Acts 21:33-40 & Acts 22:1-2 Sheep Hear Their Shepherd!

Acts 21:33-40 & Acts 22:1-2  The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains.  Then he asked who he was and what he had done.  Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks.  When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers.  The crowd that followed kept shouting, “Get rid of him!”  As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, “May I say something to you?”  “Do you speak Greek?” he replied.  “Aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the wilderness some time ago?  ”Paul answered, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city.  Please let me speak to the people.”  After receiving the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd.  When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic]: “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.  ”When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet.

Paul had been warned by his Christian brethren not to go to Jerusalem.  He understood well what dangerous territory Jerusalem was for him.  In his early ministry after ministering in Damascus, he went to Jerusalem to preach the Good News he had discovered on the road to Damascus, but his presence in Jerusalem caused such a commotion that the church fathers moved him on to his hometown.  He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him.  When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.  (Acts 9:29-30)   Jerusalem was a hostile environment for all Christians.  After Stephen was stoned to death, the church of the Living God came under great persecution.  Many Christians in Jerusalem fled to other cities at that time, but the ones who stayed were ostracized and mistreated.  To be a Christian in Jerusalem usually meant you lost everything of value in this world: your family, status, inheritance, and reputation; therefore, making it difficult to support yourself or family.  The Christian church in Jerusalem was poor and in need of support.  Since Jesus was sensitive to the outcasts in the Jewish community; sinners, poor, the needy, disabled, and the sick, the early church carried this assignment to direct their ministry and service to such people.  The Pharisees had designated these people as the scum of the earth, criticizing Jesus for associating with such people.   Therefore, Paul was given the assignment by the pillars of the church to remember the poor in the Greek cities where he ministered.  In addition to remembering the outcasts in these cities, he also collected money for the poor in Jerusalem.  But Paul’s primary mission to the Greek world was to tell the Gentiles that God has sent Jesus of Nazareth to the world to atone for the sins of all people, that people can be right with the Creator, and inherit eternal life in God’s presence.  God’s purpose from the very beginning of time was to unite all his creation under the authority of the Righteous One, Jesus Christ.  All people in the world, Jews and Gentiles, are to be united as one people, known as God’s children through the atoning work of the cross.  With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.  (Ephesians 1:8-10)  In Christ and through Christ, people of every nation will come under the authority and guidance of the Good Shepherd.  “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.  I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen.  I must bring them also.  They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.  (John 10:14-16)  This ministry of unity under the name of Christ was an anathema to most of the Jews.  They were strongly against the idea of being right with God based only on the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ.  This would be a demotion of their coveted position of being the only people to know God, for they were the possessors of the law.  Since Paul was the point man in what they considered an apostate belief, they wanted him dead.

Paul was very sensitive to the Jewish way of living; he knew Judaism backwards and forwards.  He understood the significance of the Sabbath and was quite obedient to the ways of the religious Jews.  But his ministry was very strong in bringing the Gentiles to the knowledge of The Way.  For him, Christ was the only way to be right with God.  Judaism had its place and it was good, for the law and its regulations revealed the complete righteousness of God.  Every jot and tittle of the law must be fulfilled completely if a person intends to see God in peace.  But any variance of the law, as James writes, preferring another person above others in seating him or her in a congregation is sin.  Why? because the culmination of the law is to love others as you love yourself.  Jesus carries this idea of love beyond just loving people who look like us or act as we do, to others we might despise, sinners and enemies.  Jesus tells us to be perfect as God is perfect; any variance from God’s perfection will separate us from a holy God and eternal separation from the Creator of all things.  Paul understood well God’s mysterious plan of bringing all his creation under Jesus Christ.  The grace of God through Jesus Christ exceeds any attempt in the flesh to be right with God.  Nothing but the grace of God would ever make a person right with God.  Jesus completed the task of fulfilling the law's demands.  He alone is perfect without sin.  Consequently, for any of us to abide in holiness before a righteous God, we must accept the perfection of Jesus Christ as our perfection.  Paul tells the Galatians the essential truth of being right with God.   In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value.  The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.  (Galatians 5:6)  Christians abide in Christ through faith in Jesus’ work on the cross.  The atonement price has been paid; the blood of Jesus has been spilt for the sins of all mankind.  This idea of Christ alone riled up the Jews.  Their whole existence depended on works to please God.  They could not stand Paul’s apostate position of Christ alone is the way to God, so when they discovered Paul in Jerusalem, even in the Temple, their malevolence towards him burst out in a riot.  Rome held the commanders of the local garrisons to keep the people they governed under control.  A riot is exactly what a commander of an area would not like or tolerate.  So we see the Roman commander rushing to this scene.  The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains.  Then he asked who he was and what he had done.  Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks.  To quell the rioters, the commander quickly arrested Paul, thinking he might be the cause or instigator of such commotion.  He knew for certain that most of the people there wanted Paul killed, so he had his soldiers escort Paul back to the barracks.  However, this did not appease the crowd, for they wanted Paul’s life right there and now.  When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers.  The crowd that followed kept shouting, “Get rid of him!”  Finally the soldiers had to lift Paul to their shoulders to prevent the mob from killing him.

