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Then the devotional contact today. Today' s abbreviated Bible reading begins in verse

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four of facts, chapter twenty-
six. The apostle Paul says my life,

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for from my youth all Jews know
it, who also know that I

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am from the beginning. If you
want to testify, I conformed to the

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most rigorous sect of our religion.
I lived in Pharisee and now for the

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hope of God' s promise to
our parents. I am called to Judgment,

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a promise whose fulfillment they hope will
reach our twelve tribes, constantly serving

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God day and night. For this
hope, O King Agrippa, I am

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accused by the Jews. What an
incredible thing to judge between you that God

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raises the dead. I had certainly
believed in my duty to do many things

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against the name of Jesus of Nascis, which I also did in Jerusalem.

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I imprisoned many of the saints and
when they were killed, I gave my

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vow and often punished them in all
the synagogues, forced them to blaspheme and

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greatly enraged against them I persecuted them
even in the foreign cities. Busy in

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this I went to Damascus with powers
and in commission of the chief priests.

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When at noon, O king,
I went by the way, and saw

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a light from heaven exceeding the brightness
of the sun, which surrounded me and

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those who went with me, and
having fallen all of us to the ground,

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did I hear a voice speaking to
me and saying in the Hebrew tongue

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Saul? Saulo, why are you
chasing me? It' s a tough

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thing to kick your ass against the
stinger. I then said who you are,

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Lord and Lord said I am Jesus, whom you persist, but stand

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up and stand on your feet,
for for this I have appeared to You

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to make you a minister and witness
of the things you have seen and of

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those in which I will appear to
You, freeing You from your people and

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from the Gentiles whom I now send
you to open their eyes, that they

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may turn from darkness to light and
from the power of satan to God,

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that they may receive by faith which
is in Me the forgiveness of sins and

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inheritance among the Sanctified, for which, O King Agrippa, I was not

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rebellious to the heavenly vision, but
first announced to those who are in Damascus

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and Jerusalem and throughout the land of
Judea, and to those Gentiles who repent

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and convert to God by doing works
worthy of repentance. Meet someone whose mind

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is closed to the Gospel. This
describes many people and often discourages us to

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whom, despite our prayers for them, they cannot see their need for the

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Savior. The way people react to
the Gospel varies. There are those who

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have faith quickly, while others resist. Those who reject Christ can manifest indifference

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to Cortes or will be antagonistic towards
those who speak of him. Sometimes we

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wonder if God' s message of
salvation can penetrate into those whose minds are

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closed. The answer is yes and
the proof is in facts from nine verses

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one to eighteen. The account of
Saul’ s conversion from Tarsus later,

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known as the apostle Paul. Saul
was a devout Pharisee who professed faith in

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God, Father, but rejected Lord
Jesus as God the Son with hatred for

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all who followed the Messiah. Saul
persecuted the believers and forced them to retract

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their faith in Christ. But Saul
could not rival the omnipotent God. The

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Holy Spirit convinced this violent man of
his sin, gave him an awareness of

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his own need for salvation and revealed
to him that Christ was the only savior.

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Then Saul' s spiritually blind eyes
were opened. Today the Holy Spirit

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continues to work to place men and
women under the conviction of sin. He

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uses the life and testimonies of believers
to reveal the truth about the Savior to

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those who have a closed mind and
a hard heart. If you are trying

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to evangelize someone like this, do
not be discouraged and keep praying for the

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salvation of that person, then rest
in the power of God to save