GO!
Acts 22:17-29
“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ” (21)
chapter 22
17. "When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance
18. and saw the Lord speaking to me. ’Quick!’ he said. ’Leave Jerusalem immediately, because the people here will not accept your testimony about me.’
19. "’Lord,’ I replied, ’these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you.
20. And when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’
21. "Then the Lord said to me, ’Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ "
22. The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, "Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!
23. As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air,
24. the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this.
25. As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, "Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?"
26. When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. "What are you going to do?" he asked. "This man is a Roman citizen."
27. The commander went to Paul and asked, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" "Yes, I am," he answered.
28. Then the commander said, "I had to pay a lot of money for my citizenship." "But I was born a citizen," Paul replied.
29. Those who were about to interrogate him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
1. The resurrected Jesus, our Lord and Savior, had a purpose for Paul. “Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.” Paul was not born a saint, ready to serve God’s purpose for his life. No, he was lost in his sin. He was spiritually so blind that he stood at the site of Stephen’s martyrdom, giving his approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him (20).
2. Our Lord forgave him his sins. What peace he must have had in his once tormented soul! He might have seen in his dreams the image of the saint, Stephen, bleeding profusely while being stoned. Paul later wrote, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:1).
3. Paul was compelled by God’s love and grace of forgiveness of his sins to obey Jesus’ world mission command (21). He was once a lost sinner, but the resurrected Christ made him “a light for the Gentiles” (Isa 49:6).
Prayer: Father, I was once a lost sinner. What amazing grace that you forgave me my sins through the blood of your Son! May I always be guided by your love and grace of forgiveness of my sins that I may know what I should do for my life. Amen.
One Word: Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles