He's Had His Chips... The Conversion of St Paul (Jeremiah 1.4-10, Acts 9.1-22, Matthew 19.27-30)
Sometimes we’re lucky that the
first aren’t last, and the last aren’t first. For example, with the
vaccinations. I’m pretty pleased that it’s not the young and the fit who are
being vaccinated first, but the vulnerable. This makes sense.
We’ve got three Bible readings
today that in some ways don’t make sense. Saul, the Pharisee being transformed
into a Christian. God calling Jeremiah a young boy to serve Him as a prophet.
And Jesus, saying the first will be last, and the last will be first.
Three readings, three topsy turvy
things. But what’ve they got to do with us? Three words, as we all love a good
triplet:
Called
Known
Loved.
I’ll come back to this.
I remember when I was a teenager in
the line for school lunch. I was what used to be called a gannet. I still am
really. Back in the days before Jamie Oliver stuck is awe in, ruined everything,
and made it all ‘healthy’, we used to have chips on a Friday. It was my
favourite day of the week. Not only did I get two days off, but I got to end
the week with chips!
How good is that!
After a while I noticed (with a
couple of friends) that if you waited until towards the end of lunchtime, you
didn’t have to wait in line but also the portions were BIGGER! Probably because
they didn’t want to waste the food. So we’d always wait, bide our time. In that
case the first were last, and the last were first.
It was all about timing, all about
the unexpected like our Bible readings today. About extraordinary things.
Jeremiah talks so movingly about
the nature of God, and our relationship with Her.
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
God isn’t all fire and brimstone in
the Old Testament. God also encourages and lifts people up. God says to
Jeremiah. You are known. I know you.
God knows all of us. From the richest
to the poorest, the oldest to the youngest, fattest to thinnest. God doesn’t
abandon us, but is always there even if we might not feel it.
God knows us, and God knew Paul.
Today we celebrate the feast day of
the Conversion of St Paul. That dramatic, extraordinary moment when Paul
followed Christ.
As Saul was blinded on the Damascus
Road, he was changed forever, changed into Paul; one of the most important
figures in the early church. It’s thanks to Paul, founding churches and putting
all his energy into work for God that the Christian church grew. Without Paul
the face of Christianity would be totally different.
Yet Paul was a Pharisee. Someone
who persecuted the church relentlessly. Baying for blood. He arrested and
tortured Christians, and most likely had many of them killed. It’s no wonder
that Ananias was frightened to see him. He had street cred. He was known far
and wide as a powerful persecutor of the church.
It just goes to show what the grace
of God can do. What extraordinary things can happen. If God can work with Paul,
then God can work with anyone, even us.
God called Paul. Just as God
calls us. Everyone, everywhere is wanted and known, but also called into
relationship with God.
‘Go, for he is an instrument whom I
have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and Kings and before the people of
Israel.’
‘Before I formed you in the womb I
knew you.’ It was as true for Paul as it is to us.
God called Paul into something new
and exciting. Proclaiming God’s wonderful message to people who’ve never heard
it.
As the line from Amazing Grace goes
‘I was blind but now I see.’
Paul had been blinded by tradition,
by convention, by his own hate, but through grace his eyes were opened into a
new relationship with God.
God calls us all. Even though we
might be blinded sometimes. Blinded by what we want. Blinded by our own mental
state or our choices. Blinded by what’s going on in the world and how hard life
is right now, for so many.
I’ve found it hard to pray at this
time. It’s like there’s a fog between me and God sometimes, and it won’t lift. I
can’t tap into what I used to because lots of the things I did for spiritual
welfare now can’t happen.
Nevertheless, the one who calls us
is faithful. God waited for the right time to call Paul, and Paul listened to
God’s voice. Notice that Jesus said to Paul. Why are you persecuting me?
He didn’t say, why are you
persecuting my followers, or the church, he said ‘me.’
We are part of the body of Christ.
Our identity is in him, and he loves us as if we are part of himself. God is
faithful to us because through Christ we have a part in him, all that he wants
is us.
I believe God gives each of us a
calling. Because God knows us, God calls us to be in relationship but also to
do something with our lives.
That could be setting up lots of
churches like Paul, though for me, I think I’m probably going to stick with the
Church of England.
Or it could be setting up that
project, or praying, or helping someone you know. God calls us all into
extraordinary things.
What I encourage you to do is to
think about what that might be? What are your gifts? How can you use them?
Despite all the bad things that
Paul had done. Paul was called, known and loved. Our Gospel reading
today challenges all of us, that sometimes we must leave what we want behind us
to do what’s best for God, and for ourselves.
God calls us, knows us and loves
us.
The Question is are we willing to
put ourselves last and God first? Or put ourselves first and be last?
The choice is up to us. We must
think and pray. Look for inspiration, know our hope with us, and perhaps if the
time is right, we might get a double helping of chips.
Amen.
Photo by Dzenina Lukac from Pexels
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