Daily Reading: Acts 9v1-31 "Totally transformed'

Ananias is a reluctant evangelist (10-19). And you can't blame him for being a bit reluctant to go see Saul can you, Saul has harmed the church, and come to Damascus to arrest everyone who follows Jesus as Lord. But God tells Ananias he has changed Saul, he has transformed him and so Ananias goes and Saul's eyes are opened both physically and spiritually. Before Saul couldn't see who Jesus was, now he can and he receives the Holy Spirit given to everyone of Jesus followers just as he promised. But it's not just Saul's eyes who are opened Ananias eyes are opened too to the power of the gospel to save anyone and everyone.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is so powerful that it can change anyone, there is no one too bad or too good that the gospel cannot save them. Meeting Jesus, seeing who he really is changes everything. Some if you her may never have heard that much about Jesus thus week is your chance to find out. Don't think you are too bad for him, you may have taken the mickey out of people who follow him, you may have cursed him but he still wants you to see who he is and be changed.

Maybe sometimes we are a bit afraid of telling people about who Jesus is, afraid of the reaction. Maybe we even think sometimes that someone we know would never believe the gospel. Perhaps it's a parent or a brother or sister or someone at school. The account of Saul and Ananias tells us no one is beyond the gospel. So be brave and share it. Maybe you have never told someone you are a Christian you're afraid of the reaction. Tell someone.

What difference does trusting Jesus make? Does it just change what I do on Sundays? Or my language? Or just make me a bit nicer? No it changes everything. Do you see the change in Saul? He now boldly preaches the message he had tried to destroy he now tries to persuade others to trusting in Jesus. Powerfully he proves Jesus is the Son of God from the bible and calls people to believe. Paul's very reason for living is transformed, he is prepared to face persecution for his faith and his preaching of Jesus as the Saviour of the world.

That is the difference really meeting Jesus makes, it totally convinces you that he is worth everything. He become Lord as well as saviour. Meeting Jesus totally transforms us.  Can I ask you have you been transformed? If you've grown up in Christian home this can be difficult to see. But we see it most clearly when we are away from home influences, how transformed is your living with your friends? At school, at work at home, in your neighbourhood?  Jesus longs to transform us when we see who he really is, when we make him Lord.