"I RECEIVED MY SIGHT!!"

Acts 22:5b-18            (ESV)
"5b From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished.
6 "As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me.
7 And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?'
8 And I answered, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said to me, 'I am JESUS of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.'
9 Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand the voice of the one who was speaking to me.
10 And I said, 'What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.'
11 And since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus.
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.'
17 "When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance
18 and saw him saying to me, 'Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'


Although the passage above is quite lengthy, the recollection of the conversion of Paul must not be hurried through.  To begin with, Saul was headed to Damascus to arrest those a who were following the teachings of JESUS CHRIST.  But on his journey he has an encounter with JESUS.  Now, surely JESUS knew why Saul was persecuting HIM.  JESUS had to make it CLEAR to Saul what he was actually doing.

The next point that sticks out to me is in verse nine.  Saul's recollection is that the others who were with him heard the voice of JESUS, but only Saul could understand what was being said.  That let's me know that when GOD instructs me about what HE wants me to do, others may not be on the same wavelength.  But when GOD gets your attention, such as Saul being blinded, it makes no difference to you if anyone else understands what you are hearing or not!  GOD has spoken and you are listening to HIS spoken Word (v.14)!

Finally, Saul/Paul went to the temple to pray and GOD let him know what HIS plans for him were not!  "Get out of Jerusalem quickly" were Paul's instructions!  In Acts 22:21 GOD said "Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.'"  GOD did not reveal to Paul what all his future held.  GOD only told Paul that he was going to minister to the Gentiles.  The journey  that Paul would engage in would include many hardships, but those hardships would not be faced alone!

Our destination may be made known to us, but our journey will require FAITH!  Once again, I refer to Hebrews 11:6 which to us "without faith, it is IMPOSSIBLE to please HIM"!   When Paul was on the Damascus road he was blinded.  Paul says there was a time when "I RECEIVED MY SIGHT" and his mission began to become clear to him.  He still had to have FAITH for the path of his journey, but his destination was clearly to the Gentiles.  Knowing my journey requires FAITH, but my destination is has been set!   I am proud to say "I RECEIVED MY SIGHT"!!