Following Jesus Means a Radical Change
Acts 9:1-22
Some of us have grown up going to church our whole lives. Others of us, may have an on-again- off-again relationship with church, and still some may have never really attended church. It does not matter whether we are at church every time the door is open, as it felt like we were as kids, or if we have really not been to church much, every one of us needs to have a personal encounter with Jesus Christ and receive Him as Lord of our lives. No matter our background or our church attendance, the same truth applies, Jesus desires to have a relationship with us, and once we encounter Him, we will never be the same. Our lives can only be described as “changed”.
In Acts 9, we see Saul, later Paul, an example of that change. Acts 9 begins with these words, “But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogue at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem” (Acts 9:1-2). Paul grew up well versed in the Jewish law. In Acts 22:3, he gives a defense to a mob in Jerusalem trying to kill him, and he says, “I am a Jew born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.”
Paul was a believer in God, thoroughly trained in the law, yet he had not believed in Jesus. He would encounter Jesus in an unforgettable way, and his life would change forever. It was not enough that he believed in God, he must also believe in Jesus, His Son.
Paul’s encounter with Jesus takes place in Acts 9:1-22. He encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus. The Bible tells us, “Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do’” (Acts 9:3-6). Paul’s encounter with Jesus literally stopped him in his steps, and it radically changed his life. Jesus said about him in Acts 9:15, ‘“...he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.”’ The Lord had a purpose and plan for Paul’s life, but he had to believe in Jesus as the Messiah, surrender his life to Him and be changed by Jesus.
The change in Paul’s life is radical and miraculous. In Acts 9:20-21 we see the change in Paul, “and immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the son of God.’ And all who heard him were amazed and said, ‘Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon his name?’”
So, what happened in 20 verses that made Paul change from breathing murderous threats against those who followed Jesus to believing and declaring with them that Jesus is the son of God? He met Jesus!
Jesus is in the business of changing lives. Paul’s life change teaches us that it is not just praying a prayer and then continuing as usual. Friends, a prayer of true repentance is the beginning of the journey. We must confess that we are sinners before a holy God and acknowledge that He sent His one and only Son to save us, but life change comes when we surrender to Jesus and allow Him to be both Savior and Lord of our lives. That is the way to true life change. That is the path to Damascus. We start on this road of life one way, and then undeniably meet Jesus, and we finish the road a very different person.
What then, should be our reaction to meeting Jesus? Let Paul again be our example. Acts 9:9 says, “and for three days he was without sight and neither ate nor drink.” Jesus says about Paul in Verse 11 “he is praying.” Paul’s encounter lead him straight to communion with Jesus. His life was never the same. Friends, this is our example. We may not have such a radical interaction as we see Paul did, as Paul was doing radical things against the Lord, but the radical life change we see in him is an example to us of the change that comes through an encounter with Jesus. It is also a testimony of the power of God to change even the worst offender who surrenders to the lordship of Jesus. After an encounter with Jesus, we are different. Paul explains the difference in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
Paul was chosen by the Lord to carry His name to “the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel”. We are also called to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others, and our personal testimony of His work in our lives is a great place to start!
-Jennifer & Rebecca
