Praying for the road to Damascus

Missiles, bombs, and soldiers are traveling the road to Damascus right now. 

I’m praying that Jesus appears, once again, on that road to call people to a miraculous understanding of who he is. 

Jesus spoke to Saul of Tarsus on that road, and Saul was forever changed. 

Might Jesus do that again today? 

We can and should ask.

The city of Damascus

Damascus is, according to some, the oldest capital in the world. People may have lived in this area since 9000 BC, but, according to early Egyptian records, it became a significant city around 1350 BC. 

It was a perfect location for an ancient city because the land was situated on a high plain that provided a sweeping view in all directions. There was water which provided fertile land for farming. Ancient records report that Abraham settled there for a time before going to the land of Canaan.

Today the city of Damascus is the capital of Syria and considered the fourth holiest city in Islam. The history of the city would make it one of the most interesting tourist destinations in the world, except for the fact that it has been a city of unrest and civil war. Guinness World Records lists Damascus as the “least livable” city because of its instability, poor education, and lack of opportunity. The culture, politics, and infrastructure can’t support tourism, and extreme poverty is commonplace.

Now, war has been added to the long list of troubles this ancient city faces. The soldiers of Israel are slowly working their way through the buildings and streets of Damascus, clearing out people who want to do their nation permanent harm.

The sons of Abraham

Before Abraham’s son with Sarah’s handmaiden was born, an angel of the Lord spoke to Hagar, telling her what kind of man her son Ishmael would become. The angel said, “He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen” (Genesis 16:12 NIV). Centuries of history illustrate the truth of the angel’s proclamation. 

Ishmael’s descendants did grow to become “a nation of people great in numbers” who continue to exist as “a hand against everyone else, and everyone’s hand against them.” The evening news tonight will likely display the ever-present reality of the ancient, biblical truth.

Damascus is in modern-day Syria, just outside of the territories of Israel and Iraq. The land has always been strategic and has always been land that any of Abraham’s descendants wished to control. The fighting in Damascus today is intense. Lives have been lost, and there is no ceasefire on the horizon. Some of those who were taken hostage last October are probably being held in Damascus today.

The ancient road to Damascus

After Stephen was stoned, the book of Acts reports, “There arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles” (Acts 8:1). One of the last things Jesus told his disciples was they would be his disciples, taking his gospel to “Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8 KJV). 

Chapters and verses were not added to the Bible until 1551, about fifteen hundred years after the book of Acts was written. It is interesting Bible trivia to note that Jesus’ words in Acts 1:8 were fulfilled by the words of Acts 8:1.

Christians likely consider the road to Damascus as the place where Jesus spoke to Saul of Tarsus saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4). When we want to pray for the people walking that road right now, we should pray with Saul’s miracle in mind.

Saul of Tarsus was one of the most significant terrorists in Scripture. He was going to Damascus to seek out the Christians who’d fled there. Saul had been arresting, even killing, Christians since the stoning of Stephen. He thought he was defending his faith, but he was persecuting the faithful. When Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, his entire life changed. Saul of Tarsus became the apostle Paul, who did more for the spread of the gospel than probably anyone in history. 

Which terrorists might meet Jesus today if we prayed for that? 

Which soldiers would have their lives completely changed if they heard the voice of Jesus speak to them from heaven?

Jesus still wants to dramatically change lives on both sides of the conflict. Do we pray for everyone involved with the faith found in the book of Acts? Do we believe like Paul taught, that the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16)? 

Pray as you watch and read the news

Abraham’s children continue to fight one another, convinced they are serving their faith and their future. Christians are called by the One we serve to “share the gospel” with everyone. Those who fight outside the Christian faith fight for a faith that will fail them.

The gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, is the faith that will sustain them now and one day sustain them eternally.

The news we watch and read is a call to prayer. Abraham’s children, the descendants of Isaac and the descendants of Ishmael, have a Father in heaven who sent his Son to die for their sins. Maybe today, on the road to Damascus, Jesus will once again call to one of them from heaven saying, “Why are you persecuting me?” 

Jesus said, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). The Christian position in this war is to be the hands, feet, and heart of Christ for the lost, and the lost exist on all sides of the conflict.

Will you actively pray, led by the Holy Spirit and the truth of God’s word? 

The sons of Abraham will continue to fight until Jesus returns. Through prayer, we can fight for those who are lost. Some are hiding in Damascus, hoping to kill, and others are held captive by their enemies. They are also marching along the same land that Saul of Tarsus marched in the first century. Damascus was a key city then and is still a key city today. 

We need to pray for God to do miracles and make himself and his will known to those who have not met his Son.

Please, Jesus, call out to them on the road. Appear to them in their dreams. 

Send angels of protection to the innocent and comfort all the children. 

May many who are lost repent and come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior. 

May those who are saved live the rest of their lives as your disciples, sharing their salvation with others. 

May Paul’s life remind Christians to pray under the power and authority of their Lord and Savior, who can accomplish far more than we can even ask or imagine. 

In your name, Jesus, and for your glory, we pray. Amen.

