Oct. 19, 2008
Background Scripture: Acts 9:1-31
Devotional Reading: Galatians 1:11-24

William Barclay calls the life-changing experience of Saul/Paul on the road to  Damascus “the most famous conversion story in history.” Even many Christians who are unaware of much of the New Testament are aware that Paul had an experience there that changed his life, as well as the course of Christianity.

An infamous and ruthless persecutor of Christians, Paul’s experience on the Damascus road transformed him from a rabid opponent of Christ to an apostle who began the spread of gospel worldwide. (For other references to that experience, see also Acts 22:4-16; 26:9-18; Galatians 1:13-17; and 1 Cor. 9:1; 15:8.)
Since Paul’s story is probably so familiar to most of us, I would like to concentrate on the role of Ananias in this great event. I have chosen to do this because, even though he played a key role in the conversion of Paul, Ananias is sadly  unknown to most Christians.

Possibly one reason is that there were actually three men in the New Testament bearing the name of Ananias (pronounced ANNA-nye-us), meaning “God is gracious.” (There are also two men by this name in the Apocryphal books of Tobit and Judith).

A ‘whitewashed wall’

Two of those bearing that name in the New Testament were anything but exemplary. The first Ananias is mentioned in Acts 5:1-10, along with his wife Sapphira (su-FIRE-uh), both of whom came to a sorry end because they were dishonest with the apostles about their ability to contribute – definitely negative examples.

Another Ananias is found in Acts 23:3, the Jerusalem high priest in charge of Paul’s contentious appearance before the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council exercising ecclesiastical authority over Jews everywhere. Paul got intro trouble by calling this Ananias a “whitewashed wall” (23:3). If the name “Ananias” rang a bell in your memory, it was almost probably one of the two mentioned above.

But it is the third Ananias whom we need to remember and revere because of his key role in Paul’s Damascus road experience. He was a Jewish Christian disciple living in Damascus. Whether or not he had known Jesus personally, he had become a Christian before Paul’s conversion.

When God spoke to Ananias in a dream and told him to go to Paul to greet him as a Christian brother, Ananias was understandably fearful and hesitant. He had heard terrible stories about Paul as a persecutor of followers of The Way.

What makes Ananias special is that despite his justifiable fears, nevertheless he was obedient to God’s instructions and performed the following: he greeted Paul as a Christian brother; he guided Paul in understanding his experience on the Damascus road; and he baptized Paul – and is never mentioned again.

An admirable Ananias

I have singled out Ananias because, while we greatly admire Paul, most of us are more likely to identify with Ananias. Few of us begin as persecutors of Christians and few, if any of us end up as apostle with the stature of St. Paul.

We are likely to be more modest in our natural endowments, but Ananias shows us that even such as we can play a vital role in God’s plan and purpose if, like Ananias, we regard ourselves as having a God-given purpose in our lives. We have not just joined a church, but become part of a worldwide movement.

And we play a vital role if, like Ananias, we are open and expectant to receive from God direction for our lives, trust in Him more than we believe in our fears and respond to His call wherever and however he leads us.

Ananias was a follower of the same Christ who challenges us, who asks not why we’re not like Paul but why we are not like the person God created us to be when he brought us into this world. The real you, like the real Ananias, is more than you imagine.
 
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Rev. Althouse may write to him in care of this publication.