For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:3–5 ESV)
It is the most difficult and most ridiculous thing to believe: a person died and came back to life. Every teaching hangs on the proclamation that Jesus rose from the dead. Saul knew this. In Acts 8:1 we see that Saul approved of Stephen’s execution and ignites a persecution against Christians for what they were teaching. Saul is ravaging the church and dragging men and women out of their homes and putting them into prison (8:3). In Acts 9:1 we see that Saul is not done. He is breathing out threats of murder against the disciples of the Lord. He wants them dead because these followers are saying that Jesus rose from the dead and is the savior of the world. So he asks for permission from the synagogues in Damascus to find any Christians and bring them as prisoners back to Jerusalem. Saul is not content with eradicating Christians from Jerusalem. He leaves Jerusalem and is traveling to other countries and regions looking for Christians to take back to Jerusalem as prisoners…
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