The Walk

“So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man.” Acts 24:16 NIV

Paul was continually listening to his conscience as he went about Evangelizing for the Kingdom of God. 

He never asked for money from anyone but worked on the side making tents. He felt he was the lesser of all of the disciples because of his past. This was because; he was a religious Pharisee and at one time zealously put to death men, women and children who believed in Jesus Christ. Everyone knew him as Saul back then. Then, one day while on the road to Damascus he was struck by lightning and was blinded. He could not see a thing. The Bible says:

“He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" 5And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" And He said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.” Acts 9:4, 5 NIV

Paul was not only physically blinded that day; he was zealously blinded from the truth to the point of violently putting to death the Body of Christ. He was a religious man who killed for his faith. Although he had the Damascus conversion in receiving Jesus as his Savior, received the forgiveness of sins, received his eyesight back and a new name of Paul; his past was something he could not change. His sins were covered under the blood and he was set free from the bondage of sin, there were times when he still had to walk through some of the consequences of his past actions.

It is not always easy to walk a godly walk. But I know that in time according to the Bible, Paul learned to let go of the memories and forget about the past and pressed on to his high calling in Christ!  

Paul did not realize that every time he killed a Christian he was persecuting Jesus.  Christians are known as: the Body of Christ, the church, the Bride of Christ and so much more.  Paul was blind and could not see the connection of the truth. Then, he became physically blind. He was spiritually blind and became physically blind. In order for him to see the truth, he had to become blind.

We are no different than Paul. God knows exactly what it takes for us to see His truth in a clear way. And, because everyone is different and unique, not everyone has a Paul experience. However, if your heart is searching for God you will find Him.  

Many years ago, my husband’s son “Mike” was in the Navy and in a submarine and happened to be 30 ft below the polar icecap. He had read everything he could get his hands on and ran out of reading material. As any sub sailor will tell you, being underwater for so long can drive any good man bonkers if they don’t control themselves. This is why they try to stay busy. It just so happened that someone had placed a Bible on Mike’s cot. He picked it up and read it. God’s incredible grace washed over him and he believed what he read! He prayed and he repented from his sins and became a new man in Christ. Think about it, Mike met Jesus 30 ft under a polar icecap!!  When the submarine surfaced he was born-again! He got out of the Navy and sold his small house and gave all the proceedings to his small church. He worked his way through Bible College and then, another University and during this time he met and married his mate. Today he is a Professor at Calvin Theologian University and teaches, lectures and writes books.

This is what the power of God does! This is what happens when a heart surrenders to God with no holds barred.

Paul?  Mike?  We all have books inside of us, but it is the ending that is important. It is our last chapter that talks about the decision we made while on this earth.

God bless you.