Before the apostle Paul became a Christian, he persecuted Christians. At that time, his name was Saul. From a young age, Saul was against Christianity. He stood guard over the garments of those who stoned Stephen to death (Acts 7:58). Acts 8:1 tells us that he was “consenting” to Stephen’s death. The Greek word translated “consenting” means that he took pleasure in Stephen’s death. Acts 8:3 tells us that Saul went after Christians. He went into their homes and dragged them out. He committed Christians to prison. He did this to men and women. The fact that he went after women shows how much he despised Christians.
We are also told he “made havoc” of the church. The Greek word translated “havoc” was used in two different ways by those living at the time. It was used to refer to disease that attacked and destroyed the body. It was also used to describe the destruction that wild animals caused to crops, animals or people. So, God had recorded that Saul was like a terrible disease that led to death, and that Saul was like a wild animal.
Later in life, after his name was changed to Paul and he was a Christian, Paul would say that he had been a horrible sinner. He was so sad for all the bad things that he had done. At the time he was making havoc of the church, he thought he was doing the will of God. This teaches us that we must study and make sure that what we are doing is truly what God wants. Study your Bible. Learn all you can about God’s will. Obey him, and if any of this is hard to understand, ask an adult to help you.
