July 26th Read Acts 22:17–29 Act 22:22-28 Up to this word they listened to him. Then they raised their voices and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live. (23) And as they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, (24) the tribune ordered him to be brought into the barracks, saying that he should be examined by flogging, to find out why they were shouting against him like this. (25) But when they had stretched him out for the whips, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned? (26) When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said to him, What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen. (27) So the tribune came and said to him, Tell me, are you a Roman citizen? And he said, Yes. (28) The tribune answered, I bought this citizenship for a large sum. Paul said, But I am a citizen by birth. When Paul testifies to them, the Jews, that he saw Jesus, while he was in a trance, and that Jesus told him to leave Jerusalem because they would not accept Paul’s testimony, the Jews go crazy and seek Paul’s death. This was predetermined by Christ. It was part of his plan. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was already witnessed to the Jews by the Apostles who started there and were staying there. But Paul was to be a witness to the world and in particular to Caesar. So we begin to see Jesus’ plan unfolding, a plan which was made before the foundation of the world. Jesus had chosen Paul because Paul was a Roman citizen. As a Roman citizen, Paul had a right to appeal to Caesar. So Jesus arranges Paul’s arrest by the Roman cohort there in Jerusalem in order that the Gospel would get its hearing in Rome. Now not every Christian has this sort of life planned out for them. Every Christian in this life doesn’t necessarily have some great destiny in this world like Paul, in fact most don’t. Most of us are simple citizens of the kingdom of God. Some are more noble and most are less noble. But as Paul teaches us in 1 Corinthians 1Co 12:20-25 “ there are many parts, yet one body. (21) The eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of you, nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. (22) On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, (23) and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, (24) which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, (25) that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.” So do not despair if you are not a Paul or Peter or James. You may yet be indispensable and be given greater honor and given greater honor by God. So you may be just a wife and mother, husband and father, a child or a poor wretch on the street whom no one notices. But in God’s kingdom you have a different and more nobler status than the one here in this time and place. Lord Jesus Christ, your plan to spread the good news of repentance and forgiveness of sins is beyond our comprehension. You chose us to be citizens of your kingdom. Help us to be content with the calling you give us to serve you here and now and in your kingdom to come. Amen.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 10:13:09 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015