Do you Know Him? Are you Sharing Him? (cont. Acts 26)

A Continuation of Acts 26

I hope you read Acts 26, if not, I would urge you to read it.  I posted it on my last blog. 

This entire chapter is a testimony of Paul, an eye witness account, a character account of Jesus Christ.  Paul used his testimony as a defense in front of King Agrippa and many others. 

Paul was raised in a very religious home.  He must have had parents who were not only rich but who believed in God.  They took him to the Synagogue and most likely taught him in their home regarding God.  He followed all the Jewish customs and even defended what he believed to be the truth.  He sounds like a pretty good guy in the Jewish circles.  Then, Jesus got a hold of him and gave him something to think about.  At the point of the interaction, the blinding of his eyes, and the healing, Paul was a changed man.  This had to be true just by looking at the radical change in Paul’s life.  Those he once knew and trusted turned against him and wanted to kill him because of his belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.  He had to leave the city he was raised in because the Jews there wanted to kill him. 

My life is dramatically different from Paul yet there are some similarities.  I was raised, not in a Jewish home but a Christian home.  I grew up knowing the Lord and made a decision to make the faith of my family my own personal faith.  It stops there.  I have never had an eye witness account of my Savior like Paul did, I have never been persecuted unto death by my friends because of my faith in Christ, I have never had to stand before a judge and defend my faith, yet.  Furthermore, I am still working on that part about counting it all joy when I find myself in certain circumstances. 

Paul stands before the king and gives a personal account of his life and his faith in Christ.  Yet the king’s only remark was that Paul was trying to make him a Christian.  Seems so familiar, the king was nothing more than someone who thought he had it all together and this Christian life was for someone besides himself.  Yet Paul tells him that it is his hope that this man and all others would come to know Christ. 

King Agrippa was the great grandson of Herod the Great, the one who had all the male babies killed trying to get rid of Jesus.  The one who told the wise men to come back and report where Jesus was, so he could go to “worship”, no, he wanted to rid the land of him.  I am sure King Agrippa had heard many stories past down from generation to generation about Jesus.  He is convinced that he can live a life just fine without him.  Again, not so different from people today who are from all walks of life.  I know several people who think they have it all together yet have rejected Christ.  I have to ask myself, why? Why?  Why?  How can people sit and hear the wonderful stories of Christ and yet reject Him.  They have not had the personal relationship and they probably see us as not any better than them.  You know what?  We aren’t any better but if you know the Lord your God, repented of your sins, and trust solely in Him, then you are different! You are forgiven, yours sins are washed away!  Now, we need to act that way!!!!

Paul counted it a privilege to share his testimony with the king.  He didn’t much like the chains but he was happy to stand before a crowd of people and share how Christ changed his life.  It was his hope that many would come to know the Lord that day, especially the king.  Yet, the king cut him short, walked away from an opportunity to follow Christ.  What a shame!  I have seen that at church as well.  People are given the opportunity to turn to Christ yet what happens is they walk out the door the same as when they went in.  Just yesterday we had someone stand up and give their testimony about how Christ changed his life and invited others to do the same. Then we went home and some probably discussed more about how long the service was than about how wonderful it was that this man’s life was changed.  Why do we do that?  We should be rejoicing in a changed life and trying to bring others to know the Lord too!  We should be witnessing to those who think they have life figured out who are really lost in this world.  Just like Paul, we can’t change anyone but we can live our lives giving God the glory and be satisfied that He has placed us where we are for a reason and that reason is to serve Him and to share with others our testimony of how he changed our lives.

I pray as Paul prayed that if you do not know the Lord that you and many others would come to Him!  Get introduced to Him and welcome Him into your life.  If you do know Him, it is my desire that you too would be bold in your faith, that you will share with others the love the Father has bestowed upon you.  That you would once again know your first love, Christ, and that you would come running to Him.  God’s desire is that we share His love with the world so that all my have the opportunity to know Him. Do you know Him?  Are you sharing Him with others?

Seek Him and know Him as you seek Him with all your heart.

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila