Acts 22
COMMENTARY:
: 3 I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as you all are this day. (2207 “zealous” [zelotes] means enthusiast, nationalist, adherent, eager, patriot, or seek to imitate.)
DEVOTION: Have you ever reviewed your history to someone? Could they understand why you act the way you do right now from a review of your upbringing and training?
Here is Paul [Saul] in front of a group of people who wanted him killed. They had listened to their leaders and started to kill him for his beliefs. They thought he had entered the Temple area with a Gentile. They were looking for any excuse to kill anyone who believed in Jesus.
Now he is allowed to state his case to the crowd with the soldiers standing guard over him, so that, the crowd could do him no harm.
He starts at his birthplace to show that he was born a free man. He was trained by one of the great scholars of the time in Jewish religious practices. He was “perfect” in the manner in which he practiced his faith in front of all the religious leaders. He was so enthusiastic in his following of the teachings he received that he condoned the stoning of the first martyr Stephen. He was there holding the garment of those who were throwing the stones.
He was converted on his way to Damascus. His testimony has remained the same throughout the book of Acts. Nothing had changed but the audience.
Our testimony has to be the same each time we tell it to those who ask. I became a believer at summer camp when I was twelve years old. It was called at the time Niagara Bible Conference. It was during the showing of a movie regarding the end times. They asked for a raise of hands of those who wanted to commit their life to Christ. I raised my hand and one of the trumpet players talked to me about the LORD. I returned to the camp when I graduated from high school as a counselor. It was great to return. Now many years later the LORD still uses this sinner for HIS service and glory.
I like Paul can say “For the good that I would, I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do.” I think it would have been good for the LORD to allow all those who became believers to stop sinning the moment they became a believer but that doesn’t happen. HE wants us to depend on HIM the rest of our life – otherwise we would think too highly of ourselves. Some didn’t learn this lesson. They do think that they are better than other believers. Paul never thought those thoughts.
Remember your beginning in Christ. Remember that each day confession is necessary for the sins of the day.
CHALLENGE: Treat others as you would want to be treated if you are having a sinful day. Be enthusiastic toward the LORD in spite of your sinful condition. Heaven will be different!!
: 8 And I answered, Who are you, Lord? And HE said to me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute. (1377 “persecute” [dioko] means pursue, to subject to systematic harassment and attack due to one’s religious beliefs, chase, seek after, to cause to flee, hunt, or cause to suffer.)
DEVOTION: Wouldn’t it be easier to explain our belief in Jesus if we had the same experience as Paul? Here is a man who was against Jesus and wanted to either kill or imprison all those who believed in HIM. He had the authority to put them in prison. He had the authority to lock them up. He had the power and the men to cause this to happen.
Then he sees a bright light and a voice talking to him that the other men with him don’t hear but they see the light. They are probably wondering what is happening. They were there and didn’t understand what was happening.
Paul meets Jesus for the first time. Jesus speaks to him. Jesus gives him personal instructions. He is to go into Damascus and wait for a man to come to him and explain what was happening. This same man was to open his eyes and instruct him regarding baptism.
If we had this story to tell those that we witness too would it have the same effect as the testimony of Paul? It probably would not today. They would think that you were crazy. Yet if it really happened it would change you.
Our conversation experience is one that we can tell others. We can tell them what Jesus means to us. But no one can have the same experience that you had. Each person meets Jesus their own way and in their own time.
Our responsibility is to give the message that we know to be true and let the Holy Spirit work in the lives of those who are listening to us. We are to do it in love and grace. They will answer to the LORD for their response. We will answer to the LORD if we don’t even talk to them if there is an opportunity.
CHALLENGE: Paul’s experience was unique but true. Our experience is unique and true also.
: 15 For you shall be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. (3144 “witness” [martus] means martyr, record, or of anyone who can and should testify to anything.)
DEVOTION: Each time we read the Bible we learn new things or are reminded of things we have forgotten. This occasion gives Paul a time to tell of his conversion to Christ and his call to the ministry.
Ananias brought him word from the LORD. He told Saul/Paul that he needed to get up and be baptized. He told him that his sins were washed away. How did this happen? Paul called upon the name of the LORD.
Paul was instructed at his conversion as to what his life was going to be like from that time forward. Paul knew at was ahead of him was to suffer for the Lord.
The word from the verse means martyr. He was to tell everyone about his conversion and in the future that would mean that he would die for his faith.
There were many occasions when Paul suffered for the Lord. This might be one of them. All he was required to do was to tell everyone he met what happened to him on the Damascus road. Here he is telling a group of angry Jews. He was being protected by the soldiers as he gave his testimony. As part of his testimony he relayed the fact that while he was in Jerusalem praying in the Temple, he had a vision from the LORD. In the vision the LORD told him to get out of Jerusalem because they were going to kill him. He was also told that his ministry was going to be to the Gentiles. When the Jews hear that word – they reacted in anger. They were casting off their clothes and throwing dirt in the air. The Jews didn’t like his testimony. He was off to jail.
God has an assignment for all of us once we are followers of HIM. Each assignment is different. Peter found that out when he asked Jesus about what was going to happen to John. Jesus told him it was none of his concern he was to just do his ministry for the Lord. John has a different ministry.
We need to not look at other Christians and compare ourselves with them. They have different ministries for the Lord. Too often we are caught up in the comparison game. God has at least one ministry for each of us to fulfill. Are we fulfilling our ministry or trying to do someone else’s ministry?
CHALLENGE: Ask the LORD what your ministry is and do it. Don’t wait for HIM to physically tap you on the shoulder. There is no retirement with the LORD except death. Our ministry is for a lifetime.
: 25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said to the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? (178 “uncondemned” [akatakritos] means punished without being tried, without trial, having not yet been subject to a legal trial (or investigation), one who is condemned unheard, or not having proper judicial process.)
DEVOTION: Courage under fire is hard to do. Here we have Paul arrested for causing a riot in the streets. He is given an opportunity to speak to the people regarding his upbringing and conversion.
He explains to them all that had happened to him since his conversion. He had a wonderful conversion where he met Jesus and talked with HIM. He is supposed to be a missionary to the Gentiles.
Now he comes to Jerusalem and goes into the Temple to please the Jewish Christians and he gets arrested. It is all part of the plan of God but it still seems strange.
Now he is about to be scourged by the soldiers and speaks up regarding his rights as a Roman citizen. God knew all this was going to take place. HE called a Roman citizen to become a believer for this purpose. HE wanted Paul to witness to the people in Rome. He was going to get an expense paid trip to Rome without any worries of being killed because he had Roman soldiers all around him all the way.
God had a plan and it worked. Paul was going to go to Rome and win people to Christ from a jail cell. What a wonderful God we serve.
CHALLENGE: HE as a plan for our life. It was established before the foundation of the world. HE knew our decision regarding salvation and what our service was going to be for HIM.
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