Traveling The Road To Damascus
We make promises and work faithfully to build strong relationships in our lives. We are often bound to written contracts with legal connections. But there is only one agreement that is offered with love and eternal promises, and that is our covenant with God.
He has made covenants throughout salvation history –with Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David; and finally, God chose to create His Church through His Son, Jesus Christ. In these successive covenants, God increased His family until there is one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
The Latin word for oath is sacramentum. Christ instituted seven sacraments to help us honor the New Covenant as we affirm the teachings of the Church. Everyone has a story to tell about his or her journey of faith. We can appreciate the struggles of the Early Church followers, as we strive to build up the Kingdom of God in a culture that defies religious freedom and the dignity of human life.
The word apostle means one who is sent on a mission, and we are God’s modern day apostles! In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke tells a first-century conversion story. A Jewish man named Saul was involved in the earliest persecutions of the followers of Jesus. He was born in the trading city of Tarsus in southern Turkey. He was educated, spoke several languages, and was an ultra orthodox Pharisee following the strict Law of Moses. He witnessed the stoning of Stephen the deacon who was the first Christian martyr, and was intent on destroying the new Christian faith. Saul was a Jew and a Roman Citizen, which later helped him as a persecuted follower of Christ.
His life changed while he was traveling from Jerusalem to Damascus. He encountered the risen Jesus in a vision of light, which left him temporarily blind. A disciple named Ananias was told in a vision from the Lord to go to Saul and lay hands on him, so that his sight would be restored. “‘Brother Saul, the Lord, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ Immediately scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight and was baptized” (Acts 9:9-18).
Why did God choose Saul? He was aware of the promised Messiah as foretold in Scripture, and he understood the law passed down from Moses. But he may have been chosen because he was willing to distance himself from his previous life and become a Christian called Paul. God’s generous love promises the gift of redemption, and as Christians we must agree to help share this good news with the world!
The apostles were told to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. We have plenty of work to do, and our road to Damascus is difficult. God promises to forgive sins and restore fellowship with those whose hearts are turned towards Him. The death of Jesus on the cross is the foundation for this promise.
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and keep my laws” (Ezekiel 36:26).
Do not be blinded by the promises of this world. Our covenant with God is real truth! Amen!
