Mims Chapel Church 

Lesson 10 ° First Week

The Conversion of the
Ethiopian and Saul

Background Reading                          Devotional Reading
Acts 8:26-31; 15:3;                              Acts 8:26-40 James 5:19; 9:1-22

Central Verse
"That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation."              Romans 10:9-10, KJV


"If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declar­ing your faith that you are saved."
Romans 10:9-10 NLT


Key Terms
Eunuch —A castrated man placed in charge of a harem or employed as a chamberlain in a palace; a man or boy deprived of the testes or external genitals.
Pricks—Something sharp or pointed; a pointed instrument or weapon.

Introduction

We have the record of two men who were sinners and by the grace of God they were converted and turned to God in this lesson. Each one of them had to abandon something that wasn't right in their lives and embrace a life of following and living for Jesus. Many times, non-believers are called heathens because they are generally under the influence of sin and have not embraced good, holy living.

But one thing we know is that when they become converted their lives make a drastic change, and they are not the same as they were before the conversion. "If any man be in Christ Jesus, he becomes a new creature" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

It is important to note that the early believers were quick to take note of what Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, or the angels had to say. In this passage the angel of the Lord spoke to Philip and gave him directions to go south like a person would do when going down to Jerusalem from Gaza, which is a desert.

Discussion

When Philip obeyed the angel, he encountered a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Queen Candace of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem to worship. The eunuch was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the Prophet, when the Spirit of the Lord directed Philip near the chariot. When Philip got near the eunuch, he asked him if he understood what he was reading. The eunuch asked Philip, "How can I, except some man guide me?" (Acts 8:31). It is important for new believers to have qualified teachers available for good, foundational teaching. "How can they hear without a preacher? And how can he preach except he be sent?" (Romans 10:14-15).

The eunuch invited Philip to come and sit with him while he read from Isaiah 57:7-8. As he read that passage, he had questions concerning it, so Philip began at that scripture and preached Jesus unto him. The Word of God is so powerful that it can break and destroy every hold that the enemy has. As the chariot rolled along, it came to a body of water, and the eunuch asked if he could be baptized, so they both went into the water and Philip baptized the eunuch. As he was baptized and came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away and the eunuch saw him no more as he went on his way rejoicing. The Lord had moved Philip on to Azotus, passing through preaching in all the cities until he came to Cesarea.

Now we talk about Saul who consented to the death of Stephen. He held the coats of the men who partook in the stoning of this righteous man. He continued to breathe out threats and committed slaughter against the Disciples of the Lord and went unto the high priest. He received letters from Damascus to the synagogues, demanding that if he found any "of the way," whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.

On the road to Damascus, Saul suddenly saw a bright light shining around him. He fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying unto him, "Saul. Saul, why persecutes thou me?" And Saul said, "Who art thou Lord? And the Lord said, "I am Jesus whom thou persecute: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks" (Acts 9:4-5). Here, Saul had a personal encounter with Jesus as His risen Lord. Each person may have a different experience during their conversion, but the important thing is that they have that conversion.

Saul was trembling and astonished as he asked the Lord what He wanted him to do. The Lord told him to rise and go into the city, and there he would be told what to do. He obeyed Jesus' words to him, even though the men standing with him were speechless and heard nothing. Sometimes when God speaks, only the person that He is speaking to will hear Him, and no one else.

Saul went three days without physical sight, but he understood and obeyed God. There was a certain man in Damascus named Ananias that God had spoken to. God gave Ananias instruction to go to Straight Street and inquire in the house of a man named Judas for Saul of Tarsus, who now prays, and has seen in a vision a man named Ananias putting his hands on him, so that he might receive his sight. Ananias told God that he had heard of Saul, and he had heard about all the terrible things that he was doing to the believers. But Jesus told Ananias that Saul was a chosen vessel to bear His name to the Gentiles as well as the kings and children of Israel. He was going to show Saul great things that he would suffer for His name's sake.

Ananais obeyed God and went to the house of Judas and laid his hand on Saul, saying, "Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus that appeared unto you in the way as you came, sent me that you might receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Ghost." Immediately, the scales fell from his eyes, and he received his sight and was baptized. He got up, ate, and stayed with the believers for a few days in Damascus.

Conclusion

God takes the foolish things of this world and confounds the wise. Three days after Paul's conversion, he was filled with the Holy Ghost, and he was no longer hunting the Saints to kill and hurt them. He began to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, telling people in the Synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. The people who heard him were amazed because they knew his lifestyle, how he had persecuted them. They saw and heard the change that had been wrought in his life.

Questions

When a sinner embraces Jesus, what happens in their life?
Who was the man Phillip met sitting in his chariot?
What does the power of the Word of God do?
Why was Ananias nervous about laying hands on Saul?
How many days after Paul's conversion did he get filled with the Holy Ghost?

Essential Thought- "Jesus wants to change you for the better, if you allow Him."

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