Greetings Everyone
It’s time once again for the Sunday School Lesson Preview. Thanks for joining me and welcome back. This month’s unit is entitled “Calls in the New Testament” and in this unit, we are examining calls into and examples of New Testament ministry. New Testament ministry may be considered those things which are done to serve and expand the body of Christ. Everyone in the NT church of our Lord should be in or should be preparing to be in a serving relationship within the body of Christ. This week’s lesson is entitled “Called to Preach” and looks at how Saul of Tarsus was called into the gospel ministry.
Saul was a devout Pharisee and well-educated in the Law of Moses. He viewed Christianity as a heretical sect of Judaism and sought to destroy it by any means necessary. After wreaking havoc on the church in Jerusalem and even consenting to some of their deaths, he sought to pursue them outside of Jerusalem and bring them back in chains. His reputation for terror against the church preceded him to Damascus where on his way there he encountered a miraculous call into ministry by Jesus himself.
Blind and helpless, he was led into Damascus where a Christian disciple name Ananias was instructed by the Lord to receive him into the church. After being reassured by the Lord that Saul was no longer a threat, Ananias did as he was commanded by the Lord. Ananias laid his hands on Saul and Saul received his sight and was baptized. From that moment on, Saul, who later embraced his Greek name Paul, dedicated the rest of his life to preaching and spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.
He suffered many things for the sake of Christ along his way of establishing churches and writing letters to those he helped to lead to Christ. His letters help to form a major portion of the New Testament canon and are read and taught in the Church as scripture and have Apostolic authority. No single individual has done more to help establish the Christian church of our Lord Jesus than Paul, a man who began as a mortal enemy and became our greatest advocate for the faith.
Well, I hope this will help you with your preparation for this Sunday’s lesson. Be sure to read the background scriptures which can also be accessed on our website or mobile app and let’s prepare for a great discussion on Sunday. So, until then
Blessings
Pastor Jordan
