Last week we had the amazing opportunity to witness how God intervened in the life of Saul the persecutor. How he saved and rescued him from spiritual death and blindness and how He kept him from causing further harm to the Lord’s church. This morning we will read and study the events that took place immediately after Saul entered Damascus.

Also, as we move through the text I will point out 12 things that should characterize a follower of Jesus Christ. I will refer to them as “marks”. They are not in any particular order. Don’t think of them as an “ordo solutis” or order of salvation or something like that. Keep in mind that this is not a comprehensive list. There are other things that should characterize a follower of Jesus. This is a list of things that are illustrated here in our text. I hope it will be edifying and helpful.

Read :: Pray :: Examine/apply

Verse

10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.”

Commentary

After Saul encountered the Lord Jesus on the Damascus Road and after he had been led into town, Luke tells us that a man named Ananias had a vision. Ananias was a Jew in Damascus and a believer in Jesus Christ. Here he is called a “disciple” and presented as one who immediately recognizes the Lord Christ, who speaks to him in a vision, while in Acts 22:12 he is called “a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews.” From Ananias’s statement that he had heard reports about Saul’s persecutions in Jerusalem (v13), it may be inferred that he was not one of the Hellenistic Christians who had formerly lived in Jerusalem but that he lived in Damascus. We are not, however, told anything about how he became a Christian or about the Jewish Christian community of Damascus. MacArthur suspects that Ananias may have been “one of the spiritual leaders at the Damascus church and one of Saul’s targets.” In his vision the Lord told Ananias to go to the street called “Straight”.

H. V. Morton notes “this street was a mile long and ran from one end of the city to the other straight as an arrow and that nearly all the great Hellenistic cities had a street like this.” In our culture we would call a street like this “Main” street. Once he arrived at the street called Straight he was to go to the house of a man named Judas. Judas may have also been a disciple of the Lord. Once at Judas’s house he was to look for a man from Tarsus named Saul who would be praying. The Lord told Ananias that during Saul’s prayer he would see a vision of a man named Ananias coming into the house to lay hands on him to restore his sight. So we have two visions given by the Lord to two different people.

In Ananias’s vision he was told to go to Saul.In Saul’s vision he was told that Ananias was coming to him.

Long before authors and movie makers started teasing our imaginations with these kinds of things the Lord was actually doing them! Our Bibles are filled with a multitude of real miraculous events, visions, and so on. The sad part is that people reject the Bible and believe the psychics, authors, and Hollywood. With that being said, I’d like to point out the first mark of a follower of Jesus Christ:

1. Prayer

Verse 11 - “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying.”

Let’s look at how Ananias responded to the Lord’s command, verse 13:

Verse

13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. 14 And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”

Commentary

Ananias knew about what Saul had done in Jerusalem and about his Syrian mission. How he obtained this information is uncertain. Out of great concern for the church and himself he questioned the Lord’s instructions. Ananias’s hesitation provides a look into how fearful the church had become of Saul. Those of the Way were absolutely terrified of him.

Knowing in advance about Saul’s Syrian mission may have led Ananias to put together a plan to take the church underground until Saul left the city. We don’t know.

We need to be cautious here. There is a temptation to be critical of Ananias for questioning the Lord. We might say to ourselves, “The Lord always knows best and He’s in control so why did Ananias question Him?”

To be fair to Ananias, approaching Saul would have been like approaching other hardcore persecutors of the church such as Agrippa, Nero, Diocletian & Galerius. Agrippa had John’s brother James beheaded. He also tried to capture and kill the rest of the apostles but they fled Jerusalem. The Emperor Nero blamed a massive fire on Christians which gave him the green light to capture and put them to death. He feed some to lions and had others dipped in tar and set on fire using them as human candles. The Emperor Diocletian put forth an edict that ordered the destruction of Christian scriptures and places of worship across the Empire, and prohibited Christians from assembling for worship. His partner Galerius took a more brutal stance wanting to exterminate all Christians. Saul was pretty much at this level. So it makes sense that Ananias would question and hesitate. What did the Lord say in response to Ananias? Look at verse 15-16.

Verse

15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

Commentary

Notice that the Lord Jesus didn’t coddle Ananias or assure him that things would be safe. He simple said, “Go”. He then described how he would use Saul. Saul was to become the Lord’s chosen “instrument”. Instrument is a term used in the KJV that connotes tools, utensils, weapons, or implements. When I got out of high school I took a job as an apprentice carpenter. I did it for about 5 years and become a journeyman. I had an incredible tool collection. I had various kinds of saws, sanders, nail guns, and hand tools like chisels and files. When I picked up those tools and combined them with my skill I could build things like cabinets and fireplace mantels and so on. When I read this text it reminded me of my carpentry days. And I imagined Saul as a tool in the hand of the Master Carpenter, Jesus Christ, who was about to use him to bring shape and form His church. The second mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is they have been:

2. Chosen by God to serve God’s purposes

Verse 15 – “He is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.”

