September 9, 2024
The Apostle Paul undoubtedly had more influence upon the Church than any other believer. While the Roman Catholic Church highlights the primacy of Peter, Peter never served in a hierarchical position in the New Testament.
God called the Apostle Paul to be the key missionary evangelist in the early Church. God still calls servants today. As a retired Baptist university professor, I affirm that the Church needs to pray and emphasize to believers from adolescents to senior adults that God continues to call His people into ministry roles.
Some people, like Paul, have the blessing of growing up in devout homes. But when Paul was still called Saul, he perceived the Christian movement as a threat to his understanding of Judaism and persecuted the Church, believing that he was serving God by doing so (8:1–3).
Saul’s persecution of Christians took three forms. First, he threatened believers (9:1). Second, he purposed to martyr followers of Christ. Third, he requested what seems to be a letter of recommendation from Caiaphas — the same high priest before whom Jesus was tried — to travel to Damascus so that he could bring back Christians to Jerusalem as prisoners. But the Lord Jesus had a different calling for Saul.
A bright light flashed, and Saul fell to the ground. Did Saul prostrate himself, or was he knocked to the ground? In the Scriptures, God also called other servants — such as Jacob (Gen. 46:2) and Moses (Ex. 3:4) — by repeating the name of the individual.
Paul never claimed to have seen the incarnate Jesus during his ministry. Saul inquired about the identity of the One he encountered, asking, “Who are you, Lord?” He may have used the term “lord” as a title of respect, as was common in the culture, or he may have come to realize that Jesus is more than a mere man. Saul thought he was persecuting the Church. In reality, Saul was persecuting Jesus (v. 5). Perhaps Saul’s encounter with the risen Christ in the context of persecuting disciples was the source of Paul’s understanding of the Church as the body of Christ.
Saul’s companions were motionless and speechless. They heard a sound but did not see the risen Jesus. Saul was unable to see and was taken to Damascus, which was his travel destination, but now he ignored his mission of persecuting Christians.
God spoke to a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. God spoke to him in a vision. Ananias volunteered to obey prior to his knowledge of his mission — “Here I am, Lord.” The best means of discerning God’s will is to be an active disciple like Ananias.
I have known Christians who desire to know God’s will but are not active in serving the Lord. God told Ananias to go to a specific street named Straight, to a particular house belonging to Judas and to a particular man named Saul of Tarsus. In response, Ananias shared his fear because Saul had persecuted believers in Jerusalem. God repeated His command: “Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to take My name to Gentiles, kings and Israelites.” Paul knew in advance that his ministry would involve suffering for the name of Jesus.
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This lesson was written by Mark Rathel, professor at the Baptist College of Florida in Graceville, Fla., and originally published by The Baptist Paper. This study is based on the Explore the Bible curriculum from Lifeway Christian Resources.
