In the beginning of Acts 8 we meet Saul of Tarsus. Saul is a faithful Jew who believed strongly that Jesus and His followers were blasphemous sinners and worthy of death. Saul’s life was driven by the goal of pursuing and capturing as many of Jesus’ followers as possible and imprisoning them.
Saul, in Acts 8:1-3, is like many people who have a strong belief about the way the things are and how things work. He hated the very thought that he might be wrong about his beliefs. Saul’s life dramatically changed when he met Jesus in Acts 9. He soon came to believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and was baptized into Christ (Acts 22:16).
Possibly due to his previous reputation as a persecutor of Christians or just to be more relatable to the Gentiles he was commissioned to evangelize, Saul became known as Paul.
One of the things the Apostle Paul does really well is talk about Jesus whenever and wherever and to whomever. While in Antioch in Pisidia, in Acts 13, Paul talks about Jesus by starting where his audience believes. He assures them about their belief in God, but makes them aware how their belief points to Jesus as the Christ. It would be wonderful if everyone who heard Paul chose to follow Jesus, but that wouldn’t be realistic. Even Jesus did not have a 100% conversion rate when He talked about the Kingdom. Some did, however, choose to follow Jesus.
Paul was a skilled speaker in front of an audience. Acts 13 shows this well, and so does the time he stood before the men of Athens in Acts 17:22-34. Again, the results of his presentation were mixed.
Paul was able to naturally direct the situation to Jesus. We see this while he was in Athens and in Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41). In Acts 21:26-40 we find Paul arrested. Paul takes the opportunity to address the crowd in Acts 22. When he gets everyone’s attention he doesn’t go through a chain of Scriptures to prove to his audience the need to be baptized into Christ. Instead, Paul tells his story.
In Acts 22 Paul retells what happened that led him to be baptized into Christ. He starts with his background and how he was raised. Paul explains how he was a zealous Jew and persecuted the followers of Jesus. During one of his trips to hunt down and imprison Christians, Paul met the risen Christ. He talks about how he changed and made the decision to “arise and be baptized, and wash away his sins, calling on the name of the Lord (Acts 22:16).”
Later in Acts 26, Paul is before Herod Agrippa. He, again, takes the opportunity to tell his story. At the conclusion of Paul’s story Agrippa was not completely convince and responds in Acts 26:28, “You almost persuade me to be a Christian.”
Granted, Paul was trained in the Scriptures under a great Rabbi. He also received direct revelation from God. Paul could do miracles to confirm the Word. Yet, one of his most effective tools in getting up close and personal was to simply tell his story.
I would like to encourage us all to recall our story. To rehearse your life before Christ, when and how you came to Christ and then talk about the blessings you have now in Christ. The more we practice our story, the better we will become at sharing it. In telling your story of how you came to Christ you can naturally share the Gospel.
