Acts 22
Paul has been arrested, saved from an angry, Jewish mob. He requests to speak to his haters, and the commander gives permission. We find what Paul says in Acts 22, speaking in Hebrew, appealing to his brethren. He identifies with them, recalling how he once persecuted the Christian Jews himself. Then he gives his personal testimony of his supernatural conversion. He mentioned a trance, where he spoke with the Lord about his feelings of rejection from certain Jews because of his past. God told Paul he would send him far away where people did not know him, to Gentiles who would receive from him.
At first the Christian Jews listened to his testimony, but when they heard him share salvation with Gentiles, they shouted out against him. The soldiers saw the crowd’s behavior and concluded that Paul must have committed some crime against them. They decided to beat a confession out of Paul. Paul used wisdom to state his Roman citizenship. The soldiers decided not to beat a Roman without cause.
In verse 9, it says that the men around Paul did not hear the voice, but what it actually means in the original language is that they heard but could not discern. This agrees with Acts 9:7.
No one can argue with a personal testimony because it is their story. Paul is being a witness to Christ, sharing his experience. The people listened to Paul’s. What is your salvation testimony? Perhaps your story isn’t as dramatic as Paul’s on the road to Damascus, but it is your story. It is powerful because it affected you. I encourage you to share your salvation experience with those who are lost. You may be surprised to how many will listen.
Psalm 34-35
Psalm 34 is another acrostic or alphabetic psalm, with each verse beginning with a successive letter from the Hebrew alphabet. This psalm is about David’s encounter with Abimelech, most likely another name for King Achish of Gath (1 Samuel 21:10-15). David did not want to fight this king, so he pretended to be insane so the king would leave him alone.
The New Testament quotes several verses out of this psalm that David wrote after escaping this mighty king. One of them is prophetic of Jesus. In verse 20, it says, “He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken (John 19:33,36).” With most crucifixions, to expediate the death process, legs were broken so the person could not push up to get more air in their lungs. Jesus had already departed from His body when the soldiers came by; so instead of breaking His legs, they pierced His side. This also fulfilled the covenant because a cut was made in Jesus as our sacrifice, and blood flowed.
Paul quotes from verse 19, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all (2 Timothy 3:11,12).” We live in a world that is fallen and Satan is the god of it. Satan’s kingdom is here; however, Christians are part of another kingdom. It’s a kingdom where Jesus is King, and He helps us to overcome the world and the afflictions that come with it.
In addition, Peter quotes verses 12-16 in 1 Peter 3:10-12 when he gives practical advice for living the Christian life.
Verse 7 is a promise that the angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear (reverence) the Lord, watching over and delivering that person from harm. Have you heard the term “guardian angel?” There are angels that watch over us and protect us. What a concept!
Verse 8 says to “taste and see” that the Lord is good. Experience His Presence and you will find our Father is loving and merciful, something we were created to know.
In verses 1-2, we see the humility of a reliant person of faith. We don’t boast in ourselves, but we lean in on God. We give our praise to Him because we acknowledge who He is and He satisfies and supplies our insufficiency. We were made to be one, finding our life in Him.
Psalm 35 is a psalm about God avenging justice for His people. God’s people who are not only in need of Him; but they also experience the frustration of being attacked by wicked people. God not only supplies our needs; but He also chases off our enemies.