Paul, A True Basket Case (Acts 9:19-25)

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Have you ever been gobsmacked? (You can’t see it here in this online platform, but as I typed that word, the spell-check does not recognize it, underlining it in red!).

Is that a new word for you? It is British slang to reference something that leaves a person utterly amazed and astonished. For example, it is that feeling you have every time you hear me preach! Oh… you didn’t connect to that illustration? Really? That leaves ME gobsmacked!

Well today we read about some folks in Damascus who were gobsmacked at the preaching of Paul in his first efforts at proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah…

Acts 9:19 – Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21 All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

Before we talk about preaching, you might be wondering about the order of things here. Yesterday we wrote about how the passage in Galatians chapter 1 said that Paul quickly went off to the desert of Arabia for three years, but here it looks like he immediately began preaching in Damascus. It depends upon where the “at once” in verse 20 belongs with the rest of the surrounding words (Greek word order is different than our English translations). Various translations have it at different points, and the different New Testament accounts select incidents without an effort to always be completely thorough with every detail. So some commentators believe that the trip to Arabia happened after the paragraph above (and before the following verses below), while others think that Paul rather soon after conversion went to Arabia and that these events today occurred after he returned briefly to Damascus three years later (and I agree with this).

In any event, Paul’s preaching to the Jews was very powerful and left them gobsmacked… or “astonished.” This same Greek word is used elsewhere in Acts to talk about the amazement on the day of Pentecost by all who heard preaching in their language, or later in Acts 12 when Peter was miraculously released from prison and showed up at the door of the “gobsmacked” folks who were praying (but not really believing) for that very thing to happen!

The preaching of a message of Jesus as Messiah to a Jewish audience, especially by a guy who was clearly remembered to be one who had originally come to town to arrest the early followers of the way, was sure to have a controversial effect. Likely some were persuaded, though surely more were violent in rejection of this message…

Acts 9:23 – After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, 24 but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. 25 But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall. 

The same event is recounted by Paul in 2 Corinthians 11:30-33 … If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. 33 But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands.

I have never had to escape a church or flee from town after a sermon (more likely the listeners are the ones escaping). But Paul’s preaching created such controversy that, in the minds of some, the best method to end this was to kill Paul. With a walled city, the only way in or out was to pass through the checkpoint of the main city gate … or have your friends drop you out the window and down the wall in a basket. This was the first of many escapes for Paul in his life. And what an irony that the one who came to do the persecuting soon became the persecuted!

We need to understand that in any day the preaching of the gospel is not popular in a lost world. It is a message that divides. People don’t like being told that they are sinners who are lost, hopeless and spiritually dead and on the road to eternal separation. But once a person’s mind is quickened by the Spirit to understand this truth, it becomes for that person the most precious message of life. Our role is to preach and share the truth. It will not always be popular or well-received. But we must be faithful to do it as our commission to a lost world.

Time in the Desert (Galatians 1:10-17)

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One of the grievous annoyances of being in professional ministry is the occasion suggestion by someone that you are in it for some personal gain of either riches or self-serving adulation. Though some ministry “characters” out there on TV or in the broad public eye have managed to make a lucrative profession out of serving God, I’m pretty sure most of the rest of us had other ideas about where we were headed in life – a direction that on most occasions would have netted greater material gain. But some “Damascus Road” experience made for a change in life direction.

In the early section of the letter to the Galatians, it is clear that the Apostle Paul was getting some of this sort of accusatory rhetoric. And to combat it he recalls to their understanding the history of his life and of the roots of his understanding of the gospel.

Galatians 1:10 – Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

11 – I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. 12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.

13 – For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. 14 I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being. 17 I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went into Arabia. Later I returned to Damascus.

Here in our early stages of the study of the life of the Apostle Paul, this passage is of particular interest as regards his personal testimony. Paul tells the Galatians that this gospel message is certainly not something he came up with himself, nor was it sourced in any human imagination or teaching. No, Paul’s life was radically changed, and the message was one that came to him directly by revelation of Jesus Christ.

