WITNESS
Acts 22:6–21
Believers must share their faith story with others. Three times within the Book of Acts the Apostle Paul narrates his experience of coming to Christ or being saved.
Paul’s experience of persecuting believers and seeking to destroy the Church but then becoming the foremost missionary and witness in Christian history challenges us to greater commitment and witness to the living Lord. Paul came to faith through an encounter with the risen Jesus.
An Encounter (6–9)
Paul, then called Saul, was a Christian persecutor who was traveling toward Damascus to hunt for Christians for the purpose of arresting them and bringing them back to Jerusalem. Some believe that Damascus is the world’s oldest city. On Paul’s journey, he encountered the risen Jesus. A bright light from heaven flashed and knocked Paul to the ground.
Paul heard the voice of the risen Jesus asking why he persecuted Him. When Paul inquired about the identity of his opponent, the voice claimed to be Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus’ words perhaps are an embryonic expression of the Pauline doctrine of the Church as the body of Christ. To persecute the Church is an attack upon Jesus. The individuals traveling with Paul saw the light but did not hear the voice of Jesus.
How would you describe your initial encounter with Jesus?
Sight Restored (10–16)
Paul asked the risen Jesus what he should do. Jesus gave specific commands to Paul. Jesus commanded Paul to get up, enter the city of Damascus, be baptized, experience the symbolic washing away of his sins and call on the name of Jesus. The bright light blinded Paul but did not blind his traveling companions. Paul’s companions aided the self-sufficient Paul by holding his hand as he traveled to the designated city of Damascus. A believer named Ananias — a devout man with a good reputation — came to help Paul. The name Ananias means “Yahweh has dealt graciously.”
Truly, God graced Ananias to grace Paul the persecutor by helping Paul regain his sight. Ananias commanded Paul to receive his sight. God appointed Paul to know God’s will, to see the Righteous One and to hear the words of Jesus from His mouth. Because of his encounter with the risen Jesus, Paul was charged with the responsibility to witness to all people about his experience of faith in Jesus Christ.
Several Christian songs and hymns use language about the restoration of sight as a description of the meaning of salvation. One such song is “I Saw the Light,” which was sung by the Alabama country star Hank Williams. How can we prepare ourselves to share our testimony with others?
The Task (17–21)
After Paul returned to Jerusalem and prayed in the temple, he fell into a trance. The Greek word is the basis of our English term “ecstasy” — an emotional state of being beyond reason or self-control.
The Lord commanded Paul to exit Jerusalem quickly because the Jewish leadership would not accept his testimony. The Apostle Paul’s testimony appears two other times in the Book of Acts, in chapters 9 and 26.
With whom is God calling you to share your testimony?
By Mark Rathel
Pastor of Friendship Baptist Church in DeFuniak Springs, Florida