In this scene we see the devil manifesting himself in the words and actions of the rioters.  The devil had harassed Paul all the way through his journey on earth.  He had Paul stoned, beaten, jailed, threatened, and deprived of the necessities of life.  He never left Paul alone, for he knew the majesty of Paul’s ministry to people who were living in the captivity of sin.  He did not want to release these people to the mysterious plan of God.  Paul had learned of this mysterious plan of God of uniting all people under Jesus’ authority probably in Arabia where he first went after his salvation experience.  He would be sent primarily to the Gentiles, the mission of God to open all people to the Good News of being right with him through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross.  I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised.  For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles.  (Galatians 2: 7-8)  HIs mission to open the Good News to all people brought grave consequences to his life.  He never was left without the feeling that his life was in danger of being terminated, every day he faced death.  Even in the congregations of believers in these various Greek churches and in Jerusalem, there were those who hated him for they were false believers who desired Judaism to be imprinted on the new converts.  Some of these false believers could have been in the midst of the rioters.  But Jesus also experienced this kind of hatred; this constant threat of death.  The devil had promised him that he would always be ready to harass Jesus.  After the devil tempted Jesus directly in the wilderness, the scriptures say, When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.  (Luke 4:13)   A more opportune time was always on the docket while Jesus walked this earth.  In following Paul’s life we see the opportune time come often.  But God’s mysterious plan was always on the docket of Paul’s life.  He lived for Christ and he would die for Christ.  He was integral in bringing all people under the authority of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  He could not rest; he was constantly on the move, reaching new communities and areas with the gospel of the Good News.  Friends around this breakfast table this morning, what is on your dockets today? What moves you most in life; what do you hold dear to your hearts?  Is it your family, possessions, jobs, lifestyle or do you count those things lost compared with knowing Jesus as Lord and Savior.  Can we say this about you, How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion,“Your God reigns!”  (Isaiah 52: 7)  How much Good News is in you or is it in the back pages of your lives?  Of course, Jesus should be in the headline of every page of your lives.  Let the actions of God and his light be seen in every part of your lives.  Surely, breakfast companions this is your desire.  The Gospel, The Way, will be written in your lives today for all to see the face of God in this world.  

 

Acts 21:27-32 Give Your Life to Find It!

Acts 21:27-32 When the seven days were nearly over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple.  They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, shouting, “Fellow Israelites, help us!  This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people and our law and this place.  And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this holy place.”  (They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple.)  The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions.  Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut.  While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar.  He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd.  When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

Paul had been warned about what would happen to him if he went into Jerusalem again.  Paul had made trips to Jerusalem at least three other times after his conversion.  Now Paul is going to Jerusalem for the last time.  He will leave Jerusalem this time in chains.  Paul’s ministry of the Good News was always very troubling and toxic to the Jewish community.  They hated this man who they considered to be a traitor to Judaism.  He began to minister Jesus Christ as Lord in Damascus.  Immediately, his ministry about Jesus being the Messiah brought severe hatred toward him.  After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, but Saul learned of their plan.  Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him.  But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.  (Acts 9:23-25)  Jesus had told Paul that he would suffer much in proclaiming the Good News that Jesus is the Lord of all.  Suffering was a major part of Paul’s life.  Paul describes his difficult life to the Corinthians in his second letter to them, defending his position as an apostle.  I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again.  Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.  Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move.  (2 Corinthians 11:23-26)  The Jews’ animonsity towards Paul was so hot that they followed him from city to city, wishing to stone this apostate, the justifiable penalty for anyone who teaches another way to be right with God other than obeying the law given to them on Mount Sinai.  For Paul to go back to Jerusalem, the headquarters of Judaism, was suicidal in nature.  Paul understood that, and the Jerusalem church understood the danger that Paul has put himself in by going back to Jerusalem.  In order to ameliorate the hatred that the Jews had for Paul, they had Paul take the Nazarite vow, a commitment to God for a specific amount of time.  The Jerusalem church felt this Nazarite commitment on Paul’s part would persuade Paul’s enemies that Paul is fully supportive of the law and its regulations.  Of course Paul believed in the law and its regulations, but believed that Jesus Christ in himself fulfilled all the requirements of the Sinai law.  Only Jesus could satisfy the laws' requirement; consequently, to be perfect before God’s eyes, people must put their faith in Jesus’ works and not their own.  This idea was anathema to the Jews, for it eliminated much of their lifestyle of being Jewish, even their circumcision requirement.  Paul in many of the Greek communities was the point man for introducing the Good News, pointing out The Way to be right with God.  As the point of the spear, the Jewish community wished to do away with him. The Arabian Jews finally caught up with Paul in Jerusalem, and they riled up the crowd to kill him.

