A Great Salvation
Scripture Reading: 1 Chronicles 23-25; Acts 9; Psalm 7
But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord...he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” Acts 9:1,20
The story of Saul’s conversion is one of the most remarkable accounts of salvation in the Bible. We first meet Saul at the stoning of Stephen, and here in Acts 9, Luke tells us how determined he was to destroy the followers of Jesus. His description is striking: Saul was “breathing threats and murder” against the disciples.
Luke doesn’t just say Saul was speaking threats — he was breathing them. Hatred for Christ’s people wasn’t just in his words; it was in his very breath — the air he lived on. It reminds me of that worship song that says, “This is the air I breathe — Your holy presence living in me.” For Saul, before Jesus stopped him, the air he breathed was hostility toward God's people.
No wonder believers were skeptical after his conversion. It’s hard to believe someone can go from predator to preacher overnight.
But that’s exactly what happened. The same man who set out to imprison and kill Christians was soon “proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the Son of God.’” That’s not just a small change — it’s a complete reversal.
This reminds us that no one is beyond the reach of God's grace. Persecutors can become proclaimers. Enemies can become brothers and sisters. The most hardened heart can be transformed by the power of Jesus Christ.
So let’s pray that happens. Let’s believe that the Holy Spirit still turns enemies into ambassadors — that He still saves, as the old hymn says, “to the uttermost.”
