One of my absolute favorite stories in the Bible proves the transformational power of Jesus. It shows there’s absolutely no one too far gone to be saved and redeemed. There’s no wrong Jesus can’t make right. There’s no life he can’t use for his good purposes. AND … you don’t even have to get yourself together before Jesus comes looking for you! That’s right, Jesus will choose you before you even consider choosing him!



That’s my story. He wanted me and he came and swooped me up. Met me right where I was when I was trying my best to have success without him, and set my feet on solid ground before I even knew I wanted to be on solid ground.



And this gives me the most unshakable hope for others who have wandered far and don’t even want to be found at this point. Ahhhh, Jesus knows where they are! He can intervene and change everything in an instant.



Before we read this powerful story in our Bibles together, let’s understand the setting and the timeline. Jesus has already been born, he’s already walked the Earth, he’s already died on the cross, and he’s already been resurrected back to heaven. Jesus’ disciples are now fulfilling their calling and spreading the Good News. But there’s trouble. Some were adamantly against Jesus being the Messiah and people becoming his followers.



That trouble is lead by those who truly believed their way was right, and Jesus was wrong. They defended their way by persecuting all followers of Jesus, seeking to capture them and imprison them to stop this radical movement of Christianity. One man leading the battle against Jesus followers was Saul. He devoted his life to ending this revolution for Jesus. Saul surely thought this Jesus was a good man who did good things while he was alive, but he couldn’t possibly be the Son of God as he claimed. So, he would put an end to this blasphemy.



That’s where we are when we come upon the divine intervention of Jesus in a way that could not be denied. The story is known as The Road to Damascus. Now, let’s read this powerful story together. Acts 9: 1-19:



Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples.He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”



“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.



“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”



The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.



In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”



“Yes, Lord,” he answered.



The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”



“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your ...