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10 A follower named Ananias lived in Damascus, and the Lord spoke to him in a vision. Ananias answered, “Lord, here I am.” 11 The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the house of Judas on Straight Street. When you get there, you will find a man named Saul from the city of Tarsus. Saul is praying, 12 and he has seen a vision. He saw a man named Ananias coming to him and putting his hands on him, so he could see again.” 13 Ananias replied, “Lord, a lot of people have told me about the terrible things this man has done to your followers in Jerusalem. 14 Now the chief priests have given him the power to come here and arrest anyone who worships in your name.” 15 The Lord said to Ananias, “Go! I have chosen him to tell foreigners, kings, and the people of Israel about me. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for worshiping in my name.” 17 Ananias left and went into the house where Saul was staying. Ananias placed his hands on him and said, “Saul, the Lord Jesus has sent me. He is the same one who appeared to you along the road. He wants you to be able to see and to be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 Suddenly something like fish scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see. He got up and was baptized. 19 Then he ate and felt much better. ~ Acts 9:10-19
Today, we return to our study of Acts 9 where the antagonistic Pharisee apprentice named Saul had been persecuting Christians throughout Judea, Samaria and on up into Damascus. Saul's hatred was fueled by the day the religious leaders of first century Israel stoned Stephen for preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ in Jerusalem. The more Saul breathed out threats of murder the more he was bent on doing the work of the devil without even knowing it. In fact, he was fully convinced he was doing the bidding of the God of the Bible.
In v.10-12 in today's passage we read, "10 A follower named Ananias lived in Damascus, and the Lord spoke to him in a vision. Ananias answered, 'Lord, here I am.' 11 The Lord said to him, 'Get up and go to the house of Judas on Straight Street. When you get there, you will find a man named Saul from the city of Tarsus. Saul is praying, 12 and he has seen a vision. He saw a man named Ananias coming to him and putting his hands on him, so he could see again.'"
Saul had been in Damascus without sight for three days and during that time he neither ate nor drank. It was then that the Lord Jesus appeared in a vision to a man who lived in Damascus. His name was Ananias which means "the LORD is gracious." The name Ananias appears about 30 times in the Old Testament. In the New Testament it is the name of the husband of Sapphira in Acts 5. The Lord chose Ananias for the specific purpose of being a reliable testimony to the Lord having chosen Saul for his apostolic ministry.
The Lord told Ananias to go to the house of a man named Judas who lived on Straight Street which is still in Damascus to this day. In addition, the Lord told Ananias that he would find Saul of Tarsus at Judas' house praying. He then told Ananias that He will give Saul a vision of him coming to help him to see. I find it interesting that the Bible mentions the word "pray" about 400 times throughout. Even though God already knows the future, prayer includes us in on what God will do in conjunction with history. This is why prayer is so important. It includes us on what God is doing in this world. It was Mother Teresa who once insightfully said, “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.”
In v.13-14 of today's passage we read, "13 Ananias replied, 'Lord, a lot of people have told me about the terrible things this man has done to your followers in Jerusalem. 14 Now the chief priests have given him the power to come here and arrest anyone who worships in your name.'"
Ananias balked at the request of the Lord because deep down inside he believed he knew better than the Lord. In essence his problem was the clashing of his will with God's. This is a big part of the purpose of prayer that our will would be lost in the will of God. Ananias, thinking the Lord Jesus was not aware of what Saul had done to believers, balked at His request. In this, Ananias lacked in his theology. Once again we discover that everything in our lives comes back to our theology. When we lack trust in the Lord, we have a disconnect with proper theology. This disconnect is not with God, but with us. The sooner we understand that all of life is all about Him, the more to Him will we render control over our lives. It takes a decisive choice to yield control over our lives to the Lord, especially when we believe great danger is involved.
In v.15-16 of today's passage we read, "15 The Lord said to Ananias, 'Go! I have chosen him to tell foreigners, kings, and the people of Israel about me. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for worshiping in my name.'"
The Lord informed Ananias that He had big plans that involved Saul. Of course, Ananias had to exercise great faith because Saul had been persecuting Christians at every turn. Ananias' willingness to do as the Lord had commanded led to Saul, whose name will be changed to Paul. It was this same Paul who wrote in 2 Timothy 4:6-8, "For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing." Long before the Apostle would agree to be a drink offering, he saw Ananias run the risk accordingly. We never know how our choices in this world will impact others for eternity. Had Ananias rebelled the story would not have unfolded as it did. Ananias' willingness to run the risk and go to Saul was a huge risk. This resulted in Saul seeing once again with his eyes but also to see with his heart.
In v.17-19 of today's passage we read, "17 Ananias left and went into the house where Saul was staying. Ananias placed his hands on him and said, 'Saul, the Lord Jesus has sent me. He is the same one who appeared to you along the road. He wants you to be able to see and to be filled with the Holy Spirit.' 18 Suddenly something like fish scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see. He got up and was baptized. 19 Then he ate and felt much better."
Once Ananias arrived at Judas' house and he placed his hands on Saul, it was quite clear that the same Lord Jesus had carefully orchestrated the events for the both of them. Each man would be able to bear witness that the outcome was shown to them in advance and that it occurred just as it had been revealed to them. It was after Ananias had placed his hands on Saul that Saul received the Holy Spirit. It is significant that this happened without the apostles being present. Confirmed here is that Paul's commission would be considered one directly from the Lord Jesus as an apostle, and one bearing the charge that would follow.
But before that would happen, the scales had to fall from Saul's eyes. Great men debate as to whether the scales were physical or metaphorical. The miracle was that Paul had been given his eye sight back along with a heart that could see God. With that Saul was baptized. He had already received the Holy Spirit when Ananias prayed for him and he had been born again. But the Lord had commanded that an outward sign be demonstrated for those who wondered if this Saul had ceased to persecute the church. After his baptism Saul ate some food and was strengthened in his body. I find it quite instructive that it was in Damascus just outside of Israel’s borders that Saul came to faith in the Lord Jesus. So appropriate since he would be later called "the apostle to the Gentiles."