The word “conversion” has the sense and meaning of “going in another direction.”  And that is surely what happened to Paul after his dramatic episode on the road to Damascus. A clearly understood part of this revelation was that Paul was going to be especially used to take this truth about Jesus to the Gentile world.

But Paul didn’t just re-book his Damascus ticket for the next week to some Gentile destination to begin his new life work, nor did he quickly return to Jerusalem to talk to the apostles of this Christian movement. No, it says in verse 17 that he went into Arabia, later returning to Damascus and eventually also to Jerusalem (after three years, as it says in verse 18).

So, where is this “Arabia” and what was Paul doing?

When we think of Arabia, like Saudi Arabia, we think of a largely remote area south and east of Israel. Damascus of Syria is to the northeast of Jerusalem. However, at this time in history, both of these areas were largely a part of one Nabataen Kingdom that was centered in modern-day Jordan.

In any event, we can take from this passage that Paul withdrew himself into a remote area after his conversion experience. Obviously his life had changed, and he had much to re-calibrate about the issues of faith, Jesus as Messiah, how this fit with the long-term history of Israel and the revelation of the prophets, and how this message should be communicated to a Gentile world.

This is far from the first time that major biblical figures withdrew for an extended period before they would re-emerge in God’s power with a great message and ministry. We should recall how Moses spent the bulk of four decades in the wilderness of Midian before being called to his great life work. The prophet Elijah wandered in the desert before his great life work, as did the one who later came in the spirit of Elijah – John the Baptist.

And we should remember as well that the other apostles all had three years of teaching and discipleship under Christ himself. Now it was Paul’s time, surely to grow and learn, study and pray. And surely as well there were times when Paul must have thought that life was passing him by.

The Lord often gives all of us certain desert times of personal preparation before He uses us for some ministry project. God likes to sometimes fix us in a sort of “holding pattern” before embarking on a new adventure or opportunity.

This does not always make sense to us. After nine consecutive years of college and graduate school, I was ready to head into full-time ministry. But God let me hang around waiting for almost a full year before leading to my next assignment. There I was in the possession of the finest theological education available on planet Earth … cleaning swimming pools. But looking back, that was a precious year with our first newborn and a productive and enjoyable part-time music ministry.

Multiple times in my life I have felt “stuck” in my circumstances. Surely a good God would have something better and more appropriately fitting for me!  But the Lord likes to say to us – “Wait!” … or some version of “sit in the saddle where I’ve placed you!”  To use a more biblically-based metaphor, he tells us to be faithful today in the place in the vineyard where we are working.

All of this is to build trust and dependence upon God and His timing. So don’t begrudge times in the desert; they are times of God’s design for our good and His eventual glory.

A Tough Assignment for Ananias (Acts 9:10-19)

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Once upon a time in my life some years ago I felt a very strong sense of calling to confront a prominent person about a difficult matter in his life. Fearing I might be mistaking the calling of God for indigestion, I essentially told the Lord that if this was to be true that He would have to bring this person whom I knew only casually across my path. Within hours, it happened. It did not go exceeding well, though I came away from it believing I had obeyed God. I did not like that assignment!

But my assignment was nothing compared to what Ananias of Damascus was called to do. Going to meet Paul was probably about like going to North Korea and telling Kim Jong-un to give up the keys to his nuclear program!

Here is the account in Acts chapter 9 …

Acts 9:10 – In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord,” he answered.

11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Let me ask a series of questions today …

Was Paul looking to find Christ and be saved?  Of course not. It was Christ who found him. We have no reason to believe Paul was anything short of 100% convinced of the truth of his convictions, hence his relentless zeal to carry them out. Salvation is a work of God from start to finish. Like Paul’s blindness, there may have been circumstances in our lives that opened us up to hearing and receiving the gospel, but even those events and our warming heart to truth were the result of God’s working.

Could God have saved Paul apart from Ananias?  Well yes, of course. But God chose to use one of his disciples to be an instrument of His divine working, likely using him subsequently to minister to Paul in the coming months and couple of years. We need to be open to however God may choose to use us, and sometimes it might be a bit scary and awkward.

