Genuine Conversion

Acts 9:1-19

In chapter 8 we saw a description of a false convert. Simon was a man who outwardly appeared to be converted. Time revealed he was a wolf. He was not born again. His faith was dead. This morning we will consider a description of a genuine convert. In this section of Scripture, we have the testimony of Saul of Tarsus. It is such an important testimony that it is shared three times in the book of Acts (9, 22, 26). This man was saved by the grace of God. The circumstances surrounding his salvation are miraculous. But there are elements in his salvation story that we find in everyone who is truly converted.

1. God will come to you.

A. Saul was not seeking God.

He was living an exceedingly sinful lifestyle.

“Breathing threats and murder” (1)

Threats- compelled them to blaspheme (26:11). If they did not deny the Lord, he threatened them with jail, death

“murder” Even though the death of these Christians was sanctioned by a governing body it was still murder. Saul was a murderer. Who knows how many murders were charged to his name.

“went to the high priest and asked for letters” He was bloodthirsty. He wanted to kill more. He is actively petitioning for the authority to kill more Christians.

Far from seeking God, he is seeking Christians. He is a wolf. His job was to kill Christians and he loved his job.

B. God was seeking Saul.

Look at verse 15. The Lord tells Ananias to go to Saul because Saul is a chosen instrument.

Why did God choose Saul?

Because he was a good person?

Because he was seeking God?

Because he was humble?

The grace of God is the only reason God chose Saul. In eternity past God chose this man to be a witness for Him.

In Scripture God calls Himself:

The Groom to His Bride. It is the groom that goes looking for a bride. He initiates. He seeks her out.

The Shepherd of His Sheep. The Shepherd is the one that goes looking for the sheep.

In Scripture the saved are likened to fish that are caught. I never knew a fish seeking to be caught.

C. Genuine conversion requires God to be the initiator.

We will not seek God on our own.  Choosing God is not like choosing what you eat for supper. It’s not like saying “I think I’ll have some pizza.”

Saul is living life his own way and God intervenes. He is walking down the road to Damascus, and the Lord shines His light on him (3).

This is what happens to the person God saves.

You are doing things your own way and God shows up:

He shines His light on your sin.

His shines His light on your future.

He shines His light on His Son.

God stops us in our tracks and makes us consider eternity.

If you are saved it is because God came to you.

2. God will humble you.

Saul was a proud man.

1. He believed he could save himself “a pharisee of pharisees”.

2. He believed he was better than Christians. He killed them.

God humbles him very quickly. How many had bowed to Saul? How many had begged Saul for mercy? How many had humbled themselves before Saul?

Now the tables were turned.

Saul is on his knees.

Saul is scared for his life

Saul is struck blind and must be led by the hand (8)

He doesn’t have much to say either:

Who are you, Lord? (5)

What shall I do? (22:10)

Illust. I was watching an atheist debate the other day. Someone asked the atheist what he would say if he came face to face with God. He said he would curse God and tell him to send him on to hell.

He wouldn’t do that at all.

Every knee will bow, every tongue will confess.

When God saves a person, they bow the knee. They are humbled.

Don’t you remember before you were saved how you could:

Brag about yourself

Put down others

Rejoice in your sin

Now you are:

The chief of sinners

An unworthy servant

A man of unclean lips

Woe is me!

When God saves us, He will show you that apart from Christ we are nothing at all.

3. God will reveal Himself to you.

God could have just knocked Saul down and left him there. But He didn’t.

He heard a voice “Saul, Saul…”

Saul had no clue who it was. He knew it was a voice from heaven. He called Him Lord.

The voice came back “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”

I bet Saul’s heart sank. He probably thought he was done for.  Jesus did not reveal Himself to Saul so he could destroy him. He revealed Himself to Saul so He could save him.

Those men who were with Saul heard a voice but did not understand what was said (22:9). Christ only revealed Himself to Saul that day.

When God saves us, He reveals Himself to us. The converted person:

Believes the Word of God

Believes Jesus is the Son of God

Believes in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ

We don’t see a great light or hear an audible voice. But the voice of Scripture speaks to us and we comprehend it.

