May it please the Lord to bless
us together as we continue our meditation in the Acts of the
Apostles. And tonight we'll think on chapter 22 and from verse
12 down to verse 16. You will remember that the Apostle
Paul is here giving his defense or declaring the manner of his
conversion as he'd been taken by the captain and had been taken
to the castle or at least on the steps of the castle and he
was addressing them and he was speaking how he'd been converted. We left him last week in that
situation where he just really concluded his conversion and
Then we're told, and one Ananias, a devout man, according to the
law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,
came unto me." Well, it gives an account of what this man Ananias
was like. Quite clearly, he was a godly
man. He was somebody that followed the law of God very carefully.
And the Lord had ordained that it was this man Ananias which
would come to the Apostle Paul. And we sometimes think, well,
you know, why have we got this account mentioned several times
in the Acts of the Apostles? Well, we should realize that
the Word of God never uses vain repetition. It is there for a
purpose. And quite clearly, in Paul's
life, this situation was so wonderful to him. And it would seem that
whenever he was asked or given the opportunity, he would speak
of how the Lord had called him by his grace, and the manner
of it, and the detail that followed, and how he would desire to honour
God and to show forth the wonder of the Lord's plan in his life. And so we see here is this man
Ananias, who we can read of, we have read of, in an earlier
chapter, in the ninth chapter, in the Acts of the Apostles,
who he was and how he came, and how God called him to go to Paul,
and how he was reluctant really because he'd heard so many bad
things about Paul, but nonetheless he obeyed the voice of God. And so we read, the Apostle tells
us how he came. Of course the Apostle wouldn't
have been really aware perhaps or how the Lord has spoken to
Ananias previously, but here he says, he came unto me and
stood and said unto me, brother Saul. It's a lovely word of encouragement,
it's a lovely greeting isn't it? And you know we have many
examples in the Word of God of how we should greet one another
and here is one, one perhaps that we don't use as we should
but the reality is that Here was the Apostle Paul, a freshly
converted man, a man who appeared to be so evil and wicked before,
and yet, under the influence of the Spirit of God, Ananias
comes, comes to this man, and puts his arm on him and says,
Brother Saul. It's a wonderful statement, isn't
it? To think of that, and to think that spiritually, how true
it was. He wasn't a natural brother,
but he was a spiritual brother. What a wonderful thing it is,
We come and meet people, and we know they are the Lord, so
we can address them in this word, brother. Brother Saul, receive
thy sight. Now the apostle had really been
blind since that time. It was a few days ago, three
days ago, on that Damascus road, he'd been blinded, really, by
the power of that heavenly light. And so now he's been led into
Damascus, and Ananias has come to him, And he said unto him,
Receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up
upon him. The Lord used this man, Ananias,
to speak these words. It wasn't Ananias that did this
miracle or this bringing sight back to Paul. Clearly it was
the Spirit of God. But nonetheless, the Lord saw
fit to use Ananias to this end. And the Lord does use people
today. We should not forget that. And in his wonderful wisdom and
providence he calls people to go and do his will. Paul could
have received his sight quite easily without Ananias. But it
is the Lord's purpose so very often to use men, sinful men,
for his honour and for his glory. And so Ananias comes And he asks
and he says to him, receive thy sight. And the same hour, I looked
up upon him. Yes, he did receive his sight. Now, Ananias had been addressed
by God. And therefore, Ananias now comes
in the influence of that Holy Spirit and speaks these words. And quite clearly, he believed
those words that he was speaking would come to pass. And so we're
able to see that they did and the apostle received his sight
and looked upon him. And then Ananias said, here was,
you see, Paul looking at Ananias and Ananias able to look at Saul
and tell him this great truth. And he said, the God of our fathers,
The God of our fathers hath chosen thee. Thou shouldest know his
will and see that just one, and shouldest hear the voice of his
mouth. Well, these were great words,
weren't they? And the apostle here was, sorry, that Ananias
was speaking to the apostle. And how clear it was, God had
chosen the apostle. The Apostle would never have
chosen God, would he? It was the opposite, wasn't it?
Contrary to God's purpose, he would seem to be running away,
doing all he could to be as far from the true God as he could
be, at least the true God. He was willing to, if you like,
worship the God which the Jews had been worshipping, which of
course was the true God. but he didn't want to have anything
to do with the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. But here we have
this statement then by Ananias, speaking to him, speaking in this way, the God
of our fathers hath chosen thee, And so it was, what a blessed
man he was to be chosen of God. And God chooses his people today.
And God calls them to do that work which he has for them to
do. And so we're told here that thou
shouldest know his will and that just one, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here was the apostle directed
to know the Savior and to know his will and thou shouldest hear
the voice of his mouth. So here was the apostle then
to be one of those blessed by God and to hear God's direction
and then not to walk away from it. And so Ananias goes on, for
thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen
and heard. A very clear statement, wasn't
it? Well, the apostle was to prove that. The Lord had appeared
to him in this amazing way, and it was so that he might be a
witness unto all men of what he had seen and heard. The Lord
comes still today, and he instructs his people, he teaches his people,
he speaks to his people, and it is through that word that
they are able then to be a witness for their God, to declare what
he has done for them, how he has spoken to them, a witness
that the Lord, he is the God, and the witness that Paul was
able to declare truly that this Lord was his God. And so here
was this great statement that Ananias was able to declare to
the apostle, for thou shalt be his witness. And my friends,
we are all, by the grace of God, all those who are saved by the
Lord, are his witnesses as you and I walk on this earth. And
we should never forget that. As Isaiah tells us, ye are my
witnesses unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And then he speaks to him and
he says, and now, why tarryest thou? Why tarryest thou? Arise and be baptized. Well, here was the apostle, and
don't forget the apostle is reiterating what had occurred, what he'd
been told by Ananias, and here Ananias then, under the influence
of the Spirit of God, spoke to him these very clear words. And
they were important, weren't they? And now, why tarry'st thou? Was he tarrying? Was he waiting? He didn't need to. He believed
in the Lord Jesus Christ. And therefore, Ananias said to
arise and be baptized. And we know, of course, that's
just what happened. The apostle did arise and he
was baptized. indeed in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." What was he doing? He
was following the ordinance that the Lord Jesus himself had instituted
just a few years previously. And as the Lord had set that
glorious example, and we know how acceptable it was to God
the Father as he came and said, this is my beloved Son, hear
him. in whom I am well pleased. The
Lord Jesus submitted himself to the will of his Father. The
Apostle Paul submitted himself to the will of God. And my friends,
may all of us be found likewise submitting ourselves to the will
of our God and not following our own inclinations or our own
way. And so the The Apostle tells
us here these words and obviously they were fixed in his mind and
they were very important to him and he reiterates them just like
this. Why tarryest thou? Arise and
be baptised and wash away thy sins calling on the name of the
Lord. Well of course we know that the
Apostle couldn't physically wash away his sins but we know he
could call upon the name of the Lord and we know blood of Jesus
Christ cleanses from all sin. So we can surely realize here
that Ananias is speaking these words, directing these words
to the Apostle's heart, so that he might by faith believe what
the Lord Jesus Christ had done for him, that he had come and
washed away all his sins. And how was that accomplished?
Through that sin atoning death, on that cross at Calvary, how
the Saviour willingly shed his blood to atone for the sins of
all his people, to atone for the sins of the Apostle Paul.
And my friends, may you and I know in our hearts, he atoned for
our sins so that we are indeed complete in him. And so here
we have this statement as the Apostle therefore concludes his
statement And now, why tarryest thou? Arise and be baptised,
and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. May
we, like Paul, all be willing servants. Amen.