30 November 2010 Devotion for Today "How to Respond When the Chips are Down" Acts 23:1-8
1 Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, “My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day.” 2 At this the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!”
4 Those who were standing near Paul said, “How dare you insult God’s high priest!”
5 Paul replied, “Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: ‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.’[a]”
6 Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” 7 When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 (The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)
(Acts 23:1-8)
How do you respond when the "chips are down?" In this passage we see the Holy Spirit guiding every word and action of the Apostle Paul as he is standing before the Sanhedrin- the very council that tried Jesus and handed him over to be put to death. They were supposed to be the spiritual leaders of Israel, representing the leading families of the region and led by the High Priest. The first thing was that Paul showed no fear- he looked straight at them, making eye contact in spite of the intimidation he received from the Sanhedrin. He knew that he had done nothing wrong, confident as God's spokesman. Standing before unhappy, angry people can be a very fearful thing. But if a group like this senses fear, they will not feel sorry for you. Instead they will overwhelm you with a barrage of evil threats- just as they tried to do with Paul. Seeing that they could not easily intimidate him, their frustration drove them to resort to physical violence as the High Priest ordered someone to slap Paul in the mouth. This nearly got the best of Paul, who retaliated by lashing out at the High Priest but in a carefully controlled manner. Paul was expecting this also, and knew he must not add fuel to the flames but even here, his wisdom prevailed and easily answered the charge of insulting the High Priest with Scripture by mildly rebuking himself and at the same time pointing out how the High Priest stooped to showing frustration and violence. As Paul composed himself, he aimed at them philosophically by exploiting and driving a great wedge between the two factious parties within the Sanhedrin over the doctrine of the resurrection; which the Pharisees upheld but the Sadducees rejected.
After this, it was impossible for the Sanhedrin to keep the group in focus as they melted down into a "free-for-all" which prompted the Roman guards to have to wade into them and extract Paul by force once again. The Sanhedrin made a poor impression upon the Romans by doing this, and Paul received some admiration from his Roman captors. Even the conservative members of the Sanhedrin threw their lot in with him when they realized Paul had been a member of the Pharisaical party and identified with his doctrine.
It was evident that Paul came away from that difficult situation as a winner. Paul gives us some pointers and shows us how we need to respond in the same way:
1. When facing intimidation, be fearless. You may be shaking in your boots but do everything you can to stare them down. Showing fear in a hostile crowd is like bleeding in a tank full of sharks.
2. Remember, you are not just facing people, you are facing the very presence of Satan himself. Do not count on any sympathy from him or anyone.
3. Show control and Christ-like behavior. Do not result to insults or pettiness even when others have done so. Maintaining control will only make you look better even to the ones who disagree with you. Lashing out will only add fuel to the fire and make it difficult to keep the dispute in focus.
4. Ask Christ to give you wisdom when you realize you will not be able to convince anyone of the truth of your innocence or intentions. Do not become frustrated. Observe carefully the weaknesses in the group assembled against you. Are they united as a group, or does something divide them? It could be that someone is setting you up to be used to further their own agenda to gain advantage over the rest of the group. Are they being truthful? Is there a lie they fear you might expose? People fear this so much that often they keep quiet in such situations, or they will say too much and discredit themselves. Ask the Lord to give you wisdom to be meek and humble, but fearless at the same time.
5. Do not stand for being abused. Paul spoke to this situation when someone slapped him. He addressed it, but moved on and remained calm. Note that he didn't say he would slap them back, but that God would!
6. Resist the temptation to grandstand to the audience or to those who have nothing to gain from the situation one way or another. There is no need to try to go privately to enlist support for your cause, either. Paul could not do this anyway and it seldom helps. You cannot count on anyone to "back you up" when the proverbial chips are down. The only one whom you can count on in a situation like this is the help and power of Jesus Christ who identifies readily with what you are going through and can help you more than the majority.
7. Remember, every day you are in a battle. Chips are being called in every day! You may win the battle in this situation, but that does not mean that the war is finished. Even Christ's wisdom in the same situation did not save Him from being crucified. But He did so gloriously, and finished the task He had come to do. What I am saying is, you may live another day, but it is more likely you will not. This is not a defeat, however. It is a glorious victory. God is still on His throne and the best thing you can do is to show the best you can for His glory.
Prayer: Dear Lord, Your enemies seek to destroy me. I feel so alone and friendless in this world. Help me in this time to gain confidence and strength from You. Keep me strong and sweet and gracious at the same time. And should I go down, may I do so in the spirit of the One who said, "Father into Thy hands I commit my spirit!" In Jesus Name, Amen.
Have a blessed day!
