands for the good work." — Nehemiah 2:17–18 (ESV) Nehemiah didn't rebuild that wall by himself.

It took everybody — dif ferent families, dif ferent sections, dif ferent gifts, one wall. That's us right now . We need everyone on a team. Not some of you. Not just the ones who already serve. Everyone in this room.

If you've been sitting on the sidelines watching what God is doing here — this is your invitation. W e need your hands, your gifts, your Saturdays, your yes. This is not a spectator season. This is a build season. Talk to a team leader today , fill out a card, do whatever it takes — but get on a team. We need you to be part of what God is doing here.

2. THE "US" SERIES — STARTING AUGUST 23RD (Lighter energy — excited, inviting. Distribute invite cards through the room as you talk. Screen: "US" series graphic.) Starting August 23rd , we're launching a brand-new series called "US." We're passing out invite cards right now — I want every single person in this room to take one, and honestly , take a few .

This is one of the best opportunities all year to bring somebody with you. Because "Us" is about relationships. And that's not a topic — that's everybody's life. Whether you've been married 7 years, 4 years, 10 years, or 30 years. Whether you've been divorced, remarried, or you're rebuilding. Whether you're in a relationship right now , wanting to be engaged, single and wondering if it's ever going to happen, or single and totally at peace —Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 9

this series is for you. Because here's what Scripture says about us and relationship: "Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow . But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together , they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him — a threefold cord is not quickly broken." — Ecclesiastes 4:9– 12 (ESV) We were never meant to do life alone.

And when Christ is the third cord in it — marriage, friendship, family — it doesn't break easily . We're going to open up Scripture and talk honestly about what we're actually called to as Christians in our relationships — dating, marriage, friendship, family . This is one of the most real, most talked-about, most needed topics in people's lives right now , and we're going to bring the truth to it. Take a card. T ake three. Invite somebody who needs this.

It's going to be powerful. 💛 GIVING MOMENT (Tie it directly back to the vision you just cast. This isn't a separate ask — it's the same vision.) Before we close, I want to talk to you for a minute about giving. You just heard the vision — a new place by January , five months of growth, a whole neighborhood we're called to reach. Church, hear me — what we're giving right now will not take us to where God is taking us. I'm not saying that to guilt anybody .

I'm saying it because I believe God for increase. I believe God for provision that matches the assignment. And I believe He moves through the giving of His people. If God stopped you today — on your own Damascus Road — then let your giving be part of your comeback too. Your comeback starts now — and sometimes it starts in your wallet before it shows up anywhere else. God actually tells us to test Him on this: "Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house.

And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need." — Malachi 3:10 (ESV) That's not a suggestion. That's God saying, "T ry Me." He's not asking you to give out of what you have. He's inviting you to give your way into what He wants to pour out. I'm asking you to do two things: give today , as an act of worship and trust, and commit — commit to being a consistent giver in this house, because consistent giving is what builds what God just showed us.

Position yourself for what's coming. Sow into it. Let's believe God together for the increase we need to reach this neighborhood and step into what's next. (Take the offering. Pray briefly over it.)

7 VIRAL REEL HOOKS 1. "He had letters in his bag to arrest Christians. God had a calling on his life the whole time." 2. "Nobody is too far gone for God to stop — not even the man hunting His church."Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 10

3. "God didn't wait for him to slow down. He stopped him at full speed." 4. "Heaven doesn't gossip about your past. Heaven prophesies over your future."

5. "The man who approved a murder became the man who wrote half the New Testament." 6. "Somebody's calling is waiting on your obedience." 7. "God isn't asking you to become someone else.

He's asking to redirect who you already are." 15 ONE-LINER QUOTES 1. "Nobody is too far gone for God to stop." 2. "The road that's taking you away from God can become the road where God gets a hold of you." 3.

"You don't have to find God. Sometimes God finds you in the middle of running from Him." 4. "God doesn't wait for you to slow down. He'll stop you at full speed." 5.

"God wasn't confused about who Saul was. He was never confused about who Saul was becoming." 6. "Don't let somebody's past convince you God doesn't have a future for them." 7. "Heaven doesn't gossip about your past.

Heaven prophesies over your future." 8. "Ananias extended family before Saul had earned it. Grace before proof." 9. "Somebody's calling is waiting on your obedience."

10. "One obedient act released the ministry that would shape the whole church." 11. "God didn't just save Saul. God repurposed everything Saul already was." 12.

"His zeal didn't disappear . It got redirected." 13. "God isn't asking you to become someone else. He's asking to redirect who you already are." 14.

"The road you're ashamed of might be the exact road God is about to meet you on." 15. "Your comeback starts now ." 14-SLIDE DECK 1. TITLE — IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 · "The Damascus Road" · Acts 9:1–19 2. Has there ever been someone in your life you gave up on — because they were too far gone?

3. BIG IDEA: Nobody is too far gone for God to stop. 4. Acts 9:1–19 (ESV) — Saul's encounter on the road to Damascus (scripture slide) 5. Verse 1: a man breathing threats and murder . / Verse 19: a man strengthened, filled with the Spirit. 6.

POINT 1 — God doesn't wait for you to slow down. He'll stop you at full speed. 7. You don't have to find God. Sometimes God finds you in the middle of running from Him. 8.

POINT 2 — Heaven doesn't gossip about your past. Heaven prophesies over your future. 9. Don't let somebody's past convince you God doesn't have a future for them. 10. POINT 3 — Somebody's calling is waiting on your obedience.

11. "Brother Saul…" — Acts 9:17 (ESV) — grace before proof. 12. BIG IDEA REPEA T — The road that's taking you away from God can become the road where He gets a hold of you. 13. THIS WEEK — ACT: ASK — pray for one by name · COMMIT — fast one meal · TELL — invite one to church.

14. CALL TO ACTION — Nobody is too far gone. 👉 imaginechurch.us/act · Filled. Sent. T ogether . · Your comeback starts now . Imagine Church USA · IT'S TIME TO ACT · Week 1 1 — The Damascus Road 11