Peter Misselbrook's Blog

Mar 1 2020 - Acts 9:26-43 – The value of quiet service

And then there is Barnabas. He plays a larger part than Ananias, but again, it’s a minor role compared with that of Paul. Paul had been under threat for his life and only escaped Damascus by being lowered from the city wall in a basket. When he arrived back in Jerusalem he tried to join the Christian community there. They, however, were reluctant to accept him, fearing perhaps that he was merely pretending to be a disciple in order to infiltrate their ranks and destroy them from the inside.

We have come across Barnabas before. He had sold a field and given the money to the apostles to meet the needs of the poor (Acts 4:34-37). His real name was Joseph, but the apostles had renamed him Barnabas, Son of Encouragement or Encourager, because of this preeminent aspect of his character. And it was Barnabas the encourager who spent time with Paul, listening to his story and then introducing him to the apostles. It is through the friendship and care of Barnabas that Paul was welcomed into the Christian fellowship in Jerusalem.

But before long, Paul had to flee also from Jerusalem. Again it was the Greek speaking Jews who drove him out – those who once had embraced him as an ally against Steven. Luke tells us that it was only after Paul had left Jerusalem that the church enjoyed a time of peace and growth. Paul may have begun to doubt the calling he had received from the risen Lord Jesus. Was he more of a curse to the church than a blessing? It will take Barnabas again to thrust him into the work for which he is being prepared – but that’s a later story.

Don’t underestimate the contribution made to the kingdom by simple acts such as that of welcoming and encouraging the newcomer. Who knows, such acts may be instrumental in nurturing a ministry that will be used of God to transform the lives of thousands.

For the moment Paul is out of sight and the focus returns to the ministry of Peter. We read that while Peter was visiting Lydda, he was told of a Christian lady named Tabitha (or Dorcas in Greek) who had died in the neighbouring town of Joppa. Peter was summoned to come at once. Dorcas was well known for her acts of kindness and Peter was greeted by widows standing around the bedside of the dead woman, crying and showing him the clothes she had made for them. Through the power of the risen Saviour, Peter was able to raise Dorcas to life again and restore her to her friends. No doubt she continued to devote herself to meeting the needs of others.

We know nothing else about this dear lady, except that her remarkable restoration to life brought many others to faith. There was nothing extraordinary about her except that she devoted herself to meeting the needs of others out of love for Christ. Here is a lady who provides us with a model of Christian discipleship. Are we “always doing good and helping the poor”? What will people say about us when we are gone?

Lord Jesus, help me always to be an encourager that I may enable and promote the ministry of others in the work of your kingdom. May my love for you be expressed in a genuine love for others and a concern to meet their needs as far as it lies in my power. May I be known for doing good, not that I might gain a reputation for myself but that your name may be glorified and many others brought to faith in you.

Mar 1 2019 - Exodus 19:1-25 – Brought safely to Sinai

When, at the burning bush, the Lord had met with Moses to send him to rescue the Israelites from Egypt he had reassured him with this promise: "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain" (Exodus 3:12). God had been with Moses and had safely brought the Israelites through sea and desert to meet with him at this mountain – Mount Sinai.

Now that they have arrived at Sinai, God tells the Israelites; "You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (19:4-6).

God's saving purpose for Israel does not involve his rejection of the rest of the world – the whole earth is his. He has saved and protected this people for the sake of his covenant, the covenant he made with Abraham through which he promised to bring blessing to all the nations of the world. The Israelites are to be a kingdom of priests; they are to act as mediators between the living God and the nations of the world, to be the means by which all nations enjoy the blessings promised by the God of Abraham. They should not think that God has chosen them and rejected the other nations; he has chosen them for the sake of the other nations – that they might be a light to the Gentiles.

The apostle Peter applies these words to predominantly Gentile churches in the first century (1 Peter 2:9). We have inherited this same promise and calling of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have been saved not so that God may reject the rest of the world but that God may bring his salvation and blessing to others through us. We have been made God's people in order that we might "declare the praises of him who called [us] out of darkness into his wonderful light" – that others might also be drawn out of darkness by our testimony to the light.

God had brought the Israelites to Mount Sinai to meet with him. But the people had to keep their distance. The mountain shook and trembled and was covered with thick cloud as God came down with thunder, lightning and fire. The people were warned not to go near the mountain or they will die. Only Moses and Aaron were permitted to go up the mountain to meet with God.

The Lord Jesus has provided the perfect sacrifice for sin. Through his shed blood and his risen presence at the Father's right hand he has become the mediator of the new and better covenant. He has brought us all into the very presence of God – anticipating that last day when God shall again come down in power to dwell among his people for all eternity. We are not required to stand at a distance; we have been brought near. What a tremendous privilege and blessing! What a great salvation!

Holy God, help me to understand what it means that I have been brought into your presence through the Lord Jesus Christ. You are the same holy God; you have not been tamed. You are a God of burning holiness; you are a consuming fire. And yet I can stand in your presence because Christ has died and Christ is risen. Thank you that you are with me, that I am your treasured possession and that you protect me and guide me. Help me to see that the blessings you have given me in Christ are not for me alone but are for the whole world. Use me to bring others into the light of your kingdom.

Peter Misselbrook