Are all of the small events of life a part of all of the bigger events in life?  Again … yes, for sure. God is working at all times and in all things. We may often not see or understand it, but God has a larger plan … with connections to the grand plan of building the church and his kingdom. Ananias was a player with a role to fulfill … that Paul might join the team to which he was now called … in order that Paul might be used especially to move the gospel beyond Jewish circles to the whole world … even down to us today. All of the small pieces of the puzzle are a part of the larger puzzle of beauty that God is putting together.

Is the Christian life always easy and filled with victory?  Not at all. God said that Paul must know “how much he must suffer for my name.”  As shared and illustrated in the opening message of this series last Sunday, the Life Race will have joys and victories along the way, with the guarantee of the ultimate crown at the end; but the process is filled with times of difficulty and peril.

But there is no better race to be a part of than the Life Race. The alternative is the temporary “death race” of living only for this world and being eternally separated from God and the victors’ crown that is given to those who love Christ.

So, rejoice Christian that you have been called by God to be on His team, the ultimate winning outfit. And tighten the laces of your shoes for the unique race that God has called you to run. Run on! Keep moving.

Paul Sees the Light (Acts 9:1-9)

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It is a challenge for us in biblical interpretation to truly put ourselves into the sandals of Bible characters. The effort to do that – to have an understanding of what they saw and knew (or didn’t know) – pays rewards in making a text come alive.

Yesterday we talked some about what Saul/Paul was thinking and how this was motivating him to action. He certainly believed this “Jesus teaching” was damaging to the Jewish nation and hopes of a messianic kingdom of God’s blessing being established. This Jesus crowd was irrational in exalting a character who was crucified as a criminal. They had to be stopped!

But even so, it goes beyond sensibility that the violent actions being entered into by Saul/Paul could have any justification whatsoever. But here is an additional angle that perhaps was a part of his thinking. Let’s recall what might seem like an obscure story from Numbers 25. As Paul was hoping Israel was on the cusp of entering into a time of a messianic kingdom, the Israelites of Moses’ day were on the cusp of entering the Promised Land. But there was an apostate faction in the camp who had immorally aligned themselves with Canaanite peoples and gods, bringing about God’s wrath …

Numbers 25:1 – While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, 2 who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods. 3 So Israel yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor. And the Lord’s anger burned against them.

4 The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of these people, kill them and expose them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the Lord’s fierce anger may turn away from Israel.”

5 So Moses said to Israel’s judges, “Each of you must put to death those of your people who have yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor.”

A grandson of Aaron the priest named Phinehas heard this and took the action of actually driving a single spear through a Jewish man and a Midianite woman. And this was applauded in stopping the curse …

Numbers 25:8-9 – Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped; but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.

Might it be that Paul saw his actions as analogous to this, and thereby justified? We don’t know, but putting all of this together within the full context of that era helps us to understand Paul a bit more. And looking again further into Acts chapter 9 …

9:1 – 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.

The background to this is that the Romans granted occasional authority to the Jewish religious leadership to enforce certain matters within their system of belief. The Romans believed this helped to maintain a modicum of order within conquered ethno-religious territories. Paul had gained such authority for arrests and extradition, and he was on his way to Damascus to enforce it.

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.

I can remember all of the way back to my high school days when attempting to share the gospel with people as to what struck me as the major obstacle. If we think of salvation as being “found,” then it was necessary for the person hearing the message to believe first that they were “lost.”  I have often said of evangelism that you have to get a person lost before you get them saved (meaning to get them to believe that they are lost and need a savior).

Paul did not have any sense that he was lost. Totally the opposite! He saw himself as standing strongly within the truth, privilege and blessing of being an Israelite. He needed a divine intervention!

Frankly, most people today don’t see themselves as being lost, therefore they see no need to be “found” by the gospel. But the reality of the biblical message that dates back to the very beginning of humanity is that we are terribly and totally lost. We are dead in trespasses and sins. There is no hope, no life, no spark, nothing that is capable of response. It is darkness; we are spiritually blind. And it is the grace of God in the truth of the resurrection of Christ that brings life … just as it did for Paul. And we’ll talk more about that tomorrow!