Paul in his conversion became a slave to Jesus Christ.  No longer was his will front and center in his life, but it was Jesus’ will that directed his life.  Consequently, he had to leave his old life behind him.  HIs focus as a new creature IN CHRIST was constantly on the will of God and on the great commission to go into all the world, preaching the Good News of eternal life to all who would put their trust in the works of Jesus Christ.  As a committed follower of Jesus, he left behind him many things that most people hold dear in their lives.  “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.  (Matthew 10:37-39)  Like a laser beam, Paul’s purpose for his life was to please his Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.  He would acknowledge Jesus as Lord and savior in every community he visited.  People knew Paul’s life emulated Christ in all of these communities.  Jesus also was rejected by the leaders of the Jewish community.  His life was threatened many times; at least eight times the Jews threatened to kill Jesus.  In Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth they attempted to murder him.  When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath.  And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.  But passing through their midst, he went away.  (Luke 4:28-30)  In other places the people wanted to stone Jesus for being an apostate.  Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father.  For which of these do you stone me?”  “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”  (John 10:31-33)   Blasphemy in the law always called for stoning the blasphemer.  This would cure the land from such contamination.  Consequently, Jesus was threatened with stoning many times.  Stephen’s words were considered to be blasphemous, out of anger they stoned him.  The Sanhedrin was the religious police of that day.  No act of supernatural activity by the apostate could delay the sentence of stoning, for those who practiced sorcery and divination could also perform supernatural acts.  Therefore, even though Jesus performed many miracles and Paul did also, that fact did not deter the Jews from wanting to murder them.  The barbarians who previously occupied Canaan were fully involved with such work of Beelzebub.

Paul had been in the hands of a mob many times in his life.  He had experienced the pain of people beating on him with their fists, trying to tear his eyes out, ripping up his flesh, probably stripping him of his clothing.  Once again he was experiencing the terror of being in the hands of people who were full of hatred for him.  Jesus had also experienced this same kind of hatred towards him.  “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.  If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own.  As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.  That is why the world hates you.  Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.'  (John 15:18-20)  John reminds us of what kind of spirit we should possess about the world and the things in it.  Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.   For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.  The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.  (1 John 2:15-17)  For sure Jesus did the will of his Father; He always did the will of his Father, even when faced with a horrible death on the cross of Golgotha.  It is not my will be done, but yours Father.  Paul is now in Jerusalem, not his will but the Father’s will.  Throughout his third missionary journey, Paul was collecting money from the Gentile churches in Macedonia and Greece for the Jewish church in Jerusalem.  It was the Father’s will that he collect this money to help the Christian Jews in Jerusalem, but now he was in a maelstrom of hurt; people in Jerusalem are intent on killing him.  They would have completed the deed if it were not for the Romans.  While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar.  It was the responsibility of the Roman garrisons to keep order in the area where they were stationed.  The  officers in the garrisons along with the civilian leaders were given the responsibility from Rome to control the  populace, keep them from rioting or disturbing the peace of the area.  So Roman soldiers rescued Paul from the violent crowd.  The rioters calmed down somewhat because going against the authority of Rome could mean death.  The commander at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd.  When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.  Paul’s life was saved for another day, but the will of the Father still lay heavily on his life.  He would eventually die in Rome, still in chains.  Dear friends around this breakfast table, living for Christ is a conundrum; we are free but yet slaves.  We have eternal life guaranteed to us, yet die daily.  We are in the world, yet not part of the world.  We bring peace to the world, yet find strife: Do you think I came to bring peace on earth?  No, I tell you, but division.  From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three.  They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”  (Luke 12:51-53)  What does all this mean for us who follow Christ as new creatures?  We are to do the will of God, focused on emulating Christ in everything we do.  Our daily lives must be centered on Christ.  People ought to see Jesus in our every action.  Paul lived a life where constant threats were on him.  People wanted to kill him.  Yet, he displayed the goodness of God.  Let us display the goodness of God in our lives regardless of circumstances so that Christ is glorified.    

