Acts 8:10-19
10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11The 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. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
Saul, having been struck blind at his vision of Jesus, spent 3 days at the house of Judas on Straight Street. Incidentally, Straight Street still exists in Damascus today. I imagine that this house belonged to a supporter of the chief priests, or maybe it was the home of a relative or friend of Saul’s. This must have been the house where he had planned to stay during his time in Damascus. It was not the home of a believer. Saul spent 3 days there, fasting and praying. His conversion to belief in Jesus was not yet complete. I wonder if God intended for Saul to remain in this state for that long, or if it took Saul that long to admit his sin and say yes to Jesus. Whatever the case, it seems God spoke to Ananias and Saul in visions at the same time. Ananias received his vision instantly, but Saul only received his after 3 days of blindness, fasting, and prayer. I think it’s possible that the reason it took 3 days for God to show Saul this vision was that Saul’s heart was hard. It’s more difficult for us to hear God speak when our hearts are hardened. Lord, keep my heart tender so I can hear you right away like Ananias did!
13“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
Ananias was understandably alarmed when God told him who he was to meet. Word had gone around the believers that Saul had been persecuting the church at Jerusalem and was on his way to do the same in Damascus. His question to God, essentially, is, “Lord, don’t you know what kind of guy this Saul is?” As if God didn’t have all of the facts! God didn’t reply, “Yes, I know all about him.” He just said “Go!” God can handle our dumb questions, but he doesn’t usually answer them. If I had been in Ananias’ place, I would not only have been nervous about meeting Saul, but I would have had a hard time with being told I was to go and place my hands on someone to restore their sight! Imagine if God told you to do that!
What strikes me about this passage is how many times God’s name is used. Ananias says that Saul was coming to “arrest all who call on your name.” God answers that Saul was chosen to “carry my name before the Gentiles,” and that Saul would be shown “how much he must suffer for my name.” It’s all about the name of Jesus. We have lost our sense of the significance of names in modern western culture. But in Biblical times, the name Yahweh was considered so holy that it must not be spoken aloud. Saul was about to be given a new name, Paul. And God’s people were about to be given a new name, Christians.
The nations will see your righteousness,
and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name
that the mouth of the LORD will bestow. (Isaiah 62:2)
Saul was about to be shown how much he must suffer for the name of Jesus. He had been a man of status and privilege, as a Pharisee and member of the ruling council. From now on, his life would be a life of suffering. He would be shipwrecked, imprisoned, stoned and left for dead, and ultimately martyred. Where Jesus had gone, he would follow.
17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
I imagine that some of Ananias’ concern was not just about meeting Saul, but entering the house where he was staying. Presumably, those with Saul had the power to arrest him as well. But, like believers had done all along, he went where God told him to go, regardless of the danger. When he met Saul, he placed his hands on him and called him brother. He showed Saul the love of Jesus, knowing who he was and what he had done. We have no reason to believe that Ananias was anyone special in the church. He wasn’t an apostle, or one of the Seven. In verse 10, Luke simply calls him “a disciple.” We’re not all called to be apostles or deacons or preachers, but we are all called to be disciples. If we will answer that calling, God will use us like he used Ananias.
Apparently God had told Ananias of his appearance to Saul on the road, since Ananias refers to it in verse 17. We don’t know if one of the apostles had laid hands on Ananias so he could lay hands on someone for them to receive the Holy Spirit, or if he could do this just because God sent him to do it. Ananias confirmed who he was and why he was sent to Saul. The words he spoke must have been verbatim what God had shown Saul in his vision. This was final confirmation of the truth of the gospel, and Saul believed. I wonder how many people talk about scales falling from their eyes, which has become a common expression, with no idea as to where that saying came from. We may not have been struck physically blind like Saul was, but before we say yes to Jesus, we are spiritually blind. When we believe, our eyes are opened. Once he believed and his sight was restored, Saul was baptized and had something to eat. He was himself again, and at the same time, he was a new creation.