November 30, Acts 18
Do you find comfort or frustration in continuity? Does a routine give you peace, or make you long for variety? Discipleship is an every day calling. But the disciple’s walk has some elements subject to change, and some that are constant.
Today’s portion illustrates the “sometimes” elements of discipleship. Paul’s ministry was usually itinerant. He went “from one place to the next through the region.” But sometimes he stayed a while—a year and six months at Corinth.
Paul usually traveled with associates such as Silas and Timothy. Aquila and Priscilla were co-workers. But sometimes he sent his partners somewhere else, or left them behind to continue the work. Some life lessons are learned in solitude, but it’s good to have people with whom you can share joys and sorrows.
Paul’s tent-making suggests another variable: not everyone can serve full-time in ministry. It’s sometimes necessary to support ourselves in secular work. Don’t be discouraged if you want to serve the Lord, but have another job. Even the apostle Paul sometimes worked at his trade. God is able to use you and your desire to serve him in the workplace.
Also, your efforts to share Christ may sometimes be productive, and sometimes not. Some listeners will do as the Corinthians did—hear the gospel, believe and be baptized. But others may oppose you and your message. Our commission is not variable. We’re supposed to go make disciples. But the results of our efforts will vary. We will be saved from pride (when it’s
going well) and despair (when it’s not) if we will remember that.
For all the variables illustrated here, there are also some reliable constants in the disciple’s walk. For instance, the core message never l changes. Paul (and Apollos) had a constant theme: “The Christ is Jesus.” Disciples are life-long learners, but the message we share with other about Jesus remains the same. Apollos was eloquent, competent and fervent; but he needed to know more. He was more effective as a preacher after being humble enough to learn from Aquila and Priscilla.
As Paul left Ephesus, he said he would return, “if God wills.” Imagine the freedom from anxiety we could know if we learned to plan “if God wills.” Remember Jesus praying in Gethsemane? He asked if the cup could pass and prayed, “Not my will, but yours be done.” He prayed that way the night before the cross because he had lived his whole life that way, always speaking, doing, going as God willed.
There’s another constant of following Christ in view here. When the Lord told Paul in a vision to not be afraid, he reminded him, “I am with you.” He has promised he will never leave us or forsake us. Our courage should flourish and our excuses should melt as we trust the Lord’s abiding presence. Whether circumstances are changing or staying the same, we can enjoy the calm confidence of knowing he is with us.
From The Abiding Companion: A Friendly Guide for Your Journey Through the New Testament,
Copyright © 2010 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—November 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
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