Friday, November 23, 2012
Acts 8, 9:1-31 – Saul meets Jesus
"Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the
Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters
to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who
belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as
prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly
a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and
heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. (Acts 9:1-5)
I believe Saul's (who becomes the Apostle Paul) decision to follow
Christ is the greatest conversion story in the Bible. Here's a man who
completed hated people of "The Way" (a term used for Christians in the
early church). Saul was a Pharisee (one of the Jewish groups that
crucified Jesus Christ) and delighted in persecuting Christians. In
yesterday's reading, Saul approved the stoning of the disciple
Stephen. In today's reading, Saul made a point to "destroy the church.
Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put
them in prison." (Acts 8:3) Eventually, Saul had a run-in with the
resurrected Jesus, as shown in the passage above.
Could you imagine God appearing before you, just after you've
persecuted countless followers of His? It was obvious that Saul
deserved death for his actions and yet, God was merciful. God loved
Saul even though he persecuted the church and ultimately, God Himself,
as we (the church) are Christ's body. This is how forgiving God is –
that we can persecute Him and He still loves us. Wow! How great is our
God?
Not only was God forgiving of Saul, but He wanted to use him as well.
God told the disciple Ananias, about Saul, "This man is my chosen
instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to
the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my
name." (Acts 9:15-16) Saul, as we will read in the weeks ahead,
probably suffered more for the name of Jesus than any other disciple.
Saul's suffering is testament to the power of God's love. A love that
exceeds the sufferings of this life – "I consider that our present
sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be
revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) A love that is greater than everything
we know – "What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the
surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I
have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain
Christ." (Philippians 3:8)
God Bless,
Anthony
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