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TOPIC: Gordon, Samuel Dickey - Quiet Talks on Life After Death (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 27. The Damascus Road Event
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The Damascus Road Event
One other event in this solitary old Book of God crowds for space here. That is the experience of. Saul on the Damascus road. It may well be put as a climax to the resurrection of Jesus: for it is a direct result of that resurrection. And a most tremendous result it proves to be.
Saul was a cultured man, of disciplined mentality. In modern language, he was a university bred man, of an old honored family, and a leader among the younger set in Jerusalem. He was in close touch with the group of Jerusalem leaders that planned the death of Jesus.
He came to the fore shortly after that event, in the persecution of Christ's followers that followed. He became the aggressive leader of this persecution, recognized by the national leaders, and fully empowered by them in his persecuting leadership. He had gone to the extreme degree in hatred of this despised Jesus, and his teachings, and his followers. Nothing could exceed the intent' of his bitter hatred and aggressive persecution. His spirit at this point, is vivid ly described in the record, "Saul yet breathing threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord." That is the man Saul.
Then comes the occurrence on the Damascus road (Act_9:1-22 with parallels). It came suddenly. It became the outstanding experience of Saul's life. He never gotover it. Suddenly a light blazed out before his eyes. It came from above. It was not sunlight. It was brighter, this man of keenly trained powers of observation said.
With the strange blaze of light came a power that impelled him, against his will, to fall prone to the earth. There was a clear distinct voice. Then ensued a brief conversation between himself and some One connected with the light and the voice. And this One plainly said, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest."
From that hour Saul was an utterly transformed man. From being a bitter enemy, using all his unusual, finely trained, native powers and leadership against Jesus, he became His most devoted follower and exponent. There is no transformation in the character of a strong man so complete, so sudden, and so wide-sweeping. No such similar transformation can be found recorded. Saul's case stands utterly alone, unanswerably alone.
And, mark you keenly, there is no evidence stronger, viewed simply as evidence regardless of moral conclusions involved, none stronger, clearer nor more convincing, evidentially, than the recorded facts in the case of the conversion on the Damascus road of this man Saul, taken in connection with his wide influence in the spread of the Christian faith.
Note the teaching involved. The man Jesus who had been killed was now alive. He was somewhere in an upper spirit world. He was in full possession of His faculties. He was in full vigor of action. He was possessed of a power, clearly more than human, nothing less than superhuman or divine.
His identity, His concern with affairs on the earth, the rare intimacy of His relation with His followers, insisted upon so tenderly and tenaciously, His masterful overwhelming action, all these were unmistakable to this exceptional, rarely trained, Herculean-willed man, who had so bitterly hated Him. And who now completely reversed his course and became His devoted follower.
Never, was a strong career so radically, so dramatically reversed. His devotion became as marked as his hatred had been. Nothing could dim the burning of his devotion to Jesus. Break of family ties, quite certain loss of family inheritance, break of friendship, the bitterest social ostracism, relentless persecution, truly Oriental in its hounding intensity, the extremest personal hardship continued through years, and at the end a violent death, all these proved simply fuel to increase the flaming fire of his devotion to the Man of Light and Power and of the Voice, on the Damascus Road.
Such are the teachings, such the events or occurrences, out of which grows the sweet story of assurance regarding loved ones in touch with God, gone from our clinging hungry grasp.