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THE FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS OF THIS "SO GREAT SALVATION" — Part 2 Acts 9:3-4: "As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" In the previous devotion, I described the common elements, which are always present, in the divine application of this 'so great salvation' in the credible conversion of a sinner. First, there must be a supernatural and miraculous intervention from God! Then, flowing from this divine intervention, simultaneously, this Person suddenly finds themselves in a humbled position of genuinely hearing the Word of God from the heart! May I add, dear friend, that these concurrent realities are the most glorious phenomenon that can occur in the life of a sinner! Saul had been breathing out threats and slaughters and suddenly found himself in the humbled position of "being acted upon by the Lord Jesus; and responding by genuinely listening to the Lord, the one whom He has been persecuting. Have you ever found yourself in the position of the conscious realization that the Almighty Lord is personally addressing you? Furthermore, have you ever found yourself in the humbled position of silently and seriously considering the condition of your soul, the destination of your soul, and the desperate need of your soul? Notice these words, "And heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?'" The identity of "the Word made flesh" has suddenly become extremely substantial, personal, and penetrating to him. Has this spiritual reality occurred in your heart and life? Has the Spirit of God so powerfully gripped the attention of the inner core of your being that the truth concerning the Lord Jesus was no longer distant historical events in the back of your mind? Consequently, from this reality, you no longer act as if "The Lord Jesus was the One who was at the mercy of your preconceived notions about Him." On the contrary, you were abruptly confronted by the truth that "You are the particular person who is on trial before the living God." Then, come to realize that it was God Himself that was dealing with you. Now, let's observe a second element that is always involved in this dramatic encounter of regeneration, unto authentic conversion. There is an awakening awareness that 'the only truth that now matters is not what you think of the Lord Jesus; but what the Lord Jesus thinks of you, in your present condition before Him!" Up to this point in Saul's life, he was determined to do many contrary and destructive things to the Lord Jesus Christ and His church. The overarching purpose of his life was to act furiously on his erroneous opinions of Jesus of Nazareth. But suddenly, everything was dramatically and radically reversed. Saul of Tarsus was now deeply concerned about what the Lord Jesus Christ thought of him in his present condition. Suddenly, he was gripped with an acute awareness that he was the deserved object of the judgment and wrath of God the Son! He heard these words, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" It is obvious that a mere intellectual assent to some historical facts about your sin and the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ falls far short of authentic conversion. There must be a supernatural and miraculous encounter with the living God, in which you find yourself in the humbled position of hearing and heeding the truths concerning "Who the Lord Jesus truly is; who you are, in your condemned condition before Him; and the glorious good news of God's provision, in the Person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ!" The question is, "Have you ever been graciously ushered into the penetrating consciousness that the Lord is dealing with you, personally and directly? So that the only truth that presently seized your soul was, "What does the Holy Judge of the universe think of me in my present condition?"