“Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’ “And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me.
Acts 22:6-9 NKJV
Saul’s conversion would have come as a surprise to the early church. Saul was the worst of sinners. A mass murderer. So, the way the Lord arrested him on the way to Damascus was only a God-ordained orchestration. Saul’s zeal, initially a source of destruction, played a crucial role in facilitating his conversion and subsequent mission.
Saul’s journey to Damascus, armed with letters from the high priest to arrest Jesus’ followers, showed his dedication to eradicating what he saw as a threat. However, this very zeal positioned him for a profound encounter with Jesus. As he neared Damascus, a sudden, blinding light from heaven stopped him in his tracks. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” (Acts 9:4). This moment marked the beginning of his transformation.
Blinded and humbled, Saul was led into Damascus, where he spent three days in darkness, neither eating nor drinking. However, his zeal, now redirected, made him receptive to the divine intervention he experienced. Moreover, God saw the way Saul carried the traditions and laws of his ancestors. God knew what others could not see. Others saw a murderer and a terrorist; God saw a man who would doggedly proclaim Jesus to the ends of the earth.
Saul’s zeal fueled his ministry after his conversion. The way God sees is different from the way we see. God saw far into the future and recruited Saul. You are not too far gone. God wants to draw you to Himself. Remember, God’s call to you is, ‘come’. Your story can change if you answer to the call of God. You might think you are not fervent enough to kill and imprison like Saul. However, your zeal is channelled to something else. It is time to be zealous for God. Jesus, referencing Psalm 69:9, said, ‘The zeal of your house consumes me’.
