The Spirit Leads We Follow

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE SPIRIT LEADS WE FOLLOW

Acts 16:6-10

6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

NIV

This is what it means to be led by the Spirit. No, do not go there, stop, not there either, but I will show you where to go. That is this narrative in a nutshell. Being led by the Spirit is the way of life for any believer, yet we wonder how much we listen and follow His leading. We know His leading is important in spiritual matters, as to where we are supposed to be preaching the gospel message, or at least where we are supposed to gather together with other believers. What church should we be in? What should we be doing to serve the Lord? But that also means where we should not be, or what we should not be doing in an area of service. Paul was restricted from going into the province of Asia. We are not told whether he asked the Spirit why, but we know he was obedient and did not enter either Asia or Bithynia, yet the Spirit gave him a clear sign that he was supposed to go to Macedonia. Could we also know just where we are supposed to be, as to what city we should live in, or where is the home the Spirit directed us to? If we are being led by the Spirit, then every aspect of our lives should come under obedience to Him. How can we decide where to go and what to do? If we were making our own decisions, we would be operating in the flesh, which is both weak and corruptible, so we would make mistakes in our choices. That is not to say we cannot choose the clothes we wear, or what food to buy, or what color to paint, or any of those small things in life we may need. But it is our lives themselves that must come under the leadership of the Spirit. Where doesn't He want us to be, what doesn't He want us to do? Where does He want us? What does He want us to do? This is all about following where the Spirit leads. 

Strengthened Faith

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

STRENGTHENED FAITH

Acts 16:1-5

16:1 He came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek. 2 The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

NIV

We are now introduced to Timothy, who was a disciple before Paul met him. However, because he was not fully Jewish, having a Greek father, he would not have been circumcised as an 8-day-old infant. However, there was a connection between Paul and Timothy, as we are told that Paul wanted to take him along on the journey. But the question is, why did Timothy need to be circumcised? This was not to mean that he would need to follow the ritual Jewish laws, or come under the law of Moses. Because Timothy would be accompanying Paul, and it was usually that Paul first went into the synagogue when coming into a city, wanting to bring the gospel message to the Jews, if his companion was uncircumcised, the Jews would not listen, as Timothy would be unclean. Because Paul associated with him, he would be considered unclean. Timothy's circumcision was rendered necessary by the circumstances in which they would be placed. We know that sometime later, Paul entrusted the affairs of the church at Ephesus to Timothy's leadership. The point of this narrative is not the act of circumcision, but that Paul continued to preach the good news and inform the Gentile believers of the decision of the apostles and elders reached regarding their responsibilities as believers. As we have considered before, most of those do nots are not meaningful in our culture, except for sexual immorality. Nevertheless, it reveals that believers should live differently from unbelievers. There are some things we are not supposed to do or have certain attitudes about. We are to rid ourselves of pride, jealousy, envy, gossip, anger, unforgiveness, and bitterness, just to name a few. However, the list of what we are to do does not get as much attention as it should, such as encouraging one another, speaking to each other in Hymns, Psalms, and making music in our hearts to God. We are also supposed to build each other up. We see Paul does all this in his relationship with Timothy, encouraging him, building him up, and speaking the good things of God with him. Their focus was on Jesus, spreading the good news to both Jews and Gentiles, so that the believers were strengthened in the faith and grew in numbers daily. Was the increase in numbers all due to Paul and Timothy, or was it more about the believers in the church sharing their faith with others, because they had been strengthened in their faith? 

Strengthening

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

STRENGTHENING

Acts 15:36-41

36 Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing." 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

NIV

What do we say about this sharp disagreement? Can we observe a difference of opinions without thinking there was sin within either of their hearts? Both Paul and Barnabas were devoted men of God, but how do we justify Paul's not wanting to trust John Mark because he had deserted them? Was there anger in the sharp disagreement between them? Did Paul harbor ill feelings about John Mark, or unforgiveness because of his deserting them, and not continuing with the work of the ministry? We might try to answer these questions based on our own thoughts about relationships within the community of faith. Can we have a sharp disagreement over a church issue and not get upset, angry, or have hurt feelings, even to the point of either leaving or splitting the church? Are we judging Paul and Barnabas based on our sense of right and wrong? In the Greek text, there is only one word that means excitement in a positive sense, but is used in a negative sense as irritation. Either way it is used in this text, it does not imply a sinful argument that leads to a permanent, never-speak-to-each-other-again anger. Nevertheless, the lesson we can learn is that we can have different thoughts about the ministry of the church without getting all bent out of shape. Paul and Barnabas both concluded it would be best to split up, each with their companion. This could also have been possible; the lord's hand was in this, as there was one team, now there were two teams, which were able to cover more churches in a shorter amount of time. However, is it right to think the Lord would agree with any contention or disagreement that leads to splitting up? Is it right to think that Paul never forgave John Mark, or that he just was not able to trust him again? In Paul's letter to the Colossians, he mentions John Mark, Barnabas's cousin, in a positive light. This also sheds light on why Barnabas chose John Mark to travel with him. From that letter, we also see that Paul asks the  Colossian church to welcome John Mark, as they had received instructions about him. Therefore, we know disagreements are not meant to lead to unforgiveness, with hard feelings, or permanent separation. The basic underlying truth is that the churches were strengthened. That is the key to what should motivate our intentions concerning the church: to strengthen it, build it up, and encourage one another. 

Encourage and Strengthen

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

ENCOURAGE AND STRENGTHEN

Acts 15:30-35

30 The men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31 The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32 Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers. 33 After spending some time there, they were sent off by the brothers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them.   35 But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

NIV

We are dealing with a message contained in this letter, sent by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, as well as the personal messages of Silas and Judas, called Barsabas. What we need to focus on is, first, the response to the message, and second, the work of Silas and Barsabas. Of course, the written letter was encouraging in the sense that these new Gentile believers did not have to undergo the painful experience of circumcision. It is one thing, according to Jewish law, to circumcise an eight-day-old boy, but for an adult male, it is a very painful thing that debilitates a man for several days. So, not having to experience that would be very encouraging. However, we also note that Silas and Judas were prophets and said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers. Encouraging and strengthening others should be one of the main traits of all believers. We are told many times in various Epistles to encourage and build one another up. Judas and Silas were encouragers, seeking to build up those brothers according to their needs. Those times were different from what we have available to us now. These brothers in Antioch did not have all four gospels, nor any of the epistles of Paul, Peter, or John. Most likely, they did not even have copies of the torah, or any of the Psalms, and the words of the prophets. All they had were messages from men who came to Antioch, some with words that would burden the new believers; but when the apostles and elders sent this letter and Silas and Judas, they brought words of truth that encouraged and strengthened the new believers. That is the kind of words that should come out of our mouths, even if other believers have the whole Bible available to them, and should be encouraged and strengthened by reading and exploring the truths within it. Although we have the fullness of the scriptures, it seems we can still go through times when our hearts are heavy, because we are going through some difficult experience. We might even become a bit discouraged or disappointed because it seems our prayers are not being answered, or we are not seeing an improvement in our situation. That is why we all should be ready, willing, and able to encourage and strengthen each other. 

