The Roman Citizen Card

Acts 16:35-40

“35 When morning came, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported the message to Paul, saying, “The magistrates sent word to let you go; therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul replied, “They have beaten us in public, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they going to discharge us in secret? Certainly not! Let them come and take us out themselves.” 38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens; 39 so they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. 40 After leaving the prison they went to Lydia’s home; and when they had seen and encouraged the brothers and sisters there, they departed.”

Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.   I am not sure this is something that they bragged about in Palestine.  After all, Romans were the occupiers, the interlopers, the taxing nation.  Rome made life difficult for the Jews in Palestine and many were mistreated.

Paul and Silas had been led to Macedonia by God’s Holy Spirit.  All the people they met, all the places they went, all the things that happened to them while they were there were used by God for His purposes in very powerful ways. 

Yet, Paul and Silas, instead of just walking away when they were told they were free to go, did something very human and very much like what we would do.

Paul and Silas played the Roman citizen card, not as a means of securing their release (they had already been released) but as a means of embarrassing the magistrates who had them beaten and thrown into prison with no due process.

Paul and Silas, great men of the Church, were like us.

God uses people like us.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Guided by the Holy Spirit

Acts 16:6-8

“6 They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; 8 so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas.”

Throughout Paul’s journeys, he listened to the voice of the Holy Spirit, leading him where God wanted him to go.  We are told in the scripture above that Paul was forbidden to preach the gospel in Asia (now Asia Minor) and that he tried to go into Bithynia but was not allowed by the Holy Spirit so he went to Troas.  

The Holy Spirit is given to each person who comes into the faith.  Even though we are indwelled by God’s spirit, we must be able to recognize God’s voice among all the voices in our heads, and then choose to obey God’s voice.

Paul wrote, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2).

We are to allow the Holy Spirit to transform through the use of prayer, scripture study, worship, service, and sacrifice.  As we are being transformed, the Spirit of God will speak to us.  Over time, we will recognize God’s voice above all of the others.  

Then, we must choose to obey it.

And when we do, God will lead us on our journey.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Turning Point

 Acts 13: 1-3

“1 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the ruler, and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.”

Reading the names of the prophets and teachers we find that the church at Antioch was a diverse church.  There are people from Cyprus, North Africa, Romans, aristocrats, and finally a man from Tarsus.

The Holy Spirit worked in and through the members of the church at Antioch and led them to the decision to appoint Barnabas and Saul to carry the gospel throughout the known world, a decision that was the turning point for Christianity, and vital to its survival.

Of course, we see the wisdom of this decision now, looking back.  I wonder if they knew it at the time?  I am sure there were disagreements as to who should be sent or to whom they should carry the messages.  Nevertheless, God’s will was done.

Sometimes I worry about our divided Church; so many denominations, so many interpretations of scripture, so many opinions and emotions.  

But then I remember that the gospel was once carried by two men into many foreign lands, and they were beaten, stoned, imprisoned, robbed, left for dead, and shipwrecked.

Yet,  the good news survived.

And the word of God transformed millions of people.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Spread of the Gospel

Acts 12:20-25

“20 Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they came to him in a body; and after winning over Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for a reconciliation, because their country depended on the king’s country for food. 21 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat on the platform, and delivered a public address to them. 22 The people kept shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a mortal!” 23 And immediately, because he had not given the glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. 24 But the word of God continued to advance and gain adherents. 25 Then after completing their mission Barnabas and Saul returned to Jerusalem and brought with them John, whose other name was Mark.”

King Herod, who allowed himself to be thought of as a god, who may have thought of himself as a god, died.  Meanwhile, the word and the work of the one true God continued to live and grow and flourish.

The crucifixion of Christ, the stoning of Stephen, the death of James and all of the other Twelve with the exception of John, did not stop the will of God or the spread of the gospel throughout the world.

The Apostle Paul wrote,  “What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” (Romans 8:31)

God’s will…. will be done.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Memorial United Methodist Church

Feel free to forward this to anyone you think would like to read it.  If you want me to add someone you know to the distribution list, please send me their email address. If you would like for your email address to be removed from this list, please contact me.

Persevere in Prayer

Acts 12:1-5

“1 It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2 He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3 When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. 4 After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.

5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.”

Herod Agrippa was popular with the Jewish people because he was a direct descendant of the Maccabean heroes, who had rebelled against and expelled the Seleucid rulers (who ruled Israel just prior to the Romans), and captured, cleansed and rededicated the temple to God.  Even though he was a Roman puppet ruler, the people respected him because he observed the law and all of the Jewish observances.

To please the people, Herod began to persecute the Christians.  James, the brother of John, was the first of the Twelve to be put to death.  Peter was arrested.

Through all of this, the church continued to pray. During those times of extreme adversity, the people called out to God.

Maybe Paul remembered these times when he wrote to the Romans, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.” (Romans 12:12)

Good advice even today.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Yes

Acts 11:25-26

“25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.”

For nine years Saul had labored in Tarsus after fleeing to Tarsus from Jerusalem by way of Caesarea.  There he worked but what he did we do not know for sure.  More than likely he preached the gospel in the synagogues in and around Tarsus. Saul had been told by Christ that he had an important mission to fulfill but I wonder if Saul had begun to feel forgotten.

Enter Barnabas, who had not forgotten Saul, and who selected Saul to help him equip believers in the new church in Antioch.  So successful were they in Antioch that the believers there became the first people to be called Christians.  Saul had proved himself to be worthy and ready for his great, important mission so long ago promised by Christ (Acts 9:15).

There is a verse in 1Corinthians 1:20a that was written by Saul (called Paul by the time he wrote 1Corinthians) that says: “For all the promises of God find their Yes in Him [Christ].

Saul found his yes in Christ.

Indeed, Christ is the yes to all who believe.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Compassion of Ananias

Acts 9: 10-16

10 Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” He answered, “Here I am, Lord.” 11 The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; 14 and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; 16 I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

Saul was blinded by the light of heaven and was waiting for Christ’s plan to unfold  in Damascus, fasting and praying while he waited. Meanwhile, also in Damascus, Ananias, a follower of Christ, received a vision in which Christ asked Ananias to help Saul.

Ananias did not want to do this because he had heard how much harm Saul had done to those who believed and thought that Saul may be setting a trap.  Christ insisted that Ananias overcome his fear and anger and understand that God was about to use Saul for His purposes.

Ananias considered Saul an enemy of the faith and Christ asked Ananias to show him kindness, love, and compassion.

In the end, the Christian church owes as much to Ananias as it does to Saul (Paul).   

From the compassion of Ananias, the Apostle Paul arose. 

May the love of Christ be with you

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Presence of God

Acts 17: 26-28

“26 From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27 so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28 For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “For we too are his offspring.”

Paul was in Athens, preaching at the Areopagus.  He was telling the Greeks who were gathered there about God and Christ.  He told them about the one true God who dwells in us; the God who came to earth and dwelled among us and died for us and was resurrected and ascended into heaven.  And after he had said all this, some of the Greeks laughed.  

They laughed because they could not imagine such a God as Paul described.  A God who loved us so much that he sent his son to die for us so that we would have eternal life.

Even today, this is hard for some people to believe; that God is in the world, not far from each of us; that we are children of God; that we live and die in the presence and love of God.

It is God’s desire to be near to us.  Invite Him into your heart.

May the love of Christ be with you

Rev. Eric Lanier