Acts 21
On to Jerusalem
1After we had torn ourselves away from them, we put out to sea and sailed straight to Cos. The next day we went to Rhodes and from there to Patara. 2We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, went on board and set sail. 3After sighting Cyprus and passing to the south of it, we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre, where our ship was to unload its cargo. 4Finding the disciples there, we stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. 5But when our time was up, we left and continued on our way. All the disciples and their wives and children accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. 6After saying good-by to each other, we went aboard the ship, and they returned home.
7We continued our voyage from Tyre and landed at Ptolemais, where we greeted the brothers and stayed with them for a day. 8Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven. 9He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.
10After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11Coming over to us, he took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, "The Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.' "
12When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. 13Then Paul answered, "Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." 14When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, "The Lord's will be done."
15After this, we got ready and went up to Jerusalem. 16Some of the disciples from Caesarea accompanied us and brought us to the home of Mnason, where we were to stay. He was a man from Cyprus and one of the early disciples.
Paul's Arrival at Jerusalem
17When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers received us warmly. 18The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present. 19Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.
20When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. 21They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. 22What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, 23so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. 24Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everybody will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law. 25As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they should abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality."
26The next day Paul took the men and purified himself along with them. Then he went to the temple to give notice of the date when the days of purification would end and the offering would be made for each of them.
Paul Arrested
27When the seven days were nearly over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, 28shouting, "Men of Israel, help us! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple area and defiled this holy place." 29(They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple area.)
30The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions. Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut. 31While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd. When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.
33The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. Then he asked who he was and what he had done. 34Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. 35When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers. 36The crowd that followed kept shouting, "Away with him!"
Paul Speaks to the Crowd
37As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, "May I say something to you?"
"Do you speak Greek?" he replied. 38"Aren't you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the desert some time ago?"
39Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people."
40Having received the commander's permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic[a]:
Our Daily Bread reading and devotion:
John 14
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God[a]; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going."
Jesus the Way to the Father
5Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"
6Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
May 29, 2008
Finally Home
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READ: John 14:1-6
If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. —John 14:3
Jan and Hendrikje Kasper sailed into United States waters in January 1957. Their family of 12, along with other Dutch immigrants on board the Grote Beer, crowded on deck to catch their first glimpse of the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor.
That initial view of Lady Liberty was exciting—and emotional. They had just endured an arduous 11-day journey across the sea on a no-frills voyage. They had left many friends and family members behind in The Netherlands. They had experienced rough seas brought on by a hurricane and had dealt with seemingly endless seasickness. But now—finally—they had arrived. They were home!
Someday those of us who have trusted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior will leave this life and go to the place He has prepared for us (John 14:3). The journey may be difficult or uncomfortable, but we certainly look forward to the final destination.
Composer Don Wyrtzen wrote the music for a wonderful song that pictures our earthly life as a “tempestuous sea.” It ends with these words:
Just think of stepping on shore—and finding it heaven!
Of touching a hand—and finding it God’s!
Of breathing new air—and finding it celestial!
Of waking up in glory—and finding it home!
When we see Jesus face to face for the first time—we will be “finally home.”
— Cindy Hess Kasper
Those who love and serve God on earth will be right at home in heaven.
My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers:
May 29, 2008
Untroubled Relationship
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READ:
In that day you will ask in My name . . . for the Father Himself loves you . . . —John 16:26-27
In that day you will ask in My name . . . ," that is, in My nature. Not "You will use My name as some magic word," but—"You will be so intimate with Me that you will be one with Me." "That day" is not a day in the next life, but a day meant for here and now. ". . . for the Father Himself loves you . . ."— the Father’s love is evidence that our union with Jesus is complete and absolute. Our Lord does not mean that our lives will be free from external difficulties and uncertainties, but that just as He knew the Father’s heart and mind, we too can be lifted by Him into heavenly places through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, so that He can reveal the teachings of God to us.
