Gloriographs by Rick Reynolds

17 So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”18 And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; 19 and he took food and was strengthened. Now for several days he was with the disciples who were at Damascus, 20 and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” 21 All those hearing him continued to be amazed, and were saying, “Is this not he who in Jerusalem destroyed those who called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” Acts 9:17–21

I remember the old days. The weeklong revival meetings. The multiple altar calls. Half the church would be up at the chancel rail. A lot of sobbing. One man appeared to be really saved. He testified the next night. He was thereafter in church every Sunday, until he wasn’t. I started to question these meetings. Whipping everyone up into an evangelical frenzy. Preying on emotions. The hymn “Just As I Am.” I’m sure the Lord worked in these settings, but the retention rate of converts denied their authenticity. More so, there did not seem to be much actual permanent change going on after the organ stopped playing.

In later years, I witnessed some dramatic true conversions. Baptism within days. Head to toe change. A permanent reversal of direction. No looking back. An abiding sweetness of spirit. Love exuding out of every pore. The dropping of bad habits. A preoccupation with prayer. The devouring of God’s word. And years and years of growth and dedication.

Now, I know that the true salvation experience should be somewhat dramatic in the sense of its radicalism, just as it was for Saul. The word “immediately” should stand out. At conversion, we are taught and we know that the Holy Spirit acquires permanent residence in our hearts and minds. In the proper venue, the opportunity to be baptized in obedience is easily afforded and is quickly accomplished. In no time, the pages of that first Bible become frayed because of use. There’s biblical understanding because the Spirit leads us into all truth. The vicissitudes of life remain, but they’re tolerated and managed with expectant prayer. Hope now reigns in the place of despair. Just as Saul took on food, there’s a quest to find a trustworthy teacher so that the Word of God can be properly understood. All this and more is seen in the transaction between Ananias and Saul.

Ananias was sent to Saul so that he might regain his sight. The Greek word anablepo means not only to regain one’s vision but to “look up.” Saul’s focus would now be exclusively on his Heavenly Father. Also, that “scales” fell from Saul’s eyes illustrates how dramatic this change was. After many years, my wife finally replaced her glasses. She was shocked at the improvement. This pales in comparison to what Saul experienced.

Saul was also to be filled with the Holy Spirit by the hands of Ananias. The Greek word pimpblemi is mainly used in Luke’s writings and it means to “fill completely.” His new spirit would occupy one hundred percent of soul. The assumption is what was there was replaced in full by the Holy Spirit, and that this occupation was permanent, given our understanding of the permanency and resiliency of our salvation. John 10:28-29

The transaction between Ananias and Saul not only had immediate physical and spiritual results, but it spawned a new obedience. We get the sense that Saul was baptized instantly, similar to the Ethiopian. Knowing Saul, he was “heaven-bent” on finding water.

Then verse 19 says, “And he took food and was strengthened.” Certainly Saul had an immediate need to be strengthened with food, but you can’t help to think that his appetite for the truth of God’s word was even more voracious.

Another change was he shed his travelling party of “stormtroopers” and began to hang with the disciples exclusively. There’s a separation from the world process that sets in after true conversion, and such change of scenery is welcomed and surprisingly fits like an old hat.

And in the next few days all that he knew about the God of the Old Testament was clarified by the reality of a risen Jesus. He therefore could not help himself in declaring in the synagogues (of all places), “He is the Son of God.”

It’s reasonable to presume that all these elements would be present in a genuine salvation experience to some degree or another. It’s the same gospel, the same hand of God, and the same Spirit.