Blessed By God

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

BLESSED BY GOD

Gen 1:20-23

20 And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." 23 And there was evening, and there was morning — the fifth day.

NIV

Perhaps we should consider for a moment that all sea life, every living creature that lives in the water, which we could not possibly even attempt to determine the number or the kinds, exists because of God. We think the whole point of those who believe in a theory of evolution is to discredit creation, in fact, to disregard creation as having any validity at all, which then gives them a self-generated belief that there is no God, or that if there is, he had no hand in the beginning of life in some premortal substance. However, we merely need to observe the great variety of life in the seas and of the birds that take flight in the air to know that only God could have spoken them into being. Then when we ponder on all of the sea creatures and birds and that God blessed them and told them, spoke to them to be fruitful and increase in number, for them to do so would mean they understood him. Because of his greatness and authority over all that he created, he gave them the ability to hear and understand him. That boggles our mind and gives us a different view of all life on this earth. If all the living things in the water and all the birds of the air are aware of their creator, how much more should we be, for we are made in God's image, and are of only one variety, with some slight differences in our physical appearance. Of course, all the birds of the air have similarities; sea life has great differences: some are mammals, others fish, and still others are neither, but all of them exist from the voice of God. That gives way to our lives, which we will explore in much detail on the sixth day, but in the meantime, we should know that the purpose of all the life in the sea and the birds in the air is all for the pleasure of God, which then means so are we. We have life for the pleasure of God. If God blessed all the life in the sea, and all the birds of the air, how much more does he bless us? All life is blessed by God. 

His Pleasure

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

HIS PLEASURE

Gen 1:14-19

14 And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 16 God made two great lights — the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the Earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning — the fourth day.

NIV

The Sun, the Moon, and the whole universe came into being on the fourth day of creation just because God spoke. We know the ancients, like Moses, did not understand the universe as mankind does today. The Ancients could have thought the Sun traveled across Earth's sky, then returned at night, while the moon traveled across to return the next day, and that this process repeated. They did not understand the total complexity of the Earth being set at a precise distance and in an orbit around the Sun, which God spoke into existence, to give both light and heat to the surface of the Earth. Everything about our solar system is in perfect order; nothing is out of place. The Earth spins perfectly at just the right angle to give everything on it just the right amount of light, warmth, and seasonality for a precise reason.  God left nothing out, or by chance, for he created a perfect environment for man, who would be his crowning glory of creation.  Although we are new earthers, believing God created all that is created in six days, and that, from the genealogy of man, it is evident the Earth is somewhere between six and seven thousand years old, no matter what some might believe that it is millions of years old. Still, for the Sun to shine, to burn gases, or flares of gas for thousands of years, never diminishing or expanding, but remaining constant, can only be due to the absolute authority of God. This holds true in his creation of the moon at its perfect distance from the Earth to affect the tides of the waters, while reflecting the light of the Sun at night, as it rotates around the Earth. This could not have happened by chance, but only by the divine will of God. Everything he did, even though he created this perfect environment for us, was for his own pleasure. All the Earth, the Sun, Moon, the stars, the whole expanse of the universe is for his pleasure. Which brings us to ourselves. Although we are still ahead in the process of creation, we are here for his pleasure. All of creation is for the pleasure of God; he would not need or do anything, for he is enough because he is God. Creation was for his pleasure. 

Air, Land, and Sea

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

AIR, LAND, AND SEA

Gen 1:9-13

9 And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning — the third day.

NIV

Why did God do two parts of his creation on the third day? Because he is God, he can do whatever he wants, however he wants, whenever he wants. However, what is not exactly revealed to us is how, within all the water below the expanse, dry land appeared, other than because God said that dry land should appear. From what we think we know about the makeup of the dry land, or the earth as we know it, there is some type of core of some material that may be different than the dry land we walk on, although no one has ever dug that deep to know for sure. There is a lot of speculation presented as fact, but only God knows how he gathered all the water into one place and spoke the dry land into existence. He also spoke all the vegetation to appear, to grow from the earth, or the dry land, which he left the rest of it water, and he called the sea. Just pondering on the sea, it was once part of the surface of the deep over which the Spirit of God hovered.  When we touch the sea, we are touching where the Spirit hovered. When we walk the land, we are walking on that which God spoke into being, and when we eat a fruit or vegetable, or some other product of vegetation, we are enjoying what God spoke into existence. In fact, most of us are living within a structure that has been taken from the seed-bearing plants, the wood of trees. Everything we have is a result of God's spoken word. Has man developed new things? That idea makes it sound as if mankind can create, but we can only discover that which God has already done. We can explore all that he has created to a point, for we are still limited to a finite portion of his creation. We think we know how our bodies are made; however, we cannot explain how we are alive or what makes us know who we are. So when we think we can explain the makeup of the earth, the dry land, the sea, we are still just men, and can only take the word of God as the absolute truth. He caused it to happen the way he decided and how he decided. It is just that simple. Mankind wants to explain it in its terms and on its timetable, but it is all about God's terms and His timetable. The land, the sea, and the plants were all created on the third day. 

The Expanse

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

THE EXPANSE

Gen 1:6-8

6 And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning — the second day.

NIV

Day two is very interesting, presenting a truth that might be larger than we see at first glance. What we know is that the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the deep. Now God spoke to the waters, which we do not know how large or deep the water is, yet he divided the water with a space, an expanse, which he made. We don't think much about the fact that God created an expanse. Before he made the expense, there was none, but only the surface of the deep. We know that He called the expanse sky, which we look up into every day of our lives. We see the sky, its clouds floating by, and stare out into the expanse God made to divide the waters. If then the water is divided, there is water under the expanse and water above the expanse. We know from Day three that he let the waters below the expanse gather in one place, and he made the dry land appear. He was forming the earth to be the perfect environment for the man he formed in their image. What we think little about, and maybe that is because we are so engrossed in our own environment, is how far the expanse is, and that there is water above it. In our modern age of technology, we have people living in the expanse, in close proximity to the earth, and with our great telescopes, we have searched farther into the expanse, but have never come close to reaching its fullness or its end, where there is water. What this tells us about God is that he is bigger than we can even imagine, yet he is extremely personal with us. We cannot even fathom the size of God who lives somewhere above the expanse, yet has this incredible personal touch upon our lives. Then we must consider that he is omnipresent, meaning he is above the expanse and right here with us. How magnificent is God, that he has such a close relationship with us, and can hear us when we talk to him, even in our small voice. How is it that God, who spoke the expanse into being, and by his word, the waters were divided into that which was below and that which was above it, still draws us close to himself? His greatness, his splendor, and his majesty, yet his grace, love, and compassion for us, boggle our minds. We can hardly come close to comprehending how great God is that all he needs to do is speak, and the whole of everything responds, yet he has given us the ability to refuse to respond. How can that be, since our very existence is a result of his work? That is why there is such a great divide among mankind, such a great expanse between those who believe and those who do not. 

The Light

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

THE LIGHT

Gen 1:1-5

1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning — the first day.