". . . whatever you ask the Father in My name . . ." (John 16:23). "That day" is a day of peace and an untroubled relationship between God and His saint. Just as Jesus stood unblemished and pure in the presence of His Father, we too by the mighty power and effectiveness of the baptism of the Holy Spirit can be lifted into that relationship—". . . that they may be one just as We are one . . ." (John 17:22).
". . . He will give you" (John 16:23). Jesus said that because of His name God will recognize and respond to our prayers. What a great challenge and invitation—to pray in His name! Through the resurrection and ascension power of Jesus, and through the Holy Spirit He has sent, we can be lifted into such a relationship. Once in that wonderful position, having been placed there by Jesus Christ, we can pray to God in Jesus’ name—in His nature. This is a gift granted to us through the Holy Spirit, and Jesus said, ". . . whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you." The sovereign character of Jesus Christ is tested and proved by His own statements.
"A Word With You" by Ron Hutchcraft
The Tapestry and the Threads
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Okay, let's do a little word association here. Persian - what do you think of? Ah - cat? You might have thought of cat. When I hear the word Persian, I think rug - which they don't make out of cats. I've never owned a Persian rug, and I probably never will, but I've sure seen them. And you know it's much more than a carpet, I mean, it's a work of art! Years ago Amy Carmichael wrote about the incredible process that produces these masterpieces. Try to picture this. She described two sets of workmen sitting on a bench on one side of the carpet which is hanging from a beam up above. The designer stands on the other side, he's holding a pattern in his hand and he directs the workers by calling across to them exactly what they're supposed to do next. It's like a chant actually. And then the workman chants back to the designer the word that he's heard; verifying the order. Then the workman cuts from whatever bobbin has been ordered, and he pushes that thread through the carpet warp and knots it. Now, all he can see is that one thread. He sees nothing of that pattern until the carpet's finished. That's all in the designers hands. But when he finally sees what all these commands and all these threads have made, wow!
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Tapestry and the Threads."
Let's take a peek at what The Designer is up to - our word for today from the Word of God, Romans 8:28, "We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose." Now, in His hands is the pattern - what the masterpiece will look like when it's finished, and it's beautiful. But He's the only one that can see that whole pattern. He said in Jeremiah, "I know the plans I have for you. They are plans for good and not for evil." It says, "As for God, His way is perfect," in the Bible. Oh, it's going to be beautiful, it's going to be good. He's working out the eternal tapestry for your life. But we're just like those workmen, we can't see the pattern. All we see is the next thread. Our job: Romans 8:14 says, "Those who are led by the Spirit of God, are the sons of God." Our job is to be led. How? Psalm 119:133 gives us a clue, "Direct my footsteps according to Your Word." The next step - the next thread - He shows me from His Word what the next step is.
The designer is on the other side giving directions that will bring me one step, one thread closer to the grand design. Some of those threads are dark, some don't make sense, some don't seem to fit the pattern, some look wrong to me, but I'm just a workman. My job is to trust the designer, not to try to understand every order. Those Persian workers choose nothing; they leave every choice to the designer. Their responsibility is simply to listen and obey. So is ours.
Today is another thread in the tapestry. Your mission, fellow weaver, is to check with the Lord frequently, consult His Word faithfully, and listen for His inner Spirit promptings regularly. It's not your mission to know or understand where all this is going. But the grand, macro will of God for your earth journey is made up of thousands of micro wills, thousands of little obediences - "go there, call this person, write this, listen to this, take this step, read this verse." Threads that ultimately make the tapestry.
Occasionally God will let you stand back from your weaving to see a piece of the grand design, and when you've had a glimpse of what He's making, hasn't it been incredible? But most days, the designer just asks you to keep weaving threads. Some you like, some you don't like, some you're thankful for, some you would never choose. But keep listening. Keep doing what the designer says. One day you will stand back with the Master Designer and you will see the masterpiece you have woven together with His direction and your faithful obediences.
