The
power of your story....
Paul
stands up to make his “defence”
in
front of this Jewish crowd. But he does that simply be telling his
story: the story of his journey with Jesus. And Jesus himself said
(Lk 21. 12-14) that these moments when we have to defend ourselves
(ἀπολογια)
are
opportunities for witness
(μαρτύριον) So
I ant us to look at the importance of our story
- It links us with others. See verses 3-5.
- The way he addresses them Brothers and fathers,
- The language, Aramaic,
- The name dropping I studied under Gamaliel
As he tells the story of his
upbringing, conversion and life in ministry, Paul is deliberately
making the links between himself and his hearers.
Story is a wonderful way of
building community. There is a actually a great deal of literature
out there on the subject. For example, Management expert Steve
Denning says
- Storytelling builds trust
- Storytelling unlocks passion – whether it be commitment, love or as in this story, anger.
- Storytelling is non-hierarchical; teaching concepts makes the speaker an “expert.” Thursday before last, peter and I were cooking a curry for all the crowds assembled in Silje's home... and one of the bridesmaids came and started asking us theological questions. It's quite a nice way to liven up curry-making, having a discussion about what it means to be filled with the Spirit.
So
here is a challenge: find someone who is a believer – and
share some of your story with each other; then observe how the
process has brought you together.
- It is lively. (vv. 6-13)
Paul
tells his story here with real narrative skill: it's exciting. In
particular, his story is, over and over again, the story of Jesus,
the story of god at work in his life:
- the Light – strong enough to be seen an midday, outshining the sun – and the experience of being blinded and helpless, a reflection of Dt 28. 28.
- The voice of Jesus (of Nazareth – an important detail for a Jewish audience for whom yeshua was a common name). It is the risen Jesus whom Paul is encountering.
- The question – “What shall I do, Lord?” This encounter with Jesus had changed him from an enemy of Jesus, into someone who can call him “Lord” .
- The visitor: Ananias who came to minster to Paul – and whose ministry word about Paul receiving his sight was fulfilled so Paul knew God had sent Ananias to him.
The
whole narrative is a series of clear “God-event”. In our
testimony, supernatural experiences, a genuine conversation with
Jesus, our own inner transformation, and the actions of other
faithful believers, come together to make a living story of god at
work. We have a faith that is rooted in narrative – not stories
made up to make a point, but stories that are the point: God-events
recorded and reflected upon.
The
first New Testament was not written but spoken – the stories of
Jesus repeated over and over. No
wonder Paul
was
not ashamed of the Gospel: it is the power
of God to
salvation.
(Rom
1. 16)
It
is the word of god: living
and active and sharper than any two edged sword
(Heb
4. 12) .
So
be
sure to partner that narrative with your narrative – your story of
god at work in your life.
“You are our letter of recommendation, written on tablets of your
hearts...” Your
story lifts faith sharing above the level of simply “doctrine” or
concepts, above the level of debate, to a level of experience –
good or bad. And
your
life, your story, may be the only bible people read. “The
gospel is not a doctrine of the tongue, but of life”
(Calvin)
So
here's another
challenge:
Ask
yourself, “Do I have a God story?” What
in your story is clearly “God at work?”
- It can be a tool for learning.
Paul
is
using his story to make the point that the Christian Way is in no
sense antagonistic to its Jewish roots. Ananias
... was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the
Jews,
who said “The
God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the
Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth.”
(v
12,
14)
And
Luke is
no doubt aware as always of the
wee bit of something
slipped
in here that
will make useful teaching
material,
about
baptism: Get
up, be baptised and wash your sins away, calling on his name. (v
15)
Baptism
in the name of Jesus means baptism in which we call upon his name;
and it is a wonderful symbol of washing our sins away – in Paul's
case the sin of persecuting the Church and the Church's Lord.
We
learn through stories. They
are a wonderful way of quietly, gently getting to grips with the
truth; especially when they are personal, individual stories of faith
and God at work.
So
here is another challenge: Can you say with
integrity, that your story, your experience, confirms the teaching of
Scripture? And if it doesn't, what are you going to do about it?
- It has its limits: (v. 17-21)
Paul knew that already. He's
not telling his story to save his skin. He's telling his story to
share the good News of Jesus. As he talks about his vision of Jesus
in the temple, several things become clear:
Firstly, that early in his
ministry, God had told him persecution would happen
Secondly, The change from
persecutor – holding the coats of those who stoned Stephen to death
– to passionate follower of Jesus, has to have come from somewhere.
But the Jews cannot accept that it is from God because his “call”
to go to the Gentiles doesn't fit with their existing worldview –
which remained one where Gentiles were dirty, undesirable outsiders.
So they shout, “Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!”
And Paul
knew
from his own experience what it was to have
felt the Holy Spirit prodding him towards faith at that point, and to
have resisted.
So – despite the strengths,
the links made, the lively experience retold and the learning offered
through the story, the crowd reject that story and shout, “Rid the
earth of him! He’s not fit to live!” . Throwing dust in the air
was a very typical Eastern expression of loathing and contempt
(similar to Muslims hitting pictures of Saddam Hussein with their
shoes.) “Gentiles” was an emotional word; and it was the word
that had begun the whole debacle.
Our
testimonies don't compel, because God doesn't compel people to faith.
Sometimes, as he did with Paul, God
turns
the volume up to make himself heard, but
although he wants everyone to be saved, God
doesn't compel people to faith.
Our
story can be powerful. But it's not compelling, in
the same way that a logical, answer to Richard Dawkins isn't
compelling; in the same way that a miracle of healing isn’t
compelling. Because, God doesn't compel us into faith. It
has
limits. It will not persuade those who are determined to reject it.
It will not force men
and women into faith.
Telling
our story is a great strategy.
It is one
we need to master. But without the power of the Holy
Spirit,
it will fail. So
we
need to pray: to keep on banging the doors of heaven, asking for
mountains of unbelief to be removed. And we need to persevere. To
keep on loving people, to keep on sharing the Gospel; to keep on
living consistently among people. Even when he arrived at his final
destination on earth – Rome – Paul's first action was to call
together the local Jewish leaders (Acts 28. 18); and even thought he
Jews rejected his message, he still welcomed all who came to see him.
(v. 30)
We don't know what God will do
and we don't know what people will do, with our story. So our
fourth challenge, is to identify someone whom you want to come
to know Jesus – someone who hasn't moved an inch in years maybe –
and pray for them.
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