Christianity Oasis Forum

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this is a devotional written by one of the pastors of my church (yes i have permission to post this) : )

Face the Truth
February 6th, 2012



In Acts 9, we see Saul (Paul), on a mission to arrest anyone who was a follower of Jesus Christ. He was either going to beat them, or put them in prison. Saul (Paul) could not stand anything that had to do with Jesus Christ. He wanted to put an end to what he thought was heretical.

So as he was journeying to Damascus, a light shone about him. Saul fell to the earth and he heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” Saul had traveled over 100 miles to Damascus. This light just shines out of nowhere and knocks him off his donkey or whatever it was that he was riding! Saul was literally knocked off of his high horse. Jesus Christ was speaking to Saul, from Heaven! When Jesus asked him, “Why are you persecuting Me?," Jesus was identifying with us—with Christians—His people. He’s saying that in persecuting My followers, Saul, you are persecuting Me. It’s personal. He was letting Saul know that these are My people. These are My followers. This is My Body. What we have with Jesus is a real relationship. He is always looking out for us.

Saul asks Jesus, “Who are You, Lord?” And the Lord replied, “I am Jesus, Whom you persecute.” I believe that as Saul was standing there listening to Stephen, from Acts 7, conviction was taking place in his heart. He heard the Gospel. When truth is truth, there’s nothing you can do about it. You don’t have to like it. You can dismiss it. You can choose to not believe it. But at the end of the day, truth is truth. As the Spirit-filled message came through Stephen, when Stephen was being stoned to death, and Saul (Paul) stood there, I believe that Paul had to be overwhelmed with the truth.

And maybe he was thinking at the time. . . I was raised a Jew. This Jesus is blasphemous. This Jesus is not right-on with what I’ve been taught by man and tradition . . . Many times when a person is so close to coming to faith in Jesus, they can seem so far because they put up a fight like you wouldn’t believe, as they are right there, face-to-face with the undeniable Truth. So often, when a person is fighting the hardest, is when they are the closest. Paul was fighting with everything he could. But God revealed Himself to Paul.

Why was Paul fighting the conviction? Why do we? Perhaps because of some tradition in which we were raised? Maybe it’s because of what your parents believe? Maybe it was because of some teacher that taught false truth? Or maybe it’s the belief of your friends that you grew up with? What is it that is causing you to fight against the conviction of God in your life? Despite all the “religion” that Paul was involved with, he was so far from Jesus Christ. But yet he was so close. Everything that Paul had heard about Jesus was true.

Paul responds and says, “Lord, what will you have me to do?” In Acts 9:6 the Lord tells Paul to arise and go into the city. The conversion of Paul was the conversion of the chief of all sinners, as Paul called himself. Paul persecuted Christians and endorsed the death of Stephen. Jesus revealed himself to Paul and Paul had to make a choice. Paul heeded to the voice of God. The Lord told him to arise and go and Paul arose and went!

Would to God, that we, His people, would learn this valuable lesson and arise and go and do what the Lord tells us to do. He has what’s best in mind for us. Everything that Paul had known of his religion, all pointed to Jesus. But he had missed it. The One that was sent by God was the One that Paul had been rejecting.

It’s time to stop fighting against the truth. It’s time for each of us to reconcile, within ourselves, Who Jesus really is. Maybe you were brought up to believe a certain thing. But as the Lord, in His faithfulness, reveals Himself to each and every human being, we, as individuals, have to make a choice. What about you? Will you follow the Lord, despite what you thought you knew to be true, because the Lord Jesus is real.