Acts 21:15-26 The Old Has Passed Away!

Acts 21:15-26  After this, we started on our way up to Jerusalem.  Some of the disciples from Caesarea accompanied us and brought us to the home of Mnason, where we were to stay.  He was a man from Cyprus and one of the early disciples.  When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters received us warmly.  The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present.  Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.  When they heard this, they praised God.  Then they said to Paul: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law.  They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs.  What shall we do?  They will certainly hear that you have come, so do what we tell you.  There are four men with us who have made a vow.  Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved.  Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law.  As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they should abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.”  The next day Paul took the men and purified himself along with them.  Then he went to the temple to give notice of the date when the days of purification would end and the offering would be made for each of them.

As Paul and his companions leave Caesarea, some of the disciples of that city followed him to Jerusalem.  Near or in Jerusalem they stayed with Mnason, a Christian Jew.  In Jerusalem the church leaders greeted Paul warmly, for they had heard much about Paul’s ministry.  Even though they rejoiced with Paul about the Good News being spread in the Greek cities, some of what they heard about Paul’s ministry was troubling to them.  They had heard that Paul’s ministry was discounting the law and the necessity of being circumcised; they had heard in the Greek cities, he was advising the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs.  If those reports were true, Paul was preaching a very troubling message to the followers of Judaism.  Even though thousands of Jews had converted to Christianity, their zealousness for the law and its commandments were still an integral part of being right with God.  The law and its regulations were central to the culture of the Jewish society.  Paul’s teaching that Jesus is the only way to God caused these new converts some confusion.  How could they forsake the law given to Moses on Mount Sinai?  The law and its regulations permeated their daily lives and their spiritual understanding of God.  Without the law, its commands and regulations, they would lose much of their Jewishness, their unique identity as God’s chosen.  Consequently, the Jews challenged Paul’s teaching in every Greek community.  In Pisidian Antioch, we see this rebellion against the Good News.  The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.  But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city.  They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.  (Acts 13:49-50)  In Corinth the opposition to the Good News was so strong that Paul abandoned the synagogue and taught in a different location.  Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah.  But when they opposed Paul and became abusive, he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads!  I am innocent of it.  From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”  Then Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a worshiper of God.  (Acts 18:5-7)  Paul was attacked in Iconium, stoned in Lystra.  For the Jews to forsake God’s revelation to them from Mount Sinai would destroy their calling as God’s chosen people among all the people on earth.  They were God’s treasured people; the law and its traditions separated them from all other people.  The act of circumcision revealed physically this apartness from other people.  For them to shun Judaism, to abandon their heritage was apostasy.  Nevertheless, Paul taught that Jesus was the fulfillment of the law.  Jesus alone satisfied fully the requirements of the law.  The majority of the Jews would not accept Jesus as the Messiah, the fulfillment of God’s demands on humans.  In Rome at the end of his ministry, Paul criticizes his Jewish listeners about the hardness of their hearts.  Quoting Isaiah's words,  ‘Go to this people and say,“You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.  ”For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.  Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’  “Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”  (Acts 28:14-28)

In Jerusalem to tamper down the Jew’s anger toward Paul’s ministry, Paul is encouraged by the church leaders to take the Nazarite vow with four other men.  The Nazarite vow is a dedication to God for a certain amount of time; during this period of time, the vow demands the participant not to drink anything containing alcohol, to shave his head, and not to touch a dead body or anything that has died.  The church elders believed a commitment to a Nazarite vow by Paul would clearly demonstrate his acceptance of Judaism and its practices. The Jewish converts in Jerusalem were still very faithful to their religious heritage. This might seem strange to us today, for as Christians our zealousness is about following Jesus, not our former lives.  However, for the Jewish converts to Christianity, their daily lives and traditions hinged on the law.  In some ways their acceptance of Christ as the Messiah was like having duel citizenship in the house of the Lord: Jesus plus the law.  But Paul wanted no part of this duel citizenship idea; he is unwilling to carry the baggage of his previous life into his new life IN CHRSIT.  So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.  Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old one has gone, the new is here!  (2 Corinthians 5:16-17)   Paul has jettisoned his old life; its ideas, the traditions and roles that he once held dear to him as a rabbi.  He possesses a new-creature life to live, based entirely on faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.  The old ways of speaking, thinking, and acting were counted as garbage to him.  The question always is, how new are new creatures?  Paul battles the Jews in every community, for they were extremely reluctant to look at a better way to be right with God.  Because of this hardness of their hearts, the Holy Spirit spoke through Isaiah, they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes.  (Matthew 13:15)  Why is that?  As Jesus pointed out to the religious leaders and elders; they lived as hypocrites, saying the right things but failing to obey what they are instructing.  For the Jews, obedience to the law was their stated belief, but their daily lives betrayed what they said.  Paul’s ministry focused on the works of Jesus and his righteousness, not the righteousness of men through their own efforts of being right with God. The Jews revered Mount Sinai where the law was given; Golgotha is revered by Christians where freedom from sin is found.  Sadly, Mount Sinai never could change the innate sin of their hearts.  Paul states that the followers of the law possessed hard hearts; Jesus spoke of the teachers of the law as being hypocrites.  God opposed the Jews' outward show of piety and their religious functions.  Instead of fasting and observing special days, God wanted his people to have a heartfelt obeisance to Him.  Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?  Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?  (Isaiah 58:6-7)  The Israelites were chosen as a special people to express God to the world through their lifestyle.  They were set apart for God's glory, to honor him as The Creator of all things that were made.  However, instead, they fell far from God, even ending up worse than the heathen nations around them.  Paul loved his people; in reality, he gave up his own life for them.  But the darkness in their souls caused them to be an enemy to the Good News.  

