Category: 843 Acres

Scripture Focus: Acts 24.14-16
14 However, I admit that I worship the God of our ancestors as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets, 15 and I have the same hope in God as these men themselves have, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. 16 So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man.

Reflection: Winning People > Winning Arguments
By John Tillman

Acts gives many examples of followers of “The Way” on trial. When we are on trial, in courts or in conversations, do we follow their examples?

In every case, those who were handed over to the local councils, flogged in the synagogues, or brought before governors and kings served as witnesses about Jesus both to their accusers and to the authorities they stood before. This is as Jesus said it would be. (Matthew 10.16-20) They were sheep among wolves. They were as wise as the snakes that accused them and yet as innocent as doves. Jesus said that when they were put on trial the Holy Spirit would speak through them. 

Paul is on trial for his life and, in a sense, his faith. His accusers charged him with blasphemy, yet Paul was the one confessing the true God. Their denial of Christ was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. Paul was accused of rebellion, yet it was they who crucified the rightful King. Their execution of Jesus was a rebellion against the only kingdom that matters.

Inspired by the Spirit, how does Paul respond? Does he spit fire, pronounce curses, and call them blasphemers and heretics? No. 

Paul defends himself against lies but he doesn’t need insults to do it. He simply tells the truth. Not only does he not insult them, Paul emphasizes his common ground with his accusers. “I have the same hope in God as these men,” Paul says.

We have little control over what courts or kings may judge us or demand an account from us. On social media or in conversation, there are many judgments or arguments we might face.

Unlike Paul, we may face accusations that are true. “The church abused me.” “The Bible was used to harm me.” Even if, individually, we are innocent, rather than being defensive, we should address these with compassion and humility. We should heal, not deny, people’s wounds.

Paul’s trial was a platform for him to find common ground with all people and to explain the gospel publically. (Acts 26.28-29) Whatever trials we face, formal or informal, keep Jesus’ words and Paul’s example front of mind. Even when accusations are unfair or false, those putting us on trial are not our enemies. We aren’t there to win the trial or win the argument but to win people for the gospel and bring honor to Jesus.

Divine Hours Prayer: A Reading
Jesus said to us: “…Everything now covered up will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops.” — Matthew 10.26-27

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime by Phyllis Tickle.

Today’s Reading
Numbers 1 (Listen 6:21)
Acts 24 (Listen 4:11)

Read more about Portrait Shaped by Scripture
If we can show the beauty of living in a way that shows the Father’s love, people will be willing to consider trusting our Father’s words.

Read more about None Excluded or Excused
Are you one of those sharing the gospel? Who are you bringing along? Who are you collaborating with? Who is learning from you and from whom are you learning?

Scripture Focus: Acts 20.4-6
4 He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. 5 These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. 6 But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.

Reflection: None Excluded or Excused
By John Tillman

Paul was rarely alone and rarely did his work alone.

In Acts 18, we see that a group of believers accompanied Paul. Many of them are representatives from the communities he has just visited. Believers from Berea, Thessalonica, and Asia, as well as others, joined Paul. They left their own cities and situations to travel and work with Paul, taking the gospel to other communities.

We can sometimes forget that Paul’s ministry was never a one-man show. Seven of the thirteen “Pauline letters” open saying, “from Paul AND…” Paul and Sosthenes sent 1 Corinthians. Paul and Timothy sent 2 Corinthians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. Paul, Timothy, and Silas sent 1 and 2 Thessalonians.

Bible nerds debate whether these men were co-authors or scribes or letter carriers. To me, it seems scribes and letter carriers were typically mentioned at the end, not at the beginning and co-authorship does not threaten the quality of the letters or their authority or inspiration. Paul is, undeniably, the main voice but what the others might have contributed is a fun topic to think about.

More important than the question of co-authorship is recognizing the importance of teamwork in Paul’s ministry. If we have an idea of ministry as a top-down power structure, we’ve misread the book of Acts and Paul’s letters. We need to reimagine what ministry looks like in our heads. 

