Saul and Ananias: Different Responses to the Lord's Call
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Acts 9.15-22
July 24th 2016
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Okay we left off with a blinded Paul fasting and praying in Damascus and seeing in a vision that God was going to send him a man named Ananias. Then we read where there Lord appeared to Ananias and told him to go to the man called Saul at the end of a street called Straight. We also read that Ananias was hesitant to follow the Lord’s instructions and openly expressed fear of Saul. After reading this we then read at verse 15:
15 But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.
Observations on Saul and Ananias
Let’s cover these two passages before moving on and I want to start by making an observation about the person Saul and the disciple Ananias – I think its pertinent. When hot-breathing, murdering Saul was confronted by Jesus his response to meeting Him was: What will you have me do – and we read last week that he did it. In the case of Ananias the Lord told him what to do and Ananias challenged the direction with fearful reasoning. That dude is dangerous and we all know it. It may be nothing and may just describe the various ways we are created but it may also indicate one reason why Saul was selected of the Lord to do what he did – his passion, his drive, his willingness to do whatever it was for truth.
Ananias is described (in Acts 22) as a “devout man and of good reputation” according to the Jews. He was a disciple, had received Jesus, and was now being used. But there was a difference in his response to the Lord and Saul’s, wasn’t there? Saul was out persecuting and hunting Christians down (in what He believed was a cause of truth) putting them to death and putting them in prison but once Jesus revealed Himself to Him he, with that very same hot passion and devotion, pursued Him.
Different Paths, Unified Purpose
Abraham Lincoln once said, “Show me a man with no vices and I will show you a man with no virtues.” In my estimation it does not seem to be a matter of how bad or how good we are prior to knowing the Lord – I mean whether we are egregious sinners or benign go-alongs we all remain outside of His will regardless of our state. But the real question is once we are introduced to Him and receive Him how openly and ardently are we willing to be used by Him (not by Man and religion) in His desires?
In the case of Paul it seems his errant trajectory, once corrected, continued forward with even more zeal . . . but this time with Jesus leading the way rather than His own religious zeal. It is also intriguing how Jesus describes to Ananias the way Paul would be used – listen to verse 14 and 15 again as He said to Ananias in a vision: “Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: 16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.”
“He is a man known to persecute Christians,” Ananias says and Jesus says: “Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel . . .”
God's Lack of Partiality
Other translations say this line as “Go . . .” "for he is a chosen instrument of mine” “for he is a special vessel for me” and “for this man is an elect vessel to me,” We read the Greek “ek-logay” and tend to think of those it is applied to as elected or “superior” than others. We know from scripture, however, that God is NOT a respecter of any persons – he does not have any favorites nor does he love or respect anyone person over another.
This is hard for us to imagine because we are not this way – there are people we respect and reverence and there are others we look down upon and even despise – often just from a first impression. Not God. He loves the scab covered, aids dripping, tooth-missing derelict as much as he loves the kings and priests and princesses of the world. I think it’s important to reiterate that God has NOT elected or chosen
God's Selection and Purpose
Paul because He loves Paul more or thinks more highly of him as a human being. The better way to say this is God has selected Paul – and we will soon see that He (among other things) selected him to suffer. In reality most of us would not appreciate nor desire such a selection. We have the same idea when we consider God selecting the Nation of Israel (above all nations) to be His people, for Him to be their God, and for them to do what He directed them to do. There is a tendency to interpret them being His elect or chosen or special people (meaning He loves them more or that He prefers them because of their intrinsic value) This is just not so. Again, He is not a respecter of persons. Job says:
34:19 How much less to him that accepteth not the persons of princes, nor regardeth the rich more than the poor? for they all are the work of his hands.
Scriptural Insights
We will read Peter say in Acts 10:34-35:
“Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.”
And Paul said in Romans 2:11 “For there is no respect of persons with God,” and in Colossians 3:25 “But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.”
