The Bull in the China Shop

 

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. (Acts 9:1-8 ESV).

 

I would have liked to have been on the road to Damascus that day when Jesus appeared to then Saul. Our reading begins with this picture of Saul “still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord” (v. 1). He must have been quite a sight. It reminds me of the proverbial bull in the China Shop. But Saul changed when he met Jesus. Saul fell to the ground when "a light from heaven flashed around him." This put him in a position in which he had to listen to God.

 

To his shock and surprise, Saul "heard a voice say to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?'" Saul thought he was serving God by persecuting Christians. But the voice said, "Why do you persecute me?" Completely shaken, Saul asked, "Who are you, Lord?" The reply: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting." Saul had figured that Jesus was in hell for claiming to be the Son of God. But this voice came "from heaven." All of Saul's ideas about Jesus came crashing down as his new Master spoke to him: "Get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." As a result, Saul joined a new fellowship. In Damascus, a disciple named Ananias called him "Brother." Saul was transformed by the grace of God. From that day onward he preached the good news that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

 

The essentials of all journeys with God are the same. We find ourselves as clumsy and destructive as that bull. We flail about against everything we fear and things we don’t understand ultimately hurting those around us. The call is simple. Come to Jesus. He will set you free and place you where you have room to move about without destruction following you.