A Religionist Finds the True Gospel
A Religionist Finds the True Gospel
There was once a religious zealot named Saul. He studied his religion under Gamaliel, the top teacher of the day.
His credentials were many and included these, recorded in Philippians 3:4–6 (NASB 2020)
4 although I myself could boast as having confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he is confident in the flesh, I have more reason: 5 circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.
He also gave some of his religious credentials to the Jews in Acts 22:3-4 (we’ll read this again later) “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated under Gamaliel, strictly according to the Law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as you all are today. 4 I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons, 5 as also the high priest and all the Council of the elders can testify. From them I also received letters to the brothers, and started off for Damascus in order to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem as prisoners to be punished.
In terms of legalistic correctness, Saul excelled in every way. He kept the rules, rites, and rituals of his religion. His attitude toward anyone who dared to teach, or even simply agree with, the idea that those religious practices were not the way to righteousness and godliness was furious anger.
This is the way of religion.
We find this same attitude today among some in the organized churches. When faced with the suggestion that their understanding is inaccurate, they at first become condescending as if we should bow to their greater learning and religious devotion. If pressed, they become furiously angry.
In my experience this happens because of fear.
Some fear that if they are shown to be wrong in their long-held views, they will need to change what they teach in church, Bible-study classes, or their private homes and that would lead to intolerable embarrassment at the least, and shunning or expulsion at worst.
Another fear some have is that if they allow themselves to be persuaded of the correctness of a different view, they might slip into heresy and put their faith, or even their eternal salvation, at risk. This was a big one for me when I was a religionist.
Many are so completely convinced of what they were taught by others that they misread scripture without even realizing it. Unwittingly they approach scripture passages with a preconceived theological lens filtering their interpretation.
Rather than finding the person of Jesus Christ in the Bible, they continually find instructions dictating how they must behave. To be sure, the Bible is full of fodder for such a hunger.
I think the Bible is purposely written as it is. The Law handed down to the Israelites by Moses was a tutor designed to show them their sinfulness and shut their mouths with regard to their ability to merit or achieve righteousness.
In the same way, the Bible is written in such a way that those who seek instructions for living a righteous life through their conduct will find it an impossible standard and difficult to understand. Conversely, those who read it to see what God is up to and to get to know Him through the Lord Jesus Christ find it simple, clear, and refreshing.
Saul was a religionist for sure. He was all-in and extremely zealous.
Acts 9:1–19 (NASB 2020)
1 Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, 2 and asked for letters from him to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them in shackles to Jerusalem.
God intervened in Saul’s life. Father isn’t looking for great rule keepers. In several places in the Old Testament He tells us exactly that. One example is found in Micah 6:6–8 “With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? Does the LORD take pleasure in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give Him my firstborn for my wrongdoings, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, mortal one, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” (NASB 2020)
Here is the record of his encounter with the Lord Jesus from Acts 9, picking up at verse 3.
3 Now as he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; 4 and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, 6 but get up and enter the city, and it will be told to you what you must do.”
This is an interesting passage. The Lord Jesus informs Saul that he has been persecuting Him. Saul has been traveling around arresting and taking prisoner people who followed The Way, which was the name of the early Christian Church. He has been harassing those who put their faith in Jesus Christ.
Saul’s focus has been on the people and their behavior. This is the way of religion. The focus of religion is always on attitudes and actions. It puts all the focus on me. It amounts to idolatry because it worships conduct and performance.
So, it is very important not to miss what Jesus told Saul here. Jesus didn’t say “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting my people?” Instead, He said Saul was persecuting Him. The people Saul was persecuting were the body of Christ. Persecuting them, was persecuting the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. It is the same today. We are the body of Christ, and what happens to us happens to Him. He loves His own body, as we are told in Ephesians 5:28–30 “So husbands also ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are parts of His body.” (NASB 2020)
Being a Christian is not about following rules, rites, and rituals. Being a Christian, or a follower of The Way, means having a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. It means having become part of His body. It is not about conduct and performance. It is about an intimate relationship. It is about being immersed, or baptized, into Christ such that His Life is made visible to the world through us; not by our doing, but by the power of the Holy Spirit of God living in us.
Now back in Acts 9, verse seven goes on:
7 The men who traveled with him [Saul] stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. 9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. 10 Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias; and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many people about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints in Jerusalem; 14 and here he has authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; 16 for I will show him how much he must suffer in behalf of My name.” 17 So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately something like fish scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; 19 and he took food and was strengthened. Now for several days he was with the disciples who were in Damascus,
This conversion is a special case. There is no record of anyone else ever having such an experience. I am pointing this out because sometimes people read specific verses of scripture and then try to apply them generally as spiritual principles.
One example is 1 John 1:9, which says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (NASB 2020) There are many who build a doctrine of progressive forgiveness from this verse. They argue that whenever we sin, we must confess so that we are forgiven. Taken out of its context, it can appear to be saying that. In its context however, it says that all who admit they have sinned are forgiven for their sins and cleansed from ALL unrighteousness. If their sins are forgiven and they are cleansed from ALL unrighteousness, those who have changed their minds (repented) have been completely forgiven and made righteous.
Likewise, we are not to take from the scriptural report of Saul’s conversion a principle or doctrine of miraculous conversion or of the direct intervention, through visions, of the Lord Jesus in everyone’s experience.
