Can we start things off
a little differently today? Read through Galatians 1:11-24 so that
we're on the same page as I move forward in my thinking:
"Dear brothers and
sisters, I want you to understand that the gospel message I preach is
not based on mere human reasoning. 12 I received my message from no
human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct
revelation from Jesus Christ.
13 You know what I was
like when I followed the Jewish religion—how I violently persecuted
God’s church. I did my best to destroy it. 14 I was far ahead of my
fellow Jews in my zeal for the traditions of my ancestors.
15 But even before I
was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it
pleased him 16 to reveal his Son to me so that I would proclaim the
Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles.
When this happened, I
did not rush out to consult with any human being. 17 Nor did I go up
to Jerusalem to consult with those who were apostles before I was.
Instead, I went away into Arabia, and later I returned to the city of
Damascus.
18 Then three years
later I went to Jerusalem to get to know Peter, and I stayed with him
for fifteen days. 19 The only other apostle I met at that time was
James, the Lord’s brother. 20 I declare before God that what I am
writing to you is not a lie.
21 After that visit I
went north into the provinces of Syria and Cilicia. 22 And still the
churches in Christ that are in Judea didn’t know me personally. 23
All they knew was that people were saying, 'The one who used to
persecute us is now preaching the very faith he tried to destroy!' 24
And they praised God because of me."*
In the last chapter of
Holley Gerth's book, "You're Already Amazing: Embracing Who You
Are, Becoming All God Created You to Be," she describes Paul:
"The same Paul who ended up writing to the early churches
started out being belligerent, overzealous, and an oppressive leader.
After Jesus appeared to him, Paul was determined, enthusiastic, and
an encouraging leader."
Paul said this about
himself in 1 Timothy 1:13- "even though I used to blaspheme the
name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had
mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief."
And this: "This is
a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus
came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them
all." (1 Timothy 1:15)
Also this: " 'I
used to believe that I ought to do everything I could to oppose the
very name of Jesus the Nazarene. Indeed, I did just that in
Jerusalem. Authorized by the leading priests, I caused many believers
there to be sent to prison. And I cast my vote against them when they
were condemned to death. Many times I had them punished in the
synagogues to get them to curse Jesus. I was so violently opposed to
them that I even chased them down in foreign cities.'" (Acts
26:9-11)
Remember, Paul also had
this to say for himself in Galatians 1:13-14 (NLT)- "You know
what I was like when I followed the Jewish religion—how I violently
persecuted God’s church. I did my best to destroy it. I was far
ahead of my fellow Jews in my zeal for the traditions of my
ancestors."
As he writes this
letter (and many others), Paul is the same man with the same
characteristics, but they are readjusted, molded, and shaped to be
used for God's glory by God's
amazing grace. God uses Paul to reach some of the very people
he was persecuting. Do you realize that the first time we met Paul in
Acts (Saul of Tarsus at the time), he was standing to the side
watching Stephen (an apostle of Christ) be stoned to death? And he
joins in on that crusade, hunting and killing Christians for the God
of Heaven? He was basically a religious terrorist!** But Jesus himself
grabbed a hold of Paul and reworked every part of him. He took the
loud, opinionated, judgmental, overzealous pieces of Paul's heart and
He molded them like clay to be something he could use for His glory-
reaching out to Gentiles (non-Jewish people) and leading them to
Jesus with grace and truth.
Do you see that Paul
didn't go around talking to Jesus's apostles or asking around for
advice. He went straight to God himself to get the message he shared
over and over again throughout the New Testament. Look at this with
me: "When this happened, I did not rush out to consult with any
human being. Nor did I go up to Jerusalem to consult with those who
were apostles before I was. Instead, I went away into Arabia, and
later I returned to the city of Damascus." (Galatians 1:16b-17)
Look at that line in the middle of verse 17, "I went away to
Arabia." In his book, "Paul: A Man of Grace and Grit,"
Charles Swindoll makes a compelling case for that line. He suggests-
with the support of several other Bible scholars- that Paul went away
for possibly up to three years and in that time, God spoke to Paul,
changed Paul, got inside of Paul and showed him His perfect way so
that Paul was better equipped to go out and share God's grace.
The other cool thing we
learn about Paul in this passage is that he isn't afraid to air his
dirty laundry and let everyone know what was going on with him
before, during, and after his run-in with Jesus on the road to
Damascus. He puts it all out there and lets God use it however he
wants to use it. So often as Christians we think that we have to hide
all of the imperfections. The enemy whispers in our ear that we can't
be used, we aren't good enough, we aren't strong enough. We just
aren't enough period. And it's all a lie that we're falling for.
Especially as a woman, I fall for this one constantly. I hope it
isn't just me. Even now, as I write this, I can hear that whisper
happening- "You're the only one who feels that way." And I
know it's a lie, but there's a part of me that wants to believe it.
I want to end with
this: You never know what God is going to use from your past to
affect His future. Look at these words from Paul: "All they knew
was that people were saying, 'The one who used to persecute us is now
preaching the very faith he tried to destroy!' And they praised God
because of me." (Galatians 1:23-24) We do not have to be- nor
should we choose to be- prisoners of our pasts. We are free in Jesus
only because of Jesus. It's time to let go of that past, let God use
it however he wants to, and live here in the present fully committed
to doing what Jesus asks us to do in our lives. If Paul can move
forward and share this amazing grace with millions of people after
his past, surely we can do our level best to share that same amazing
grace with ourselves and others right here in the present.
* Selection of verses borrowed from Biblegateway.com, New Living Translation
**Check out Paul: A
Man of Grace and Grit By Charles
Swindoll for more interesting information about Paul's life.
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