Friday, September 14, 2012

A New Light Dawns; Acts 26-28

May the mumbling commence!

A new light dawns.  From what Christians, Followers of the Way, thought was an impending sunset comes a beautiful sunrise.  Saul becomes Paul – both men of God but only the latter guided by the spirit of Jesus.  Let’s relive Saul’s Damascus experience through the words of Paul in Acts chapter twenty-six.

Once, your majesty, on my way to Damascus on this business, armed with the full authority and commission of the chief priests, at midday I saw a light from Heaven, far brighter than the sun, blazing about me and my fellow-travelers.
We all fell to the ground and I heard a voice saying to me in Hebrew, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is not for you to kick against your own conscience.'
'Who are you, Lord?' I said.
And the Lord said to me, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. Now get up and stand on your feet for I have shown myself to you for a reason – you are chosen to be my servant and a witness to what you have seen of me today, and of other visions of myself which I will give you. I will keep you safe from both your own people and from the Gentiles to whom I now send you. I send you to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God himself, so that they may know forgiveness of their sins and take their place with all those who are made holy by their faith in me.' (Verses 12-18)  

Saul needed to be blinded to see.  Saul was blinded by the light of Jesus.  Then Saul became Paul, who used the light of Jesus to illuminate the darkness of humanity.  People used the light to see the power of Satan over their lives and to see the overwhelming power of God to destroy the power of Satan and the power of sin.

Saul – turned Paul – knew the simple fact that Jesus cleansed humanity from all sin and destroyed the power of Satan.  To those people who believed this simple fact the gracious gift of holiness was given.  Paul even offered this light to those who imprisoned him – to Festus, to King Agrippa and to Queen Bernice in this instance.

A new light dawns.  It is new even today.

Will you bask in the light of the new dawn?  Will you embrace the truth of Jesus?  Will you join the adopted family of God?

The light is dawning.  The invitation still stands. 

Follow Jesus.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out

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