Rev. George Miller
May 1, 2022
Acts 9:1-20
Two weeks ago we celebrated Easter, and with it, the claim that for 2022 the
Resurrection is about how God re-creates community.
We saw Mary go from being alone to being in the garden with her
Rabbi. We saw Peter and the guys hanging
out butt-naked fishing, free of fear, and Thomas making a bold claim of faith as
he says “My Lord and my God.”
We have now journeyed out of John and into Acts, and how the community
has grown. There’s Cleopas and his
companion. There’s Matthias, Sapphira,
Stephen, and the Ethiopian Eunuch who’s so
magnificently mahogany that he would make Carnide look pale in comparison.
This new community consists of Jew and Gentile, male and female, native
and foreign born, black, brown, and olive skinned.
Now there’s a new person, perhaps the most unexpected of all- Saul, the
breather of threats and murder.
This dragon of a man has struck fear into the heart of Christ’s
community. He’s there when Stephen is
killed. He’s going into folks’ homes and
dragging them off to prison.
Saul’s zeal for his understanding of God's Word is such that he would
rather have someone killed than let them proclaim Christ as King.
In Acts 8:3, Saul is “ravaging” the church, violating people’s safe
spaces, not caring if they’re male or female.
In chapter 9, Saul’s death march has him storming off to the high priest,
seeking permission to bring more followers of Jesus back to Jerusalem as theological
prisoners to be punished.
There is nothing cute about this. Think
of this as a scene from a horror film.
Think of Paul the same way your grandkids would think of Michael Meyers, Freddie
Kruger, or The Purge.
If Saul was here today, he would storm into this sanctuary and drag each
and every one of us out in chains, no matter your age, gender, or ability.
Saul is a monster of a man to be feared.
But God is bigger than any monster.
God is greater than any man.
God’s Spirit is more powerful than one person’s zeal.
While on his way to Damascus, the Resurrected Christ makes himself known
to Saul.
A light flashes. Saul falls. He hears a voice; asked a question. Saul replies “Who are you, Lord?”
The answer comes so clearly that Saul cannot deny it- “I AM. I am Jesus, the one you are ravaging. Get up.
Go. You will be told what to do.”
Like Abram in Haran and Hagar in the wilderness, Saul has an unexpected encounter
with God that will change him and the world around us forever.
In order for that change to take place, Saul becomes temporarily blind, helpless,
led by hand into Damascus, and taken in by Ananias.
Ananias knows who Saul is. He
knows how dangerous he is; how much evil he has caused.
The Resurrected Christ assures him things will be ok; to trust and obey.
Ananias goes against all logic, all common sense. He makes his way to where Saul, the dragon,
is. He lays hands upon Saul, calls him “Brother.”
The things that clouded Saul’s vision fall away, he is washed and fed like
a newborn babe, and regains strength.
Saul has now become part of the expanding community of Jesus Christ.
For three days he went through his own death, his own darkness. He emerges on the other side, he is washed,
fed, with a new title- Brother.
That’s an example of what the Resurrection can mean; how it can look. The miracle of Easter goes beyond a rolled
away stone, an empty tomb, or a gardener in the garden.
Yes, we have the Resurrected Christ walking through doors, breathing peace,
and eating fish.
But perhaps the bigger miracle is how the Resurrection changes hearts, clears
up vision, and continues recreating communities that make no sense on paper or
in the “real world.”
The Resurrection empowered the disciples to go from fear to freedom, locked
doors to undocked boats.
The Resurrection allowed new voices to be heard and more people to participate.
The Resurrection saw Peter find his voice, a crippled beggar made strong,
and a eunuch welcomed as whole.
Again and again and again we watch how this community that first
consisted of Jesus and 12 men, expand to women who were benefactors, gentiles
who become evangelists, and foreigners welcomed into the fold.
Today witness how the Resurrection shows that God’s Kingdom so great, so
vast, so inclusive, that there is even space for the biggest, baddest, meanest
enemy of all.
Saul starts off as a monster, but he ends as our Brother, bathed, and
fed, welcomed and one of us.
If the Resurrection can welcome someone like Saul, imagine who else
Christ may lead our way.
May we be ready. May we see. Like Ananias, may we listen. Amen.
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