March 25, 2025

#265 Acts 9.20–25 - Rejected, Then Received: Saul's Bold Entrance into the Church

In this episode of the AL Pastor Podcast, Pastor Brian walks us verse-by-verse through Acts 9:26–31. This section of Scripture offers a profound look into Saul’s (later Paul’s) early experiences as a transformed follower of Jesus. After his bold preaching in Damascus, Saul arrives in Jerusalem only to be met with fear and skepticism by the disciples. But God raises up a man—Barnabas—to stand in the gap, vouching for Saul’s genuine conversion and advocating for his inclusion into the community. Pastor Brian draws out deep applications about fear, trust, community, boldness, and the nature of gospel transformation. The episode concludes with a “holy exhale” as the church experiences peace, edification, and multiplication—a reminder that the gospel cannot be stopped.

Show Notes
Transcript

📖 Detailed Show Notes

📍 Passage Covered

Acts 9:26–31 (NKJV)

⛪️ Major Themes

Radical transformation doesn’t always equal immediate acceptance.
The power of gospel-centered advocacy (Barnabas).
The ongoing pattern of persecution and protection in Saul’s early ministry.
The role of boldness in gospel witness.
The peace and multiplication of the church through both suffering and submission to the Spirit.

🧵 Episode Breakdown

🔹 Opening (0:07–3:40)

Pastor Brian reflects on the weight of faithfully teaching through the Book of Acts.
Recap of Acts 9:20–25 and Saul’s escape from Damascus.
Introduction to today’s passage: Saul’s attempt to join the disciples in Jerusalem and the fear he encounters.

🔹 Acts 9:26 – Rejected by the Church (3:42–9:52)

Saul attempts to “join” the disciples. The Greek word for “join” (kollaō) means to glue or cling—he wasn’t just visiting; he longed to belong.
The disciples’ fear and suspicion are understandable but tragic.
Key tension: Saul had been transformed, but the church hadn’t yet transformed how they saw him.
Application: Have we written off people that God is actively redeeming?

🔹 Acts 9:27 – The Courage of Barnabas (9:57–16:13)

The game-changing role of Barnabas, the “Son of Encouragement.”
Barnabas uses his credibility to vouch for Saul and recounts three proofs of transformation: vision of the Lord, direct call, and bold preaching.
Application: Be the Barnabas. Use your influence to bring others into the family of God.
Encouragement for those who feel like Saul—on the outside, misunderstood, and in need of an advocate.

🔹 Acts 9:28 – Boldness and Belonging (16:13–21:20)

“Coming in and going out” is a Semitic idiom for living and ministering freely.
Saul’s acceptance is confirmed—he is now with them.
His ministry of bold preaching continues.
Challenge: Are we bold in proclaiming Christ in our own contexts?

🔹 Acts 9:29 – Back to the Scene of the Crime (21:20–29:15)

Saul disputes with the Hellenists—the very group he once belonged to and possibly helped murder Stephen.
He walks back into the lion’s den with gospel boldness.
The same fire that once fueled persecution now fuels proclamation.
Application: Where do you need to go back with the gospel—perhaps to places where you once sinned?

🔹 Acts 9:30 – Sent to Tarsus (29:21–34:35)

Saul is protected by the church—those who once feared him now act as his guardians.
He is sent home to Tarsus, which may feel like obscurity or rejection but is actually preparation.
Galatians and Acts show that Saul was still preaching and planting during this time.
Application: God uses hidden seasons to form ministers. Your Tarsus is not a timeout.

🔹 Acts 9:31 – A Holy Exhale (34:35–38:47)

Luke gives a summary statement of peace, edification, and multiplication across the region.
This is the result of bold witness, gospel suffering, and Spirit-led community.
Beautiful fulfillment of Acts 1:8—the gospel has gone to Judea, Galilee, and Samaria.
Application: Jesus builds His church. Even after storms, His body is edified and multiplied.

✨ Key Takeaways

💡 Transformation doesn’t always lead to immediate trust—but God knows how to send Barnabas.
💡 The boldness of Saul is not recklessness—it’s Spirit-empowered clarity.
💡 Rejection may redirect you to a season of preparation. God trains in Tarsus.
💡 Discipleship involves risk: opening doors, standing beside the misunderstood, and walking into dangerous places with the gospel.
💡 The Church, when it walks in the fear of the Lord and comfort of the Spirit, is unstoppable.

