[I am sending you to open their eyes,] so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
This passage comes from Paul’s defense before Festus and Agrippa. In it, he shared what had happened to him on the road to Damascus. And he included the commission Jesus had given him. Paul was to be a servant and witness to what Jesus had revealed to him. And this passage might be thought of as the purpose statement of his commission to take the gospel to the Gentiles, turning them from darkness to light.
Before his conversion, Paul would have divided the world into Jews and Gentiles. If you weren’t Jewish, you were an unclean Gentile, a dog. But his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus upended that perspective.
Rather than Jew and Gentile, the division was now between those living in darkness and those in the light. Between those living under the power of Satan and those belonging to God. Between those living in sin and death and those who had been forgiven and sanctified by faith.
What Really Matters?
When we stand before God, it will not matter what our religious affiliation was. Nor our ethnicity, the color of our skin, our gender, wealth, or education. It will not matter how good a life we led. Ultimately, the only thing that will matter is what our relationship is with God. Have we repented of our sinful way of life and come into the light, walking by faith? If so, eternity in God’s family awaits. If not, eternal destruction awaits us.
This should have two impacts on my life. All of those who have come to faith in Christ are my brothers and sisters. We should walk together in the light, regardless of the external differences that we often focus on, unfortunately.
And, while I do not have Paul’s commission, I should interact with those living in darkness in a way that would open their eyes to the light. To let the light of Christ shine out from me in a world living in darkness.
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