NIV

As we begin, when life as we know it began with God creating everything that is needed to sustain the life of the man he would form, there are some very interesting truths we should explore again. This is a story we are so familiar with, yet, with the help of the Spirit's inspiration, we can see something new. Because we are told the earth was formless and empty, we understand that the earth simply did not exist yet. The one truth we have some difficulty with is that darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. Because we know that God is light, and that from the revelation he gave to John, God is the complete source of light in the new city of Jerusalem that sits on, or entirely fills, the mountain of God. What existed before anything God created all that is, the creator was the depth of the waters, where there was no light. Because of the presence of God, all three of the persons of God, wherever God was, there must have been light, for God is light, and there is no darkness in him. Yet, there was darkness over the surface of the deep where the Spirit of God hovered. Then God spoke; he did not have to wave his hand or do something magical; he just spoke. "Let there be light," and that is what happened; light appeared. How, exactly, did he separate the light from the darkness we cannot fully grasp; however, there is, in some sense, how we can understand the difference between the light and the darkness. Once we lived in the darkness, because we lived apart from God. Although we are always in the presence of God, for he is omnipresent, we refused to acknowledge him and lived according to our own hearts, which were filled with darkness. In some sense, in that darkness, we hovered over the depths of death. However, on the first day of our new lives, God said, "Let there be light," and there was light, and he saw that his light within us was good. He separated the light in us from the darkness that once was. That was the beginning of a new life, a reborn life, being separated from the darkness of night to live in the light of day. Of course, as his light shines upon and within us, it exposes anything that still might linger in the depths of our hearts that should be excommunicated and sent packing. That may not happen on day one, or the first day, but when the light is within, there should be no darkness. Thank you, Lord, for the light.  

Open or Closed

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

OPEN OR CLOSED

Acts 28:23-31

23 They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. From morning till evening he explained and declared to them the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe. 25 They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: "The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your forefathers when he said through Isaiah the prophet:

26 "'Go to this people and say, "You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving." 27 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.'  

28 "Therefore I want you to know that God's salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!"   30 For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. 31 Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.

NIV

We have arrived at the conclusion of the Acts of the Apostles with Paul in Rome and having another conversation with the Jewish leaders, in fact, with more than the leaders, as we are told a larger number of people came to hear Paul’s views about the kingdom of God. He used their own knowledge of the Law of Moses and the Prophets to show them that Jesus was the Messiah. He tried to convince them, with some understanding of the truth and believing, while others just could not open their hearts and minds to see Jesus. This is always the challenge people face when they come face-to-face with the truth. People hear but never understand. They see but do not perceive, and their hearts are calloused, hardly hearing, with closed eyes, and not seeing the truth about Jesus. Because of the great mercy of God, and the work of the Holy Spirit who broke into our lives, softening the callous on our hearts, opening our ears and eyes so we could understand the gospel message, accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, becoming born from above, a new person, a child of God. How can we not live with thanksgiving and a heart filled with gratitude toward God? Because we have eyes to see, and ears to hear, and we understand with our hearts, we have been healed. We have been healed from eternal death and have been given eternal life. When Paul explained everything, with his concluding remarks, the people could not agree; some believed, some did not. Is that the way of the church today? Is that the way of our hearts? Do we all agree on the one basic truth about Jesus? Is it possible that, in some sense, we have closed our hearts, ears, and eyes so that we only hear, see, and understand what we want to, keeping the rest of the truth closed off from us? If we think that might be possible, the question is why. Are we only willing to accept what makes us feel comfortable, sealing off that which would require us to change? Let us face life in Christ with open eyes, ears, and hearts, then we truly will be healed. Are we living open or closed? 

What Are Your Views

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS

Acts 28:17-22

17 Three days later he called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had assembled, Paul said to them: "My brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. 18 They examined me and wanted to release me, because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death. 19 But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar — not that I had any charge to bring against my own people. 20 For this reason I have asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain." 21 They replied, "We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of the brothers who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you. 22 But we want to hear what your views are, for we know that people everywhere are talking against this sect."

NIV

With Paul in Rome and allowed to live in a rented house under the protection of a Roman guard, he takes the opportunity to speak to the Jewish leaders. He assured them that he had nothing wrong against the Jewish people or the customs of his and their ancestors. He kept the law in some sense, but at the same time was aware that Jesus had set the first covenant aside to establish the second. However, as far as keeping festivals like the Passover, or the festival of weeks, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of Trumpets, or Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur. There were many of these Jewish customs, and Paul said he kept them; yet, because he knew the prophets and all that was prophesied about Jesus, and because of his personal encounter with Jesus, he wanted everyone else to experience this new birth, this revelation of the Messiah. The Jewish leaders wanted to hear what Paul had to say because people everywhere were talking against this sect, although it is not a sect, but the truth of God. Times have not changed much, as many people are still talking against what they believe to be a sect, a phony belief that God is real and Jesus actually came to earth, died, and was resurrected. Although there are many who believe God is real in some sense, and because they believe they are a "Good person," they will go to heaven when they die. Throughout the many letters that Paul writes, he makes it clear that being good does not qualify for eternal life; in fact, there is no such thing as Jesus plus anything. Our salvation is entirely due to Jesus, and to him alone. As he declared the truth about the kingdom of God, we will see the results later. But the truth we should take from this narrative is that there are people who want to hear what we have to say, which implies we have something to say and should be saying it. Sure, it is good to gather together to worship, but are we not supposed to be telling our story? Did we not have a personal encounter with Jesus? Then someone needs to hear it, and who are we to decide who that will be? We sing those lyrics, I love to tell the story, but how many times have we told the story of Jesus and his love? Someone wants to know what our views are.

Following Jesus

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

FOLLOWING JESUS

Acts 28:11-16

11 After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island. It was an Alexandrian ship with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. 12 We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. 13 From there we set sail and arrived at Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up, and on the following day we reached Puteoli. 14 There we found some brothers who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome. 15 The brothers there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these men Paul thanked God and was encouraged. 16 When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.

NIV

It seems this is just another portion of the travel log; however, it does come to a close as Paul arrives in Rome. Their first landing in what is now Italy was at the city of Puteoli. It is situated on the western coast near the area now called Naples, but the name itself comes from a Latin word meaning "stink”. There was a volcano in the area that gave off a sulfurous odor; thus, the region was named Puteoli. There were brothers in the lord in that area, believers in the Way. This shows that the gospel was being spread throughout, and the church was growing. Certainly, this was the first time Paul had been in this region, so the message of Jesus was moving on, being spread by other believers and reaching new areas, where new local groups of believers sprang up. The gospel continues to reach new people, bringing them hope of eternal life, although we consider it a fact rather than a hope. Paul stayed with these brothers for a week. We do wonder what the Roman Centurion thought about this delay in reaching Rome, given the letter he was bringing to Caesar's court. Paul was still considered a prisoner, yet it appears he decided to stay for a week with the brothers in Puteoli. And so they came to Rome.  When Paul was still in Jerusalem, and there had been such an uproar, and the soldiers were ordered to take Paul into the barracks, the Lord visited him and told him that he had testified in Jerusalem, and now he would testify in Rome, and the Lord made sure Paul arrived safely at Rome. What we can be assured of is that whatever the Lord says will happen, it will happen. Once again, we have the choice, even as believers, or perhaps we should use the term Christian, to follow our own path, or follow the path the Lord has laid out for us. If we consider ourselves as believers, we believe that God directs the way we should go, the places we should be, and the decisions He makes for our lives. That is all wrapped up in the words we profess: "I have decided to follow Jesus." Paul had made that choice, although his following Jesus did not always end up in a bed of roses; there were some thorns along the way. However, there were some rough patches along the way onboard ship, with the storms and being shipwrecked, the Lord made sure Paul arrived in Rome. We might go through a rough patch in life, or we might have smooth sailing, but if we are following Jesus, we will arrive where he wants us to be, both in the eternal and in the present. The key in Paul's life was that he followed the Lord's leading, and that is what we should do: always follow Jesus. 