Notice also how the Lord described Saul’s mission to Ananias. He said, Ananias, Saul is going to “Carry My name before the gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.” Saul’s mission would be to take the gospel to gentiles or non-Jews. The Lord undoubtedly had Romans and Greeks in mind here. The Roman Empire went from Spain to the northern tip of Africa. It wrapped around the Mediterranean Sea. Saul was to proclaim the gospel to the gentiles from Jerusalem and above.

Saul was also to proclaim the gospel to kings. We will see that later in Acts. And then to the children of Israel or to the Jews. When we think of Saul (Paul) we tend to think of him as a minister to gentiles only. But Saul had a tremendous heart for the Jewish people. He worked tirelessly to reach them for Christ. Listen to what he wrote in Romans 9:3:

“For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers,my kinsmen according to the flesh.”

He wrote that he would’ve been willing to give up his own salvation for the salvation of his own kinsmen the Jews. That’s deep love. A little a later in verse 20 we see that the first people he proclaimed Christ to was Hellenistic Jews. He actually went into their synagogues.

So Saul was called to preach Jesus to gentiles, kings, and to his own people the Jews. Look at what he was to do. The Lord told Ananias that he would “Suffer for the sake of the name of the Lord.” Man did he ever suffer. First Corinthians 4:9-13, 2 Corinthians 11:23-29, and 12:7-10 catalogue the suffering Saul endured for the sake of his Lord. And his suffering, which never stopped until an ax severed his devout head from his faithful body, didn’t wait long to begin---only a few days. How did Ananias’s respond to the Lord’s correction? Look at verse 17:

Verse

17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Commentary

Knowing that Saul was to be the Lord’s chosen instrument brought tremendous peace to Ananias. He knew that Christ had worked the miracle of salvation in him. His fears left him. He then departed from where he was and went to Straight Street and into the house of Judas. Moments after Saul’s prayer and vision, Ananias was showed up. Notice how he called Saul “brother”. Ananias now saw him as a brother in Christ rather than an adversary. He then goes on to tell Saul why he came. He said, “The Lord Jesus who appeared to you sent me to heal your sight and anoint you with the Holy Spirit.”

The third mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is they have had a:

3. Saving encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ

Verse 17 – “The Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came.”

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Notice how it says that Ananias laid his hands on Saul. Sound familiar? We just read about how Peter and John gave the Holy Spirit to the Samaritan believers through the laying on of hands. Ananias seems to be doing the same thing with Saul here. The forth mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is that they have received:

4. The Holy Spirit

Verse 17 – “And be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ______________________________________________________________________________

Listen to Saul’s account of what happened in Acts 22:12-16. He gives more details there. This was read earlier.

12 “And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well-spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, 13 came to me, and standing by me said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that very hour I received my sight and saw him. 14 And he said, ‘The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear a voice from his mouth; 15 for you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard. 16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’

The details here show that the Lord used Ananias to do more than heal Saul’s sight and anoint him with the Holy Spirit. The Lord also used him to communicate Saul’s mission and to officially commission him for gospel service. Look at 18-19

Verse

18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; 19 and taking food, he was strengthened. For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.

Commentary

F. F. Bruce wrote that a type of flaky substance fell from Saul’s eyes, like a crust or something. Saul had been physically blind for only three days but he had been spiritually blind his whole life. When the Lord restored his sight through Ananias, he saw the world differently.

The filter of Pharisaical Judaism had been removed. The strange combination of nationalism, animal sacrifice, and works righteousness was now gone. The Lord Jesus gave Saul a new heart and new eyes to see the world differently. The fifth mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is:

5. Illumination

Verse 18 – “And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes.”

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The text says that after he received his sight, Saul was baptized. Saul wasted no time in publically declaring his faith. He wanted to be identified with Jesus and the Way immediately after being saved.

MacArthur wrote,

“Saul arose and was baptized. By that act he openly united with the very people he had hated and persecuted. His hated enemies became his friends, while his former friends instantly became his enemies. While keeping with the consistent pattern of believers’ testimonies in Acts, Saul’s baptism followed his conversion.”

The sixth thing mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is:

6. Baptism

Verse 18 – “Then he rose and was baptized.”

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After his baptism the text says he took food and was strengthened. I think it’s incredible that Saul chose to be baptized before eating after three days of fasting. Being publically identified with Jesus Christ was more important to him than neutralizing his groaning stomach. Saul had his priorities in order from the very start. He lived the kind of life where pleasing the Lord preceded all other things. Even before meeting his physical needs. Saul may have received new eyes and a new view of the world but he had tunnel vision for Jesus Christ. He wrote in Philippians 3:8:

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

After being baptized and eating it says “For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.”

