Love Your Neighbour

Acts 9:23-31

“After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall. When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the LORD and that the LORD had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the LORD. He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the LORD and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.”

It seems from the outset the LORD made good of His word about the Apostle Paul that He would show him how much he would suffer for His name (Acts 9:16). Here we see him stuck between a rock and a hard place — that is the Early Church and the Jews whose teachings he had just disavowed. He said in one of his letters that he did suffer for Christ: “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that His life may also be revealed in our mortal body. (II Cor 4:8–11).” But it was with this that St. Paul grew in fellowship and community within the Church, that he had made friends who believed him and believed in him, went out of their way and may have even risked their own lives to rescue him from the danger his transformation had led him into (vv. 25–28). The LORD said "greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends (John 15:13)", and so, irrespective of how at first, the Early Church had been understandably apprehensive in accepting St. Paul, Christian love wins in the end! "By this", writes the Apostle John, "we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brethren (I John 3:16)." And that rock that was initially in opposition became St. Paul's very shelter. Although he had a dramatic and undeniable encounter with the Risen LORD, he also experienced the relationship with Christ-followers such as St. Barnabas, risen to the occasion on God's greatest commandment; that because one fundamentally loves God, with all one's heart and soul, and mind and strength, the love of neighbour stems naturally from it (Mark 12:30-31). This had been the potent force that grew the Early Church and the community, "throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the LORD and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers (v. 31)." Let us aspire to love one another, to reach out and care, and regularly ask and consider how can this force begin with me. By this everyone will know that we are His disciples, if we love one another (John 13:35)!