God Choses Whom He Will - Acts 9-10

Acts 9:1-4 (ESV Strong's)
The Conversion of Saul

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”


Acts 10:1-4 (ESV Strong's)
The Conversion of Cornelius

At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God.

God Choses Whom He Will

The struggle with most believers is that they believe they somehow cleaned themselves up to make themselves acceptable to God; and as result, God saved them.   That can’t be farther from the truth. It is probably the one false narrative people create in their heads (or, Satan creates in their heads) that keeps them from actually coming to Christ and/or finding rest in Christ.   In the above two passages we have the conversion of Paul and the conversion of Cornelius.    Paul was a Jewish Pharisee who took upon himself the task of exterminating anyone who believed in Christ.  He was on the way to put the believers in Damascus into custody when Christ intervened and spoke to him audibly on the road to Damascus.    God broke through his life, when he was a murderer and persecutor of the church, and saved him.  

Cornelius was a God-fearing Gentile who was a do-good-er.   Yet, his doing of good deeds and “acting” righteous did not do anything to save him from his sins.  He needed Jesus. In chapter ten of Acts we read the story of Peter being sent to Cornelius to tell him about Jesus.   Jesus uses Peter as the messages to save Cornelius.  Even though Cornelius was a “God-Fearing-Alms-Practicing” man, it did nothing for him in regard to his salvation.  It was only the intervention by Jesus that would save him.

Jesus is the one who chooses whom he wants to save.  In the case of Paul Jesus broke through himself and spoke to him and saved him. In the case of Cornelius we see God sending Peter to present the gospel to him.    In each case Jesus reached out to them.   Jesus was the one who saved them because God wanted them saved and chose them. In Ephesians 1 we read that God chose us before the foundation of the world.  So, before we could do any sin or have sin done to us, God decided to set His love on us.   He loves us and chooses us.   It matters not our state, condition or situation.  God saves us!!!