Saul’s Conversion
Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
Acts 9:1-9
The New York City Police responded to a 911 call concerning an incident in Central Park. When they arrived on the scene they discovered a helpless turtle upside down, resting on his shell with his feet pointing upward. He had been mugged. The officers gently turned him over and asked him what had happened. The turtle then told them he had been mugged by a large number of snails. When asked for other details, he remarked that it all “happened so fast that he couldn’t give any details.”
Before us this morning is the critical 9th chapter of Acts wherein Saul of Tarsus is ultimately transformed into Paul the Christian Evangelist. He simply goes from the primary persecutor of the early church to the greatest proponent of Jesus of Nazareth to be the true Messiah of God. Key for our understanding is to note that Saul must ask Jesus who He is. (Acts 9:5_“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. ) He has absolutely no understanding of who Jesus truly is. It is not that he has never heard the good news for he was there when Stephen testified before the Sanhedrin of his faith in Jesus. He has been instrumental in the deaths of many believers in Jesus and surely heard their testimonies for which they were willing to die. How and why did the transformation occur?
Acts 9:10-19 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.6I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
This tells us that Saul was changed but does not clearly define the process by which it occurs. We perceive that this transformation is by the power of the Holy Spirit but why Saul and not others who continue to deny Jesus as Lord and Savior? We all know them and they often arise in our closest friends or even in our own families.
Mark 3:20-21
Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
Clearly, Jesus’ own family thought Him insane and deranged and came to take Him home. Scan the listing of the books of the New Testament and you find that one is named ‘James’ and another ‘Jude.’ Both are thought to be brothers of Jesus who once considered Him to be mad but now declare Him to be God. Did they merely intellectually figure out who Jesus is and then come to faith? The Bible gives us no details about these 2 and perhaps others but Luke as the author of Acts allows us to be in the company of Saul for three days as his zeal is transformed from persecutor to believer.
All of God’s created humanity have eternal souls. Your soul as a creation of God cannot be destroyed. Our souls consist of mind, memory, will, conscience and affection. Have you ever been alone with your conscience and become party to tough love? Saul was as if dead for three days not eating or drinking. His world has been totally shattered. Rather than serving God, he was clearly in opposition to God. When Jesus interrogates Saul, he must ask “Who are you, Lord?” In the next 72 hours does Saul merely figure out who Jesus is and say “I believe!” No, scripture gives no hint that Saul figures out who Jesus is on his own.
In the doctrine of salvation is the critical realization that faith in Jesus comes not from analysis of who Jesus is but rather who we are in contrast. Quite simply, we are sinners who oppose God in the direction and leading of our lives. The necessity is that we not dismiss our sin as being trivial but we are crushed by it so we are no longer filled with pride. Key is
Ephesians 2:8
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
Did you hear that faith in Jesus is a gift and not the result of human effort? Because God loves us, He willingly by the Holy Spirit gives us faith to believe who Jesus is, not because we figure it out intellectually but because we are crushed by that which separates us from God. Faith is gifted because God independently loves us and provides the means for us to accept Jesus for who He truly is. This is the true mercy of God. God supplies us the faith to believe who Jesus is. Coming to grips with the critical nature of sin is at the heart of the issue.
Coming to Christ is gifted and depends upon recognizing who I am in contrast to who God is. He is Holy, the Eternal and Great I Am. I am earth and totally beholden to God to be otherwise. We don’t figure out who Jesus is on our own as the key to salvation. We do come to mourn our sin that separates us from God and then God in His mercy gifts us salvific faith.
Salvation is of God. The gift of faith by the Holy Spirit is given in response to humility and confession. Sin is the separating issue. Confrontation, realization, confession, repentance and the mourning of sin are necessary to receive the gift. God is willing to gift faith in the Savior based on His terms and not ours.
