What did Saul recognize when the law finally got a hold of him?
Saul recognized that he was the biggest lawbreaker of all and that he was nothing. When the law finally took hold, he saw his sinfulness, including persecuting believers, and concluded that his old Adam had to die. He did not die physically, but the old sin nature had to die.
Les explains that on the road to Damascus, when Saul of Tarsus was confronted with the ascended Lord, the law meant what it said to him. Saul realized he was the biggest lawbreaker of all, which is why he claimed to be such a sinner; he had persecuted the believers. When the law finally got a hold of old Saul, he had to recognize, “I’m nothing.” He says, “I died,” not physically, but the old Adam had to die. Les ties this to Romans’ theme: dealing with the old sin nature that constantly makes man rebel against God’s tenets. That old Adam cannot be dealt with in the energy of the flesh, and it is not accomplished by joining a church.