A Ghastly Fellow And The Road To Damascus

⁵⁴ When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. ⁵⁵ But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, ⁵⁶ and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
⁵⁷ Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; ⁵⁸ and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” ⁶⁰ Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. –Acts 7:54-60

Saul Persecutes the Church

 ¹ Now Saul was consenting to his death.
At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. ² And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him.
³ As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. –Acts 8:1-3

 ¹ Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest ² and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. –Acts 9:1-2

Can you imagine this scene? First there was the brutal beating and murder of Jesus and now the assault continues after the followers. No wonder the believers scattered. But, in all of this horror, the believers continued to preach this Jesus.

If I may get off track for a moment;

If Christ did not rise from the dead and appear to the disciples, why would they continue to preach His name?    

The persecution of the newly formed “church” had already begun. I can only imagine what life was like. I imagine something like the Nazi’s all out persecution of the Jews during WWII.  Imagine going to work in fear of being captured, or coming home to find your family gone. I shudder to think about it, but think about it we must. According to the book of Revelation, another day of persecution is coming. In fact, it is here in some parts of the world. In China, North Korea and other places, Christians can be dragged from there homes or off the streets at any time and imprisoned and/or killed. This persecution will eventually be here in the United States and around the globe. Already we see the beginning here as Christmas is replaced with “Holiday” and God is removed from any public place.

Our Constitutional rights of Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Speech are long gone, at least outside our homes. Even a pastor who preaches God’s truth from the pulpit will soon be tried for intolerance and hate speech.    

But where is God in all of this? Let’s read on…

 ³ As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. ⁴ Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” ⁵ And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”
Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
⁶ So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”
Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” ⁷ And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. ⁸ Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹ And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. –Acts 9:3-9

¹⁷ And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized.
¹⁹ So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. –Acts 9:17-19

Saul Preaches Christ

 ²⁰ Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.
²¹ Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?”
²² But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ. –Acts 9:20-22

What a turn-around. This minister of murder and mayhem is now preaching the very same Jesus he sought to destroy. I believe Saul (Paul) had every good intention. He truly believed that Jesus was not God; but when he met Jesus, he didn’t argue, he didn’t consider what the cost would be. He asked “Lord, what do You want me to do?” This man so greatly feared by the believers would go on to preach throughout the known world, even to the household of the Roman emperor Nero. He would one day give his life for his beliefs.

God knew Paul’s heart. God saw what Paul could and would become. We don’t know who will or won’t come to saving faith, but what we do know, we need to share. Just like the early believers, no matter what threats we face, we can stand firm in our faith knowing that God is still on His throne. What may seem to be our un-doing, may very well be one of God’s biggest asset’s. We need to walk in courage, strength, and faith. Don’t let anyone or anything scare you out of doing what God has laid on your heart.

Paul later stated:

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” –Phil. 4:13

God bless~