Today’s first reading is simply about the events surrounding the conversion of St. Paul, how he was completely transformed, from the Christian hunting Saul into eventually the Apostle to the Gentiles, Paul. He even was martyred in Rome together with St. Peter the Apostle during the time of the Emperor Nero. This was the ultimate fulfillment of the Lord’s message to Paul, that he would suffer a lot for the Lord’s sake.

The Gospel today is about the Lord’s mission to His disciples, who was tasked with spreading the Word of God and the Good News to all mankind, to all parts of the world. No longer is salvation and hope limited just to the Jewish people, since through the new covenant of Christ, the old covenant of God with Abraham and the people of Israel is made more perfect, now that all the descendants of Adam can take part in the new covenant made by Christ, sealed by His Precious Blood poured from the cross at Calvary.

St. Paul is the main tool through which the Lord brought forth His Word to the people of the world, that he was given the title Apostle to the Gentiles, as evident from his numerous letters, which now become what we know as the Letters of St. Paul to the Corinthians, Romans, Ephesians, and many others, always exhorting the faithful in the different parts of the world, to remain faithful and true to the commandments of God and the new covenant of Christ.

Saul was once a cold-blooded Christian killer and prosecutor, if one would say so. He participated in the death of St. Stephen, the proto or first Martyr, and also captured and tortured many early Christians. But yet, God chose him out of all people, amongst so many, to be His Apostle to the non-Jewish people in particular. One can easily notice the wonder that the Lord has made, turning someone who was once His greatest prosecutor and enemy, into the very person that defended Him with his life and zeal.

St. Paul himself became the testament and the fulfillment of the Lord’s promise to His disciples in the Gospel today, together with the other Apostles. The Apostles cast out demons, as St. Paul did, and speak different tongues, inspired by the Holy Spirit that came at Pentecost, and thousands were baptised in the name of the Lord, and the Church was born. St. Paul picked up snake during his sojourn in Malta before reaching Rome near the end of his life, and was bitten, but was not harmed by the snake’s poisons. There are many instances of the healing of the sick and the infirm throughout the Acts of the Apostles, where the Apostles, especially Paul, whose ministry is the backbone of the later Acts of the Apostles, went around the cities of the Eastern Mediterranean in particular, to bring both the Good News, and also to bring healing to those who are sick, both physically and spiritually.

Many of us today, are like Saul, and although we love God as Saul was, obedient to the Law and the old covenant of God, we are afraid to take the extra step, to dedicate ourselves further and truly to God, to be like Paul was, the bringer of God’s word and covenant to the people of the world. We too, still in our daily lives, through the little things that we do in our lives, inflict pain and suffering to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We are therefore no better than Saul was, but just as Saul was chosen and transformed, we too can be transformed into the new ‘Paul’, to fully commit ourselves to the cause of Christ. This is also to show that, no sinner is unworthy before God, as even the greatest sinner, when they turn their hearts to the Lord, can become great saints, just as St. Augustine was. Once a great sinner in his youth, through his mother, St. Monica, he was redeemed and became a great saint, saving thousands and millions, and many more souls through his ministry, and through his great writings, which we still read until today.

Let us therefore follow in the footsteps of St. Paul and the Apostles, to bring forth the Word of the Lord, and His New Covenant with all mankind, to all the mankind. That all mankind can be saved through the faith in Christ, which is made possible by our tireless and whole dedication of ourselves to Christ, becoming the apostles of this era, in the footsteps of the Apostles. Do not fear, for the Lord will provide, and He will guard you against the evils in this world, who are against God and His people. Speak for the Lord, and spread His love to all man.

St. Paul the Apostle, pray for us. Help us to become more like you in your zealous and humble service in God’s Name. That we can follow in your footsteps to bring God to all the people of this world, to all the Gentiles and the Jews alike. Amen.