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Home , Agabus

13th June PS : 17 – 38 and : 7 - 14 “In every city lies persecution”

This is the last in our series of talks on Dangerous Faith, a study on the by Open Doors. We started our 8 part series after Easter, at the end of Acts, where we discovered that, even as a prisoner under house arrest in Rome, St Paul’s ‘door was always open’. Over the series, we’ve covered the Ascension of , the martyrdom of Stephen, the scattering of the early believers as they were persecuted and pursued by Saul, the conversion of Saul to Paul and the naming of the believers as Christians in . And, last week, Helen told us about Paul’s friendship with fellow tent makers in Corinth and about Galleo, the Roman pro-consul, who gave a tacit endorsement of in that city.

Today’s talk is called ‘in every city lies persecution’ and in our two readings today we see Paul in two places and addressing two separate groups of people. In chapter 20, we are in Miletus on the coast of Asia Minor, about 40 miles south of Ephesus while in chapter 21 we are in Caesarea, at the house of Philip.

Key points: . Joining the dots – how to make sense of our lives in a fragmented world; . Facing up to danger – when is it the right time to stop running? . More blessed to give than to receive – what does that mean to us today?

Let us pray: Dear Father, as we draw this series on Dangerous Faith to a close, let us not forget that we are part of your global family and let us not forget that a part of your family is in danger. Help us, in this final instalment of Dangerous Faith, to find out just how we at St Peter’s can make a difference for those of our brothers and sisters who are persecuted. In Jesus name, Amen.

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Joining the dots

I remember a newspaper aid appeal from years ago. It was very simple. There was a starving child on one side of the page and on the other there was a bowl of food. There was a dot by the child and there was a dot by the food. Underneath was the caption: ‘Join the dots.’ And then below that, it said ‘Baffles world leaders’. Today’s news is about the G7, the leaders of the seven richest world nations, meeting in Cornwall and of promises to offer free Covid vaccines to the poorer nations. But elsewhere there is also news of a new famine in Africa*, in Ethiopia, scene of the 1984 famine that some will remember: the scenes of emaciated babies starving. Is History repeating itself? Then as now the famine was as a result of war and pestilence. Then as now the political leaders were flailing around with communiqués and fine words.

Contrast our simple dot to dot aid appeal with the work of Paul in the first century. Where is Paul? In Corinth? In Miletus? In Caesarea? He keeps moving around! He keeps joining the dots!

The year is 57AD and Paul has just arrived in Miletus on his way to , hoping to reach his destination in time for the Jewish feast of . Whilst in Miletus, he is visited by the elders of the church in Ephesus.

Of all the early church leaders, Paul appears to do more than anyone to join the dots between the Jewish believers and the Gentiles and to keep the new churches around the Mediterranean Sea joined up. In this sense, he is the first strategic evangelist. Where you and I might be inclined to live our lives in convenient compartments: church on a Sunday that has little to do with any other church, work Monday to Friday, visit friends on a Saturday, Paul is working continually for the Lord.

Paul is a man in a hurry. He is hurrying back to Jerusalem before Pentecost. Why does he have to go to Jerusalem? And why before Pentecost? Paul’s strategic intent is to be where the people are. And the Jewish Pentecost, 50 days after the Passover, is the next big gathering of Jews in Jerusalem and so it will be the next big opportunity to preach the to the Jews. Remember what happened years before at Pentecost when the filled Jesus' disciples?

‘Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven: Parthians, Medes, Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome; Cretans and Arabs’ (:5-11)

So is it any wonder that Paul wouldn’t want to be in Jerusalem too? But Paul’s fear of missing out wasn’t driven by any selfish ambition. As he tells the leaders of the church in Ephesus, ‘my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me.’ (Acts 20:24)

How can we join the dots today? How can we be more like Paul and make better sense of our world? How can we act and pray in a way that is more strategic and purposeful? Do we keep a diary and periodically review our spending? Where is it that we spend most of our time and most of our money? Jesus said that ‘For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ Matt 6:21. How do we allocate resources, investments in time, emotion and material wealth into our own personal work for God? How can we more effectively support the evangelistic mission of St Peter’s in and around Elworth? If it helps, feel free to pause this YouTube video now and take a moment to think this through.

