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- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
Acts 13
I’m thinking about jealousy again. It seems that Paul’s message was initially well received by the Jews. When he and Barnabas returned on the second Sabbath to speak, however, attitudes took a turn for the worse. But when the Jews saw the crowds, “…they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what Paul was saying, insulting him.” (Acts 13:45). Initially, I thought this was the familiar scenario of the Jewish leaders fearing for their perceived power and position. Several little things in the text, though, made me wonder if this was something different.
After week one, “the people” urged Paul and Barnabas to speak the following Sabbath. The CSB footnotes that some manuscripts identify those people as Gentiles. We then see that most of the town – a town filled with both Jews and Gentiles – assembled to hear God’s word. So I’m thinking the crowds that ignited the Jews’ jealousy were Gentiles. That, in turn, makes me think that the Jews’ jealousy was, in this case, a fear of losing their perceived exclusivity to God. In other words, they liked being “special” and didn’t want to share.
Referring back to yesterday’s thoughts on God’s jealous nature, I see a crucial, differentiating point. God is justified in His jealousy because He is sovereign. Thus, what is His is truly His. He is absolutely right not to share His Glory with anyone or anything. We, on the other hand, can’t make the same claim. God’s presence and salvation are not exclusive to anybody based on their own merits. As Paul said, “There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male and female; since you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:28). Thus, we have no right to be jealous for what isn’t truly ours. If we are jealous for our God, it is that nothing else claims what is His in us. We should not be jealous of what He freely offers to all, things we should instead be chomping at the bit to share.
Acts 14
Another simple little phrase caught my attention in this chapter this morning. In Lystra, a man born lame sat listening to Paul speak. Paul looked directly at the man and saw, “that he had faith to be healed” (Acts 14:9b). What does that look like? What did Paul see in this man that prompted him to command him to stand? I keep mentioning that what is in our hearts should show not only in our conduct but also on our faces; in our demeanor. This man’s heart was clearly open to God’s truth. I think what Paul saw was the man’s genuine desire for true healing – healing that goes much deeper than the physical. That genuine desire also left him open for the lesser physical healing, which Paul extended to him.
This incident adds to the list of little comments that make me wonder what people see in me. Is my heart genuinely open to God on a day-to-day basis, regardless of my circumstances, such that His light shines freely through me? Or do I have a tendency to get in the way and block that light? I want to be a lampstand, not a bushel basket; an open conduit, not a sealed barrel. I want my cup to radically overflow with all that God gives. Let God’s Spirit in me be like a mark on my forehead, so there will be no mistake when people look at me that I belong to God.