Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Who Is In Control? | New Testament | Acts 9

Episode Date: May 3, 2023

What plans do you have for your life? How certain are you of them? In today's episode, Jensen uses Acts 9 to tell the story of two men who thought they had everything figured out. Listen to find out how to trust in God's ultimate plan. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Join the TMBT community in reading the entire New Testament in one year. Get your FREE reading plan here. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it with others, so others can find it too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter@TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Acts 9

Welcome to 10-minute Bible talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work. I'm Jensen Holt McNair. In Acts Chapter 9, we get a detailed look at the conversion of Saul. Saul would later go by the name of Paul and is the same man who wrote many of the books we'll be looking at this year as we go through the New Testament. And if you only knew that about this man, it would probably surprise you to read what the first few verses of Chapter 9 tells. us about Saul. Verse one. Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus,

so that if he found any there who belonged to the way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. So this man, who wrote much of the New Testament, is currently at this point in scripture, working with the high priest to get the authority to arrest anyone who would belong to the way. Now, side note, this is the first time in Acts that Christians are referred to as belonging to the way. And Luke will continue to use this language throughout the book, but it just refers to those who follow in the way of Jesus, the true way of life, the true way of salvation. So if you hear Luke talk about those belonging to the way, he's referring to the early church, those who profess to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. And so here's Saul.

beginning on his way to Damascus with the sole purpose to arrest and persecute followers of Jesus, when Jesus himself steps in to intervene. Verse three. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Who are you, Lord? Saul asked. I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting, he replied. Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do. The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless.

They heard the sound, but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes, he could see nothing. So they led him by hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind and did not eat or drink anything. This experience is not a figment of Saul's imagination. Luke makes sure to include that those traveling with him also experienced the blinding light and heard something coming from it. But it is only Saul who is able to see and hear the body and voice of Jesus.

It is him alone that Jesus confronts and appears to. Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Imagine being Saul. He's not the bad guy in his story. Saul is a faithful Jew, awaiting his Messiah, trying to blot out what he believes to be heresy about the Messiah, having already come and resurrected from the dead. He sees those belonging to the way as liars,

as men and women leading Jews away from God not closer to him. And now, here, on the road to Damascus, he comes face to face with the man he thought was a false prophet. His world is being flipped on its head. The lying criminal he has been trying to thwart is now proving himself the risen Messiah, right before his eyes. And the resurrected Jesus is confronting him, asking him, why do you persecute me?

Why do you stand in the way of my church? As Saul is grappling with this information, he asks who it is that speaks and Jesus makes it perfectly clear to him. I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. One thing we know from the text is that however much of a worldview shift this was for Saul, no matter how big of a pill this was for him to swallow, he believes. Jesus commands Saul to get up and to go into the city and await further instruction, and he obeys. His life will never be the same. He now follows a new king. And we learn from this encounter with

Jesus that Saul is blinded, and he spends three days unable to see, not eating or drinking. And rather than seeing this as a time of punishment, we can expect that this time was one of deep reflection for Saul, taking in all that he has seen and all that it means for his life. life. And a few verses will see that Saul uses this time to pray, and that he has other visions from Jesus telling him what he must do. While Saul is in this time of reflection, the narrative shifts to a man named Ananias. And I don't want us to overlook what is happening with Ananias here. When we read this narrative about the conversion of Saul, it can be easy to just focus on the amazing work that God does in the life and heart of Saul, because it truly is miraculous. But in the middle of this narrative,

we also see the incredible faith of Ananias and the obedience that he also gives to his risen king, Jesus. Verse 10. In Damascus, there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, Ananias. Yes, Lord, he answered. The Lord told him, go to the house of Judas on straight street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.

In a vision, he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him and restore his sight. Lord, answered Ananias, I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem, and he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name. Interjecting really quickly here, I want us to really let what Jesus is asking of Ananias to sink in. See, the church in Damascus has clearly heard of all that Saul has accomplished in Jerusalem. They've heard that Saul has accomplished in Jerusalem. They've heard that Saul was on his way to Damascus to do the very same to them. Surely, this has made the church in Damascus worried, praying to God for protection,

praying to God to overcome the evil that Saul brings with him. Now, if it was me, I would wish that Saul would be overcome. His authority stripped away, his ability to harm the church taken away from him. I would be praying for deliverance. And I think if I had been Ananias, and Jesus was telling me now to go to this man, and heal him? To heal him from the blindness that would surely thwart him from his mission to persecute the church? I would hesitate, just like he does. Isn't this man our enemy? Haven't we prayed for deliverance from his persecution? Isn't Saul being blind a good thing? And now you want me to go to