Focus

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

FOCUS

Acts 28:1-10

28:1 Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2 The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 3 Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. 4 When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, "This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live." 5 But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 6 The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god. 7 There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and for three days entertained us hospitably. 8 His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him. 9 When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. 10 They honored us in many ways and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed.

NIV

Two major truths are within this record of what happened with all 276 souls reaching land safely. However, first, we know of this island, Malta, although it was new to those who arrived there. They were met and greeted with kindness by the islanders, and this is when the first truth is given to us. While Paul was helping build the fire, he was attacked by a viper, a snake that must have had deadly venom, because when the islanders saw the snake fastened to Paul's hand, they thought he must have been a murderer and that justice was being served. Why was it like that? When something bad happens to a believer, do people assume they did something wrong and deserve punishment? Of course, our society does have laws, and when they are broken, some form of justice must be served, depending on the severity of the crime, ranging from a speeding ticket to incarceration for crimes against humanity. However, how do we, as believers, handle infractions of God's commands? Do we think justice must be served? Do we think God will punish them in some way? What about his grace? What about his forgiveness? What about his love and mercy? Interestingly, the poisonous snake had no effect on Paul, and the islanders changed their opinion from him being a murderer to a god. We should take our cue from how Paul dealt with the apparent problem. He just shook it off, paid no attention to its danger to him. Maybe that is how we should think regarding anything unpleasant that comes into our lives. We should not focus on the problem, but understand that we are children of God and he will take care of us. That snake would have been deadly for any islander, but for Paul, a man of God, who believed God, who trusted in Jesus, it was of no concern. The second truth is that Paul, still under arrest and a prisoner of Rome, went about healing all who came to him. His personal situation did not preclude him from serving his Lord, being a vessel of blessings to the Islanders. Again, we could take our clue from this truth. No matter our personal situation that we might face, we can still be a vessel of blessings to others. If we spend our time focused on our own situation, complaining to God about our aches and pains, or some infirmity we might be afflicted with, we are not looking for ways to bless others, encouraging them, praying for their healing, or even seeing some difficult time they might be experiencing, reaching out to help them. Paul's life was not all a bed of roses; he had experienced pain and suffering at the hands of men who opposed his message, but even as a prisoner, he lifted up the name of Jesus and healed others. Could we do anything like that? Could we see others' needs over our own? Let us look outward, even in the midst of inner pain. What is our focus? 

Jumping Toward Safety

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

JUMPING TOWARD SAFETY

Acts 27:39-44

39 When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. 40 Cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. 41 But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf. 42 The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. 43 But the centurion wanted to spare Paul's life and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. 44 The rest were to get there on planks or on pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land in safety.

NIV

On the surface, this is a record of the attempt to run the ship aground and the subsequent breaking apart of the ship, with all souls making it to shore safely. However, there is an underlying parallel or a metaphor of life in the sea of sin. We could try to sail the open sea of life, but as the 276 souls aboard the ship discovered, storms can take life in a completely opposite direction from the course planned. The Lord had assured Paul that all aboard the ship would be saved, and that is exactly what happened when the ship hit that sandbar, and the stern began to break up as it was being pounded by the surf. Some were able to swim; others used pieces of the broken-up ship to float to the shore, yet all souls were saved. There could be times when it seems our lives are simply being pushed around by some storm, taking us off the course we had planned. But the Lord needed us to run aground, hit a sandbar, and break us apart so that we could swim toward his safety. It might also be possible that although we have already declared ourselves to be Christians and are attempting to live by some standard we believe is scriptural, we could be drifting off course. We have the correct compass for our lives, and we have the Lord standing at the rudder ready to take us on the right course, or path he has planned out for us, but we might want to take hold of that rudder and try to sail our course. That might be when the Lord intervenes with a storm to drive us off our course toward the place he has prepared for us to land safely.  Those onboard the ship, when daybreak came, did not recognize the land. They were headed into an unknown shore. When the light of Jesus came into our lives, we recognized his light, but at the same time, we were sure of where we were headed. Still, it seems we could get distracted by other places along the way, and that is when the Lord needs to take charge of the rudder and steer us to the open shore of heaven. We can hoist the sails, but let us leave the rudder of our lives in the hands of the Lord.  In another sense, we might have to jump ship that we want to steer, and swim to the safety of the shore with Jesus, so that we are jumping toward safety.                                      

Lighten the Load

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

LIGHTEN THE LOAD

Acts 27:33-38

33 Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. "For the last fourteen days," he said, "you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food — you haven't eaten anything. 34 Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head." 35 After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36 They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37 Altogether there were 276 of us on board. 38 When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.

NIV

Paul encourages the others on onboard to eat so they will survive, assuring them that not one of them will lose a single hair from their head. That is quite a statement of faith, yet was it faith, or was it straight from the mouth of God? Paul also demonstrated his faith in the Almighty God of heaven and earth when he took the bread and gave thanks to God in front of all 276 souls  onboard. That is reminiscent of when Jesus took the bread and broke it, giving thanks to God before he gave it to his disciples to eat. Nevertheless, here is a prisoner of the Roman guards, leading the way in giving thanks to God and encouraging them all that they will be saved.  It did not matter his place in the world, his position in life, where he was, or what circumstances he found himself in; he was going to serve his Lord and speak up for God. Here is where we should enter this conversation and always be an encourager to others, assuring them of God's power to save them and that they will not lose a single hair from their heads. Of course, we do lose some hair as we get a little older, but the metaphor holds true. When we are resurrected, we will be in all the fullest glory of the representation of Jesus. That is, we will be in a completely glorified form, able to leap buildings in a single bound, or, rather, be able to travel at the speed of thought. At least something like that, for Jesus, in his glorified form, appeared in a locked room. Whatever form we are in, we will not have lost a single hair on our heads; we will be saved. As the crew began to prepare for the ship to run aground, they lightened it further by throwing all the grain overboard. This would have meant the ship would be higher in the water and possibly make it farther to a place of safety. We wonder if we can use that as an example of how we should throw some things into the sea. Have we tossed those attitudes that weigh us down? Have we thrown bitterness, unforgiveness, criticism, ill or hurt feelings, envy, jealousy, pride, boastfulness, anger, or a host of other attitudes or feelings overboard to lighten our lives so we can reach the place of safety? We know it is God who saves us, but at the same time, the Lord desires that we rid ourselves of what weighs us down. He sent the Spirit to help us lighten the load. 

