Saul Sails Home

 

Backward Christian soldiers, fleeing from the fight;  with the cross of Jesus, nearly out of sight. Christ our rightful master stands against the foe; onward into battle we seem afraid to go. Like a might tortoise, moves the church of God. Brothers we are treading, where we've often trod. We are much divided, many bodies we; Having different doctrines, but not much charity.

Crowns and thrones may perish; Kingdoms rise and wane. But, the cross of Jesus Hidden does remain. Gates of hell should never 'gainst the Church prevail.  We have Christ's own promise, but we think it might fail. Sit here then ye people, join our sleeping throng. Blend with ours, your voices in a feeble song. Blessings, ease and comfort, ask from Christ the King. But with our modern thinking, we won't do a thing (source unknown).

After conversion Saul returned to Jerusalem, the town he had left breathing fire, three years earlier (Acts 9:1-3). He tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him. But God used Barnabas to show them that Saul was truly converted to Christianity. Apparently Barnabas was respected enough to be believed. And so on his recommendation everybody accepted Saul. So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord (Acts 9:26-27).

Years later Paul remembered that visit and wrote ‘after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother... Then I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy. And they praised God because of me”’ (Gal. 1:18-24).

Jesus had twelve apostles and many disciples. Saul did not see any of the apostles except Cephas (Peter). He also saw James the Lord’s brother. Jesus had four half brothers James, Joseph, Judas (Jude), Simon; He also had sisters (Mark 6:3). James was not one of the twelve apostles; He did not believe in Jesus initially (John 7:5). James, Peter and John were the pillars of the Jerusalem church (Gal. 2:9). James appears to have been the leader of the Church (Acts 12:17; Acts 15:13-19; Acts 21:18).

Saul stayed with Peter for fifteen days. He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him.  Hellenistic Jews were Greek speaking Jews born and raised outside Israel. This is fascinating because it reminds us of what happened to Stephen. Opposition arose from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia, who began to argue with Stephen (Acts 6:9). This led to his death.

The killers of Stephen had “laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul” (Acts 7:58). Surprisingly, in Acts 9 Saul is witnessing to the very same audience, the Greek-speaking Jews, that Stephen had spoken to before he was stoned to death (Acts 6:8-10). And just as they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which Stephen was speaking, Saul's debating skills proved too much for the Hellenistic Jews, and so they tried to kill him.

Saul had helped to nurture the anti-Christian attitude that came back to bite him. But grace always abounds! He had been forgiven of his sins, regardless of the temporal consequences that remained. The Hellenistic Jews were attempting to put him to death. They were trying again and again but were unsuccessful. The good hand of the Lord was on Saul preventing the Jews from laying their evil hands on him!

When the believers learned of the threat facing Saul, they took him to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus (Acts 9:28-30). Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine; it was also known as “Caesarea by the sea." Tarsus was the capital of the province of Cilicia. Tarsus was Saul’s home town (Acts 9:11). He was born in Tarsus but  brought up and educated in Jerusalem (Acts 22:3)..

The Bible is silent about Paul's time in Tarsus. It’s believed that he was there for a period between 8 and 12 years.  He spent those years as “Saul the unknown” before becoming “Paul the Great Apostle”. In Galatians 1: 21-22 Paul says “I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ”. The first years of Paul's life as a Christian were not significant in the eyes of men, but God used those years to train him.

After these years of obscurity, Saul's main ministry started when Barnabas  went  to Tarsus to look for him (Acts 11:25). However it appears like Saul threw himself into the evangelization of his home land. Some years later, Paul and Barnabas visited Jerusalem. The apostles gave them letters to take to “the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia” (Acts 15: 23). There were believers in Syria and Cilicia already. Did Saul win them to Christ during his years in obscurity?

The story of Saul’s conversion begins with him leaving Jerusalem to persecute the followers of Jesus (Acts 9:10). It ends with him leaving Jerusalem as a persecuted follower of Jesus (Acts 9:29-30). Saul wanted to minister to the Jews in Jerusalem, but God commanded him to depart from the city. His program at Jerusalem was now over and he had a ministry to fulfil among the Gentiles. Even as a new believer in Christ, Saul was bold and he stirred up controversy. These would characterize his ministry for the rest of his life.

Paul sailed off to Tarsus and “then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers” (Acts 9:31). At this same time, Caligula the emperor of Rome attempted to set up idols in Jerusalem. And this got the Jews so angry that they concentrated their fight against Caligula and consequently left the Christians alone for a period of time.

So, Paul’s leaving and the Jews preoccupation with Caligula’s efforts to set up idols, gave the church rest. The reference to Judea, Galilee and Samaria makes us think of Jesus words in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” The church is not just established in Jerusalem but is now scattered throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria.

Luke used the singular “church” throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria and not “churches.” Believers are part of one united Church. Paul said later in Ephesians 4:4-6: “there is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope... one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” Believers in Christ are destined “to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem… to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven” (Heb.12:22-23).

The church enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. The context of this verse is the conversion of Saul and the resulting decrease of external persecution on the church. However, peace involves much more than the absence of persecution. A church can have peace outwardly and not inwardly. Peace involves absence of conflict, both outwardly and inwardly, and the presence of harmony. Love and unity in church naturally produce an atmosphere of peace.

Paul later wrote to the Romans “do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval. Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification” (Rom.14: 16-19).

The church was “living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged (comforted) by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers” (Acts 9:31). The “fear of the Lord” is not a “dread of the Lord”. 1John 4:16-18 says “we know and rely on the love God has for us...This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the Day of Judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love”.

To fear the Lord means to be in awe of his holiness, majesty, grace and love. The fear of the Lord leads to a sincere desire to please Him, heartfelt gratefulness for His mercy, and unending delight in His loving presence. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would “delight in the fear of the LORD” (Isa 11:3). Fearing the Lord should be a delight; pleasing to Him should be a delight.

The fear of the Lord involves an awareness of what He loves and what He despises. To fear the Lord is to hate evil (Prov. 8:13). Through the fear of the Lord evil is avoided (Prov.16:6).  When we choose to fear the Lord, we will “hate what is evil and cling to what is good” (Rom.12:9). The fear of the Lord leads to life; then one rests content, untouched by trouble (Prov. 19:23).

Paul (2 Cor. 7:1) and Peter (1 Pet.1:17) both use the fear of the Lord as a motive to holy and righteous living. 2 Cor. 7:1 says “therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”1 Peter 1: 17-19 says “If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth” (NASB-1995).

In a vision John saw in heaven “those who had been victorious over the beast... They held harps given them by God and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and marvellous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed”(Rev. 15:1-4).

The fear of the Lord was coupled with the encouragement by the Holy Spirit.  Jesus promised If you love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever ...He dwells with you and will be in you”(John 14:15-17). To encourage is to come alongside someone giving comfort, counsel, confidence and hope. The Holy Spirit is a priceless blessing in a church. When we have fear of the Lord we will have God’s comfort in our lives.

Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, the church increased in number. As long as Christians demonstrate supernatural lives (Gal 5:22-23), the church will always attract unbelievers. When its foundations are deeply laid in righteousness and peace the church will grow. God cannot do something through a church until he does something in a church.

You build a believer and the church will build itself. That is the pattern for church growth. The church grew spiritually and that led to numerical growth. Apart from attracting unbelievers to the congregation, a church that is growing spiritually will be reaching out to a lost and dying world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. A church that is healthy will be an evangelistic church.