The church fathers advised the Greek converts to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.  These few regulations based on the Jewish law would help solidify these new-found churches that consisted of both Jews and Greeks.  These basic restrictions would help the Jewish Christians in this transition period from Judaism to Christianity.  However, some of the Jewish converts preferred the whole law to be incorporated into the Christian dogma.  Paul resists that idea and strongly iterates that being right with God is not man’s work, but God’s work; it is grace given by God through faith in the works of Christ.  For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.  (Ephesians 2:8-10)  Paul as a former rabbi understood well how central works were in worshipping the God of Mount Sinai.  His religious fervor to please God through good works led him to persecute the church of the Living God.  He willingly destroyed Christian families; he chained both men and women and brought them to the Sanhedrin for punishment.  Some of these new Christians he targeted were put to death.  Paul agreed with these sentences of death to the apostates.  He watched with satisfaction as the religious leaders stoned Stephen.  For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it.  I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers.  (Galatians 1:13-14)  For Paul, Stephen and others like him deserved to be punished for they were corrupting the way to serve God.  Anyone who teaches another way of knowing God or other gods much be put to death.  You must not listen to the words of a prophet or dreamer.  The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.  It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere.  Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him.  That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God.  (Deuteronomy 13:3-5)  Even today we see religions that will not tolerate any variance to their religious traditions and customs.  In these communities and even nations, any other way to know God will not be tolerated.  Harsh treatment, ostracizing, shunning, or death is the deserved sentence for anyone who is perceived as an apostate.  In Christianity, traditions, customs, and rituals are not the way to know God.  The God we serve is one of freedom, full of grace and mercy.  Jesus, the Son of God, was sent by God the Father as a gift of love to mankind.  This love He demonstrated is the same love we should emulate in our daily lives.  Harshness and cruelty are markers of wayward religions and cults.  Jesus identified to the world a God of love and peace, not one who is harsh, demanding, willing to discipline anyone who steps out of line to his will.  Peace with God means accepting his gift to the world: Jesus Christ.  Jesus was crucified, whipped, humiliated for our redemption.  He was and is the ultimate and final sacrifice for people's sins.  As Christians we do not look to the old way of doing things, a problem for the new Jewish converts in Jerusalem.   We do not look to the world, maybe to restore something we thought we lost in previous generations.  No, we look forward with great anticipation to the new Kingdom in the presence of God.  All things will be new then, no different ethnic groups, no different languages, no different races, no poor, no disabled, no homelessness, no sorrow, no tears, no pain or anxiety.  All those divisions in this life or struggles will be wiped away.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.  (Revelation 21:4)  We Christians do not look back to former times or what we perceived as a better age, we say emphatically and joyfully, Lord come quickly, we long for your face.  So be it!  Amen! 

We are sorry to have missed the last two weeks, but we have both been sick with covid.  We are not yet back to normal, but are doing better.  

Acts 21:1-14 Serve Others

Acts 21:1-14 After we had torn ourselves away from them, we put out to sea and sailed straight to Kos. The next day we went to Rhodes and from there to Patara.We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, went on board and set sail. After sighting Cyprus and passing to the south of it, we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre, where our ship was to unload its cargo.We sought out the disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.When it was time to leave, we left and continued on our way. All of them, including wives and children, accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. After saying goodbye to each other, we went aboard the ship, and they returned home. We continued our voyage from Tyre and landed at Ptolemais, where we greeted the brothers and sisters and stayed with them for a day.Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven.He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’ ”When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem.Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, “The Lord’s will be done.”

