The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1909-04-13
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INTERNATIONAL LESSON COM
1IENTS FOR APRIL 10.
Subject: The Conversion of Saul, Acts:
9:1-3O Golden Text: Acts, "a
Commit Verses Is, 16--Com-

OuuJcCls Inc CONVERSION OF SAUL AUS
9:1-3O- Golden Text: Acts, "a
Commit Verses Is, 16--Com-
nlentary on the Lesson.
TIMB-A D. 81 90 PLACE
Jerusalem, Damascus.
EXPOSITION.--I Saul the MUIR
derous Enemy of Jesus, 4, 2. Saul's
intense anger against Jesus and His
disciples was not a matter of a single
hour or day The extent to which
he carried his hatred in action we
see in oh. 22:19; 26:10,s IL. In this
Saul had persuaded himself that he
was doing right (ch. 26:9). 1t is a
striking illustration of how a man
who intends to be conscientious can
be thoroughly and awfully wrong.
III. Saul the HumbIed Penitent. B.
o. The Lord allowed Saul to go
long way in his mad career. But at
the proper moment He put forth His
hand and saved the little focks in
Damascus Probably Ananias had
prayed, though he could hardly be-
lieve when he heard. The Lord often
acts suddenly The light out Of
heaven" that shone around Saul was
the light of Christ's resurrection
glory ". II; Cor 1888. 1t was
about noon" (ch. 22:6), and the
glare of the eastern noon is exceed
ingly bright, but the glory of thisA
was above the brightness of the
sun" tch. 26:13). Our Jesus is ex-
ceeding glorious. The stout-hearted
prosecutor is thoroughly humbled ",
a. There are many to-day who
speak great, swelling words against
our Lord, who, if they should get one
look at Him as He is, would fall to
the earth" before Him (Phil. 2:10.
~. Evidently, for all his zeal In
prosecuting the church, Saul hae
many a goading thought that he
might be wrong, and Jesus indeed
the Lord (26:14, R. W. A start.
ling question (v A.. He puts it tc
every one to-day who is prosecuting
His people Note how tendefly Jesus
identifies Himself with His disciples
". s.; comp. Matt 25:35-40, 42-45;
Eph. 5:30). What an awful mo-
ment it must have been in Sauls life
when it fully broke upon him that
the glorious One who stood before
him was indeed Jesus, whom he had
so bitterly hated and so relentlessly
prosecuted. What an awful moment
it will be for many now living when
they see Jesus in the glory, and real.
ize that it is He whom they have
spurned and prosecuted. The light
Saul saw was no mere subjective Wis
ion or effect of sunstroke; the others
saw it, too (ch. 22:9), and heard the
voice When we look at the original
the apparent contradiction between
v. Z and ch. 22:9 entirely disappears.
In this passage the voice" is in the
genitive case, which with the verb
person Cor thing) heard speaking the
message. In Acts 22: 8 'the voice" is
in the accusative case, which indi-
Gates the message which is heard
There was no hurrying of Saul into.
the light. 1t is not bad thing for a
man to have time to think and to re-
view the enormity of his sin.
III. Ananias, the Obedient Disci.
pie, 1915. Ananias was simply. s.sa;
certain disciple This destroys the
doctrine of the Mormon church (andi
of many others) that the laying on OF
an apostles hands was necessary to
receiving the Holy Spirit Ananias
was ready instrument to the Lords.
call. But when the definite dircc-
tions came Ananias was staggered
He quite overlooked what Jesus had
just told him about the change that
had been wrought in Saul. Saul, the
terrible, fills his whole vision and he
protests. Jesus enters into no dis
cussion with Ananias. go thy way, +"
He says, and then He tells what Sauf
of Tarsus really was--s'a chosen yes
sci unto Me-" How wonderful are
Gods ways, to transform the bitter
enemy into 1.-The chosen vessel" But
this former prosecutor must himself
suffer for the sake of that name he
once hated, This, too, gracious act
on Jesus part to permit Saul to suf-
fer for Him, and to-day the suffer
ings that Saul once inflicted upon
Christ are quite forgotten in the sui.
gerings he endured for Christ.
Nv. Saul, the Bold Witness For
Jesus, 1910. Ananias protests 10
longer. Readily and promptly and
heartily he obeys. The moment he
sees Saul he tenderly lays his hands
upon him and exclaims, Brother
Saul" There were no men on earth
that Saul had hated as he did disci.
pies of the Lord. There was no mar
on earth that Ananias had dreaded as
he did Saul But this was ak
changed Faith in one Lord had
made them brothers And be filled
with the Holy Ghost The Lord
had said nothing about that to Ana.
MAS (v 12). But the-Lord had said
The is a chosen vessel to carry My
name before the Gentiles,D etc, ane
Ananias knew he could not do that
properly unless he was endued with
power from on high (Luke 24:49;
Acts IA, s; CHI 10:38). Saul did
just what every man ought to do as
soon as he is saved and Spirit-filled
". 20). There is no indication that
Saul at this time received miraculous
gifts through being filled with the
Holy Spirit. He took Gods word for
it that he was so filled, and went
ahead, and the filling with the Spirit
manifested itself in the power with