I was on social media the other day and I saw a portion of a conversation between Pete Holmes and George Janko. George is a famous YouTuber who has conversations about spirituality with famous guests on his own podcast. Pete grew up as a Christian and went to college to be a youth pastor before deciding to become a comedian. He got married at 22 to a Christian woman. Later on, she had an affair and left Pete. In the video, Pete said that he thought that he had a deal with God. He didn’t smoke, drink or swear. He read the Bible, prayed and witnessed to people. He thought that because he had done everything right, he would be protected by God from something like this happening, but he wasn’t. Disillusioned, he now sees God as an awareness that is greater than us, but we participate in.[i]
I tell you that story because I think that every human being has some kind of understanding of God, and the way we understand God frames our expectations of God. But what happens when something momentous occurs in our life and it shatters our expectations of God? What will we do then? I’m asking you these questions because, life in this world being what it is, all of us will at some point experience something that challenges our expectations of God, I want you to be prepared for what’s ahead. So how can we prepare for the challenges that lie ahead? As we think about that question, let’s dig into God’s Word as we continue our series on the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts called Setting the Prisoners Free.
Jesus’ Followers Carry on His Mission in the Power of the Holy Spirit
Last week, we looked at how God poured out His Holy Spirit on His people so that the mission of Jesus Christ—which is to release all of creation from its bondage to sin and brokenness, and then restore it to its rightful state of harmony with God—could continue.
And it did continue. The followers of Jesus, who were now filled with the Spirit of God, continued to share this good news of what Jesus had done—how He had come into the world as one of us, suffered and died on a cross, and then rose again to set us all free and begin a new creation that started with His resurrection and will reach fulfillment at the end of time.
And the good news is, God is inviting all of us to be part of His releasing and restoring work through faith in Jesus.
That’s why Jesus said: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
With the Spirit of God in them, Jesus’ followers were witnesses for Jesus in Jerusalem. They healed people in Jesus’ name of Jesus and they shared his message of release and restoration through him.
And then, as so often happens, those who are opposed to God fought back, and persecution broke out against the Jesus followers in Jerusalem. The first Christian martyr, Stephen, was killed because of this persecution.
Christians scattered throughout the known world, but as they did that, they took the message of Jesus with them. And so, they were witnesses for Jesus in Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth.
The Transformation of Saul
Now, at the stoning of Stephen, we meet someone named Paul—or Saul, as he was known then. He was a zealous, highly educated Pharisee, and he believed in the Jewish faith with fervor. He was there guarding the cloaks of those who were murdering Stephen, and he approved of what they were doing. After that, Saul became a leader in the persecution of Christians.
Luke tells us “… Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.” (Acts 8:3)
Now, when the number of Christians in Jerusalem started to get a little scarce—because they were all fleeing the city—Saul went to the Chief Priest in Jerusalem and got letters of introduction and extradition so that he could take some men with him on a 6-day journey to Damascus, round up whatever Christians he could find there, and bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment—which, for some, would surely have meant death.
As Saul and his group approached Damascus, “…suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” (Acts 9:3-6)
Saul was struck blind so his companions, who saw and heard enough to know that something supernatural had happened, led him into the city. There he sat in darkness, eating and drinking nothing, contemplating what he had seen and hear.
Meanwhile, in Damascus, the Lord appeared in a vision to a disciple named Ananias and told him to the house of Judas on Straight Street and lay his hands on Saul to restore his sight. Saul’s reputation as a murderous enemy of Christ followers preceded him to Damascus and Ananias was very reluctant to go to Saul. 15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” (Acts 9:15-16)
Ananias went to the house, placed his hands on his former enemy and said,“Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9:17) Something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes and he could see again. Immediately he was baptized, had something to eat and regained his strength.
Saul stayed in Damascus for several days and preached in synagogues, using his biblical knowledge and rabbinical training to prove that Jesus was God’s promised Messiah. And this former persecutor of the Christian church, who is now transformed by God, becomes one of—if not the—greatest evangelists in the history of Christianity.
But first, his old expectations of God needed to be shattered so he could be open to the new understanding of God that Jesus gave to him.
What Does All This Mean for Us
Like Pete Holmes and Saul, we humans, and this includes me, tend to make deals in our heart with God. And the deal kind of goes like this: “Well, I’ll do X for you, God, and then I expect you’re going to do Y for me.”
And the second part of the deal is something that we’re holding back from God. Just like: “I will follow you, God, but give me a happy marriage.” “I will trust in you, God, but don’t let anything bad happen to my kids.” “I love you, God, but I really need this business to work that I’ve invested so heavily in.”
Our deals are an effort to control God, but they never work. And we end up broken when our one-sided deals fall apart.
We walk the path to a stronger, more resilient faith when we place everything, all that we have and are, into Jesus’ loving care and trust that he will make all things work out for our good in the end. Jesus left heaven behind to enter this world and become one of us, dying on a cross and rising again so that we could have life with him. The good things of this world are not the ultimate prize of life. They only foreshadow the greater things of the life to come in the new heaven and earth with Jesus. Jesus is the ultimate prize of life. And it is a prize that we have not earned in any way. It’s a gift that we have been given. Jesus is the friend when we had no other who came, placed our hands on us, and said, “Dearly beloved, you are a forgiven child of God. I love you, I’m always with you and you are forever safe with me.” With a Saviour who loves us like Jesus, we can place everything in his loving care knowing that he has got us.
All for Jesus
Several years ago, Robin Mark led worship in a Christian church where he, his wife, and nearly all the other people were around the age of 30 and several young kids. During that time, a young man in the church was diagnosed with terminal cancer and the whole church was praying for him.
One day, a little girl came up to Robin, gave him a piece of paper, and said, “I have these words, which I think are from God, and I think they could be part of a song.”
She gave those words to Robin, and Robin took them and used them to write the song All for Jesus. And in that song, there are these lyrics: Jesus, all for Jesus, all I am and have and ever hope to be. All of my ambitions, hopes, and plans, I surrender these into Your hands. For it’s only in Your will that I am free.
Unfortunately, the young man for whom Robin’s church was praying died. However, as Robin said in a video where he share the song’s origins, “But we continued to sing the song because we knew at the end of everything, this is not the end, because there is a life that’s beyond this one. And we know that, in spite of what happened, God is for us and not against us.”[ii]
When I was at seminary, one of our professors gave us this definition of faith. He said, Faith is a lamb looking into the eyes of the shepherd who is carrying her home. Let me say those words again to you: Faith is a lamb looking into the eyes of the shepherd who’s carrying her home.
Dear friend, the challenge I wish to leave with you today is this: First, identify what you may be holding back from God—and then give it all to Jesus. And then, cling tightly to Him, as He holds you and carries you home. Amen.
[i] George Janko, “Peter Holmes & George Janko Debate About God | EP.97,” YouTube (Internet; available at: https://youtu.be/B9cHDbU0VHo?feature=shared; accessed August 28, 2025). The section I am referring to begins at 15:16.
[ii] “Robin Mark story behind All for Jesus,” Michael Hesford, YouTube (Internet; available at: https://youtu.be/lRMfyYMq3JY?feature=shared; accessed August 28, 2025).
Farewell to Shadowlands 