Acts 9:1-2
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 prisoners to Jerusalem.
A number of years ago I led a team of 7 men on a short term mission project in the Dominican Republic. We served by helping build an orphanage for a Christian ministry in a small village in the mountains. After dinner one night the power went out in the town where the project was located, which was a common occurrence in the D.R. So we lit some candles and just sat around and talked. Before long guys started telling stories about their lives; and specifically, about what they were like before they became Christians; or before they got serious about following Jesus.
It was like sharing “faith-stories” in reverse. And we all had a “before Jesus” story. We had all done our share of dumb, foolish and downright dangerous things, and there was a lot of laughter and “I can’t believe you did that!” kind of comments. But, by the time we had run out of stories, there was simply a deep and glad appreciation of the power of the gospel to transform.
As the story of Saul of Tarsus begins we see a stark “before Jesus” story.
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 prisoners to Jerusalem.
Saul of Tarsus was not a nice guy. We’ll talk a little later this week about his transformation into Paul the Apostle, but for now, I just want you to see the raw material Jesus was dealing with here.
At this point in his life Saul’s goal and joy was to chase down, arrest, and punish anyone he could find who was known to be a follower of Jesus of Nazareth. He hated what was known as “The Way” because he regarded it as a dangerous and blasphemous sect that needed and deserved to be stamped out as quickly as possible, and with violence if necessary.
In other words, Saul was about as far from becoming a follower of Jesus as can be imagined. But, as we will find out as we continue the story, Jesus is not limited by our sinfulness. Jesus is not intimidated by our bad behavior; our rage; our pride; our ignorance or our foolishness.
Despite all that, Jesus pursues us anyway.
And that was the truth 7 tired, dirty and very grateful men celebrated that night long ago in the Dominican Republic.
Pastor Brian Coffey
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