Believers in Need of Conversion

Read Acts 26

Taylor, one of the young women that work out at the gymnasium that I go to, was telling me about her relationship with Jesus. She was raised by a mother and a father. Taylor had a good life growing up. She attended a private school and she is a graduate from Virginia Tech University. Taylor says that her mother goes to church and considers herself to be a good Christian, but she does not want to hear Taylor talk about Jesus. She is not interested in hearing Taylor’s story of how she came to know Jesus. Taylor’s mother is like a lot of people found in our churches today. They are good people with good morals and ethics. They are good people that sit in our churches Sunday after Sunday, but they do not know Jesus. They need to know Jesus, turn from their present course of life without Jesus to follow a course of life with Jesus. They are in need of a conversion experience.

In this article I will use the life of a young man named Saul to illustrate to us some reasons that all who claim to believe in God need a conversion experience. The story of Saul’s conversion is recounted in the book of Acts three times including Acts 9:1-19 narrated by Luke the author, 22:3-13 as Paul tells the people about his conversion experience and ministry, and 26:12-18 as Paul tells King Agrippa his story before he is sent to Rome to appeal his case before the emperor. We know this young man as Paul the apostle of Jesus sent to the Jews and especially to the Gentiles. This article is not an attempt to give details of Paul’s life. Rather, I want to illustrate Paul’s need for conversion in hope that we too will examine our own life. Do we need to be converted?

Who is this young man named Saul who later is known as Paul? We first meet Saul in Acts 7:58. Saul is described as the young man that holds the coats of those stoning Stephen to death. Luke, the author of Acts tells us that “Saul was in hearty agreement with putting him to death” (8:1, NASB). Luke tells us that “on that day a great persecution begins against the church in Jerusalem” (v. 1). Paul “went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem” (9:1-2). Now, Saul thinks that he is doing the right thing. He thinks that he is doing the will of God. The problem is that at this point Saul does not understand the Scriptures.

We must not be too critical of Saul because he does not understand the Scriptures. Yes, he is very well educated in the Law under the tutelage of the great teacher Gamaliel (22:3). It is his zeal for the Law that causes him to want to prevent the increase in the growth of this new religious group known as “the people of the Way.” As Saul understands the Law these people are in violation of the law, and they are spreading false doctrine. However, Paul is no different than Peter who knows that Jesus is the Christ, but he does not understand why Jesus will be killed (Matt. 16:16, 21-23). Saul is not different than the two disciples on their way home to Emmaus when they meet up with a stranger (Luke 24:13-33). They do not know that the stranger is the resurrected Jesus. They have lost hope that Jesus was the one who would restore Israel to its glory. Their problem is that they do not understand the Scriptures. Both Peter and the disciples on their way home understand the scriptures from their religion’s and cultural point of view. Jesus opens the Scriptures to them and explains them as they relate to the crucifixion and resurrection of the Messiah. They have never heard the Scriptures explained as Jesus does. They invite Jesus to the evening meal. Jesus breaks the bread and their eyes are open to recognize Jesus. After Jesus departs the two men return to Jerusalem to tell the other disciples that Jesus is raised. They express their conversion experience by saying “to one another, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while He was explaining the Scriptures to us”’ (Luke 24:32, NASB). We can say that we need to be converted in order to understand the Scriptures.

A second thing that we know about Saul is that he comes from a proud heritage. However, Paul tells the Philippians that what he has gained in the world has little value when compared to what he gained by being converted. He says of himself, “Although I myself might have confidence in the flesh, If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless” (Phil. 3:4-5, NASB). Who would not want a fine young man like this to be their pastor or chairman of the Deacon Board? With his knowledge and zeal, can we find a more suitable man to be the Minister of Christian Education?

Let us return to Saul’s story in Acts 9. Luke tells us that Paul and his companions are on their journey to Damascus with letters from the high priest to the synagogues. They intend to find people who are of the Way, bind them and take them to Jerusalem to be imprisoned and possibly death. Suddenly, a strange thing happens. Saul sees a great light that causes him and his companions to fall to the ground. Saul hears the voice of Jesus saying, ‘“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”’ Jesus identifies Himself to Saul and tells him the things that he must do (9:4-6). Jesus sends Ananias to minister to Saul and to give Saul instructions. Jesus tells Ananias that Saul is chosen by the Lord Jesus to be a “chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake” (vv. 15-16).

Saul is set aside by the Holy Spirit along with Barnabas to travel to carry the gospel to the world outside of Palestine (Acts 13:1-3). When they reach the Gentile world the people call him by his Roman name “Paul,” (13:9). Paul becomes the greatest missionary preacher certainly of his day and possibly the greatest of all times. He makes three missionary journeys establishing churches in Asia Minor and Europe. There are twenty-seven books in the New Testament. According to most traditional scholars Paul is the author of at least thirteen and possibly fourteen if he is credited with writing the book of Hebrews. Indeed, Paul has a most impressive resume, but none of this would be possible if Saul had not encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus and been converted. Do we look for people with an impressive resume without learning about their conversion experience? Have I been converted? Have I met Jesus and established a personal relationship with him? Have I moved from church membership to discipleship?