Paul is finishing his defence in the Caesarean court. He’s using his own conversion story to do so, in a form shaped to challenge King Agrippa, which includes a summary of his gospel call (v20). That call has three elements:
Belt up!
Church leaders should be open to Christians raising concerns with them. Paul has shown himself to be like that on the way to Jerusalem (Ac 21:4). But if the leaders feel they must continue with a path despite advice, then
Igniting anger
Certain words, phrases or ideas can get us excited. Public speakers know this and make use of the trait. With a weak speaker that may be their way of masking the poverty of their words. The trait can also be
All for nothing?
‘I did all that for nothing?’ Do you ever find yourself asking that? Some 1st century Jews felt that Paul led them to do so. They heard that he now taught Jewish culture was dead and Israel’s past was worthless
Misunderstood at home
Returning to our childhood home can be hard, especially if we have changed in ways which are not clear to those still there. Paul has this on a grand scale as he returns to Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, where he spent
Pulling down walls
‘It is finished’ said the Saviour as he closed his eyes in death (Jo 19:30). To reach the point at which a task is done can be precious to us, especially if it is on our conscience as a duty
Racing towards danger
It can be very helpful to pause and ask ourselves the question: “What matters most to me?”. Or to put it a different way: “What would I want to get right in my life, even if I got everything else
The temple of life
Bezalel was gifted by the Holy Spirit to create a temporary temple for God, during the time of Moses (Ex 31:1-11). Over 1500 years later, Paul saw himself as a temple builder except of a grander kind: an eternal temple
Non-conformity
There’s a human trait which leads us to conform to what others expect of us. This social pressure can affect us individually and it can also affect whole groups: a herd-mentality can be created in a mob. A whole society,
Discipleship
Ephesus was a large city on the coast of Asia Minor (Turkey today). Paul previously visited it when heading home from Greece (Ac 18:19-21). Now he returns and stays for a long period, in order to establish a work which