Paul the Persecutor (Acts 8:1-3, Acts 9:1-2)

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Imagine the following scenario. There is a small group of Christian people who come from varied areas to our three-state region and associate themselves with Tri-State Fellowship. They are excited about our strong biblical teaching emphasis and our desire to effectuate a multi-generational ministry, and they therefore throw themselves into our church with great passion. We come to truly like these folks and the energy they bring. However, at a point in time they become ardent followers of a nearby evangelist who is around for a brief season before mysteriously departing.

These passionate people return to the church and begin to teach that this itinerate minister was actually a second coming of Christ and that we are terribly foolish to have missed this truth. A few of our people are even led astray by this teaching and it begins to create a rift within the church community.

If with great conviction we believed these folks to be in error and endangering the church family, we would vehemently oppose them with every avenue of opportunity open to us. It would be the responsible and honorable thing to do, especially as leaders.

Perhaps that illustration helps us understand the intense aggressiveness of Saul in the very earliest days of the church era. The first Christians were all Jews who believed Jesus to be the Messiah, rejected by the nation. Therefore those who were opposed to this conviction saw it as a schism within Judaism … an inside threat, not one from outside. They would believe this to be thwarting the genuine work of God in bringing about the true kingdom. Paul was 100% of this opinion, and being a man of action he was aggressive in his response.

Again, it was upon the stoning of Stephen that we see the Jews (including Saul) totally lit up when hearing of this teaching on Jesus. Here is how Stephen concluded his extended remarks …

Acts 7:51 – “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him— 53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”

Yep, those are fighting words that could get you pelted with stones. And Saul is introduced to the scene…

Acts 8:1 – On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.

The beginning of the next chapter details some more of Saul’s activism …

9:1 – 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.

But no person is beyond God’s grace. And Paul is an “exhibit A” of that principle.

Some years ago I spent some time with a man who struggled terribly to believe that God could forgive him and be gracious. “You can’t begin to imagine how bad I am,” the fellow said to me as we went for a walk in the fields around the church. “I did some terrible things in Vietnam … true atrocities in villages with women and children. So I cannot imagine that there is any way that God could forgive and save a person like me. It wouldn’t be right.”  Over a period of time that man came to understand that Jesus paid the price for what he had done.

There is no way we can imagine the immensity of God’s grace. And apart from God in grace opening our minds to grasp and understand and accept it, we would continue in a lost state in our sin. God stepped into Paul’s life, and the Apostle never ceased to marvel at the extent of it all. He wrote in summary about it, saying …

1 Corinthians 15:9-11 – For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

See there … it not only God’s grace that saves us, but His grace also that works through us toward any good effect that flows from it. If Paul is “exhibit A,” then let us each be “exhibit B” as we work our way through these studies over the summer.

Can Anything Good Come from Tarsus? (Acts 22, Philippians 3)

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Most of us have a mixed bag of stuff from our past, from our formative years. We may possess both opportunities, perhaps in education, but possibly also some challenges from family dysfunction. Or perhaps it could be just the opposite. Just as a strong background can surely prepare a person for lifetime successes, there is no guarantee it will evolve in that direction. Likewise, a less than stellar upbringing can be overcome, as many rags to riches stories attest.

The Apostle Paul could boast a very strong background, especially in Jewish circles of association. His credentials could match just about anyone else. Even so, thinking ahead in the story, we know that this strict Jewish education did not position him to naturally gravitate toward the new teachings of a crucified and resurrected Messiah with a gospel message for all mankind. But that is getting ahead of ourselves.

As we consider Paul’s background, it is rather certain that Paul was born relatively close to the same time as Jesus Christ (maybe about two years older?), and that he would therefore live into his upper 60s.

From the city of Tarsus (south-central Turkey), we can infer that Paul came from what must have been a relatively affluent family. Though ethnically Jewish, they met Roman citizenship requirements as land owners and were likely among the leading people of the city. Paul’s family could trace their lineage to the tribe of Benjamin, his name “Saul” being after King Saul of that tribe, with Paulus being a Roman name given him by his Roman/Jewish father.

