365 Reflections

Jesus said follow me. He calls us all into discipleship to become more like Him, our Master, Savior and Lord.  But many Christians avoid a whole segment of Jesus' character because they don't want to stick out, be "offensive" or disturb the status quo. Jesus made waves on regular occasion and no greater evidence of that than in John 2 (ironically after turning water to wine). John 2:14–15 (ESV)   In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. 15 And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. For as much as we do not hear about the "fun" Jesus, we also seldom hear about the violently angry Jesus. And rarely is this  the Jesus many of us seek to emulate. This is the Jesus that is unafraid to take on evil and corruption vocally and with physical demonstrati

Jesus was not a cosmic killjoy. He was not the guy you avoided having over for a good time. How do I know? John 2:1–2 (NLT) The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. Why would Jesus be invited to a wedding if He didn't know how to have fun? And these weddings were 7 day affairs in which people celebrated and feasted together in joyful communion. If there is one thing I cannot stand it is the stuffy Jesus so many people settle for in the Church. The Jesus who never smiles and never has fun. I don't think that is Jesus at all. While He was serious and straight to the point with some, there is ample evidence Jesus knew how to laugh... Some of his parables had such exaggeration, a first Century Jew would have been in stitches. The thought of a man who owed 100 years wages in Matthew 18 asking for more time to pay it back ri

John 1:1–5 (ESV) 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. I love what N.T. Wright says about this Gospel. He talks about how grand it is compared to the Synoptics. How John wants to make sure you're going to get a wide-angle lens shot at the life and being of Jesus. No manger, no census, no magi, no shepherd. One statement every Jew would have immediately recognized. "In the beginning." Wright says, "This book is about the creator God acting in a new way within his much-loved creation." Again and again we are reminded how God works in His world. His activity is through the spoken word. He communicates creation in the heavens and earth and now at last H

If the book of Acts is a manifesto of the church after Jesus left and studied to see what this movement is all about (as I believe it is), there can be no doubt the one overarching theme is covered from beginning to end. We are called to share the message of Jesus with boldness to everyone. Silence is not an option. Social help is wonderful but not our primary calling. Gathering in denominational "tribes" is not our job. We are here to preach and preach Jesus. Paul finally arrives in Rome. He's going to be tried. When he gets there, the Jews had heard nothing of them and had no charges to bring. So Paul preaches. Some listen, some don't. He moves on. He is given peace for the first time in years. What does he do at the end of the book? He settles into Roman life and preaches Jesus. Acts 28:30–31 (ESV) He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus C

In Acts 27 Paul was sent by ship from Caesarea to Rome to stand trial before Caesar. Interestingly, the ship comes ashore to an island called, "Crete." The Roman Authorities wanted to get to Rome early and so set sail despite warnings from Paul and the ship would eventually meet a brutal storm costing all the cargo and finally be shipwrecked on the island called Malta. During the hectic voyage, it says this: Acts 27:21  (ESV)   Since they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me and not have set sail from Crete and incurred this injury and loss. But the interesting thing is how Crete comes into play in the New Testament later on. Something must have happened to Paul on that short stay in Crete. He must have saw a need to spread the Gospel and wanted to do so but wasn't afforded the opportunity. These people would not escape his conscience however, and at some point Paul would make it to Cret

The apostle Paul was totally convinced that everyone should be a Christian. In his defense while facing King Agrippa, the king asks Paul: “Do you think you can persuade me to become a Christian so quickly?” (Acts 26:28 NLT And to this question: Paul replied, “Whether quickly or not, I pray to God that both you and everyone here in this audience might become the same as I am, except for these chains.”  Acts 26:29 NLT To me one of the proofs that Christianity is real are statements like these made by the Apostles all through the book of Acts. They suffered, bled and died horrible deaths refusing to let go of their faith in Christ. And to me, there can be no greater statement in this regard than here in Acts 26 by Paul. For after all he is been through, all the riots and brutality, all the plots against his life, all the times he had to run from city to city to avoid those who wanted him dead, Paul still believes that people should come to Christ and experience the Christ

