Chapter 9

You know you’re looking at an action-packed chapter when the SECOND most significant thing that happens is Peter BRINGING SOMEONE BACK TO LIFE.

You heard me – the SECOND most significant part of chapter 9!

What is the MOST significant part, I hear you ask? Well, all in good time. First, though, let’s go through the chapter and see what happens.

Verses 1-9 tell us of Saul’s disastrous (sort of) journey from Jerusalem to Damascus – where he meets Jesus on the way (in a spiritual form, it is true). So complete is his turnaround from this point that even among those who don’t see themselves as Christians, a “Road to Damascus moment” is still a point at which one completely changes their approach to something. In any case, Saul is struck blind, and his mission is abandoned immediately.

We then cross over, in vs 10-20, to a man named Ananias (not the one who was dead from lying to God!), who has been commanded to go and heal Saul, which he does (if reluctantly). And from this point, Saul, the enemy of the Church, becomes a passionate advocate of the group. So much so, that in verses 19-25 we read that the local Jewish groups are seeking to put him out of business – permanently – if you know what I mean!

So the “Followers of the Way[1]” organize for Saul to be lowered over the wall in a basket, from which he escapes to Jerusalem.

Were it not for a man named Barnabus, Saul would probably not have been accepted by the Church, and perhaps rightly so at one level. He was dangerous, and had yet to show any reason why they should trust him. But Barnabus took him under his wing, and because he did, well, we’re here. More about this in a minute.

Finally, we read in vs 32 – 43 that Peter has gone to visit the churches around about, and he had the opportunity to bring a girl named Tabitha back from the dead. From the DEAD, did you hear? This man has serious power in his corner!

Incidentally, God still does this from time to time today. I have heard of cases of people brought back from the dead – and we’re not talking about people who wear a tinfoil hat, either! God’s power has not diminished at all in two thousand years. But it is certainly not God’s main means for dealing with illness or injury. When God does help in such a spectacular way, it is ONLY by grace – not because you’re a wonderful person, but because He chooses to do so right this moment.

Anyway, I promised to get back to Saul and Barnabus.

Have you ever noticed that people know more about what the Church of today is AGAINST than what it is FOR? We’re against drink and drugs (less so than we used to be!) we’re against gays, we’re against abortion, blah blah blah.

And right here, we were AGAINST Saul. The huge irony here is how close we came to missing out on one of the greatest Christians of all time.

The other brothers, for good reasons, opposed accepting Saul. Only Barnabus (whose name should be familiar from earlier in Acts) is willing to take a risk.

Because he did, the word went out to the gentiles; for this violent psychopath was about to (for example) write a very large chunk of the New Testament, and then suffer and die in the name of Christ.

What a mistake that would have been.

It’s good for us to be against Sin. It’s great in fact. But we must be careful that we are not rejecting SINNERS in the cause of rejecting SIN.

If we had been there, would the Apostle Paul still be one of us?



[1] It’s still a couple of chapters before they are called “Christians”.