Soon after Paul’s First Missionary Journey, the Church in Antioch sent Paul and Silas to all of the churches that had been planted in Asia Minor on the First Journey, strengthening the disciples and appointing elders in each church. As Paul was planning to travel northward into Bithynia, in a vision, God told him to continue west into Europe, and after arriving in Greece, Paul preached the gospel and planted more churches as he traveled to Philippi, Thessalonica, Athens, and Corinth. Following his return to his “home church” in Antioch, Paul then embarked on his Third Missionary Journey, once again visiting the churches that he had planted on his first two journeys.

After his return, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, sensing that he would encounter much opposition. After all, Jerusalem was the place where Jesus was crucified and rose again, and it had continued to be the center of increasing antagonism and intense opposition toward the followers of Jesus. As soon as Paul went into the Temple area, some of the Jews visiting from Asia Minor recognized him as one who,

“…preaches to all men everywhere against the Law, against our people, and against this place; and besides, he has even brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this holy place” (Acts 21:28).

Paul never brought anyone but himself into the temple area, so this turned out to be a false accusation, which Paul had become so familiar with. The result was that the people dragged him out of the temple and began to beat him, agitating the crowds with such fury that the “whole city” was in an uproar. However, word reached the Roman commander who immediately came to Paul’s rescue with both soldiers and centurions. They bound him with chains and as they were taking him back into their barracks, the mob followed so closely that the soldiers had to literally carry Paul.

But when they reached the stairs of the barracks, Paul asked the soldiers permission to address the people, letting them know that he was a Jew and a citizen of Tarsus. As the soldiers quieted the crowd, Paul began to speak in Hebrew, letting the people know that he was “one of them.” The crowd was silenced as he began to give his defense, telling them that he was once “just like them,” in fact, even more so, as he was educated under Gamaliel and had become a strict Pharisee, even to the point of persecuting “The Way,” that is, those who followed Jesus, the One who said “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (Jn. 14:6). And then Paul tells the story of his conversion,

“And it came about that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noon-time, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’…And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus and there you will be told all that has been appointed for you to do’” (Acts 22:6-10).

And then Paul proceeded to tell them that because the light had blinded him, he was led by those who were with him to Damascus, to a certain man named Ananias, a follower of Jesus, who laid hands on Saul and his sight was restored. And then Ananias spoke to Saul saying,

“The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear an utterance from His mouth. For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard. Now, why do you delay? ‘Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name’” (Acts 22:14-16).

I’m sure that Saul (Paul) had felt for so long that he had few, if any, sins, as he was such a devout “Law-keeper.” But the Lord pointed out to him that his greatest sin was the rejection of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the One whom God had sent to bear his sins, and the sins of everyone, by dying on the cross. This was Saul’s moment of conversion and the time when he was baptized as a sign that his sins had been washed away as he became a new creation in Christ.

And then Paul shared how the Lord had told him in a vision that those in Jerusalem would not accept his testimony about Jesus, and that he should leave Jerusalem quickly. But Paul felt that they needed to know one final piece of his testimony, saying,

“And I said, ‘Lord they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another I used to imprison and beat those who believed in You. And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing by approving, and watching out for the cloaks of those where were slaying him.’ And then He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away to the Gentiles’” (Acts 22:19-21).

And when Paul spoke of giving the Good News to the Gentiles, they had finally had enough. The crowd went into a frenzy, to the point where the soldiers had to take Paul into the barracks where they stretched out his arms for flogging. But when Paul told them that he was a Roman citizen, they released him, but not before arranging for the Jewish chief priests and the Council to interrogate him the following day.

For all of us, a strong conviction inevitably leads to some level of persecution, as it did with Paul. Paul was so certain that the Lord had not only spoken to him, but also redeemed him, that he could do nothing else than to testify to the grace of God who sent Jesus to die for the sins of all people, Jew and Gentile. If you have been redeemed, that is your “Big Story.” And that story should be on all of our lips to share with all who inquire about our faith. May we be prepared and ready to share our “faith story,” just as Paul did. After all, it’s the greatest story ever told simply because it is a story that changes lives.

Peggy and I once again wish you a very special Thanksgiving. We pray His blessings on your lives, and thank you so much for your love and support! I hope you will join me next week, as we consider Paul’s defense before the Jewish Council, often called the Sanhedrin.