But the Lord said to him, “Go, because this man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel.
Acts 9:15 NET
Saul was a great enemy of the early church. He did everything within his power to destroy the church (Gal 1:13). And that included traveling to other cities to imprison and return believers to Jerusalem for trial (Acts 9:1-2) and possible execution (Acts 26:10).
It is hard to imagine anyone more unlikely to become God’s chosen instrument to proclaim the gospel he sought so zealously to destroy. Yet he did. On the road to Damascus, Saul, the destroyer of the church, encountered Jesus and became Paul, the Apostle of Jesus Christ. While the name change and missionary activity were some years in his future, the transformation on that road was dramatic.
The men that Jesus chose to proclaim the kingdom of God to the world varied greatly. They ranged from men like Peter the fisherman, Matthew the tax collector, Simon the revolutionary, and Saul/Paul the persecutor. He took what they were and transformed them. And he used them to transform the world of their day.
Is there any reason to believe he could not do the same with you or me? To take what we are, transform us into his image, and use us in his kingdom? To transform the world around us?
No matter how unlikely or insignificant we might appear in our own eyes or the world’s eyes, God has chosen each of us to fill some role in his kingdom. Will I be faithful to his call? Will you?
