Read Part One HERE
A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XIV - III
"Barnabas and I, Paul, thought we knew everything about people only to discover there is always more to learn.... Just the other day people in Lystra were so excited about the healing of the one crippled man in Lystra that they thought we were gods... Of course, we quickly told them that we are only human beings like them... However, these same people then changed their minds about me, Paul, and decided that I should be stoned.... And they did... People are really fickle... But I am very grateful to God that He preserved my life....Barnabas and I then decided to move on so we left for Derbe... However, after having spend some time in Derbe and seeing many come to faith in Christ we thought it may be good to return to Lystra.... We would like to encourage the believers there.... We, especially, wanted to encourage the previously crippled man... For we believe the Holy Spirit may well want to use him as His instrument....He may not seem to be an important person in the eyes of the world... But we believe he is an important person in the eyes of God."...Please read the typed out attachment when you will learn trip of Barnabas' and Paul's to Derbe and from there on back to Lystra....
ATTACHMENT A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XIV - III
Some Jews from Antioch and beyond travelled to Lystra and were able to influence the people there to such an extent that these same people, who not too long ago believed Paul and Barnabas to be gods because of the miraculous healing of the crippled man, were now only too willing to stone the same Paul through whom the crippled man had been healed as you can read in Acts 14:19-20
Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.
Thankfully, Paul was able to get up after the stoning and was even able to leave town for another city the next day. Nevertheless, he did eventually return to Lystra to meet with the believers for, despite all that had happened, there were those, including the previously crippled man, who had come to faith in Christ Jesus, as you can know from Acts 14:21b 22a
...... Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disicples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith....
So you can see then that the Holy Spirit cared about all kinds of people, whether rich or poor, important or unimportant, and He would choose whomever He wished as His instrument to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with others. The Holy Spirit has not changed, and He still cares for anyone of us regardless of our age or our present position in life Moreover, He wants to use anyone of us as His instrument to share God's love with others.
Read Part Eight HERE
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