Acts 9:1-22
Many people wondered in my past jobs why I seemed to enjoy working in the tech industry – after all, I never fit the proto-type for a computer nerd. My jobs in tech were as the “translator” between the customers and the techs. This worked out well because of the concept of “job specialization”. One can’t expect a computer tech to master the subtle ways of persuasive selling, just like no one would expect an electrician to come in and teach a class on renaissance philosophy. Focusing in on the main thing you do really well has allowed humanity to excel in so many ways throughout our history – you do that over there, and I’ll do this and we’ll share the success. We like to specialize.
This is helpful as we try to understand the idea of Sanctification. Last week, we took a deep look into Jesus as our Savior. Today, the focus is on his work as Sanctifier. There are two ways to look at sanctification. In both ways, the general idea is to “set apart”. This is both a positional experience as well as a progressive one, and thus we will look at this today and next week to get the full picture. Positional sanctification is the act of Jesus once a person is brought into relationship with him to set the new believer apart for righteousness and for ministry. This is seen in the initial calling of the Apostle Paul, who at this point in the story was called Saul. KEY NOTE – the reason for the name change of Saul to Paul has nothing to do with his before and after type of encounter. It is simply that Saul is the name he is known by in Jewish circles and Paul was the greek version of his name. There is no need to read more into it than that.
Catch this as we jump into the details – It’s God who does the work, for the sake of the community, based on his plan for all to work out the best over time and bring the most to salvation.
It’s a Work of Jesus (v1-9)
I am so excited to eat Nita’s amazing Thanksgiving dinner around a table with friends and family. It is one of my favorite things all year. She does so much work to make her turkey perfect. In all this process, how mush work does the turkey do to taste so good? NONE! Yet it gets the kudos! The turkey does nothing – Nita preps, flavors, and bastes it while the oven provides the right amount of heat over time.
Saul was not planning to be stopped on the road by Jesus – he didn’t intend to switch gears and all of a sudden protect believers instead of persecute. This all was a work of God’s doing. He arrived and spoke. He changed Saul’s heart. Saul was a bystander on his way to do his thing when stopped. God set him apart; God chose him. Nothing Saul did could have worked this out.
When God gives us the gift of salvation through Jesus’ death and resurrection, we don’t automatically become sinless – we are declared sinless. Justified in the eyes of God and sinless not because we stop sinning, but because he chooses to look at Jesus instead of us. Because he sees us as sinless, he sets us apart for a plan – a job he has for us.
It’s Individual and Communal (v10-19)
Dedicated lanes keep certain types of traffic moving at the proper speed (when they are respected and obeyed, of course). These lanes are designed for a purpose, not just as an excuse to keep the roads under construction. The point is that it allows faster traffic to move faster and slower traffic to move slower, thus not mixing the two speed bases. Both bases are necessary, if even it would seem one of them is clearly better. In the story, Saul is saved in an individual experience of which the others with him can only hear Jesus, not see him. There is a personal context to salvation and sanctification, is communal as well. God sent Saul to Ananias for healing and prayer. Not only that, but Ananias is the one who receives Saul’s calling! We are set apart not to be mavericks, but to work with and for the benefit of others.
Next Steps
Jesus does the work and he does it for a reason – to set you apart so that others see you and turn to glorify God. We are the products of his work, with the job of pointing people to Jesus as our Rescuer. This is the conclusion of Saul’s conversion in v22 and our purpose for being here.
- Celebrate the fact that you’re here – we can’t take credit, but we can enjoy the fact that God wants to show us off! Discuss together.
- Your purpose is communal – so be with other people! Focus on relationships over tasks and let people in your world. Get out there!
Saul didn’t wait until he learned everything before he got to work. God is at work in you – stop wasting time and let him show you off today!
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