Good Tuesday to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
When you take road trips, are you a person who likes to travel mostly at night or during the day? Perhaps the route you’ll be taking and anticipated traffic on that route or the climate may significantly affect the time of your travel, right? For long trips, my wife and I have always preferred leaving long before daylight, so by the time sunrise comes, we are well down the road.
I left you yesterday with Paul and Silas, traveling at night, having rushed out of Thessalonica, after a riot! (Acts 17:10) Dr. Luke reports they followed the well-traveled road south to the town of Berea, about 45 miles southwest. Historical records tell us this and other well-traveled Roman roads like it were patrolled by soldiers and had waystations about every 8-10 miles for travelers to pause and rest in safety, even at night. Considering the fact they rushed out of Thessalonica fleeing a riot, it’s not difficult for me to imagine they traveled all night, and by daylight could have reached Berea.
I find it interesting Dr. Luke wants us to know there was a clear distinction between the people of Berea and those of Thessalonica. Do you see it in verse 11? “Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received Paul’s message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.” (Acts 17:11,12) What do those words “more noble character” mean in our day? Who are the ‘more noble character’ people in your neighborhood? Do you know any leaders in your city or nation who have earned the reputation of having ‘noble character’?
Pause. Do you know one of the major issues shaping the younger generations of our time is the absence of ‘noble character’ in adults? The young generations see moral failure, corruption, fraud, dishonesty, truth manipulation, hypocrisy, broken promises and so much more in the adults and even the leaders of EVERY segment of society, sadly even in their own parents! Just watch the news for 15 minutes any evening, any channel. Or go online to any news outlet and with a fresh eye look for ‘noble character’. How long will it take before you finally hear a report of someone with ‘noble character’, courageously doing what is right?
In Berea, it seems the people did NOT take ‘new news’ or ‘new ideas’ on face value, they wanted to research and test before believing. Paul, as was his custom, started in the synagogue on the Sabbath, with Jewish men, digging into the Jewish Scriptures which were so highly revered. From those Scriptures Paul proclaimed Jesus to be the prophesied Messiah and then explained Jesus’ incarnation, His life and His message.
Then, of course, Paul explained Salvation from sin condemnation is made possible by Jesus’ death and resurrection. I love that Luke calls us to not miss the fact that these Bereans did not fall asleep nor daydream as Paul spoke. Rather, they took notes, had the Scripture scrolls open before them and kept asking questions of Paul, wanting to be sure they understood.
Pause. With what frame of soul (mind and heart) do you and I sit in our churches on Sunday listening to the Pastor preach? Do you have your Bible open, with pen in hand, making notes of what the Holy Spirit says into your spirit? Does your church allow you to raise your hand and ask a question or is it acceptable for you to send a text or email to your pastor asking questions about what he preached?
Please my “WWJ” friends, we want this to be interactive, so never hesitate writing me an email asking any question or asking for clarification. I need to be right, absolutely right when discussing the Scriptures with you each day. Now, Can you envision what Paul was experiencing here in Berea… as compared to the riot which ran him out of town in Thessalonica?
Sadly, Dr Luke reports the atmosphere in Berea changed after a while. “But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went to Berea, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. The believers in Berea immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea.“ (Acts 17:13,14) Now perhaps you’re thinking, if Paul had more courage he would have stayed and debated or at least not run? But historians tell us ‘rabble rousing’ or ‘causing a public disturbance’ was not tolerated in the Roman empire, especially in Macedonia and larger cities. Roman soldiers were vigilant about watching and listening especially when crowds gathered and ‘rabble rousers’ were quickly dealt with, often violently. Remember what happened to Paul in Philippi? (Acts 16:22,23)
Luke tells us Paul was not simply sent running out of Berea, but rather “Those who escorted Paul out of Berea brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.” (Acts 17:15) Now that’s really interesting to me, because from the coast Paul and those escorting him would have taken a ship, nearly 200 miles south on the Aegean Sea, to Athens, Greece. I wonder if they had concluded traveling by road and stopping at more towns may have found the same angry troublemakers following them. Athens would provide Paul a fresh start, far away from Macedonia, and deep in the heart of intellectual, mysterious Athens!
But why do you suppose Paul left Timothy and Silas, and we presume Dr Luke, behind in Berea? I think a Greek Physician would have been viewed by the Bereans very differently than a former Pharisee turned Messianic Jew! I presume Silas, Timothy and Luke may have enjoyed a time of very effective ministry quietly, discreetly, helping the new believers in Berea gain an important and well-grounded understanding of Jesus and their new salvation.
That’s why we have ‘lessons learned’ notes everyday…so you can continue digging and learning and growing to teach what you’ve learned to others! Do you have a God given Berean spiritual hunger to know God and understand God’s truth, and then help others learn what you have learned? If so, that is a work of God’s Holy Spirit in you. Oh, I’ve found a wonderful Steve Green worship song which expresses my heart: “Oh God, I want to know you more”! And, my friends, I’m already looking forward to meeting with you tomorrow…
Today’s Scripture: Acts 17:10-15.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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