37As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, "May I say something to you?"
"Do you speak Greek?" he replied. 38"Aren't you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the desert some time ago?"
39Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people."
40Having received the commander's permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic:
1"Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense." 2When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet.
Then Paul said: 3"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. 4I persecuted the followers of this Way to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, 5as also the high priest and all the Council can testify. I even obtained letters from them to their brothers in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished.
6"About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me. 7I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, 'Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?'
8" 'Who are you, Lord?' I asked.
" 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,' he replied. 9My companions saw the light, but they did not understand the voice of him who was speaking to me.
10"'What shall I do, Lord?' I asked.
"'Get up,' the Lord said, 'and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.' 11My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.
12"A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there. 13He stood beside me and said, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight!' And at that very moment I was able to see him.
4"Then he said: 'The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15You will be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.'
17"When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18and saw the Lord speaking. 'Quick!' he said to me. 'Leave Jerusalem immediately, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'
19" 'Lord,' I replied, 'these men know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. 20And when the blood of your martyr tephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.'
21"Then the Lord said to me, 'Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.' "
Saul was a man who wrongly put many people in jail, and he even turned the other way when he saw someone get murdered for their faith. But regardless of what Saul had done, God called out to Saul, and he came to accept Christ. God forgives Paul of all his sins, regardless of what sins Paul has committed and even protects Paul. God forgiving Paul was what stood out the most for me in this passage. I think that many times we hear God calling out to us, and ultimately because of our Pride we turn away from God. We give excuses that we are too sinful, and that we are not even worthy of being forgiven, but all thes reasons we give is our ultimately pride. It took me a very long time to realize that my pride is the biggest thing that stands in the way of my relationship with God, and I am thankful everyday for his forgiveness.
Anyways... its almost FRIDAY!!! FIGHTING everyone!!!!!
2 comments:
Jen, thanks for sharing your reflection! You made an interesting point about pride getting in the way of us and God. Saul was a man who committed many sins against God, yet if it wasn't for God's grace, he would have continued with his murderous campaign while believing he was a righteous man doing the work of God. I guess it goes to show how pride can distort the sense of who we really are and our perception of who God really is. I can't help to think that it was by God's grace that the Truth was revealed to Paul and also that it was by grace that Paul was able to withstand the implications. I wonder if at this moment, God revealed the whole truth of who I really am I'd be able to accept it let alone strive to live in God's Holy presence. Would I not rather hide or in some way fall into the pits of despair. Yet,with what little glimpses I get of what a sinner I am, I'm thankful that God does not bid me to look at my sins but to look to Jesus Christ. Rather than constantly picking at my sins and trying to manage it as best I can, it is more humbling to freely confess that I am a hopeless sinner and the only way I am right with God is solely because of what Jesus has done on the cross. And, it is by His grace that I can strive to be more like Jesus Christ.
thanks jen for such an honest reflection. you are so right to say that pride and unbelief in all their insidious forms have kept many from entering the kingdom of God. paul would have continued in his arrogance and self-righteousness, convinced of the fact that he was "living" for God, if Jesus had not intervened as radically as He did. and thank you lynn for such a moving comment. i think God lets us see only a glimpse of our sinful selves. if He allowed us to see our sin in its entirety, i honestly think that we would be struck dead. we are horrified and grieved even by the little we do see, enough to cast ourselves onto God's mercy. what a wonder it is that He has forgiven us!
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