Who's Got The Plan?

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHO'S GOT THE PLAN

Acts 27:27-32

27 On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. 28 They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet deep. 29 Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. 30 In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. 31 Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, "Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved." 32 So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it fall away.

NIV

The men of the ship, most likely the sailors or crew, tried to do everything they knew to save themselves from what they thought was an impending disaster. We cannot imagine spending 14 days pounded by a storm at sea. According to the following text, there were 276 souls onboard. Because they dropped four anchors from the stern, combined with the number of souls, we think the ship was rather large. However, our story comes from what Paul told the centurion. Human effort alone would have caused them great harm, for unless those men stayed with the ship, the rest onboard could not be saved. When the angel of the Lord informed Paul of God's plan of saving all the men on the ship, in fact, not a hair on their heads would be harmed, that meant all who were on board. That meant a unified belief in the plan told to Paul, who was nothing but a prisoner, yet the only spokesperson for God. How was it that the others listened, especially the centurion, to a prisoner? What did Paul know about sailing, or how to manage a ship on the high seas, and in a storm? Yet he seemed to be in charge of everyone's safety on the ship. However, he was the only one who had heard from God. Here is where we take our clue for this life in the community of faith. We might think that it is our efforts that keep a church afloat, or, for that matter, cause it to grow. Sure, we need to maintain the building where we meet, but that is not the church. We are the church, and our safety depends solely on God; therefore, we should all be onboard with God's plan. When we try to save ourselves by either dropping anchors or making an effort to get to a lifeboat of our own making, we stand in danger of causing ourselves great harm. The centurion ordered his soldiers to cut the ropes that held the lifeboat, and that is what we need to do. We should cut all ties to self-effort and place our complete trust in God's plan.  We might make our plans, but God orders our footsteps; therefore, let us keep step with the Lord as he calls out the cadence. Who's got the plan?

Whose I Am

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHOSE I AM

Acts 27:21-26

21 After the men had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: "Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. 22 But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. 23 Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me 24 and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.' 25 So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. 26 Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island."

NIV

In the middle of one of the most difficult times in the lives of all the sailors, the pilot, and the owner who lost all his cargo, his potential profits, and now the ship has been tossed so much that it appears it will break up and they will all be left to drown out at sea, Paul tells them to keep up their courage. He told them God would save them all. It was an angel of the Lord who assured Paul of the graciousness of God, that he gave Paul all the lives who sailed with him. Paul was assured that it would happen just as he had been told because he had faith in God. This is where we enter this narrative, or learn how our lives are because of God's generosity. He gave Paul all the lives who sailed with him, but from a personal perspective, because God is generous, he gave us life. When we consider how he displayed his displeasure with all the people on earth during the time of Noah, wiping them all from the face of the earth, except Noah and his family, it is amazing to consider that he did not want us to perish, but to have everlasting life. From exacting such justice on the wickedness of mankind, to sending Jesus to pay the price for our wickedness, or sin, so that we would not be wiped off the face of the earth, but would be forgiven, as he gives us eternal life. Although it is still true that he will judge all people, and he will serve justice on those who refused his generosity, his free gift of salvation through Jesus, and they will be tossed into the sea. Still, not the type of sea the ship Paul was on, this sea they will be tossed into is the sea of burning sulfur, which is the second death. However, we can take courage; in fact, we can keep up our courage because God has graciously saved us and given us life. We will be resurrected to live forever in the presence of God, whose we are, and whom we serve because we have been told so, and we believe, we have faith in God that everything will happen just as he told us it would. It is true because we love each other, we have faith, and hope in each other, yet because of our imperfections, we fail each other. God never fails us; he is always faithful to his own word, and he said he loves us. We can profess when it comes to God, whose we are, whom we serve, He has been generous to us. 

Jesus is our Lifeboat

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

JESUS IS OUR LIFEBOAT

Acts 27:13-20

13 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had obtained what they wanted; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. 14 Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the "northeaster," swept down from the island. 15 The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. 16 As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat secure. 17 When the men had hoisted it aboard, they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Fearing that they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship be driven along. 18 We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. 19 On the third day, they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands. 20 When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.

NIV

Just when things were looking good, the gentle south wind gave them what they were looking for, or they thought they had obtained what they wanted, but what they thought and what happened are two opposite things. They were not prepared for the violent storm that was descending upon them. It came without warning as it swept down from the island. They did whatever they thought would keep the ship afloat and able to make it through the storm. They even gave up their precious cargo and all the extra furniture or extra tacking in an attempt to save themselves from perishing. They were hardly able to secure the lifeboat, hoisting it aboard. From that record, it appears ships of that day dragged a lifeboat behind the main ship. But it was not going to save them from the following text, we know the ship ran aground; however, because of God, all lives were saved. There may be storms that come into our lives; they can appear without warning. It is possible that when we think we have obtained what we wanted, a storm shows up and tosses us about. That may not always be the case, but it could happen. When that storm tries to drown us, we might attempt to save ourselves somehow, doing whatever we can to overcome it, attempting to throw all the extra stuff overboard, ridding ourselves of something. Still, the reality is that our only salvation comes from the Lord. When they had tried everything to survive the storm, failing, they finally gave up all hope of being saved. We wonder whether we believe that our being saved depends on what we do to overcome life's storms. What we know is that we can never give up all hope of being saved, for our salvation was not secured by our doing anything, or even by throwing all things overboard, ridding ourselves of things, attitudes, or behaviors, but by Jesus and Him alone. All our hope is in Jesus. Whatever we have in an attempt to travel over the seas of life isn't enough to reach our destination. Our only lifeboat is Jesus. We are secure in Jesus. 

Whose Advice

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHOSE ADVICE

Acts 27:1-12

27:1 When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. 2 We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us. 3 The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs. 4 From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us. 5 When we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy and put us on board. 7 We made slow headway for many days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus. When the wind did not allow us to hold our course, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone. 8 We moved along the coast with difficulty and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea. 9 Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Fast. So Paul warned them, 10 "Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also." 11 But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. 12 Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.

NIV

The voyage to Rome has begun, which will lead to much trouble for all aboard the ship. First, as before, we have a travel log of the course the ship traveled. It would make sense that a ship of those days would need to put into port every so often to restore some supplies, such as food and water. Because of some of the comments about the winds, they were aboard a typical wooden ship with anywhere from one to three masts full of sails. The process of tacking against the wind was not easy, and at times it seemed they had no choice in which direction the ship would go. What can we observe and learn from this portion of the trip to Rome? The warning from Paul may have come from his own sailing experience during his various missionary trips, but from the following text, we are certain his warning was inspired by the Lord, perhaps through an angel of God or a vision. However, the men of the ship, the pilot, and the owner felt they knew best, although their reasoning was driven by profits rather than common sense, or taking the advice of a passenger in chains. What we know is that our advice should always be from the Lord, rather than from the world. We should not be driven by personal gain, but by what the Lord inspires us to do. Do we make mistakes? Of course, we are not perfect. We may also have come up against opposing winds, so to speak, experiencing difficult times on our journey through life. They could not find a safe harbor to winter in, so they kept struggling, which would cause them exactly what Paul warned them about: loss of cargo and ship. However, we know our only safe harbor is in our Lord and Savior, Jesus. Why would we want to go on and struggle through on our own when we have a safe harbor? They did not heed the warning and decided they should sail on. We cannot refuse the directions of the Lord and decide on our own to sail on, to make our own decisions. From the next portions of this narrative of their travels, we know they will experience great loss of cargo and ship. When we try to live by our choices, we might experience loss in some way, but when we sail according to the direction of the Lord, we will always find a good place, a safe harbor. The main point is: whom do we listen to, whose advice do we take, men's or God's? 