He possessed the finest of educations, what we might consider like a Harvard/Princeton equivalent, sitting also under the most famous of instructors. In an uproar in Jerusalem during his ministry, Paul sought and received the soldiers’ permission to address the rioting Jewish crowd …

Acts 22:1-3 … “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.” When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet. Then Paul said: “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors.

So this is about as good as it can get in terms of a background for a Jewish boy in the Roman world. Paul gave a summary of it when writing to the church in Philippi – who were dealing with Jewish legalists and their proud lineage …

Philippians 3:4-6 … If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.

So Paul would have grown up with an early Synagogue education, topped off by Gamaliel and graduating magna cum laude. He would have known Hebrew, Greek, and the Septuagint as well (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament). And he could speak the common language of Aramaic. Tarsus was in fact one of the three great “university towns” of that age, along with Athens in Greece and Alexandria in Egypt.

Like all responsible Jewish families, boys were taught a trade – for Paul, tent-making. The area from which he came in Cilicia boasted a particular type of high-grade fabric from the prevalence of goat herds, and this skill would prove valuable for Paul in his travel years as a missionary.

Paul’s advanced education and his commitment to it would lead him to become a Pharisee and member surely of the Sanhedrin. He was on track to become one of the foremost Jewish leaders of his generation.

We first encounter Paul on the pages of Scripture in the book of Acts, in chapters 7 and 8, upon the occasion of the stoning of Stephen after his sermon …

Acts 7:54—8:3 — 54 … When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.

For Paul to be a Pharisee, he would have had to be around the age of at least 30, and this works with the presumed timeline of his life.

59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.

8:1 – On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2 Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3 But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.

So this event was a sort of “coming out” event for Saul/Paul, where his Jewish zeal and faith moved him to radical action (that would not have been endorsed actually by Gamaliel). And it is a couple of chapters later that we see Paul’s incredible conversion story, and we shall study again over these weeks all that came from the new life he found in Christ.

So Paul was uniquely qualified to serve God as he did – combining the great Jewish background of theology, the education of the Greek culture, and the opportunities that Roman citizenship could open for him. But his ultimate success was not because of these things, not primarily. It is not as if God chose Paul because he was the candidate with the best resume to miraculously redeem from the other side. No, Paul ultimately was the great leader of the early church because, by God’s grace, he was empowered to accomplish all that he did. His fleshly credentials were not his best asset, and his liabilities (such as apparently not being the healthiest guy around nor the best orator) did not diminish his success or limit what God could do through him.

So education is grand! A wonderful and godly family is an asset. Having great natural skills of personal and professional interaction are resume builders for sure. But none of it matters for eternity without the empowering blessing of God working through you. And no lack of these natural skills and blessings can thwart what God can do through the life of a yielded Christian. When we are weak, He is strong… as Paul knew and wrote!

A Life Worth Studying and Emulating (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)

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So why should we study the life of the Apostle Paul and give an entire quarter of our year – 13 weeks over the whole summer – to one theme and person?  Quick answer: because God told me to! True story – I knew there would be a total of 60 dates to cover with devotionals in the 12 weeks between the total of 13 Sundays. So I went to work on a chronological study of Paul’s life and began to write down a list of topics and titles. Completing this first draft after a number of hours, it looked to me like the list was just about the desired length; and when I counted the titles it came out to exactly 60!  So … it’s a God thing! Obviously!

Look, I know what you’re thinking. You see the first sermon series in the post-Chris Wiles era as Randy gravitating toward his life passion of sports and running. Hey, it’s not my fault that Paul liked the same things I do and that he used athletic competition and running in particular as a metaphor for the Christian life!

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 … Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Galatians 2:1-2 … Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. I went in response to a revelation and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race in vain.

Galatians 5:7 … You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth?

Philippians 2:14-17 … Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.

2 Timothy 2:6-7 … For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

And even though Paul did not write this, he would have shouted a hearty “amen” to the writer to the Hebrews who said (12:1) … Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…

Again, why study Paul? His amazing life is beyond our reach as mere Christians of the 21st century. Yet again, here is a man like us in so many ways … a person with a broken past that was redeemed by God’s grace. It can be argued that if God could turn around and use a person like Saul/Paul, surely we can be effective servants for the Lord in our day.

