Day 79 - Acts 16:38 - 28:16

In today’s section, we read about:

Paul travels from Thessalonica via Berea to Athens, where he speaks in the home of philosophers and philosophies
Paul travels to Corinth where he meets Priscilla and Aquilla before returning to Jerusalem
Paul’s third missionary journey, including a lengthy stay in Ephesus
Paul returns to Jerusalem, where he encounters opposition and is arrested
After a lengthy detention at the pleasure of the Roman governors, Paul is shipped off (and shipwrecked) to Rome

Some thoughts that occurred to me:

I’d like someone to make the accusation against me that was made against Paul in 17:7, “they profess allegiance to another king, named Jesus.” It reminds me of the old question I often used to hear, ‘if you were charged with being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to secure a conviction?’

It is interesting the way Luke records the response of those who heard Paul. In Berea, the people were more responsive – 17:11-12, “the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth. As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men.”

It is interesting to read how Paul adapts his message to the cynicism of the Athenians, without compromising the integrity of the message. He starts with common ground – the statue to the unknown God – and then tries to make him known. 17:30-31 is particularly sobering, “God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.” The response was less fulsome than elsewhere, but we are not accountable for the response, just warning people. Some people laughed in contempt (v33), which Paul refers to 1 Cor 1:22, “it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom.”

Paul knows that he is not responsible for the response, as he absolves himself of the Jews’ blood (18:6; 20:26 – cf Ez 3:19)

18:18 Paul is shaving his head at the fulfilment of a vow – cf Nazirites in Nu 6:18

19:17-18 – “A solemn fear descended on the city, and the name of the Lord Jesus was greatly honoured. Many who became believers confessed their sinful practices.”

19:26 – “this man Paul has persuaded many people that handmade gods aren’t really gods at all.” This sounds obvious to us, yet so many of us have our own gods made in our own image that we prize above the one true living God.

20:21 – no favouritism, “I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike—the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus.”

20:24 – “my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” cf Phil 3:7-11, “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!”

21:8 is a proof of Matt 25:21, where those who show themselves to be faithful in small things will be given the opportunity to have responsibility for much larger things.

26:20 – “all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do.”

One verse from today - "And now I entrust you to God and the message of his grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those he has set apart for himself" (Acts 20:32)