📌 Application Questions

Have you ever struggled to be accepted by other believers after a radical change in your life?
Are you willing to be a Barnabas for someone others doubt or fear?
Where might God be calling you to speak boldly about Jesus?
Are you in a “Tarsus season”? How can you be faithful right where you are?
What would it look like for your church to walk in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit?

🙏 Final Blessing (38:47–39:03)

"I pray that this small, small section of Scripture and podcast would edify you, that you too would be built up. I pray that you too would have peace, that you would walk in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit." — Pastor Brian

0:07

You're listening to Al Pastor, the show that helps you love God, love your neighbor and eat more

tacos.

0:15

I'm your host, Pastor Brian.

Welcome to the show.

0:21

Hey friends, I want to welcome you to today's episode.

It's been a while since the last episode.

0:25

When I say a while, it's been over a week or so.

So thank you for being patient with me.

0:30

We're walking through the book of Acts, and I certainly feel the weight of this book, the amount of

of material in order to go through, at least on my part.

0:42

You guys have discipleship guides and I'm not trying to say those are easy to get through by any

means, but I certainly feel the weight and the responsibility to communicate God's word not only

0:52

effectively, but also faithfully as well.

So thank you for being patient.

1:00

I know we're, we're already in Chapter 11.

So I've, I've got my work cut out for me to get thoroughly caught up.

1:08

I want to just recap where we left off at because we looked at Acts Chapter 9, verses 20 through 25.

We witness Saul's immediate transformation.

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This is his conversion.

We see his commissioning what we would call the call of God upon his life.

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He goes from being a persecutor to a preacher and so we followed him into the synagogues of Damascus

and he is boldly preaching that Jesus is the Son of God.

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And what was the result for that?

Well, they tried to kill him.

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I mean, Saul had to be lowered through, through a wall or windows, pretty much synonymous in the

ancient world in a basket.

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And So what we looked at is that his deliverance came in a very, very humble way.

And isn't that how God often works?

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Sometimes we want to look at God like delivering us or setting us free with some great fireworks or

some big hoopla kind of show.

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But God often does things in very, very subtle and humbling ways.

And the irony here is that he is escaping.

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He's being delivered from threats of death out of a city that he marched into with absolute pride.

And so just like that, we see the pattern of persecution and deliverance is beginning.

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And this is a pattern that's going to follow him for the rest of his life.

And so now when we pick up in Acts Chapter 9, verse 26, Saul is making his way to Jerusalem.

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And you would think that the church would be ready to welcome him with open arms, maybe even throw

him a potluck or or a party.

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But this isn't the case.

He's he's met with fear and doubt.

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And there's even distance until one man steps forward.

It's a man by the name of Barnabas.

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And I'm really excited to share more about Barnabas, especially when we come up on this this Lord's

Day Sunday.

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Barnabas is a pivotal figure in the story of the people of God.

So this section is powerful, not just because of what Saul does, but because of what God does

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through the body of Christ around him, through fear, through boldness and brotherhood.

And there's opposition.

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And we're even going to look at an escape.

Once again, we see that the gospel is not only unstoppable, it's also very, very personal.

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So I want you to grab your Bible.

I want you to turn to Acts Chapter 9.

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And we're going to walk through verses 26 through 31, very slow verse by verse.

Let's begin.

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The Bible says in verse 26, and when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join circle that word,

join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him and they did not believe that he was a disciple.

0:00

Now I want to pause here for a moment because this verse might seem like a transition on the

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surface.

A Saul gets to Jerusalem, he tries to to link up with the disciples, but they're afraid.

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They don't trust him.

And so I don't want us to rush past this moment because in it, God is exposing something deep and

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real in the church and maybe even within some of us.

Now, Saul, this is this is the man who once had wreaked havoc in Jerusalem.

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He was the destroyer of Christians.

And and now all of a sudden he's one of them.

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He's been radically and dramatically changed.

He's been preaching boldly in Damascus.

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And now he he arrives in Jerusalem, not with a a sword to arrest or papers from the from the

Sanhedrin, but with a heart to belong.

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Now Luke says something interesting here.

This is why I told you to circle the word join.

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Luke says that he tried to join the disciples.

That word join is colosti in the in the Greek, it means to glue together, to cleave, to cling.

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Saul wasn't just trying to show up and attend the church service.

He wanted to belong to the body of Christ.

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He was trying to be part of their life.

