Acts 9

One of the most infamous chapters in Acts is our topic for the day.  The chapter begins with the account of Saul on the Road to Damascus.  Most all of us are familiar with the way Saul had persecuted the church and sought to destroy all who claimed to be followers of Jesus as well as how God intervened in his plans while Saul traveled to Damascus for the aforementioned purpose.  My point of interest in this story is how God will only allow a person to do so much to His bride.  Many people have met with the wrath of an individual when that person’s beloved is belittled, attacked, or hurt in some way. This classic story reminds me, to a degree, of the account of Lee Strobel, author of The Case for Christ and many other books. While serving as a journalist for the Chicago Tribune, Strobel, a proclaimed atheist at the time, determined to write a series of articles to discredit the Christian faith.  However, during his research and investigation Strobel began to discover the truths about Jesus Christ and Christianity. This revelation converted Strobel from a devout anti-follower, to an avid preacher/teacher of the Gospel as well as a renowned author for Christian apologetics.  
 
We see the same pattern in the life of Saul.  He wanted nothing more than to discredit and dissuade the early church and Christians by using the tactics of persecution and threat of jail and/or death.  This method, while effective to a degree all came to a stop when Saul encountered the “Real Jesus.”  From that point forward Saul became known as Paul and passionately gave of himself to the point of persecution, torture, beatings and eventual death to spread the saving message of Jesus Christ.  He was radically transformed by the One True God.
 
After his conversion, as you can imagine, Paul had a tough time persuading the disciples/apostles and early church of his conversion.  Even Ananias (a different man than in chapter 5) when commanded by an angel of God had questions about the safety of approaching such a man in the name of Jesus. Fortunately for Ananias and Saul he was faithful to his commissioning in spite of the perceived danger.  How often do we shy away from an appointment by God for fear of our reputation, commitment level, of resources, rather than what Ananias perceived?  When God calls us to a task, rest assured He will protect you during the task and He provide for you as well. A side note to the previous point of God's protection is that while we may experience difficulties in this life this who oppose God and His children can never cause eternal harm or damage.
 
In the remainder of the chapter we see more of the power the disciples received from the Holy Spirit as Peter continues to teach and heal. Two people are mentioned in particular. The first, Aeneaus whom Peter healed of paralysis. The second was a disciple known as Tabitha translated as Dorcas whom became ill and died. After her friends summoned Peter he resurrected this faithful saint. These two miraculous events resulted in many coming to believe in Christ as the true Messiah.

Lessons we can learn:
1. While we may be opposing God He will go to great lengths to get our attention and to protect His bride the church.
2. All of God's miraculous acts are for His glory and to bring others to faith in Him.
3. We should never fear God's appointments for our life, even when they appear against the instincts we may have.