*UN report: Famine in Ethiopia https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-57422168

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Facing up to danger

If we consult a map of Paul’s 3rd journey, we can find all the locations he visits and including those mentioned in today’s reading. Why does Paul never seem to stay in the same place for more than a year or two?

In the next part of our reading, Paul’s ship has reached Syria and he and his party have travelled overland to Caesarea to stay for a few days at the house of Philip the Deacon. We are told that, whilst there, Agabus the , whom we previously met in :28 in Antioch, predicts that ‘the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind [Paul] and will hand him over to the Gentiles’.

There is a contrast between session 5 of Dangerous Faith, where Paul escapes his pursuers ‘lowered [from the walls of Damascus] in a basket’ (:25) and today’s session, where Paul decides to face his persecutors head on.

Paul has previously explained to the Ephesian elders at Miletus that ‘compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.’ (Acts 20:22-23)

Now, in the light of Agabus’s prophecy, Paul again responds: ‘Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’ (Acts 21:13)

When is it right to elude or hide from danger and when is it right to face danger?

Have you stayed in the same place for a long time recently? Would you ever consider moving for the sake of the Gospel? Is there somewhere you have previously been but to which you would not consider returning because of a danger or a bad experience? Remember, from session 5, what Ronnie MacMillan said to us about enemies: Jesus said ‘love your enemies’. He didn’t say, ‘don’t make any’. Does our faith make enemies? Have we been running or hiding from our enemies? Is now the time for us to stop running and to face up to them, in the power of Jesus?

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More blessed to give than to receive

In Acts 20:34 Paul says that ‘these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions’. How did Paul do this? Last week we learned from Helen that Paul’s occupation was as a tent maker (:3), a that would allow him to travel light and to keep on the move. But Paul also explains that ‘I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak.’ (Acts 20:34-35)

Then Paul says something that he attributes to Jesus:

‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ (Acts 20:35)

But how can we give in the name of Jesus?  We can give our time;  We can give our warmth and friendship;  We can give a listening ear or a shoulder to lean on;  And, of course, we can give materially. The generosity of the people of St Peter’s: In 2020: - St Peter’s received £120,000 in voluntary donations - St Peter’s gave £12,000 to other charities, several of them overseas What are the reasons to give? How about some of these: . Giving helps others; . Giving makes a difference; . Giving inspires others to give; . Giving makes us feel good; . Giving demonstrates good stewardship of our God given resources and talents; . Giving allows our faith to become strategic and purposeful; . Giving joins the dots

‘The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others’ – Mahatma Ghandi

We started today’s talk with the news of another famine in Ethiopia. Perhaps we can learn something from the 1984 Ethiopia famine. Some of us may remember and others may have heard about the response from BandAid and LiveAid as the pop and rock stars of that generation gave leadership to a real material response of generosity. Today we still support the legacy of 1984 through Comic Relief and similar fund raisers. I don’t know if there were any particular faith perspectives of the organisers: Bob Geldof, Midge Ure and Bono, but I do know that, for a while, moral leadership of the G7 shifted from those in the smart suits to those who wanted to make a real difference when it mattered most and allowed the rest of us to feel what it was like to really give with a purpose. I wasn’t a Christian then, but something was stirring inside me. Today, I still feel the same motivation to give with purpose, and I now know that it comes from my faith in Jesus.

Let’s pray: Dear heavenly Father, You are our strength and our redeemer. Without you, we are nothing. But in you, we belong to a worldwide family of believers. Have mercy on us, Lord, for hiding our faith when we should be declaring it to the world. Give us the courage, O Lord, to face our enemies in love, patience and humility. Amen

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