12 “In this connection I journeyed 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, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. 14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘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 rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, 17 delivering you from your 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 a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
19 “Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20 but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. 21 For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. 22 To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: 23 that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”
Growing up in the church and youth group, we would often spend time giving our testimonies at various church events. To most, a testimony is something that you give in defense of yourself. Much like what Paul is doing in this scene in Acts. He is giving his defense to King Agrippa. He is simply saying what happened. However, he does not end up pleading his case, but instead offering to those listening the Truth. "That Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles."
Most of us will not be able to live lives of Paul or witness or testify in the way that Paul does. Paul uses his words and his actions, and ends up dying at the hands of the emperor's guards. So where does that leave us? Our living does not have to be dramatic, but it has to be authentic. It has to be genuine to who God has called us to be. Paul's words from Galatians 5:22 remind us what fruit we bear when we live lives full of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. We don't have to speak before rulers or crowds, write treatises or letters of great inspiration as Paul did, but there is a way that we are supposed to live. In your living this day and this week, will you simply tell of your life in God, or will you live a life full of the fruits of the Spirit?
Prayer: God, help me to live as a witness. May my testimony be one lived and spoken. May my life be filled with power of the Holt Spirit, bearing much fruit. Amen.
G. Thomas Martin