People often talk about “red flags” when visiting churches but when we first visited our current church, we saw a “green flag.” Instead of saying, “I’m the lead pastor” or “the senior pastor” or even “the teaching pastor,” the pastor said, “I’m one of the pastors at this church.” Those other phrases wouldn’t be sinful and would all be truthful. But consistently referring to himself as a collaborative leader was a sign of good things.

For Paul, ministry was collaborative. Paul’s ministry team included all races, men and women, young people and elders, slaves and free, rich and poor. Paul brought others with him because he valued them and their contributions. Not only was no one excluded from sharing the gospel, no one was excused from doing so. 

Are you one of those sharing the gospel? Who are you bringing along? Who are you collaborating with? Who is learning from you and from whom are you learning? 

Are you collaborating through funding, preaching, prophesying, serving, writing, traveling, or other means?

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting
Your testimonies are very sure, and holiness adorns your house, O Lord, forever and forevermore. — Psalm 62.6

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime by Phyllis Tickle.

Today’s Reading
Leviticus 24 (Listen 2:58)
Acts 20 (Listen 5:22)

Read more about Embrace Your Mission
Paul’s mission brought others together and molded diverse people into unified disciples.

Read more about Facing Wolves
In hunting for “wolves” we can injure a lot of sheep. People who hunt wolves often become wolf-like themselves.

Scripture Focus: Acts 18.24-28
24 Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor t and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately. 
27 When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers and sisters encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. 28 For he vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah. 

Reflection: Portrait Shaped by Scripture
By John Tillman

Apollos “proved” from the scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah. 

This easy-to-miss phrase tells us that Apollos and the Jews had an agreed-upon interpretation of messianic prophecies and an agreed-upon set of facts about the life of Jesus. They compared the two and determined that they matched.

This was all happening just a few years after Jesus’ death. Information and people traveled fairly easily. Facts could be verified because people who experienced these events were still alive, including the people who condemned Jesus to death, those who carried out his sentence, and those who saw him resurrected. (1 Corinthians 15.3-7)

Our faith is a fact-based faith. The single-most important (and audacious) factual claim of Christianity is that Jesus was resurrected. Skeptics of this claim and of Christianity didn’t suddenly appear on the scene during the Age of Reason. Christianity was tested by skeptics immediately following the resurrection during a time in which its followers had no power or influence and it should have been easiest to disprove. 

Apollos was able to point to the portrait drawn by the writings of Isaiah and other biblical authors and then point to the life of Jesus. For many faithful Jews, it was obvious that they were the same picture. 

When we speak about the gospel or engage in discussion with those who don’t share our faith, it may be difficult for us to “prove” anything from the scriptures. Apollos’s audience knew the scriptures inside and out. Modern people don’t know or trust the scriptures. Not only do they not have positive knowledge of the scriptures, many have negative experiences with scripture being weaponized, twisted, and used to accuse, abuse, dehumanize, and attack them.

Before we prove anything from the scriptures, we may first have to show people a portrait of Jesus painted with our words and actions. If we can show the beauty of living in a way that shows the Father’s love, people will be willing to consider trusting our Father’s words.

Lord, help us to remember that some have been wounded by scripture.
Help our lives to be shaped by scripture into a beautiful artistic portrait of you.
May the picture we paint of you show that the scriptures are good so that others can believe the gospel.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer
Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what he has done for me. — Psalm 66.14

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime by Phyllis Tickle.

Today’s Reading
Leviticus 22 (Listen 4:41)
Acts 18 (Listen 4:06)

Read more about A Different Kind of Exile
In 1 Peter 2, we see that the scattered exiles from Jerusalem…Their lives—their good deeds—are literally the arguments they are to defend themselves with.

Read more about Default Settings for Scripture
The “default settings” of our mindsets about scripture have a big effect on our ability to make use of them in the ways Paul and Peter intend.