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For more on the war in Israel, please visit the Denison Forum Israel resources page for more articles, podcasts, and other resources.

Bethlehem today

Mary and Joseph probably traveled about a week to reach Bethlehem in time for the census. Mary, in her ninth month of pregnancy, would have needed to rest often while making the ninety-mile journey. Today, a war is raging about forty-five miles from the small city of Bethlehem. 

It seems that this year, once again, Bethlehem will be known as having no rooms in their city for the pilgrims to stay. 

How Bethlehem is different today

When Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem, it would have been a city that existed largely because of the shepherds. Located six miles from Jerusalem, it was a favorite stop for the Jewish pilgrims on their way to the temple. I found an interesting article that said even today, “The economy of Bethlehem is based on pilgrimages and tourism,” but “90% of the workforce is not receiving salaries” during these tense days of war. 

I’ve been to Bethlehem several times. We took tour groups to the city to see the church believed to have been built over the cave system that likely would have been used to “stable” the animals, therefore the likely birthplace of Jesus. 

The streets of the city are lined with stores selling all kinds of souvenirs and products from the Holy Land. We always took our group to a favorite store that sold hand-carved nativity sets and other products made out of native olive wood. My husband, Jim, is good friends with the man whose family owns that store as well as a hotel and restaurant in the city. 

Normally at this time of the year, the streets of Bethlehem and the stores are extremely crowded with pilgrims from all around the world. This Christmas, the hotels are housing people who have fled from the war zone and their homes. This year the stores are closed and sit quietly abandoned. 

The city is under Palestinian control, although some of the residents are Israeli. The entrance to the city has always been gated and guarded by Palestinian soldiers who were armed and ready for an attack. The attack occurred about fifty miles outside of Bethlehem and was organized by a faction of their own people.  

Bethlehem had just begun to recover from the shutdown of Christmas 2020, and it cannot be known how long this current war will continue. We can’t know what Bethlehem will look like next Christmas.

A baby named Hope 

The article talked about a hospital located about 1,500 steps from the church which exists to mark the birthplace of Christ, describing it as “the premier maternity hospital and neonatal critical care center in the Bethlehem region of the West Bank.” 

When war broke out, the roads were blockaded, making it difficult for the hospital to receive necessary supplies. A woman named Nadeem was in her ninth month, expecting her third child. She noticed she had not felt the baby move for a while, but she had been afraid to mention it because she didn’t want a large hospital bill during these difficult times. She finally mentioned her concerns to her husband, and he took her to the hospital. 

Nadeem was quickly admitted in order to receive an emergency C-section. When her daughter was delivered, she was gray and unresponsive. The team of doctors continued to work on her until suddenly a small cry filled the room. The baby was placed in the NICU, and Nadeem couldn’t stop thanking the staff. They had gathered to pray for her baby, and Nadeem credited her daughter’s life to their prayers. 

The baby girl was named Amal, which means “hope” in Arabic. One of the doctors who delivered Amal said, “The birth of her baby brought her hope in this time of terrible war and the loss of so many lives. There is a new baby in Bethlehem and it gives her hope that this will pass.” 

The hope of Bethlehem

Bethlehem is a small picture of the conflict that seems to exist across the entire world today. The citizens are very different people who, by necessity, need to learn to coexist peacefully with one another. It is a picture of why Jesus chose to step out of heaven to be born in a Bethlehem stable. 

Paul was writing his letter of theology to Rome. He quoted the prophet Isaiah who had prophesied seven hundred years before the first coming of Christ. Paul reminded the church in Rome and reminds us today of the reason Jesus was born. Romans 15:12 says, “The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope.” 

I wonder, as Nadeem was listening for the cry of her baby and listening to the prayers being lifted to God by the hospital staff around her, if she knew the One who is our hope, the babe of Bethlehem. I wonder if she named her baby Amal because she understood the great need of her people is the hope Jesus was born to give all people. 

Pray for the people of the Holy Land to find their hope 

Jesus came to save the people who are fighting on both sides of this war. Paul said the gospel is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (Romans 1:16–17).  

We need to pray for the people of Bethlehem to seek God’s righteousness. We need to pray for all the lost. God gave his Son so that all could be saved. The hope of the world is Jesus. It always has been and that won’t change until the next time Jesus comes. That day our hope in heaven will be fulfilled in Christ. 

Paul wrote a prayer of blessing to the church in Rome that would be his prayer for the world today: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope” (Romans 15:13). 

As we pray for our Christmas season, let’s pray for a small baby in Bethlehem named Amal and all that surrounds her tiny, fragile life. How would the God of hope want us to pray for everyone involved in this war? 

God is able to redeem the worst of times for his purpose, for his glory. Our world needs to know the Savior. As Christians, we are called to share the gospel, the good news of Christ.  

To whom will you offer the hope of Christmas this week? 

“To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

P.S. If you want to know more about all that is happening in Israel, I encourage you to download my husband’s recent ebook for free, The War In Israel: What You Need to Know about This Crisis of Global Significance.