Saul hung around allowing the Damascus believers to celebrate his conversion with him and minister to his needs. This was Saul’s first experience with Christian fellowship which is unlike any other form of companionship in the world.

The things that distinguish Christian fellowship from all others are the presence of the Lord and His joy. That is what makes Christian fellowship so sweet and uplifting. Each believer has Christ in them and when they assemble for fellowship the presence of the Lord increases and that multiplies His joy which is our joy.

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

The seventh mark of a follower of Jesus Christ:

7. Fellowship with other believers

Verse 19 – “For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.”

Let’s look at verses 20-21:

Verse

20 And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” 21 And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?”

Commentary

Saul had the Spirit and the joy of the Lord and the fellowship of mature believers, the combination of them all set him ablaze for the Lord and he went into the Hellenistic synagogues and proclaimed the Christ. I think trying to hold Saul back at this point would have been like trying holding back shoppers at “Best Buy” two days ago! They had tents in the parking lot for crying-out-loud! This leads to the eighth mark of a follower of Jesus Christ:

8. Evangelism, sharing the gospel

Verse 20 – “And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues.”

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What was Saul’s message, what did he preach? The text says he preached, “He [Jesus] is the Son of God.”

There is no doubt that Saul said more than this when he went into these places, Luke probably summarized his preaching for us here. The title Son of God,however, does connote something of the upmost importance and that is the Deity of Jesus Christ. Son of Godwas another way of saying that Jesus is Deity or Jesus is God. Jesus claimed this for Himself. When asked if He was the Son of God He said yes, it is as you say. That testimony cost Jesus His life (for a moment).

When Saul went into the synagogues he proclaimed and defended the doctrine of Jesus’s Deity.

I’d like to add that this doctrine was and still is the most contemptible of all the Christian doctrines to Jews. They hated it then and still hate it today. Therefore, going into these synagogues and proclaiming Jesus as the Son of God was risky business. Saul had some serious fortitude! He had guts! Saul’s bold determination and forcefulness in proclaiming the doctrine of Jesus’ Deity basically blew away his listeners. The ninth mark of a follower of Jesus Christ, they should be:

9. Doctrinally sound

Verse 20 – “He is the Son of God.”

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The text says, “All who heard him were amazed”. All would include Christians and non-Christians. The Greek word for amazed can also be translated confused. This leads to the tenth mark of a follower of Jesus Christ. They should display:

10. A noticeable difference in speech and conduct

Verse 21 – “And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name?”

Let’s look at our last verses, 22-25:

Verse

22 But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. 23 When many days had passed, the Jewsplotted to kill him, 24 but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, 25 but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall,lowering him in a basket.

Commentary

Luke tells us that Saul increased in strength which means that his ability to present the gospel increased as his faith, knowledge, and wisdom grew.

New believers possess some ability to contend for the faith. But their ability is limited because their knowledge and theology is limited. As they grow in knowledge and as their theology develops their ability increases. Think of when you were first saved. How expansive was your theology? Not very expansive right? How deep was your understanding of the gospel? Not very deep right? You could still share Jesus though right? You could articulate the simpler aspects of the gospel right? Sure you could.

That’s Luke’s point. Saul had a starting point on the Damascus Road and after three days he spent time in fellowship with mature believers and his knowledge began to increase and his theology began to develop and then he went out and preached Christ in the local synagogues and the more he did that the more his strength and ability increased. This leads to the eleventh mark of a follower of Jesus Christ. Followers should be:

11. Growing in spiritual strength

Verse 22 – “But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.”

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Luke says that Saul’s presentations confounded the Jews. Saul had become like Stephen. He presented Jesus as the Christ in such a way that his opponents could not stand against him. They were confounded. Keeping with tradition (sarcastically), the leaders of the Hellenistic synagogues of Damascus went after Saul as their brothers in Jerusalem had gone after Stephen.

The last mark of a follower of Jesus Christ is:

12. Persecution

Verse 23 – “When many days had passed, the Jewsplotted to kill him.”

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Now Damascus had a wall all the way around it and it had one entrance/exit with a large set of gates. The religious leaders posted 24hr guards at those gates to watch for Saul. If he was spotted they were to capture and kill him on the spot. But he learned of their plan. Somebody told him what the religious leaders were up to and he hid himself until he could escape the city. Incredibly, the Christians found a way to get him out of the city undetected. Someone owned a home that was part of the city wall. They had a window or opening up high that faced the countryside. In the middle of the night a handful of disciples put Saul in a big basket and lowered him down to the ground and he escaped to Jerusalem. Incredible.