Converted by love.
What makes a convert? What is it that causes someone to adjust dramatically the course of their existence? Why would a tyrant suddenly care about people he had mocked previously?
In Acts 9 we are studying the conversion of the man named Saul. He already has proved his bloodthirsty nature at the killing of Stephen by other religious thugs (Acts 7 and Acts 8:1). Saul is very hateful and zealous to destroy the followers of Jesus of Nazareth.
And then he has a conversion experience; he meets Jesus - risen from the dead. Saul is changed! Saul is stunned and Saul is blind for several days while waiting for a Christian to relieve him of his blindness. What makes this conversion happen in Saul’s life, heart and mind? And of course, we need to ask the weighted question: what makes us converts too?
Three points that I’m drawing on from this text in Acts 9:
Saul is brought to his knees.
Saul is driven to ask questions about God.
Saul is converted by the power of Love.
Acts 9:4-5 states, “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.”
What changed Saul (who later was renamed “Paul”)? What will change me and what will change you? Do we need to be changed? Did Saul know that he needed to be changed? All those questions are valid. Let’s focus on these three point from verses 4 and 5.
Saul fell to the ground. That was a real physical fall. Was he flat on his face or on his knees? Doesn’t matter. He was dropped down from the place he was previously. Jesus caught his attention with a light from heaven all around him. What Saul experienced is what we each need to experience in our life. We need heaven to break in and show us that our “brightness” is actually pretty dull or, as is the case with Saul, even dark and sinister. Saul was bent on terror and murder and pillaging.
When heaven’s reality breaks in, what you and I once thought was good gets replaced with perfection’s light. We all need a dose of seeing how wrong we are or how off-track we are. Saul got it! Have we grasped our “wrongness”?
The second point is that Saul started asking questions about God. “Who are you Lord?” This powerful presence he experienced was shocking enough to force his fall but it also caused him to ask questions about the voice/presence. When heaven breaks into our reality today, it does it through the Bible and the very words of God that are in the Bible. Are you and I letting the Bible shock us into asking questions about God?
Who are you Lord? Are you a God who always agrees with my opinion? Is my pattern of thinking in line with yours? Are my values also your values? Or do I need to change - because I’m guessing you, God, don’t need to change.
The final point from verses 4 and 5 is that the power of love changed him. It happened immediately and it happened after a period of three days of blindness. Immediately Jesus spoke to Saul from heaven and used that double name expression that means genuine care and concern for a person: “Saul, Saul.” An enemy does not talk to people with that Hebraic double use of a name - only a close friend and companion speaks like this.
This thought should astound you. Here Saul is on the way to persecute more Christians (followers of the Way) and Jesus is talking to Saul as a close friend? What gives? That is grace. That is the same grace that called us out of staunch hatred of God and called us into the family of God by the washing of water through the Word. That is the same powerful love that daily accepts us even though our actions are crude and rude and misleading. This same powerful love gently nudges our attention to turn back to God instead of run from him. This same powerful love wants to call us all into an eternal existence with Jesus. Do you hear the call? It’s there for you everyday you open the Bible to hear Jesus speak. Are you listening to this beloved call?