Acts 14:21-28 (NIV)
Read by: David Luginbuhl
What kind of advice have you received from the people who are further ahead in the faith?
Today on Daily read Paul and Baranbas retrace their journey on their way back to Antioch. And as they do they leave the churches with a word of encouragement. What kind of thing would you say, maybe something about staying in God’s Word, maybe something about loving your neighbors, what about something to do with growing in their ability to share the good news themselves.
I suppose that Paul and Barnabas had plenty of that kind of thing to share with the newly planted churches. But the thing that Luke records and brings to this part of the story is this: he says that they encouraged the new disciples to remain true to the faith saying, “we must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.” I don’t know about you, but that’s not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of something encouraging. Unless you know suffering. If you know suffering, and the faith that you are remaining true to is in the resurrection from the dead, then it is indeed the most encouraging thing you could hear.
Sometimes we get so caught up in what we need to be doing, how we need to be growing, ways that we could be working that we forget that the deeper call is to remain true to the faith. When we lose sight of that we lose hope. But when we fix our eyes on it, we can endure whatever it takes to see God’s Kingdom.
----------REFLECT----------
1. What word or phrase stood out to you in today’s passage?
2. What kind of advice do you tend to give or receive? Does it line up with the encouragement in this passage? Bring to mind people in your life who are enduring hardship, how might you encourage them today to remain true to the faith?
3. Paul and Barnabas, didn’t leave these disciples without a way for them to continue to be invested in. Sometimes we can find ourselves in seasons where we are living off of the words of people that we don’t have a relationship with. They appointed local leaders to oversee these new disciples. Who is pouring into your life? Take a moment to thank God for them, or ask God for someone like that.
----------GO DEEPER----------
Bible Project: Acts 13-28 Overview >>
InterVarsity Press Selections: Acts >>
----------CONNECT----------
Find an InterVarsity Chapter >>
Start an InterVarsity Chapter >>
Learn More >>
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free