Acts
9:1-22 Revelation 5:1-14 John 21:1-19
Grace, mercy and
peace to you from God our Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Our text today is the reading from Acts just read, especially these
words, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Thus far our text.
Christ is
risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Amen. Dear friends in Christ, The
Resurrected Word of God is powerful. It
is able to perform miracles beyond our understanding. It is able to take the sick and make them
well, to take a murderer and forgive their guilt. It is able to make the blind to see, and the
lame to walk. There is nothing beyond
the power of God’s Holy Word, not even to rescue from your own sin and guilt.
THE
WORD OF GOD TRANSFORMS EVEN THE MOST REVOLTING SINNERS INTO BLESSED SAINTS OF
GOD.
It’s exactly what
happens for St. Paul. St. Paul,
originally known as Saul, was born into a wealthy Jewish family. He received the best education a Jewish
person of his day could, learning from the great Pharisee and leader of the
Sanhedrin Gamaliel. He becomes by his own
account one of the premiere Pharisees of all Israel. When the Pharisees decide something, Saul
supported them 100%. The book of Acts
says that Saul stood by watching with approval as the first Christian were
killed in a persecution by the Pharisees.
As St. Stephen was pummelled to death by stones, Saul watched from a
distance.
But the death of a
few Christians was not enough for Saul.
He wanted all of them destroyed, all of them killed. He sought out warrants for the arrest of any
Christians from the leaders of the Sanhedrin.
He took those warrants and sought to destroy the Christian faith,
beginning his travel north from Jerusalem to Damascus.
It was a trip that
would not turn out the way that Saul expected.
It was 135 miles from Jerusalem to Damascus – a several days
journey. Saul made the journey with a
group of soldiers from the synagogue, the same sort of soldiers that had
arrested Jesus years before. And as Saul
approached Damascus, suddenly a great light shone upon him, blinding him. And at that moment, the Word of the Lord came
to Saul with a word of law, “Saul, why are you persecuting me?” All Saul could do is ask, “Who are you
Lord?” And the answer stuns Saul. “I am Jesus, the resurrected Lord, the one
whom you are persecuting. Go into the
city, there you will be told what to do.”
Saul is
terrified. He can’t see. His friends heard the voice, they saw Saul
fall to the ground. They lead him by the
hand stumbling into Damascus. What is
Saul to do? He’s been murdering the
followers of the true God. And that God
has appeared to him, and spoken harshly of Saul’s intentions.
But the Word of
God comes again to Saul. This time
through a disciple of Jesus, Ananias, a pastor living and preaching in
Damascus. Jesus sends this disciple to
Saul, to preach the Word of God again to him, only this time a word of Gospel. “Saul, Jesus sent me to forgive you, to
return your sight to you, to make you well in his blood, and to fill you with
the Holy Spirit.” And with these words,
Saul’s sight returns, and he is baptized, and immediately begins preaching the
good news of a loving and forgiving God to all who will hear.
That’s how powerful
God’s word is, dear friends. It can take
a terrible sinner like Paul, and bring his entire sinful life crashing down around
him. And when the sinner is finally
killed by the truth, the Word of God comes again, to make alive, to forgive,
and to connect believers to the crucified and risen forever Christ.
It’s the same for
you, isn’t it? You too have sinned. You too are guilty, you too have failed in
thought word and deed. There are people you
have treated as Saul did, looking on with pleasure as they got what they had
coming to them. You, like Saul, have
created your own understanding of God – Justifying yourselves and your
actions. Turning wrong into right and
vice versa. Sinning in all times and all
ways imaginable.
But hear God’s
word ! You are full of bitterness and
captive to sin. You are guilty. And everyone who sins (from the tiniest sin
to the largest sin) is a slave to that sin.
That means you. That means each
person here. And if you remain a slave
to sin, you have but one destination awaiting you: Hell, punishment, fire beyond belief, the
place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, where the worm does not
die.
But hear also the
good news, as Saul himself did. Christ
has been raised. He lives forever. And in his blood you are forgiven. You, like Saul, have been baptized into his
name. You like Saul have received the
Word of Good news, the Gospel, the Euaggeloj,
that in Jesus your sin is gone! Forever!
Taken away! That in those
baptismal waters you have died with Jesus and raised forever with him. And that even now you have the promise of
life everlasting. That even now you are
forgiven your sins, no matter what the depth, because God’s Word has come to
you, here and in baptismal waters. God’s
word has come to you. And you are
forgiven, just as the murder St. Paul was before you.
Rejoice! Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia, Amen!
