Acts 9 v.4
“He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Today’s verse take place as Saul of Tarsus is on his way to Damascus with authority from the Jewish leaders to arrest Christians and bring them back to Jerusalem. As we know on his journey he was dazzled by a bright light and he heard a voice say “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Remember that Saul thought he was doing God’s will by persecuting Christians, but he didn’t realise that by persecuting Christians he was really persecuting Jesus. By saying this Jesus was showing how he is united to his people, because he is the head of the body which is his church. Just as a painful finger or a sore toe makes itself felt in your head, so when part of the body of Christ is in pain, Jesus feels it as well.
This brings the believer comfort because when his people suffer for his sake or when they are struggling to follow him; remember us that the Lord knows our pain and what we are enduring for his sake. The Lord does not forget when his people suffer for him and the gospel, so when Christians around the world are martyred, arrested, persecuted, denied basic human rights simply because they are Christians and love Jesus, then the Lord knows their situation, he sees their plight, he feels their pain and he will help them.
Much closer to home, we might not face prison or anything as extreme as that because we live in a free country but there will always be a cost to following Jesus, yes it is difficult but remember that Jesus sees your faithfulness in following him and he will reward those who do.
Prayer points
Give thanks for the Lord’s love for his body.
Pray that through trials the Lord’s people would remember that they are a part of his body.
Pray for Christians around the world who suffer persecution that they would be encouraged by remembering that their lives are in God’s hands.