Read a Bible verse to a group:

Some will say Amen

Others will say Oh brother

1 Cor. 2:14

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

If you believe the Bible it is because Christ has revealed Himself to you.

God is real to the believer

The Bible is true to the believer

This is the result of the new birth.

4. You will submit yourself to God.

In 22:10 Paul said that he asked the Lord “What shall I do?”

In v. 6 the Lord tells Saul to go into Damascus. He did exactly what the Lord told him to do.

It was difficult. He couldn’t see. He had to be led by the hand. This lasted for three days.

He didn’t eat anything.

He didn’t drink anything.

What was he doing during those three days? Look at the end of verse 11 “behold he is praying.”

He’s just talking to God.

Not angry with God.

Not overwhelmed with sorrow.

For all he knows he is going to be blind the rest of his life.

In another account of this testimony Paul reveals that Jesus said to him “it is hard for you to kick against the goads” (26:14).

A goad was a sharp point stick used to get an unruly animal to submit to its master. Imagine kicking against a pointy stick. The bottom of the foot is a sensitive place. Paul had been kicking against God. He had been resisting the will of God for his life. Now he was brought under control.

A mad man in verse 1- breathing out threats and murders.

A blind man spending all his time in prayer in verse 11.

A submission to the Lordship of Christ accompanies salvation.

If we confess with our mouth Jesus is Lord… (Romans 10:9).

The law of God is written on your heart when you are born again. You want to do His will. Living outside of His will brings you misery.

Illust. The phrase breaking a horse refers to the process of making a horse rideable, submissive. An unbroken horse is dangerous.

When God saves us, He breaks us. He breaks our heart. He changes our desires which changes our will. You will see it in your life when you get saved.  The will of God will become more important than your own will. A person who has no desire to do the will of God should not think they have tasted of the grace of God.

5. You will embrace the church. 

God uses an unknown brother in Christ to help Saul. He is just a normal guy.

Not a priest

Not one of the Apostles

Not one of the men chosen in Acts 6

Saul, a somebody in the Jewish religion is helped by a regular Christian.

Look at verses 10-19.

The Lord appears to Ananias in a vison and tells him to go to a certain house where Saul is at. He is to lay his hands on Saul that he will receive his sight

Ananias resists at first.

He is an evil man!

He has the authority to arrest me!

The Lord says “Go!”

God tells him Saul will take the gospel to the Gentiles. Saul will suffer much for the glory of God.

Ananias obeys:

He saw a pitiful man in that house. Hungry, thirsty, blind, praying.

He laid his hands on him. Probably trembling hands. He was touching a murderer.

He told Saul Christ had sent him so that he would regain his sight and receive the Holy Spirit.

When he prayed “something like scales fell off of his eyes”.

He could see.

He got up and was baptized- confessed publicly that he was born again.

Saul allowed himself to be baptized by Ananias. These two had been enemies just days earlier. Now Saul joined the institution he sought to destroy.

In 2 Cor. 11:28 Paul said the church was a daily burden for him.

He built churches instead of tearing them down.

He encouraged churches instead of discouraging them.

He preached in the churches rather than hauling the preacher to jail.

When you get saved your opinion of the church will change.

You see it as your family- you love it.

You see it as the Bride of Christ- you protect its purity.

You see it as the army of God- you enlist in its ministries.

If you seek to tear down a church the grace of God is not in you.

Before I was saved, I could not imagine wanting to go to church. Now I can’t imagine not going. The change is because of the grace of God.

Let’s summarize this:

The circumstances of our salvation will not look like Saul’s did:

We’re not murdering Christians

We won’t be struck down on the road

We won’t see a great light

We won’t hear a voice from heaven

We won’t be struck blind

We won’t have a guy show up at our door because God gave him a vision of us.

We WILL see the same changes in our life that Saul did.

If we are saved:

It will be because God comes to us.

God will humble us through conviction.

God will reveal Himself to us through the Word of God and the Spirit of God.

God will give us a desire for His will which will result in our submission to Him.

God will give us a love for the church.

These are the marks of genuine conversion.