“BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT!”

Acts 9:10-17                                    (ESV)

“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."

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."

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."

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”."

The WORD of GOD has told many people to do many things that they didn’t understand.  In Genesis 22 GOD instructed Abraham to offer his ONLY son as a sacrifice.   Abraham was obedient until GOD intervened with a ram in a bush.  

When GOD told Ananias to go to a street called Straight to allow Saul to regain his sight, he must have thought He misheard his instructions.  Saul had been struck with blindness on the road to Damascus to persecute Christians, many possibly who were friends of Ananias and he knew to avoid him at all costs.  Like most of us, his (Saul’s) reputation preceded him and Believers were steering clear of him.  Now GOD was giving Ananias orders to go and heal his blindness???  That just doesn’t make sense!!!

ALMIGHTY GOD, most of the time, doesn’t make sense!  In fact, “LORD, I HAVE HEARD FROM MANY ABOUT THIS MAN” is his recorded response!  But GOD replied “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of MINE to carry MY NAME before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.  For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of MY NAME."  

Saul was about to be shown that he was going to “suffer” for the name of JESUS!  Is that what you hear being preached in churches today?  Do you hear that all but one of the original disciples gave their physical lives because of their testimony that JESUS is GOD?  It’s time the church return to sacrifice and persecution that it once experienced and “BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT”!!!