In the Name of the Lord
“For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.” (Psalm 36:9)
The Light on the Road to Damascus - Acts 9:3-9
“Now as he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him;
and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’
And he said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.’”
Damascus - “I Was Undone.”
The light burst forth.
It was not mere brightness.
It was not a fire that consumes flesh.
It pierced through existence,
burning the depths of consciousness,
a self-sustaining radiance.
It was not an earthly light.
It was the image of God,
the light that was before creation,
a light that darkness could not
comprehend.
The light seized me.
I shut my eyes,
but I still saw.
I covered my ears,
but the voice entered into me.
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”(Acts 9:4)
I fell.
The ground did not receive me.
Even gravity refused to hold me.
I vanished.
Yet I remained.
I died.
Yet I lived.
Within the light,
I knew.
Everything I had believed was a lie.
The path I had followed led only to death.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”(Acts 9:5)
The voice struck me,
and I was undone.
I was no longer myself.
I surrendered everything.
Yet in that moment,
my true beginning was written.
The Revelation of the Third Heaven 2 Corinthians 12:2-4
“I know a man in Christ, who fourteen years ago-whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows-such a man was caught up to the third heaven.
And I know how such a man-whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows-
was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.”
The Third Heaven - “I Saw.”
I was there.
Whether in the body or apart from it,
I do not know.
But I saw.
“I know a man in Christ, who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven.” (2 Corinthians 12:2)
The heavens opened.
Yet it was not the sky as we know it.
There were no clouds, no winds,
no boundary between light and shadow.
I saw.
A place without space,
a time without sequence,
where all was now,
where all was there.
“I was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.” (2 Corinthians 12:4)
I beheld the heavens,
and I was no longer the same.
Paul, the One
Who Proclaimed the Heavens
He who was broken by the light,
became the one who bore the light.
He who saw the heavens,
became the one who preached the
heavens.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)
He did not merely preach the gospel.
He became the gospel.
His sermons burned with celestial fire,
his hands bore the imprint of heaven,
his blood carried the testimony of Christ.
What He Saw, We Shall See.
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
He had seen the heavens.
Thus, he did not fear death.
What he saw,
we shall see.
What he heard,
we shall hear.
The path he walked,
we shall follow.
“Just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)
What he beheld,
what he left behind,
has been entrusted to us.
Those who have seen the light,
will proclaim the light.
Those who have glimpsed the heavens,
will declare the heavens.
What the Apostle Paul saw, we shall see.
To the glory of the Lord. Amen.
“For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.” (Psalm 36:9)
The Light on the Road to Damascus - Acts 9:3-9
“Now as he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him;
and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’
And he said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.’”
Damascus - “I Was Undone.”
The light burst forth.
It was not mere brightness.
It was not a fire that consumes flesh.
It pierced through existence,
burning the depths of consciousness,
a self-sustaining radiance.
It was not an earthly light.
It was the image of God,
the light that was before creation,
a light that darkness could not
comprehend.
The light seized me.
I shut my eyes,
but I still saw.
I covered my ears,
but the voice entered into me.
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”(Acts 9:4)
I fell.
The ground did not receive me.
Even gravity refused to hold me.
I vanished.
Yet I remained.
I died.
Yet I lived.
Within the light,
I knew.
Everything I had believed was a lie.
The path I had followed led only to death.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”(Acts 9:5)
The voice struck me,
and I was undone.
I was no longer myself.
I surrendered everything.
Yet in that moment,
my true beginning was written.
The Revelation of the Third Heaven 2 Corinthians 12:2-4
“I know a man in Christ, who fourteen years ago-whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows-such a man was caught up to the third heaven.
And I know how such a man-whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows-
was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.”
The Third Heaven - “I Saw.”
I was there.
Whether in the body or apart from it,
I do not know.
But I saw.
“I know a man in Christ, who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven.” (2 Corinthians 12:2)
The heavens opened.
Yet it was not the sky as we know it.
There were no clouds, no winds,
no boundary between light and shadow.
I saw.
A place without space,
a time without sequence,
where all was now,
where all was there.
“I was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak.” (2 Corinthians 12:4)
I beheld the heavens,
and I was no longer the same.
Paul, the One
Who Proclaimed the Heavens
He who was broken by the light,
became the one who bore the light.
He who saw the heavens,
became the one who preached the
heavens.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)
He did not merely preach the gospel.
He became the gospel.
His sermons burned with celestial fire,
his hands bore the imprint of heaven,
his blood carried the testimony of Christ.
What He Saw, We Shall See.
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
He had seen the heavens.
Thus, he did not fear death.
What he saw,
we shall see.
What he heard,
we shall hear.
The path he walked,
we shall follow.
“Just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)
What he beheld,
what he left behind,
has been entrusted to us.
Those who have seen the light,
will proclaim the light.
Those who have glimpsed the heavens,
will declare the heavens.
What the Apostle Paul saw, we shall see.
To the glory of the Lord. Amen.