Seems Good to Him

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

SEEMS GOOD TO HIM

Acts 15:22-29

22 Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, two men who were leaders among the brothers. 23 With them they sent the following letter:

The apostles and elders, your brothers,

To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:

Greetings.

24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.

Farewell.

NIV

It is good to maintain the format of this letter as it is in the scriptures, and some truths certainly apply for that period of time, which we may not need to apply, except for sexual immorality. However, we want to focus on one statement in this letter. The authors of this letter made it known that it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to them not to burden the believers there with the law of Moses and the oral traditions of Judaism, mainly, circumcision. We could also note that some disturbed the new believers' minds with false teaching. That has not changed over time, because there are still false teachers among us today, not troubling but deceiving people's minds. But it is this truth about what seemed right with the Holy Spirit that bears truth into our lives. There was discussion among the apostles and elders regarding this situation and how to resolve it, but it was the leading of the Spirit that brought about the agreement with all the brothers. We would do well to do what seems right with the Holy Spirit, so that whatever we do is in the will of the Father. The Spirit does lead us into all truth; however, we have to be listening to be led. It can be easy to do so many things in our own desire to be religious, or do what we think are good works, or good works we think are right to do. But what seems right to the Holy Spirit would be the best thing for us to do. He has given us many gifts throughout the scriptures, and the Spirit also leads us in the direction of our lives, in our decisions, plans, and all our life choices. Before we do anything, especially concerning the church, but also our personal lives, we should consult with the Holy Spirit, so we know what seems good to Him. 

Abstaining and Doing

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

ABSTAINING AND DOING

Acts 15:12-21

12 The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. 13 When they finished, James spoke up: "Brothers, listen to me. 14 Simon has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. 15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

16 "'After this I will return and rebuild David's fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, 17 that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things'  18 that have been known for ages.  

19 "It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21 For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath."

NIV

The first thing we need to focus on is that God is always the one who performs the miraculous signs and wonders, though he usually does so through one of his faithful followers. That does not mean that working through someone is always the case, as God can simply perform any miracle at any time, in any way he chooses. Yet the story is again about the Gentiles receiving and accepting the word of God as well as being filled with the Holy Spirit. The apostles, the spiritual leaders of this new church, based on salvation through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, needed to come to an agreement regarding whether the Gentiles needed to be concerned about the law of Moses and all the oral traditions of Judaism, or should they be instructed as to living a life that would please the Lord. It is clear that James made the right judgment, and they decided that three basic life changes should occur among the Gentile believers. Because we are Gentiles, although we have far more instructions, we know that we would never have anything to do with sacrificing food to idols; we get ours at the store, and the blood has already been drained. We certainly   do not know about any of our meat ever coming from strangled animals, but we cannot imagine any processing plants or slaughterhouses doing that. We would also think most believers are not involved in sexual immorality, although we can never be certain that is an absolute overall truth. Nevertheless, we still have other areas we need to address through prayer and obedience, which should lead us to abstain from jealousy, envy, pride, anger, self-centeredness, gossip, and unforgiveness. Instead, we should be building each other up, encouraging one another, and loving one another. Let us remember that God has chosen to reveal Himself to all people. We have accepted his truth and should try to live lives that please him, allowing the Spirit to lead and empower us to follow Jesus. They wrote a letter to the Gentiles with instructions, and we have many letters now, with many instructions we should follow. Because we cannot be as perfect as we should be, we need to rely on the Spirit to do the work within us, just as we rely on Jesus for our salvation. Yes, there are areas in our lives we need to abstain from, but there are areas we just need to be doing. 

The Law or Grace

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE LAW OR GRACE

Acts 15:5-11

5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses." 6 The apostles and elders met to consider this question. 7 After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: "Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."

NIV

We find it interesting that there were believers who still ascribed to the Pharisees' party. Without going into extreme depth of all their religious beliefs, the Pharisees adhered to the Torah as well as oral traditions. They did believe in the resurrection and an afterlife, and they practiced ritual purity and dietary laws. It is difficult to see how someone who became a follower of Jesus, a believer, could still ascribe to the Pharisaical ideas of Jewish life. Yet, they were the ones who insisted the Gentiles should be circumcised and obey the law of Moses, in essence, become a Jew. How can a believer feel that others should follow the law when they cannot follow it perfectly? Peter, one who is filled with the Spirit, made it clear that God does not show favoritism and considers all men, Jews and Gentiles, equal. God makes no distinction between all his creation, as he pours out his Spirit on all people. Of course, the Gentiles chose to accept the word of God, turn from their idols to the One True God, accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, and be filled with the Holy Spirit. It is by grace and grace alone that they were saved, and that applies to our lives as well. Once we have been freed from the yoke of bondage, we should not put another yoke or burden of slavery on ourselves by trying to live under some kind of law, rules, or regulations we think make us holy or righteous. We should take upon the yoke of Jesus and learn from him, for he is gentle and humble of heart. Let us live within the grace of God, loving and learning from Jesus. There is nothing that we can do that would make us more holy or more righteous than the grace of God has already done. Because by faith we are saved and not by work lest any of us can boast. Why do some still want the works to define their lives? Why do some want to boast about how holy or righteous they are? Are we not all sinners who are saved by grace? Sure, we want to live to please the Lord. Sure, we want to do the right things and abstain from evil. But some have almost gone the way of the Pharisees, believing in a set of laws we must abide by to be a "Good Christian." Let us not burden ourselves with the yoke of the law, but let us live as followers of Jesus. It is either the law or grace, not both. 

