Who would have ever expected that the man who supervised the murder of St. Stephen, the first martyrdom of a Christian, would have ever become a Christian himself? Yet one day, on the road to Damascus on a mission of persecution, Saul of Tarsus had a vision and heard a voice: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” He did not hear: “Why are you persecuting my disciples?” but “Why are you persecuting me?” When we do something to one of the least brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, we are, in fact, doing it to Christ himself.
Saul of Tarsus was a changed man. Utterly and completely changed to the extent that he dedicated his life and all his powers to proclaiming Jesus Christ and His Cross. Paul (his name was changed by the Lord, as a sign of his new role and condition as an apostle) was to suffer greatly for the sake of the Gospel of Christ, and was eventually martyred himself in Rome by beheading.
Some of us can probably relate to St. Paul. We, too, were far away from God, maybe even immersed in evil conduct, but Our Lord Jesus Christ has come to rescue us, to convert us from our sinful ways and restore us to new and eternal life. But we are also called, like St. Paul, to proclaim Christ Jesus and His Cross — and to bring as many people as possible to know the Lord Jesus as we now do. We need to have a “fire in our belly” for sharing the Good News of the Gospel, and try to bring as many souls with us to heaven as we possibly can!
Leave a Reply