Dear Student of the Word,
I am in the Atlanta airport, heading to Zimbabwe. This seems like as good of a time as any to send off the next Acts Bible study. This week we go with Paul to Philippi, where he and Silas are singing hymns to God while they were under lock and chain. This week I wrote in part three of this seven-part study:
Study Twenty-One: Part Three
17:1 When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ," he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.
17:1 – Why did the team pass through these two cities? Perhaps because there was no synagogue. Paul’s ongoing strategy was to visit the synagogue, because he knew there were Gentiles there who rejected polytheism and embraced monotheism. Thessalonica could conceivably have had the only synagogue in Macedonia. After they were so badly treated in Philippi, maybe they wanted to get back to a place where they at least had a chance to build relationships with those who had an awareness of the Old Testament.
17:2 – To visit the synagogue was Paul’s custom and not a directive from Scripture. If it was, we would still be obligated to follow this pattern. Paul acknowledged his debt to Judaism and always wanted to repay his people, but they would not allow him most of the time. Instead, they resisted him as an apostate. Even the believing Jews didn’t trust his regular contact with Gentiles. Therefore Paul’s greatest effectiveness was among Gentiles, but his greatest burden and love was for the Jews.
This points out some interesting aspects of life purpose. Paul wanted to go to the Jews, but God sent him to the Gentiles. First, you can’t choose your purpose; it is assigned to you. Secondly, Paul never had much fruit from his work among Jews, but he had a lot of fruit among the Gentiles. God will help you identify your purpose by blessing your purpose endeavors. As you examine your life and work, where are your greatest results? How can you maximize those results?
17:3 – What did Paul do when he went to the synagogue? He argued that Jesus is the Christ, proving it from the Scriptures. Paul had to address the issue of Jesus’ death and resurrection, because that issue was difficult for Jews to comprehend:
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:22-25).
Paul did not shy away from the controversial aspects of Jesus, but faced them head on. He did not sugarcoat the gospel, but went to the Scriptures and then trusted the Spirit to do His work in the hearts and minds of people.
17:4 – God honored Paul’s work in Thessalonica with fruit! Some Jews and a lot of Gentiles came to Jesus—and many of these were women. Nothing has changed in 2,000 years; women tend to be more spiritually sensitive than men.
Nothing is more exciting than to see the fruit of your labors in the Lord. Do you know the joys of God using you? Doing what? If not, what can you do to capture that dynamic in your life?
As always, I welcome your comments to this week's study. For additional Bible studies, check out my website archive, which contains a complete collection of all my verse-by-verse New Testament studies, along with the unpublished volume of The Faith Files.
**************************
ZIMBABWE, HERE I COME: I will be back in Zimbabwe for the first time since December, 2007 starting this Sunday, November 27. If you would like to be part of my visit, you can read about my schedule here. I look forward to seeing all my friends there when I return.
NEED FOOD MONEY: I departed yesterday for Zimbabwe and Kenya. I can certainly use more cash to distribute to the orphans and widows there. If you can give a special Thanksgiving offering, please do so through my website or by sending a check to PurposeQuest, PO Box 8882, Pittsburgh, PA 15221-0882. Thank you and God bless you!
KENYA TIME: After Zimbabwe, I will be in Kenya for a week. I will be conducting a three-day seminar from December 5-7 for The Pacific Institute and then a one-day seminar on Saturday, December 10 for Royal and Rich. I am attaching the Royal and Rich flier to this post (click on it to enlarge). If you are interested in The Pacific Institute, I can send you plenty of material that describes exactly what that is - which is quite simply the best training for goal setting and change with which I have ever been involved! Write me for more information and then invest in yourself at one or both of these outstanding seminars.
Comments