“In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”
And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner.
My grandmother Dodson (“Memaw Dodson”) told the greatest stories. My favorite was when she cut a turn too short, missed the bridge and rolled her 1952 Buick into Cripple Creek. The windshield shattered into a million small pieces – the windshield still in place. It made tiny prisms, and when she came to, seeing the sun shine through she saw the scattered colors. She said, “Law, I thought I was in glory!” That was 60 years ago. I still remember it. I think “Law” was her way of not taking the Lord’s name in vain, but it surely meant “Lord.”
Hers was a simple story that conveyed profound truths. We will one day die. We will face judgment (though that was not part of her story – only the outcome of her faith: glory). And glory! Beautiful glorious light. Life. Awareness. Otherworldliness. All these were the ethos from which her vision and story took shape. It shaped my heart as well.
She got all that from the witness of Paul and others to Jesus Christ. Paul leans heavily into the resurrection of Jesus – a favorite theme of his throughout his missionary travels, and echoed in his letters to the churches of the northern Mediterranean region and into southern Europe. It’s what gets the attention of the people he evangelizes. And the cross. He calls the cross foolishness to the Gentiles and a stumbling block to the Jews. He writes: “but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
The idea of a crucified Messiah was a stumbling block because it conflicted with the Jewish nation’s expectations of a conquering, earthly Messiah. Still prevalent today in much of prosperity gospel preaching. Check out TV evangelists: so very few speak of the cross of Jesus, his suffering and death.
Greeks, valued philosophy and reason, so the cross seemed like foolishness, as the concept of salvation through a crucified man was irrational by their standards. Again, much the same today. Think of the way heroes conquer: might and power. Decisive victory.
Jesus’ victory, however, was both through death and resurrection. He didn’t just die in agony. He rose in victory. He didn’t just carry our sins, taking them into his body. He brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. He didn’t just overcome the sharpness of death. He ascended to the right hand of God and reigns there forever. He didn’t just confound the naysayers. He confirmed the faithful.
Each of us fit into those categories in some way or another. Tell your story. Who knows how it might inspire, encourage, or bring light to darkness for someone else and shape their lives forever.
David Bahn - Reflections 
Leave a comment