Pray the Word with David Platt is a resource from Radical.net.

Acts chapter 26, verses 14 and 15.

And when we had all fallen to the ground,

I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language,

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

It is hard for you to kick against the goads. And I said, who are you, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. There's so much here. This is Paul recounting when Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus. But what I want to camp out on is this phrase

that Jesus says to Paul or Saul in that moment,

why are you persecuting me?

It is hard for you to kick against the goads.

And basically that's a phrase that describes how Paul was working against

Jesus and not just against Jesus, but against Jesus's good work in his life and in others' lives.

In other words, Paul was resisting the good work that God wanted to do in his

life. And as I read that phrase, I just think about ways that I have kicked against the goads,

that I have worked against good work that God wants to do in my life, how I've been

resistant, how I've been rebellious, how I have been stubborn and not doing what God is calling

me to do. And I just want to ask you the question today. Is there any way right now

that you are resisting God's good work in your life? You're pushing back. And this could be just by

sinning. This could be by disobeying him. Are there any areas? Let's just take

inventory of our lives. Is there any area where you or I are walking in disobedience to God,

where we're doing what God has said not to do? Or are there any areas where we're not doing what God has said to do? So sins of

commission, sins of omission, but then also think through as we think about different

circumstances in our lives that we trust, we know, Romans 8, God promises to work together for our good are we pushing

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