Proclaiming Christ Crucified - Lessons from Paul's Damascus Experience

PROCLAIMING CHRIST CRUCIFIED - LESSONS FROM PAUL'S DAMASCUS EXPERIENCE 

By Ezekiel Kimosop 

TEXT: Acts 9:20-22

Saul had just met Christ on the way to Damascus. He was converted to the faith and given his mission to serve as a minister to the Gentile people. He began to preach the gospel in the Jewish synagogue in Damascus. 

Saul knew that the Jews were aware of his persecution of Christians but he was determined to proclaim Christ in their midst.

Notice that he preached that Christ is the Son of God (v.20). This statement constituted the highest blasphemy in Jewish religious circles. 

In v.21, we notice that those who heard him speak were amazed because they knew that he persecuted believers in Jerusalem and had in fact come to do the same in Damascus. They were unable to reconcile Saul's prior role as a persecutor of church and his new role as a witness of the risen Christ. 

In v. 22, we learn that despite the negative reaction by the Jews in Damascus, Saul continued to proclaim the gospel and "...increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ."

This was Paul's maiden preaching which was similar in a number of ways to Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). The audience was predominantly Jewish. Some heeded the message while others doubted, knowing Paul's difficult past.

LESSONS FROM THE PASSAGE 

God has called us to proclaim Christ in our societies of context. We should not be discouraged by the stigma of our past lives of disobedience. God has dealt with that part the moment we turned to Christ in faith. 

2 Corinthians 5:17-18 says "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation."

We should therefore not be discouraged by what people say about our past which God has cleansed. Instead, we should be faithful to consistently witness for the risen Christ wherever the Lord has placed us. We are Christ's ambassadors who proclaim His kingdom till Christ comes. 

Our message to the sinful world should affirm the deity and divinity of Christ and His mission to rescue sinners. We should never dilute the gospel message to suit cultural or religious exigencies.

God will strengthen us to serve Him and we shall rise from one stature to another as we walk in obedience and service to Christ. 

Do you proclaim Christ crucified?

Keep it Christ.

© Ezekiel Kimosop 2026