Have you ever had that moment where you read or heard something and think, “wow, that was great I need to remember that”? I have started saving scriptures and quotes to go back and reference. Today, when I was reading through them, verses found in the book of Acts stood out to me.
“Paul had decided to sail on past Ephesus, for he didn’t want to spend any more time in the province of Asia. He was hurrying to get to Jerusalem, if possible, in time for the Festival of Pentecost. But when we landed at Miletus, he sent a message to the elders of the church at Ephesus, asking them to come and meet him.
When they arrived, he declared, “You know that from the day I set foot in the province of Asia until now I have done the Lord’s work humbly and with many tears. I have endured the trials that came to me from the plots of the Jews. I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear, either publicly or in your homes. I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike—the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus.
“And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” Acts 20:16-24 NLT
There are so many things that we could take from these verses. I underlined the ones that struck a chord with me, maybe they did you too. We read here that nothing kept Paul from spreading the Gospel, privately or publicly. One would think he would at least do it in private so the Jews wouldn’t find out about it. But he said nope, I’m not going to be intimidated. Then he wanted desperately to get back to Jerusalem. Though Paul knew that once there, he would suffer and be imprisoned…yet he hurried.
These verses convicted me of several things. Do I have urgency when the Holy Spirit speaks to me or convicts me? Do I allow the Spirit to speak to me? Do I unabashedly share the Good News without regard as to what others will think? Y’all, I am not facing imprisonment. Paul HURRIED towards certain suffering. I think I need to be less fearful and more obedient and confident like Paul. What about you?
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
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