He was seeking real fellowship, real community.

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But they were afraid.

Now we can't blame them a whole lot.

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I mean, this is the guy who drag believers.

He was arresting both men and women, dragging them out of their homes.

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He he stood by as Steven was murdered.

And some of these disciples that were still remained in Jerusalem because many of them were, were

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spread out.

They had probably either suffered directly or indirectly because of Saul.

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And so now he shows up and he's saying, Hey, I'm on the team.

I'm I'm, I'm one of you guys now.

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And Luke, what I love about this is he doesn't sugarcoat it.

He tells us, notice in the verse with me, they did not believe he was a disciple.

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And here's where this tension hits.

It's because while Saul had been transformed by Jesus, the believers in Jerusalem had not yet been

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transformed in how they viewed him.

Grace had changed Saul, but fear was still gripping the church.

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Let me say it like this.

Saul's problem wasn't a lack of identity.

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He he was already a disciple.

His problem was the lack of credibility in the eyes of others.

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The issue isn't whether or not he belonged to Jesus.

It's whether or not others others believed that he did.

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And that's a word for some of us.

Can I tell you?

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I mean, because maybe you've changed.

Maybe God has done a work in your life, but you still carry a past that people can't forget.

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And maybe you've walked into situations or churches or certain groups, circles of believers and

hoping to be accepted or hoping to belong only to feel suspicion or or distance or fear.

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Listen, just because people don't believe in what God is doing in your life doesn't mean that God

hasn't transformed you.

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People take time.

Trust takes time, but God sees the heart and here's the word.

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He'll send the right people and, and just wait for verse 27.

We'll get there.

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But there's, there's another side to this.

How about, how about for us, the church?

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Are we, are we suspicious of people that God has changed?

I mean, do we keep people at arm's length because of maybe what they used to be instead of instead

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of embracing what God might be doing in that moment?

The same Jesus who saved us has saved them too.

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The same blood that has cleansed us is enough to cleanse them too.

And if you and I can't see it, we might be missing what God is trying to do right in front of us.

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And listen, I get it.

Trust has to be earned and discernment is necessary.

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We must be discerning in all things.

This isn't an issue of like somebody that's maybe struggling with sin or that's coming out of an

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addiction.

We're not talking about that.

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We're talking about a radical transformation, the preaching of the gospel.

And so discernment is always necessary, but fear cannot be the default operating system of how we

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live as the people of God.

We, we are our people as we're in this, this Passover season.

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We're people of the resurrection.

We believe that dead men live again.

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And if we believe in a God who can raise the dead, we should believe that he can raise us all into a

Paul, don't we?

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I mean that that's, that is the message of the gospel.

God brings dead men to life.

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So let's not forget that this moment in Acts 926 is just the beginning of a pattern that we'll see

again and again.

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God is bringing those on the outside into family enemies, into brothers and murderers into

missionaries in the church.

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We are called to participate in these miraculous moments, not to resist it.

And so if you've been changed and, and if you feel rejected, I've got to tell you, don't give up.

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God sees you.

Let's look at verse 27.

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The Bible says, 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

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Damascus in the name of Jesus.

There's a beautiful, beautiful turning point here in verse #26 All is met with fear and suspicion.

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The disciples in Jerusalem are, are hesitant because they, they're not sure.

They don't believe that he's truly a follower of Jesus.

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And then guess what, Here comes Barnabas.

What a man of God.

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What a what a needed presence, the Bible says.

But Barnabas took him.

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This little phrase here changes everything.

Saul couldn't get in.

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The door was closed.

But Barnabas, he grabs the handle, he pulls it open and he says, hey, come on in with me.

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He doesn't just sympathize with Saul.

He vouches for him.

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He takes his arm and he walks him straight to the apostles.

And he tells the story.

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He speaks up.

He bridges the gap.

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He puts his own credibility on the line line to say, you know what, this guy right here is the real

deal.

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And I don't want to to just brush over this too quickly.

Saul needed somebody and Barnabas stepped in and you know, we live in a world that's really quick to

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cancel and, and a world that is slow to trust.

And I get it.

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And, and, and, and in a, in a, in a church body and, and in a culture where sometimes people carry

around their past like a chain around their neck.

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I think we need some more Barnabas's.

We need some people that just don't want to wait for somebody to have to prove themselves.

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But who will step in?

Who will speak up and say, you know what?

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I have seen God at work in this person's life.

And you know what, Barnabas, he doesn't make up some emotional appeal.

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He, he, he gives a factual testimony.

In other words, he's saying there is fruit, there is some real fruit going on in his life.

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And he says three things #1 he says he's that saw, saw the Lord on the road.

That's a big deal, guys.

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And then he says that the Lord spoke to him.

And then he says that he preached boldly in Damascus in the name of Jesus.

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Now, that's all that Luke gives us here.

But guess what?

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It's enough.

And Barnabas lays out the evidence.

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He's not appealing to feelings and, and, and, and some sentimental moment here.

He is appealing to the fruit of a changed life.

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I don't know about you, but I, I long and, and desire to see more fruit manifested in our midst.

Saul has a testimony of transformation, a word from the Lord in a bold ministry that is already in

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motion.

And so there's something very, very important here for all of us as as as as church members, as

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leaders, as teachers.

When somebody comes to Christ, especially somebody with a complicated past, we must have

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discernment.

Absolutely, yes and Amen.

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But you know what?

We also need courage, because it takes courage to stand beside somebody before everybody else will

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stand up for them.

It takes maturity to say, you know what I believe in what God is doing right now in this moment,

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even if other people don't see it, know it, or acknowledge it yet.

And let's not forget Barnabas was already known and respected in Acts chapter 4.

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It tells us that he's the one that sold land and gave the proceeds to the apostles.

Do you remember that His name literally means Son of encouragement?

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And so Barnabas had the ear of the leadership because he had already proven his integrity.

He used, he leveraged that credibility, that relational capital, not to advance himself.

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OK, get this.

He, he, he's not using this to cry, climb a ladder of, of popularity or preeminence, but to bring in

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somebody that others were rejecting.

And So what does that say to you?

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And I maybe God's given you some influence and you need to know that that influence isn't for your

own self promotion.

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It isn't for your own comfort, but it is to pull somebody else out of, of obscurity.

It's to encourage other folks.

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And maybe you've got access to things that other person doesn't have access to.

And your access isn't to gatekeep and to guard those gates, but it's to open up doors.

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And maybe you're the Barnabas that somebody needs.

Now, on the flip side, maybe you feel like solving this moment.

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Maybe you feel shut out.

Maybe you feel misunderstood.

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Maybe you feel suspected.

I want to tell you, don't lose heart because God knows how to send the right people at just the

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right time.

And He knows how to bring somebody alongside of you to speak for you, to advocate for you when you

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can't speak for yourself.

This is the beauty of the body of Christ.

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We are not meant to walk this life of discipleship alone.

We are meant to be fully integrated and I want to bring you back to the beginning of what we talked

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about his intention, Saul's intention was to join, to adhere, to glue together.

That is God's will for your life, not to just show up and not just to sit on a Pew, but to be fully

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integrated into community.

And sometimes all it takes is for one Barnabas to change the story.

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It's absolutely beautiful.

Verse 28, it says, so He was with them at Jerusalem coming in and going out.

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We'll get to that phrase in a moment, but it's rich.

And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus.

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Now we can, we can almost sense and feel the momentum shifting.

Now, I mean, think about it.

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In verse 26, Saul couldn't get in.

Verse 27, Barnabas brings him in.

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And now here in verse 28, he's moving freely with him in Jerusalem.

The Bible says that he's coming in and going out, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.

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Now let's take this slowly because Luke says he was with them.

Guess what that is?

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That's acceptance.

That's fellowship.

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That's belonging.

And then we read coming in and going out.

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Now, that phrase might seem small too, but it speaks volumes.

It is what we would call a Semitic expression, a Hebrew phrase used all throughout the Scripture to

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describe somebody who is living and ministering openly, engaging with people, moving about without

restriction, participating in daily life with others.

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This is no longer Saul on the outside looking in.

This is Saul now the brother, the one who had been feared, is now found in the midst of the body of

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Christ.

And what's he doing by the way?

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He is speaking boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, just like he did in in Damascus.

Remember verse 20, Acts Chapter 9, just like Barnabas had testified in verse 27, and just like we'll

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see him do for the rest of his life.

This is one of the defining marks of the apostles.

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Paul's ministry.

What is it?

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Boldness.

Boldness, not arrogance, not brashness, but a spirit filled courage to speak the truth of Jesus

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Christ without fear.

And in Acts chapter 4, Peter and John prayed for boldness and the place where they were gathered.

