A lot of people believe that Saul (later better known as the apostle Paul) was born again on the road to Damascus. However, this is untrue! The Bible makes it clear that he was still very much in his sins. Therefore, Saul was unconverted until he did what the Lord told him to do. When Saul arrived in the city, he prayed for three days and was in his sins. So, Saul did not become, as some claim, born again when he fell to the ground when the Lord appeared unto him. All three accounts of Saul’s journey to conversion (Acts 9:3-4; 22:6-7; 26:12-14) tell us that, when he saw the light from heaven, he fell to the ground. Nowhere in the Scriptures do we read that he fell from a horse or a camel. This assumption is one that we have inherited from medieval art and human tradition, not from God’s Word! It is no more true that Saul was born again or saved on the road to Damascus.
Far too many assumptions are made about God’s Word, based upon human tradition and misunderstandings. In Acts 22:16, the Bible tells us that Saul was still praying and unhealed of his blindness. Only when he was baptized, that is, fully immersed for the forgiveness of his sins, was he truly converted. This is when Saul was born again and entered into the kingdom of his Lord. He did not become a Christian on the road as he fell to the ground because of the light of God the Son. Saul prayed for three days straight in Damascus, and yet he remained in his sins! Saul was only right with God when he obeyed the command to be baptized!
Many people have the mistaken belief that one who is a born-again Christian is somebody who was once a Christian, then stopped being a Christian and became a Christian once again. That is clearly not found in the Word of God. Again, human tradition is not confirmed by Scripture but instead clearly contradicted.
Many people believe that they are born again through prayer! Yet, Saul himself said in Galatians 3:27 that in order to be in Christ, we put on Christ when we are baptized! Our Lord Jesus said in Mark 16:16 that we must be baptized in order to be saved. In the realm of theological discovery, one simply must put aside everything he thinks he knows to embrace Scripture as the sole authority for understanding God’s will.
It is of supreme importance that a person is right with God in this life. In fact, it is the most important thing anyone will ever do. We find these somber words in the book of Revelation. “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still” (22:11). When tradition is cast aside and we let the Bible interpret itself, the meaning becomes clear. The state of our relationship to God when we die is the state of our relationship with Him that we will continue in for all eternity!
Will you, Dear Reader, obey the Gospel call to become born again in Christ through immersion for the forgiveness of your sins? Or, will you reject Him and His teachings in favor of man’s traditions? Be like Saul and waste no time in obeying the command of the Gospel! Remember, Scripture always supersedes human tradition. Trust in God’s Word and His promises. Obey before it is too late!