The Christian faith does not give you an excuse to check your intellect and common sense at the door. These were given to you by God who made you in His image and likeness. Use them, don't disregard them. Paul rarely was miraculously delivered from trouble. Very rarely. Here in Acts 25, after 2 years of sitting in a Caesarean prison, he faces his accusers once again before a newly placed Governor name Festus. Paul again states his defense but knows there's a chance he could be set free only to be ambushed by the Jews seeking his life. Here's Paul's defense: Acts 25:8–11 (ESV) Paul argued in his defense, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I committed any offense.” 9 But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, “Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me?” 10 But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal, where I ought to be tried. To the Jews I have do

In Acts 24, Paul is in the midst of a drawn out trial brought against him by the Jews for desecrating the temple. They have no proof, their witness have fled, and Paul is in custody with limitedfreedom granted by Governor Felix in Caesarea. One occasion, Felix brought Paul out of jail to hear him speak. What would you say while sitting in custody to the governor when there's no proof of wrongdoing on your part? Reason for your freedom? Beg for your freedom? Plead your case? Bargain? Perhaps we would do that. But Paul doesn't. Acts 24:24–25 (ESV) After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. 25 And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.” Paul speaks about Jesus. He can't help it.  Remember Paul's words from  2 Corinthians 5:

Acts 23:12–14 (ESV) When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. 13 There were more than forty who made this conspiracy. 14 They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste no food till we have killed Paul. Paul had a full share of enemies. The prophecy at his conversion from Christ Himself to Ananias is unfolded in the book of Acts in great detail. From the beginning of Paul's life in Christ, people sought to kill him. Once again in Acts 23, it's the familiar script for Paul. This time 40 men bound by an oath not to eat or drink until he's dead. Paul was right in his farewell address to the Ephesians, prisons and hardships awaited him in every city. He later wrote to the Thessalonians: 1 Thessalonians 2:14–16 (ESV) For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same

Paul was about to be killed by a mob scene in Jerusalem and asks for a chance to "reason" them out of it. He stands up before the crowd and shares his conversion experience. Acts 22:3 (ESV) “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. The first thing you do is find common ground with whoever you're talking to. Paul is talking to strict law-abiding Jews. He begins there.  He says  "I am a Jew… zealous for God as all of you aren't this day" . In other words I am just like one of you. We need to learn how to find common ground with people to whom we tell our story. Paul even finds deeper common ground sharing how he longed to kill Christians - just like they were doing to him at the moment! Acts 22:4 (ESV)   I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both m

If only the Church in America today could follow the example of Paul and James from 2000 years ago in Acts 21. Here were two men who ministered to completely different people groups. James, the Apostle to the Jews and Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles. James, the Apostle who stayed put in Jerusalem for years and by default became its leader when Peter and John left. Paul, the Apostle to the outer-most parts of the World who lived with a passion to preach Christ where people had not heard of Him yet. You cannot get more different in respective ministries.  Just read the same of their pencils and you will see significant differences in their presentation of the same Gospel message. They both had tremendous success. We know the record from Acts of Paul's incredible success in the Gentile regions. And in Acts 21, the Jerusalem leaders tell Paul " how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed."  Acts 21:20 (ESV) Yet when Paul comes to Jerus

There is a funny little story in Acts 20. A young man is sitting by a window on the third floor while Paul preaches into the night. He is overcome by sleep and falls dead. His name is Eutychus. Paul will revive him back to life and restore him to his parents. What's interesting is when this all happened. Acts 20:7 (ESV) On the first day of the week... Second, it was a fall from the third story. Third, they had just broken bread to celebrate the Lord's Supper. In this little story we have a reminder of what Christians are called to gather around. We gather around resurrected life. Our's is a faith that anyone can be raised to life from the dead no matter what. Death will not have the last word. The Early Church did not solemnly gather in mournful rows trying to stay awake during a boring presentation of religious jargon.  They did not do their "Christian duty" by showing up once a week. No!  They gathered together and enjoyed the Word preached until midnig

