Day 22: Acts 15:1-21

The leadership of the early Church is forced to confront a serious theological issue that threatens to rip them apart. “Do Gentiles who become Christians need to become Jews first through the rite of circumcision or not?”

The issue is first raised in Antioch by certain unnamed men from Judaea (v. 1) and again in Jerusalem by a sect of the Pharisees (v. 5). We can learn a lot from the manner in which the leadership addressed this issue and eventually settled it.

The group in Antioch “determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question.” (v. 2)

Paul and Barnabas had just returned from their first missionary journey, where they saw Gentiles come to Jesus in large numbers (chapters 13 & 14). They did not require any of them to become Jews first before they could become Christians. Needless to say they did not see the necessity of this intermediary step. They were convinced that God did not require it either.

Regardless of where they stood on the issue, they still did not want to go any further without input from the leadership in Jerusalem. Thus the decision is made that a group of them would travel to Jerusalem for this purpose.

They teach us the importance of honouring those whom God has placed in spiritual authority over us by seeking their input first. Sad to say, time and again, we see this violated at various levels of the church. Someone makes a decision independently without consulting or receiving the blessing of their spiritual authority. More often than not, this has the potential to cause confusion and/or further division. In certain cases it leads to a loss of credibility, which is often very difficult to gain back.

Even though Paul & Barnabas had great credibility with the church in Antioch, they still go to Jerusalem.

When they get to Jerusalem, the sect of the Pharisees present their case: “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.” (v. 5)

There are three different responses that present the case for the exact opposite—from Peter, Paul & Barnabas and James respectively.

Peter, who saw Holy Spirit come upon the Gentiles gathered at the house of Cornelius states very simply that God, by “giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us…made no distinction between us and them…”  Then he poses a pointed question: “Why do you test God by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?” (vs. 8-10).

Paul and Barnabas stress “how many miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles.” (v. 12)

Finally, James provides the Council with the backing of Scriptures from Amos 9:10-11 to prove that what the others were reporting lined up exactly with God’s heart “that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, even all the Gentiles who are called by My name.”

Notice how, when Paul and Barnabas honoured their spiritual authority and went to Jerusalem, their position was bolstered even more—first with Peter’s testimony and persuasive words, then with James’ appeal to the prophets. Now they have the backing of the Jerusalem Church, and their credibility goes up more than before.

Dear friend, no wonder then that Scripture teaches us: “Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith…Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God” (Hebrews 13:7, 17).

We would be wise to heed these words, as did the leadership in Antioch. Amen?

Day 19: Acts 13:1-31

Following a Lenten service at a neighbouring church on Thursday, I was enjoying a bowl of hearty salmon chowder and carrying on a conversation with others at the table. Then it was time for dessert. One of the ladies was kind enough to ask if she could bring me a piece of chocolate cake. I politely declined saying that I was abstaining from sweets as part of my Lenten Fast, therefore dessert was out of the question for me.

Much to my surprise, this triggered a response from two ladies who sat across from me. “I stopped giving up something for Lent long time ago,” said one. Her neighbour completed the sentence for her: “Ever since our priest told us that we should really be adding something rather than giving up something.” “That’s why we visit the shut-ins”, piped the other one.

As much as I was tempted to respond, I chose to chow down another bowl of chowder instead.

When I came home and started reading this passage in order to prepare this reflection, I was quite taken by this description of the leadership in the church at Antioch: As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” (Acts 13:2)

“Ministered to the Lord.” This is the job description of priests in the Old Testament. “Aaron was set apart, he and his descendants forever, to consecrate the most holy things, to offer sacrifices before the LORD, to minister before him and to pronounce blessings in his name forever.” (I Chronicles 23:13)

The priests were entrusted with the responsibility of keeping the fire on the altar burning 24/7, offering sacrifices of praise to the Lord. King David made ministering to the Lord such a great priority, as we see in this passage: All the Levites who were thirty years old or older were counted, and the total came to thirty-eight thousand. Then David said, “Twenty-four thousand of them will supervise the work at the Temple of the LORD. Six thousand are to serve as officials and judges. Four thousand will work as gatekeepers, and another four thousand will praise the LORD with the musical instruments I have made.” (I Chronicles 23:3-5)

David, being a worshiper himself, recognized that everything begins with ministering unto the Lord.

The leadership in Antioch is very aware of this priority. They realize that as a “royal priesthood” all of us who are part of Jesus’ family need to make it our priority as well.

As they minister unto the Lord (with worship and praise), they open themselves up to receive direction from the Holy Spirit. It is worth noting that they fasted as well.

Dear friend, the purpose of every Fast that we ever undertake is to really fix our eyes on the Lord more than we normally do when we are not fasting. This is why in our churches we have been stressing the need to take some quiet time every day and simply sit in silence before the Lord and focus on Him and Him alone.

If we do not make ministering to the Lord our first and foremost priority, we could easily fall into the trap of ministering to others and neglecting our first love. What a shame that would be!

Yes, by all means, go visit the shut-ins, heal the sick and minister to the needs of others. But, make sure that your first priority is to minister unto the Lord.

As the leadership in Antioch discovered, it is in those times of ministering to the Lord that He often ministers to us!

