Third Sunday of Easter – May 4, 2025
“Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before
Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel.”
- Acts 9:15 -
I would not have wanted the job that Ananias was given. Saul had come down to Damascus for the sole purpose of rounding up Christians and bringing them back to Jerusalem for punishment, possibly even death. His mission in life was to persecute the followers of Jesus, whom he regarded as blasphemers and false teachers. And now the Lord insisted that his faithful servant, Ananias, must go to Saul with a word of salvation. It had to be tempting for him to say, “I think you need to find someone better suited to deliver that kind of message.”
But Ananias went. He delivered the Good News to Saul, and immediately Saul came to recognize who Jesus is and what he had accomplished. He became a passionate witness to Christ’s saving work to all who would listen.
If they had been asked the day before, neither Saul nor Ananias could have imagined the work they would be given to do on behalf of the Gospel. Neither could have imagined what Christ might call upon them to do. But when the call came to them, the Holy Spirit took hold of them, and they went where they were led.
None of us knows what Christ might call us to do tomorrow. We don’t know what need may arise in the church or the world that God intends for us to meet. It may be a task we’d rather not do. It may be one we feel completely unprepared for, or inadequate to complete. It may be something that seems like a futile waste of our time. However, when the Holy Spirit grabs hold of you and sends you on your way, he also equips you for the task at hand. He doesn’t send you under your own power or wisdom. He sends you in his strength so that his will might be fulfilled. God does not promise that your calling will be without struggle or suffering. In fact, he promises quite the opposite. It will be marked by his cross. What he promises is that he will never be far from you, and he will give you strength and courage when your own falter.
Third Sunday of Easter – May 4, 2025
“Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before
Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel.”
- Acts 9:15 -
I would not have wanted the job that Ananias was given. Saul had come down to Damascus for the sole purpose of rounding up Christians and bringing them back to Jerusalem for punishment, possibly even death. His mission in life was to persecute the followers of Jesus, whom he regarded as blasphemers and false teachers. And now the Lord insisted that his faithful servant, Ananias, must go to Saul with a word of salvation. It had to be tempting for him to say, “I think you need to find someone better suited to deliver that kind of message.”
But Ananias went. He delivered the Good News to Saul, and immediately Saul came to recognize who Jesus is and what he had accomplished. He became a passionate witness to Christ’s saving work to all who would listen.
If they had been asked the day before, neither Saul nor Ananias could have imagined the work they would be given to do on behalf of the Gospel. Neither could have imagined what Christ might call upon them to do. But when the call came to them, the Holy Spirit took hold of them, and they went where they were led.
None of us knows what Christ might call us to do tomorrow. We don’t know what need may arise in the church or the world that God intends for us to meet. It may be a task we’d rather not do. It may be one we feel completely unprepared for, or inadequate to complete. It may be something that seems like a futile waste of our time. However, when the Holy Spirit grabs hold of you and sends you on your way, he also equips you for the task at hand. He doesn’t send you under your own power or wisdom. He sends you in his strength so that his will might be fulfilled. God does not promise that your calling will be without struggle or suffering. In fact, he promises quite the opposite. It will be marked by his cross. What he promises is that he will never be far from you, and he will give you strength and courage when your own falter.