Tag Archives: Acts

Ecclesiastes 8, Acts 7

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Ecclesiastes 8 provides us with some perspective on the apparent lack of judgement suffered by the wicked. “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil… I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. But it will not be well with the wicked”. Solomon reminds us that God will reward all according to their actions.

In Acts 7, Stephen reminds the council of the faith of the patriarchs demonstrated in their lives. Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David etc all feared God and lived their life trusting that God would be faithful and reward the righteous.

Let us follow the example of the patriarchs, learn from Solomon’s advice, and show our love of God, trusting in His faithfulness that He will reward us.

Ezra 8, Acts 28

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Ezra had previously told the king that “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him”. He chose not to rely on the soldiers and horsemen that the king offered to protect them, instead trusting in God, fasting and imploring God for His protection.  So Ezra records “The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way”.

The hand of God is not always visible in our lives, but we can trust in the certainty that He hears our prayers, and watches over us, just as He watched over Paul and those travelling with him when shipwrecked on Malta. Paul preached that the “salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles”, and we have received that hope. It’s up to us to follow the examples of Ezra and Paul, trust in God and serve Him.

Hosea 4, Acts 20

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In Hosea 4 we read of the negative example of Israel. God describes Israel by saying “the more they increased, the more they sinned against me… they shall eat, but not be satisfied.” God’s response to this behaviour is equally negative “I will punish them for their ways and repay them for their deeds.” This is an especially harsh sentence, since God describes himself as “merciful and gracious, slow to anger”

The warning is relevant to us living in a land of prosperity. It’s so easy to rely on the things we see around us, rather than trusting in God.  Let’s instead be like Paul, “serving the Lord with all humility”. Paul was interested only in the ministry that he’d received from Christ, “to testify to the gospel of the grace of God”, and this is our calling also.

Acts 18-19

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In Acts 18-19, Paul receives a vision telling him “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you”.  So Paul continues in Corinth for 18 months, teaching the gospel to anyone who would listen, demonstrating time and again his willingness to put the teaching of the gospel ahead of his own wellbeing.

We have been told something similar. God has said “‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we can confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me'”. Like Paul, we should have no reason to hinder us from preaching the gospel, and living it in our lives.

Acts 14-15

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In Acts we read of the great faith and persistence of Paul. At Iconium they “remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord”, until they learned of a plot to stone them. At Lystra Paul was stoned, but he got up and went back into the city, leaving the next day for Derbe. As they continued around Asia, Paul “strengthened the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith”.

At the Jerusalem conference Peter says, “we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus”. God has called us to be a people for His name, to be spiritual Israelites, with our hearts cleansed by faith.

Paul encourages us to imitate him, just as he imitated Christ. So it’s up to us to strengthen each other, that together we might encourage each other to continue in the faith, cleansing our hearts and actively living our faith.

2 Chronicles 29, Acts 9

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Hezekiah was a man of action, doing what was necessary to help the whole nation. “He did right in the eyes of the Lord” by restoring the temple and re-establishing worship in it. At just 25 he went against the actions of their fathers who had been unfaithful and evil, and in the first year of his reign opened the doors of the temple.

Saul too was a man of action, although initially misguided. He went from persecuting the ecclesia, to “proving that Jesus was the Christ” in the synagogues, confounding the Jews.

These two men provide us with a great example of the need to act. Our faith is not a passive one; it requires that we do what we can to help each other and our neighbours around us in this race of life.

Daniel 7, Acts 7

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In Daniel 7 we read how Daniel received visions, describing future events through various symbols. They troubled him, “my spirit within me was anxious”, until the meaning of those visions was made clear. They foretold a time of great suffering for believers, but only for a limited duration. Afterwards, “the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever”.

These prophecies were given to help strengthen the faith of both Daniel and those after him who would read his words. They can help strengthen our faith too, with the majority of the prophecies fulfilled we can be certain that the rest will also happen. We can look forward to a time when “the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom.”  This can be our future if we, like Stephan, live our faith in our daily life, knowing there is nothing in this world that can take away our hope.

Luke 24

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“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.” This is the good news that we have been given, and that we’ve been told to share with everyone around us. The ultimate proof of God’s love, “loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for [Jesus] to be held by it.”

“The Lord is risen indeed!” Let us remember these incredible words, working daily to be more like “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”.

Acts 16-17

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In Acts today we read of the inspirational faith and dedication of Paul and Silas, who continue to preach even after physical abuse. Their message was so powerful and life changing that time and time again the Jews incite violence and chaos to limit the spread of the gospel.

By comparison, our lives are much easier. No physical attacks because of our belief, ready access to  God’s word in numerous formats. The biggest challenge to our faith is apathy. But surely we can find inspiration in Paul’s description of the unknown god, “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth…he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything…Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.”

We are “God’s offspring”, a type of relationship we all know well. Just as we have a special connection with our parents, we have a special connection with the creator of the universe.

Acts 13

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When asked for words of encouragement for the people in the local synagogue, Paul stood up and educated the people about the promised Messiah, his work, his crucifixion, and the good news of the promises made to the fathers being fulfilled in their generation.  Through Jesus, “forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.”

This good news was the most encouraging thing that Paul had to share with the audience in the synagogue, and the good news applies to us today.  Our saviour is risen, free from corruption, and through him salvation is offered “to the ends of the earth.”