From Spiritual Blindness to Seeing Christ Clearly

 “Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank” (NASB).

Acts 9:8

Dear Friends,

On August 6, 1986, Dad had a terrifying run-in with a tractor that could have easily taken his life. That summer he had taken a job mowing roadsides for the county, and on that particular day he jumped from the seat to disentangle a plastic bag from the mower blades.

Unfortunately, although he had set the emergency brake, the tractor didn’t stay immobile. As he pulled on the bag, the tractor began rolling down a slight incline, knocking him to the ground. The heavy wheel rolled over his leg, breaking the tibia before finally coming to a stop in a ditch.

Later at the hospital, the doctors explained that in order to make his leg completely straight, they would need to break the fibula, which was acting like a splint and preventing the broken bones from fully aligning.

Sometimes Healing Requires Breaking

Sometimes a bone must be broken to heal correctly, and sometimes God uses similarly unexpected methods to bring people to Himself.

Saul’s conversion is a powerful example of how God can break through spiritual blindness and awaken someone to the truth.

Saul’s Spiritual Blindness

As the church in Jerusalem grew in number and power, Saul, a trained and zealous Pharisee, became increasingly violent toward the new believers. Unsatisfied with persecuting only the believers in Jerusalem, he asked for letters from the high priest giving him authority to travel to Damascus, round up the converts there, and bring them back to Jerusalem as prisoners.

But as Saul and his entourage traveled toward Damascus, a bright light from heaven suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground in fear when he heard a voice say,

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?”

Confused and frightened, Saul asked who was speaking. Imagine his shock when the answer came.

“I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. Get up and go into the city, and you will be told what to do.”

The men traveling with him stood speechless, trying to understand where the unseen voice had come from.

Saul slowly rose to his feet, but quickly realized he was blind. Unable to see the road ahead, he had to be led by the hand into the city. For three days he wrestled with God without food or water, trying to understand what had just happened. After all, in his mind, he had only been trying to serve God by shutting down this group called The Way.

When God Opens Blind Eyes

Meanwhile, in another part of the city, Ananias, a follower of Jesus, received a vision from the Lord. God instructed him to go to Straight Street where Saul was praying.

Ananias knew Saul’s reputation and feared what might happen if he obeyed. But the Lord assured him that Saul was His chosen instrument to carry the gospel to the Gentiles.

Reassured, Ananias obeyed. He went to the house, laid his hands on Saul, and said,

“Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes. He not only regained his physical sight, but the truth of the gospel also became clear to him. He believed in Jesus as the Messiah and was baptized as an outward sign of his faith.

I have always loved this account of Saul’s salvation. While he had physical sight, he suffered from spiritual blindness. But God temporarily blinded him so he could finally see the truth.

Many people today are like Saul – able to see physically, yet suffering from spiritual blindness, unable to perceive spiritual truth. Saul, who later became known as Paul, may have reflected on that day on the Damascus Road when he later wrote these words to the Corinthians:

“If our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).

From that day forward, Saul’s life was completely transformed. He fearlessly preached the gospel of Jesus Christ wherever he went because God had caused Light to shine out of darkness, giving him “the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).

Do You See the Light?

Do you see the Light of Christ, or are spiritual things still hidden from your eyes? My prayer is that God will remove every trace of spiritual blindness so you can clearly see Jesus, believe the gospel, and walk in His truth.

Love,

Mama