Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard: God will have His way

Sunday 22 January 2023

God will have His way

"At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles."

Acts 8:1-3 NKJV

Stephen had just been murdered by a rebellious crowd, one in which Saul of Tarsus was consenting. Saul was one of the main ringleaders who had been entering believer's homes and dragging them - men, women and children, to prison. At the time, Saul was not a nice person to be around and was endeavouring to stamp out Christianity from the land. Yet, he had underestimated God's power.

God used this persecution to spread the Gospel. Jesus had told His disciples prior to His ascension that, 'But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth' Acts 1:8. Now notice this, during this persecution, the apostles had remained in Jerusalem. However, the other disciples had been scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria. The rebellious Jews had played right into God's hands and the disciples were now doing what Jesus had said they would do - be His witnesses. People may try and prevent Gods work but, it is like a game of chess and God is a far better player. God cannot be outsmarted. You need to remember this in hard times. He can still use you wherever you are.

Later on, Saul would be facing Jesus on the Damascus Road (Acts 9), he would then realise just who Jesus is and through this, he would receive a mighty change in his life. He would also be known as Paul because being a Jewish Roman citizen, his name would probably have been Saul Paulus, so he had a choice.

Today, many people who we would never have dreamt would be a Christian, enter our churches and, some take leading roles. How do you feel about this? How would you feel if Paul came into the church and started teaching. When we think about this, it must have been difficult for the other apostles to have Paul joining them. I mean, his reputation was not good and people must have been wary about him. On the other hand, it must also have been difficult for Paul, entering the church and people talking about him and avoiding him. It would have been a difficult time for all. Yet, God knows what He is doing. We may not like it when certain people come to the church with a reputation, especially when they rise up in the ranks. The thing is, if God has chosen them who are we to judge? Think about that the next time you see someone in ministry who you feel should not be there. If God trusts them, shouldn't you?