From Rebellion to Submission

 

Salvation is one of the greatest themes in all of Scripture, yet it is often misunderstood. Many people think of salvation merely as escaping hell, avoiding punishment, or securing a place in heaven. But the Bible presents salvation as something far deeper. It is the work of God in which a sinner is confronted with his sin, enlightened to the truth, brought to see Christ as his only hope, and humbled into submission before Jesus Christ as Lord.

The conversion of the apostle Paul provides a powerful pattern of this work. In Acts 9, Saul of Tarsus is introduced as a violent opponent of Christianity. He was “breathing out threatenings and slaughter” against the disciples of the Lord and was traveling toward Damascus with authority to arrest believers. Yet before he reached his destination, Christ confronted him. A light from heaven shone around him, he fell to the ground, and he heard the voice of Jesus. Saul’s entire course was interrupted and transformed.

Later, in 1 Timothy 1, Paul described himself as a pattern of Christ’s saving mercy. His experience was unique in its circumstances, but the basic spiritual principles displayed in his conversion illustrate what God does when He saves sinners.

Salvation Is the Work of God

The first truth we must understand is that salvation belongs to the Lord. A sinner does not accidentally become a Christian. Salvation is not something that quietly happens without producing any awareness of spiritual change.

People may experience conviction differently. One person may wrestle deeply with conviction for a long period of time, while another may be brought to repentance more quickly. The length or emotional intensity of conviction is not what determines whether salvation is genuine. What matters is whether a true work of God has taken place.

Just as the difficulty or length of childbirth does not determine whether a child has actually been born, the exact circumstances surrounding conversion may vary. Nevertheless, where God truly saves, certain fundamental realities become evident.

Paul’s conversion reveals several of them.

God Shows the Sinner His Enmity

Before Saul was converted, he believed he was serving God. He was religious, zealous, disciplined, and deeply committed to what he thought was righteous. Yet in reality, he was persecuting Christ.

Acts 9 exposes the true condition of Saul’s heart. He hated Christians, hated the gospel they preached, and therefore hated Christ Himself. He would never have described himself that way before his conversion, but his actions demonstrated his hostility toward the Lord.

This illustrates the biblical truth that fallen humanity is naturally at enmity with God. Romans 8:7 teaches that the carnal mind is “enmity against God.” Sin is not merely a collection of isolated mistakes. At its root, sin is rebellion against the rightful authority of God.

A sinner may appreciate God as a provider, protector, or giver of blessings while resisting Him as sovereign King and moral Governor. Humanity naturally resists God’s authority, His commandments, His holiness, and His right to rule.

When God begins a saving work, therefore, He exposes this rebellion.

Isaiah experienced something similar when he saw the Lord in His holiness. His response was not self-congratulation but confession: “Woe is me!” The publican in Luke 18 would not even lift his eyes toward heaven but cried, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” The prodigal son returned to his father confessing that he had sinned.

True conviction causes a person to stop defending himself and begin agreeing with God about his condition.

Paul eventually described himself as the chief of sinners. This was not empty religious language. He had been brought to see the depth of his own wickedness.

Sin Separates Man From God

The seriousness of sin becomes clearer when we consider what it has done to humanity’s relationship with God.

Man was originally created to enjoy fellowship with his Creator. But sin brought separation. Adam’s fall resulted not only in eventual physical death but also in spiritual alienation. Humanity became cut off from communion with God and deprived of the holiness and life that originally characterized man’s relationship with Him.

God is perfectly holy. Scripture declares that He is light and that in Him is no darkness at all. Fallen man, however, is corrupted by sin. Because God cannot approve wickedness, there is a great moral separation between the holy Creator and sinful humanity.

The sermon emphasizes that Scripture does not present God as indifferent toward wickedness. God’s holy character requires Him to oppose sin. Psalm 5 declares that He has no pleasure in wickedness and that evil cannot dwell with Him.

This should awaken us to the seriousness of our condition. The greatest problem of the sinner is not merely that his life is difficult or that he needs emotional peace. His greatest problem is that he stands guilty before a holy God.

The Sinner Is Under the Curse of the Law

Another aspect of man’s condition is that he stands under the curse of God’s law.

Galatians 3 teaches that everyone who fails to continue in all things written in the law is under its curse. The law demands obedience that is personal, perfect, and perpetual.

That means obedience must be personally rendered by the individual, it must be complete without failure, and it must continue without interruption.

No sinner can satisfy such a standard.

Even if a person could somehow live perfectly from this day forward, what would become of the sins already committed? The law does not overlook former transgressions simply because someone improves later.

Furthermore, breaking God’s law in one point establishes guilt. The law therefore exposes the impossibility of salvation through personal merit.

This is one of the purposes of God’s law: it strips away self-righteousness.

God Enlightens the Sinner

The second major element seen in Paul’s conversion is enlightenment.

As Saul approached Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly shone around him. More importantly, spiritual light entered his understanding. He discovered that the Jesus he despised was actually Lord.

