230 – Conversion of Saul
Acts 9:1-31
Saul was on a campaign to hunt down and kill those who followed Jesus. He was given authority from the high priest to go to Damascus and bring believers back to Jerusalem.
As he and his men approached Damascus, suddenly a bright light shone around them, and Saul fell to the ground. He heard a voice saying, “Saul! Saul! Why are you fighting against me?”
“Who are you Lord?”
“I’m Jesus, the one you’re persecuting. It’s hard to fight against my will for your life.”
Those with Saul didn’t know what was going on. They could hear the sound of a voice, but they couldn’t see anyone.
Saul trembled. “Lord, what do you want me to do?”
“Go into the city and you’ll be told what to do.”
When Saul got up, he realized he was blind. Others led him into the city. He waited for three days, and refused to eat or drink anything.
The Lord spoke to a disciple in Damascus. “Ananias, go to a house on the street called Straight, and ask for Saul of Tarsus. Place your hands on him and he’ll regain his sight.”
Ananias was concerned. “Lord, everyone knows about this violent man. He’s here to imprison anyone who calls on your name.”
The Lord said, “He is a chosen servant of mine. He’ll spread the Gospel to Jews, Gentiles, and kings. He’ll suffer greatly for me.”
Ananias found him and said, “Brother Saul, Jesus appeared to you on the road, and then he told me to come to you.” Ananias placed his hands on Saul’s head. “Regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit!”
Immediately Saul could see. With joy, he was baptized and then ate some food. Saul spent several days with the believers in Damascus, and then started preaching that Jesus was the Son of God. People were amazed because they knew he had come there to kill followers of Jesus.
But now they listened to him and found he was very persuasive when he talked about Jesus. No one could argue with him. So they decided to kill him.
Their plan was to capture him when he tried to leave the city. The believers found out about this, and took him to the city wall. They put him in a large basket and let him down on the other side. From there, he returned to Jerusalem.
The believers in Jerusalem were afraid of him. They felt he was trying to entrap them. So Barnabas brought Saul to the apostles and told them what had happened to him. “The Lord appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus. Since then he has been speaking in the name of Jesus with great courage.”
The believers finally accepted Saul and he moved freely among them. He went into Jerusalem and told everyone about the Lord. Some started arguing with him, but again they could not compete with his power of persuasion. So, they plotted to kill him.
The believers in Christ found out about their scheme, so they sent him to Tarsus.
This started a time of peace for the believers in Israel. The Holy Spirit was with them. They grew in their faith and increased in numbers.
