Overview:
Many heroes of the faith, including Saul, experienced seasons away from the limelight so that God could deepen their faith and prepare them for ministry. Saul traded busyness and prestige for solitude and obscurity in Arabia. Saul’s time away, described briefly in Galatians 1, transformed him. He learned to be still and know God. Join Pastor Chuck Swindoll in this humble admonition to simplify your life, seek solitude, and accept obscurity, knowing it deepens your faith.
Message Summary:
In “The Necessity of Solitude, Quietness, and Obscurity,” Chuck Swindoll explores the essential but often overlooked season of preparation in Saul’s life. After his radical conversion, Saul did not immediately launch into his global missionary journeys; instead, he was led into the desert of Arabia. Swindoll emphasizes that God often trades our busyness and prestige for seasons of “solitude and obscurity” to deepen our faith and clarify our calling. This message serves as a humble admonition to simplify our lives and embrace the quiet, hidden times of life, recognizing that it is in these moments—away from the limelight—that God performs His deepest work in the human soul.
Message Key Facts:
- The Arabian Interval: While the book of Acts moves quickly from Saul’s conversion to his preaching, Galatians 1 reveals a three-year period in Arabia where Saul was personally tutored by the risen Christ.
- The Silence of Scripture: The fact that very little is recorded about these years underscores the point of the message: “obscurity” is a valid and necessary stage of spiritual development.
- A Different Kind of Education: Having been educated under Gamaliel in legalism, Saul needed a season of solitude to unlearn his reliance on the flesh and learn the “sufficiency of grace.”
- The Escape from Damascus: The message also touches on Saul’s early preaching and his narrow escape from Damascus in a basket, illustrating that even a “chosen instrument” must face humiliation and waiting.
Message References:
- The Limelight vs. The Desert
- Why we often resist the “quiet” seasons and how God uses them to kill our ego.
- Scripture: Galatians 1:11–12 (Paul’s gospel came through revelation, not man).
- The Immediate Aftermath of Conversion
- Saul’s initial preaching in Damascus and the confusion it caused.
- Scripture: Acts 9:19b–22 (Saul began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues).
- The Journey to Arabia
- Why Saul bypassed the Apostles in Jerusalem and went straight into the desert.
- Scripture: Galatians 1:15–17 (I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood… but I went away to Arabia).
- Three Principles for the “Waiting Room”
- Swindoll’s takeaways:
- Solitude clarifies your identity.
- Quietness allows you to hear God’s voice.
- Obscurity protects you from the dangers of premature success.
- Scripture: Galatians 1:17; Psalm 46:10 (“Be still and know that I am God”).
- Swindoll’s takeaways:
