God Can Save Anyone
Acts 9:1-9
Acts 26:10,
when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.
Acts 7:58, (NIV)
[they] dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
Acts 8:1, (NIV)
And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria
Acts 8:3, (NIV)
But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison.
1 Timothy 1:13, (NIV)
I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man,
Acts 26:10-11, (NIV)
On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.
1. Salvation begins with divine contact
Acts 9:1-2, (NIV)
Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
Acts 9:3, (NIV)
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.
Acts 26:12-13, (NIV)
"On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.
Revelation 1:16,
His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.
Acts 9:4, (NIV)
He fell to the ground...
Acts 26:14, (NIV)
We all fell to the ground...
Revelation 1:17,
When I saw Him, I fell at his feet as though dead.
Acts 9:4, (NIV)
He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
Acts 9:7, (NIV)
The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone.
Acts 22:9, (NIV)
My companions saw the light, but they did not understand the voice of him who was speaking to me.
John 12:28-29, (NIV)
“Father, glorify your name!" Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again." The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
2. Salvation brings about divine conviction
Acts 9:4, (NIV)
He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
Acts 26:14, (NIV)
We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'
3. Salvation builds to divine conversion
Acts 9:5-6, (NIV)
"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. "Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
Acts 22:8, (NIV)
"'Who are you, Lord?' I asked. "'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,' he replied.
Acts 22:10 (NIV)
"'What shall I do, Lord?' I asked. "'Get up,' the Lord said, 'and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.'
Romans 10:9-10, (NIV)
That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
Acts 9:8-9, (NIV)
Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