Why does God select some, like Paul, and Peter, and others to do what they do? Firstly, I think we have to realize that God selects all people to all that they do – whatever it may be – and I believe He does this according to His foreknowledge of all things about them – who they are, their make-up, their DNA, their nurture, their education, their choices, their strengths and their weaknesses. He KNOWs us – and He uses us to accomplish His ultimate desires. In this way we might agree with the Scottish line, “Deeannadh gach neach a dhicheal,” (a line LDS leader David O. McKay took from a headstone while in Europe and popularized it here in America) but the point goes well beyond what McKay may have used it for.
Biblical Perspective
From a biblical perspective we ought to be what we really are and look to God to save us rather than be what people think we should be thereby saving ourselves. God knows us. Be transparent with Him. In all the ugliness, all the failures, be who you have always been before Him openly – and He will work with you on becoming what He wants you to be. Whatever that is.
See, He has the big picture in mind and knowing all things aligns our ways and wills and choices up to serve His end purposes – even when our ways are failing. I am convinced that there are those who are never, ever in this life, going to be elected or selected by Him to come to faith – it’s not in them. But He will use this to His ultimate advantage and ultimately bring them around as well – when the time is right. Our duty is not to judge them or hate anyone – for their successes or their failures – but to see them in the hands of God Almighty (who loves them) and as being used to accomplish His ultimate purposes. And in this we can entirely rest in His will being accomplished through Christ.
The Puzzle of God's Kingdom
Secondly, for those who do believe and receive His Son by faith in this life I think we have to see this selection as our having a part in the puzzle called the earthly Kingdom of God. In other words, we have to see each and everyone of us as having a particular role and playing our part. Put the puzzle up on a wall and remove Paul and there would be a hole and the puzzle would be incomplete. But put the puzzle up and remove yourself and the puzzle would be incomplete as well. All parts are vital to a completed puzzle. Put it this way – any part of the human body that we cut off and toss away would put the whole body in pain – even something as small as a little fingernail.
So we cannot see the selection of he Nation of Israel or of Peter, James or John (or here) of Saul as superior to God’s selection of ourselves – different, yes. Accomplishing different things? Of course.
Chosen Vessels
We are selected to do our thing – whatever that is – just like Saul and Ananias were selected to do theirs. All this being said, I am simultaneously convinced that Saul was specifically trained and exposed to certain things to prepare Him to play his part. Noting this we have to see that God knew, prepared, and even allowed Him to play a role in the stoning death of Stephan which we covered back in chapter 7.
CS Lewis touches on what I am trying to say when he said something to the effect that “war does not create death” – death is death and we are all going to experience it. His position is that war can expedite the experience of death for some, but it does not create it out of nothing – death, since the fall, has always been and all to take a first breath will definitely take their last. From an eternal perspective, what Lewis is saying is that we are all going to spend an eternity with God so in the end the length or span of a human life ought not to be held up as the ultimate focus. With this being the case Stephan dying a Christian martyr ought to be rejoiced over – and his unjust death be seen as nothing more than a very insignificant side issue to the eternal ways and workings of God.
Saul as a Vessel
We also note that Jesus calls Saul a “chosen vessel” unto Himself that would “bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.” “A chosen vessel bearing his name.” The scripture uses the Greek term translated vessel here is “skyoo-os” and it describes all sorts of things and not just a vessel like a ceramic or clay pot. For example, the Greek term for water pots at the wedding in Cana, the site of Jesus’s first miracle, is a completely different word. And when Jesus said to not put “new wine into old vessels” the term for vessel is another completely different term. The word used here to describe Saul as a “chosen vessel” can be instrument, can be pot, can be a thing, or it can be an item. In other words, it can mean any good or item (including a pot) that would bear His Name.
I mention this to highlight once again that God can have all of us, no matter the shape and size, bear His name to others. That being said, Luke does seem to use vessel to describe an item that will bear not just Jesus's name but the Good News, the living water, the bread of life – and so therefore we typically think of the type of vessel as being something that holds.
