The Conversion Of Saul
One might consider the conversion of Saul of Tarsus (later to become known as Paul the apostle) to be the most important conversion account in the Bible - since God saw fit to relate it to us three times (in the book of Acts chapters 9, 22, and 26).You’ll remember that Saul was a very zealous Jew (Acts 22:3) who mistakenly thought brand new Christianity was a false religion (Acts 23:1), so much so that he persecuted Jesus’ followers even to the point of death (Acts 22:4).Evidently the Lord recognized Saul’s sincerity, and so appeared to him miraculously on the road to Damascus (Acts 22:6). Saul immediately believed in the Lord and was told to go into Damascus and it would be told him what he should do (Acts 22:7-10). Saul was in the city for three days (Acts 9:9) before Ananias told him in Acts 22:16 “arise, and be baptized and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”Lessons learned from Saul’s conversion:· Sincerity does not necessarily make one right – Prov 14:12.· Salvation from sin does not come at the point of faith. Saul believed in Jesus on the road to Damascus, but his sins were not washed away until at least three days later (Acts 22:16).· A person’s sins are washed away by the blood of Christ (Matt 26:28) when that person is baptized in water (Acts 22:16).Have you done what Saul did to become a Christian? Have you repented and been baptized “for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38)?