"De-mask Us"

So you all know that the concept of intimacy is a big deal for me, right? Not only does God desire intimacy with His people, but He has also designed us to live in intimate relationship with one another—to allow ourselves to be known by others and to get to know, deeply, our fellow man—to be transparent and vulnerable. Well, yesterday one of the pastors at my church said that when Paul was on the way to Damascus to persecute believers, the experience he had was the kind that God uses to “de-mask us”. I thought that was clever.

God knocked Paul (Saul, at that time) down, blinded him, and set him on a journey whereby the Lord would strip away all that Paul had been so proud of about himself. He would strip away Paul’s religious mask and replace it with a relationship with the Lord that allowed Paul to develop true intimacy with the Lord and transparency before those he ministered to. Paul was clear that according to the religious standards at the time, he had plenty to boast about, but that once he had a true encounter with the living God, he actually delighted “in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.” Because when Paul was weak, he was able to be truly strong (not a strength that comes from the standards of man) in the Lord.

The Lord blinded Paul, ministered to him for three days, had Ananias come and pray over him to receive sight, and then sent Paul on his way to be baptized and to start preaching. Paul is a patriarch of our faith but started out persecuting believers. That’s incredible.

Such amazing things can happen when we will allow God to strip away those things we are prideful about in our flesh, and take on a humble and intimate relationship with Him!