Metamorphosis

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

METAMORPHOSIS

 

Acts 26:19-32

19 "So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20 First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. 21 That is why the Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22 But I have had God's help to this very day, and so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— 23 that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles." 24 At this point Festus interrupted Paul's defense. "You are out of your mind, Paul!" he shouted. "Your great learning is driving you insane." 25 "I am not insane, most excellent Festus," Paul replied. "What I am saying is true and reasonable. 26 The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do." 28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, "Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?" 29 Paul replied, "Short time or long — I pray God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains." 30 The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. 31 They left the room, and while talking with one another, they said, "This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment." 32 Agrippa said to Festus, "This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar."

NIV

Paul had finished his testimony, at which point Governor Festus shouted at Paul, charging that he was out of his mind and that his great learning had driven him insane. It is remarkable how the world, or the people of the world who pursue knowledge, who believe the more degrees one has, the more prestigious one is, think that a Christian who has learned the truth is insane. But that is not the narrative that has the greatest impact on our lives. Paul gives the credit to God that he was able to stand before Governor Festus, King Agrippa, Bernice, and any of the people in the court and testify about repenting and turning to God, with the fact that the prophets and Moses spoke about Jesus suffering and being the first to rise from the dead. That is where we come into this story. First, we have repented, which the Greek word used here is metanoeo, which is where we get the word metamorphosis, to go through a change, but in the context, it means to have a change in the way we think. Interestingly, that must apply to every person who turns to God or professes to be a Christian, a believer, or a follower of Jesus. It is not our human nature at birth to believe in Jesus. Still, at some point in our lives, whether that is in our early or later years of life, we must go through this change of mind, this metanoeo, repentance, turning to God, and prove that we have changed the way we think by our works, or the way we behave, how we act towards others. We wonder how, once we have gone through the metamorphosis in our thinking, we change the way we think from being self-reliant, self-centered, self-exalting to being reliant on God, centering our lives on God, and exalting God, we could go back to the self-centered life. Yet we wonder whether we still think about ourselves too much, which might indicate that we have not fully repented or changed the way we think. However, there is this other truth that Jesus is the first to be raised from the dead, which means there are going to be a second, third, and so on up to thousands or millions who will be raised from the dead, including the righteous and the wicked, to stand before God. However, to be among the ones to enter into his rest, we must have gone through a metamorphosis. 

Darkness to Light

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

DARKNESS TO LIGHT

Acts 26:9-18

9 "I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11 Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them. 12 "On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13 About noon, O king, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. 14 We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'  15 "Then I asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' "'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied. 16'Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. 17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18 to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' 

NIV

As Paul stands before Governor Festus with King Agrippa and officials from both Agrippa and Festus, he continues his testimony about his encounter with the resurrected and ascended Jesus. He quotes the words of Jesus that led to his conversion from being a persecutor of the people of the Way to becoming a passionate follower of Jesus. This is where the narrative intertwines with our lives. It does not matter where we began our experience with Jesus, but we know it had to have been due to divine intervention. We are all born sinners, lost in this world, and at some point in our lives, we meet Jesus in a personal encounter. For some of us, Jesus intervened in our lives when we were adults living a self-satisfying, sinful life. For some of us who were born into a Christian, God-fearing family, we still needed a personal encounter with Jesus. The fact still remains that in order for us to see the kingdom of God, we must be born again. This is the point Paul made in his testimony regarding his divine experience with the resurrected and ascended Jesus. We know from personal experience that Jesus is alive, that God resurrected him, and, from the testimony of his disciples, that Jesus ascended back into heaven. However, that does not mean he always stays there, for Paul has testified that he met with Jesus, who surrounded him with the great light of Jesus, the bright Morning Star. Jesus told Paul that he was sending him to the Gentiles to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. This must be the testimony of every believer, for we all were born into darkness and must have our eyes opened to the light of Jesus. That is our story, from darkness to light. 

Sold Out For Jesus

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

SOLD OUT FOR JESUS

Acts 26:1-8

26:1 Then Agrippa said to Paul, "You have permission to speak for yourself." So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defense: 2 "King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews, 3 and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently. 4 "The Jews all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. 5 They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that according to the strictest sect of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee. 6 And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our fathers that I am on trial today. 7 This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. O king, it is because of this hope that the Jews are accusing me. 8 Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?

NIV

We are at the point where Paul made his defense before King Agrippa. He began by asking the king to be patient, as what he had to say would be thorough and lengthy, giving the full testimony of his previous life, his encounter with Jesus, and how that encounter changed both him inwardly and the course of his life. He started out explaining who he was, a full-fledged Pharisee, completely sold out to the law.  Paul spoke about the hope of the twelve tribes, meaning all of Israel, which was the long-awaited Messiah. Before Paul gets into his encounter with Jesus, he asks this incredible question: “Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?" There must have been King Agrippa, the Jewish high officials who were part of the king's court, as well as any of the honored Jewish guests, and Festus and his court that we’re hearing Paul. We know the answer to that question, as we believe God raises the dead. First, Jesus showed he had both the authority and the power to raise the dead, as recorded. Then, because of the great love God lavished on us, Jesus went to the cross for our sins, took all of them upon himself, paying the price for us so that we could live. God raised him from the dead. The Jews held onto the promise of the coming Messiah, but when he came, he did not come as they expected, so they refused to believe in him and missed their opportunity for life. However, we did not miss it because we, too, have had an encounter with Jesus. Although all of us believers come from such a wide variety of backgrounds, some born into a believing home, others born to a non-believing home, each of us had to, at some point in time in our lives, have a personal encounter with Jesus. Jesus made it very clear that unless we are born again, we will not see the kingdom of God. This means that it does not matter where we were born or what setting we grew up in, as it comes down to a personal encounter with Jesus, a rebirth into the kingdom of God. That is what happened to Paul, being reborn, born again, or born from above, changed from the inside out, into a new person in Jesus. Paul was sold out for Jesus, and that should be our story too. Because we have encountered Jesus and believe that we will be raised from the dead, that is, we believe in our resurrection, if Jesus does not come back before we die, we are sold out for Jesus. 

Great Pomp

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

GREAT POMP

Acts 25:22-27

22 Then Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear this man myself." He replied, "Tomorrow you will hear him." 23 The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience room with the high ranking officers and the leading men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24 Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25 I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write. 27 For I think it is unreasonable to send on a prisoner without specifying the charges against him."

