Acts 10:1

 Acts 10:1

 

Based on the last part of chapter 9, it appears Peter was on something like a pastoral circuit. Having met with Saul, he was going around to churches and ministering to their needs. At Joppa, by the power of Christ, he had raised Tabatha from the dead and was using Joppa as a ministry base. Then comes the very weird vision. The vision was undesirable but confirmed by being repeated three times. It was totally perplexing. Because we have the advantage of 20-20 hindsight, we understand the application of this vision. In the moment, however, Peter is “greatly perplexed in mind.“ 

This word translated as “greatly perplexed” is a triple compound word. The first is through, as in through the middle of. The second word is “no,” a negative as in negation. And the third is “way or path.” It is as if to say, “I’m going through the middle of this and there is no way out.” Peter was no Christian newbie; he was no lightweight shallow thinker. He was the first to perceive and understand that Jesus was the Christ. He was as clear a thinker as there was in the church at that time. But all the same he was clueless. He looked at the vision and the way a monkey might look at a calculus equation. In the moment, God was not at all clear. Let us not doubt the importance of the perplexity and that moment.

There are times when we do not understand what God is doing. There are times when we can find no rhyme or reason to the circumstances and reality of our lives as disciples. We live in the context of “no way through.” As Westerners we are a people of action, and with a Newtonian worldview of cause and effect, we feel the need to explain everything, explain it now, and do something about it now. In some cases that approach simply will not work. In Peter’s case the solution came pretty quickly, but that is not always the way things work out. In the midst of great perplexity, we do not need to doubt God's love, His kingdom, or our part in the kingdom. In that great perplexity, the best action may be to simply love God and enjoy being loved by God while we wait.

 "Lord, help me to love You and enjoy being loved by You. AMEN

Acts 9:20-39

 Acts 9:20-39

 

Chapter 9 is a pivotal chapter in the book of Acts. It begins with Saul’s conversion and ends with Peter about to be called to preach to the Gentiles for the very first time. Within chapter 9 verse 27 is a pivotal verse. Between verses 26 and 27 there is a story that we will never know but is certainly worth noting.  Paul tells us in Galatians 1:18–19 that there is a three-year gap between his departure from Damascus till he arrived in Jerusalem. Saul, having escaped a murder conspiracy, is trying to connect with the Christians in Jerusalem. They are however, afraid fearing a subterfuge. At this point Saul is a man without a faith community. He’s been called away from Judaism, he had to leave behind the believers in Damascus, and the church in Jerusalem rejects him. The one who would become the most influential disciple in Christian history is the most isolated Christian in all of the church.

So how is it Saul goes from a man without a faith community to being at the center of the church’s growth? It happened because of the fine words “Barnabas took hold of him.” It was Barnabas who took the initiative. Saul, having failed to be able to connect with the church, was out of options. Barnabas recognized the situation and went and “seized” Saul. This word is used to describe the way someone could be taken and rescued from a dangerous situation. But the emphasis is that Barnabas went to Saul and seized him and took him to Peter and James.

We will never know why Barnabas took the initiative; that is less important than the fact that he did. Perhaps the Lord called Barnabas to this ministry. Some suggest that Saul and Barnabas knew each other before Saul’s work as a terrorist. What is important is that Barnabas did not wait around and react to circumstances. He did not wait for opportunity; he went out and made opportunity; he went out and took opportunity by the hand. In this case, in the person of Saul.

 "Lord, prompt me to take the initiative. AMEN"

Acts 9:1-19

 Acts 9:1-19

 

There is hidden in plain sight a sentence in this passage that we wish was not there. Spoken about Saul, it has application for all disciples. It is one concept of following that we genuinely wish was not there if we are honest. It is never shared with those we talked to about the church and never spoken about with Christians as we talked about growing in the faith. That phrase is, "…for I will show him how much he must suffer for my name's sake”.

