What if the first domino never falls?

08 Apr What if the first domino never falls?

If there’s one thing we can say about the Bible…it consistently delivers a consistent word from God. That may sound obvious, but here’s what I’m learning because I see it over & over again in the Scripture…

Ok…remember last week I said we should eliminate the “but” in our conversations with God in response to his direct commands or instructions. So often in the Bible we read of God giving a direct command or instruction to someone & they say “But God…” & then give an excuse for why they don’t want to do what God has just said go do. Instead of excuses, the “but” part of our response, we should just do what God asks of us straight away. Well…there’s more to it than simple obedience.

I’m reading through Acts at the moment. In Acts 9, Saul is on his way to Damascus to persecute the early followers of Jesus when Jesus stops him mid-journey, strikes Saul blind, & directs him to wait in Damascus for further instructions. God visits Ananias to send him to restore Saul’s sight & explain to him that Jesus has plans for Saul. Ananias is notably reluctant to go anywhere near Saul. His conversation with God unfolds in Acts 9:10-19:

¹⁰“Now there was a believer in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, calling, ‘Ananias!’ ‘Yes, Lord!’ he replied. ¹¹The Lord said, ‘Go over to Straight Street, to the house of Judas. When you get there, ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is praying to me right now. ¹²I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying hands on him so he can see again.’ ¹³‘But Lord,’ exclaimed Ananias, ‘I’ve heard many people talk about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! ¹⁴And he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest everyone who calls upon your name.’ ¹⁵But the Lord said, ‘Go, for Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. ¹⁶And I will show him how much he must suffer for my name’s sake.’ ¹⁷So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you might regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁸Instantly something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he got up and was baptized. ¹⁹Afterward he ate some food and regained his strength.

First…notice the “but”? Of course you do…but note more closely how Jesus responds…vss 15-16…Jesus gives Ananias a glimpse of Saul’s destiny. He is allowed to know what Christ intends for Saul to accomplish as God’s chosen servant. Ananias sees in advance what Saul will eventually discover over a lifetime of life in Christ. As he approaches Damascus, Saul is devoted to destroying disciples. Christ declares that instead Saul, from now on, will suffer to make disciples.

Ananias is the crucial link between Saul’s past & his future as an apostle & the chief architect of the good news of Jesus expanding across the Roman Empire. If Ananias doesn’t go to Saul in obedience to Christ’s uncomfortable risky call, Saul’s eventual conversion & his future as Paul is delayed. God would have to find someone else perhaps. And there it is…the point to being immediately responsive & obedient…If we are silent when Christ gives us opportunity to speak, or drag our feet & go unwillingly toward doing what he has called us to do, we obstruct someone else from their Christ-inspired destiny.

I shared that insight with a friend & we wondered, “If Moses had really stuck to his ‘no’ to God & refused to demand Pharaoh release God’s people from slavery in Egypt, would God simply have called someone else? Would the Israelites still be slaves!?!?!” Of course God would have freed his people another way…that was their destiny & God would not turn his back on his promise to bring them into the land he promised Abraham. HOWEVER…Moses would have lost the opportunity to become one to whom “the Lord would speak…face to face, as one speaks to a friend.” (Deut 33:11) The “but” along with our excuses not only delays what Christ desires for someone else, but distances us from the fuller blessings Christ wants us to enjoy as his chosen instrument. Do you see why our obedience…prompt responsive obedience is so critical? It links other people with their Christ-inspired destiny AND links us to the fullness of life Christ intends for us. You are the first domino…when you yield to Christ’s commands, others follow like one domino knocking over others. But if that first domino won’t budge…?

Now…let’s see what our increasingly full schedule includes…

1. Ladies Fellowship – 10^th April – 10:00 a.m. @ Sue & Trevor’s home (1 John 2:1-17)
2. Zoom Bible Study Catch-up
   Friday 11th April 2025 @ 1:00 p.m.

• Join Zoom Meeting  —  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81166125179  —  Meeting ID: 811 6612 5179

3. Holy Week is upon us & Easter is the great Celebration! Invite someone you know…they could be thanking you for it eternally.
   • Palm Sunday – 13^th April @ 10:00 a.m.
   • Maundy Thursday – 17^th April @ 7:00 p.m.
   • Good Friday – 18^th April @ 9:00 a.m. (We’ll hang around awhile & enjoy hot cross buns together!)
   • Easter Resurrection Sunday – 20^th April @ 10:00 a.m.

Oh…Thank you for last week’s Giving Beyond Ourselves. Over $700 was given to the CareVan ministry to the hungry here in Wagga. Well done!

I’ll see you Sunday…and quite often, I hope, the following week. Have I remembered to remind you to invite someone to join you along the way?

Good…please do!

John