Devotionary

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Ep 422– Acts 15:22-41 Feb 11, 2018

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Getting along with others is not easy, even in the best of times. Families where love for one another is a high priority can still find themselves struggling with unity and battling over things like rights and personal preferences. In Acts 15:22-41, we are going to see that conflicts and disunity were a constant problem in the early church. The increasingly diverse makeup of the growing church was creating natural tensions and disagreements. Debates were becoming increasingly more common, even among the leadership. But through it all, there was a strong desire on the part of the apostles to maintain a spirit of unity in the midst of all the diversity. That is exactly what Jesus had prayed would happen. The members of the church in the first-century were under a great deal of pressure. They faced ongoing and increasing opposition from the Jews as well as the pagans. Their presence in the community was seen as a threat to existing religions and even to the social fabric of the society. Christianity was disruptive, turning entire cities upside-down and creating an unnecessary and unwanted stress on the status quo. And the fledgling congregations felt the tension. Many of the members of the local churches had been cut off from their families because of their faith. Others had lost their jobs. Those who had walked away from pagan religions were ostracized by their former friends. And all of them were having to learn the delicate task of getting along with those with whom their only source of commonality was their faith in Christ.

Ep 421 – Acts 15:12-21 Feb 10, 2018

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Things were moving at a rapid pace for the early church. God was doing incredible things and the Spirit of God was moving mightily, not only in Jerusalem, but around the world. And all this change was causing consternation for many in the church, especially those Jews who felt that Christianity was an extension of their Jewish faith. They could not fathom a religion that was anything but Jewish at its core, with circumcision and the Mosaic law as central tenets and non-negotiable requirements. But in Acts 15:12-21, Luke records the testimonies of Paul and Barnabas as they reported their efforts among the Gentiles. But their real focus was on what God had been doing. What had taken place among the Gentiles had clearly been the work of God, and not the result of men's efforts. And what they had to say was going to have a dramatic impact on those who heard them, because it became clear that God was doing a new and different thing among them. Who were they to dictate to God the rules by which He was going to redeem mankind. They were walking on thin ice if they thought they could tell God how to accomplish His divine redemptive plan. Paul and Barnabas had simply walked in unity and rhythm with God, obediently and submissively doing His will His way. And the results spoke for themselves. Peoples' lives had been radically changed. The Spirit had come and the light of the gospel had begun to permeate the darkness in which the Gentiles nations were trapped.

Ep 420 – Acts 15:1-11 Feb 09, 2018

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Internal conflict. It can happen in a marriage, a business, a home, or even in a church. And it seemed to be a regular presence in the growing body of Christ during the first century. As if all the external opposition wasn't enough, the new church found itself dealing with an intense and potentially divisive debate over the heart and soul of the apostles' ministry given to them by Jesus: The gospel. As the news regarding Jesus' offer of salvation began to spread outside the borders of Judea and Judaism, it raised some critical concerns among those who had been the first to accept the gospel message: The Jews. If you recall, the 120 individuals who had been in the upper room on the day of Pentecost had all been Jews. They had also been believers in Jesus Christ. Jesus had restricted His ministry to the land of the Jews. He never ventured outside of Judea. And, for the most part, his audiences were made up primarily of Jews. He did have interactions with non-Jews such as the Samaritan woman, but they were rare. But with the coming of the Holy Spirit, the message of salvation by faith alone in Christ alone had begun to spread, with the result being the conversion of more and more Gentiles. And this is where the conflict arose. Some of the more hard-core Jewish Christians were of the strong opinion that the conversions of the Gentiles were incomplete or invalid unless they converted to Judaism first. But Paul would have nothing to do with it and he would do everything in his power to stand against it.

Ep 419 – Acts 14:19-28 Feb 08, 2018

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One minute, Paul and Barnabas were being treated like gods. The next thing they knew, they were being treated like dangerous criminals, with Paul even having to experience being stoned nearly to death. But the ups and downs of ministry didn't seem to faze Paul or Barnabas. They seemed to know that it came with the territory. It was part of their job descriptions as ambassadors for Christ. For these two men, the real issue was that they had been trusted with the task of bringing the good news of Jesus Christ to the Gentile world. And they knew that God had opened up a door of faith to these people, because they had watched as countless numbers of them were streaming through the narrow gate and walking the path that led to righteousness. The way of Christ. And Jesus had warned that His way was not going to be the easy or the popular way. "You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it" (Matthew 7:13-14 NLT). Paul knew the way well. And he had discovered that the road was indeed difficult and the journey fraught with dangers of all kinds. But he viewed any suffering he may have to endure along the way as well worth the effort and nothing compared with the value of the final destination.

Ep 418 – Acts 14:8-18 Feb 07, 2018

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In Acts 14:8-18, Paul and Barnabas have a seemingly chance encounter with a man who was born with some kind of physical abnormality that had left him unable to walk. He was in the crowd who had gathered to hear Paul and Barnabas speak. Most likely, he had to have been carried there by friends or family members. Or perhaps he dragged himself along, using his arms as his only means of locomotion. This scene takes place in the Gentile city of Lystra, a pagan city where the Greek gods were worshiped and idolized. Upon seeing this man in the crowd, Paul saw an opportunity to perform a sign. But first, he saw that this man had faith, enough faith to be healed. We're not sure exactly what Paul saw or how he saw it, but he was confident that this man's faith was strong enough to result in his healing. What happened next left the man transformed and the crowd amazed. So much so, that they attributed the miracle they had just witnessed to the work of the gods – their gods. They explained what they had witnessed by declaring Paul and Barnabas to be the gods Zeus and Hermes in human form. But they didn't stop there. They actually worshiped the two men, even preparing an animal sacrifice to offer up to them. But Paul didn't take their adoration well. He flatly refused it and took the opportunity to contrast the one true God with the false gods of the Greeks.