When was the last time any of us heard a lesson, teaching, or were told that to be a disciple will mean suffering for the name of Christ? In fact, the presentation used by the church is almost exclusively "Come to Jesus and get what you want”. We hear teaching about, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper…” a text taken out of context so it is little more than a pretext for our own wish dream. We hear, “I have come that you may have life and have it to the full,” but we never ask, What life is Jesus talking about? To a great degree we have presented a bait-and-switch gospel, inviting people to come to Jesus and only later mentioning there will be some commandments and expectations, if they are so inclined.

Not so with Jesus' in His planned conversation with Saul. In verse 15, Jesus says that Saul will be a significant part of the gospel’s proclamation. But Jesus also promises to show him about suffering. This was a lifelong lesson. In 2nd Corinthians 11:16-33, Paul recalls his suffering, and this was just the first part of his ministry. Notice Jesus used three words: “He must suffer.” It doesn't appear that this was optional equipment. Discipleship and our daily ministry will mean suffering. Perhaps not like Saul, but nonetheless to be a disciple means that in some ways we will suffer.

Could it be that the reason the church and America are in decline is because in the cost-benefit analysis we have failed to consider and study the cost side of the equation? And in so doing we have been more like marketers and less like disciples. If you want to follow Jesus, you need to ask Him:

"Lord, what must I suffer for your namesake? AMEN”

Acts 8:26-40

 Acts 8:26-40

 

The contrast between two people could not be more dramatic than the contrast between Simon, the former sorcerer, and the Ethiopian treasurer. Simon the Sorcerer had an agenda of power and self-aggrandizement the treasurer is seeking from an apparently honest and sincere heart. The humility of the treasure is seen in verse 31. This is profound and should not be too quickly overlooked. 

The treasure was in the right place: the word of God. He was doing the right thing: honestly seeking. Into this combination the Lord sends the right man: Philip. That is God's consistent pattern. The treasurer is humble enough to admit it, but he couldn't understand without someone's help. We need to take a moment and remember who these two people are. All the symbols and evidence of power rested solely with the treasurer. Who was on foot and who was in the carriage? Who was wealthy enough to own a personal copy of scripture? Who was a royal official? Who had attendants to drive while he read? Who had the financial recourse to take a trip from Ethiopia to Jerusalem? This was a trip of about 1500 miles, or roughly from Tampa, FL, to Portland, ME. The treasurer was, by all visible measures, the superior in this encounter. Nevertheless he was humble enough to admit that without help he would not understand what he was reading.

We often have difficulty in seeing beyond the externals. We look at a person and have a hard time seeing beyond their race, gender, age, class, etc., to perceive their situation. It is not uncommon for us to have the same difficulty in seeing beyond our own externals. Because of the externals we have or perceive, we can’t see our own need. The wealthy, powerful, accomplished royal adviser asked a lowly, humble, lone, itinerant preacher to explain the Bible to him. That was a mark of great humility. That is lost on many of us. Which explains why so many of us are lost. 

"Lord, grant me the grace of humility in the life of faith. AMEN"

Acts 8:1-25

 Acts 8:1-25

This chapter is a study in contrasts of two men: Simon the wizard and the Ethiopian treasurer. The context is the bitter persecution of the church and the aftermath of “Stephen's murder. Philip has gone down to Samaria, and one of the converts is Simon. Simon saw the power of God at work and was "constantly amazed”. Simon was no dupe who was easily impressed. He was, before his conversion, a powerful agent of magic and supernatural demonic power. He was not a man who would be easily impressed; nevertheless, he saw in the ministry of Philip a power that was supreme and vastly superior to the power he had wielded in his former life. Simon had no doubt learned his magic arts through a long and costly process of study, apprenticeship, and practice. When he saw that power was available by the free gift, the grace of the laying on of hands, he wanted to have that authority. He wanted not only to have the power to do great works but also the power to pass on that same power to others. He could become the headmaster of his own magic school and ultimately a magic empire. He wanted God, and God's power, to be mean to his own ends.