NIV

It sounds like Governor Festus is a reasonable man, wanting to do the right thing in having something actually charged against Paul that he could write when he sends Paul to Rome to appeal before Caesar. King Agrippa wants to hear what Paul has to say, but we wonder whether he is really interested in Paul's message or whether he wants to find some point in the law to prove Paul's guilt.  However, what we find of interest is the next day when King Agrippa and Benice entered the audience room of Festus. They arrived with great pomp, accompanied by high-ranking officers and leading men of the city. Of course, Agrippa is the king over parts of Judea, and a king should have some pomp and ceremony surrounding his entrance into any room. But wouldn't that also mean he was puffed up with a sense of how important he was? The major leaders of nations today receive some, and in certain cases, a lot, of pomp and ceremony when they enter for a special event. Maybe they are due all that pomp, because they do occupy positions of presidents and kings. It is how we think of ourselves that is important in light of our position in the body of Christ. We have watched some who think more highly of themselves than they should, creating great edifices to represent their importance. That is also true in Christianity, with great and mighty churches built that should honor God, but that may instead exalt a man. We think of one who has built a great campus, claiming it is for the purpose of where he will rule and reign when Jesus comes for the thousand-year reign. What we should remember is to learn from Jesus, for he is gentle and humble in heart, and that he came to serve, not to be served. That would mean we would live gently and humbly among others, serving in whatever way God directs us. He is in authority or manages our lives, with the Spirit dispensing his gifts as he determines. All the gifts and his fruit are for the benefit of all, which means not just for the giftee or the tree bearing fruit. If anyone desires all the pomp and ceremony, it would be Jesus. Let us not forget to live humbly before our God and men. Let us forgo all pomp and ceremony, so we are not puffed up. 

It Is A Fact

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

IT IS A FACT 

Acts 25:13-21

13 A few days later King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus. 14 Since they were spending many days there, Festus discussed Paul's case with the king. He said: "There is a man here whom Felix left as a prisoner. 15 When I went to Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders of the Jews brought charges against him and asked that he be condemned. 16 "I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over any man before he has faced his accusers and has had an opportunity to defend himself against their charges. 17 When they came here with me, I did not delay the case, but convened the court the next day and ordered the man to be brought in. 18 When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19 Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. 20 I was at a loss how to investigate such matters; so I asked if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial there on these charges. 21 When Paul made his appeal to be held over for the Emperor's decision, I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar."

NIV

King Agrippa has now entered the conversation about Paul, as he came to pay his respects to the new Roman governor. Festus. It makes sense that Festus would bring up the case of Paul as King Agrippa, a ruler of the Herodian Dynasty who governed parts of Judea and the surrounding Areas. Benice was his sister who traveled with him, and history records that she was beautiful and was known to have many relationships. However, the most important part of this conversation is what Festus told Agrippa about Paul's beliefs about Jesus. Of course, Festus made it sound that Jesus was a dead man, and Paul claimed that he was alive. As far as Festus was concerned, Jesus was a dead man. As the new governor, he must have been informed of the entire situation in Jerusalem under the rule of Pontius Pilate, which culminated in the crucifixion of Jesus, which meant that Jesus was a dead man. Yet, Paul claimed that, because of his divine encounter with Jesus, Jesus was alive. It was no claim; it was fact, and Paul testified about what was true. That is where we take our lesson for today. The truth is that Jesus is alive, that God raised him from the dead, which we know as a resurrection. We know that Jesus had the power to raise people from the dead and did so three times that have been recorded. Because Jesus was resurrected and he has the power to resurrect the dead, then it would not be our hope to be resurrected, but our resurrection is a fact. Jesus made it as clear as possible when he said that although we die, we will live. This is not simply our belief or based on what we believe; this fact is grounded in the word of the Lord, for every word that God has spoken is an absolute fact that does not depend on whether we believe it or not. However, whosoever does believe will be saved rather than perish, because both the believers and non-believers will be resurrected to stand before the judgment seat of God. It will happen! That is a fact! We do not need to hope that we will be resurrected; we only need to testify that it is true. 

The Plot

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE PLOT

Acts 25:1-7

25:1 Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem, 2 where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul. 3 They urgently requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way. 4 Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon. 5 Let some of your leaders come with me and press charges against the man there, if he has done anything wrong." 6 After spending eight or ten days with them, he went down to Caesarea, and the next day he convened the court and ordered that Paul be brought before him. 7 When Paul appeared, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him, which they could not prove.

NIV

We are introduced to the new Roman governor, Festus. We do not know much about him yet; it would appear he wants to find out as much as he can about this conflict the Jews had with Paul, a man being held in Caesarea for over two years. Again, we see religious men, who are supposed to be Godly men, who serve as chief priests and Jewish leaders, who would have been elders and teachers of the law, which would have included the Sanhedrin comprised of both Pharisees and Sadducees, seeking an opportunity to kill a man. How can men who confess their faith in God plot to kill a man because of their hatred of his message about Jesus?  Then, to compound their sin of murder, they added lies to their plot. We know the truth Jesus taught when he expanded the command, "You shall not murder." He made it clear that murder will be judged, but that if we are angry with someone, we will be judged. The truth Jesus taught was that anger, or becoming exasperated with someone, as the Greek word Orgizo carries that meaning, is the same as murder. Of course, the major difference would be that the Jews were plotting to commit murder, we simply are responding with anger, or become exasperated with someone because we think more highly of ourselves than we should. In some sense, we are similar to the Jews, in that they were supposed to be holy men, and we profess our faith in Jesus, being religious people, except we are holy because God has declared us holy and blameless in his sight because of Jesus. Yet, as holy people, spiritual people, rather than religious people, like the Jews, we would not ever consider plotting against or becoming angry with anyone. We do wonder if, by default, gossip is a form of plotting against someone, in essence, attempting to destroy or murder their character, and that it would involve a sense of anger, envy, jealousy, or judgmentalism against the person we are gossiping about. If that happened, we would be guilty of plotting.  Then, we must consider: if we listen to the plot and the gossip, have we become as guilty? Even if we can restrain ourselves from gossip and keep our exasperation just an attitude within, it is still the same as murder. 

Listen and Learn

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

LISTEN AND LEARN

Acts 24:22-27

22 Then Felix, who was well acquainted with the Way, adjourned the proceedings. "When Lysias the commander comes," he said, "I will decide your case." 23 He ordered the centurion to keep Paul under guard but to give him some freedom and permit his friends to take care of his needs. 24 Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus. 25 As Paul discoursed on righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and said, "That's enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you." 26 At the same time he was hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe, so he sent for him frequently and talked with him. 27 When two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, but because Felix wanted to grant a favor to the Jews, he left Paul in prison.

