Life's Most Important Encounter
Acts 9:01-09

Following the death of Stephen, Saul became the chief persecutor of the followers of Jesus Christ. "Cooling down a fanatic is easier than warming up a corpse!" (William McCumber)
What happened to Saul is important to you and me. If each one of us is to have Life, the discovery made by Paul on the Damascus Road must also be made by us!

I. Saul discovered that Jesus is Alive!


A. Convinced of his own moral goodness, Saul was sincere, but he was wrong.


1. Our beliefs must be true as well as sincere.
2. Consider the case of poor Will.
Poor Willy is with us no more.
What Willy thought was H2O
Was really H2SO4 (Sulfuric Acid).

3. The Bible says: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31)?
4. Jesus said: "I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (Jn. 14:6).


B. Christ is still alive in his disciples.

II. Saul discovered Jesus is the Church.


A. Jesus identifies with His people.


1. The Church is the Body of Christ.

B. What we do with the Church is a good indication of our attitude toward Christ.
C. Saul's conflict was not merely with the Church, it was an inward conflict with Christ.

III. Saul discovered Jesus as his Savior and Lord (vv. 7-9).


A. When one is born again, he knows there's a dividing line - a "before" and an "after."
B. Christ must be discovered as "Savior."
C. Christ must be discovered as "Lord."


1. The Christian is one who has ceased to do what s/he wants to do and who had begun to do what Christ wants to do.
2. Paul wrote for all to know, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16).