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The Bible says it shook.

Boldness was a mark of being spirit filled.

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And here we see that the same fire, the same boldness is in Saul.

And it's one of the first things that springs to life in a man or a woman.

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Who is who?

Who would be against Jesus Christ, living in the world now being converted, burning with zeal for

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Jesus?

And I don't want you to miss this.

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Saul knew he is not ambivalent about the dangers of boldly preaching.

He had been the one that was inflicting the the the threats and the murders just a few years

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earlier.

He understood what was on the line.

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He knew the cost he had.

He had done what Jesus talked about.

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He counted the cost.

But guess what?

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He still speaks boldly.

Why is that?

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Can I tell you that when Jesus gets a hold of you, your fear of man will die?

When the Holy Spirit feels you, your safety is and and your sense of acceptance is no longer the

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goal.

You know what is faithfulness, Obedience.

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God didn't call you to results.

He called you to obedience.

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He called you to speak his word.

And when the name of Jesus becomes your treasure, his his, his mission will become your passion.

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And I got to tell you, this convicts me.

But let me ask you, does it convict you?

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You know, we live in a in a culture, in a society today where silence is the path of least

resistance, isn't it?

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I mean, many would rather just not offend.

And and so we just often times stay quiet about certain things and, and boldness in the name of

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Jesus is often viewed as extreme or or maybe outdated or even dangerous.

And some might even call it religious.

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But here's the truth.

The gospel was never meant to be whispered.

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And I, and I'm not talking about the volume of your voice and I'm not talking about being obnoxious

or, or offensive for the sake of being offensive.

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I mean, this kind of boldness, speaking in the name of Jesus openly and courageously and lovingly

and clearly is what it looks like, even if it's going to cost you something.

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And that's what Saul did, and that's what the early church did.

And that is what you and I are still called to do.

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And so whether you're in your workplace, whether you're in your school, your neighborhood, or just

just hanging out with your family that might not be saved, let the name of Jesus be on your lips.

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Speak his truth and word with boldness.

Love just as boldly served just as boldly.

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Live out your faith with the kind of courage that makes people wonder, man, what happened to you And

then guess what, go ahead and then tell them about Jesus.

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Tell them that you met Jesus on the road on the way on a street called straight and nothing has been

the same since then.

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Verse 29, it says, and he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the

Helenus, but they attempted to kill him.

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Now this verse brings us right into the fire.

I'd be just as quick as you were reading.

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It's easy to pass by, but listen, where?

Look, look where we're at right now.

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He isn't hiding, He isn't being cautious.

He's not trying to play it safe after getting rejected by the believers and barely welcomed by the

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apostles.

No, Saul's back at it again, and he's speaking boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus, and that hasn't

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changed.

But now we get a new detail here.

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It says that he disputed against the Hellenists.

Let's sit on that for a moment.

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These are not random people.

These are his people, fellow Hellenistic Jews.

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And most likely, it's the very same community that had stoned Stephen not that long before.

And you know what?

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Some scholars even believe that Paul may have even been part of their synagogue, the synagogue of

the freedmen in Acts chapter 6, verse 9.

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The very group that couldn't refute Stephen's wisdom.

And instead, do you remember?

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They chose to kill him.

And now Saul is standing right where Stephen once stood.

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The irony here is almost unbearable.

I mean, the same man who approved of Stephen's death is now standing in his shoes.

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He's preaching the same message.

He's facing the same people and facing the same fury, and they're trying to kill him.

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Now I don't want you to miss this reversal, this this gospel transformation on display because this

is what Jesus does.

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He takes the persecutor and makes him a preacher.

He takes the accomplice to to murder and makes him a martyr in waiting.

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He takes the one who who helped silence the gospel and now sends him to shout it out even louder.

And what a model this is for you and I.

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Because Saul didn't return to Jerusalem just to hide out in the crowd.

He didn't tiptoe around the synagogue he once belonged to.

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He walked straight into town.

He kicked down the door of the lion's den, and he stood before those who knew his past.

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And he boldly proclaimed that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

And he did it without fear.

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Let's be honest for a minute.

This is hard.

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It is hard to go back to the people who knew you before, the people who knew about your sin, the

ones who knew your mistakes, your past, your reputation.

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I mean, it's one thing to talk about Jesus to strangers, but if you go to the folks that once knew

you and you look at your friends in the eye, the ones that you even used to sin with, and you say,

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you know what?

