Ron Hutchcraft Ministries - Frozen in Time - #3868

Wednesday, November 7, 2001

Class reunions are always interesting experiences, largely because people change! My classmates remember me at 210 pounds, for example. They remember fat boy--and they've been surprised to find about 50 pounds less of me. Of course, not all changes are positive. You may see the once-athletic hunk, or the beautiful bombshell gone to seed, or that great head of hair now just a great head. Then there are those people who you once thought were 'uncool' who have really classed up their act, or the one who was an academic 'goof-off' who is now a big success. Fact is, people change. And if we're not careful, we'll still be thinking of them as they were, not as they are.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "Frozen In Time."

Now it wasn't quite a class reunion for Saul of Tarsus, the violent persecutor of the early Christians. But there were some people who knew what he was like who were in for a major surprise. Our word for today from the Word of God begins with Acts 9:26 . Now, on his way to arrest more Christians, Saul has encountered the living Christ on the road, and he's surrendered his life to the very one he had so violently opposed. Now the Christians back in Jerusalem hear that Saul is back in town--and they're not very excited about have the old "hit man" around.

Here's what it says, "When Saul came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was really a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus." You can just hear the Jerusalem disciples saying in unison, "Saul?" Here's the happy ending, "So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord."

Now the surprise and struggle of the original Christians is understandable. They had Saul categorized based on their past experiences with him in much the same way we all categorize people. But God had changed Saul! And they had to update their perception of him - even their relationship with him.

Now we should all be able to see a little of ourselves in this picture: our tendency to freeze people in time assuming that they are what they were. "We sized him up a long time ago; he's lazy or deceitful or irresponsible." We express our judgments in words like, "You can't trust him" or "She uses people" or "He's got a real problem." The human mind categorizes a person and then closes the door.

But he or she may very well be changing, and we can't see it - or we won't see it. Even in families, we tend to see the weaknesses and shortcomings in our mate, or our child, or our parent. But many times we can't--or won't--see the changes they're trying to make, the good things they're trying to do...the growth. Sometimes we discourage the very changes we want in them by expecting the worst, only noticing the worst.

Maybe that person used to do, let's say, nine out of ten things wrong in a given area; now it's five out of ten. But we tend to see only the bad five because we've frozen them in time and we won't let them change or grow. And we are underestimating the life-changing power of the grace of God. God is changing His children all the time--and we have to allow for His work, give them a chance to change, encourage the changes, however small they may be.

The early Christians gave Saul a chance, and he grew into the mighty Apostle Paul. Let's expect the best of each other, not because we trust each other so much, but because we trust the transforming power of our Father's love. Stay up-to-date on what God is doing in the lives of the people near you--and don't leave them frozen in time.