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. But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.”
Acts 9:4-6
When the moment came — the moment to really put Paul in his place, to lower the boom and let him have it — Jesus offered grace instead.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”
I would expect the next words to be harsh words, words of judgment, something along the lines of, “And now, that you might know my power and my exceeding glory, may you suffer my eternal wrath, for their blood is on your hands, Saul.”
But thankfully, that’s not what Jesus says.
Instead, He simply tells Paul to get up and go to Damascus and await further instruction.
Of course, Saul couldn’t see anything, so those who were with him had to lead him by the hand into the city. They had heard the voice but they hadn’t seen Jesus (Acts 9:7). Imagine how unnerving this must have been for these men. It certainly seems to have taken the wind out of everyone’s sails. Best we can tell, they never laid a finger on a single disciple in Damascus, their mission drowned out by the booming voice of Jesus calling down from heaven.
And so Saul sat like this for three days — in the dark, unable to see, forgoing food and water, his mind singularly focused on repentance. Acts 9:11 says that Saul spent this time praying. What do you think he prayed about? I imagine he was saying something like, Please, Lord. Forgive me. I was wrong. I’ve made a terrible, terrible mistake. Please, Lord. Be merciful.
Saul is going through death before he will be reborn. He sits in the darkness for three days, a parallel to Christ’s three days in the tomb.
But somewhere in all of that praying, God gave Saul a vision of grace. Specifically, it was a vision of a man named Ananias who would come and lay hands on him, restoring his sight. By grace, Saul was to be the chosen instrument to carry the name of the Lord before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel (Acts 9:15). And Ananias would be the chosen instrument of reconciliation for Saul.
Of course, Ananias needed his own vision. When the Lord commissioned him for this particular assignment, Ananias registered his concern: “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem.” Saul has brought much suffering to those who dared to proclaim the name of Christ. And now, in a twist of irony, Jesus says, “For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name,” (Acts 9:16).
This would be Saul’s second chance. When Ananias laid his hands on him and the scales fell from his eyes, Saul’s first move was to get up and to be baptized (Acts 9:18). Nevermind the fact that he hadn’t had anything to eat or drink for three days (Acts 9:9). With great urgency, Saul rushes off to be baptized in the name of his Lord.
Immersion in the name of Christ goes all the way back to the Day of Pentecost, the founding of the church itself (Acts 2:38). It is a ritual act of identifying with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. In baptism, we align ourselves with Jesus. As He died on the cross, we die to ourselves. As He was buried in the tomb, we are buried in the waters of baptism. And as He rose again on the third day, we are raised to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).
Understood this way, baptism is a means of grace.
And for Saul, as for all of us, this grace makes all the difference.
already & not yet 