Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1941-06-12

-Galauan8 5.Zo.
"An people" are included in Gods
plan of redemption. When the angel
Of the Lord announced the birth Of
Christ to the shepherds he said.
Fear not: for behold / bring you
good tidings of great joy. which shall
be to all people" duke 2:10). The
invitation is: LET him that Is
athirst come. And whosOever will,
let him take the water Of life freely"
(Rev. 22:1O. The disciples natural
ly and properly first preached the
gospel to the Jews. but the time
came when God was ready to send
them to the Gentiles, that they too
might hear the message Of redemp-
ton. That historic turning point is
found in our lesson. AS Paul and his
fellow workers proceeded from
Paphos on the isle Of Cyprus to the
mainland with their message Of
Christ's redemption, they met both
I. Popularity and Persecution
facts 1894 45).
In the synagogue of Antioch Of
Pisidia they were invited to preach,
and Paul was blessed in the presen-
tation of a powerful gospel message.
Read it in Acts 10: 16-41. 1t met with
such aresponse that the people ''be-
sought that these words might be
preached to them the next Sabbath"
". AZ. So great was the popularity
of PauPs message that the whole
city came the next Sabbath ''to hear
the Word of God" What a won
derful sight that must have been
and how the disciples must have re-
ioiced as they preached the Word.
But wait-there's a worm in that
red apple of popularity, and its
name is jealousy ". 45). 1t caused
the Jews to blaspheme as they con-
tradicted PauPs preaching. Jeal-
ousy always makes fool out of the
one who yields to it. Yet this green
eyed monster is permitted to go
right on destroying, hindering, hurt
ing. In the church and the home,
as well as in the social order, we
let jealousy come in and wreck
friendship, break down regulations,
yes, even block the work of God.
May Someone learn the lesson of our.
text and turn away from that evil
way-right now!
ii. Rejection and Acceptance
(Acts 13:46-52).
All through the record Of Scripture
and the history of man to this day
we find some rejecting the grace of
God-others accepting. Those who
reject only prove themselves ''un-
worthy of eternal life" ". 49, and
are themselves rejected of God.
The disciples now turn from the
Jews to minister to the Gentiles,
even as had been prophesied Elsa.
1875, 1875. Luke 2:31, 32). They
accepted the word of truth and
were glad. and glorifed the word
Of God" Rejection brought eternal
death. but acceptance brought eter-
nal life and joy.
They could not keep the good news
to themselves, but had to spread it
abroad. A lighted candle begins at
once to shine. A redeemed soul
longs to bring others to Christ.
Persecution continued; in fact, was
intensified to the point of physical
election of the disciples. Were they
downhearted? No! for the joy of
the Lord filed their Holy Spirit-filled
lives. Being filed with the Spirit
means being filed with joy, even in
the midst of persecution.
1t really works! Have you given
God a chance to prove it in your
life?
III. Neither Jew nor Greek Gal.
1926, I'D.
This selection from the letter
which Paul wrote some ten years
later to the people Of the area in
which he had now preached reveals
the same truth, that faith in Christ
is primary-and essential-in Chris
tan experience.
In this early life we recognize
distinctions based on nationality,
sex, social position, and many other
grounds. While these are overem-
phasized by most people, they are
legitimate and necessary distinc-
tons. But in Christ-ahl there the
differences disappear. We are all
one in Him ". 28). This is a lesson
which we have not learned even yet,
but our slowness Of heart and mind
does not alter Gods truth.
The church is talking much these
days about ecumenicity, which in
plain words means the unity Of the
people of the various branches of the
church all over the world. All too
often, however, the proposed basis
Of unity rests on surrender or a
partial surrender of what Paul de-
clares to be the essential (the sine
qua non If you wish. which is faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ No other
unity but that which centers in Him,
and a personal relationship to Him,
Is sufficient either for this life or for
the life to come.
Wonders Of God