And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him and did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out. (Acts 9:26-28)

Distrust In The New Member

Saul of Tarsus was feared among the saints of the early church. Following the murder of Stephen, Saul took it upon himself to seek every means possible to wipe out those who were of the Way. He persecuted the church in foreign cities arresting men and women and locking them in prison. If a vote was taken on whether to execute someone, Saul cast his vote for death. There was a zealous cause burning inside Saul to destroy those who taught Jesus of Nazareth was Christ. Many of the saints lost their lives under the persecution of Saul. The apostles feared what the man from Tarsus could do.

The grace of God saw something good in Saul. On a journey to the city of Damascus, where Saul planned to arrest the saints of the city, the Lord appeared to Saul and changed his direction. Three days later, Ananias baptized Saul into water for the remission of his sins, and Saul became a valiant servant of the Lord for the cause of the church. Saul’s passion had not diminished, only his message. He now disputed with his fellow countrymen with scripture showing Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested by God through signs and wonders that He was the Christ. This made enemies of his former colleagues and fearful suspicions of those in the church. When Saul came to Jerusalem to become part of the church, the church resisted. It was difficult to believe Saul was a disciple of Christ. There were many, including the apostles, who did not trust Saul.

Saul must have understood the reasons the brethren were skeptical. He had brought much misery to the church and now wanted to be part of the church? This was hard to believe. They could not believe Saul had become a follower of Jesus Christ. Barnabas heard about the plight of Saul and came to his rescue. Taking Saul before the apostles, Barnabas explains how the Lord had chosen the leader of the great persecution to become one of his great preachers. The apostles rejoiced in the wonderful news of God’s grace. Saul of Tarsus was a teacher of Jesus Christ. There must have been many who were amazed at the news. Saul remained in Jerusalem preaching boldly until a plot to kill him was discovered. The brethren took Saul to Caesarea and then back to his hometown of Tarsus.

The lesson about Saul’s experience in Jerusalem shows the importance of the local work. Saul knew he needed to be part of the local congregation. However, his background had tainted the brethren to distrust the man who had been so bold to denounce the church. There was good reason to distrust Saul, but there was a better reason to accept Saul. It was true that background of Saul was troubling, and he lived with that knowledge all his life. Later, he would tell the brethren at Philippi that he had put that all behind him as he looked for the eternal crown. But now the brethren could rejoice and worship with the man who was a blasphemer and troubler of the church. His sins were washed away in baptism. He was now a child of God. Whatever he did in his past was gone. God forgave him for the murder of Stephen. The grace of God took an insolent man and made him an incredible part of the early missionary work of preaching the gospel to the whole world. Saul was a Christian. God be praised.