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
30 November 2010 Devotion for Today "How to Respond When the Chips are Down" Acts 23:1-8
30 November 2010 Devotion for Today "How to Respond When the Chips are Down" Acts 23:1-8
1 Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, “My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day.” 2 At this the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!”
4 Those who were standing near Paul said, “How dare you insult God’s high priest!”
5 Paul replied, “Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: ‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.’[a]”
6 Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” 7 When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 (The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)
(Acts 23:1-8)
How do you respond when the "chips are down?" In this passage we see the Holy Spirit guiding every word and action of the Apostle Paul as he is standing before the Sanhedrin- the very council that tried Jesus and handed him over to be put to death. They were supposed to be the spiritual leaders of Israel, representing the leading families of the region and led by the High Priest. The first thing was that Paul showed no fear- he looked straight at them, making eye contact in spite of the intimidation he received from the Sanhedrin. He knew that he had done nothing wrong, confident as God's spokesman. Standing before unhappy, angry people can be a very fearful thing. But if a group like this senses fear, they will not feel sorry for you. Instead they will overwhelm you with a barrage of evil threats- just as they tried to do with Paul. Seeing that they could not easily intimidate him, their frustration drove them to resort to physical violence as the High Priest ordered someone to slap Paul in the mouth. This nearly got the best of Paul, who retaliated by lashing out at the High Priest but in a carefully controlled manner. Paul was expecting this also, and knew he must not add fuel to the flames but even here, his wisdom prevailed and easily answered the charge of insulting the High Priest with Scripture by mildly rebuking himself and at the same time pointing out how the High Priest stooped to showing frustration and violence. As Paul composed himself, he aimed at them philosophically by exploiting and driving a great wedge between the two factious parties within the Sanhedrin over the doctrine of the resurrection; which the Pharisees upheld but the Sadducees rejected.
After this, it was impossible for the Sanhedrin to keep the group in focus as they melted down into a "free-for-all" which prompted the Roman guards to have to wade into them and extract Paul by force once again. The Sanhedrin made a poor impression upon the Romans by doing this, and Paul received some admiration from his Roman captors. Even the conservative members of the Sanhedrin threw their lot in with him when they realized Paul had been a member of the Pharisaical party and identified with his doctrine.
It was evident that Paul came away from that difficult situation as a winner. Paul gives us some pointers and shows us how we need to respond in the same way:
1. When facing intimidation, be fearless. You may be shaking in your boots but do everything you can to stare them down. Showing fear in a hostile crowd is like bleeding in a tank full of sharks.
2. Remember, you are not just facing people, you are facing the very presence of Satan himself. Do not count on any sympathy from him or anyone.
3. Show control and Christ-like behavior. Do not result to insults or pettiness even when others have done so. Maintaining control will only make you look better even to the ones who disagree with you. Lashing out will only add fuel to the fire and make it difficult to keep the dispute in focus.
4. Ask Christ to give you wisdom when you realize you will not be able to convince anyone of the truth of your innocence or intentions. Do not become frustrated. Observe carefully the weaknesses in the group assembled against you. Are they united as a group, or does something divide them? It could be that someone is setting you up to be used to further their own agenda to gain advantage over the rest of the group. Are they being truthful? Is there a lie they fear you might expose? People fear this so much that often they keep quiet in such situations, or they will say too much and discredit themselves. Ask the Lord to give you wisdom to be meek and humble, but fearless at the same time.
5. Do not stand for being abused. Paul spoke to this situation when someone slapped him. He addressed it, but moved on and remained calm. Note that he didn't say he would slap them back, but that God would!
6. Resist the temptation to grandstand to the audience or to those who have nothing to gain from the situation one way or another. There is no need to try to go privately to enlist support for your cause, either. Paul could not do this anyway and it seldom helps. You cannot count on anyone to "back you up" when the proverbial chips are down. The only one whom you can count on in a situation like this is the help and power of Jesus Christ who identifies readily with what you are going through and can help you more than the majority.
7. Remember, every day you are in a battle. Chips are being called in every day! You may win the battle in this situation, but that does not mean that the war is finished. Even Christ's wisdom in the same situation did not save Him from being crucified. But He did so gloriously, and finished the task He had come to do. What I am saying is, you may live another day, but it is more likely you will not. This is not a defeat, however. It is a glorious victory. God is still on His throne and the best thing you can do is to show the best you can for His glory.
Prayer: Dear Lord, Your enemies seek to destroy me. I feel so alone and friendless in this world. Help me in this time to gain confidence and strength from You. Keep me strong and sweet and gracious at the same time. And should I go down, may I do so in the spirit of the One who said, "Father into Thy hands I commit my spirit!" In Jesus Name, Amen.
Have a blessed day!
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