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From Ordinary to Special
October 3, 2011
A lot of people are aware of Saul and how he became Paul the apostle who has written almost two-thirds of the New Testament. But only a few know about the person who was instrumental to Saul’s conversion as a Christian. He was Ananias, a follower of Christ. Ananias is an ordinary person, not a royalty nor a priest. In fact the bible doesn’t speak much of him. It was only in Acts 22:12 that you’d see his background when Saul described him.
He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there.
Despite the minimal description of his background, Ananias played a crucial role in the advancement of God’s kingdom in the New testament. He was the man God used to restore Saul’s sight, to baptize him. As a result, many Jews and Gentiles came to know Jesus and believed in the Christian faith through Paul, Ananias’ mentee.
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 saints in Jerusalem.
And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
But 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.
I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
Then 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.”
Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptised, and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.
Acts 9:10-19
You see, God does not favor any one. He uses people based on His will and not based on the worldly standards. If God has a bias, he should have sent kings or priests to fulfill the purpose. Instead, he used an ordinary man for an extraordinary purpose. Ananias became Paul’s mentor, his spiritual guardian. This title may not be popular today because in fact there are only few Christians who are Spiritual guardians. Most of the Christians nowadays are babies, entirely dependent and not growing. Why is that so? Because being a spiritual guardian is a burden. It is a huge role to play and a huge responsibility. But at the same time, it is a privilege and the rewards it brings are unimaginable. (Question for you: Are you a spiritual baby or a spiritual guardian?)
You might ask, if God doesn’t have bias and he chooses different kinds of people to fulfill His plans, how does He select them? Does he randomly select people? Or is it based on certain criteria?
First, we must understand that it is not enough to have a divine encounter from heaven in order to be called ‘special’. This is more than those which happen in the movies where there is an instant transformation. You need to be in Christ and being a Christian is not as easy as 1-2-3. It means accepting Christ and carrying your own cross. Next, although it sounds a cliché’, all children of God is special. The only thing that makes us different from one another is our purpose and the 3Ds which is discussed below.
Destiny. Every person , every Christian has a destiny in God. We are not just born. We are born to fulfill a purpose and whatever our race, age, gender, color is, we are subject to this destiny that God has prepared for us.
The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children for ever, that we may follow all the words of this law.
Deut. 29:29
God’s sovereign will is so overwhelming that we just have to accept and understand it. The secrets belong to him and we have to ask Him for all these to be revealed. Now, there are two wills of God that He has prepared for us. First is the Standard Will of God which is for us to accept Him and believe in Him. This includes belonging to a church and fellowshipping with your brothers and sisters in Christ. The second one is the Special Will of God which is concerned mainly on the direction of one’s life which is either to get married, to enter into missions, what ministry one should belong to , what job one will have and the like. This is what makes every person different and special. It is where our purposes differ although we all unite to fulfill one common goal which is to advance God’s Kingdom to the ends of the earth and to be Christ-like.
Definition. It is important to note that in verse 17, Ananias called Saul as ‘Brother’. In these days you would always here this word in church. The sad thing is, people sometimes do not mean it. In fact it has been the default name you’d call a person in church if you cannot remember his name. Calling someone a ‘brother’ or a ‘sister’ must be practiced as a confirmation of your belongingness to a spiritual family; that since we all believed in the one true God and we’d accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we belong in the same spiritual family and we all play a part in the Church , the body of Christ.
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow-citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,
Eph. 2:19
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God —
John 1:12
Development or Growth. As mentioned earlier, Christianity doesn’t stop in accepting Christ as Savior and reading the bible and attending church.
..and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.
Acts 9:19
Saul spent time with the disciples. This is a proof that it is not enough that you are saved . You must spend time with other disciples too for it is in fellowship that we grow. It is in fellowshipping with other disciples that we get refreshed and that keeps our coal on fire and burning for God.
When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.
Acts 9:26-27
When we want to grow in faith, we should have multiple anchors. This is also the reason why every disciple must make a disciple. It is not enough that a group of people who believe in Chirst exists , that we exist. We must aim to get every group of people believe until no one is left in the shadows and no one is left wondering who Jesus Christ is. The important thing here is, we can do this goal – to disciple people , no matter what our job or situation is. Whether you’re a royalty, a leader, a businessman, a student, a teacher, a driver, a salesperson or whatever your job description or financial status is; no matter how old or young you are you can be an Ananias to people. You can be an Ananias to another Saul who will be one of the great evangelists or great leaders of the history. To end, I just want to impart this important message:
We are ordinary , yet when we surrender our lives to an extraordinary God, we become extraordinary. Ordinary as we are, we can influence people who will become extraordinary just as Ananias to Saul.
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This post is based on the preaching of Ptr. Ferdie Cabiling at Victory Quezon City
