MondayMatters Lent: Day One
Acts 9:1-9 “Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes, he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.”
The Lent readings begin with a story that happens AFTER Easter. Jesus has risen. He has commissioned His followers. “Stay in Jerusalem until the Holy Ghost comes.” They do. He does. And the church is born. And right away, opposition. As soon as God starts doing something good, the devil starts trying something bad. Remember Adam and the apple, Moses and Pharaoh, the disciples and Judas. Don’t be surprised as you begin 40 days to get closer to God, that something or somebody comes along to try to persecute you.
This time, the devil’s helper is Saul, an ambitious young man who takes great delight in pointing out the new Christian believers and making them pay for their faith. He’s on his way to Damascus to get some more when Jesus knocks him off his horse. The Bible doesn’t say it’s a HIGH horse, but Saul sure needs to be knocked off one.
In your walk with Jesus, and your encounter with the little devil’s helpers (you can call them that) try to remember that it is Jesus that does the horse knockin’ and not us.
Jesus knocks Saul off the horse, tells him who He is, makes him blind, and then sends him off to wait with that for a few days. It has often been true for me that when I really see Jesus, I hardly ever recognize Him at first. It usually takes a few days of blindly stumbling around, trying to figure out what happened, and then, all of a sudden, things start to make sense.
Although it doesn’t specifically say it here, years later, Saul, by now called Paul, will testify that on that day he SAW Jesus. Start the journey. Don’t expect to understand it all. Do expect a little opposition. And just be ready. You might see Jesus along the way.
Each day for the next 40 days, you are invited to join us for a brief Lenten thought. Join us. Make a comment. Leave a like. Follow if you want. To get notified, sign up at www.beanchesblog.com
Above all, keep looking for Jesus to show up and maybe knock you off your horse.
(Thank you, Kim Bates, for the picture of the horse.)