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From Chief Persecutor of the Church to Its Most Humble Servant – Acts 9

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From Chief Persecutor of the Church – To Its Most Humble Servant (Acts 9)

Part 8 in the Series – “The Beginning of an Unfinished Work”

The events recorded here by Luke in Acts 9 are directly linked to what transpired in Acts 6-8. Although Luke is not an eyewitness to this conversion account of Saul, he (at a later date) will become a travelling companion with Paul (formerly called Saul) and records Paul’s testimony of what occurred.

The apparent plan of the religious leaders (during this time) was to crush this movement of these “followers of the Way” by intimidating, persecuting and even killing those who spoke out against their “Jewish Laws”. We are told that Saul sought letters from the high priest who would authorize him to identify any followers of the “Way” (Jesus), arrest them, put them in chains, and bring them from Damascus back to Jerusalem for trial. While on his way to bring these Christ followers back to Jerusalem to be tried, he will travel toward Damascus believing there was a group of believers there. On his way to Damascus; he will meet Jesus and his life will forever be changed.

This was a turning point for Saul, marking the start of his conversion from being the chief persecutor of those who followed Jesus to one who will humbly follow and submit to Jesus as well as teach many others to do the same. This proves that God’s grace can reach anyone, even a person who is actively working against Him. This is evidenced by Saul’s recognition of Jesus as Lord and his reverent submission to Him by falling to the ground in awe of Him. This moment stopped Saul from fighting against God, and he became known as Paul, one of the most prominent advocates of the Christian Faith.

“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God, I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. (I Corinthians 15:1-11)

Despite all the evil things that Saul had done; had he rejected the call by Christ it would have been the greatest crime of all. Paul believed that Jesus was the Christ – the Son of God. He expressed that outwardly by accepting the call and then obeying the command. Faith is always followed by obedience because it involves trust in the one whom we are obeying. Shortly after seeing Jesus on the road to Damascus, and answering his call to submit and follow Him, Saul will be temporarily blinded. Saul is then instructed to go to Damascus and see a man named Ananias who will be used as an instrument of God, lay hands on Saul and heal him.

The Lord had specific plans for Saul (who would later be known as Paul), and Ananias was to be the instrument through whom the Lord would heal him and set Saul on a path of reconciliation with those he had harmed and become the chief evangelist to the Gentiles spread throughout the Greek speaking world. Because of Saul’s faith and trust in Jesus – he was filled with the Holy Spirit. This resulted in his obedience in baptism and opened the door of fellowship with the other believers in Damascus. This became the pattern of the New Testament Church.

Saul (a former Pharisee) knew the Old Testament Scriptures well and through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, he (like the other Apostles) will continuously preach and prove (by those very Scriptures) that Jesus was the promised Messiah the very Son of God! Luke will write a detailed account of the mission and ministry of Paul as well as the actions of some the other Apostles in the remaining chapters of Acts. Stay tuned for it is quite a story! The life Paul will live will span another 33-34 years and he will be responsible for writing at least 13 New Testament books/letters. Paul will experience many successes and challenges, ultimately meeting a martyr’s death by being beheaded.

From Chief Persecutor of the Church to its Most Humble Servant (Acts 9)Download

The Beginning of an Unfinished Work Part 3 – In the Name of Jesus (Acts 3)

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In the Name of Jesus – Acts 3

Part 3 in the Series – “The Beginning of an Unfinished Work”

This chapter (Acts 3) begins with a miraculous event that initially involves 3 people (Peter, John and an unnamed crippled man), but the results will have far greater impact than any of them imagined. It has probably been somewhere around 3-6 months since the resurrection of Jesus and the healing of this crippled man. Even though the early Christians were meeting in their homes (Acts 2:46), they still had the right to access the temple which is where this miracle takes place.

Peter and John had made their way to the temple (as it was their right to do so) to pray. They encounter an unnamed crippled man who had positioned himself at the gate called “Beautiful” where he would beg for assistance in the form of money or food. Although the crippled man placed himself there for material assistance, God would use this as an opportunity to perform a miracle and bless him beyond his expectations. Upon seeing Peter and John who were about to enter the temple, he asked them for money. Instead of ignoring him like so many others, they paid attention to the crippled man.

Peter (by the power of the Holy Spirit) said; “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” There may have been other miracles performed by the Apostles prior to this, but this is the first miracle recorded in the Book of Acts. The unique power and ability to heal others was given by Jesus to the Apostles when he was with them during his earthly ministry and this authority continued throughout the Book of Acts and other New Testament writings:

“Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:1-8)

The people who witnessed the miracle were astonished and perhaps ready to hear the words of Peter, thus he begins to preach a compelling sermon about the powerful name of Jesus. Peter is speaking to fellow Israelites (probably less likely to be the “religious leaders” and more likely the common everyday Jew of their day) and pointed out that this miracle (the healing of the crippled man) should not come as a surprise for the prophets foretold that this would happen. What should have been obvious was that Peter and the other Apostles were a living illustration that the power of God rested on them. Peter intentionally directed all attention away from himself and John and will point them to Christ for it was because of Jesus they had the power to do these miracles. Peter will remind those whom he spoke to, of their knowledge and or participation (perhaps out of ignorance) in the crucifixion of Christ and will call them to repent, turn to God and trust in the name of Jesus to save them.

““But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:8-13).

Many of those who were listening to Peter will heed his words and repent but some of the hearers of this message might have been less responsive to Peter’s words and thus the tide will begin to turn towards silencing their message by the religious leaders of their day. That will be the theme of the next chapter – Acts 4

In the Name of Jesus – Acts 3Download