I follow Jesus now.

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That takes courage, that takes boldness, that takes resurrection power.

But I want you to notice something else.

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It says they attempted to kill him.

I don't want to read that too casually.

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This isn't metaphorical.

It's not an exaggeration.

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Saul's boldness, it wasn't met with curiosity.

It was met with violence and the same thing happened to Stephen is now happening to Saul.

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And this is the very fulfillment of what Jesus said in verse 16.

Jesus says I will show him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake.

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Saul isn't just preaching about Jesus.

He is walking in his footsteps, the path of discipleship, not comfort, Not your best life now, not

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what's in it for me.

But he is picking up his cross and He is following Jesus.

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He's not doing it for the applause.

He's not doing it for the platform.

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He's not doing it for the gram.

But he is doing it for the message of Jesus Christ.

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Now, does this threat stop him?

Absolutely not.

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He keeps going.

And you know, sometimes we hesitate to speak up because maybe we'll let's be real for a second,

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We're afraid we might lose friends, we might lose status, we might lose comfort.

And Saul is speaking up here and his life's on the line, but he does it anyways.

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Because here's the thing, Jesus is worth it.

Here's another thought.

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The the the very fact that Saul went back to the Hellenist, it shows us, shows us really a picture

of reconciliation in the gospel.

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I mean, he wasn't content to just avoid the people who helped him sin.

He went back intentionally to tell them the truth that he once denied, even though he was an

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accomplice in the beginning to the death of Steven, he was the not just an accomplice.

I mean, that's, that's putting it lightly, guys.

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I mean, he he, he was the grand orchestrator of it.

But now he doesn't want to be an accomplice continually contributing to their sin.

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So he feels a responsibility, a moral obligation to go back and say, hey, you guys know me.

And so he had to confront the lies that he used to spread.

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He preached the gospel in the very place that he himself had rejected it.

Can I tell you that this is a beautiful picture of repentance in motion?

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That's redemption being worked out in real time.

And so I want to challenge you today.

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Where are the places that maybe you used to stand against Jesus?

I mean, are you willing to go back and are you willing to stand for him there now?

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Because true transformation, it doesn't hide from the past.

It redeems it and and being converted doesn't run away from from brokenness it it runs back with a

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message of healing.

Saul stood where Stephen fell and he is boldly declaring the name of Jesus Christ.

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Would you do that?

Let's wrap this up here in verse 30.

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It says when the brethren found out, they brought him down to Caesarea and they sent him out to

Tarsus.

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Well, now we see once again that Saul's on the run.

Now this time it's not Damascus, it's Jerusalem.

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Different city, but it's the same result.

His bold preaching.

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It stirs up the same opposition.

And now the believers, the very ones who once feared him, get this.

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They're the ones protecting him.

And Luke says, notice the phrase, when the brethren found out, they acted.

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They didn't just pray, they didn't say, hey, I'll remember you.

They didn't just talk.

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They moved.

There was some action.

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There was some responsibility for their brother in Christ.

They saw the danger and they brought him down to Caesarea and and from there they send him out to

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Tarsus.

Now I want you to notice I, I don't know if you see this.

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Do you see the pattern in verse 25?

The disciples in Damascus, they lower him down through a window in a basket to save his life.

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And now, just a few short verses later in verse #13 the disciples in Jerusalem, they escort him to

safety again.

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And so Saul's ministry begins with danger and rejections and being saved and delivered by the very

people he once persecuted.

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Can I tell you that that is grace.

That is the body of Christ on full display in a gospel community.

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And so I don't want us to just just brush over the the emotional weight of this verse.

Saul is being sent away.

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That had to sting.

I mean, think about it.

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He had just barely got welcomed in.

He had just begin to to walk within the midst of the brethren going to and fro freely in and out,

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and he had just found his place.

And now he's sent out.

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He's not sent out yet to preach abroad, not yet.

We'll see that coming.

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But where is he sent to?

He sent to go home, back to Tarsus.

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I want you to imagine how that felt.

I mean, he's on fire for Jesus.

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He's ready to suffer.

He's ready to preach.

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He's ready to build the church.

And now he's being sent home off the stage, away from the action.

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But here's the beauty.

Just because you're hidden doesn't mean you're forgotten.

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And just because you're out of sight doesn't mean you're out of God.

Sight.

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God often trains his ministers in in obscurity before he can send them out and do great things for

him.