him? Give myself up as a believer and heal him in your name? See, we want God to heal our friends. We want God to deliver our family from their pain, but do we want God to do the same for our enemies? You see, Ananias doesn't know the end of the story. He doesn't know that Saul will become Paul, that he'll become a faithful disciple of Jesus. All he knows is what Jesus is asking of him right now. And it causes him to question. Ananias's questioning reminds me of the prophet Jonah. When God tells Jonah to go and preach to the people of Nineveh, to call them to repent. so that God could show them mercy, Jonah questions God's plans. These people have done treacherous things to the people of God, and God now wants Jonah to aid them

and saving them. Instead of trusting God's plan and sovereignty, Jonah boards a boat in the opposite direction and runs from God. And I honestly wouldn't blame Ananias if he wanted to do the same thing here. To tell Jesus that this was a bad plan, that allowing Saul to see would hurt the church, hurt his mission, thwart his plans. But that isn't what happens. Verse 15. But the Lord said to Ananias, go, this man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer from my name. 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. Immediately something like scales fell from Saul's eyes and he could see again. He got up and was baptized and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Jesus is patient and he is faithful to his plan. When Ananias first questions this instruction, Jesus reminds him, that he is in control. He reminds Ananias that he does not have the full story. All Ananias knows is Saul's past, but Jesus tells him to trust that he is in control of Saul's future.

He tells him again to go to Saul, to listen, and that through his obedience, Jesus will transform Saul into an instrument that will proclaim the very name of Jesus that he sought to destroy. And Ananias obeys. He goes to Saul. Saul, and because of his faithfulness, Jesus fills Saul with the Holy Spirit and opens his eyes once again. Saul immediately gets up to be baptized. And in the following verses, we learn that he goes out and

preaches the name of Jesus in Damascus and Jerusalem so boldly to the point that those who oppose Jesus are now seeking to end his life. In verse 31 of chapter 9, we learned this. Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria, enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. I love this verse. It feels like a huge reversal, one that we should celebrate as we read chapter 9. We begin this chapter learning that Saul was on his way to continue his persecution of the church. He wanted to stamp out those who believed in the resurrection of Jesus. He was on a mission. and he had the authority and the power to accomplish that mission.

But Jesus, Jesus had another plan. And through the authority and power of the risen Messiah, Saul's plans became Jesus' plans. Rather than his trip to Damascus silencing the church, Saul's experience on the road to Damascus brought peace and strengthening to the church. The church grew in numbers and faith, and were encouraged by the Holy Spirit. spirit. What a gift. And what a testament to Ananias, the fears he would have held the uncertainty

he would have felt in helping Saul, all reversed to a time of joy and refreshment for the church. I can't help but read this chapter and be encouraged by the truth that Jesus is in control, that he has a plan for his people. I may be like Saul pridefully thinking that I have a plan for my life, thinking I'm in control and these verses remind me that Jesus has far more power over the course of my life than I do and that his plan is far better than anything I am seeking out on my own. And I may be like Ananias, unsure if obedience is worth it, unsure if God's way really is the right way, unsure if following Jesus's commands will be what is best for my life. But these verses remind me that Jesus has a full.

far better view of his larger story. And he is at work in my life and in the world around me in ways I couldn't even begin to fathom. I am both humbled and encouraged by these verses. I want to have the humility that Paul displays when Jesus confronts him, shows him his folly, shows him how very wrong he was. He responds with obedience, not defense. And I want the obedience of Ananias to faithfully follow Jesus. even when it seems scary or uncertain. And the incredible thing is that both of these men were only able to do what they did through the power of the Holy Spirit. Saul didn't choose to change. Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit transformed him. Ananias would have questioned God, maybe even run away like Jonah, but the Holy Spirit sustained and strengthened him in his obedience.

That very same Jesus who had the power over both of these men's stories is still in control today. He's at work. His Holy Spirit is alive in his church. And may that truth in the words of Acts 9 encourage you today as you choose to faithfully follow after the way of Jesus. Before you forget, sign up for the 10-minute Bible Talks newsletter. Hit the link in the show notes and you'll get an email every Wednesday that will help encourage you in the middle of the week and bring you deeper in your walk with Jesus. Thanks for listening.