Over the years there have been a variety of writings about Paul that poke fun at the notion of finding the perfect pastor for an open position. Many have put together a humorous resume of the Apostle Paul that presents a person no pulpit committee would ever consider. Like this …

“Gentlemen: Understanding your pulpit is vacant, I should like to apply for the position. I have many qualifications. I’ve been a preacher with much success and also have had some successes as a writer. Some say I’m a good organizer. I’ve been a leader most places I’ve been. I’m over 50 years of age and have never preached in one place for more than three years. In some places, I have had to depart town quickly after my work caused riots and disturbances. I must confess to having been in jail three or four times, but not because of any real wrongdoing. My health is not strong, though I still accomplish a great deal. The churches I have preached in have been small, though located in several large cities. I’ve not gotten along well with religious leaders in the towns where I have preached. In fact, some have threatened me and even attacked me physically. I do not excel at keeping records – forgetting whom I have baptized. However, if you can use me, I promise to do my best for you.”

As we go through this series and our total of 60 associated writings, we are going to see again many of the details referenced in this humorous piece. Along with Paul’s considerable list of attributes and assets, we will be struck over and over about a startling number of liabilities, both internally and externally.

The reason that a study of Paul has value for us today is that we recognize from our own experience the reality of a Life Race that has its share of ups and downs. In our salvation in Christ, we are incredibly blessed with the greatest gift known to man – a relationship with the creator God of the universe, His living presence in us, and a life manual for how to run our individual races successfully. We become part of a team of fellow life runners.

But these tremendous assets do not promise for us that we will have a life filled with only victory after victory. Quite the opposite. Our inevitable liabilities and weaknesses will arise. But as we learn like Paul to rejoice in them as opportunities for God’s strength to shine even more greatly through them, we can learn to run our lives in a way that yields personal success and blessing to others and for the cause of the Kingdom.

The Best Christmas Gift

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This is the 15th and final of a series of 15 devotionals from the late 80s when my oldest sons were just little boys. Come back Monday for our summer series as we trace the life of the Apostle Paul. But first, another Christmas story …

Another Christmas has quickly passed. As always, over and over we hear the “Christian Christmas Warning” – WARNING: Forgetting the reason for the season may be hazardous to your spiritual health!

Come on, I thought; play a new tune. But I must admit, when it comes to the boys, I worry about their perceptions and life-long memories of the content of our Christmas celebrations.

At home we try various means of getting the boys to think bigger than simply about boxes under a tree. We had devotions with an advent wreath and Christmas tree. Our emphasis was continually upon giving and giving and serving and helping and singing and more giving, etc. All of this emphasis requires time – lots of time for shopping and making crafts and baking cookies. Diana does most of this with the kids, but as always, I have to take them for the annual “let’s buy mommy some presents” Christmas shopping marathon.

We safely arrived at the Palmer Mall and got into the store without anyone bouncing off a car in the parking lot. Forming a human chain, we weaved our way through the thousands of shoppers to the housewares department in hopes of finding something that Diana does not already possess. Finally at our destination, the boys looked at me and said, “Daddy, we’ve got to go to the bathroom—badly!” What could I do? So off we went, through the store, out into the mall in search of the elusive men’s room. Finding it, using it, and returning from it too over 30 minutes of valuable shopping time.

At last, back in the department shore’s housewares section we started our search. Seconds later my attention was grabbed by Benjamin’s cries of pain. He was walking behind me with his head down, not looking where he was going, and ran into the corner of a shelf. Well, you know how kids’ heads bleed, and you know what color Ben’s hair is. What a mess! After soaking several tissues we were able to commence our search and return home without further incident. I just love Christmas shopping.

As I said, singing is a big part of our Christmas efforts. We have sung a lot as a family and the kids worked hard on learning the Children’s Choir musical. Aaron learned the entire composition and can even quote all of the speaking parts. He sat in the front row with us when the program was presented and sang the entire thing with the choir. Nathan was confident as well. He said, “If Heath would get sick, Karen would ask me to take his place.”  I said, “Really? Did she say that?”  “No,” he said, “I just know she would because she knows that I know it better than anyone else.”

