Let Your Life Testify To God
BRD REFLECTIONS
Acts 21:27-40 and Psalm 111 (NIV)
(Jabez Fong, Student, Trinity Theological College)
READ:
Acts 21:27 to 22:21 (NIV)
OBSERVE:
In Acts 21, Paul is dragged from the temple and beaten by the Jews because they perceive that he is preaching a message which is contrary to Israelite customs and laws, and is bringing Gentiles into the temple. His message does not correspond with what they themselves believe. This beating is so severe that the Roman authorities must intervene to stop the scuffle, and Paul needs to be carried by the soldiers.
Before he is brought into the barracks, he requests that he might have an opportunity to defend himself by speaking to the crowd which had so severely beaten him.
Paul then speaks to them, telling of his shared heritage – in a language they understand – to emphasise that he is one of them. He tells the story of his zeal for the law and for God, which manifested itself in his persecution of Jesus and his Way. However, Jesus himself reached out to him and showed him the error of his ways (Acts 22:6-9) and sent fellow believers to strengthen and affirm him (Acts 22:12-15).
Paul goes on to emphasise that his ministry now is a result of God’s unique revealed calling upon his life – to bear the gospel to the Gentiles – and his obedience to that call.
APPLY:
I don’t think I have shared my story of how I came to Christ enough. Like everyone else, I have a past that is filled with things that I am not proud of. Like Paul, these mistakes do not diminish my calling, but are in fact part of the journey that I have undergone that God uses for his glory as he calls and sends me to be his light in a world that needs it.
My story, like yours, has power since it speaks of the power of God in Christ Jesus to redeem brokenness, pain, failure, and shame. It also speaks of how God can use this life as a testimony of how God can change lives. Paul certainly understood this feeling as he reflected on it and shared his story with the Jews who had gathered to do violence to him and had consequently become his audience.
Paul held on to his faith in Christ and continued to preach it and conduct himself in the way that would honour God even when the people disagreed with him, beat him up, and sent him away. Similarly, in a world that seems to increasingly reject Christian things, my story will not always be palatable. What matters is my faithful obedience to God’s way, and my conviction to tell others of God’s grace lavished upon me which leads me to obedience, even if it results in suffering like Paul’s.
DO:
Remember that I am a sinner in need of grace which God has mercifully provided in the person of Jesus Christ his Son. As I follow Christ and the way in which he leads, I must boldly share my story with others that they too might know that Christ can redeem their lives in the way that he did mine.
PRAY:
God of abounding grace and mercy, I thank you that you have given Jesus Christ your only Son for a sinner such as myself. As a sinner redeemed by his blood, I pray that you will grant me the confidence and strength to boldly proclaim my story and share your gospel with the people around me. Holy Spirit, open their hearts and make them receptive to your word even as I take this step in faith to serve your purposes in obedience to your call. Amen.
