Ananias (2)—Communion With the Lord - All The LORD is near Daily Devotionals for 2024

Then Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name." But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake."
Acts 9:13-16

Ananias (2)—Communion With the Lord
This passage emphasizes the lordship of our Lord Jesus. The Lord had spoken to Ananias. Ananias had replied, "Here I am, Lord." The Lord had told him what He wanted him to do. Now Ananias has a problem with the Lord's request and speaks to Him about it, addressing Him as "Lord." He acknowledges the lordship of Jesus, but feels uneasy about what the Lord had just told him to do.

Do we ever have feelings of this kind? We know from God's Word exactly what the Lord wants us to do, but we have a problem with doing it. We may be afraid. Perhaps, like Gideon in Judges 6 and 7, we feel inadequate. Or, like Jonah, we don't fully trust God. We may fear we may be embarrassed or disappointed by the result. We come up with many other reasons, too. At the heart of it all is the flesh. It neither can nor wants to obey the Lord.

God's solution for our worries or problems is very simple: Take it to the Lord in prayer! Do we realize what a privilege we have to commune with the Lord Himself about every concern or problem we have about anything He tells us to do? Our approach to Him can be in complete intimacy, but should always also be with full respect. He is Lord! He may show us, as He did Ananias, why He is asking us to do what He is requesting. But He does not have to do so. He wants us to have communion with Him, and He wants to give us His peace to guard our hearts and minds. May we value our privilege to speak frankly with Him about all on our hearts!

Eugene P. Vedder, Jr.