Acts 8, 9, 10

Acts 8, 9, 10

Overview:  Lots of stuff going on.  A brief appearance by a venomous Saul.  The story of how the disciples disperse to elude their persecutors and continue to preach and bear witness to the good news in a variety of places.  Great story of Philip and the court official from Ethiopia who meet up in the wilderness.  Saul heads for Damascus to do harm to Christians and has his life permanently adjusted.  Peter has a vision that moves him to believe that the good news of Jesus is for Gentiles as well as Jews.

Where did you go yesterday?  Who did you see and speak to?  Where are you headed today?  Our lives are a mixture of planning and random moments.  We may feel at times like we are precisely where we are supposed to be and at other times like we are where we are for no particular reason.  These three chapters all push us to take seriously that wherever we happen to be at any moment is exactly the spot that God has in mind for us to be.  Philip is called away from a successful work in Samaria to to a southern road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.  The text offers an aside - "This is a wilderness road."  This appears to be an odd turn of events.  Leave a place where you are doing effective work so that you can be on a wilderness road.  Not in Jerusalem.  Not in Gaza.  Specifically on the road, the wilderness road, between the two of them.  Random.  He happens upon a court official from Ethiopia.  The court official happens to be reading a particular passage of Scripture.  He happens to ask for help from the person who happens to be nearby - Philip.  Philip happens to be able to help.  THEN there HAPPENS to be water on the wilderness road.  The Ethiopian asks to be baptized - what's to prevent it seeing as how he understands what he is reading and there happens to be water.  So many random moments falling into place, except they only superficially appear to be random.  God puts people in places for purposes.
Paul is ready to go terrorize some Christians in Damascus.  He's fired up, has his marching orders in hand and he's off.  Jesus happens to appear to him on the road and sends him to a Chrisitan leader in Damascus who happens to be someone who is able to overcome his misgivings about Paul and reach out to him in Christian love.  And Paul is off to the synagogue and a where a persecutor had once been a powerful force for the gospel is unleashed.  I do not believe Ananias happened to be the person who was handy for the job.  I believe Ananias was the person who God had been preparing for that very particular assignment.
Peter is in Joffa at the home of Simon the tanner.  He happens to be on Simon's roof and has a vision.  At the same time Cornelius, a God fearing Gentile, is having a visit from an angel asking him to send for Peter.  Peter winds up traveling to Cornelius' home and more proclamation and baptizing ensue.  All as a result of events that could have seemed disconnected or random, but which, when the story is strung together take shape with a purpose that come clearly into view.
Where are you going today?  Who will you encounter?  Imagine for a moment that none of it is random.  Believe for a moment that all of it is a piece of God's unfolding plan.  Our days just got way more interesting.