Ep 417 – Acts 14:1-7 Feb 06, 2018

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As we begin Acts 14, the first seven verses will reveal Paul and Barnabas ministering in the synagogue in Iconium. They would experience remarkable success in their efforts among the Jews and Greeks, seeing many come to faith in Christ. But they would also encounter more resistance, with some of the Jews doing everything in their power to turn the people against Paul and Barnabas. The end result was that the city became divided, with some siding with Paul and Barnabas, while others chose to join the Jews in their resistance of the gospel. But the real question is, why did some believe while others refused? What was it that caused some of the Jews and Gentiles to hear the message of Paul and Barnabas, accept it and receive Jesus Christ as their Savior? And yet, many others heard the very same message and ended up trying to stone the men who delivered it. It was the same message delivered by the same two individuals. So, what made the difference? What was the deciding factor that led to the conversion of some and not others? For Paul, the answer was simple. It was the sovereign grace of God. Anyone who came to faith, did so, not because of Paul's powers of persuasion or their own intelligence, but because God had called them. Salvation was and is the work of God, from beginning to end. Paul knew it, because he had witnessed it. Paul was convinced of it, because he had experienced it.

Ep 416 – Acts 13:42-52 Feb 05, 2018

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Over the centuries, millions upon millions of people have rejected the offer of salvation from sin offered through Jesus Christ. They heard the message, but deemed it untenable or unnecessary. People from all walks of life and from virtually every nation in the world have chosen to reject Jesus. They preferred the darkness over the light. They found more satisfaction and comfort in what they know, what was familiar to them, than in that which they couldn't fully understand or explain. In Acts 13:42-52, we will see Paul and Barnabas running into just such a group of people. In this case, they were Jews who chose to reject and contradict the words of Paul and Barnabas, refusing to believe what they had to say. And as a result, Paul accused them of being unworthy of eternal life. Paul was not indicating that eternal life has to be earned or deserved in some way. He was simply indicating that their stubborn refusal to accept the message of salvation made possible through faith in Jesus Christ kept them in a state of perpetual spiritual darkness. They had always been unworthy. Their sin separated them from God and condemned them to His judgment. But had they chosen to accept the free gift of eternal life offered to them by God, they would have been made right with Him, deemed worthy not because of anything they had done, but because of what Jesus had done for them.

Ep 415 – Acts 13:13-41 Feb 04, 2018

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What do you think Paul would have to say to a synagogue full of Jews living in a foreign country, far from the land of Israel? Well, thanks to Luke, we don't have to guess. He provides us with the details of just such a sermon, delivered by Paul in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. And he takes a note from the apostle Peter's play book, mirroring the content he used when he had spoken before the high priest and the Jewish Sanhedrin. Paul basically gives a history lecture, but with a very specific objective. He is trying to get them to understand that all of Jewish history pointed to Jesus as the Messiah or Christ. God had led them out of captivity in Egypt, back to the land of Canaan, the land promised to Abraham – but for a much greater reason than just their occupation of it and infatuation with it. God had given the people of Israel judges and then kings, including King David, but they were meant to hold the nation together, until such a time that God would send His Son. Paul's whole objective was to get to Jesus. He is not only the consummation of Israelite history, but of the entire world. He is the focus of all human history. But these Jews, hung up on their heritage and religious rituals, ran the risk of missing the very one God had promised to Abraham: The seed who would bless all the nations of the world.

Ep 414 – Acts 13:1-12 Feb 03, 2018

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What happens when godly leaders, compelled by the Spirit of God, send out godly men to do the work of God? Incredible things. That is what we see happen in Acts 13:1-12. Saul, better known to us as Paul, gets tag-teamed with his friend Barnabas, and sent out on the first of three missionary journeys that he will take. These two were called by God, but commissioned and sent out by the leadership of the local church in Antioch. There was a clear sense of calling on these two men's lives and a unified consensus among the local leadership that they should be sent, even if it ended up negatively impacting the church in Antioch. And in this section of verses, we are going to see God continue to redirect the efforts of the church, driving them further and further away from the central hub of Judaism, the city of Jerusalem, and into the world dominated by Gentiles. The very first convert Paul and Barnabas will have the joy of seeing will be a Roman government official. And we will see this Gentile radically juxtaposed to a so-called Jewish prophet who saw the message of Paul and Barnabas as bad news, not good news. He would reject their offer of salvation through Jesus Christ, losing his sight as a result. But the Roman proconsul would have his eyes opened and his life changed forever.

Ep 413 – Acts 12:12-25 Feb 02, 2018

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Many of the stories found in the Book of Acts are fantastic in nature. They involve supernatural events and the divine intervention of God in the everyday affairs of men. Then, there are stories that are somewhat humorous in nature. They provide us with reminders that all of these events were taking place among flesh-and-blood human beings, just like us. Sometimes the people involved failed to see the hand of God and ended up drawing some rather interesting conclusions. When the crowds had heard the disciples speaking in tongues on the day of Pentecost, they wrote it off as nothing more than a case of public intoxication – en masse. In today's episode, found in Acts 12:12-25, we have yet another comedic take on the affairs of the disciples. It involves Peter, and immediately follows his miraculous release from prison by God. He ends up at the home of Mary, but is denied entrance, because the disciples gathered inside, ostensibly praying for his release, refuse to believe it's really him. They leave poor Peter standing outside while they argue over the exact identity of the one waiting at the gate. Peter had been touched by an angel, but the rest of the disciples couldn't seem to put their finger on what was going on outside the house in which they sat. In this passage, we are going to see God's divine hand at work, freeing Paul and, ultimately, punishing Herod. One was doing the work of God, while the other was attempting to stop it. And only one would find success because the Lord was on his side.

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