The Circumcised Heart

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE CIRCUMCISED HEART

Acts 15:1-4

15:1 Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: "Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved." 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the brothers very glad. 4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

NIV

There is going to be much discussion among the apostles and elders in Jerusalem about this matter of Gentiles needing to be circumcised, that is, to become a Jew to be saved. We know the outcome of that debate, with Peter making the strongest case that the Gentiles need not be burdened with circumcision, since the Holy Spirit was poured out on them just as on the believers in Jerusalem. We do not have any restrictions or requirements for becoming a follower of Jesus, or, as some say, being saved. But then we start making up rules on how we think believers should live, with restrictions on certain things. One of the main objections among many believers is smoking and drinking wine or other adult beverages. However, the word tells us not to be drunk on wine, but to be filled with the Spirit. So then we should see the evidence of those who abstain from wine, that they are full of the Spirit. However, the main discussion is about the circumcision of the heart, rather than any outward sign needed to become a believer. We will see that the only admonishment was not to eat food that was sacrificed to idols, or strangled meat, or meat with the blood, or sexual immorality. Circumcision was taken off the table, not to burden believers with that act of the flesh. We would be good to take this truth to heart. It is not so much about what we should not eat or drink, but whether we have allowed the Lord to circumcise our hearts. Of course, we are supposed to rid ourselves of certain things, but they are all heart issues, like pride, envy, jealousy,  slander, which means gossip, bitterness, anger, deceit, and hypocrisy. It would be better for us to consider the condition of our hearts than what we should not eat or drink. If we are filled with the Spirit, he will lead us into all truth. Let us not worry about the restrictions, but let us open our hearts, having them filled with the Spirit, then we will live with circumcised hearts. 

Set Apart

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

SET APART

Acts 14:21-28

21 They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said. 23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. 24 After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, 25 and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. 26 From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. 27 On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.

NIV

This is almost like a travel log or the travel agenda of Paul and Barnabas, but there is some truth we need to ponder. First, they strengthened the believers and encouraged them to remain true to the faith. We might see Paul and Barnabas as doing the work of missionaries and so think that, as long as we support some of our modern-day missionaries, we have fulfilled our responsibility to strengthen and encourage some believers in a far-off land. Although Paul and Barnabas were set apart by the Holy Spirit, and men prayed and laid hands on the two of them before sending them on their way, there was no set of rules or denominational requirements they needed to meet to be the men of God they were, and do the work of the Lord among the people. They were set apart and filled, and led by the Holy Spirit, so they could boldly speak of the good news about the kingdom of God, with the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. Because we are all told to build each other up, to speak words that build others up according to their needs, so that it might benefit them. We are also told to spur one another to love and good deeds. This is not just the work of missionaries but of all believers. Sure, Paul and Barbabas were set apart by the Holy Spirit, but has not the Spirit set all of us apart from the ways of the world? The Holy Spirit will lead us if we listen to his still, small voice within. Secondly, God opened doors for them, even though they experienced opposition, even stoning, and they told believers in Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch that they must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God. This could refer to the fact that the Spirit of this world is opposed to the Spirit of Christ; therefore, it is possible that believers will experience the same kind of opposition, to the point of persecution or ridicule. However, that would mean we live openly as believers, boldly expressing our faith, even in the face of ridicule. We know the Spirit will open doors for us, so we are where we need to be, and voice our faith in Jesus Christ so others might turn from their wicked ways and turn to Jesus. Let us recognize our being set apart to do the work of the Lord. [i]

 

 

 

---

[i] 1 Thessalonians 5:11

Ephesians 4:29

Hebrews 10:24-25

Romans 14:19 

The Mythical and the Truth

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE MYTHICAL AND THE TRUTH

Acts 14:11-20

11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!" 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them. 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15 "Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. 16 In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17 Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy." 18 Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them. 19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20 But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

NIV

Why would men want to believe in that which is not true, rather than consider the truth of God? Because Paul and Barnabas were filled with the Spirit and empowered to perform miraculous signs and wonders, the townspeople thought they were two of the mythical Greek gods. Because Zeus and Hermes have never been seen by anyone, as they are mythical, not real, people believed that when they saw what Paul and Barnabas did, it was an easy leap to believe their gods were real. Paul and Barnabas would have nothing to do with them, believing them to be gods, so they tore their garments in an effort to prove they were just men, like everyone else. Here is the central truth of this narrative in Lystra. The good news is meant to turn people from worthless things to the living God. How can people deny that the rain comes from the Living God? How can people deny that all the food we have to eat comes from the hand of God, for he spoke all plants into existence and all the livestock. Yet they would rather believe in false gods that have no ears to hear, eyes to see, or a mouth to speak. But now the people of Lystra believed they had two of them when they saw the crippled man walk. We wonder if even believers can be deceived by falsehoods. Yet that is the case when so many listen to those silver-tongued purveyors of deception who tickle the ears and hearts with falsehoods, that God wants them to be wealthy, and to live in material abundance. Not that he wants us to be poor and live without any material things. But life should not be about satisfying ourselves or living a self-oriented life. Life is about loving the Lord with our whole self, our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We should be living a God-centered life because we see the evidence of his majestic power and authority all around us. The whole earth and all that is in it testify to God being the creator and the giver of life. We can see that others who came to Lystra, Jews who were completely opposed to the truth of God, were stuck in their own form of religion, which came to turn the people who first wanted to worship Paul and Barnabas, now wanted to stone them.  Why would men rather believe in men than God? If we are honest with ourselves, we understand that all people can lie, but God never lies; he tells only the truth, for he is the truth. There is the mythical, then there is truth. 

Evidence of Faith

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

EVIDENCE OF FAITH

Acts 14:8-10

8 In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed 10 and called out, "Stand up on your feet!" At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.

NIV

This is going to turn ugly after what happened regarding the man who was crippled in his feet from birth. However, before the results of this healing, we want to focus on that for a moment. We notice this lame man was listening to Paul as he spoke about the good news of Jesus Christ. That good news must have included the fact that Jesus was the Son of God who came to earth in human form, went to the cross for the forgiveness of sins, was resurrected, and, after his ascension, sent the Holy Spirit to empower believers. We don't know everything Paul said, but it had to include all that and more. The point that this lame man listened and believed so much that he felt he could be healed. His faith was evident to Paul. What was the evidence of this man's faith that he could be healed? Was it a look in his eyes? Was there a glow on his face? Did he appear enlightened, light up, filled with excitement of standing up and walking for the first time in his life? Whatever it was in this crippled man's appearance, Paul saw it and called out, "Stand up on your feet!" At that, the man jumped up and began to walk. He didn't just stand up, he jumped up. The Greek word here carries that meaning of jumping, leaping, springing up. We wonder why we do not see that kind of healing in many of the churches today. Maybe we just do not have that kind of faith to be healed. Could one person have enough faith for someone else to be healed? This narrative tells us that the man's faith caused his healing. It was the same with the woman who knew that if she could just touch the hem of his garment, she would be healed. One by one, we could go through all the healings in scripture, and most of them result from the faith of the one being healed. Some, such as the lame man that Peter and John saw on their way to the temple, it was Peter's faith that led him to tell the man to stand up and walk in the name of Jesus. Still, all healings are for the expressed reason to bring glory to God in the highest. It is good to experience a healing in the name of Jesus. A healing can give relief from some sickness, pain, or infirmity. However, is it possible that we have become comfortable in some sense, being a crippled Christian? Is it possible that we have put too much faith in man's medical profession than in Jesus? We wonder why they call it "practicing medicine." When Jesus never needed to practice healing, he just did. Paul didn't need to practice either; he simply saw the evidence of this crippled man's faith and told him to stand up. Is our faith evident? 

