The story in Acts is our story, it’s where we come from.
Paul travelled widely and spoke to many people, Jews and Gentiles about Christ, the Messiah who had come.
Acts 18 begins with Paul leaving Athens for Corinth, where he met Acquila and Priscilla. Paul stayed with them and worked with them as a tentmaker, but every Sabbath he ‘reasoned with the Jews and Greeks in the synagogue’. When Silas and Timothy came, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching and testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. He eventually left the synagogue when they became abusive and moved to a house next door. It’s ironic that the word of life was so close to the religious people but many couldn’t receive it.
However, a man called Crispus, the synagogue ruler ‘and his entire household( spoke previously about WHOLE FAMILIES accepting the Lord) believed in the Lord’. This synagogue ruler, first of two mentioned here, made the transition from religious ritual to faith in the living God. He was obviously a man who’d given his life to serving God in the synagogue, but he got grace to believe the Good News.
One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Dont stop speaking… I am with you, no one is going to harm you, because I have many people in this city (it must have been good to live in a city with a large number of believers, influence on the whole society). Paul taught there for a year and a half.
Soon after Paul had his vision the Jews tried to attack him again through the court but the proconsul threw them out and they beat up the second synagogue ruler, Sosthenes. One ruler and his whole family came to faith but the second was beaten by his own people(spirits of anger and rebellion). The Jews had gathered with violent intent towards the Lord’s servant and it had to come out!
In N.Ireland where we live, there has been much bloodshed and a lot of it on innocent people. When groups in society buy into the spirit of anger and violence it has to come out. Today most of the violence on our streets has stopped, but many people and a lot of young people are taking their own lives by suicide. The spirits behind the disorder are still demanding sacrifice. There are things in society that only the Church has authority to deal with. May we see the Lord’s hand helping us just as He rescued Paul.
God bless and keep you in these days.