NIV

Now we see the politician part of Felix as he kept Paul incarcerated as a favor to the Jews. However, something was stirring within him, and he kept asking Paul to come and tell him more about the faith in Christ. Felix was not interested in righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come. How many believers are interested in those three subjects? When we think of righteousness, we know that Jesus is our righteousness, but in the sense of the Greek word translated as righteousness, it refers to the virtue or quality of one's character. It carries the meaning of integrity, virtue, purity of life, uprightness, correctness in thinking, feeling, and acting. In that sense, we can or should live righteously. Paul made Felix uncomfortable with that idea, as Felix was not demonstrating the qualities of righteousness. That makes us think about whether we are not just demonstrating those qualities of righteousness but actually living them. Then we are faced, as Felix was, with the idea of self-control, or being strong in a thing, mastery, temperance. How strong are we in controlling our appetite, which could mean for food, but more correctly means for our feelings or emotions in our interactions with others. Do we become impatient, angry, hurt, jealous, envious, or lack unforgiveness or any feelings that are not within the context of righteousness? Have we mastered ourselves, fully submitting our lives to the governance of God, especially in light of the coming judgment? Felix did not want to consider being judged for his life, perhaps because he sat in a seat of judgment over others, which would mean he may have thought too much of himself. That would also mean he had not mastered his "self", submitting it to the administration of God. We wonder as to how much we have submitted our "self" to the complete control, governance, or administration of God. We know because of faith in Jesus Christ, being born again, filled with the Spirit, that our names have not been blotted out of the book of life. Therefore, we do not fear the coming judgment, because we are in Christ and he is in us; when we are judged, we will be able to enter into his rest, or reside with Jesus. The problem for Felix was that he would not have been comfortable standing before God's judgment seat, so he did not want to hear it. He did not want to listen and learn.  We wonder how much of God's word we do not want to hear because it makes us uncomfortable, especially when it rebukes or corrects us, or trains us in righteousness. Let us not just look to Jesus, but follow him, listening, and learning.  

Cleansed for the Resurrection

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

CLEANSED FOR THE RESURRECTION

Acts 24:17-21

17 "After an absence of several years, I came to Jerusalem to bring my people gifts for the poor and to present offerings. 18 I was ceremonially clean when they found me in the temple courts doing this. There was no crowd with me, nor was I involved in any disturbance. 19 But there are some Jews from the province of Asia, who ought to be here before you and bring charges if they have anything against me. 20 Or these who are here should state what crime they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin— 21 unless it was this one thing I shouted as I stood in their presence: 'It is concerning the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you today.'"

NIV

Paul finished his defense knowing that he was innocent of all the false charges brought by the high priest and the elders. Two thoughts occur to us in Paul's defense. First, he said that he was ceremonially clean. The Greek word used means to be made clean, or sanctified, which we use to say that we have been set apart, made holy. We think there is a major difference between how Paul became ceremonially clean and how we have been made clean. Paul would have needed to follow the laws prescribed in Leviticus; it depended on his actions, his work, and his adherence to the established rules. We cannot make ourselves clean by doing anything. We have been set apart and declared holy by God because we accepted his grace. That is all we can do, accept what Jesus did for us. In the vernacular of Christianity, we have been washed in his blood, although that is in the spiritual sense. However, the fact remains that we are not just ceremonially clean; we are clean as pure white snow. Do we live a clean life? No, we still deal with sin, but the grace of God covers over our sin, and we have been made clean. Secondly, it is all about the resurrection that caused the uproar in the Sanhedrin. Does the resurrection cause any disturbance in our lives? Do we live with the confidence of the resurrection? We wonder just how much we actually believe in life after death, or the words of Jesus when he said that although we die, we will live? Have we come to terms with our mortality in the sense that we make every possible effort to stay alive, to stay here in this fallen world? We do live in a perishable body; it will wear out at some point. Our days are numbered by God.  According to the Psalmist, God's eye saw our unformed body. That all the days ordained for us were written in his book before one of them came to be. Yet, we think we have something to say about how long we live based on what we eat, or exercise, or follow some regimen, or some prescribed course of action given to us by men?  Do we think that we can change the plan that God prescribed for us? What we know for certain, what we have complete confidence in, is that we will see the resurrection. Whatever our days are, we will try to live according to God's plan and look forward to the day we will see Jesus face to face. We can be assured that we have been cleansed for the resurrection. 

A Clear Conscience

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

A CLEAR CONSCIENCE

Acts 24:10-16

10 When the governor motioned for him to speak, Paul replied: "I know that for a number of years you have been a judge over this nation; so I gladly make my defense. 11 You can easily verify that no more than twelve days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship. 12 My accusers did not find me arguing with anyone at the temple, or stirring up a crowd in the synagogues or anywhere else in the city. 13 And they cannot prove to you the charges they are now making against me. 14 However, I admit that I worship the God of our fathers as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that agrees with the Law and that is written in the Prophets, 15 and I have the same hope in God as these men, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. 16 So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man.

NIV

After being accused by Ananias and some of the elders, who brought the lawyer Tertullus to speak on their behalf, Governor Felix moved that Paul be allowed to speak. We begin with the first part of his defense. We notice that although Paul acknowledges that Felix had been a judge over Israel for a number of years, he does not attempt to butter him up as the accusers had done. As Paul explained that he had done nothing for which he had been accused, he made sure Felix knew he agreed with the Law and the Prophets and that he was a Jew just like his accusers, and that he worships the same God, except that he does so as a follower of the Way. Was there a difference between the resurrection Paul believed in and the one the chief priest Ananias and the elders believed in? We are not sure, but we do not think the Jews believed in the resurrection of the wicked, but only those whom they felt were righteous because they followed the Law. We know the resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked is the truth. All people will stand before God almighty, every knee will bow, and Jesus will stand and read from the book of life. The problem lies in whether our name has not been blotted out of the book of life. Because some names will be blotted out and thus not found in the book, they will not have life eternal but will experience the second death. Even if the Jews who insisted that their righteousness was in the Law, may have their names blotted out. The idea that all Israel will be saved could mean the true Israel, meaning all who have circumcised hearts, the inside evidence, rather than just the outside evidence of being Israel. Nevertheless, we know the only way not to have our name blotted out is to look to Jesus and His righteousness, for we have no righteousness within ourselves, and following any law or rules we think we should keep our name in the book. Accepting the grace of God, accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, following Jesus is the only way, for it has never been nor will it ever be, Jesus plus something we do. The Jews worshipped God, yet it was all about what they did, how they followed the Law, which they improvised based on their ability to feel righteous. How can we think that following a set of rules of conduct can keep our conscience clear before God? No matter how much effort the Jews tried, or we try to keep any law or rules, they and we are bound to fail. Our only hope is Jesus and Jesus alone. We will live by faith, depending on the work Jesus did on the cross for our salvation, and then we will have a clear conscience before God. 

Accusations

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

ACCUSATIONS

Acts 24:1-9

4:1 Five days later the high priest Ananias went down to Caesarea with some of the elders and a lawyer named Tertullus, and they brought their charges against Paul before the governor. 2 When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented his case before Felix: "We have enjoyed a long period of peace under you, and your foresight has brought about reforms in this nation. 3 Everywhere and in every way, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with profound gratitude. 4 But in order not to weary you further, I would request that you be kind enough to hear us briefly. 5 "We have found this man to be a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect 6 and even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him. 8 By examining him yourself you will be able to learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him." 9 The Jews joined in the accusation, asserting that these things were true.