The Paradox of Broken Vessels
I was talking with one of you a while ago about the paradox in scripture that relates to Christians “being broken” in relation to the negative descriptions in scripture of broken vessels. For example, in Jeremiah 2:13 we read God deliver a paradoxical phrase about the Nation of Israel and saying: “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”
First of all, God chastises them for forsaking Him, the true and living God, or as He puts it, “the fountain of living waters,” and then secondly, he corrects them because they had turned to worshipping idols (which are referred to as them having “hewn out cisterns, broken cisterns, that had no capacity to hold any water at all!). Adding to the complexity of the theme, we remember Gideon taking soldiers and supplying them with jars of clay. They put lit candles underneath them and at the right moment smashed the clay jars which allowed the light to escape and terrify their enemies – the picture is that we need to be broken to let the light shine.
Add into the mix that throughout scripture we have “brokenness” as a positive trait for Christians to bear and we have quite the mixed message when it comes to “being vessels that bear the name of the Lord.” Are we to be broken? If so, how do we adequately bear the living water to others? The solution is not to become perfect or repaired vessels that can hold the water. It is said that we get the word sincerity from the pottery and clay industry. Apparently (and anciently) potters would take vessels that were cracked and fill the cracks with wax or (ceros) and then sell them was whole but once the buyer got the
The Concept of Sincerity and Bearing His Name
Vessel home and the heat of the day took hold the vessels would leak. As a means to prove that their wares were sound, potter put up signs that read Sans Ceros (without wax) and from this we get the word sincerity – we really mean what we say, we really are how we present ourselves to be. It’s why I frequently remind all of you that in my flesh you would want nothing to do with me. It’s a means to keep that flesh broken before God and you.
This being said, how are we also able to bear Him and His name if we cannot hold water? The solution seems to be in the need for us to constantly keep a steady stream of Him (the living water) flowing through us and therefore out to others, making great use of the cracks in our character which will then supply others with His refreshment.
Paul's Ministry and Sufferings
We will see, as we get to know Paul more and more, that He maintains his “crackedness” over the course of his apostolic ministry, but more than any other, brings the living water to the world around him (or as Jesus specifically tells Ananias): “To bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.” Note the order – first to the Gentiles, then to Kings, and then to the Children of Israel. Romans 11:13; 15:16 and Galatians 2:8 prove his work to the Gentiles, Acts 25:23; 26:1-32; and 27:24 prove his work to Kings. And we will see that he immediately began to preach to his brethren the Jews, (something we will actually read about in verses 20-22 here in chapter 9). Interestingly, and a fact that few remember, wherever Paul went he first preached the gospel to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. Acts 13:46 and 28:17 tell us this.
Then listen to what Jesus adds to his words to Ananias about Saul: 16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake. Remember, Ananias was afraid of Saul. It’s possible that Jesus said this to show him that the man was not going to remain an enemy of the faith any longer but was going to join them in suffering for the cause – which they were beginning at this point to do.
So for clarification we might add the following to Jesus' words to Ananias: “And listen, Ananias, I will show this very same Saul how greatly he will suffer for my name's sake.”
Paul himself wrote to these sufferings in 2nd Corinthians 11:23-27 and says:
23 Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.
24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
Modern Suffering in the Christian Experience
I mean, this dude suffered. Being Bible readers we have a tendency to seek or look for similar sufferings in and among ourselves – and to speak and share them with others. Some people create artificial suffering (sort of like self-flagellation) as a means to do more suffering and to be more like early Christians. I would suggest that the physical suffering and material difficulties Paul experienced MAY – may be part of the Christian experience today.
I mean, since we are not living for the things of this world then it only stands to reason that we may struggle with health issues, poverty, and/or difficulties in travels, etc. as a result. But I would suggest (especially in this modern age of Godlessness – remember, Paul was a man who sought God with everything he was) that our trials and difficulties are more geared toward spiritual warfare, in resisting the ways of the world, in choosing spirit over flesh, and living for His invisible kingdom of love instead of for the one standing before us and inviting us in daily.