Paul had previously considered himself righteous. He was a Pharisee, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and so confident in his religious obedience that he described himself as blameless according to his former understanding of the law.

But God changed his understanding.

In Romans 7, Paul explains that there was a time when he believed himself to be spiritually alive. Then the commandment came with its true force, sin revived, and he died. The problem was not that Paul had never heard God’s law before. The problem was that he had misunderstood its spiritual depth.

The Pharisees tended to reduce righteousness to external conduct. If a person had not physically killed someone, he could imagine himself innocent of murder. If he had not physically committed adultery, he could imagine himself morally pure.

Jesus revealed the deeper meaning of the law. Hatred in the heart reflects the spirit of murder. Lust demonstrates the heart of adultery. Covetousness exposes sinful desire even if nothing is outwardly stolen.

When God enlightens a sinner, His Word begins to penetrate beyond outward behavior and expose the heart.

The Law Points Us to Christ

God’s law teaches several essential truths.

First, it reveals that we are sinners. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

Second, it reveals that we cannot save ourselves. God’s standard is too high for fallen man to satisfy.

Third, it reveals the enormous gulf between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man.

Finally, it shows us that if salvation is ever to be ours, it must come through the merits of another.

That person is Jesus Christ.

Christ obeyed God’s law perfectly. Where we have failed, He obeyed. Where we have rebelled, He remained righteous. He accomplished the perfect righteousness sinners could never produce for themselves.

Then Christ died as the substitute for His people, bearing the penalty of sin.

The law therefore does not ultimately leave the awakened sinner merely looking inward at his guilt. It drives him away from confidence in himself and toward Jesus Christ as his only salvation.

Paul Bowed Before the Lord

After Paul was confronted and enlightened, his response reveals another essential aspect of genuine conversion.

He asked, “Who art thou, Lord?” When Jesus identified Himself, Paul’s next response was, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”

That question demonstrates a radical change.

The man who had begun the journey to Damascus determined to destroy Christians was now asking Christ for instructions.

Paul recognized Jesus not merely as someone who could rescue him from punishment but as Lord, Master, Owner, and Sovereign.

This is essential to understanding biblical salvation. Jesus Christ cannot be divided into two separate persons—one called Savior and another called Lord. He is both.

Many people want Christ to rescue them while refusing His authority. They want mercy without submission, forgiveness without repentance, and heaven without surrendering rebellion.

But the Christ who saves is the Lord.

Salvation Requires the Weapons of Rebellion to Be Laid Down

Imagine a rebel who has attempted to overthrow a king. The rebellion has failed, and the rebel realizes that judgment is approaching. He walks into the throne room still armed with his weapons and demands a pardon while remaining ready to fight the king.

Such a request would expose the contradiction in his heart.

A person seeking mercy must lay down the weapons of rebellion.

This picture illustrates repentance. The sinner comes to Christ not demanding the right to continue living independently but acknowledging Christ’s rightful authority.

Jesus has the right to govern what we believe, how we live, where we go, what we pursue, and what we reject. He is Lord.

That does not mean Christians become perfect the moment they are saved. They continue to struggle with sin and require daily grace. But the direction of the heart has changed. The saved sinner no longer desires to remain permanently at war with Christ’s authority.

He has bowed before the King.

Christ Saves His People From Their Sins

Matthew 1:21 declares concerning Jesus, “He shall save his people from their sins.”

Notice the wording. Christ does not merely save His people from the consequences of sin. He saves them from their sins.

Deliverance from final judgment is a glorious result of salvation, but salvation itself involves deliverance from sin’s dominion and rebellion.

This is why repentance and submission matter. A person cannot sincerely ask Christ to save him from sin while insisting upon retaining sin as his master.

When Jesus dealt with the woman taken in adultery, He showed mercy to her, but He also told her to go and sin no more.

Grace does not give permission for rebellion. Grace changes rebels.

Every Knee Will Bow

Philippians 2 declares that God has highly exalted Jesus Christ and given Him a name above every name. Ultimately, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

The question is not whether Christ possesses authority. He already does.

The question is whether we have bowed willingly before Him in repentance and faith.

Paul’s conversion presents three searching questions. Have you seen your enmity against God? Have you been enlightened to the spiritual demands of God’s Word and to the sufficiency of Jesus Christ? Have you acknowledged Christ as the rightful Lord of your life?

Salvation begins and ends with God. He exposes our rebellion, opens our understanding, points us to Christ, grants mercy, and brings the sinner to bow before the Son.

The testimony of Saul of Tarsus demonstrates how completely grace can transform a person. A persecutor became a preacher. A rebel became a servant. A man determined to oppose Christ became a man willing to suffer and die for His name.

That is what saving grace does.

God does not merely make sinners more religious. He does not merely improve their outward behavior. He brings them face-to-face with their guilt, reveals the glory and sufficiency of Christ, and turns rebellion into submission.

The sinner who once resisted the King eventually asks the same question Paul asked on the Damascus road:

“Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”