You Did It to Me!

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Acts 9:4

What must Saul have been feeling when Jesus burst into his reality? Saul was so sure he was doing God’s will. He watched as Stephen was stoned to death. He was zealous in rounding up the new followers of Christ, bringing them to Jerusalem in chains and throwing them in jail. 

But God did not allow him to continue. On the road to Damascus, a brilliant light flashed from the sky and he fell to the ground. “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 

“Who are you, Sir?” Saul asked. 

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting!” Saul was not there during Christ’s crucifixion. He was terrorizing and threatening ordinary people following the new way of the Lord. Jesus already taught in Matthew 25:40 that ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ We see that Jesus takes this very seriously and we should too. 

Are we persecuting anyone? Probably not. But sometimes we hurt people without even knowing it. We do not think of the words we say and how we say it. I admit I am not very conscious of how I put things. I can be judgmental and unkind. I can jump to conclusions and say negative things. Being sensitive to how others are feeling is a strength we should develop. We should practice treating others as if they were Jesus. The world will be a better place. 

During the times we cannot think of others as Jesus because Jesus would not be cruel, unkind, and arrogant, then we can practice being Jesus to them. Easier said than done but I believe our time on earth is one long practice for when we get to heaven. We fail many times, but Jesus our teacher is patient with us. He gives us as many chances as we need!