(Reference Acts of the apostles chapter 8 and 9).
Saul of Tarsus was a zealous Jew.He was faithful to his religion and considered the followers of Christ a threat to the traditional Jewish religion.
So he went about in every way possible to subdue and do away with the church.
The book of Acts records the first martyr of Christian history.
It was Stephen ,a man full of Holy Spirit, who was stoned to death.
Saul of Tarsus is introduced here as the young man ,at whose feet the witnesses laid down their robes,even as they stoned Stephen to death.
The martyrdom of Stephen has been described as the hinge that changed the world for ever by Ravi Z.
A great persecution of the church broke out at that time and Saul of Tarsus led many of these attacks,entering churches and imprisoning believers.
This same Saul ,in his zeal for his religion ,the bible says “......yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord…”.goes to the high priest in the synagogue and demands a letter to Damascus where whenever he finds these believers he would capture them and bring them back to Jerusalem as prisoners.
He gets the letter to that effect and starts travelling to Damascus.
However the Lord has his own plan for Saul’s life.
As he nears Damascus suddenly a light from heaven shines on Saul and he falls down to the earth and hears a voice saying on to him ,’Saul,Saul why are you persecuting me?’
So he asks ,’who are you Lord?’
The Lord answered ,’I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.......’
And he trembling and astonished said,”Lord,what will thou have me to do?”
and the Lord said unto him , “arise, and go into the city ,and it shall be told thee what thou must do.”
The men who were with Saul heard the voice but saw no one.
When Saul gets up from the ground he has lost his sight ,so his companions lead him into Damascus.
For three days in Damascus Saul is blind and does not eat or drink.
In the meantime the Lord in a vision speaks to a disciple named Ananias in Damascus.
Acts 9 vs 11and12says,
Vs11.And the Lord said on to him,”Arise and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus: for, behold he prayeth.(I find this personally so uplifting...God who hears our prayer.)
Vs12.And hath seen a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him that he might receive his sight” .
As would be expected Ananias expresses his apprehension and he recounts to the Lord of Saul’s evil deeds and how he had come with a letter from the high priest to bind everyone who calls on the name of the Lord.
Vs 15.But the Lord said on to him,Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel on to me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the children of Israel.
Vs16.For I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.
Ananias obeys the Lord and prays for Paul as commanded by the Lord and Paul receives his sight and is filled with the Holy spirit.
Thus began the journey of one of the most impactful followers of Christ whom the Lord used mightily as promised ,to bear his name to us Gentiles, to the Jews and to the Kings.
Saul of Tarsus who is known as apostle Paul wrote 13 of the 27 books of the new Testament.
Four of these books were written from behind a prison cell.
This same Saul of Tarsus in one of his letters to Philippians chapter 3 verse 8 writes,’
Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss but for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung,that I may win Christ..
The Holy Spirit is the missionary and the mission field the heart of man.
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