Never Stop Preaching

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

NEVER STOP PREACHING

Acts 14:1-7

14:1 At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed. 2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders. 4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 There was a plot afoot among the Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. 6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7 where they continued to preach the good news.

NIV

Why does the truth divide people so much? The truth is the truth, yet some people refuse to listen even when they hear it. Why is it that those who refuse to believe the truth want to poison the minds of others? From this narrative, the Jews who stirred up the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas used an age-old principle of trying to destroy the character of their opponents, to the point of physically harming them. Yet, no matter the situation, Paul and Barnabas continued to speak boldly about the message of grace, and they were enabled to perform miraculous signs and wonders. We wonder if we were to speak the message of grace as boldly as they did, we might be enabled to do miraculous signs and wonders in the presence of those who oppose God's grace. Sure, it is good to spend time with other believers, but we cannot simply hide within the walls of the church, so to speak. Looking out at the sinners with judgmentalism. Sure, Paul and Barnabas went to the Jewish synagogues first with the message about Jesus, the grace of God. Some believed, some were stuck in the law of Moses, and opposed their message openly. Of course, we are not going to convince everyone; in fact, we are not supposed to convince them, that is the work of the Holy Spirit. We are only supposed to tell them the truth about the grace of God. The question is, how can we do that? Where can we interact with unbelievers? Maybe the younger employed believers work with unbelievers and have the daily opportunity to share the message, but what about those who are no longer in the work force, retired, old, and maybe even a bit feeble or sickly? How do they fulfill the great commission of going into all the world and preaching the good news to everyone? What if we stood in some store and just started sharing the good news boldly? Would we be asked to leave? Would they call the police on us? Maybe, just maybe, some would listen, some would believe the message of God's grace. Maybe if we were that bold, we might be enabled to do some miraculous signs or wonders. Who knows, if we never speak up, we will never know. Paul and Barnabas never stopped; they continued to preach the good news. Could we do that? Could we never stop preaching the good news? 

Being Full

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

BEING FULL

Acts 13:49-52

49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jews 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. 51 So they shook the dust from their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

NIV

It is sad that some people not only reject the truth but also become vindictive by outwardly opposing the truth and inciting others to their cause against Jesus. Paul and Barnabas were expelled, told to leave the region. The people did not want to hear anymore; they were content to live in the darkness of their minds. There is a good possibility that they were inspired by the evil one, who is always opposed to God. It may be like that song by Bob Dylan, "You gotta serve somebody, you're either gonna serve the Lord or serve the devil, but you gotta serve somebody". However, our lesson is not about persecution or expulsion from the region, though that does play into the truth we should ponder. Luke, in his account of the Acts of the Apostles, records that the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit. We cannot wait for everything to become a bed of roses, so to speak, to be filled with joy and the Holy Spirit. Whatever our circumstances in life, we can still be filled with joy. We cannot allow those things, anything that comes against us, to suck the joy out of our lives. If we begin to focus more on our aches and pains, an infirmity, or a difficult situation, or when things just are not going the way we think they should, we are giving in to them, and we could lose the joy. We know the joy of the Lord in our strength, as Nehemiah tells us. Jesus told us that because he loves us, just as the Father loves him, he gives us his joy so that our joy may be complete. What a promise, Jesus gives us his joy so we can be, not only filled with Joy, but have complete joy, which means full to the brim joy. This may not mean we are jumping, leaping, and praising God, but it also could mean that. Yet, joy is deep within, yet if we are full of joy and the Holy Spirit, surely our countenance would reflect it. We would think that a believer whose joy is complete, that is, they are completely full of joy and the Holy Spirit, would not be walking around pained-faced, with a downcast attitude, or appearance, but their joy would be pouring out of them, and the evidence of being full of the Spirit could be visibly seen. How can we be half full of joy or half full of the Holy Spirit? The opposite of being full is not just half full, but being empty. 

Being Glad

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

BEING GLAD

Acts 13:42-48

42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43 When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. 44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and talked abusively against what Paul was saying. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: "We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us: "'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.'" 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

NIV

It is always good to urge others to continue in the grace of God. That is what we are all called to do when we are told to encourage one another and build each other up. In this case, it was Paul acting in a sense as an evangelist, who is one of the gifts of the Spirit to the church. However, the gospel can bring division among some. Because Paul and Barnabas first went to the synagogue to speak to the Jews and the devout converts to Judaism, everything was fine; in fact, they were invited back the next Sabbath to speak more about Jesus. But when the people of the city, the Gentiles, came to listen to Paul and Barnabas, the Jews became jealous and talked abusively against what Paul was saying. Talk about the "Us four and no more" mentality! Although the Jews wanted to hear more, they had not accepted Jesus as their Messiah; in fact, we are told they rejected the word of God. Paul and Barnabas were sent to the Jews in the first place; that was their calling. They were to be a light for the Gentiles. We are also supposed to be a light to the Gentiles, or the world. If we are considered to be followers of Jesus, and we love to tell the story, we should be telling it to those who have yet to decide to follow Jesus, those of the world. Most likely, we have not been called to be evangelists, but we should be witnesses to what has happened in our lives. We should also learn to speak boldly, as we are not ashamed of the gospel. There is this other concept we should take notice of regarding the Jews, whom Paul accused of not thinking they were worthy of eternal life. That was because they were stuck in the law of Moses and could not see the truth of the gospel that salvation was a free gift of God. However, the Gentiles were glad and honored the word of the Lord. All who were put in a certain order to arrange or ordained, appointed, for eternal life believed. Does this mean God chose some to believe and some not to believe? Would that mean God determines who will be saved and who will perish? Of course, not, he desires all to be saved, that no one should perish. The intent of this language was to say that all who believed were appointed to eternal life. God ordains believers to eternal life; He places us in the order of his divine will. Thank you, Lord. We heard the message, were glad, and believed. There is something about being glad. If we're glad, then our faces should show it, as should our lives. Jesus is the reason we are glad. 

