Joshua 1:8

"...[B]ut you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." (Joshua 1:8).

"You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me." (John 5:39).

"And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13).

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Thursday, August 30th. Acts 21

So I don't know about you - but I had to read Acts 22 as well - and even that kind of leaves you hanging!  But Liam's poop pulled me away. 
Paul doesn't even seem scared.  I think that is amazing.  He is a true martyr - and while I am not 100% sure, I can pretty much guarantee that I would be terrified! 
I think it is interesting how all of the riots we have read about, the accused gets to offer his defense to the crowd.  I suppose it's not a far cry from our current judicial system with a jury - but it is dramatically different.  Was Paul a Roman citizen then?  I can see where it would be valuable to be more aware of the laws that applied to different classes of people/citizens.  It seems odd to me that a Roman citizen is treated different than any other Jew, and that Egyptians and others are also treated so dramatically differently.  I suppose that in that region of the world this is still the case...

When everyone begged Paul to stay away from Jerusalem but then the succumb to "God's will be done." I can't help but question my ability to REALLY live that way versus having my own agenda. 
Posted by at

3 comments:

  1. JoshuaAugust 30, 2012 at 2:44 PM

    You have to realize this was at the height of the Roman empire. Rome was the dominant authority. It would be similar to us, US citizens, being taken and beaten by the government of the Phillipines. Paul was indeed born a Roman citizen and was therefore able to use his citizenship to avoid being punished without a cause. Paul used this earlier if you recall when he was beaten and thrown in jail for no reason.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JoshuaAugust 30, 2012 at 2:58 PM

    I must admit that I find it strange that their reaction to Paul's insistence of going to Jerusalem is "The will of the Lord be done". It almost seems like they simply gave up? Perhaps that's exactly what happened and were trusting that God was in absolute control. I agree it's hard to live this way. It seems so much easier to take control ourselves yet God promises his yoke to be light. While it's hard to do, we would be better off to set even our best intentions aside and let God work. It reminds me of the quote, "It's better to fail in that which will ultimately succeed rather than to succeed in that which will ultimately fail".

    ReplyDelete
  3. JoshuaAugust 30, 2012 at 3:00 PM

    ...And yes, I read Acts 22 as well.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)