Not-So-Quiet-Time: Acts 21
At-Home Bible Guide for the Week of 2/22
Day 1: Verses 1-16
Paul was convinced of how God was leading in his life. He knew that it would be painful. And this was confirmed time and time again on his journey back to Jerusalem. But in the end, everyone agreed: “Let the will of the Lord be done” (21:14). Following Christ will cost everything. Jesus said that those who live for Him will pick up their cross, denying themselves daily, and follow wherever He leads (Matt 16:14). That was true for Paul and it is true for us too. Ask God to give you the wisdom to know where He is leading and the strength to follow Him there.
Day 2: Verses 17-26
There was an ongoing discussion about the role of the Old Testament laws in the lives of believers. The church had concluded that God did not require Gentiles to become Jewish in order to be accepted as Christians. However, the Jewish people were still working through the ways in which Christianity had changed their lives as Jewish people. They were wrestling with questions like: What did it mean that Jesus had fulfilled the Law? Today, there are still questions to which the answers are not immediately clear. Sometimes we have to wrestle for a long time. But thank God that He has given us everything we need for life and godliness (1 Pet 1:3).
Day 3: Verses 27-32
Paul knew that his visit to Jerusalem would lead to hardships. His life was almost immediately at risk at the hands of the same city that had cried out to crucify Jesus. But this time, the Romans put a stop to the violence. God used the soldiers to protect Paul. His work wasn’t done. Trusting in God can be hard, and we don’t always know where He will take us. But we can always trust Him.
Day 4: Verses 33-36
Arguments and complaints against Christ and his people don’t always make sense. The Roman tribune tried to gather the facts: What had Paul done? Why were the people so upset? But “some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another… he could not learn the facts because of the uproar” (21:34). If we are attacked for doing good and representing Jesus, we need to remember that He sees and understands the truth.
Day 5: Verses 37-40
In all the confusion, the Roman tribune had picked up some ideas about Paul that were clearly untrue. Apparently, some had been saying that he was “the Egyptian… who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness” (21:38). Today, there continue to be false assumptions and misunderstandings about Christ and his people. Ask God to help you to represent Him well even when people don’t seem to understand.
Catechism Connection: 102-103
As we follow Jesus, “we pray that Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed, that the kingdom of grace may be advanced and ourselves and others may be brought into it and kept in it” (WSC 102). Since following Jesus is costly, “we pray that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to his will in all things” (WSC 103). He makes us able to follow Him well.
Monthly Memory: Ephesians 2:4-5
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.
Day 1: Verses 1-16
Paul was convinced of how God was leading in his life. He knew that it would be painful. And this was confirmed time and time again on his journey back to Jerusalem. But in the end, everyone agreed: “Let the will of the Lord be done” (21:14). Following Christ will cost everything. Jesus said that those who live for Him will pick up their cross, denying themselves daily, and follow wherever He leads (Matt 16:14). That was true for Paul and it is true for us too. Ask God to give you the wisdom to know where He is leading and the strength to follow Him there.
Day 2: Verses 17-26
There was an ongoing discussion about the role of the Old Testament laws in the lives of believers. The church had concluded that God did not require Gentiles to become Jewish in order to be accepted as Christians. However, the Jewish people were still working through the ways in which Christianity had changed their lives as Jewish people. They were wrestling with questions like: What did it mean that Jesus had fulfilled the Law? Today, there are still questions to which the answers are not immediately clear. Sometimes we have to wrestle for a long time. But thank God that He has given us everything we need for life and godliness (1 Pet 1:3).
Day 3: Verses 27-32
Paul knew that his visit to Jerusalem would lead to hardships. His life was almost immediately at risk at the hands of the same city that had cried out to crucify Jesus. But this time, the Romans put a stop to the violence. God used the soldiers to protect Paul. His work wasn’t done. Trusting in God can be hard, and we don’t always know where He will take us. But we can always trust Him.
Day 4: Verses 33-36
Arguments and complaints against Christ and his people don’t always make sense. The Roman tribune tried to gather the facts: What had Paul done? Why were the people so upset? But “some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another… he could not learn the facts because of the uproar” (21:34). If we are attacked for doing good and representing Jesus, we need to remember that He sees and understands the truth.
Day 5: Verses 37-40
In all the confusion, the Roman tribune had picked up some ideas about Paul that were clearly untrue. Apparently, some had been saying that he was “the Egyptian… who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness” (21:38). Today, there continue to be false assumptions and misunderstandings about Christ and his people. Ask God to help you to represent Him well even when people don’t seem to understand.
Catechism Connection: 102-103
As we follow Jesus, “we pray that Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed, that the kingdom of grace may be advanced and ourselves and others may be brought into it and kept in it” (WSC 102). Since following Jesus is costly, “we pray that God, by his grace, would make us able and willing to know, obey, and submit to his will in all things” (WSC 103). He makes us able to follow Him well.
Monthly Memory: Ephesians 2:4-5
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.
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