Acts 9 Devotional

Grace for the Persecutor

““Go!” said the Lord. “This man is My chosen instrument to carry My name before the Gentiles and their kings, and before the people of Israel.”Acts 9:15 (BSB)

Saul sets out for Damascus with letters authorizing him to drag followers of Jesus back to Jerusalem in chains (9:1-2). He never arrives as planned. A light from heaven drops him to the ground, and a voice asks why he is persecuting him. When Saul asks who is speaking, the answer is Jesus (9:4-5). To strike at Jesus' people was to strike at Jesus himself.

The Lord then sends a disciple named Ananias to the very man who came to arrest believers, and when Ananias objects, the Lord explains that he has chosen Saul to carry his name to Gentiles, kings and Israel (9:15). Ananias goes, lays his hands on Saul, and greets him as a brother (9:17). Within days the persecutor is preaching that Jesus is the Son of God (9:20). Saul did not find Jesus. Jesus stopped him on the road. Years later Paul would call himself the worst of sinners, shown mercy so that Christ could display his patience (1 Timothy 1:15-16). No one you know, yourself included, is beyond the reach of that grace.

To think about: Who seems least likely to you to ever follow Jesus, and how might this chapter change the way you pray for them?