What happened when Saul met the ascended Lord on the Damascus road?
When confronted by the ascended Lord on the Damascus road, Saul of Tarsus saw the law meant what it said. He realized he was the biggest lawbreaker, a sinner who had persecuted believers, and confessed, 'I'm nothing.' He said, 'I died'—not physically, but the old Adam had to die.
Les explains that on the Damascus road, when Saul was suddenly confronted with the ascended Lord, the law finally took hold of him and meant what it said. Saul realized he was the biggest lawbreaker of all, that he had persecuted believers, and that he was nothing. He said, 'I died,' but Les points out this was not physical death; it was the old Adam that had to die. This is the theme of Romans: dealing with the old sin nature that constantly makes man rebel against God's tenets. Les stresses that no one can deal with old Adam in the flesh, and it is not accomplished by joining a church. He uses the illustration of a trained horse that later exploded with an outside source of energy and showed itself for what it really was—just as old Adam can be cantankerous and buck against God. We must come to grips with that old Adam, but not by church membership.