Appointed as a Witness of Christ

Testifying before Agrippa II and Festus as Festus tried to discern what to tell Caesar about Paul in the Apostle’s appeal to the emperor, Paul first gave details about his upbringing and his persecution of the church before his conversion to Christ (Acts 26:1–11). Then, as we read in today’s passage, Paul described Jesus’ appearance to him on the road to Damascus.

Acts 26:12–18 features the third account of our Lord’s call to Paul and Paul’s conversion that we find in the book of Acts (see 9:1–19; 22:3–11). Each account tells the story from a slightly different angle, giving us additional details about the event. In Acts 26:12–18, for example, we read that when Jesus spoke to Paul, He said, “It is hard for you to kick against the goads” (v. 14). A goad was a pointed stick that people would use to prod oxen and other animals to direct them and keep them in line. Jesus’ use of the term “goad” metaphorically depicts how Paul—then Saul of Tarsus—was acting toward the Savior before his conversion. Before that day on the road to Damascus, Jesus was prodding Paul as one might prod an ox in seeking to steer the animal in a particular direction. Like a stubborn ox, Paul was resisting the work of Jesus to guide him into ministry, refusing the Lord just as an ox might kick against its master’s goad. Resistance to the Savior, however, is ultimately futile. All whom the Father has given to the Son will certainly come to Him and serve Him (John 6:37). The elect may put up a fight, but it is always a losing battle. On the road to Damascus, the Holy Spirit gave Paul a new heart, and he changed from being one of the most ardent opponents of Christ to perhaps His fiercest advocate.

Paul’s conversion coincided with the Savior’s calling Paul to be an Apostle. Note that in commissioning Paul, Jesus said that He was sending Paul “to open” the eyes of the gentiles (Acts 26:16–18). Of course, Paul in himself did not have the spiritual power to convert the nations; rather, Paul was an agent through whom Christ effectively worked to save the gentiles. The Lord blesses the faithful ministry of His servants, and we must remember that whatever is accomplished through our efforts ultimately occurs only by God’s power. John Calvin comments, “God does translate unto his ministers that honor which is due to himself alone, not that he may take any thing from himself, but that he may commend that mighty working of his Spirit which he does show forth in them.”