If you were at the kids’ concert at the new mall, you know that Benjamin “stole the show.” But not in the way a parent would wish. After rehearsing that morning, he had endured all of the singing he could stand for one day. And when the program started, he was front and center acting bored, frowning, rolling his eyes, yawning, and looking like he was ready to fall asleep on his feet. I was standing near some shoppers who said, “Look at the little blonde-haired boy in the front. Boy, he’s a bad one, I wonder if his parents are here to see him?”  Hmm.

I was pleased that the boys didn’t have a present-receiving fixation, at least until Christmas Eve when the “gift-giving-gimmies” hit hard. I even thought of camping under the tree to prevent “sooner” activities in the early morning. About 5:00 a.m. I heard a thump downstairs. Could it be Santa? Or just a boy up early? It turned out to be a firewood log that dropped, but it showed me I was suspicious of the kids. I was wondering if our efforts were getting through. Were the boys enjoying the season for the right reason?

About 8:00 a.m. Diana and I were awakened suddenly by a bell. By our bed stood three little carolers clad in pajamas. In unison they sang with gusto “Joy to the world, the Lord has come.” They sang several verses and did two more songs for us. As I saw that their first thoughts on this day were upon the birth of Christ, tears of joy ran down my face. I hugged each one and told them it was the best Christmas present I ever received. If I had gone back to bed and skipped the rest of the Christmas Day, it would have been a success and remembered as one of the best holidays ever!

The Shopping Ordeal

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This is the 14th of a series of 15 devotionals from the late 80s when my oldest sons were just little boys. This actually includes two writings – one for Christmas and then a followup story from January of that year …

It stares me in the face. It haunts me day and night. I can run, but I can’t hide. It will certainly catch me as it always does every year.

No, it is not the ghost of Christmas, but rather the knowledge that I shall once again have to take all three boys shopping for a Christmas present for mommy! God deliver me! I thought about going the catalog route.

But the idea is not simply that mommy gets a present, but rather that the boys think actively about giving more than receiving.

So, soon (like on the 23rd or 24th) I’ll bundle them up and off we’ll go to the mall or some place to look for something to buy mommy. My ideas are only slightly more defined than their thoughts. They are so excited to buy something that they’ll push for the first thing inside the door, which could be anything from a garden tractor to hunting boots.

I know, I shouldn’t feel so sorry for myself. After all, Diana takes them shopping all of the time. Actually, that is why I dread it so much. Shopping with three little boys is quite an experience. Let me quote from my wife’s journal …

10/7/88 – Today was a typical shopping trip with Nathan, Benjamin and Aaron. We went to Hillcrest Mall. Once inside the door at Orr’s Department Store, Nathan and Ben made a mad dash through the cosmetics department, toward the escalators. Once upstairs, they began the game of hide and seek in the racks of the clothing department. Later, they got lost in the dressing rooms. When we went down the escalator, Benjamin ran ahead and got off, got back on and tried to run up the steps, fell, causing a massive pileup at the bottom.

We went on to Woolworths where Benjamin got lost and started crying. I could hear him, but could not see him. I felt too silly to yell something out to him.

At Superfresh, they played their normal games of bumper carts, etc. No injuries to ourselves or other shoppers. But, coming out of the store, Aaron tripped and fell. Benjamin was daydreaming and fell on top of him. We made it home without further incident.

See what I mean? And that was just a “normal” trip. Just think what it is like when they are excited about buying presents for mommy.

But we will go, because I believe that it is important to teach them about giving. But why? Why do we give others presents at Christmas? Tradition! That is a correct answer but not a particularly biblical one.

What I am telling my boys is that there are two main reasons. We do it because the wise men established a pattern with their gifts to the newborn king. But more than that, we do it because Christ is God’s gift to man. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 9:15, “Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift.”

…. From the next newsletter ….

Since the last newsletter, everyone has been asking me if I took the boys shopping yet to by presents for mommy. Yes, we went yesterday (12/22) and it really was fun. I even brought home the same number of boys I took.