Declared Innocent

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

DECLARED INNOCENT

Acts 13:38-41

38 "Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses. 40 Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

41 "'Look, you scoffers, wonder and perish, for I am going to do something in your days that you would never believe, even if someone told you.'"

NIV

We owe everything to Jesus. Paul makes it clear that through Jesus we have the forgiveness of our sins. That is excellent news, for who could find that kind of grace anywhere but in Jesus. They could not find justification or be declared innocent through abiding by the law of Moses. We cannot find any declaration of being just or righteous, or of being declared innocent, by abiding by any rules or regulations that we think are based on the scriptures. Of course, we want to live a righteous life as we follow Jesus, doing the right things, loving God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and loving our neighbors as we love ourselves. We wonder why we still want rules, those do's and don'ts. It's not that we want to sin or just live in any manner we want, as we do want to live to please the Lord. But trying to live on our own power or strength is just like those who tried to live by the law of Moses. It is not possible for them, nor for us, to attain justification under the law. Because of Jesus, and only Jesus, can we find the forgiveness of our sins, which means that God has declared us righteous and innocent. The warning Paul quotes is from the prophet Habakkuk, about the ruthless Babylonians who overpower all cities, plundering everything , and taking captives. The warning is about scoffers, those who scoff, or despise the grace of God, Jesus. Those whom Paul was speaking to were still living under the law of Moses, and thus they were despisers or scoffers at the only means of justification, Jesus. We certainly do not despise Jesus; he is our Lord and Savior. We have confessed our sins, repented, changed the way we think, and look only to Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins. He is our only way to attain righteousness, be declared or rendered by God as innocent of all charges against us. Those who scoff will not be declared innocent, but will perish. Let us not take the forgiveness of our sins lightly and think that living by any rules of regulations gives us any righteousness or good standing with God. Our only hope is through Jesus, and Jesus only. We cannot add or subtract anything to or from Jesus. He is the only means of our salvation. We can never scoff or not believe that Jesus is the only way, because through him, we are declared innocent.

 

No Decay

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

NO DECAY

Acts 13:32-37

32 "We tell you the good news: What God promised our fathers 33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: "'You are my Son; today I have become your Father.'   34 The fact that God raised him from the dead, never to decay, is stated in these words: "'I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.'   35 So it is stated elsewhere: "'You will not let your Holy One see decay.'   36 "For when David had served God's purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his fathers and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.

NIV

The news about Jesus is the only good news, and Paul wanted to tell it whenever he could. That is a great lesson we should take to heart. We sing about loving to tell the story of Jesus and his glory, but do we actually tell the story to whoever we can? In a world where there is wickedness and so much bad news is generated about something by so many, hearing good news should be a desirable thing. People look to human leadership to solve their problems; some look to it to meet their needs. Some look to themselves to provide their own needs and secure their future. But the only real problem is life and death, and the only one who provides all that someone needs and has secured their future is the Lord. However, each person is given a choice to accept life instead of death. Once we choose to accept the good news that Jesus has been raised from the dead and lives, we will have life. Because all flesh will decay in this world, that is, all will die, everyone who comes from the dust will return to the dust, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, but Jesus promised to those who accept him as their Lord and Savior that even through we die, we will live, and our flesh will be raised from the dead or we who are still alive will be changed. We will all have a new glorified body that will not see decay. Is there any good news better than having eternal life, never to see decay? Of course, we know that when this body does give out, we will leave it and then be present with the Lord, for we know that we only temporarily reside in this perishable and corruptible body that cannot inherit eternal life. However, to be absent from it is to be present with our Lord. However, someday, that body will be raised imperishable and uncorruptible to live forever, just as Jesus lives forever with his saints to reign. He arose, and so will we, where there is no decay. 

The Witnesses

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE WITNESSES

Acts 13:26-31

26 "Brothers, children of Abraham, and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28 Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.

NIV

Paul is laying out the complete plan of salvation for these people of Pisidian Antioch. He was in the synagogue and asked if he had any encouraging words. What more encouragement can there be than about Jesus taking our sins to the cross, then being raised from the dead? It has also seemed strange to us that the religious men of Israel who read the scriptures every Sabbath,  especially the prophets who spoke of the Anointed One, did not see Jesus for who he was. Their own quest for power over the people and their position in the community overshadowed their ability to see the truth. Their traditional thinking blinded them from seeing Jesus as the Son of David, the long-awaited Messiah, the Christ. Paul is making it clear to both the sons of Abraham, the Jews, and the Gentiles who are God-revering. Times have not changed; we have so many people today who are blinded by their own thinking and by a desire for power or influence over others. There are so many different organizations or movements with their agenda for a better way, their way. Many stand in protest against anything that does not agree with their thinking, wanting to influence others to follow their agenda. We were once blinded by our own desires, but the scales have been removed from our eyes, more importantly, from our hearts. After Jesus was raised from the dead, we have the testimony of many witnesses to his resurrection. Can there be anything better than to be assured that Jesus was raised from the dead? Because he was resurrected, we can be confident that we who live in him and believe in Jesus will also be resurrected to eternal life, to live forever with Jesus. We cannot listen to the voices of decent, or those false prophets, teachers, with their silver-tongued deceit. There is only one truth, and his name is Jesus. He is the way, the truth, and the life. There is no other way to attain salvation and eternal life. As those who physically saw the resurrected Jesus were witnesses to others, and we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within, being a witness to us of the truth about Jesus, we too should be witnesses to others. The question is, what constitutes being a witness? In a court of law, we can only testify to what we have heard, seen, or experienced. We are sworn to tell the truth and only the truth. We do not need to be an evangelist, a preacher, or a great public speaker to tell someone what happened to us. We can tell how Jesus saved us; that would be the truth. We are just the witnesses. 

Whose Heart

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

WHOSE HEART

Acts 13:13-25

13 From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. 14 From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. 15 After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the synagogue rulers sent word to them, saying, "Brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak." 16 Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: "Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17 The God of the people of Israel chose our fathers; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt, with mighty power he led them out of that country, 18 he endured their conduct for about forty years in the desert, 19 he overthrew seven nations in Canaan and gave their land to his people as their inheritance.   20 All this took about 450 years. "After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21 Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.' 23 "From this man's descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. 24 Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 25 As John was completing his work, he said: 'Who do you think I am? I am not that one. No, but he is coming after me, whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.'

