Acts 9:1-9

                                                                         Acts 9:1-9

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.  

 

Saul, who had approved of and assisted in the stoning of Stephen must have been impacted by what he heard and witnessed in Stephen’s message and the way he died.  However, he was convinced that he was right, and Stephen was wrong.  In an effort to convince himself of this, it seems like he decides to double down on what he was doing.  Jesus has a completely different plan and is about to take some drastic steps change this man’s life forever.

 

SAUL EXPANDS PERSECUTION: Sometimes when our conscience is bothering us, we decide to double down and go deeper.  It seems almost impossible for Saul to have heard Stephen’s message in Acts 7 and have been unaffected as he watched him die.  His only option was to either repent and seek forgiveness or dive deeper into his own deception.  He chose the latter.  He went on a mission to purify the synagogue in Damascus.  Believers in Christ would have naturally continued to go to the synagogue to hear the Scriptures.  However, they would now be able to associate the promises of God’s Word with Jesus as Messiah.  The danger was that they would naturally share with others the truth about Jesus.  Saul and the Jewish leaders decided that their only choice was to imprison those who followed Christ.  As the Gospel spread from Jerusalem to other parts of the world, so persecution would spread as well. 

 

JESUS EXPOSES HIMSELF: There are times where God interrupts the activities of man and brings about events that change the course of history.  This is one of those occasions.  Jesus does not appear in a vision like this to everyone.  In this case He chose to reveal Himself to Saul in a way that was unmistakable.  God knew his heart and what was required to reach him.  The only way that his hardened heart would be open to considering the Jesus was the Messiah was through this kind of experience.  The Lord also knew that Saul’s zeal for persecution could be turned into a zeal for the Gospel.  Jesus wants Saul to know who He is because of His love for Saul and because Jesus knew Saul would be faithful to tell others about Him.  Jesus has called all of us into His family for these same reasons.  He loves us and He wants us to share His love with others.

 

SAUL EXPERIENCES BLINDNESS: When Saul’s spiritual eyes were opened for the first time to be able to see Jesus, his physical were closed.  Saul became blind from the light and his encounter with the Lord.  The others who were with Paul knew that something had happened, but they could not hear the voice of Jesus and Saul did.  This powerful man was now broken and needed to be led by his companions into the city.  In order for the Lord to be able to save us, He must convince us that we are lost.  Saul was broken before the Lord in every imaginable way.  We cannot bring anything into our relationship with Jesus.  He provides everything for us, and we must only trust Him.  Pride and self-sufficiency have no place at the foot of the cross.

 

APPLICATION: When convicted of sin, don’t resist the Spirit’s urging to repent and confess.  Don’t double down and go deeper into sin to cover the first sin.  Recognize Jesus for who He is and be faithful to tell others who He is.  Trust in His powerful and sovereign control over the events of our lives.  Know that we are hopeless and helpless without Him.  Be humble before the Lord and grateful for His sacrifice on our behalf.  He is the one who has opened our eyes to spiritual truth do not allow pride to creep into our hearts.

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