Different warfare, similar suffering.
Alright, let’s read.
The Conversion of Saul
Ananias and Saul
The rest of our text for today (verse 17):
17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.
18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. 19 And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. 20 And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he (Jesus) is the Son of God. 21 But all that heard him were amazed, and said; “Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests?” 22 But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ.
Ananias's Obedience
Alright, back to 17.
17 And Ananias went his way (which I would interpret as the way God had told him to go so when it says His way I read this as HIS way), and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.”
In the way accustomed to healing among the Jews Ananias placed his hands on Saul, and said, “Brother Saul.” Pretty radical, eh? Note that Saul did not yet profess Jesus as Lord and master. He did not seem to say a sinners prayer – at least not on publicly, nor had he been baptized with the Holy Spirit.
And yet Ananias addressed him as brother. Why not? The Lord had clearly described him as being a selected vessel why not admit him in as a brother before the fact? More and more I see this as a why not in my interactions with others – if not as actual brothers or sisters in the faith then as inevitable – so why not refer to them as such. Do it all the time. The term of endearment goes a long way to soften hearts between people – seen it first hand.
Saul's Miraculous Transformation
“Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way (or on the road to Damascus) as thou camest, hath sent me, that . . .
TWO THINGS . . .
“ . . . that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.”
We are witnessing a two fold miracle – the man receiving his sight when by all appearances and indicators it looked like he could have been blind for life AND the man being filled with the Holy Spirit when by all indications it appeared that He would have continued to live his life as a Jew that hated Christ.
In reality, he was about to receive physical vision and more importantly, spiritual. (Verse 18)
18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.
“As it had been scales” means as if it was a flake or scale, but not literally – it had the effect that scales had fallen from his eyes. The darkness was removed from his eyes and what I believe may have been his heart – by the touch of this disciple’s hand.
This was an obvious miracle in my estimation . . .
(first) because there were no medical means used that would naturally restore his vision. For it to have immediately returned upon command is a very different thing than for his sight to have gradually come back over the course of a few hours or days or weeks.
Second, Luke tells us that the Lord sent Ananias for this very purpose – to heal him.
Notice something else –Ananias also said that he had come to give Saul the Holy Spirit. This is the first evidence of a non-apostle bestowing the Holy Spirit upon another AND what else do we notice – nothing is said here of Saul speaking in tongues upon the reception of it.
So those who insist on making tongue speaking mandatory to prove the Holy Spirit has actually moved in and baptized a
The Conversion of Saul
Man need to reconsider their stance in light of what apparently happens to Saul.
18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. As we’ve noted many times before, this order of events was common for a Jew who had converted to anything within and around the faith – especially to Christianity. Essentially, Paul followed the example of all the early converts to Christianity. They were baptized immediately. We’ve seen this on the day of Pentecost and also in the case of Philip and the Ethiopian. But we will begin to see exceptions to this immediate practice in the ministry activities of Paul. Verse 19.
19 And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. The word translated to meat here in the King James simply means food of all kinds acceptable to a Jew in that day. And once his strength returned Luke tells us that Saul was there “certain days” which means a certain number of days – a number that escapes us. All we know is he was with the Christian disciples of Christ during this time, (verse 20) And . . . “straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.”
Saul's Immediate Preaching
Now, Galatians 1:17 tells us that from Damascus Saul will go to the Saudi desert of Sinai, then return to Damascus and then go back to Jerusalem. If I’m not mistaken I think Luke omits this fact and will later speak as if Paul leaves from Damascus and goes back to Jerusalem. But we will see if this is true as we continue to move forward in the account here in Acts. What we do read is that straightway Paul began to preach Jesus to the Jews in the synagogues – and was apparently presumptuous in this approach. But more on this in a minute.
