vince everyone he met that Jesus is the Savior long promised by God. In fact, he claimed that Jesus is the Son of God, which many Jews believed was going too far! Paul had once been a model Jew—a Pharisee who knew the Jewish laws and Scriptures better than most. Only a few years earlier, in fact, he had been just like the men of Lystra who today wanted him dead. With great zeal, he had hunted down Jews who had become Christians. Then one day, on the road to Damascus, he was blinded by a dazzling light. He fell to the ground and heard a voice asking him: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Right away, Paul had understood it was Jesus speaking to him. After three days without eating or drinking, he regained his sight and asked to be baptized. Reborn in Christ, he changed his name to Paul. From that day on, he devoted his whole life and all his strength to Jesus. He began preaching the Gospel (the Good News about Jesus) in Antioch, the city inwhichChrist’s followerswere first referred to as Christians. From there, he set sail with Barnabas for the island of Cyprus, where he demonstrated the power of Godby confronting a sorcerer. Trouble began when Paul arrived in the region of Pisidia. The many conversions he inspired as he traveled from city to city aroused suspicion and jealousy—until that fateful day when he was stoned in Lystra and left for dead. But Paul was not dead. He stood up before the eyes of his companions and set off again. He wasn’t about to stop! He returned to the cities he had visited before to strengthen the new faith of the Christians there. Then he traveled to new places, where storms, shipwrecks, and arrests awaited him. Never surewhere his journeysmight take him, he let the Holy Spirit guide him. Paul sailedwithSilas toGreece, where he brought the Good News to the cities of Philippi, Thessalonica, Athens, and Corinth. In Philippi, the two men were thrown into prison. But did that stop them? No! The guard heard them singing songs of praise in their cell. He could hardly believe his ears. During the night, an earthquake shattered the prison walls and broke the chains. Paul and Silas were free again! Shaken and filledwith faith, the guardasked themto baptize him and his whole household. In Athens, Paul gave a great speech before the Areopagus, the assembly of 7
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