And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord. (Acts 22:16)

No Hesitation

The spirit of acceptance has always characterized obedience to God’s will without hesitation. When Ananias came to Saul of Tarsus, his message was for the persecutor to accept the will of God in his life and obey the Lord’s commands. It was a remarkable change for the man who violently challenged the early church, dragging men and women to prison, compelling saints to deny Jesus, and casting his vote for those condemned to die. Ananias exhorted Saul not to wait, but arise and be baptized, washing away his sins. Calling on the name of the Lord demands action. Saul responded immediately because his heart did not challenge the word of the Lord. There was no time to argue or fuss over whether baptism was necessary. Saul obeyed without hesitation.

Obedience to the word of the Lord demands acceptance without hesitation. God told Abraham to leave his country for a place unknown. Abraham obeyed immediately. When the son of promise was born to Abraham and Sarah, God tested Abraham, telling him to sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that the Lord would show him. Abraham rose early in the morning and set out on the three-day journey to the place where he would offer his son. There was no hesitation as Abraham came to the place that God had told him about and built an altar to sacrifice his only beloved son. Without hesitation, Abraham took a knife to slay his son, but the Angel of the Lord stopped him. Abraham obeyed in faith believing the word of the Lord without doubting.

Goliath confounded the army of Israel for more than forty days. No man dared fight him as he was the champion of the Philistines. All the mighty men of Israel were fearful of the giant. King Saul was dismayed and greatly afraid of Goliath. The army of God could do nothing but cower in their tents. It was David who immediately stepped into the valley of Elah to face the giant. There was no hesitation on David’s part to face the giant because the Philistine dared defy the people of the Lord. With the courage of faith and the resilience of trust in God, the young shepherd faced Goliath and killed him. There was no hesitation on his part to do the will of the Lord.

On the Day of Pentecost, Jerusalem was filled with devout Jews from every nation. The Holy Spirit came upon the twelve apostles to declare the good news of the resurrected Christ. Peter showed how Jesus of Nazareth was the long-promised Messiah who would take away the sins of the world. The Jews had crucified Jesus, but God made Him Lord and Christ. When the crowd heard the message of salvation through Jesus Christ, they were pricked in their hearts and begged Peter to tell them what to do. Peter told them to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins. The gift of the Holy Spirit would be given to them as a promise from the heavenly Father.

There was no hesitation on the part of three thousand Jews who immediately obeyed the gospel. They did not argue that faith alone saves or that grace saves them apart from baptism. Three thousand devout Jews immediately obeyed the word of the Lord. The examples of conversion in the book of Acts show the same kind of urgency. There were no debates, arguments, or long discussions. The Ethiopian eunuch responded, “Here is water, what hinders me from being baptized?” Hearts opened to the word of God do not argue with God. Ananias told Saul not to wait, and the man from Tarsus did not wait. Why do you wait?