NIV

We are in the courtroom scene, with Governor Felix as the judge and juror, and with Ananias, the high priest, accompanied by a lawyer whom we know we cannot trust. This Tertullus was not part of the Sanhedrin when Paul stirred up the Pharisees and Sadducees. Still, as a lawyer, he represented the accusers and brought charges against Paul before Governor Felix. Looking to win favor, Tertullus uses all the words of flattery he can. Perhaps that is the way things are done, but we wonder if that brings any more truth, or just accusations that cannot be proven. We will get to Paul's defense next, but what can we learn from this fabrication by Ananias and some of the elders, who employed a lawyer to present their claims about Paul? There are two truths we should consider. First, some people might make false claims about our lives, behaviors, or what we have or have not said. Undoubtedly, the people of the world might make false claims about us Christians. We remember when Jesse Ventura, who was once the governor of Minnesota, claimed, "Organized religion is a sham and a crutch for weak-minded people who need strength in numbers." He had more to say, but the point is that he made an untrue accusation. Believers are just the opposite of what he claimed. True faith in Jesus Christ, being a follower of Jesus, a Christian, is for thinking people who search out truth. We will always have someone who will make false claims about Christians. However, some of what the world sees regarding Christianity is from those silver-tongued purveyors of deception who broadcast their falsehoods. Secondly, we should be careful what we say about other believers. There can be this horrible disease within the church, called gossip, or claims about what someone said or did without being able to prove any of the accusations. Some may have witnessed what is considered bad behavior, but it is not their place to gossip about it. Some believers may have felt hurt by someone in the church; however, it is not their place to gossip about how that person hurt their feelings; instead, they should settle the matter quietly with whoever they believe hurt them. When all of us believers are supposed to live by the principle of love that Jesus established, we would not make accusations or gossip about one another because we love them. We would never make any accusations.  

Either the Law or Love

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

EITHER THE LAW OR LOVE

Acts 23:23-35

23 Then he called two of his centurions and ordered them, "Get ready a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. 24 Provide mounts for Paul so that he may be taken safely to Governor Felix." 25 He wrote a letter as follows: 26 Claudius Lysias, To His Excellency, Governor Felix: Greetings. 27 This man was seized by the Jews and they were about to kill him, but I came with my troops and rescued him, for I had learned that he is a Roman citizen. 28 I wanted to know why they were accusing him, so I brought him to their Sanhedrin. 29 I found that the accusation had to do with questions about their law, but there was no charge against him that deserved death or imprisonment. 30 When I was informed of a plot to be carried out against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also ordered his accusers to present to you their case against him. 31 So the soldiers, carrying out their orders, took Paul with them during the night and brought him as far as Antipatris. 32 The next day they let the cavalry go on with him, while they returned to the barracks. 33 When the cavalry arrived in Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and handed Paul over to him. 34 The governor read the letter and asked what province he was from. Learning that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, "I will hear your case when your accusers get here." Then he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod's palace.

NIV

And so the long-drawn-out set of circumstances that will bring Paul to Rome had begun with this letter to the Governor Felix. The case against Paul will soon begin, but he must wait for those accusers, those liars, to come and present their false charges. Paul will be able to speak up about Jesus and the resurrection of the dead, but the righteous and the wicked. We will get to that soon enough, but what can we learn from this narrative? The letter made it clear that the accusations were based on Jewish law, not on any action against the government under Roman rule or against Caesar. We wonder why, then, a Roman governor sits in the judgment seat against a dispute among the Jews. Of course, the Jews have no authority to sit in judgment because they are an occupied people, under the rule of Roman law. What comes to mind is that we appear to live under two sets of laws, but in reality, there is only one. There is the law of God that demands we obey the law of the land. Nevertheless, we should not confuse the law of God with some set of rules and regulations we set upon ourselves. Jesus made that clear enough when he was questioned by an expert in the law about the greatest command in the law. Jesus told him that the greatest command was to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind, and the second was to love others as we love ourselves. We wonder why we put ourselves under the yoke of bondage to the law, or some set of rules we think makes us look holy or righteous. Sure, we want to live in a manner that pleases the Lord, but if we live under the principles of love, then we would be pleasing the Lord. All the laws we could come up with, some of the truths in the scriptures that we want to apply to ourselves, and others, are all covered under the law of love. It always comes down to either the law or love. 

Law Breakers

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

LAW BREAKERS

Acts 23:12-22

12 The next morning the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. 13 More than forty men were involved in this plot. 14 They went to the chief priests and elders and said, "We have taken a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul. 15 Now then, you and the Sanhedrin petition the commander to bring him before you on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about his case. We are ready to kill him before he gets here." 16 But when the son of Paul's sister heard of this plot, he went into the barracks and told Paul. 17 Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, "Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him." 18 So he took him to the commander. The centurion said, "Paul, the prisoner, sent for me and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you." 19 The commander took the young man by the hand, drew him aside and asked, "What is it you want to tell me?" 20 He said: "The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul before the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about him. 21 Don't give in to them, because more than forty of them are waiting in ambush for him. They have taken an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. They are ready now, waiting for your consent to their request." 22 The commander dismissed the young man and cautioned him, "Don't tell anyone that you have reported this to me."

NIV

These forty men who took an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul may have thought it was a secret, but their sin was exposed. How is it that men who were raised in the Jewish traditions, who were supposed to live by the Ten Commandments, one being, "You shall not murder," formed a conspiracy to murder Paul? They were judging Paul for speaking out against the law that they had decided to ignore or purposely break. Sinners calling someone a sinner and worthy of death is bizarre, yet that is exactly what the Jews did in their conspiracy against Jesus. That is why Jesus called them whitewashed tombs. In essence, they were the lawbreakers, not Paul.  We should be extremely careful not to get caught up in that kind of thinking. There is a difference between the church and the world as to how we treat each other. The world does not abide by any biblical principles, so anger, hatred, unforgiveness, criticism, judgmentalism, back-biting, and even murder are standard practices. Sure, there may be some exceptions, with some being rather nice people, but their refusal to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior still puts them in the category of lost sinners. We within the church are simply found sinners, as we have accepted Jesus and make every effort to live in accordance with the law of love that Jesus established when he set the first aside. The question is: are we, in some way, similar to whitewashed tombs? Have we developed attitudes toward other believers that do not apply to the law of love? Do we become judgmental of other believers whom we think have broken the rules we established as the standard to live by? Do we hold any grudge or resentment against another believer that we think has offended us? Are we willing to forgive instantly, or do we want to dwell in our hurt feelings? They plotted, their conspiracy was found out, exposed, and foiled. Now, how were they going to go back on their bond, their oath? Because they were unable to fulfill their oath, they would either have to starve to death or break their oath. How foolish it is to live as they tried to. We are believers in Jesus and have decided to follow Jesus. We have decided to love each other, and therefore all our thoughts, attitudes, words, responses, and behaviors are guided by love. We could never be a part of a conspiracy, even if it were a conspiracy of one against anyone. Love covers a multitude of sins. Because we live under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, with the command of Jesus to love God with our whole being and love others the same way we love ourselves, we live forgiven and forgiving. In that way, we would never be considered lawbreakers.