Sermon For July 23, 2000
HEBREW TESTAMENT: Conversion of Saul of Tarsus ~ Acts 9:1-9
As a young man, I had the truth. I, Saul of Tarsus, had the truth. I had been raised up to know the ways of our fathers. Trained in all righteousness. I could argue the law. I could speak with anyone about the finer points of what God expected of us. Each time I would press home what I knew to be the truth. There were those who didn’t want to follow the rules, thinking somehow they could make their own way. They were wrong. I knew the truth. It had been handed down, generation upon generation. It was the path of righteousness. From time to time there were those who would promote another way. I heard of this Jesus of Nazareth. Heard the excitement of his followers. I scoffed, knowing that he would soon be gone like all of the others. A little burst of enthusiasm. A little trouble stirred up in one province or another. The worst that it could mean for our faith would be that the Romans would tighten down the screws for a while. The truth would go on.
The people of the Way. That’s what they called themselves, those followers of Jesus. I kept an eye on them, because even after their leader died on the cross they still gathered together with enthusiasm and with strength. I began to see that they could perhaps be more of a threat than the others. I was pleased to stand with the crowd as they dragged that young preacher, Stephen, out to the side of town. I watched as they picked up rocks and put him to death. I knew that it was the right thing to do, for he spoke blasphemy. I was inspired by their actions. I was troubled by the threat these Christians brought to the people. I went to the high priest and I said, “Give me authority. Give me authority and I will root them out. Every single one.” I went into their homes as they were gathering for worship. I took them, men and women and sometimes even children, took them to jail and threw them in irons, so that we might put an end to this foolishness about Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, the true son of God. I heard that there were many who were gathering in Damascus. Do you know that Damascus is the oldest continually inhabited city in the world? Damascus, now a hotbed for people of the Way. I asked for words of recommendation to the synagogues in Damascus, so that when I went there I could draw on their support, to eliminate these followers of Jesus.
I began to make the long journey, accompanied by some friends. I was full of passion to defend the laws of righteousness. I would show no mercy. The Christians would pay the price for their words of “new life,” a better way. It was on that road, on that road that my world changed. It was a bright light. An excess of light, for when I looked full into it I could see nothing else. Then I heard a voice. I looked around, but I could not focus. I didn’t know where the voice was coming from, a voice that called my name. “Saul. Saul. Why do you persecute me?” It was not a whisper. It was not a quiet voice of challenge, it was a voice that came to me with authority, with depth and richness. “Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute me?” I asked, “Who is speaking? Who are you, Lord?” Then the words came, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.” Jesus of Nazareth. When the voice was gone and the light diminished, I could still see nothing. I asked my companions what was going on. They said they had heard the sound, but they had seen nothing. My eyes were blind. They took me by the arm and they guided me for the remainder of the trip. I didn’t know what to think. I couldn’t understand what had happened to me. They took me to a home in Damascus, sat me on a bench in the middle of a room. I stayed there for three days. I took no food, and no drink. I could see nothing at all. I spent the time in prayer, three days in the tomb of my own darkness. Then there was a knock on the door. I heard footsteps approach me. Then I heard a greeting, “Brother Saul, I am Ananias. I had a vision, brother. I had a vision, and my Lord came to me and told me that you would be waiting. That I was to come and speak to you the words of hope. That I was to put my hands on your face and restore your sight.” Ananias told me that I was a chosen instrument. I would take the word and the name of Jesus the Christ out, not only to our Jewish sisters and brothers, but to kings and the whole gentile world. He put his hands on my face, and the scales fell off of my eyes and I could see again. Ananias took me and introduced me to the brethren who were meeting there in Damascus, and they welcomed me into their fellowship. I was baptized in the name of Jesus the Christ. If the fierce commitment that I had felt to the laws of our fathers was strong, it was nothing at all to the fire that now burned within me. For now, I knew that the laws of our people were only the beginning of the path to righteousness. Now I knew that Jesus was, is the Messiah that we have been waiting for, for all of these years. Jesus has revealed that it is God’s love that makes us complete. So I now stand in the synagogue and on street corners and proclaim the name that is above all names. I say, “Have you seen Jesus, my Lord?”
The Jewish brethren of Damascus were quite confused. They expected that when I arrived that I would be their ally in wiping out this growth, these parasites that were feeding on the faith, but following some other leader. When I began to speak the name of Jesus, they turned on me and they began to plot my death. When word came to some of my Christian brothers that my life was in danger, they took me to the edge of the city and lowered me by basket outside the city walls, then provided an escort for me back to Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, I was welcomed by the Apostles and the other believers. As years went by, I spoke of how Jesus had returned from the grave and made his resurrection appearances to the disciples and last of all to me, one who was untimely born. I became the strongest proponent of the Way. Traveling to cities and speaking to anyone who would hear me, of the greatness of God’s love that was revealed to us in Christ Jesus, my Lord. I once was lost, but now I am found. I was blind, but now I see.