Acts 9:21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name?” Acts 9 shows a glimpse of the early church even before it has a name. Its members live in constant fear of arrest and persecution—if not from the Romans, then from the Jewish authorities. Already a leader named Stephen has been publicly stoned. And no one inspires more fear in the hearts of the early Christians than a man named Saul, who participated in Stephen’s execution. Then comes a miraculous turnabout on the road to Damascus. (Said to be the oldest continually occupied city in the world, Damascus is the capital of present-day Syria.) Saul opposes the new sect so fiercely that he undertakes the 150-mile journey from Jerusalem in order to persecute Christians there. His “Damascus road encounter” abruptly alters his mission. In a supernatural intervention, God converts, rather than destroys, the chief enemy of his young church. Acts retells the events of this chapter in several places, for Saul’s conversion shakes the world of his day. Such is his murderous reputation, however, that other Christians mistrust him and welcome him only gradually. Switching Sides Against all odds, God taps Saul, the former persecutor, to lead the young church. Soon he has a new name, Paul, and is on the other side of the persecutors’ whips; his former colleagues are now trying to kill him because of his effectiveness in bringing others to Christ. In the end, Paul has to flee the Jewish zealots he originally came to aid. Although Luke does not mention it, sometime during this period Paul withdraws to Arabia, where he has an extended time to think through his new faith and mission (see Galatians 1:17). In the course of four great missionary journeys, Paul will take the Good News of the gospel around the shores of the Mediterranean, and he also finds time to write many letters to his new converts. Life Questions Have you ever experienced an abrupt turnaround in your life? |
Gracias doy a mi Dios siempre por vosotros, por la gracia de Dios que os fue dada en Cristo Jesús; porque en todas las cosas fuisteis enriquecidos en él, en toda palabra y en toda ciencia; así como el testimonio acerca de Cristo ha sido confirmado en vosotros, de tal manera que nada os falta en ningún don, esperando la manifestación de nuestro Señor Jesucristo; el cual también os confirmará hasta el fin, para que seáis irreprensibles en el día de nuestro Señor Jesucristo. Fiel es Dios, por el cual fuisteis llamados a la comunión con su Hijo Jesucristo nuestro Señor. Os ruego, pues, hermanos, por el nombre de nuestro Señor Jesucristo, que habléis todos una misma cosa , y que no haya entre vosotros divisiones , sino que estéis perfectamente unidos en una misma mente y en un mismo parecer . Porque he sido informado acerca de vosotros, hermanos míos, por los de Cloé, que hay entre vosotros contiendas. Quiero decir, que cada uno de vosotros dice: Yo soy de Pablo; y y
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