May this be your experience as well. Correction. Make this your experience as well.

Day 16: Acts 10:24-48

In yesterday’s reading from Acts 10:1-23, we saw how God speaks to both Peter and Cornelius about the other. They both act in obedience. Cornelius dispatches a group to go get Peter. Peter goes, taking with him a group of Jewish believers. After exchanging pleasantries, Peter gets right to his mission.

He delivers a very simple message, introducing Jesus to this group of Gentiles. He highlights the healing ministry of Jesus. Then he mentions his death and resurrection and lets them know that “everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Please note that Peter does not issue an altar call. He does not call for them to do anything, not even repent. But, something totally unexpected happens. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

Holy Spirit does not wait for Peter to even call on Him to fall on them. Of course, the Gentiles had no idea of what was happening. But the Jewish believers are totally flabbergasted, because things are not taking place in their proper order.

Let’s flashback to the Day of Pentecost. Interestingly enough, Peter did not issue an altar call then either. They were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37)

Holy Spirit is once again at work, just as Jesus promised in John 16:8: “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” 

Remember Peter’s reply to their question: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)

Notice the order. Be baptized first, then you will receive Holy Spirit.

Yet, here at Cornelius’ place, Holy Spirit falls on the Gentiles without giving Peter a heads-up, leading him to say: “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”

Notice the order once again. Receive Holy Spirit first. Then be baptized.

Looks like someone forgot to inform Holy Spirit that it was supposed to be the other way around 🙂

I guess, when you’re God, you can do it in whatever order you choose to and mess up our neatly constructed theology, huh?

Recently, my spiritual father Steve Long was invited to be the “faith healer” on a show focusing on alternative methods of healing along with other panelists including a chiropractor, acupuncturist, Reiki practitioner and a naturopath.

When it was Steve’s turn, he asked for a volunteer who had pain. The co-host, Denise Donlon admitted she had back pain at that very moment. Steve then asked the other host, Conrad Black, to lay hands on her back while she repeated after him: “This healing belongs to me because of what Jesus has done. I receive my healing now in Jesus’ name.” Much to her surprise, the pain completely left Denise’s body.

You may or may not be aware of this, but Conrad Black is the former CEO of the Hollinger media conglomerate who recently spent three plus years behind bars for defrauding his investors and obstruction of justice.

Holy Spirit conveniently chooses to ignore his shady reputation and uses him to minister healing right in front of a television camera. You can watch the episode here: http://thezoomertv.com/videos/alternative-medicine/ (around the 17 minute mark).

If Pastor Steve Long had laid hands on her, that would be one thing. But using Conman, I mean Conrad Black…ah, Holy Spirit, there you go again, messing with us. I guess we’d better get used to your ways, eh, God?

Day 13: Acts 9:1-22

Put yourself in the moccasins of Ananias. As a follower of Jesus in Damascus, you are fully aware of Saul’s mission to arrest people like you and throw you in jail. Clearly you are not aware of the encounter that Saul had with Jesus on the road to Damascus.

Would you be excited about being in the same room as the premier persecutor of Christians of your time? Would a lamb relish the thought of being left alone with a hungry lion?

That is why Ananias is so startled when the Lord tells him in a vision: “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

 

That Saul? The one whose very name struck terror in the heart of every believer? No way, Jesus!

Once Jesus answers his objections, we are told that “Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

 

As a result, Ananias has the distinction of being the one who baptizes Saul, the terrorist who goes on to become an evangelist, Paul, the greatest apostle of all time.

Ananias was not eager about his assignment, but he was willing to act in obedience.

Not that long ago, our dear friend and contributor to DWOD Ron Mills had a word for my wife, Sulojana. The gist of the prophecy was that God wanted Sulojana to come out from her comfort zone (behind the scenes supporting me) and be out in front of everyone (while I receded into the background).

Those who know Sulojana well are aware that she would rather be be in the shadows than in the limelight. When she received these words from Ron, she was not exactly excited about them. (At least I don’t recall her jumping up and down and doing a Hallelujah breakdance!)

Noticing the expression on her face, Ron said with a smile, but in a firm voice: “You don’t have to be eager, you just have to be willing.”

Ananias was not the first one in the Bible to be recruited for a job that he was not eager to do. To give you just a couple of illustrations…

Consider Jonah. God told him to go to Nineveh. He chose to go in the opposite direction to Tarshish. This decision gets him into more trouble than anticipated. Ultimately, Jonah learns that you don’t need to be eager, just willing.

Or take Esther. She is not exactly excited about going to the King’s court uninvited and risk getting executed. But Mordecai makes it clear that she does not have to be eager, just willing. She calls a fast, goes to the court, finds favour…and the rest is history.

Is it safe to say that many of us who follow Jesus are not particularly eager about evangelism? It pushes us out of our comfort zone. We risk rejection. We could even face persecution. Yet, it is exactly what Jesus commissioned us to do. So, it is not a matter of whether we are eager or not. What really matters is whether we are willing.

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? (Romans 10:14-15)

How about you, dear friend? Are you willing to obey, even when you’re not eager? If the willingness of Ananias and Esther are any indication, it is certainly worth the risk. Amen?