Acts 9:15
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man [Saul of Tarsus] is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.”
Usually, the story of Ananias is used to illustrate the unwilling messenger who is obedient ultimately and delivers the message of God. Courageous Ananias spurns reason and goes to the appointed house to lay hands on the most notorious anti-Christ of the time, Saul of Tarsus. I believe he went with fear and trembling, but he went with faith.
One thing, however, that Ananias does not really do: he doesn’t tell Saul the whole story. Oh yes, Ananias lays hands on Saul who then receives his sight. And this laying on of hands brings the anointing of the Holy Spirit. But Ananias does not drop the bomb that Saul (eventually changed to Paul) would be the one to carry the name of Jesus to the Gentiles. This would have been a huge deal–a shock!
At this point in the story, the Gentiles were not anywhere in the equation. Ananias was really the first to hear and record this fact: the Son of God manifested for everyone, not just the Jews.
That is no less true today.
The way of Christ is not a mandate but an opportunity. It’s far-fetched and far-reaching. It’s not about race, nationality, or religion. God is sovereign and His Son no less so.
Oh, if we could just walk the essence of His message. Truly, the lion and the lamb could live together.
Meditations from Zion 
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