Companions Included

I begin the first of our two, three-day passes, by quoting one verse of the Bible passage which was given yesterday.

So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD. Deuteronomy 8: 3

Before we delve into our receiving, three things are pointed out to us.

Your hunger for food, determines your attitude, whether or not you really can’t wait to feast on what has been provided. One thing for sure is that the truly hungry person eats heartily, sumptuously and satisfyingly.  

Your eating shows how hungry you are for food, or whether you are simply being sociable, gracious and accommodating to the Giver of food. Truly hungry persons eat, without caring what others are thinking of them. They are just deeply thankful for food.

Your being satisfied as you eat, changes your entire outward and inward posture. You become more and more lightened and enlightened, in body, mind and spirit. 

With these facts, we feed on this Spiritual manna.

And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Acts 9: 7 

On Saul’s mission journey to Damascus, nothing is recorded of him having companions. In his preparation for travelling, no mention is made of having people being prepared also, to travel with him. Even when he mounted his horse, leaving Jerusalem, and journeyed on the way to Damascus, nothing is written about other people travelling with him. We are introduced to Saul’s travelling companions, after Jesus has His time with Saul. It is after the sudden bright light from heaven, shone on Saul, after he fell to the ground, and heard Jesus speaking to him, that we are introduced to this Pharisee’s companions. 

After the dramatic, miraculous works take place with Saul, he is told by Jesus, who is Spirit, to, Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do. Acts 9: 6b. It is at this point that we hear of men travelling with Saul. There is much to learn from Saul’s companions and how they were made a part of Saul’s conversion experience. Note, it was not their personal divine experience, but they were made to divinely share in it.

It is no different from what we are told of John’s experience with Jesus, at Jesus’ baptism. God the Father had come down to God the Son, in the form of a dove, God the Holy Spirit. This was all belonging to Jesus, if you like, all personally for Him, yet, in God’s generous graciousness and unmerited grace, He allowed John to partake from such an extraordinary, deeply unique supernatural happening. Please be very aware that this is all intimately personal between Jesus and His heavenly Father, yet John is able to say, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. John 1: 32b. The one who was with Jesus at the time, Jesus’ companion, if you will, received supernatural sight to see the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove.

Do you see it all? Do you hear it all? Jesus’ conversion was for Saul. Jesus’ coming on that Damascus road was for Saul, but He never shut out Saul’s companions. Never take anything Jesus does, lightly. Never see His moves as ordinary or mundane.

Tomorrow we receive the supernatural, the extraordinariness of it all.