Who's Mission are you on?

Acts 18:5-11

Do you recall a man named Ananias who God gave a vision and in that vision God spoke to him and Ananias said, “Here I am, Lord.”  And this is what the Lord said to him in that vision: “And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, ¹² and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” ¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” ¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel. ¹⁶ For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” Acts 9:11-16

Paul has been handpicked by Jesus to carry the message of God’s great love for all men, and the message was that He sent Jesus as a baby into the womb of a young girl named Mary who was a virgin, and how the Son of God lived among the Jewish people and ministered to them and died on a cross for the sins of the world.  But look what happens to Paul when that message was given in the synagogue.  When Paul proclaimed to the Jews Christ raised and at the right hand of the Father, the religious guys always opposed him by beating, prison, or stoning.  Now in each of these places some came to accept Christ, both Jews and Gentiles, but each time he was forced to leave.  Now he is in Corinth and once more is reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath, and trying to persuade the Jews and Greeks to believe that Jesus is the Christ.  And once more they opposed and reviled, yes they began to attack Paul verbally and Silas and Timothy had arrived to support him and minister with him, when Paul said, I’ve had it.

This was doctor Luke’s account of what Paul did; “And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” (Acts 18:6 ESV)  The road of the Christian life can often seem under construction with many dangers, many disappointments, but often, instead of getting frustrated we need to stop and ask this question, “Lord, am I on my mission, or doing Your mission?”

Doctor Luke has given us insight into Jesus calling of Paul in Acts 9:11-16, and now the Lord has to show Paul in a vision the following, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. (Acts 18:9-11 ESV)

Maybe it is time for you and I to ask God to give us a vision of our calling, it may be that you stop to rest at one of the many rest areas on your Christian life, or you are taking your eyes off the road and the calling of your life and need a Silas or a Timothy to come along beside you as encourager and to remind you that God never said the Christian life would be easy, in fact, Jesus was very clear in John 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”  When we take a detour, often they are not designed as part of God’s plan and for many it may take years to get back on the path of life, but it is there that we have peace.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice