Acts 9:19b-31 · Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Martyrs, Monsters, and Miracles
Acts 9:19b-31
Sermon
by King Duncan
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"Mr. Hoess was a loving husband and father, and a devout member of his church. His five children respected and adored him. He was also a business leader. He had grown prosperous as a farmer, largely because of his administrative skills. One of his acquaintances in the government took note of how he managed his farming business. He was offered a post in the government, where he proved himself very capable. This led to a series of promotions, and Mr. Hoess rose rapidly in a series of government offices. 

"Mr. Hoess had a regular routine every day: breakfast with his wife and children, then off to work--sometimes pausing to enjoy the fragrance of the flowers in his well-tended garden. Mr. Hoess worked diligently at his job, conducting staff meetings, making important decisions, reading reports, issuing orders. At the end of the day, he arrived home, where his children happily greeted him at the front door. They looked forward to his arrival, because he often brought them little gifts. His loyalty and patriotism earned him the trust of the most important man in the national government. That man, whose name was Adolf Hitler, rewarded Rudolf Hoess by making him Kommandant of the Auschwitz extermination complex in southern Poland. Mr. Hoess's mission: to increase the killing efficiency of the camp to a level of ten thousand dead every twenty-four hours. Mr. Hoess was very good at his job, and he had no trouble meeting his quota.  From the bedroom window of his comfortable brick-walled house in the country, Mr. Hoess could see the chimneys of the camp. The smoke from those chimneys darkened the skies as thousands of human bodies were cremated, day after day, night after night, twenty-four seven. Mr. Hoess was proud of his work. Under his efficient management, Auschwitz exterminated 2.5 million people. 

"Rudolf Hoess was raised to work hard and live a productive life. He was a loving family man, a devoted churchman, and possibly the greatest mass murderer in human history." (1) How does a supposedly nice man become a monster? How does it happen? A family man, a devout churchman, a man respected in his community. 

We saw it happen on a smaller scale in our own land. Just recently. Dennis Rader of Wichita, Kansas, better known as the BTK killer was a lay leader in his church and a Boy Scout volunteer. And yet he proudly confessed his role as the "bind, torture, kill serial killer" before he was sentenced to 10 consecutive life sentences. 

How does it happen--a supposedly nice man turns out to be a monster? I have no answer. But I do have an answer for a similar question: How can a monster become a new man or woman of love, even one fashioned into the image of Christ? 

Chapter eight of Acts begins right after the death of Stephen, the first Christian martyr. It begins with these words: "And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison." 

If this were all you knew about Saul, you would assume he was a monster. A deeply religious man, but still, a monster. Maybe not on a par with Rudolph Hoess, but listen to these words from chapter nine: "Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem." 

It is clear that Saul's mission was to utterly annihilate the small Christian community, whether in Jerusalem or Damascus, or anywhere they were to be found. So far as the church was concerned he was a monster.  Well, you know what happened. On the way to Damascus, something dramatic happened to Saul. Suddenly a bright light flashed from heaven, bright enough that Saul could not see. He fell to the ground and the risen Christ appeared to Saul. 

"Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" asked Christ. 

"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. Interesting. Immediately Saul calls him Lord.   

"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," Christ replied. "Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." 

Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything. Then the Lord sent a man named Ananias to Saul to minister to him and to instruct him in the faith. Ananias was reluctant to go, as you might imagine. "I've heard of this Saul. He's a monster," he might have said. But God called him to minister to Saul, so how could Ananias refuse. And Saul was thoroughly converted during this time to following Christ. As you know he became St. Paul, the great missionary apostle to the Gentiles. Still known as Saul, he began his new ministry in Damascus. But, after a time, he headed toward Jerusalem. This is where our lesson from Acts 9 begins. 

The Jerusalem church remembered Saul well. There were many people there who loved Stephen, that young man who died giving his witness for Christ. They blamed Saul for his death. They remembered how Saul dragged Christians out of their homes and hauled them off to prison. They remembered how he stirred up mobs against them. Most of the Jerusalem church, except the apostles, had been dispersed to other towns in order to avoid Saul's wrath. What was this monster up to now? Was this a trick? 

It's hard to live down a bad reputation, isn't it? You may be familiar with the story of a prosecuting attorney in a small town who called his first witness--a grandmotherly, elderly woman--to the stand in a trial.  He approached her and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know me?" 

She responded, "Why, yes, I do know you, Mr. Williams. I've known you since you were a young boy.  And frankly, you've been a big disappointment to me. You lie, you cheat, you manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs.  You think you're a rising big shot when you haven't the brains to realize you never will amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher.  Yes, I know you." 

The lawyer was stunned.  Not knowing what else to do he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs. Jones, do you know the defense attorney?"   

She again replied, "Why, yes I do.  I've known Mr. Bradley since he was a youngster, too.  I used to baby-sit him for his parents.  And he, too, has been a real disappointment to me.  He's lazy, bigoted, and he has a drinking problem.  The man can't build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the shoddiest in the entire state.  Yes, I know him."  At this point, the judge rapped the courtroom to silence and called both counselors to the bench.  In a very quiet voice, he said with menace, "If either of you ask her if she knows me, you'll be jailed for contempt!" (2) 

It's hard to live down a bad reputation. There was a story in the news sometime back. It was about a survivor from the sinking of the Titanic. His name was Masabumi Hosono. Mr. Hosono was the lone Japanese passenger on the Titanic.  The 42-year-old bureaucrat was one of the few men who survived the sinking of the ship.  As the ship began to sink many men were stopped at gunpoint so women and children could have the first opportunity to board the lifeboats.  Hosono, however, made it into a lifeboat. Even though he survived, he was branded a coward in Japan and fired from his job. 

Now with the recent discovery of a letter, it appears that Mr. Hosono was not a coward at all. He was urged into the boat by a ship officer to help row the boat away from the pull of the sinking Titanic.  He helped to save the lives of those on board with his rowing. (3) It's hard to get rid of a bad reputation. 

Even harder, is to get rid of a bad character. You know the difference between reputation and character. Reputation is what people say about you. Character is who you really are. After a while you may be able to rescue a bad reputation. It is much more difficult to change a bad character. 

There are many people who believe that real change isn't even possible. These people will quickly recite Jeremiah 13:23, "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil.” 

If Jeremiah were right, Saul would have forever remained a monster. But he didn't. He became one of the most positive, one of the most loving people who ever lived. How did it happen? Even more important, how is it possible for you and me to change our character or to help people we love change theirs?  First of all, we need people who believe in us. For Paul, it was, first of all, Ananias. Later, in today's lesson, it was Barnabas. Barnabas' real name was Joseph. He was a Levite from Cyprus. However, because of his character, the apostles called him Barnabas, which means Son of Encouragement (Acts 4:36). 

What a great name, Son of Encouragement. There are people in this church who could be called Barnabas, for they are encouragers. They encourage me. They encourage their friends. They encourage our young people and our children. They are a delight to have around.  It was Barnabas who helped convince the church at Jerusalem that Saul was not a monster, that the change in his life was real. We all need a Barnabas in our lives, a person who believes in us and lends us their support. 

[On this Mother's Day], it is important for us to note that many of us got the encouragement we needed to make our lives successful early in our lives. We had Barnabas parents, particularly Barnabas mothers to encourage us. To give us praise when we did well, and empathy when we fouled up. 

Actress Terri Garr credits her mother with helping her to face the biggest challenge of her life.  Terri was eleven when her father died. Terri's mother set out to take care of the family herself.  Her mother crafted a pin inscribed with the letters EGBOK, which she wore every day.  It stood for "Everything's going to be OK."  

Memories of her mother's hard work, resourcefulness, and positive attitude came in handy when, in 1999, Terri was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.  The popular actress and dancer didn't give up her career.  In fact, she expanded her career.  As a spokesperson for an organization called MS Lifelines, Garr travels the country giving humorous and informational talks about coping with multiple sclerosis.  She refuses to focus on the negatives of her life.  She can find something to laugh about every day.  And she is inspiring other MS patients to use humor in facing their challenges too. (4) 

Encouragement makes a difference. Particularly when we are trying to make an important change in our life. That's why there are so many support groups nowadays. Few people can make significant changes in their life without somebody standing by them--somebody who will believe in us and stand by us. 

Even more important, we need the gracious love of Christ. The most popular and successful programs in this country for helping people change are twelve step programs that help people conquer such things as alcohol and drug addictions. All effective twelve-step programs begin with belief in a "higher power." Most people find that they cannot change their character without God's help. It might not be as dramatic an encounter as Paul experienced on the road to Damascus, but still when someone makes a really significant change in their life, God is involved. 

One-time atheist, Lee Strobel, describes such a moment in his life: "My daughter Allison was 5 years old when I became a follower of Jesus," he writes,  "and all she had known in those five years was a dad who was profane and angry. I remember I came home one night and kicked a hole in the living room wall just out of anger with life. I am ashamed to think of the times Allison hid in her room to get away from me. [But] five months after I gave my life to Jesus Christ, my little girl went to my wife and said, ‘Mommy, I want God to do for me what He's done for Daddy.'  She'd never studied the archeological evidence. She'd never had a course in Christian doctrine. All she knew was her dad used to be . . . hard to live with. But more and more her dad is becoming [someone else]. If that is what God does to people, then sign her up." Strobel concludes: "God changed my family. He changed my world. He changed my eternity." (5) 

How do monsters become responsible men and women? They do it with help from their friends. More importantly, they do it by the grace of Jesus Christ.


1. Pat Williams, The Paradox of Power (New York: Warner Faith, 2002).

2. Contributed. Source unknown.

3. John A. Budke, Emphasis, Jan./Feb., 1999, p. 41.

4. "Funny Girl" by Lynn Rosellini, Reader's Digest, September 2004, pp. 67-70.

5. Lee Strobel, The Case for Christ. Cited by Rev. Daniel Meyer, Senior Pastor, Christ Church of Oak Brook, IL http://cc-ob.org/sermons/2003/03sermons.htm.

Dynamic Preaching, Collected Sermons, by King Duncan