As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting Me?” “Who are You, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” The men with Saul stood speechless, for they heard the sound of someone’s voice but saw no one! Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.
Acts 9:3-9
“And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do.’ But since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus.
Acts 22:10-11
“And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ “And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’
Acts 26:14-18
It was inescapable and inevitable. The hard-nosed rebel had come face to face with the LORD who had chosen him. We have spent time examining the strength of Saul’s opposition but he hadn’t reckoned on the fact that the Messiah he was waiting for had included Saul in His plans. Despite the way Luke describes Saul’s opposition, the outcome was inevitable. This conversion experience was not just for Saul’s benefit as an individual. God had far bigger plans for him. Notice the connection between these two statements.
‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do.’
Acts 22:10
‘get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.
Acts 26:16-18
The words recorded in chapter 26 are retrospective. This was said when Saul was facing Agrippa some time later. In the first instance he was told he would be told more after going to Straight St, in Damascus and encountering Ananias. But looking back over it all before Agrippa Saul told the king and Luke told us the purpose of the encounter on the road to Damascus:
“to appoint you a minister and a witness to Jewish people and Gentiles (to whom I am sending you) to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.”
- That is the big picture Saul was given after his encounters.
- No wonder “the hound of heaven” pursued him relentlessly.
Did you catch the symbolism of the moment? The one who would turn Jew and especially Gentile from darkness to light is momentary blind. “since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus. . . . He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.”
Take some time to ponder the significance of this. At the same time meditate on the other event taking place and the coming coalescence of these two events.
Now there was a believer in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, calling, “Ananias!” “Yes, Lord!” he replied. The Lord said, “Go over to Straight Street, to the house of Judas. When you get there, ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is praying to Me right now. I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying hands on him so he can see again.” “But Lord,” exclaimed Ananias, “I’ve heard many people talk about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! And he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest everyone who calls upon Your name.” But the Lord said, “Go, for Saul is My chosen instrument to take My message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. And I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.”
Acts 9:10-16
We will bring the two together in the next Gem but in the meantime ponder the action from both sides of the fence. Put yourself in Ananias’s shoes and think about it.
It will not do to say that you have no special call to go. . . With these facts before you and with the command of the Lord Jesus to go and preach the gospel to every creature, you need rather to ascertain whether you have a special call to stay at home.
Hudson Taylor
Thus I aspire to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named so that I would not build on another man’s foundation.
Saul of Tarsus
I am ready to burn out for God. I am ready to endure any hardship, if by any means I might save some. The longing of my heart is to make known my glorious Redeemer to those who have never heard.
William Burns
Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell, I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of Hell.
C.T. Studd
I would rather be included in the answer than to be just an observer.
Ian Vail