Jesus turned murderous Saul’s life around in a moment
Daily Scripture
Acts 9:1-9, 20-22
1 Meanwhile, Saul was still spewing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest, 2 seeking letters to the synagogues in Damascus. If he found persons who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, these letters would authorize him to take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 During the journey, as he approached Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven encircled him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice asking him, “Saul, Saul, why are you harassing me?”
5 Saul asked, “Who are you, Lord?”
“I am Jesus, whom you are harassing,” came the reply. 6 “Now get up and enter the city. You will be told what you must do.”
7 Those traveling with him stood there speechless; they heard the voice but saw no one. 8 After they picked Saul up from the ground, he opened his eyes but he couldn’t see. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind and neither ate nor drank anything.
20 Right away, he began to preach about Jesus in the synagogues. “He is God’s Son,” he declared.
21 Everyone who heard him was baffled. They questioned each other, “Isn’t he the one who was wreaking havoc among those in Jerusalem who called on this name? Hadn’t he come here to take those same people as prisoners to the chief priests?”
22 But Saul grew stronger and stronger. He confused the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
An energetic, brilliant young Pharisee in Jerusalem named Saul hated the new Jesus faith. Eager to stamp out any hint that Jesus was the promised Messiah, he went as far away as Damascus in Syria. Then, in one stunning moment, the risen Christ himself changed everything. Acts told that pivotal story three times (cf. Acts 22:1-16 and Acts 26:12-20 as well as today’s passage). As this week’s worship Scripture reading noted, in another crucial moment a Christian named Ananias bravely went to the man who’d come to town to arrest and maybe kill him, restored his sight, and likely baptized him (cf. Acts 9:10-19). Acts said Saul began preaching about Jesus “right away,” and soon shifted to using his Roman name, Paul (cf. Acts 13:9) to better reach Gentile hearers. He was now passionate and driven to share persuasively that Jesus was, in fact, the long-awaited Messiah.
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Saul set out for Damascus intending to arrest “persons who belonged to the Way” (i.e. believers in Jesus). Yet as the light shone around him, Jesus’ voice asked, “Why are you harassing ME?” As a Christ-follower, have you realized that Jesus identifies himself that closely with you—that anything that hurts or harasses you also hurts Jesus? How can it give you strength each day to trust that Jesus faces all life’s joys and sorrows right along with you (cf. Hebrews 2:14-18)? Saul met Jesus in a dramatic, forceful way (perhaps because he had resisted many chances to respond to the message delivered in other ways, as Acts 26:14 hints). How did you meet Jesus? Was it a one-time moment, or were there multiple movements toward (and maybe away from) Jesus as Lord of your life? What does it tell you about “the wideness in God’s mercy” that God seems to meet each person in a way that fits their life and personality?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, when you met Saul and then worked through Ananias to open his eyes and his heart, he went on to change millions of lives by his preaching and writing. Give me a listening heart open to meet you as you reach out to my heart. Amen.
GPS Insights
Nick Kaufmann Mamisashvili
Nick Kaufmann Mamisashvili serves as Connection & Care Pastor at Resurrection's Downtown location.