Earlier in Acts, the Holy Spirit prevented Paul and his team from going into Asia. Now we come to a point where we get a possible reason why (see later). God does some powerful things in this area that are reminiscent of the early days of Christianity in the book of Acts. Acts 19:1–8 (ESV) And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples. 2 And he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.” 4 And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and

God's people aren't like our people. They aren't the ones you'd pick first in flag football or at the high school dance for king and queen. They aren't the ones man looks at. God's people are the people we least expect. The have-nots of society, the ones others discount and discredit. The people who know they are poor in spirit and have no shot outside of His grace. That was the Corinthians. Amazingly, God comes to Paul to tell him something powerful right as he begins ministry in this very pagan city. Acts 18:9–10 (ESV) And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” Paul is emboldened by this, stays 18 months establishing a church in the city who would later become the recipients of 2 Canonized letters... 1 & 2 Corinthians. And this church needed a lot of help. Yet what an

At Athens, Paul preaches a message very different from any other in Acts. He doesn't reason from the scriptures, he reasons from one of their poets. This means two things: First, Paul was familiar with their poetry and Philosophers. Second, Paul gladly leveraged non-Biblical sources to point to the Biblical God. We should take a lesson. Speaking in the Areopagus: Acts 17:26–28 (ESV) And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28 for “ ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “ ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ The last line comes from a poem about Zeus. How crazy is that!  It is important to note that Paul entered the city and was initially provoked by the idols. That can hap

One of the most interesting passages in Acts has to come from chapter 16. Paul is trying to preach the Gospel in some places and the Holy Spirit says no. Acts 16:6–8 (ESV) And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. It is weird to consider Paul wanted to preach somewhere and instead is diverted elsewhere. Troas was an important city for sure. It was almost the capital of Rome under Julius Caesar.  But by going further at the vision's leading in Verse 9 Paul ends up in Macedonia where the churches of Philippi and Corinth are established. Certainly these cities would weigh in on theological understanding even still today as we have letters to them canonized in our Bible. I thought of a few things: 1. Following the Lord is a

If you want to last in the work of God you are going to have to learn to handle conflict. Maybe it was the Jerusalem council that wore on their nerves. Perhaps the hours of endless preaching and raising up leaders in every city where they travelled. For whatever reason Paul and Barnabas got into a very heated dispute over John Mark... Acts 15:36–41 (ESV) And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” 37 Now Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39 And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. 41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, str

Paul was a master church planter... Here's what he did: And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed. (Acts 14:23 ESV) Prayer and fasting, elders and ... Commiting them to The Lord. That's the plan. Elders. Elders are essential. They must be a part of every church. Right away here we are introduced to the subject of submission. Every church needs someone or some group of people they must submit to. This is a lost art in America. If we don't like one church we'll scoot over here to the next church until we feel important and powerful. It's church on our terms and its disgraceful to the body of Christ. A Church needs Elders who keep watch and to whom others submit in humility. Prayer and fasting. Not programming, prayer and fasting. Not production, prayer and fasting. This is a church builder. Prayer must be the undercurrent beneath the program and produc

Acts 13:2–3 (ESV) 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 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. These verses are packed with incredible insight into the Holy Spirit. First, the Holy Spirit speaks to us in worship and times of fasting. What are we doing in worship? We are exalting God in our mouths and letting Him know how wonderful He is. Worship brings God's voice to our lives. Fasting is denial of self for the purpose of hearing God's Word - the true bread. When we don't know what to do, we should consider both for the sake of hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit.  Second, the Holy Spirit speaks in a corporate setting of the church. This didn't happen in the setting of one or two... there were several people from all kinds of backgrounds. Consider that "Simon who was called Niger" was ther

Acts 12:20–23 (ESV) Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king’s country for food. 21 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. 22 And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” 23 Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. This passage is ripe with idolatry. The people of Tyre and Sidon saw in Herod a source of food and sustenance. They sought his favor praised his speech. They looked to government to solve their problems and elevated the head of that government above God from whom all good things come. Herod sought the praises of people, to seem god-like to them. His idol was self-importance. Notice the detail of

