A PRO-ACTIVE LORD
Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him, and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him; "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me/"

And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" And He said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do."

The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.

Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. (Acts 9: 1-9)

Like Herod, the young Pharisee Saul was really intent on resisting the Lord. He was so focused on getting rid of every trace of Jesus that he was tracking down disciples all the way to Damascus. He worked very hard at this hunt.

But remember, we're talking about the Creator of the Universe here. We're talking about a God so deeply engaged with our lives that He became one of us, walked among us. We're talking about a God who moved magi in a far land to seek the Infant Christ, a God who impelled Joseph to flee before Herod's destruction swept down upon the Child.

I see a parallel here between Herod and Saul, which is why I brought this reading into the Christmas story. I think we really need to remember this side of God's involvement in our world. He takes a pro-active interest is what goes on. This is the Lord we've been looking toward, the Lord whose coming we prepared for during Advent, the Lord who became one of us.

What happened to Saul gives us another way of looking at those who resist the Lord, who mock and persecute the believers. And I think it shows us that we need to rethink our reactions when our faith is attacked.

At one point, Jesus said "Seek and you shall find." And that is exactly what happened to Saul. He was so intent on his pursuit of Jesus and His followers, that he found what he was seeking. Of course, what he found was not what he expected. But isn't that what usually happens when the Lord becomes involved?

When we as believers stand in the midst of hostile company, do we remember moments like this? Do we remember that God led Joseph and Mary and the Baby to safety from the hunters of Herod? Do we remember that Jesus met Saul (who was out to capture and murder believers) on the road to Damascus, knocking him flat on his rear? I think we instead remember that Herod's troops slaughtered innocent children in Bethlehem, and that Saul witnessed the stoning of Stephen. We think of those children and Stephen, and we wonder if that's the role assigned for us.

God only knows that.

But I think we would be wiser to remember the Bigger Picture. God is not stand-offish. He is eager to be engaged in our stories, our lives. He is right there with us, and even ready to stand on the path between us and those who would harm us.

Here is the balancing point of being a believer: on the one hand we have a God who shepeherds us, watches over us, even to the point of becoming one of us, and we are called to witness and testify to His actions in our lives; on the other hand the world around us is hostile toward that testimony, possibly even to the point of wanting to erase us from existence. The very thing we are most called to do - proclaim the glory of God - is the very thing that could get us killed.

I have joyful news for you! Christ the Lord is born! Go tell it on the mountain! Tell it everywhere! Oh, and remember that you will be persecuted for the sake of the name of the Lord.

But we are not sent out into that hostile, cold world without support. God is with us. When our persecutors are on the road to reach us, Jesus meets them on the way. We may not see it happen. The believers in Damascus weren't there to see it, but it happened. We need to trust the Lord to deal with those who are "after us." Yes, it is terrible when believers are persecuted, and we should not stand silent when it happens. But when we break our silence, it should not be to proclaim that we should be exempt from persecution, but rather that whatever happens to us, the Lord is engaged in our lives, in the world around us, even to the degree of having His hands upon the lives of those who would destroy us.

We are the sheep of His flock. It is our shepherd's job to deal with the threats to the flock. And He is on the job.