“9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 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…”

Acts 9

I have read the story of Saul and how he went from the biggest persecutor of the Christians to the single most important figure for bringing non-believers to Jesus but until recently, it never meant to much to me.  Saul had just orchestrated the stoning death of Stephen who was appointed by Peter to lead the church, and then God was ready to move.  He called down from Heaven to Saul, made him blind for 3 days, and then had his former enemy, a believer in Christ (through the power of the Holy Spirit), restore his sight.  From that moment on, Saul preached the Gospel and became known as Paul to the rest of the world.  So why did God choose a sinner to become the biggest saint in history?

Why Does God Use Sinners?

Have you ever been through something so awful that you thought you might never get through it, only to have someone tell you “I know how you feel”.  How could they possibly know how you feel? I feel that this is one of the main reasons that God has a history of choosing the “lesser” and more “rough around the edges” in society to be his vessels for Truth. God does this because I firmly believe that you cannot relate to someone in the worst time of your life unless you have been through something similar.  I believe that this is also why God allows some bad things to happen in people’s life because nothing helps others more than hearing a story about someone who has overcome massive hardships only to succeed and end up better off than before.  People are ultimately saved and find Christ through the blood of the lamb and the words of our testimony.  No one else can take the broken things and turn them to glory like Jesus! (Psalm 51:17)  “Father Abrham and his wife sinned against the Lord in one of the worst ways and God used him to “father his nations”.  King David was a murder and adulterer and God called him “A man after His own heart” (1Samuel 13:14).  Moses ignored the Lord, killed an Egyptian, ran from God for 40 years and yet God used him to part the red sea and lead “god’s people” out of Egypt.  And now we all know how God used and viewed Saul (the apostle Paul).  God is notorious for giving us the grace that we do not deserve.  The ironic part about this is that often times, people look down at these chosen people and call them fake or try to throw their past in their face.  God doesn’t care about scoffers because he is making things new for His purpose (Isaiah 43:18-19).  “I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” so rest assured he will make a way for all of those He loves.

In Summary, God wants to use all those who love Him and he especially loves those of us that have a checkered past because we can relate to other sinners much more easily than those who have led a blameless life.  What do you think God could use you for as it relates to bringing others to eternal salvations through the blood of Christ?

18 “Forget the former things;  do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.