Paul went to Jerusalem from Macedonia by ship. The ship stopped in Tyre to unload its cargo. Paulsought out the disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Hospitality was part of being in a Christian community. Allowing others to move into your home for a while was one of he gifts found in the early church. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:8-10) Then at Ptolemais, Paul stayed somewhere for a day. Again in Caesarea, he stayed with Philip the evangelist for a while. Paul and all of the missionaries needed places to stay when evangelizing. Christians opened their homes to others, denying themselves, allowing others to disturb their environment and usual routine. These visitors needed to be fed, to have a bed or room where they could rest and sleep. Hospitality was a way for Christians to follow Christ and to help spread the Good News to other people. In a very small way these actions fulfill Jesus’ statement of denying yourself and taking up the cross. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. (Matthew. 6:24-25) If your comfort and usual routine precludes you from doing the work of the cross, then you are denying your responsibility to the Lord. In some of these communities in the Greek world, hospitality could bring problems too, for Christians were not always safe from persecution from the worldly. Jason, a Christian Jew, had welcomed Paul into his home in Thessalonica. When a mob was stirred up, opposing Paul and his ministry, and when the mob could not find Paul, they dragged Jason before the leaders of the community. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house. (Acts 17:5-7) Jason had to post bond for his release. To be a Christian in the Jewish world and the Greek world was sometimes a dangerous identity. Christianity was invading a very dangerous, violent world of darkness. The devil and his cohorts were not going to passively allow the light of Christ to penetrate the darkness, so they often stirred up the people against the Good News. Consequently, suffering would be a major part of the lives of converts to Christianity in the emerging church. The apostles’ letters to the church always included the obvious that Christians everywhere were experiencing persecution because of the Good News. Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin.As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. (1 Peter 4:1-2) Those who chose hospitality over the threats of men and their communities were willing to suffer for the cause of Christ. 

As Paul journeys home, he meets many Christians who warn him about going back to Jerusalem. These people love Paul, desiring the best for him. All of them, including wives and children, accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. The people in Tyre had urged Paul to not put himself in danger by going back to Jerusalem, a hornet's nest of opposition to the Good News. However, Paul was determined to complete his third missionary trip by going back to Jerusalem. Their warnings, their premonitions, even their prophesies in the Spirit turned out to be valid. Paul’s freedom was taken away in Jerusalem. He lived out the rest of his life in chains. In Caesarea he lodges several days with Philip the Evangelist, who had four daughters who had the gift of prophesy. In Caesarea Agabus, a prophet, came down from Judea. Agabus knew the elite in Jerusalem were stewing over Paul’s ministry in the Greek world. As with Jesus while He was living, the priests had murder in their hearts. They wanted to kill this apostate, Paul. For them, Paul was chief in spreading Christianity. Even Jews were being converted to this idea of Jesus being the Lord. Agabus understood the hatred that existed in Judea against Paul and his ministry. Therefore, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’" Everything he said would come true. However, Paul had a mission to complete; he was not a free agent to do whatever he pleases.Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart, for the gospel of God—the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scripturesregarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 1:1-4) Even though Agabus and others prophesied correctly of what would happen in Jerusalem, Paul was under orders from Jesus himself. He had been set apart by Jesus to go into all the world to preach the gospel. He eventually would go to Rome and preach Christ to the known world at that time, causing the message of redemption to circulate through the Roman world. Paul was a slave to Christ; everything he was or ever will be was given to Christ. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. (Philippians 3:7-9) Paul's position in life; his very existence depended on Jesus and his holiness. He was not willing to avoid the future calamities he would face. No prophesy or concern of others for his well-being would delay him from going to Jerusalem, for him there was no detour away from God’s commission to him. Jesus had told Paul, why do you fight against my will for you. I have a purpose for you, my will in your life will be implemented, but through much suffering. To complete this commission from Christ for Paul, Jerusalem was just a stop on the road to Rome, but he will not go in freedom but in chains.

