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At the Damascus Gate, November 28
Acts 9:1-9
And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined
round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a
voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Acts 9:3, 4
.
With the faith and experience of the Galilean disciples who had companied
with Jesus were united, in the work of the gospel, the fiery vigor and intellectual
power of a rabbi of Jerusalem. A Roman citizen, born in a Gentile city; a Jew,
not only by descent but by lifelong training, patriotic devotion, and religious
faith; educated in Jerusalem by the most eminent of the rabbis, and instructed
in all the laws and traditions of the fathers, Saul of Tarsus shared to the fullest
extent the pride and the prejudices of his nation. While still a young man, he
became an honored member of the Sanhedrin. He was looked upon as a man of
promise, a zealous defender of the ancient faith.
In the theological schools of Judea the word of God had been set aside
for human speculations; it was robbed of its power by the interpretations and
traditions of the rabbis.... With their fierce hatred of their Roman oppressors, they
cherished the determination to recover by force of arms their national supremacy.
The followers of Jesus, whose message of peace was so contrary to their schemes
of ambition, they hated and put to death. In this persecution, Saul was one of the
most bitter and relentless actors....
At the gate of Damascus the vision of the Crucified One changed the whole
current of his life. The persecutor became a disciple, the teacher a learner. The
days of darkness spent in solitude at Damascus were as years in his experience.
The Old Testament Scriptures stored in his memory were his study, and Christ
his teacher
Paul did not think that he made any real sacrifice when he exchanged Phar-
iseeism for the gospel of Jesus Christ.... When Paul found that he was in a wrong
path, he linked himself, according to divine light, with a people he had thought
he must wipe from the earth.... He taught Christ and lived Christ, and suffered
martyrdom for Christ’s sake
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62
Education, 64, 65
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63
Manuscript 41, 1894
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351