Our tree is surrounded with gifts, and now comes the job of holding the boys off until the 25th. Each morning the guys go downstairs early to count how many presents there are and to see if their haul is increasing. They carry them around, but they are really not very good at intelligently guessing what is inside.

Diana and I should be so uninformed! The kids simply don’t have the capacity to keep a secret. They constantly bring to me their present for me and challenge me to guess what is inside. Nathan will agree with anything I suggest, but not the younger two! A couple of days ago I guessed that there was an aardvark inside. Nathan said, “Yep, that’s right!”  But Benjamin looked at him sternly and retorted, “It is not an Ortfort, Nathan; it’s a sander machine!”  So much for suspense.

We four men in the house were trying to buy cookie sheets for Diana. We found them at one store, but upon unanimous consensus felt that we should look for some larger sheets. We never found any, so after taking the boys home I went back to buy two of the originals. Later, when I arrived home with the bag, Aaron and Diana greeted me at the door where Aaron said, “Are those the cookie sheets for mommy?” Diana said, “Oh well, I’ll act surprised.”

What has struck me most in the past week is how differently Diana and I think about this season as compared to the boys. The guys can’t wait for Christmas to come and their days go by very slowly. We panic at the realization of how close Christmas is and how quickly time races toward it.

That is an anomaly of life. The older you get, the faster the time goes by and the more you realize that life is very short. As the Scriptures say, we need to redeem the time for the days are evil.”

The cycles of life are good for us. Imagine if there were no years to mark the advance of time. Opportunities would not exist to evaluate the past year and make new commitments to truly become more like Christ.

The Heat of Temptation

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This is the 13th of a series of 15 devotionals from the late 80s when my oldest sons were just little boys …

As most of you know, our family recently went on a brief vacation trip to Boston. We hit all the major landmarks of the city and area – Bunker Hill, the Old North Church, Paul Revere’s house, the Freedom Trail, Plymouth Rock, etc.

As we were returning to New Jersey, we asked the boys what three things they liked most about our vacation. Benjamin and Aaron – being too young to anticipate what we probably wanted to hear – spoke out honestly. “We liked eating in the restaurants, riding on the subway trains, and staying in the motel,” they said.

But Nathan, the consummate politician sweetly responded, “I really liked the historical sites the most.”

HA!! Sure you did!

I know for sure what Nathan liked least on our vacation. It was something he ate at a Chili’s Restaurant. Chili’s was one of our favorite Texas eateries during the Dallas Seminary years. We haven’t been to one in years, so when we saw a Chili’s on Cape Cod, the car just pulled us off the road and into the lot.

You need to understand that Nathan is typical of many people born in Texas – a bit arrogant about their roots! Nathan constantly reminds us of the “nationality” of his birth and how he is going to live in the Lone Star State someday. The kid sees himself as a true son of Texas. It drive me a bit nuts! He even likes the Rangers baseball team!

Diana and I ordered cheese nachos, which are traditionally served with a slice of jalapeno (super-hot) pepper in the middle. Diana was removing the peppers and laying them aside. So I said to Nathan, “You know Nathan, real Texans eat those peppers for snacks.” And he said, “Well I’m a real Texan so let me try one.” He did, and it wasn’t too bad. He even claimed it tasted good. So he took several more, threw them into his mouth and took a big bite.

Suddenly his eyes began to water, he started moaning loudly and quickly drank a glass of water. Then he reached across the table and grabbed Benjamin’s water, then Aaron’s, and then ours. As he cried, the waitress brought him more and more water. I felt badly for him but had to laugh at the same time – it was a sight! After a while the fire was extinguished, but he sure suffered in the process.

Sometimes Christian people are tempted to be something other than what they really are. We feel high-pressured by the world around us to take a taste of an item we are told is “hot.” Not heeding the warning, we try it. Often, the first taste is quite nice. But the further we go, the more the heat builds, and soon we have been burned by our foolishness. In time, and with the Lord’s forgiving assistance, the effects of the fire can be remedied. But oh the pain during the process.

Let us be a people that learn and run from those “hot” temptations of the world system. In a sense, it does us well to be “cool” in Christ.