1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's
disciples. He went to the high priest 2and 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 as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he
neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you
persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6"Now
get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." NIV
taken from www.biblegateway.com
Frequently people will seem to be on a mission from God. They have decided, maybe they even believe they have heard from God himself, that they should take up a cause in the name of the Lord. Saul firmly believed he was doing God's work when he set out to make prisoners out of the followers of Jesus. He even had the blessing of the head honchos of the Synagogue. He wanted to be sure that the religion was not sullied by people who were promoting irreverent ideas.
I found an interesting twist in the King James Version. There, verses 5 and 6 read:
5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I
am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 6 And he
trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt 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.
I don't know which version is 'correct' from an original text perspective, but the Strongs Reference has the translation of these words from the Greek. When it talks about the pricks, it is referring to a large stick that had spikes or nails sticking out of it, often called a goad. It was used to prod oxen forward when they worked. To kick against it meant significant pain!
Jesus himself was telling this devout member of the Jewish race that he was not only doing something counter to God's wishes, but he was hurting himself in the process.
I also like the response of Saul to the Lord. He immediately knew that the speaker was God, but in the flash of a moment, when God identified himself as Jesus the son, Saul knew that he was on the wrong mission.
I wonder if he was waiting for that flash of light to turn into lightning or fire, searing him off of the face of the earth? Remember, the God of the Old Testament turned quickly to vengeance.
Saul was savvy enough to know that he needed to change his course. He truly desired to serve the Lord, and he wanted to know exactly what he should be doing instead, so he asked.
Jesus didn't bore him with a long instruction list telling Saul that he must convert to Christianity, leave his home and family to travel the world with the Good News, be shipwrecked, beaten, stoned, ridiculed, imprisoned, and eventually killed. All that would have been too much for Saul to handle.
Instead Jesus just told him the very next instruction...go into the city and you will hear what to do next. Almost like a treasure hunt...take six paces and find your next instruction hiding in the branches of the tallest tree!
I often wish God would let me know why certain things happen. But I can take encouragement from knowing that he only provides the information we need for the very next step. Perhaps we can't comprehend or handle the vision of the future. I just have to trust him enough to follow the clues which will eventually lead to the greatest treasure of all!
Are you on the right path...God's path not the worlds' (even if that worldly path is sanctioned by the church)? What is God telling you to do next?
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