Light shone around Paul, and he fell to the ground.

Acts 9:3-4

Click for a description of the mark of the beast.
Click for a description of the image of the beast.

“As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Acts 9:3-4

Saul [Paul] was near Damascus when he saw the Light and heard the voice of the Lord, Jesus…after traveling all that distance from Jerusalem…about 140 miles.

Saul had papers of authorization from the high priest in Jerusalem to arrest the Christians attending the Damascus synagogues. When he came near Damascus, a light suddenly shone around him from Heaven. The Light was our Lord Jesus Christ. Saul fell to the ground and Jesus asked him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Jesus knew him by name, and He knows each one of us by name. In fact, the names of His followers are in His Book of life. He also has a book of judgment with all the other names written in it. “…those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Daniel 12:2

In today’s culture, everyone who lives for the beast that gives them what to speak, do, think, and feel is persecuting Jesus Christ. They would have to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit to hear the voice of the Lord speaking and asking them, “Why are you persecuting Me?” Most have their own conscience ruined by following the commands of the beast that fights against the presence of the Holy Spirit within the conscience,“…having their own conscience seared with a hot iron…” 1 Timothy 4:2 They are not able to fall at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ. Even then, there are still some, like Saul, who are persecuting Christians but still sensitive to the goodness of the Holy Spirit. With Paul [who is Saul after his conversion], these people “…strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.” Act s24:16 We fall at the feet of our Lord Jesus Christ.

From all the goodness within his conscience, Saul [Paul] believed he was doing God a service by trying to eradicate the Way of Jesus Christ. However, when the Holy Spirit walked into the door of his conscience, He heard the voice of Jesus, and knew he needed to quit persecuting the innocent and pure of heart. There are some with a hardened conscience, but because they reject the truth of Christ, there no longer remains the forgiveness of sin, “For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins…” Hebrews 10:26

As vehement as Saul was against the way of Jesus Christ, he was someone who heard the voice of the Lord and became one of His sheep. That is how the born-again experience works, that is the process of sanctification, and our walk in Holiness, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; neither will anyone snatch them out of My hand.” John 10:27-28

Paul was willing to fall to the ground, to give up up His entitlements as a Roman citizen [Acts 22:15-19], to give up his leadership role as a Pharisee [Philippians 3:5], and to live as and among the lowest class of people of that day….Christians. As followers of our Lord Jesus, we must be willing to “fall to ground”, to come to the Cross and follow Him, Jesus says to us all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross ^[b]daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23. We are not wanted by today’s atheistic culture and are not a priority within their social networks. To them we are people to be put “out-of-sight and out-of-mind because they serve the beast that gives them what to do, speak, think, and feel, but we live for the Christ, Jesus, in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Our Lord Jesus says, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:11-12

“And [Saul] said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” Acts 9:5

The Way of Christ was growing so rapidly that it was hard for Saul to come against Christians with any success at all. When we realize who Jesus Christ is, we understand what He means when He says to this atheistic world, “It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” Although this world’s population follows the beast and we Christians are the minority, it is very difficult for the global culture to kick against Jesus Christ. For example, global warming is in the world which the global government will not be able to overcome, Global warming is the Fourth Plague of Revelations 16:8-9.

It is hard for this global culture to kick against the events of the Seven Trumpets of Revelations 8, 9, and 11. It’s hard for them to kick against the events of the Seven Plagues of Acts 16. “…they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.” Revelation 16:8-9

“So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” Acts 9:6

When Saul saw the Light shining all around him and heard the voice of our Lord Jesus asking him by name, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” he trembled and was astonished. When the Holy Spirit enters into our conscience, the experience we have is shame, horror, and disgrace at what our life in this world has become. We learn what the fear of the Lord is, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10

Likewise, when we see the fulfillment of prophecy happening in this world since 194o’s, this should cause us to be astonished and to tremble. The voice of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, is speaking to us. He wants us to know in the Spirit that He really is the Christ and Son of God. Click here to see a list of fulfilled prophecies since 1945.

Everyone should be asking what Saul asked, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Obedience to the word of God is all we need to do, and He wants us to arise in His Spirit, to be born-again, and go into the presence of the Holy Spirit. The voice of the Holy Spirit will direct us what to do, which is all centered on belief in God our Creator, acknowledging Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and embrace the presence of the Holy Spirit. “…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ” Romans 10:9

---

“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11