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Word from Scotland
by Sandy Shaw
In Acts 11:26, these disciples of Jesus Christ were always talking about their Saviour and Lord, Jesus Christ, and in Antioch they were first called Christians - 'little anointed ones' - 'little Christs'.
It is a peculiar fact today, that you can bring the name of Jesus Christ even into some Church meetings, and people can become embarrassed and uncomfortable. Not so in Antioch.
Their lives were so different from other people's lives, in so many ways. They were distinctly different - by their love - their joy - their compassion - their openness - the way they could welcome all who came to faith - their eagerness to learn - their generosity - the way their lives were so radically transformed - the way they coped with and how they could handle suffering. These men and women were different from everyone else in Antioch, and it was JESUS Who made them different.
Sharing - speaking - testifying - fellowshipping - feeding upon the teach of Barnabas and Saul for a whole year - and their willingness to receive The Word of God helped made them different too - strong in character - filled with faith - powerful in The Holy Spirit.
Verse 27. Some prophets came down from Jerusalem. A man named Agabus stood up, and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. What kind of man does that? What kind of man would have the courage today to speak forth like that, knowing that if it did not happened he would rightly be labelled as a false prophet.
Agabus had a prophetic ministry. He heard from God, and spoke on behalf of God, with the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon him.
There is also something here of a word of knowledge. Agabus knew something, revealed by God, which no-one else knew at that time. God was saying something vitally important, and God was saying it through The Church. A great need was going to arise throughout the whole Roman world. That covered quite an area at that time.
This happened during the reign of Emperor Claudius.
Verse 29. These disciples of Jesus in Antioch just began to give. There was no appeal for funds, and it was no token offering. Each gave as much as he was able to.
They realised that there was going to a physical problem in Judea - in Jerusalem. As the Holy Spirit revealed the need, these disciples rose to the occasion.
Wherever real needs arise today will the Church of Jesus Christ respond in such a positive and practical manner without lengthy appeals? As an individual disciple of Jesus will you rise up when you become aware of some specific need in the world, in your local community or in the Fellowship where you regularly worship?
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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