In the Apostolic Writings (the New Testament), we encounter a Jewish man named Saul. Saul lived in the Roman Empire, and so he also had a Roman name. Saul’s Roman name was Paul. Saul was not a unloving, dogmatic Jew, who became a loving, tolerant Paul, when he encounter Yeshua’s transforming love. No, Saul was Paul, and Paul was Saul. Nevertheless, I will use this false premise to make a point.
Saul was a Pharisee, who thought that he was blameless before Yahweh. Saul said he kept the law without fail. Saul actually thought that he earned his right standing with Yahweh. Saul despised Yeshua (Jesus), and hunted down His followers, in order to kill them. In short, Saul thought that he was “all that, and a bag of chips”.
Yahweh elected Israel and commanded her to reach out to the nations on His behalf. Israel, however, turned their relationship with Yahweh into a religion, and it slowly morphed into a false religion, which condemned the nations, and withdrew from them.
This religion had blinded Saul, and caused him to become a proud, intolerant, unloving, condemning, violent, murderer, who was completely convinced that he was right with Yahweh.
Then, Yeshua knocked Saul to the ground.
While blind, and laying in the dirt Saul realized that he was nothing, and that all his years of religious schooling left him knowing nothing. Saul was terrified, because he realized that he was not right with Yahweh, and that all his religious ceremonies and laws were useless.
Paul arose from the dirt confessing Yeshua as Lord. Then, Yeshua filled him with his Spirit, and took him into the desert to teach him, and humble him as they walked together.
The closer Paul got to Yeshua, the more he saw his own sinfulness. And as Paul grew spiritually, and Yeshua began to work through him, Yeshua allowed him to suffer persecution, beatings, whippings, stoning, hunger, cold, nakedness, lack, ship wreck, and jail. Yeshua let him suffer these things, so that he would remain humble.
Yeshua let Paul suffer, so that Saul would not come back to life.
What about you? Are you growing spiritually? Is Yeshua working through you? Is Yahweh prospering your life? If so, be very careful, because you might turn your relationship with Yeshua into a religion, and your religion might morph into a false religion that condemns the very people you are supposed to reach out to on His behalf. This religion might lead you think think more highly of yourself than you should, and one day you might find yourself blind and in the dirt.
The bad things you are going through, might be the very things that Yahweh is using to keep the old you dead, so that He can use you. So, ask yourself, am I becoming a humble servant or am I becoming Saul?
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