March 10, 2011 - Acts 17:4

“Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.” Acts 17:4.
In Thessalonica, Paul and Silas proclaimed the good news concerning Jesus. The two of them visited the synagogue for three consecutive Sabbaths and reasoned with the Jews and others who had gathered to seek God. As a result of their efforts, Paul and Silas influenced some Jews and God-fearing Greeks to become followers of Jesus. In making this commitment, these Jewish followers of Jesus were disowned and treated as dead by their families and Jewish friends. All of the followers of Jesus, Jew or Greek, women or men, had to withstand persecution from the Romans, as well as from all those who lived around them. Because there was a big price to be paid by these people when they decided to follow Jesus, they must have really been hungry for this new life in Christ.
When I first heard about who Jesus was, I was intrigued and fascinated. I was at a place in my life where I was hungry for a new life. Since then, there has been many times when I have lost that hunger and I have been complacent, sarcastic, or cynical…or maybe combinations of all three.
With the persecution that was going on during the time of Paul and Silas, these early followers of Jesus did not have the “luxury” or the time to grow negative or become complacent. Possibly, it would have taken being in a time of persecution for me to have kept that hunger for Jesus alive. In other places in the world where persecution is occurring, the hunger for Jesus is alive and well. It’s even growing, as it was Paul and Silas.
Questions to consider: How hungry are you for new life? How hungry are you for Jesus? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to follow Jesus and keep that hunger alive?
Prayer: Father, give me a heart that is willing to do whatever it takes to follow You, even if You ask me to do something that I am resistant to doing. Please give me the strength to say, “Not my will be done, but Your will.” Amen.