Our daily reflections follow the M'Cheyne Bible reading plan, designed for those who want to read the whole Bible in one year. Each reflection focuses on one of the chapters from that day's readings. Darllenwch rhain yn Gymraeg.
Lord, open my ears to hear what you have to say to me; open my heart to love your word, and open my mind to understand your truth.
In Acts 21 Paul travels to Jerusalem, despite the prophecy warning he would be bound up and mistreated there. Sure enough, when he comes to Jerusalem he is accused of teaching that Jews should give up following the Jewish laws and customs. This wasn’t true, but it was enough to stir up the city. Paul is seized, dragged from the temple and is in danger of being beaten to death.
Word of the unrest reaches the commander of the Roman troops in Jerusalem. He and his men rush to the scene and arrest Paul, taking him to their barracks. Away from the confusion and clamour of the mob, Paul is able to explain who he is, a Jew, and he asks for permission to speak to the crowd.
Paul displays his heritage and identity as a Jewish man. He hadn’t been encouraging the Jewish Christians to forsake their identities, but had been teaching them that the laws were not so important that upholding them should be a barrier to Gentiles coming to believe in Jesus. Paul recognised that salvation through Jesus was the most important thing, and was willing to put everything on the line for the sake of the gospel, even his safety in coming back to Jerusalem.
The question is, how much are we willing to risk for God? Thankfully, God protected Paul during many dangerous situations in his ministry. Many Christians can testify to his protection today.
Dear God, thank you that you protect me. Help me to see if there is anything in my life that I would not willingly let go of if you called me to. Help me to put my trust in you before anything else.
This reflection was written by Hannah Stevens, part of Bible Society’s Publishing team
Read the Bible 
Processing...