“And all who heard him were amazed and said, ‘Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” Acts 9:21. Our reputations stick with us. We’re introduced to Saul when the witnesses were stoning Stephen placed their garments at his feet, and not only did he approve of this disciple’s execution, but he was instrumental in the “great persecution” of the church that scattered all of Jesus’ followers throughout Judea and Samaria except for the apostles. With the same fervor that Christians went from “house to house,” not ceasing to teach and preach that Jesus is the Christ (5:42), Saul had ravaged the church, “entering house after house” to drag them off to prison. Damascus was far away, but even Christians there knew of him and were wary. Ananias was until the Lord told him to baptize their repentant enemy. But reputation is won over by actions. Saul grew in strength and “confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ”—so much so that the ravager had to be saved by those he had intended to bring bound to Jerusalem.

“Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered” Psalm 32:1. To those who were seeking justification by works, Paul spoke about Abraham believing God and his faith credited as righteousness. Then he said that David spoke of “the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works” (Romans 4:6-8) before quoting the first two verses of this psalm. To be forgiven is to be considered righteous. This isn’t anything that can be earned but is a free gift from the one who is forgiving. That is why forgiveness nor righteousness can be worked for, only freely given. And that is why that the one who gains that forgiveness is truly blessed. But to get to that blessing, the person has to obey the gospel. The psalmist says that he tried hard to hide his sin, but it was only when he took ownership of it that he experienced the end result of the blessing—joy! Repentance, then, is not working to be justified but merely obedience to the gospel, the same as submitting to baptism. How often we view obedience as drudgery rather than access to blessing that God alone chooses to give. And how often do we trudge through this life rather than having promised joy.

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery” Galatians 5:1. July 4^th caps a period stretching from Memorial Day at the end of May and through Flag Day in June in which we are mindful of the terrible cost for our country’s freedom. So many laid down their lives so we might enjoy “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” As Christians, we understand that other than the American soldier, the only other one to die for us is Jesus. Practicing what He preached, Jesus spoke of no greater love than one to die for his friends (John 15:12-14) and then challenged us to love as He loved to truly be free. Lately, however, we see the world defining ‘love’ and ‘freedom’ in very different ways. Though love seeks the good of the other person (1 Corinthians 13:4-7), our culture says it’s to please self. And, it tells us that to truly be ‘free’ we must place upon our necks once again a yoke of slavery to sin—which the world has now redefined as any attitude or speech that disagrees with their inclusionary view of life. Such “intolerance” from us is considered “hateful” and detrimental to their “freedom” to sin, but freedom is only found in Christ.      

“But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel’” Acts 9:15. It’s rare but occasionally God pulls back the curtain to allow us a glimpse of what His bigger plan is for our lives. In the case of the one who was “still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord” when he left Jerusalem, we hear God’s plan for him as He relates it to the understandably-astonished Ananias in Damascus. In the same way, God tells us that He has plans for us, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). What we tend to focus on—and what often keeps us from completing our personal ministries—is the next verse in Paul’s story, “For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” We don’t want to suffer—we don’t even want to feel uncomfortable—in our serving. But not Paul! He had learned the secret of being content in all circumstances (Philippians 4:10-13) and that it’s becoming like Jesus in His death that He may attain to the resurrection (3:7-11). Do we learn this?

“You take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge. Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God” Psalm 31:4-5. Most recognize some of these words as Jesus’ final utterance of breath upon the cross just before He died (Luke 23:46) and hear in them the finality of one who was made like His brothers in every way (Hebrews 2:14-18) succumbing to that which all men must—and that is true if we speak of first death, the separation of the body from the soul. But that’s not the meaning if we understand where the “Word made flesh” is quoting this from. In Psalm 31, David, the one through whom Jesus is descended, states that he takes refuge in the LORD and asks that He be a refuge for him to save him from the net that his foes have cast for his life. In David’s case God does, but in Jesus’ … He does too as His Son, our Savior, rises from the dead! We understand the rest of the psalm, then, by how God did save the One who trusted in Him. He who was “crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men” (Acts 2:23) was “not delivered … into the hand of the enemy.” He who’s faithful to Jesus and to David is also with us.