Ananias

The Lord had prepared a disciple named Ananias for Paul: “Now a certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, came to me, and standing nearby he said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’…” (1) The person who helped the blind Paul was Ananias. (a) He lived a life that would be considered “devout” according to the Law. (b) He was well-respected by both Messianic Jews and non-Messianic Jews. (c) This detail was meaningful to Paul’s audience. Notably, this information about Ananias is not included in the account of Acts 9:1-43. (2) Ananias addressed Paul as “Brother Saul.” (a) Paul had already been saved at this point, and Ananias recognized this. (b) When Ananias said, “Regain your sight,” Paul’s vision was restored.

Baptism

“And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear a message from His mouth. For you will be a witness for Him to all people of what you have seen and heard.’” (1) Ananias conveyed to Paul what he had heard from God. Ananias’ words here serve as Paul’s calling to apostleship. (2) Paul received three blessings from the Lord: (a) The blessing of being chosen as a vessel through whom the will of the God of their forefathers would be revealed. The revelations Paul received are referred to as “mysteries” (Ephesians 3:1-13).  (b) The blessing of encountering the resurrected Jesus. The phrase “to see the Righteous One” refers to this encounter. “The Righteous One” is a title for the Messiah. Meeting the risen Lord qualified Paul for apostleship (ref. 1 Cor. 9:1; 15:8). (c) The blessing of hearing the words of the resurrected Jesus. (3) The reason for these three blessings was to make Paul a “witness of Christ.” (a) Blessings come with a mission. (b) In the Kingdom of God, there should be no bystanders. “Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins by calling on His name.” This verse is often misunderstood. Salvation is given by grace through faith alone, with no other conditions. Baptism is something received by those who have already been forgiven of their sins through faith. We will address this topic next time.