PUTTING YOUR LIFE IN "PERSPECTIVE"
Psalm 121
1I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
2My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
3He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
4indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5The Lord watches over you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
8the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
Ezekiel 1:25-2:1
25Then there came a voice from above the vault over their heads as they stood with lowered wings. 26Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. 27I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. 28Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him.
This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking. 1He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.”
Acts 26:1-32
1Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.”
So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defense: 2“King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews, 3and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4“The Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. 5They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee. 6And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today. 7This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me. 8Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?
9“I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.
12“On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. 14We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, a ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’
15“Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
“ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied. 16‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. 17I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
19“So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. 21That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— 23that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”
24At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. “You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”
25“I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. 26The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. 27King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.”
28Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”
29Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”
30The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. 31After they left the room, they began saying to one another, “This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.”
32Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
Recently I was making a pastoral call on one of our members. Somehow or other we got on the topic of “birthday-presents” from our adult children. Turns out we both had received the exact same gift from one of our daughters. The gifts were both from “Story-worth”, which if you haven’t heard of before is an outfit that sends you a list of approximately 52 questions about various aspects of your life. The idea is that you write a story about the topic embedded in the question. Then the stories get compiled into a hard-covered book complete with pictures (assuming you sent any in).
Ostensibly, the book is your birthday present, but in reality it’s a gift for the whole family. So far, I’ve written 42 of these things. I’ll see how close I get to 52.
As I reflect on that pastoral care visit and think about this meditation, it strikes me that this “story-worth” experience is instructive. Acts 26 is Luke’s recollection of Paul’s “life-story”. This chapter marks the climax of the book of Acts. In fact its the last great speech of Paul in the book. Luke does offer 2 more short summations in Chapter 28…but this is the last hurrah so to speak, for Paul. It’s his “story-worth” article for the family of God.
Let’s just track how it unfolds section by section:
The motioning of the hand (vv. 2) was evidently after the manner of orators of that time. This speech has the following sections:
Complimentary remarks vv. 2-3
Paul’s early life in Judaism vv. 4-8
Paul’s his zeal in opposing Christianity vv. 9-11
Paul’s conversion and commission vv. 12-18
Paul’s ministry vv. 19-23
Paul tries to “close the deal/sale” with Agrippa/Festus vv. 24-29
Conclusion vv. 30-32
The apostle Paul was simply acknowledging the “call” of God on his life. He was rehearsing the facts of his transformation from a God hater to a Christ follower under the guidance of the Holy Spirit over the course of his life span. In hindsight he could clearly see the providence God leading him throughout his life to become this powerful figure in the establishment of the church. What he had determined to utterly destroy, ends up becoming his profound legacy.
This “life-story” is not unique to Paul. Every single one of us is being guided by the same Spirit. Each child of God is in the process of being “transformed”, molded into exactly the kind of person our Sovereign Lord needs us to be for the sake of his glory and the advancement of his kingdom. Every aspect, every victory, every failure, every experience, everything about us is “on-purpose” and necessary for our becoming effective disciples of the living God.
Do you see your own life in the perspective of God’s plan for his glory and the advancement of his kingdom? Look back and take note of details of your life’s experience to date. None of it is accidental, or incidental. It all matters. You are God’s workman ship. You are made for his Glory….so tell your story…first to yourself, then your family and friends. Yours is a story worth telling. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.