God is far more than a personal assistant!

 

READ Acts 13-16

Reading these chapters today brings to my attention that I should never wonder at the things that happen to me or to any other Christian. Every incident in this story had a purpose. God was behind it all.

First, during a time of fasting and worship, the Holy Spirit spoke and Paul and Barnabas were sent to Cyprus. That resulted in opportunities to preach in Jewish synagogues and to turn a proconsul to Jesus. Then they went to Perga and preached in the synagogue attracting great crowds. But the Jewish leaders contradicted them and at that, the Lord turned them to the Gentiles who rejoiced and glorified God’s word, and “as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.” At this, the Jews incited a riot and the disciples left.

They went to Iconium and spoke in the synagogue there. A great number believed, but that city was divided and some wanted to stone them, so they fled to Lystra and Derbe and “continued to preach the gospel.” Would this have happened if they were not rejected and threated in the other cities?

Paul was stoned in Lystra, but recovered from what may have been death. He and his coworkers returned to Antioch in Syria where they started to share what God had been doing. In the meantime, some were insisting that Gentile believers should be circumcised or they could not be saved. This reveals what some OT believers had relied on — not that God had called them to be His people but on their actions taken in response to that calling. Subtle. Something like becoming a Christian and going to Sunday worship and saying that I am a Christian because I go to church. This is backwards and contrary to salvation by grace:

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)

The debate boiled down to this: stop the obvious hurtful sins and don’t consider yours or anyone’s salvation depends on circumcision . . .

“For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.” (Acts 15:28–29)

Interesting that right away Paul takes on Timothy and has him circumcised. At first that sounds like hypocrisy but reading again reveals a totally different reason. The Jews in that city would not listen to this young believer because they knew his father was Greek but they needed to know that his mother was a Jew. In this, circumcision identified this heritage. It was not about ‘earning salvation’ but about identifying with the people he was trying to reach. So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. (Acts 16:5)

Then the disciples tried to speak in Asia and Bithynia, but the Holy Spirit would not allow them. Instead, He called them to Macedonia. They met a woman named Lydia who invited them to a prayer meeting. On their way, they cast a demon out of a slave girl and wound up in jail. The jailer and his household were saved. Then the disciples were released because their captors realized they were Roman citizens. They received an apology from the magistrates and finally made it to the prayer meeting!

So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. (Acts 16:40)

In the midst of two very busy weeks, I have wondered about the interruptions, appointments and events that are out of the ordinary. My calendar is messy. However, God says in these chapters: “I am in this. Take every situation as something I have ordained. Be a spokesperson for Me. Love people you encounter for Me.”

Lord, I am delighted that everything is in Your hands, from the multiplied appointments, emails, deliveries, phone calls, and a host of other interruptions and unexpected stuff. Instead of being impatient and anxious that I have no control over my schedule or to-do list, I gladly look for Your hand in it all of it. I’m not building the kingdom in the same wonderful way as Paul and his companions, but glad to know that You direct my steps just as You did theirs, not because I am important or gifted like they were, but because I am Your child.