BIBLE LESSON

“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.’”

— Acts 9:17 After approving the murder of Stephen and the imprisonment and murder of Christians, Saul’s continuing hatred for Christians made him increasingly spiritually blind. Because of his zeal to arrest and imprison more Christians, he took the road to Damascus where he was blinded when he met and spoke to Jesus and learned from Jesus that he was also persecuting Jesus himself, the Messiah and the Son of God. During three days of physical blindness and suffering from spiritual shock, the only thing Saul knew to do was to pray, and the Lord Jesus answered his fervent prayers. Jesus answered Saul’s prayers far beyond his expectations. Jesus gave him a vision of Ananias coming and restoring his sight, and when Ananias came to him he not only laid hands on Saul to restore his sight but at the same time Jesus filled him with the Holy Spirit. Ananias told Saul that Jesus had spoken to him and he had indeed met Jesus. Ananias also told Saul what Jesus planned for him. The Holy Spirit assured Saul that God had forgiven all his sins, and the Spirit empowered him to teach others the good news of Jesus the Messiah. Saul immediately responded: he obeyed Jesus’ teaching and declared himself a Christian through baptism. Then Saul (who became the Apostle Paul) began doing what Jesus had chosen him to do: he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.

— L.G. Parkhurst Jr.

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