NIV

Paul has more to say to the men in the synagogue, bringing them to the point that Jesus is the Messiah, but there are some truths in this portion, or his introduction, that we should take note of. First, the message about the forgiveness of sins through Jesus is extremely encouraging, which is what Paul was invited to speak. This portion is a history lesson on Israel and its relationship with God, leading to the knowledge of David, the one man whom God testified about. This is the truth that we want to consider how our lives compare to David's. God testified that he found a man after his own heart. What does it mean to be after God's own heart? Certainly, this did not apply to the private life of David, for he acted sinfully concerning Bathsheba. We must then conclude that this testimony of God about David concerned his public life. Saul was rebellious and did not follow God's command. However, David did not allow idolatry, and he ruled according to the law of Moses. He followed the commands of God. However, even when he sinned, when Nathan brought it to his attention, he repented and sought God. David did not rule against God, but for God. We are not sinless either; however, have we become comfortable with a level of sin in our lives? What we know about David is that he was not comfortable with his sin. Of course, we would never murder, steal, or commit any of those big sins of the Ten Commandments. Yet have we allowed ourselves the liberty to gossip, or harbor ill feelings, unforgiveness, jealousy, envy, self-centeredness, anger, pride, judgmental, critical, or any of those other emotional or spiritual faults? Those feelings or actions are nothing like the heart of God or the life of someone who lives after God's own heart. Sure, we are not sinless, but at the same time, do we seek the heart of God in the area in which he has called us to serve him? Can we say that God has not called us into his service? We are not called to be a king as David was, but we have been called to be a part of the body of Christ, to build each other up, to encourage each other, and to love each other. We may not rule a nation, but if we seek God's heart, we should rule over ourselves and be rid of those unfruitful feelings. Jesus said that if we come after him, we must deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and follow him. If we can do that, then maybe God would testify concerning us that he found someone after his own heart who would do everything he wants. This is the greatest question: do we do what we want, following our own heart, or do we want what God wants, following His heart?  

Evil Never Wins

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

EVIL NEVER WINS

Acts 13:6-12

6 They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7 who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. 9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10 "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11 Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun." Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12 When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

NIV

Here we see the difference between a magician and the power of God. It may be true that Elymas the sorcerer was able to perform some parlor tricks, but whatever he did was from the pit of hell or the devil's trickery. However, there is no real power or authority from the evil one, only tricks, illusions, and falsehood. Paul and Barnabas saw right through Elymas and called him a child of the devil and an enemy of all that is right. When a person, who is a child of the devil, opposes the word of God, Jesus, and all that is right,Their main agenda is to attempt to destroy anyone who lives according to what is right because they are following Jesus. We can see this truth throughout our world as those who oppose what is right protest against the truth of God. However, Saul and Barnabas, knowing the power of God and being filled with the Spirit, told Elymas that the hand of the Lord was against him. Evil never wins when the hand of God is at work, which is always in those who accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, as they are also filled with the Spirit. Believers do not need deceit and trickery as the children of the devil do. That is all evil can do, deceive and trickery, but the believer has the power of God. Paul called down blindness on Elymas, and someone had to lead him by the hand. Yet,  by performing magic or trickery, he was already blind to the truth of God. He lived with a blind heart, and now he had blind eyes. Evil never wins. The power of God worked through Paul and Barnabas, and now the proconsul's eyes were opened to the truth, and he believed. He was amazed at the teaching about the Lord. This is where believers live, in the teaching about the Lord, and in the power of God, being filled with the Spirit, seeing the truth overcome evil, for evil never wins. 

Hear and Respond

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

HEAR AND RESPOND

Acts 13:1-5

13:1 In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. 4 The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.

NIV

There surely is a story about those six prophets and teachers in Antioch, but the one that applies to our lives concerns the work of the Holy Spirit. The first question is, how did the Holy Spirit speak? We are told he made a statement, telling them to set apart for him Barnabas and Saul for the work he had called them to. Did the Spirit speak audibly, or was it more like an overwhelming sense among all of them, as they were one in the Spirit, one in the Lord, and unity was there, not just one day unity will be restored. After laying hands on those two, they sent them on their way by the Holy Spirit. Here is where we come into this story, or where we apply the work of the Spirit within the church and our lives. First, because they were all fasting and praying, the Holy Spirit made himself and his plans known to them. They were one in the Spirit. Have we missed out on that kind of unity? Have we forgotten the power of the Holy Spirit, with all his gifts and fruit? Have we lost the ability or the sensitivity of his voice within? Maybe we have become too busy with our own lives, even our church lives, being concerned about doing the right things, being religious, following our traditions rather than following Jesus, or listening to the Holy Spirit. First, we should note that some of us may be called upon to be set apart to the work he has called us to. The question then would be: how do we know who is called or set apart for a specific work? There should be a consensus among the church, as it was in Antioch. When Barnabas and Saul responded to the call of the Holy Spirit, the church confirmed that call by placing their hands on them and sending them on their way by the Holy Spirit. This is the second truth. The Holy Spirit is the sender; that is, he is the one who sends people where they are supposed to be. The caveat to that is we need to be listening to the Holy Spirit. Again, if we become too busy doing church in traditional ways or in the same old patterns we always use, maybe we have dampened the Spirit's fire. It is true that most churches support missionaries, who are supposed to be proclaiming the word of God somewhere; however, we did not hear their call, nor did we lay hands on them and send them out by the Spirit. Someone at the denominational headquarters sent them out after they met all the requirements, raised their own support funds, perhaps learned a language, and whatever else was required. That is a major difference between the church in Antioch and the church today. Has the church become too much of a form of business, or does it function with too many rules and regulations, rather than praying and hearing the Holy Spirit as to who has been set apart for his purpose? There are some who know, who have heard, who have gone where the Spirit has led, but there could be others who have yet to hear and respond. Should we not all be praying in unity to hear the Spirit's voice? When we hear, we should respond. 

