A young law student in Germany was making his way home, walking in a rainstorm, when a bolt of lightning struck near him. He immediately cried out to God, “I will become a monk.” He joined a monastery and began to study the scriptures. The lightning bolt garnered his undivided attention.
Blinded by the light, arrested on the road to Damascus, Saul, the Pharisee, received a vision of God’s plan for him to preach to the Gentiles. At that moment, Paul could have run away as Jonah did, resisting the call. Instead, he obeyed the heavenly vision.
Paul’s own obedience validated his message of repentance to others. He had repented, turning from persecuting Christ to preaching Christ. Paul preached to others to repent and to demonstrate their repentance through deeds.
The young man who went the monastery was named Martin. Martin Luther. There in the monastery, he studied Romans. Repenting of his efforts to save himself, he found salvation in Christ alone. Then he preached to the church of his day that salvation was by grace through faith. He was not disobedient to the vision From heaven.
God still calls his people to repent and obey him. This is our message. Our own repentance and obedience validate our message. What has God called us to do? Have we done it? We could be educated beyond our level of obedience. Today if we hear his voice, let us not harden our hearts.
