-One Hundred And Twenty-Six- Grace To The "Religious"

Grace to the “Religious”

Today’s Reading: Acts 9:1-18

Focal Verse: Acts 9:4

Then he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”

My heart is heavy with the multitudes of people trying to work their way into heaven who will be turned away because they don’t know Jesus.  Some of them are leading moral lives.  They may teach a church class.  They may sing in a choir.  They may go up and down streets knocking at doors seeking converts to their faith.  The Lord will say, “I never knew you; depart from Me.” (Matthew 7:21-23)  The story of Saul gives me hope for these because it is a story of a religious man who met Jesus and was changed.
Saul was very religious.  He followed all the right traditions and ceremonies.  He knew Scripture.  Even when he was persecuting Christians, he did it in the name of God.  And he was completely, utterly, totally lost.  It took a dramatic experience for God to get Saul’s attention, but He used an obedient servant, Ananias, to complete the job of Saul’s conversion to Christ.
Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ?  Or are you merely religious, staying busy with religious works and moral behavior that you hope will stack up in your favor?  Your works cannot justify you.  Only Jesus can (Acts 13:39).  If you don’t know Him, click on Behold, I Stand At The Door And Knock.  Find a faithful servant like Ananias to share your conversion with.

If you are a believer, don’t give up on the Sauls of this world.  Pray for them and be ready to share with them The Way.