Acts 9:20
And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.”
Truth: The Declaration that Jesus is THE Son of God is the evidence of faith.
In Acts 9 we have the story of Paul's conversion from being a threat to the Church of Christ to a trumpeter for Christ. Paul was on a mission to destroy the church. The stories in the Book of Acts is to show us the power of the Gospel and how it changes lives, communities and even nations. When God intervenes in Paul's life and he begins to proclaim his loyalty for Christ, the very people who employed him to destroy the church sought his destruction. The reason? Because of the statement in the above verse. Paul declared that Jesus was THE Son of God. In John's epistle we read that this is the requirement for conversion. Note John's words:
1 John 4:15
Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
Our status as "children of God" is defined by our belief and profession that Jesus was not just a good man; He was not just a knowledgable prophet; and, He was not just a miracle worker. Jesus was the Son of God. This is what separates good people of religion from good people of Christian faith. Good religions (i.e. Mormonism) can have great morales and great systems of belief. But, Paul's testimony and John's writings show us that a converted person is one who professes that Jesus IS the Son of God. Not "a" son of God (i.e. again, the Mormon system), but "THE" Son. The ONLY Son. Paul's conversion is monumental. Why? Because he ceased persecuting Christ through the torture of His believers and began proclaiming Christ to the torture of those who had previously commissioned him. That is a conversion.
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