Thursday, May 28th

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Thursday, May 28

Acts 26:1-21
So Agrippa said to Paul, "You have permission to speak for yourself." Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense: "I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews, especially because you are familiar with all the customs and controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

"My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

"I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.
"In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' And I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles--to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

"Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me.

I recently had a conversation with a friend who had some questions about a particular religious group. He said the group appeared to be a Christian denomination but that he was unfamiliar with the group’s theological position. He was wondering if I knew anything about that particular group.

I didn’t know all that much about the organization or their theological positions, but I knew enough to ask one question: What do they teach about Jesus?

Christian churches and denominations can differ on many issues; styles of worship, church polity; mode of baptism or manner of observing communion, but they must believe certain things about Jesus.

Jesus must be understood as the Son of God; that is, Jesus is both fully God and fully man; one with God the Father.

Jesus must be understood as being eternally existent and not a created being.

Jesus must be understood as the final and perfect sacrifice for sin.

Jesus must be understood as having been crucified, buried and risen again.

In other words, eventually all Christian theology and experience comes down to Jesus.

That’s what Paul is saying as he addresses King Agrippa:

At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' And I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.

For Paul it all came down to Jesus.

He didn’t just suddenly have a change of heart about throwing followers of Jesus in jail. He didn’t experience a mid-life crisis and decide to change professions. He had a personal encounter with Jesus himself.

The same is true for us.

Whatever your faith background might have been; whatever denomination or church tradition shaped your spiritual understanding; wherever the journey of your life has taken you; it all comes down to Jesus.

He meets you where you are; he confronts who you have been and who you are; he leads you from spiritual death to spiritual life through his grace and forgiveness; and he calls you to follow him into a new life.

Paul never forgot, and never stopped proclaiming, that it all comes down to Jesus.


Pastor Brian Coffey