Acts 9: 20-31

(Acts 9: 20-31)

And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. But all that heard him were amazed, and said; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests?  But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ.  And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him:  But their laying await was known of Saul. And they watched the gates day and night to kill him.  Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket.  And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple.  But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.  And he was with them coming in and going out at Jerusalem.  And he spake boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and disputed against the Grecians: but they went about to slay him.  Which when the brethren knew, they brought him down to Cæsarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.  Then had the churches rest throughout all Judæa and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.

 

In the beginning of Acts 9, there was a scene where Saul, who persecuted Christians, became a Christian. Through a mystical experience, the incident of hearing Jesus' voice and meeting him, Saul became a new person. He testifies of how his life has changed since then. 『And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple. 』

Saul was the one who persecuted Christians. When he heard Jesus' voice, he came to know that Jesus is the Christ, and he came to believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Then Saul immediately preached in each synagogue that Jesus was the Son of God. The words of Jesus he received, the Jesus he met, came to live as a witness of Jesus. Paul did not stop witnessing Jesus in just one or two places.

Saul preached Jesus in each synagogue. At that time, it is believed that there were about 30 synagogues in Damascus, and Paul, who traveled to defend Judaism, began to live in each of the synagogues in Damascus as a defender of Jesus, no longer Judaism. Saul's testimony about Jesus was twofold. He preached that Jesus is the Son of God and that Jesus is the Christ.

Saul came to realize that Jesus, whom the Jews killed for blasphemy, was actually the Son of God. Saul, who met Jesus, proclaimed the following to the Jews who demanded the crucifixion of Jesus in blasphemy. “He is the Son of God. The Jesus we killed is really the Son of God.” From Saul's mouth, who sweared at Christians to defend Judaism, confessed that Jesus is the Son of God.

『And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. Saul's second testimony about Jesus is that Jesus is the Christ. The meaning of Christ means the anointed, the savior of Israel, whom the Jews have long awaited, the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament. The Israelites, who lived in the bondage of poverty and disease in the midst of Roman oppression, were looking forward to the Messiah, hoping that when the Messiah came, they would gain political and economic and physical liberation. They were convinced that Jesus, from Galilee, from a poor village, was not the Messiah.

However, the Jesus crucified by the Jews is the Messiah they were waiting for, the Savior of Israel. Saul testified that Jesus was the Savior God sent to save Israel and mankind. And that testimony has already been proven internally by his transformed life. Saul had already experienced in his life the fact that Jesus is the Christ, and is now testifying in his words.

『Saul gained more strength and testified of Jesus as the Christ』

Saul's testimony is not only a testimony based on experience and inner conviction, it is also a testimony of the Holy Spirit who helps with power. Saul was witnessing by the supplying power of the Holy Spirit. When the Jews cannot bear Saul, who bears witness by the power of the Holy Spirit, they are confused and confused. The Jews, who thought they were on the same side as Saul, were puzzled by Saul's change, and the persecuted Christians feared Paul, wondering if it was a trick.

 However, through Barnabas' assurance of Saul, Saul's testimony to begin a new life, and his changed life, the church found stability. All Judea, Galilee, and Samaria churches were firmly established. The threat of death began to follow the changed Saul. It is true that the life of Saul, who is threatened with death, is premised behind the strong establishment and revival of the church. Behind the stage, where the Church of God is outwardly reassuring, it is true that there have been sacrifices and toils of people like Paul who were transformed to testify at the risk of death.