Jesus met Saul on the Damascus road, where Saul was struck blind and sent to a room on Straight Street to wait.
Saul had to trust and rely on others to get him to the room on Straight Street. He had to trust and rely on others for his safety and care, in his blindness; although, he didn’t eat or drink anything for three days.
What an exercise in humility for this religious zealot, who went about heartily killing Christians. You can read in Acts 9 how Saul’s actions were sanctioned by the high priests and, in his mind, justified by his deep belief in religious law.
What a difference a three days makes!
Every Christian was fearful of Saul. The Lord sent Ananias, a humble, albeit scared servant to give Saul his sight back. We learned that something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, his eyesight was restored, he was baptized and began preaching, declaring Jesus the Son of God.
What an about-face!
It was such an about-face that the very people who sanctioned his earlier anti-Christian actions soon planned to kill him. But Jesus’ disciples, as skeptical as they were about his newfound faith, saved Saul’s life. At some point we start calling Saul, Paul and the rest is history.
Since reading this passage, I’ve often wondered about the significance of Straight Street in this story, as if it were a metaphor for Paul’s new path. The straight and narrow path Jesus put him on. Not an easy one, but one He embraced like the “zealot” he was at heart.
He was no longer Saul, roaming the countryside looking for Christians to kill. Now, Paul was on a clearly planned, straight path looking for souls to save.
Thank you, Jesus!
This post is part of the Five Minute Friday 10 day Writing Challenge. A five-minute free write to the daily prompt. Posting late with the prompt for day eight – STREET – even though it’s day nine.