The Heart

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE HEART

Acts 12:18-25

18 In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19 After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed. Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there a while. 20 He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. Having secured the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king's country for their food supply. 21 On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. 22 They shouted, "This is the voice of a god, not of a man." 23 Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. 24 But the word of God continued to increase and spread. 25 When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

NIV

The heart of an evil man will receive his just reward. First, because the guards had no idea that Peter had been rescued by an angel, they had no valid reason for the empty cell. It is sort of like no one had any idea why there was an empty tomb. The heart of this evil, Herod, had those innocent guards executed. Had he stood guard himself, he would not have known why Peter was missing from the cell, but that did not matter; he was angry and took it out on those guards. But that is not the full story, as this evil heart was still at work. When the people of Tyre and Sidon wanted an audience before king Herod of Israel to secure peace because they depended on Isreal for food. When he made his speech, their response was that he spoke like a god, not a man. Then the evil heart responded with pride in self, instead of giving all the credit for his wise words to the Lord God Almighty. This is the lesson that we all must learn well. Jesus told us to learn from him, for he is gentle and humble of heart. Herod did not learn that lesson, as Herod's heart was not gentle nor humble. Because he did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. That sounds like an awful way to die, as worms fed on him as he lay there, after being struck down. Let us learn never to give ourselves any credit for anything, which is contrary to the way of the world. It is natural to want credit for what we do. It is natural to expect others to give us credit in the realm of the world. We earn a better position, a pay increase, and acknowledgment of a job well done. Credit for our efforts started in our schooling, everything we did was graded, earn that "A", and be praised. This is the way within the church. We do not take credit for our good deeds or whatever ministry we are called to. We do not take credit for our education, abilities, talents, skills, or knowledge of the scriptures, or anything, for that matter, as we are supposed to have a gentle and humble heart. We are supposed to overcome pridefulness and replace it with humility. Let us give the Lord all the credit for all we are and all we do, for we are the work of his hands, being who we are, doing what we do because of his divine purpose for our lives. God saw the evil heart of Herod and responded with worms. How does God respond to our hearts? 

Out of Our Mind

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

OUT OF OUR MIND

Acts 12:11-17

11 Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating." 12 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. 13 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door. 14 When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!" 15 "You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel." 16 But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. 17 Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. "Tell James and the brothers about this," he said, and then he left for another place.

NIV

Why was their first response unbelief? They knew factually that Peter had been arrested and put in prison and was waiting to be put in front of Herod, who had already had James killed. Facts are facts, and then there is faith. They certainly would never dream of trying to break Peter out of prison; that would be impossible.  However, nothing is impossible for God, or for that matter, with God. After Peter realized he had been rescued by an angel and, through the supernatural power of God, was able to walk out without any guard seeing him. But when he knocked on the door of the house belonging to Mary, the mother of John, and the servant girl saw it was Peter and told those in the house, they did not believe her; in fact, they thought she was out of her mind. Weren't they praying for Peter? Didn't they expect God to answer? We wonder how many believers today pray without expecting God to answer. Do we live as though God is not going to do anything for our benefit? Do we just live like a Christian, but not really believe God will heal, provide, rescue, or perform a miracle in the church? Do we just say the right words, but not truly believe them? Is our first response not to believe God for a miracle? When the servant girl saw Peter at the door, she was overjoyed and shared her excitement with those in the house. That is where we should always be, in a state of being overjoyed because we serve a risen Savior and He is in the world today, we know that He is living, no matter what men may say. We also have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, and that alone is a miracle. How can we even respond with unbelief? Have we been disappointed because it seems God has not answered us? Maybe we are not looking to God, or for God to actually do something for us. Have we learned to lean on ourselves or others before leaning on Jesus? Maybe we should be living as someone out of their mind, that is, living by faith and not by sight, actually believing God, not just believing in God. Yes, that is it, live out of our mind means we do not live by how or what we think, we live out of our mind, simply believing God. 

Hand of God

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE HAND OF GOD

Acts 12:1-10

12:1 It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2 He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3 When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 4 After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. 6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists. 8 Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him. 9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

NIV

This is one of those sad moments in the life of the apostles, for James had drunk the same cup Jesus did, losing his life because Herod did not like those who belonged to the church. This is another case of people loving and serving Jesus instead of Herod, who must have thought he deserved all the praise from men. Maybe Herod thought that putting an end to the ringleaders would stop the whole movement and cause the church to disband, but he was wrong. The basic truth is that whatever God establishes, creates, or makes, man cannot establish, create, make, or destroy. This is evident in Peter's arrest. Herod's intent would not be fulfilled because God had another plan for Peter's life. He was in a dark cell, without clothes, chained to a wall with two guards on each side, a locked cell door with two more guards at that door. This was looking like a grim situation, with a grimmer outcome. There appeared to be no way to escape this circumstance; however, with God, all things are possible. What we would call an angel of light showed up; however, we heard him say, " He is simply an angel of the Lord, and a bright light was upon him. Peter must have been asleep, as the angel needed to strike Peter on his side to wake him up. We find it interesting that, given the situation Peter was in, he must have felt at peace enough, having faith in Jesus, to fall asleep. His faith was not disappointed: the angel woke him, the chains fell off Peter, he was instructed to get dressed, and they simply walked out of the cell, the prison, and onto the street. Not a single guard was aware of anything that happened. The gate even opened by itself, and that is all the hand of God at work for Peter. What we learn is another basic truth. With man, some things are just not possible, but with God, all things are possible. Why do we try so hard to do so much for ourselves, to put in so much effort to advance ourselves, or to secure our material or monetary future instead of resting in the hand of God? There is nothing or no one greater than our God; therefore, why should we put any of our trust in anything or anyone other than our God? Not only has he saved us from the clutches of darkness and death, given us life in His light, but He has healed us, provided for us, led us, and secured our future life in a place Jesus has prepared for us. It looked like Peter did not let his heart be troubled, and he had good reason. Why then should we let our hearts be troubled? We shouldn't, for we trust in God; we also trust in Jesus, just as he told us. Let us always defer to the hand of God. 

Christians

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

CHRISTIANS

Acts 11:25-30

25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. 27 During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29 The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

