Approved

Luke 11:37-52
I love the subtle connections we find throughout scripture. In fact, we have a good example of one today. We know that the author of the gospel of Luke is also the author of Acts, so look at these two passages, one from today’s gospel reading and the other from a familiar account in Acts.

“Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your ancestors killed. So you are witnesses and approve of the deeds of your ancestors; for they killed them, and you build their tombs” (Luke 11:47-48).

“Then (Stephen) knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ When he had said this, he died. And Saul approved of their killing him” (Acts 7:60-8:1).

Jesus condemned the lawyers and Pharisees with whom he speaking in the very strongest of terms, going so far as to say they had concurred with the murder of prophets generations before. Based on that passage, then, what are we led to think about the man who would later become one of the greatest evangelists in the history of the Church? When first we see Paul (still called Saul), he is witnessing and approving of the murder of a Christian by a crowd made up of lawyers and Pharisees. (Paul was still a Pharisee at this time, as well.) Are we supposed to like Paul at this point in the story? Are we supposed to expect great things from him as an apostle? Hardly! In fact, Luke would have us understand what a devious and dangerous man Paul really was. And yet, when the time was right even this Pharisee had a role to play in the life of the Christian faith.

Now turn back to the account from Luke. Knowing that Paul will one day find a role in the life of the Church, are we free to assume that those to whom Jesus is speaking are beyond redemption? No! If Paul can be converted, so can anyone. Why? Because the Pharisees and lawyers in Luke’s account are figuratively guilty—they act out their approve of the killing prophets long before. But Paul was literally guilty of aiding and abetting in the murder of Stephen. If Jesus can redeem Paul, Luke tells us, then we must be slow in assuming anyone is beyond the redemptive power of God in Jesus Christ which, by the way, goes for you and me as well.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we sin and help us to live as your people, sharing the good news of our own redemption with the world. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Saved By a Basket

Acts 9:19b-31

A future leader of God’s people was to be killed, but before that could happen he was placed in a basket which was used to transport him to safety. Of course I’m talking about the baby Moses. It was his mother who placed him in a basket in the River Nile to save him from death as commanded by Pharaoh. But there’s another future leader of God’s people who also was saved by a basket. We’ve read about it today in Acts, about Saul’s escape from Damascus. “After some time had passed,” we reading Acts, “the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night so that they might kill him; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket” (Acts 9:23-25).

Okay, so maybe it’s a stretch, but both Moses and Saul were called away from their previous lives to a form of service that neither had expected. Moses would lead the people out of slavery and on toward the promised land. Saul—later to be called Paul—would become a missionary evangelist for the gospel and an organizer of churches throughout the known world. In each case these men had to prove themselves to skeptics, had to overcome obstacles, had to show patience and determination. That each was saved at one point in part with the use of a basket seems very appropriate.

Scripture relates stories to us that are full of depth and texture. But we should expect that because the overall story is about a real God acting in the midst of real people.

Prayer: Lord, you have cared for us these many years, sharing your word with us through prophets, kings, apostles, missionaries, councils, men and women, young and old. Continue to bless us with your word, for it is the source of our strength and our salvation. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Anti-Evangelism

Acts 9:1-9
For many the thought of evangelism, of sharing the faith with others and inviting them to become believers, can cause severe distress. We love the Lord, we say, but we aren’t the types to meddle in the affairs of others. We aren’t eloquent enough to share what we believe. That’s the minister’s job. And besides, all of our friends are members of churches or synagogues already. So we are often more than hesitant to share our faith with others, to evangelize.

Perhaps this makes our reading from Acts today seem all the more disturbing. “Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem” (Acts 9:1-2). Why we may not be well motivated to share the faith, there was a day when Saul (later Paul) was more than happy to try and snuff it out. Let’s call it anti-evangelism, spreading the news that Christianity is not to be trusted, adhered to, or otherwise accepted.

I doubt we’d be likely to make the connection, but when we clam up and decline to share our faith with others we are committing a form of anti-evangelism, too. The world has plenty of options to offer, plenty of choices for folks to make in spending their time and money, in sharing their attention. To let the world make its offer without holding out the good news of the gospel as an alternative is the same as breathing threats and murder against the church. At least it can lead to the same results.

Saul was perfectly willing to round up Christians for punishment. The world is willing to snare folks for its own purposes. So why aren’t we willing to offer what we know to be better?

Prayer: Lord, give us the courage to speak the good news and to share your love with all people. In Jesus’ name. Amen.