The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) - Day 330: Saul's Conversion (2023)

Episode Date: November 26, 2023

Fr. Mike breaks down Saul's miraculous conversion, explaining the significance of Jesus sending Ananias to heal Saul, and how it reveals that Jesus works through his Church just as powerfully as he worked through the incarnation. Fr. Mike also reminds us that if we belong to the Lord, we will have to participate in his suffering. Lastly, as we conclude St. Paul's letter to the Romans, Fr. Mike leaves us with the exhortation that the Gospel advances primarily through family and friendship. Today's readings are Acts 9, Romans 15-16, and Proverbs 27:18-20. For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/bibleinayear. Please note: The Bible contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to the Bible in a Year podcast, where we encounter God's voice and live life through the lens of Scripture. The Bible in a Year podcast is brought to you by Ascension. Using the Great Adventure Bible Timeline, we'll read all the way from Genesis to Revelation, discovering how the story of salvation unfolds and how we fit into that story today. It is day 330. I know for a fact there are 35 days left because every year has 365 and 330 minus 365 or opposite of that is 35. So there, I know math. Take that. It's day 330. And we're reading from

Acts of the Apostles chapter 9, as well as the conclusion of St. Paul's letter to the Romans chapters 15 and 16. As always, the Bible, oh, Proverbs chapter 27 verses 18 through 20. As always, the Bible translation I'm reading from chapter 27, verses 18 through 20. As always, the Bible translation I'm reading from is the Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition. I'm using the Great Adventure Bible from Ascension. If you want to download your own Bible in a Year reading plan, you can visit ascensionpress.com slash Bible in a Year. You can also subscribe to this podcast by clicking on subscribe and receiving daily episodes and daily updates. Today is day 330, Acts of the Apostles, chapter 9, the conversion of Saul, as well as the conclusion

of St. Paul's beautiful, powerful, incredible letter to theles, chapter 9, the conversion of Saul, as well as the conclusion of St. Paul's beautiful, powerful, incredible letter to the Romans, chapters 15 and 16, and Proverbs chapter 27, verses 18 through 22. The Acts of the Apostles, chapter 9, the conversion of Saul. But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he journeyed, he approached Damascus,

and suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him, and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? And he said, Who are you, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do. The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice, but seeing no one. Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.

And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Here I am, Lord. And the Lord said to him, Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul. For behold, he is praying, and he has seen a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight. But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard

from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem, and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call upon your name. But the Lord said to him, Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel, for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him, he said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.

And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized and took food and was strengthened. Saul preaches in Damascus. For several days, he was with the disciples Damascus, and in the synagogues immediately he proclaimed Jesus, saying, He is the Son of God. And all who heard him were amazed and said, Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called on this name? And he has come here for this purpose,

to bring them bound before the chief priests. But Saul increased all the more in strength and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. Saul escapes from the Jews. When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night to kill him. But his disciples took him by night and led him down over the wall, lowering him in a basket. Saul in Jerusalem And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples,

and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them how on the road he had seen the Lord who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists, but they were seeking to kill him. And when the brethren knew it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria

had peace and was built up and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it was multiplied. Peter heals Aeneas in Lydda. Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints that lived at Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas

who had been bedridden for eight years and was paralyzed. And Peter said to him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Rise and make your bed. And immediately he rose. And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord. Peter in Joppa. Now there was at Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which means Dorcas or gazelle. She was full of good works and acts of charity. In those days she fell sick and died. And when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there,

sent two men to him, entreating him, Please come to us without delay. So Peter rose and went with them. And when he had come, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing coats and garments, which Dorcas made while she was with them. But Peter put them all outside and knelt down and prayed. Then turning to the body, he said, Tabitha, rise. And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up. And he gave her his hand and lifted her up. Then calling the saints and widows,

he presented her alive, and it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. And he stayed in Joppa for many days with one Simon, a tanner. St. Paul's Letter to the Romans, Chapter 15 Please Others, Not Yourselves We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to edify him. For Christ did not please himself, but, as it is written, The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that by steadfastness and by the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Gospel for Jews the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, therefore, I will praise you among the Gentiles and sing to your name. And again, it is said, rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people. And again, praise the Lord, all Gentiles, and let all the peoples praise him. And further, Isaiah says,

The root of Jesse shall come. He who rises to rule the Gentiles, in him shall the Gentiles hope. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Paul's reason for writing so boldly, I myself am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you yourselves are full of goodness, Paul's reason for writing so boldly, Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought

through me to win obedience from the Gentiles by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that from Jerusalem and as far round as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ, thus making it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on another man's foundation, but as it is written, they shall see who have never been told of him, and they shall understand who have never heard of him. Paul's plan to visit Rome. This is why I have so often been hindered from coming to you. But now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions, and since I have longed for many years to come to you,

I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be sped on my journey there by you once I have enjoyed your company for a little. At present, however, I am going to Jerusalem with aid for the saints. For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make some contributions for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they are in debt to them. For if the Gentiles have come to share in their spiritual blessings, they ought also to be of service to them in material blessings. When therefore I have completed this and have delivered to them what has been raised, I shall go on by way of you to Spain. And I know that when I come to you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ. I appeal to you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your

prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God's will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. The God of peace be with you all. Amen. Chapter 16, Personal Greetings. I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deaconess of the church at Sancreia, that you may receive her in the Lord as befits the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a helper of many, and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow co-workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I, but also all the churches of the Gentiles give thanks.

Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epinatus, who was the first convert in Asia for Christ. Greet Mary, who has worked hard among you. Greet Andronicus and Junius, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are men of note among the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ.

Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. Greet my kinsmen, Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 1 Peter 3, verses 1-10. Final Instructions For while your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, I would have you wise as to what is good and guileless as to what is evil. Then the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Timothy, my fellow worker, greets you. So do Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen. I, Tertius, the writer of this letter, greet you in the Lord. Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer,

and our brother Quartus, greet you. Final doxology. Now, to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret for long ages, but is now disclosed and through the prophetic writings is made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God to bring about the obedience of faith, to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Amen. man reflects the man. Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied and never satisfied are the eyes of man. Father in heaven, we give you praise and glory. We thank you so much. Thank you for getting us not just through the St. Paul's letter to the Romans, but thank you for getting us to it. Thank you for opening our hearts and opening our minds by this great encyclical, right? This great letter, it's great epistle of grace, of your love for every one of us. Help us

to say yes to your love today and every day of our lives. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. And actually, apostles today, gosh, we got to hear not only about the twin, the twin apostles, right? Saul and Peter. Saul's conversion. There is something remarkable. Well, obviously there's a huge miracle that's happening in Saul's conversion where he's breathing murderous threats against the Christians going to Damascus to arrest them and bring them back to Jerusalem. But as Jesus appears to Saul, what does he say? Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Who are you, Lord? He says, I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But you stop and say, wait a second.

Saul isn't persecuting Jesus. He had nothing to do with Jesus as far as we know. So who's he persecuting? He's persecuting the church. And that is this, once again, here's Jesus identifying himself with the church that he instituted. He's identifying himself with the people who believe in him,

those who are Christians, right? Who are little Christs. He's saying, that's me. When you persecute the church, you're persecuting me. It's so important, so important. But beyond that, here is Jesus appearing then to Ananias. And in this, he reveals to him, yeah, I want you to go and heal this man named Saul of his blindness. Now, here's an interesting thing. Why wouldn't Jesus, who in this vision, he blinded Saul, why wouldn't Jesus just appear to Saul again and heal him?

I mean, that makes sense, right? I mean, if Jesus is gonna appear once, why not have him appear twice and even like kind of confirm the appearance? Well, it's because what's this last age? The last age is the age of the church. This last age is the age of the Holy Spirit working through the church. And so rather than Jesus himself showing up

and blinding Saul, then showing up and healing Saul, here he is sending, not an apostle, but he's sent. I guess an apostle means sent. He's sending one of the Christians. He's sending a member of the body of Christ to Saul to heal him. And this is teaching not only Saul, but teaching all of us this key thing,

that Jesus works through his church just as powerfully as he worked through the incarnation. So the same Jesus who could have healed Saul instead sent Ananias to heal Saul. I mean, obviously he healed Saul through Ananias, but this is so important for us. Again, we can sometimes think it's just Jesus and me. That's impossible. That's never been a case where it's just Jesus and me. It's always Jesus in the context of community and the Father in context of community and the Holy

Spirit in the context of community. It's all about God's power working through his church on earth. But here's another piece. As Ananias kind of put up his dukes, he put up a little bit of resistance. What does Jesus say? He says, go, for he's a chosen, Saul is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel. And in verse 16, for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. Again, we talked about yesterday that the church expanded because of persecution, that there was suffering that was happening.

And so the church was able to grow. And here is Saul, who's the rest of his life. Yes, he is. He is my chosen instrument to carry out my name before the Gentiles. And I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. You know, later on, St. Paul will say, I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake. And in my body, I'm making up for what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of his body, the church. And we recognize that we are called to unite our sufferings to the sufferings of Jesus Christ. Here is Saul, who makes it so clear, so very clear, or Jesus is making it clear about Saul that, yes, he's chosen and he's going to suffer a lot for the sake of my name.

How are we any different? For the sake of my name. How are we any different? If God is going to use us, why would we think that we would escape? That we wouldn't participate in his sufferings? Why would we think that we would be spared the sufferings that every chosen instrument, every chosen, every beloved of God experiences great suffering? Why would we be any different? And the truth is, of course, we're not.

And yet those sufferings sometimes surprise us. They can pain us, obviously. They can grieve us. They can even cause us distress, but they should never surprise us because we know that if we belong to the Lord, of course, we're going to suffer for the Lord. It doesn't make it easier, but it does give it purpose. And we know that we're not abandoned. I even, yeah, we can talk about Peter and healing, raising up Dorcas, which I love saying, love that her name is Dorcas. Raising her up from the dead is incredible. God's again, once again, God's power working through his people.

But we also come to the conclusion of St. Paul's letter to the Romans, that last chapter, chapter six, personal greetings. And we realize that this is the context here is individuals, right? It's not just groups of people. It's not just here's all the big church in Rome and here's all the church in Jerusalem, all the church in Corinth. It is people with names that Paul knows. It's people with names that everyone knows.

It's relationships. And we know this is true, that the gospel is advanced primarily through friendships and through family. That is the key, that the church will continue to grow and Jesus Christ will continue to be known primarily through friendships and through family. Yes, to be able to have the word of God proclaimed on a podcast every single day, phenomenal, incredible, such a gift. But we know deep conversion will happen through friendships. Deep conversion will happen through family. And so we pray for each other, right? Because we have friends and we have family that we desire.

We want them to know the love of God in Jesus Christ. And so we need to pray for them. I continue to lift up you all in my prayers. I'm asking you to please lift me up in your prayers as well. I'm praying for you. Please pray for them. I continue to lift up you all in my prayers. I'm asking you to please lift me up in your prayers as well. I'm praying for you. Please pray for me. That's what that means. Gosh, you guys, what a gift.

My name is Father Mike. I cannot wait to see you tomorrow. God bless.