Acts 8:1a – And Saul approved of their killing him.
Here, in the Word of God, is the clear truth that Saul, who would become the great Apostle Paul, who was inspired by God to write much of the New Testament, is named as being at the killing of the first Christian Martyr and approving of it. He did not give a casual consent to the murder of Stephen, he was cheerleading them, he was inciting them to kill Stephen.
This verse is a wonderful element of the proof that the Bible is the inspired Word of God to mankind and is some creation of mankind. Consider that the Bible tells on the errors and sins of its heroes. It tells of, to name a few, the foolishness of Samson, the stubbornness and rebellion of Jonah, the sins of fornication, adultery and murder of David, and here the approval and encouragement of murder by the Apostle Paul (then Saul). Family, if one would write a book of heroes and that claimed to be the supreme book that reveals the purity and righteousness of God, then it is most unlikely to include the faults of the noted heroes. When a person is running for President, or the top office of any country, advocacy for the candidate does not include their faults and grievous past sins and crimes. But the Bible does, often painfully, reveal the tragic truths about the heroes that God has used. This is one of the proofs that the Bible is true and comes from the mind of God and not men. Men would hide, God reveals. God does not worry about the truth. He has a divine plan and knows how it will all work out. Though tragic about the history of Paul, this verse is also beautiful and inspiring. Praise God!
God can use anyone and Saul (Paul) is one of the many proofs. In fact, those who have sinned a lot and then have been forgiven are often the quickest to come to the Lord with great gratitude (Luke 7:36-47). Sometimes it is misunderstood that God forgiving the worst sinner among us is a not wonderful and blessed things. Yet, when the worst sinner receives forgiveness through Jesus, it displays the all-encompassing, all-inclusive power of God’s grace to us through Jesus. Because God gave grace to the prophets, the apostles and disciples of the Bible, we know He will also give it us. Do something really bad lately, repent and confess to Jesus and know, beyond all doubt, that the sin will be forgiven (1 John 1:9).
Praise our God who includes the “dirt” of the Bible’s characters. It is assurance that in the Bible we have what God intended us to have and also shows us that grace is freely given to us. Thank you Lord! Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown You, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of You but to do justly, to love mercy, And to walk humbly with Your God.