DAISY YOHANNAN : ABS UPDATE: Week 13 Day 7:
PREACHING THE KINGDOM OF GOD
“But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand.” Acts 28:3 NASB
– After establishing so many churches and at the peak of his ministry here we see Paul gathering sticks (a very menial job) but it doesn’t matter for him as long as he is serving God and His people. What an exemplary life of SERVANT LEADERSHIP”
Why do bad things happen to good people? I always have this question hovering in my mind. Didn’t God understand that Paul had been through enough suffering? A storm at sea and now a viper.
Yes! God knew it but he allowed it because there is a greater purpose behind every suffering. It opened the door for preaching of the Gospel through the leading man of the island Publius. Many times our lives are like that. We would have just tackled a storm of difficulties in our life and there is a viper (suffering) eagerly waiting to fastened on our hand. It’s very difficult to keep on holding to God, but God wants us to do just that: Hold on to Him, Wait on Him for a breakthrough and Blindly trust Him because “ALL THINGS work together for the good of those who love Him and called according to His purpose.”
The Book of Acts ends with Acts 28:31 “preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.”
It is a present continuous tense. It continues till date. The preaching of the gospel started with few handful of uneducated ordinary disciples to highly educated but ordinary man called Paul and now it has been passed on to ordinary people like us to take it to the ends of the earth. Paul did it unhindered because nothing else mattered for him than the great commission.
Many a times I am the biggest hindrance. A small difficulty or a minor discouragement, emotionally drains me and pulls me completely down. But here nothing hinders Paul because his eyes are fixed on Jesus who is the author and finisher of his faith. Nothing hindered Jesus from dying for me, so what is hindering me to reach out to the people – ME. I am the greatest hindrance.
ABS (The study of ACTS) – what a beautiful way to a new beginning. The book of ACTS has given me new strength and hope to just HOLD on to God, come what may. We are a fresh chapter of Acts.
Lord I need your grace for this fresh roller coaster ride to reach to the ends of the earth with the message of your Love.