Dear friends, God has a will for us in our lives. His will for us could be that we are hospitable or that we exercise willingly other gifts given by his gracious hand. In spiritual alertness we should stay attuned to God’s desire for us in the church. Even when we struggle and experience dark times, we should be sensitive to the will of God for our lives. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit.Do not treat prophecies with contemptbut test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. (1 Thessalonian 5:17-22) It is hard to rejoice when we feel we are captivated by worries of this world or discordant ideas. But the voice of God is part of our spiritual existence; therefore, we ought not to treat that voice with contempt. His voice is real and true, when He says to you, I am with you regardless; He is WITH YOU. Do not ignore his voice in you or through the scriptures. When He tells us to repent for some ill deed or thought, we are to repent and thank God for his goodness. Paul knew the will of God; no others could dictate to him God’s will for his life. He was not a slave to the will of others, but to Jesus’ will only. We also are slaves to Christ; our will should be his will. God bought us with a high price, the precious, efficacious blood of Jesus on the cross. As Peter said in his first sermon, we live with the Spirit of God in us, not in a cloud above us or a pillar of fire at night. In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. (Act 2:17). In our lives we should heed the Spirit within us. God has a will for our lives. If we examine any part of Jesus’ life on earth, we would find God’s will in it. Friends in your lives, good or bad, God is working out his will in you. We might be troubled by that truth. How can that be? I cannot even forgive myself: how can God forgive me? Remember always, Paul raised his hand in agreement with others to murder God’s precious children. Yet, that filthy spirit of murder, God used to reach the world with the Good News. Paul was zealous above all others to preach the gospel; he would not quit; he would go to Jerusalem regardless of the consequences. God can and will use us no matter how we feel about life. The reason for that is we place our trust in Jesus' life and works, not our own experiences and works. Our faith is embedded in Christ’s life, not our own life. We cannot be new creatures through our own efforts; this born-again life is God’s work, not our work. Consequently, we Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4-7) Paul was on a mission, nothing would curtail him from fulfilling his mission in life. HIs anxieties, his fears, his stress, even his doubts of God’s closeness to him in all situations, would not deter him from doing the will of God. Now friends be where Jesus is: with the poor, homeless, the hungry, the destitute, the imprisoned. Let your gentleness be evident to all. Breakfast companions, Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Let nothing hinder you in your walk with Christ from exercising the gifts God has given you. Everything you are or ever shall be is under the blood of the Lord. Praise his wonderful name! Love, Dad and Mom 

  

  

  

  

  

 

 

  

Acts 21:1-14 After we had torn ourselves away from them, we put out to sea and sailed straight to Kos. The next day we went to Rhodes and from there to Patara.We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, went on board and set sail. After sighting Cyprus and passing to the south of it, we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre, where our ship was to unload its cargo.We sought out the disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.When it was time to leave, we left and continued on our way. All of them, including wives and children, accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. After saying goodbye to each other, we went aboard the ship, and they returned home. We continued our voyage from Tyre and landed at Ptolemais, where we greeted the brothers and sisters and stayed with them for a day.Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven.He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’ ”When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem.Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, “The Lord’s will be done.”

Paul went to Jerusalem from Macedonia by ship. The ship stopped in Tyre to unload its cargo. Paulsought out the disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Hospitality was part of being in a Christian community. Allowing others to move into your home for a while was one of he gifts found in the early church. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:8-10) Then at Ptolemais, Paul stayed somewhere for a day. Again in Caesarea, he stayed with Philip the evangelist for a while. Paul and all of the missionaries needed places to stay when evangelizing. Christians opened their homes to others, denying themselves, allowing others to disturb their environment and usual routine. These visitors needed to be fed, to have a bed or room where they could rest and sleep. Hospitality was a way for Christians to follow Christ and to help spread the Good News to other people. In a very small way these actions fulfill Jesus’ statement of denying yourself and taking up the cross. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. (Matthew. 6:24-25) If your comfort and usual routine precludes you from doing the work of the cross, then you are denying your responsibility to the Lord. In some of these communities in the Greek world, hospitality could bring problems too, for Christians were not always safe from persecution from the worldly. Jason, a Christian Jew, had welcomed Paul into his home in Thessalonica. When a mob was stirred up, opposing Paul and his ministry, and when the mob could not find Paul, they dragged Jason before the leaders of the community. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house. (Acts 17:5-7) Jason had to post bond for his release. To be a Christian in the Jewish world and the Greek world was sometimes a dangerous identity. Christianity was invading a very dangerous, violent world of darkness. The devil and his cohorts were not going to passively allow the light of Christ to penetrate the darkness, so they often stirred up the people against the Good News. Consequently, suffering would be a major part of the lives of converts to Christianity in the emerging church. The apostles’ letters to the church always included the obvious that Christians everywhere were experiencing persecution because of the Good News. Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin.As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. (1 Peter 4:1-2) Those who chose hospitality over the threats of men and their communities were willing to suffer for the cause of Christ. 

