Could Paul Have Rejected Jesus (on the Road to Damascus)?
Calvinists often point to Paul’s conversion experience on the road to Damascus to support their doctrine of “irresistible grace.”[1] They claim Paul could not have said “no” to Jesus. Here’s a summary of the encounter:
Paul, who was named Saul at the time, had just obtained a letter from the high priest of Jerusalem, giving him the authority to arrest Christians (Acts 9:1-2). So Saul was in route to Damascus to arrest Christians. Suddenly, a bright light shone, and Saul fell to the ground. Then Jesus asked, “Why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:3-4).
Saul then asked, “Who are you Lord?” (Acts 9:5).
Jesus answered, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads” (Acts 9:5).
Saul was “trembling and astonished” and asked, “What do you want me to do?” (Acts 9:6).
Jesus replied, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do” (Acts 9:6)
Saul then went to Damascus, was baptized, and immediately began preaching Christ in the synagogues.
Calvinists assert this conversion account confirms their doctrine of irresistible grace. They claim Paul could not have resisted Jesus. Are they right?
Not according to Paul. When Paul was recounting his conversion experience to King Agrippa, he specifically said, “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19)—which implies he could have been. To suggest otherwise is just nonsense. Nobody would make such a statement if it were not possible. If I said, “I did not fly my plane to work today,” I would be implicitly saying I could have done so. It’s the same with Paul’s statement. Paul was implicitly saying he could have disobeyed.
Common Calvinist Objection
Whenever Calvinists are confronted with this fact, they often respond sarcastically. For example, Calvinist James White said in a debate with Steve Gregg: “[Imagine if Paul said “no.”] What’s God going to do now? He has all these plans, he has all these people he wants to get saved, he has all these churches to found…”[2]
Calvinist Mike Bennett said something similar in a recent text conversation: “Man, God really got lucky that Paul didn’t say “no” or we’d have no Bible (paraphrase).”[3]
Such comments are so silly that they are almost not worth responding to, however, because Calvinists make them so often, I’ll take the time to respond:
First, had Paul said “no” to Jesus, Jesus could have easily gotten someone else. It wasn’t like Paul—a mere man—could thwart God’s grand plan of salvation and the writing of the New Testament by saying “no.”
Second, Jesus didn’t just pick Paul randomly. Jesus obviously knew that the reason Paul opposed him was because Paul did not believe that Jesus was on God’s side. Paul was not persecuting Christians because he was anti-God, rather, he was persecuting Christians because he thought Jesus was anti-God. Paul specifically said he did it in “ignorance” (1 Tim. 1:13). But once Paul figured out Jesus was on God’s side (during his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus), he quickly joined the Christian movement—not because he was forced to by some irresistible calling, but because he genuinely wanted to serve God (see Phil. 3:4-6).
Paul’s conversion experience in no way supports the Calvinist view. Just the opposite. Paul’s words themselves (in Acts 26:19) actually prove the non-Calvinist view.
By Alex Polyak, founder of Answering Calvinism, 12/1/25
[1] “Irresistible grace” basically just means that God’s calling is irresistible. Once God calls someone to be a Christian, the person cannot resist. The person will “choose” to become a Christian—no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
[2] James White debate with Steve Gregg part #1, 12/8/23, YouTube video, 36:45.
[3] Mike Bennett said this in a text conversation with me on 11/28/25.