The Bible Archive

reynaldo reynoso (admin)

Some time ago, I was contemplating the issue of knowing God?s will in our lives. I wound up touching on the source of ?closed doors? and made mention of progressing the thoughts to an experience in Paul?s life.

In Acts 21, we see Paul on his way to Jerusalem. We know from other texts that he carries with him a gift for the Jerusalem saints, gathered by those in Macedonia and elsewhere. During these particular days, Paul and company (one of which was Luke the Gospel writer) were housed in Caesarea, the house of Philip the evangelist who was one of the seven originally chosen deacons (Acts 6:5), the preacher to the Samaritans (Acts 8:5), and the baptizer of a certain Ethiopian (Acts 8:37,38). Philip?s four virgin daughters are described as being prophetesses (Acts 21:9).

As if this great cloud of witnesses is not enough, up comes Agabus the prophet from Judea?a prophet who by his words, speaks like God?s oracles of old. If you recall, this same Agabus stood in the midst of Antioch and spoke (by the Spirit) that there would be a great famine?and this occurred (Acts 11:27, 28)!
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reynaldo reynoso (admin)

It’s so very easy to get lost in the problems of everyday, external and internal. I mean, you can turn on your tv set or radio or open up a newspaper and you’re inundated by the worst things happening all around. Sometimes I look at the sin in my own life and dive head long into one of my infamous ?Black Funks? where I mope with furrowed brows and become, specifically, a bore.
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This portion in Paul's argument is coming to its pinnacle. Paul has
deftly drawn the reader into the court-room where God is the wronged
party and His defense is being offered. Paul started the argument by
highlighting the point that God is righteous in that He judges.

Not missing the beat, Paul quickly illustrated how
God judges the guilty heathen?no mention of hidden counsels or any such
thing of the sort, but guilty men willfully against God, suppressing
His words and finally embracing their sin, exhorting those who do the
same.

Lest the moralist listener "tut-tut's" these wicked heathens, taking a stand
on the side of God by judging those horrid sinners, Paul makes sure to
point out that they are just as guilty. That by standing on God's side
and judging the sin about them (and not the sin in their own hearts),
they effectively store up wrath for themselves for a future day. These
moralists can be found in the Jews who were given the Law but by their
repeated sin, the Gentiles blaspheme the very name of God.

Paul now does concede a point, as mentioned in our last
(and so very long ago at that) session. It's not that to be Jewish is
worthless, not at all. It would almost seem that Paul has proved his
point too well by leaving off in the middle of this thought-flow with
such an idea that Circumcision is actually of the heart (if we read it
as such, although we've already discussed what Paul was referring to).

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reynaldo reynoso (admin)

I hear the song all the time, and in all honesty, the tune often bores me. Its structure, like many hymns, is repetitive but seemingly more so in its lilting phraseology. It?s the lyrics in light of its history that makes this hymn ? Trust and Obey? so striking.

The year is 1886 and we?re in one of a series of meetings in Brockton, Massachusetts. We?re enjoying ourselves, after all, D.L. Moody is the speaker and right now we finished marinating ourselves in the lovely music directed by Daniel B. Towner, director of the music department at Moody Bible Institute. In the midst of all this, maybe he was called to do so (we don?t know, we?re only attending the meeting) A young man rises and gives his testimony.
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