After his conversion, Paul recounted his encounter with Jesus to the Jews. Acts 22:3–16 (NASB 2020) records it this way:
3 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated under Gamaliel, strictly according to the Law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as you all are today. 4 I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons, 5 as also the high priest and all the Council of the elders can testify. From them I also received letters to the brothers, and started off for Damascus in order to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem as prisoners to be punished. 6 “But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus at about noon, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, 7 and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ 8 And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’ 9 And those who were with me saw the light, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me. 10 And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told about everything that has been appointed for you to do.’ 11 But since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I came into Damascus being led by the hand by those who were with me. 12 “Now a certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, 13 came to me, and standing nearby he said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I looked up at him. 14 And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear a message from His mouth. 15 For you will be a witness for Him to all people of what you have seen and heard. 16 Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins by calling on His name.’
Notice here that while Saul is told to be baptized, it is clear that the washing away of his sins, his forgiveness and salvation, comes about by calling on the name of Jesus. It’s not baptism that accomplishes forgiveness or salvation, it’s Jesus.
Saul was told that he would see the Lord Jesus “the Righteous One” and that he would hear a message directly from Him. He was also told that he would be a witness “to all people” of the things he saw and heard from the Lord Jesus.
I point this out because there is a group that teaches that Paul is the Apostle to the Gentiles and all the other Apostles are for the Jews. They say that the writing of Peter, James, and John is not for us, and we should only pay attention to what Paul wrote.
While it’s true that Paul’s primary ministry was to the Gentiles and the other Apostles spoke more directly to the Jews, it is also true that all the Apostles spoke to both Jews and Gentiles. The Gospel makes no such distinction. One place where scripture is explicit about this is Galatians 3:28, which says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (NASB 2020)
Later, Paul retold this event at his trial before King Agrippa. He began his defense this way:
Acts 26:4–23 (NASB 2020)
4 “So then, all Jews know my way of life since my youth, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and in Jerusalem, 5 since they have known about me for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that I lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our religion. 6 And now I am standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers; 7 the promise to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. For this hope, O king, I am being accused by Jews. 8 Why is it considered incredible among you people if God raises the dead?
Paul makes a statement here that we want to be sure not to miss. Paul here says that he has been teaching about the hope of the promise made to the Hebrew people by God. This hope and promise is that God would provide a lamb. That He would provide a Savior.
But look what he says next. He says that the twelve tribes of Israel hoped to attain this through earnestly serving God. This is religion. It is the subtle message that God accepts us based on our conduct. That is the message of all religions. Christianity stands apart in teaching that it is the Lord Jesus Christ who makes us acceptable to and compatible with God. This is the heart of the conflict between the way of the world and the way of God.
Now notice how religious zealotry affected Paul, back in his Saul days:
Acts 26:9 “So I thought to myself that I had to act in strong opposition to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 And this is just what I did in Jerusalem; not only did I lock up many of the saints in prions, after receiving authority from the chief priests, but I also cast my vote against them when they were being put to death. 11 And as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and since I was extremely enraged at them, I kept pursuing them even to foreign cities.
This is the sort of persecution Christians have experienced since the beginning. We can expect to face it now and until Jesus returns. During this interim period between His first coming and His second, persecution of those in whom the Holy Spirit lives will increase. Here in the United States, we are still shielded from the worst of it, but we all see society changing and becoming more antagonistic toward our way of life. This is the tribulation Jesus prophesied in John 16:33. There, He said, “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” (NASB 2020)
Paul then continued to relate his experience.
Acts 26:12 “While so engaged, as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, 13 at midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who were journeying with me. 14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, [Aramaic] ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’
15 And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you as a servant and a witness not only to the things in which you have seen Me, but also to the things in which I will appear to you, 17 rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’
Jesus told Saul that He would make him an Apostle. He said He would appoint Paul as a servant and a witness—an ambassador or messenger sent by Jesus Christ Himself. Further, Jesus specified that Paul would tell of the things in which he would see Jesus, as well as things in which Jesus would appear to Paul, or things He would show Paul.
In another place we read that Paul went to Arabia for three years after his conversion. I find that interesting. Jesus spent three years with the 12 Disciples, now Paul goes off for three years and comes back planting churches and teaching the Gospel.
I believe that during this time Paul was taught about grace and faith in a way that would speak more clearly to Gentiles than the things Jesus taught while He was with the Disciples in Israel. Jesus said in Matthew 15:24, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (NASB 2020) Consequently, His teaching was designed to speak to them. That’s why His teaching includes many references to the Law handed down by Moses and to the Jewish traditions.
19 “For that reason, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision,
20 but continually proclaimed to those in Damascus first, and in Jerusalem, and then all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they are to repent and turn to God, performing deeds consistent with repentance.
21 For these reasons some Jews seized me in the temple and tried to murder me.
22 So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place,
23 as to whether the Christ was to suffer, and whether, as first from the resurrection of the dead, He would proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”
I love that Paul summarizes his message by saying that he is only saying what the Prophets and Moses already said. According to Paul, they prophesied the suffering of the Christ, that He would rise from the dead, and that He would proclaim light, or the way to God, to both the Jewish people and the Gentiles.
When we read the Hebrew scriptures, our Old Testament, we should look at it the same way Paul apparently did. Rather than reading to find rules of conduct, we should look for the story of God’s promised savior. In the Old Testament we can see, sometimes with shocking clarity, the effects of rejecting God’s love and provision. We can see the natural results of choosing to rely on our own ideas of right and wrong, which is eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. But we can also see the natural results of trusting Him and relying upon His love and provision, which is eating from the Tree of Life.
Now that we have established Paul’s credentials and taken a brief look at the distinction between religion, by which we try to reach God, and relationship, through which God reaches us, we will expand on these things as we study the book of Galatians together.