We are not unlike Simon oftentimes. We are less bold and are less inclined to pursue grand things. We are interested in having God’s power at work and our lives at our command to accomplish our purpose. We view prayer as a way to manipulate the natural world to reorder it to suit us. We “claim” the promises of scripture, but only in the sense of our benefit. We determine what is “good” and “bad” based on our agenda, attempting by spiritual means to gain that “good,” just like Simon.

What was absent in Simon and in us is the fundamental point of being a disciple. “Dying to self.” To the degree that our faith and practice are about using God, Scripture, and “spiritual power” to manipulate life and circumstances to bend them to our will, we are Simon. We are attempting to practice witchcraft in a Christian variant. There is a powerful life as a believer, but it is fundamentally the power to die to self and live what God gives.

" Lord, help me to die to myself in all ways. AMEN"

Acts 7:39-60

 Acts 7:39-60 

Jesus is the ultimate point of division. That moment of the division may be postponed or delayed, but it will ultimately come. Jesus himself said. “… I did not come to bring peace but a sword.” Mt 10:34. The murder of Stephen is just such a moment. Before this moment, the rift was there; the fault line was obvious. But at this moment the division erupted in the rage and fury of the mob.

So what was the point of conflict? It was Jesus himself! Stephen recounts the history of Israel and shows how since the time of Moses, Israel had constantly turned away from God's purpose. Stephen explains that God's purpose was to bring the Messiah, that is, Jesus. And true to their family heritage, the Jews of Jesus's day rejected Him. Their fundamental problem was their sin-filled life and heritage, or, as Stephen put it, “stiff neck and uncircumcised hearts and ears.”.

Nothing infuriates a highly hypocritical religious person more than to show them and to tell them that their religion is a fake. The very thing on which the Jews base their religion and pious reputation was Moses and keeping the law he delivered. When they were told that the whole point of the work of Moses, the law, and all the prophets was Jesus and that they betrayed and murdered Him, it was the final straw. The division was complete; the sword came out.

The greatest resistance to the advancement of the Gospel today is not the world, the flesh, or the devil. Those are enemies of our own discipleship and personal holiness. The place where the gospel gets bogged down today is the church. Focused on our own agendas, power plays, politics, and intrigues, the church neither makes disciples nor allows members to make disciples or even supports those who are making disciples. Having become set in its stagnant ways of the local congregational life, the church is emotionally more like the Jews than Stephen. It is a constant and desperate fight to resist the drift into the institutionalism and power structures, the things that actually become a resistance to the work of Christ. But it is a fight we must constantly wage.

"Lord, help me keep the main thing the main thing in my life in the church. AMEN"

Acts 7:1-38

 Acts 7:1-38

One gets the idea that Stephen had a different perspective on God's direction for our lives than many contemporary church leaders. Today we are told that God primarily wants us to be happy, and healthy, and wealthy, and blessed, and highly favored. Some teach God has provided a formal formula by which we can increase the abundance of what we want. Passages of scripture to prove this understanding are quoted, taken out of context, and distorted beyond recognition. Stephen was apparently unaware of this approach to the Christian life or to the treatment of scripture.

As we read through Stephens retelling of Jewish history, we do not see a list of ever-increasing prosperity, peace, and affluence. We see that the critical moments that were often gut-wrenching and heart-challenging moments of difficulty. Abraham, for all his wealth, owned no real estate, “not even a foot of ground.” If we read this passage with candor, we see a story of hardship, slavery, famine, infanticide, murder, and rejection. Hardly is this a prosperity plan, and it is nothing near the American dream of having more for ourselves. 

The reason that Stephens's portrayal of the history of God's interaction with man is so different from what we see in ‘the name it claim it’ preachers today is the focus. Stephen is building a case that will ultimately focus on Christ and His death on the cross. This focus is a universe away from a focus on getting us what we want. Any teaching that doesn't ultimately bring us to the cross is a misguided teaching. The message of the cross for us is not personal peace and affluence but rather to come to the dying Lord and join Him in His death.

 "Lord, help my focus always be on the Cross and the salvation it brings.  AMEN"