NIV

It is right to spread the good news about Jesus, and about the kingdom of heaven, but it is also right to teach believers. We are not told what Barnabas and Saul taught beyond the good news of the kingdom of God. They could have shared all the teachings of Jesus, such as everything he said during that sermon on the hillside, or perhaps what he taught from the boat on the seashore. Maybe they were teaching the believers in Antioch about the Holy Spirit with all his gifts and how he manifests his fruit in the lives of those who have been baptized into him. Whatever they were teaching, they spent a whole year teaching a great number of people. Here is where we believers were first called Christians. We are not sure who decided that name, but it does make sense, since people were usually called something according to whose teaching and doctrine that leader laid down, such as Platonists, who got their name because they followed the teaching of Plato. Because those believers were following the teachings of Christ, then Christian would be a good title. Maybe the people of Antioch named the Christians, or perhaps it was the idea of Saul and Barnabas, yet it stuck, and today we call ourselves Christians because we follow Jesus, the Christ. It is unfortunate that, over the years, we have decided to call ourselves by some denomination's affiliation.  We might say we are a Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Catholic, or Lutheran. Then we have to divide those up: a Free Will Baptist, a Southern Baptist, an Apostolic Pentecostal, an Assembly of God Pentecostal, and on and on, with hundreds of denominational identifications we identify as something other than a Christian. Who then do we follow, Wesley, Calvin, Smith, Peter, Apollo, or some silver-tongued preacher of deception? Should we not just follow Christ, and therefore say we are Christians? We also see that after learning through a prophet that a famine would spread throughout the Roman world, the brothers in Antioch sent gifts to the brothers in Judea. This is where we might get the missionary idea, either from Saul and Barnabas being in Antioch, or the believers there sending or supporting those in Judea. Yet the idea is more about all believers helping other believers in need. We might have forgotten how to share with each other. We tend to keep what is ours, ours and maybe give a little percent to the church, but would we just give to someone who has less, or is in need? What does it mean to be a Christian? 

Full Up

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

FULL UP

Acts 11:22-26

22 News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. 25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.

NIV

We looked at the evidence Barnabas saw when he arrived in Antioch, but we did not spend any time on his description. We are told that he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and Faith. Those three traits are worth our consideration or pondering, if any of those would be used to describe us. First, this word good means good in so many ways, such as good or fertile soul, a fruitful tree, something that is profitable for good. But when used for a person, it denotes excelling in any respect, distinguished, or the qualities and affections of the soul, deeds, or a person's constitution or nature. The Greek word agathos is translated 108 times, all as "good": "like," "every good gift," "every perfect gift" comes from above. That is how Barnabas was described. Can people say that about us? Are we good? Are we a good gift from God to others? Does our soul reflect goodness, which is one of the fruits of the Spirit? Second, Barnabas was full of the Holy Spirit. This would mean, filled up, full completely, as the Greek word denotes. If we were to fill anything to capacity, such as a glass of water or the gas tank in our car, there would be no more room for anything else. Full means absolutely filled up with the Holy Spirit. Of course, that does not mean we are not us; we have our character, but would our personality reflect being full of us, or of the Holy Spirit? Being full or filled up with the Holy Spirit would also mean we should be reflecting, or displaying his fruit in our lives, and have some, or at least one dominant gift of the Spirit, and possibly more than one. Thirdly, Barnabas was full of faith. We usually define faith as the substance of things hoped for, yet not seen, but this Greek word carries the meaning of having a conviction of what is true, which we know God is true. Jesus always tells us the truth; in fact, he said that he came into the world to testify to the truth, and everyone on the side of the truth listens to him. Our faith gives us that conviction of what is true, and if we are full of faith, that would eliminate any room for doubt or disbelief. To be full of faith means we believe God. 

The Evidence

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE EVIDENCE

Acts 11:19-24

19 Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. 22 News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

NIV

It did not matter that these believers were scattered because of the persecution that was connected to the stoning of Stephen; they were still telling the others about Jesus. Some only told other Jews, perhaps thinking that Jesus only came for the Jews, after all, he was Jewish, born in Bethlehem, the city of David. He did many miracles among the Jewish people, and he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. He ended up being crucified, died, and was put in a tomb. However, on the third day, He rose from the grave and is alive. But some came from Cyprus and Cyrene and started telling the message about Jesus to the Greeks, Gentiles, and they turned to Jesus. However, our story is about what Barnabas found upon arriving in Antioch. He saw the evidence of God's grace and was glad. What exactly did Barnabas see? When someone receives the grace of God or lives under it, we believe this indicates we are living in God's favor. We would be living with spiritual blessings and shining with the light of Christ. We would be living with life, and life abundantly, with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Barnabas saw all that in the lives of those new believers in Antioch, and people should see all that within us, because we have turned to Jesus. The Holy Spirit dwelling within us brings with him his gifts and fruit. The Spirit also inspires our faith, hope, and love. Certainly, those evidences were there in the believers at Antioch, and surely that evidence would be there within the local churches today who worship Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. How could it be possible for a believer in Jesus Christ to not have the indwelling of the Spirit, who would be producing his evidence in those believers? Is it possible to not see any evidence of the Spirit in a believer? Could we confess our belief in Jesus, but then not accept the baptism in the Spirit, or quench any of his work, any of his gifts, or not allow him to manifest his fruit in our lives? Is it possible that a believer can think that being holy is all up to themselves? Could a believer think they can live righteously in their own strength? That just could not be, for we know we have no righteousness in ourselves, but only through Jesus can we be made righteous in the eyes of God. Alone, we are powerless, but Jesus is our strength, and when we give the Holy Spirit full access, there will be evidence that others can see. Lawyers present their evidence of a person's guilt or innocence in a court of law, but the Spirit presents His evidence through our lives.

No Criticism

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

NO CRITICISM

Acts 11:1-3

11:1 The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3 and said, "You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them."

These are believers, people who say they love the Lord, which we think they would want to be like Jesus, or live according to his teachings, but they were critical of Peter because he went into a Gentile's house and ate with them. That would mean that Peter and the men with him ate Gentile food. Why was their first response criticizing Peter? This is a truth we should come to grips with, for it might be too easy to criticize others whom we think are not living as we think they should. We even find believers criticizing other believers, which, in some sense, is being judgmental. Of course, it is easy to criticize those who worship in different ways or with a slightly different theological position than we do. Pentecostals criticize Baptists and vice versa. Some evangelicals are critical of Catholics and their seemingly obsession with their Pope. Even within a single denomination and within a local church, it becomes too easy to be critical of one another if we are not careful to pay attention to the teachings of Jesus. The circumcised wanted nothing to do with the uncircumcised considering them to be unclean. Are we not all sinners saved by grace? Are we all created or formed in the image of God? Jesus taught that we should love the Lord our God with all our being and love our neighbors as ourselves. Yet the believers in Jerusalem failed to follow Jesus when they first heard that Peter had gone to the Gentiles. They will accept it, as we will see later, after Peter explains the Lord's move in his life and in Cornelius's. But it is this first response that bothers us. We cannot afford those quick judgments about others, as we should be quick to love them, even if they are different from us, or do things differently than we do. We are also not supposed to just love believers, but also those who do not believe. The Jewish believers failed to understand that God loves all his creation, even the uncircumcised Gentiles. We cannot make the same mistake. We know the teachings of Jesus; in fact, some take pride in knowing their Bible so well, which means we take every opportunity to show the love of Jesus to everyone. We must rid ourselves of all criticism.