An Extraordinary Conversion
What we have just covered is considered one of the GREATEST conversion stories in the annals of the faith. I say this not because every conversion story is amazing but the conversion of Saul tends to stand above the rest in a number of ways. First of all, his conversion and the timing of it is a strong witness of the Christian way. Think about it for a minute:
He was distinguished already as a Jew and had everything to lose. He had had the best educational experience and was rising in distinction to important public office. He could not have converted to increase wealth or fame – Christians were poor, hated, and exposed to contempt, persecution, and death. There would be no reason to suppose that he would be any different.
Also, Paul was as firmly opposed to Christianity before his conversion. Some people believe that Christians are prejudiced in favor of the faith prior to conversion – not so with Paul! He was a bitter foe! Then we are seeing that He then became one of Jesus's most firm advocates and friends – how to account for this other than true conversion!?
Then we have the life he lived as a convert, the works he produced, the suffering he endured (happily, by the way), the scorn – all of these things are proofs of his amazing conversion to Christ. Taking all of this, if Paul was sincere–if this conversion was genuine–the Christian religion is greatly shown to have truthful merit. Nothing else but insanity could produce both these changes and the prolific body of work this man produced.
And so what we have in him is he was once a persecutor of Jesus; then a convert, then an independent apostle (not by the preaching or authority of the other apostles); a man who was blinded, changed, and spent the rest of his days reaching, teaching, and revolutionizing the faith to the world. He called himself chief of sinners. He worked a job to keep Christians from having to support him, and he suffered.
The Power of Change
There was nothing more superior in Paul with relation to God than there is with any other human being – but he was selected at that time to do some wonderful things by and through Christ in Him and not ever of his own power or authority. Finally, the example of Saul does not stand alone. Hundreds and thousands of former enemies, persecutors, and slanderers of Christ have been changed by His powerful light and have all gone forward preaching.
The Preaching of Saul in the Synagogues
Proclaiming the Son of God
And sharing the power and truth of the King. And we are some of them.
So what does he do? “straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.” Many manuscripts read Jesus here instead of Christ but in either case, Jesus Christ was preached by Saul in the synagogues and that he “IS THE SON OF GOD.” The Son huios of Theos – God’s Son. It is really the only distinction we need to make about Him isn’t it? I believe that Jesus is the Son of God. All the other implications and debates aside this is a great summary isn’t it? I believe that Jesus is the Son of the Living God.
21 But all that heard him were amazed, and said; “Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests?” So they readily identified the man, which in some ways may have hurt him but in others helped.
Proving Jesus as the Christ
Despite this reaction Luke tells us (at verse 22)
22 But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ. Apparently with each and every teaching Paul increased in his abilities and strengths in the faith, his convictions became more astute, and his ability to articulate his arguments against the Jews more profound. Where it says that Paul “confounded them” the word here can mean refuted and also it can additionally mean that a tumult or an excitement was the result. By confounding the tenets of their faith is seems that Paul produced tumultuous proceedings or he enraged them to the point that they became greatly agitated. This is a very common effect of close and conclusive argumentation and it was especially true among gatherings of Jews. We will read about how Paul’s presence among them literally caused them to blow up.
Approach to Argumentation
Luke adds that in approaching these Jews in their synagogues and even creating tumultuous responses, that he was able to prove that this (the one He was preaching) is very Christ.” That this Jesus is the very anointed one, the Messhiach, the Christos. “Jesus of Nazareth was the true Messiah.” It is interesting to me (on a number of levels) that Luke chose not to list the arguments or the approaches that Paul used to prove his point that Jesus of Nazareth was the Anointed One. Why do you suppose that is? In the end, I think it is because God did not want to provide us with a set of written arguments to win souls. He provided His spirit and then wants us to seek Him in Spirit and truth as a means to let the Spirit reign over our every conversation. Just a thought.
We’ll pick it up at verse 23 next week.
Q and A
