What a Story
17 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.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Acts 9:17–19
Well, what a conversion story Saul’s is. You might be aware prior to this, Saul (the Apostle Paul) has been going to all sorts of lengths to cause trouble for God’s people. Now, after an encounter with the voice of Jesus, he went blind until this moment when the Holy Spirit removes the scales from his eyes.
His physical blindness is gone. So is his spiritual. He now realises that Jesus is the Messiah he, the Jews and the whole world has been waiting for.
I remember a time in Christianity when it was really cool to have a wild conversion story. Something like you were on drugs, or you had a dream or a vision or something like that. People got excited by these stories.
One side-effect is that I think people would embellish or change their stories to get a greater response. The other was that people who had grown up in Christian homes or didn’t really have anything wild happen, felt like their story wasn’t worth sharing.
As someone whose conversion sits somewhere in between wild and mundane. Can I encourage you, no matter how you came to faith or if you actually could never name a day when you first believed (I can’t). Your story is just as profound as Saul’s.
This is where we really need to realise what it means to be spiritually blind. Doctors today can cure all sorts of blindness. Whether it’s cataracts or detached retinas. Modern medicine can do amazing things.
There is no cure for spiritual blindness. Not in human terms anyway. No amount of reading. No amount of intelligence. No amount of looking inside yourself. Or money. Can buy you spiritual sight. Only the power of God’s Spirit.
And if you trust in Jesus, then the same power that gave sight to Paul, has worked in you. Remember that today.
Today:
Pray:
Acts 9:17–19
Well, what a conversion story Saul’s is. You might be aware prior to this, Saul (the Apostle Paul) has been going to all sorts of lengths to cause trouble for God’s people. Now, after an encounter with the voice of Jesus, he went blind until this moment when the Holy Spirit removes the scales from his eyes.
His physical blindness is gone. So is his spiritual. He now realises that Jesus is the Messiah he, the Jews and the whole world has been waiting for.
I remember a time in Christianity when it was really cool to have a wild conversion story. Something like you were on drugs, or you had a dream or a vision or something like that. People got excited by these stories.
One side-effect is that I think people would embellish or change their stories to get a greater response. The other was that people who had grown up in Christian homes or didn’t really have anything wild happen, felt like their story wasn’t worth sharing.
As someone whose conversion sits somewhere in between wild and mundane. Can I encourage you, no matter how you came to faith or if you actually could never name a day when you first believed (I can’t). Your story is just as profound as Saul’s.
This is where we really need to realise what it means to be spiritually blind. Doctors today can cure all sorts of blindness. Whether it’s cataracts or detached retinas. Modern medicine can do amazing things.
There is no cure for spiritual blindness. Not in human terms anyway. No amount of reading. No amount of intelligence. No amount of looking inside yourself. Or money. Can buy you spiritual sight. Only the power of God’s Spirit.
And if you trust in Jesus, then the same power that gave sight to Paul, has worked in you. Remember that today.
Today:
- How would you describe your conversion? To someone else?
- How has God changed your heart not just at conversion, but since then?
- Pray that you might be able to tell someone else what God has done for you.
Pray:
- Praise the Father for his mighty power.
- Give thanks for Jesus who is the one we must see.
- Ask God for His Holy Spirit to help you and others tell people about their conversion.
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