Mon.’s Devo - The Challenges of the Gospel

Read: Acts 15-16
I can’t help thinking the early church leaders could use Jame’s sermon on trials and tribulation. Ministry is full of them. First, they have to deal with the problem of circumcision and following the Jewish laws. They were having a hard time putting new wine in old wineskins or old wine in new wineskins. Peter put them straight about grace and the law then Barnabas and Paul came in with their testimonies of the miracles they had witnessed among the Gentiles. James followed with a sermon about the prophecies of their generation that God is once again building the tabernacle of David which is God residing in the hearts of the people. He summed it up with a few laws: abstain from pollution of idols, from formication, and from things strangely, and from blood. This seemed to smooth things out and they were able to go about the business of the church which was to make disciples. They sent Paul and Barnabas out on their next missionary trip with letters to the newly established churches in Antioch and Lystra about their new decisions.
All seemed to be going well till Paul and Barnabas had a falling out because Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them and Paul didn’t think it was a good idea. John Mark had deserted them once before and Paul was not willing to take the chance of it happening again. John Mark was Barnabas’s cousin and Barnabas felt he needed another chance. John Mark ended up being faithful but sometimes divisions in the body need to happen to so we separate and disperse our gifts. They ended up going separate ways but both went on to do great works for the kingdom. It is sad when we disagree but so human. If we could learn to disagree with love and see the bigger picture we could save ourself from misunderstandings and heart ache.
Paul took Silas and went through Syria and Cilicia. Their next opposition was the Holy Spirit himself. He forbid them to preach in Asia or Bithynia (which is in Asia). Who knows why they were forbidden to go there but they were called to Macedonia instead through a night vision. There they baptized Lydia and her family, delivered a woman from divination and were thrown into prison to save a jail keeper… all for the glory of God. They were forbidden to go to Asia where the Romans were but instead came in the back door and saw many Romans saved in Macedonia.
Lord, your ways are past our understanding. Help us to just keep walking in the path you set before us and not worry about what we don’t understand or can’t fix.