True confession: Sometimes I pray and don't expect God to answer. I know it's wrong, and I beat myself up regularly because of how important faith is to God (see Hebrews 11:6). I know how often Jesus healed people based on their expectant faith. I know how many times the Scriptures implore us to believe beyond doubt and confidently and courageously trust in God. So it warms my heart to see that I'm not that much different from the Early Church. Even though they experienced mighty miracles they were sometimes shocked when God said yes. In Acts 12, Herod starts killing and rounding up the Christians to curry favor with the Jews. Acts 12:5 (ESV) So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. The Church was praying... not just praying, earnestly praying. God answers miraculously. Peter is led by an angel to dress warmly and exit the prison without a fight. Finally Peter comes to his senses, realizes its indeed a real life mi

Warren Wiersbe writes that Antioch was one of the most immoral cities of their day. Second only to Corinth. Yet it was this very city where brave Christians ventured to share the Gospel... Acts 11:20–21 (ESV)   But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. Do we realized the power of the hand of the Lord? He was with these men and they ventured into the dark and dangerous spiritual waters of one of the most pagan cities of its day. The Gospel has crossed into the Gentile World with a Roman Centurion's house. Now the Gospel is making headway into a leading gentile city with a reputation for gambling, prostitution, brothels, chariot races and brutal gladiator style games.  And you think God can't change your city? The hand of the Lord is enough! He's just looking for someone with the

The story of Cornelius' salvation is a story of prayer . First, Cornelius is in prayer when God's angel shows up with instructions to call on Peter: Acts 10:3–4 (ESV) About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” 4 And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. Second, Peter was in prayer at the time God reveals His plan for gentiles to be incorporated into the family of God: Acts 10:9–16 (ESV)  The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. 10 And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance 11 and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. 12 In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and

The rest of the story is going to be about what Paul does for Jesus Christ. He's going to reach the ends of the Earth with the Gospel message. He's going to be used far more than anyone except Jesus. He is going to suffer terribly, be delivered remarkably, and empowered tremendously for the sake of Christ. His Holy Spirit inspired writings will inspire Billions if not Trillions of Christians worldwide to love Jesus with all their heart. But before his story gets started, there was a man we hardly ever mention. Ananias. I've titled this post after him because he doesn't get much notoriety in the church. Yet his obedience in what seemed absolutely crazy proved to be the manner through which the Apostle Paul would be turned fully to the Lord. He puts up a fight at first. He tries to explain to the Lord what Paul was all about... as if the Lord needed the information... But in one simple act, Ananias' faithfulness in going to this former enemy with the words, &q

We all meet Jesus individually. Everyone of us has a different story and a different set of circumstances and even different scriptures that led us to Christ. I think one of my all time favorite stories is found in Acts 8. An Ethiopian Eunuch is riding home from Jerusalem. He had "come to worship and was returning" Luke makes sure to tell us. Why? Because Deuteronomy 23:1 tells us that emasculated men could not enter the temple. He came 800 miles and was rejected in Jerusalem. On the way back God sends Philip to seek him out. Philip comes off the massive success in Samaria where demons are fleeing and lives are being radically changed to minister to this one seemingly unimportant individual. Philip is a true evangelist, moving at the prompting of the spirit to share the good news. He could have reveled in his success in Samaria, but no... one small prompt sends him far away to far fewer people. Because to God, every one matters. The scripture he was reading is ve

Acts 8:13 (ESV) Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed. Simon was a former magician who placed his faith in Christ, or so it seemed after Philip the former Deacon turned evangelist came to the Samaritans and preached Christ. It is evident that Simon from the first was one of those people awed by the supernatural. Of course, he was a magician, and carried a notable reputation before Philip arrived. But Simon is case in point that the supernatural is not something God wants to awe us with. It is to assist in leading people to Christ! When the supernatural supersedes the Gospel, we fall prey to envy, pride, and self-centered "religion." And we need to repent. Notice what happens after the Apostles come and lay hands on people who receive the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues... Acts 8:18–19 (ESV)  Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying