FRIDAY - DECEMBER 5, 2014 - JOURNAL ACTS 21:26-23:22 ACTS 22:Paul said, “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus...and I was brought up and educated here in Jerusalem...I was carefully trained in our Jewish laws and customs. I became very zealous to honor God in everything I did, just like all of you today. 4And I persecuted the followers of the Way, hounding some to death, arresting both men and women and throwing them in prison. 5The high priest and the whole council of elders can testify that this is so. For I received letters from them to our Jewish brothers in Damascus, authorizing me to bring the followers of the Way from there to Jerusalem, in chains, to be punished.6“As I was on the road, approaching Damascus about noon, a very bright light from heaven suddenly shone down around me. 7I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’8“‘Who are you, lord?’ I asked.“And the voice replied, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, the one you are persecuting.’ 9The people with me saw the light but didn’t understand the voice speaking to me.10“I asked, ‘What should I do, Lord?’“And the Lord told me, ‘Get up and go into Damascus, and there you will be told everything you are to do.’11“I was blinded by the intense light and had to be led by the hand to Damascus by my companions. 12A man named Ananias lived there. He was a godly man, deeply devoted to the law, and well regarded by all the Jews of Damascus. 13He came and stood beside me and said, ‘Brother Saul, regain your sight.’ And that very moment I could see him!14“Then he told me, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and hear him speak. 15For you are to be his witness, telling everyone what you have seen and heard. 16What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.’ -I love the story of Paul...God totally changed him, even his name! His life and his story is an encouragement to me because it is proof that no one can do anything SO BAD that God cannot transform them and use them for His glory!!!! -The fact that Saul/Paul had persecuted, even killed, Christians was obliterated when he stopped dead in his tracks and asked this question...”WHAT SHOULD I DO, LORD?”....the entire trajectory of his life also skidded to a stop and “made a 180” right then and there!!! -The fact that Paul appeared to become an entirely different person after he was saved should not come as any surprise...this is all that happened: PAUL WAS CONVICTED OF HIS SINFUL LIFESTYLE AND HE STOPPED IT!!!!! -Paul was blatantly opposing God/Jesus every single day in his lifestyle of persecuting of Christians....but aren’t we all opposing God/Jesus every single day we live out a sinful lifestyle? -Can we REALLY be following Him when our thoughts and actions go against what He requires? Is it possible to follow Him, know His standards, and yet live in a blatantly opposing way...is that REALLY EVEN ‘FOLLOWING’?!?!? -Do people who join the Air Force wear football uniforms or tutu’s to work? Do people who commit to sing in the choir stand there and blow air horns or clang cymbals instead of singing? Do baseball players catch the ball when it’s pitched so no one can tag them out as they run the bases or do they dribble it around the bases, or use a golf club to hit it? No, no and NO...not that football uniforms, or cymbals, or dribbling balls are wrong, they just don’t ‘look like the group’....members of every group follow the guidelines of the group they have affiliated with...I don’t see that it should/could be any different with Christians!!!! We can’t have it both ways...can’t ‘have our cake and eat it too’....we either FOLLOW GOD OR DON’T FOLLOW GOD....no compromise!!! -When Paul said ‘WHAT SHOULD I DO, LORD’, he made a complete commitment to God...body, soul, and spirit...that is what it means to be a FOLLOWER OF CHRIST....just saying... -”14“Then he told me, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and hear him speak. 15For you are to be his witness, telling everyone what you have seen and heard. 16What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.”....what is ANYONE waiting for?!?!? -WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? GET UP AND BE BAPTIZED. HAVE YOUR SINS WASHED AWAY BY CALLING ON THE NAME OF THE LORD.... -Lord, today just impress on all those I love the importance of DOING WHAT YOU SAY...give us each the desire to HONOR YOU WITH OUR LIFESTYLES....make us understand that if we are on your team we will ‘wear the uniform’ that identifies us as yours and we will ‘play by the rules’ so that we can contribute to the team rather than bringing it down!!! Instill in us that urgency that prods us from deep in our soul saying ‘WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?’
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 13:00:08 +0000
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