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And so Saul goes from public preaching to another private preparation.

This is another pattern.

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But guess what?

The fire doesn't go out.

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The call doesn't change.

The mission is not on pause.

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And and we don't get a detailed report on what Saul did in Tarsus.

But you know what?

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We can be sure he didn't sit around with his hands folded in Galatians chapter one, verse 21.

It tells us that he preached in the regions of Syria and and Cilicia.

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I have a hard time saying that verse that includes that's the region of Tarsus and Acts 15 actually

later mentions churches in Cilicia, which Paul likely helped to plant.

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In other words, while Jerusalem needed to cool down a little bit, Saul kept moving forward.

And so here's, here's the application for you and I.

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Maybe you feel like you've been benched.

Maybe you feel like there's something that God's put in your heart has been on pause.

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And maybe you feel sent away or, or or sidelined, or you feel small.

But listen, Tarsus wasn't a time out.

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It was part of his training.

And God doesn't waste seasons.

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He prepares his servants in quiet places before releasing them for his greater plan.

And can I say something else?

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Sometimes.

Sometimes you have to be sent for your own protection.

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Saul's departure is not a failure.

It's it's faithfulness.

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Sometimes being stepping away or pausing is actually part of the process so that you can move

forward.

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And for those who are maybe helping, maybe you're like the brother in helping to send Saul on his

way.

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Like these believers, guess what, You're also doing gospel work.

You're not just protecting a person or safeguarding someone.

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You're helping steward a calling.

And so if God has called you maybe to a season of Tarsus, I would say stay faithful, learn, grow,

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serve where you're at.

God's God's got everything in his hands.

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Let's go on to verse 31.

The Bible says then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee and Samaria had peace.

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Oh, I love that.

And they were edified and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit,

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they were multiplied.

This is this is fitting for the end of this podcast.

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This is what we would call a holy exhale.

Can you see it?

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I want you to just take a deep breath, breath and go breathe out a holy exhale.

I mean think about it.

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After all the conflict, all the running, all the fear from all the way from Stevens martyrdom to

Saul's conversion and these near death escapes, Luke gives us this moment of breath, this moment of

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rest.

The church had peace not just in Jerusalem, not in just one pocket of believers, but across Judea,

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Galilee and Samaria, the entire region that Jesus had outlined.

This is beautiful In Acts chapter one, verse 8 is now filled with churches.

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I don't know if you caught that.

Let's read it then the churches throughout all of Judea, Galilee, and Samaria praise the Lord.

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Like it's so subtle you can almost miss it.

What we're seeing here is progress.

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This is movement.

This is this is the gospel and the Church of Jesus Christ expanding.

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And what I love here the most is that there isn't just an external peace, but there is some internal

growth going on at the same time.

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Because Luke says that the church has noticed this now that they were edified.

Now this word means to be built up.

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It it's, it's a like a construction term of a, of a house being strengthened, fortified brick by

brick.

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And you know what?

Isn't this what Jesus promised back in Matthew 16?

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He says I will build my church.

Isn't that what he said?

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And so this, this these past few years, I'm speaking as if we're in it right from the apostle Paul

to Stephen forward this, we would call this a storm, a violent storm, this scattering, this

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persecution.

It didn't stop the church, the the persecution didn't kill the gospel.

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Instead it drove it deeper.

It made the roots grow stronger.

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And so now after the scattering and the suffering, there is peace.

And we see just with this little phrase multiplication that is beautiful.

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You know, I want to, there's so much more that we can cover.

And, and I've got it.

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We've, we've, we've, we've capped things off here with the story of the apostle Paul.

And we're going to finish out, we're going to finish out this particular chapter with the story of

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Peter, history of Peter.

And it's going to begin in in just some really beautiful and intense moments with Peter.

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But we've transitioned now.

And so we'll go, we'll finish out chapter Chapter 9.

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We'll go through chapter 10 and 11.

And I'm going to try to move a little bit quicker, but not for the sake of moving quicker.

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But I want to thank you so much for joining me.

Thank you for being patient.

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I pray that this small, small section of scripture and podcast would would edify you, that you too

would be built up.

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I pray that you 2 would have peace.

I pray that you would walk in the fear of the Lord.

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That's in the reverence and the respect and also the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

God bless you.

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Thank you for listening to Al Pastor with Brian Overturf.

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Until then, we'll see you later.