Day 4: Ministry of reconciliation
The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to Your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on Your name.”
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is My chosen instrument to proclaim My name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel (Acts 9:11-15).
Heavenly Father, You alone are God. Your ways are beyond the wisdom and the imagination of mortals. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare His praise? (Psalm 106:2) Glorious and majestic are His deeds, and His righteousness endures forever (Psalm 111:3).
You, alone Lord can judge the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12), for You alone know every human heart (1 Kings 8:39). And You alone can change the human heart, born into its natural condition of sin—deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9 - NKJV).
Father, Your amazing grace can deliver the vilest offender who truly believes. But often in our "classifications" of sin, we do not grasp that we are all that vilest offender, ruined and unclean—undone before You (Isaiah 6:5). We do not grasp that Your grace is available to all, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
Many times, Lord, You have to teach us that Your grace is not limited by our prejudices, by our fears, by our human assessments. You showed this to Jonah, the reluctant prophet who refused to take Your message of grace to Nineveh (Jonah 1:1-2; 4:1-3). And You showed this to Ananias the uneasy believer who hesitated to take new vision to Saul of Tarsus.
You, O Father, bridged the greatest gulf ever known when You reconciled us to Yourself through Christ. And You have entrusted to Your people the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).
And for every Saul You have designated as a chosen instrument You call an Ananias to be a channel of Your blessing. For every disoriented people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, You call a messenger of Your grace and deliverance.
Help us to step out in faith when You say "Go!" Give us the willingness, the courage, the compassion, and the love to touch those who are different—those who do not share our ideas, our experiences, our philosophes, our outlook. Remind us that You Yourself are our peace, the One who destroys all barriers, and the dividing walls of hostility (Ephesians 2:14).
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