As Paul journeys home, he meets many Christians who warn him about going back to Jerusalem. These people love Paul, desiring the best for him. All of them, including wives and children, accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. The people in Tyre had urged Paul to not put himself in danger by going back to Jerusalem, a hornet's nest of opposition to the Good News. However, Paul was determined to complete his third missionary trip by going back to Jerusalem. Their warnings, their premonitions, even their prophesies in the Spirit turned out to be valid. Paul’s freedom was taken away in Jerusalem. He lived out the rest of his life in chains. In Caesarea he lodges several days with Philip the Evangelist, who had four daughters who had the gift of prophesy. In Caesarea Agabus, a prophet, came down from Judea. Agabus knew the elite in Jerusalem were stewing over Paul’s ministry in the Greek world. As with Jesus while He was living, the priests had murder in their hearts. They wanted to kill this apostate, Paul. For them, Paul was chief in spreading Christianity. Even Jews were being converted to this idea of Jesus being the Lord. Agabus understood the hatred that existed in Judea against Paul and his ministry. Therefore, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’" Everything he said would come true. However, Paul had a mission to complete; he was not a free agent to do whatever he pleases.Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart, for the gospel of God—the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scripturesregarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 1:1-4) Even though Agabus and others prophesied correctly of what would happen in Jerusalem, Paul was under orders from Jesus himself. He had been set apart by Jesus to go into all the world to preach the gospel. He eventually would go to Rome and preach Christ to the known world at that time, causing the message of redemption to circulate through the Roman world. Paul was a slave to Christ; everything he was or ever will be was given to Christ. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. (Philippians 3:7-9) Paul's position in life; his very existence depended on Jesus and his holiness. He was not willing to avoid the future calamities he would face. No prophesy or concern of others for his well-being would delay him from going to Jerusalem, for him there was no detour away from God’s commission to him. Jesus had told Paul, why do you fight against my will for you. I have a purpose for you, my will in your life will be implemented, but through much suffering. To complete this commission from Christ for Paul, Jerusalem was just a stop on the road to Rome, but he will not go in freedom but in chains.

Dear friends, God has a will for us in our lives. His will for us could be that we are hospitable or that we exercise willingly other gifts given by his gracious hand. In spiritual alertness we should stay attuned to God’s desire for us in the church. Even when we struggle and experience dark times, we should be sensitive to the will of God for our lives. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit.Do not treat prophecies with contemptbut test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. (1 Thessalonian 5:17-22) It is hard to rejoice when we feel we are captivated by worries of this world or discordant ideas. But the voice of God is part of our spiritual existence; therefore, we ought not to treat that voice with contempt. His voice is real and true, when He says to you, I am with you regardless; He is WITH YOU. Do not ignore his voice in you or through the scriptures. When He tells us to repent for some ill deed or thought, we are to repent and thank God for his goodness. Paul knew the will of God; no others could dictate to him God’s will for his life. He was not a slave to the will of others, but to Jesus’ will only. We also are slaves to Christ; our will should be his will. God bought us with a high price, the precious, efficacious blood of Jesus on the cross. As Peter said in his first sermon, we live with the Spirit of God in us, not in a cloud above us or a pillar of fire at night. In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. (Act 2:17). In our lives we should heed the Spirit within us. God has a will for our lives. If we examine any part of Jesus’ life on earth, we would find God’s will in it. Friends in your lives, good or bad, God is working out his will in you. We might be troubled by that truth. How can that be? I cannot even forgive myself: how can God forgive me? Remember always, Paul raised his hand in agreement with others to murder God’s precious children. Yet, that filthy spirit of murder, God used to reach the world with the Good News. Paul was zealous above all others to preach the gospel; he would not quit; he would go to Jerusalem regardless of the consequences. God can and will use us no matter how we feel about life. The reason for that is we place our trust in Jesus' life and works, not our own experiences and works. Our faith is embedded in Christ’s life, not our own life. We cannot be new creatures through our own efforts; this born-again life is God’s work, not our work. Consequently, we Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4-7) Paul was on a mission, nothing would curtail him from fulfilling his mission in life. HIs anxieties, his fears, his stress, even his doubts of God’s closeness to him in all situations, would not deter him from doing the will of God. Now friends be where Jesus is: with the poor, homeless, the hungry, the destitute, the imprisoned. Let your gentleness be evident to all. Breakfast companions, Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Let nothing hinder you in your walk with Christ from exercising the gifts God has given you. Everything you are or ever shall be is under the blood of the Lord. Praise his wonderful name! Love, Dad and Mom