He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied.
Curiously, Jesus tells Saul that he is persecuting him when clearly it says in verse 1 Saul is persecuting the Church of the Lord's disciples who called themselves "The Way". Jesus makes no distinction between the persecution of his Church and of himself for the Church is his body.
Jesus Christ has made his will and the will of the Father known. Because there exists a holy God, there is a holy church. Because there is one God, there is one church. Because God is universal, so too is the church universal (catholic). And because the Father sent his Son to do this work through the sanctifying Spirit, so too does Christ send us to be his body in the world animated by His Holy Spirit. We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church because we believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic God.
And thus those who try and frustrate the interests of the Church try and frustrate the interests of God. For this reason they will fail, for no one frustrates the will of God. Therefore as the Church, we seek not our own interests, but the interests of God and his interest is in the salvation of mankind to the glory of His name. So here we remain until the Lord calls us home.
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