Be With Me: 7 Minutes of Biblical Wonder

If we could only know what pleases God. Well, wait no further.  the Bible tells us at least one of the things that pleases Him.  It pleases God to reveal Himself. He just likes it. It is probably then an activity that we should avail ourselves thoroughly in.

Paul starts with his efforts being knuckle headed and zealous for the wrong thing.  And then God steps in and does His pleasurable work of revelation. It has to be a revelation.  No human figured out the puzzle of how do you pay for sin, conquer sin, atone to the Father, help people have the ability to resist temptation and fix the problem of death?  God had to REVEAL it.  In a word, that revelation is THE GOSPEL. 

So...when the Galatians get tempted by "another" gospel, (there is no such thing. There is no plan B), Paul is quite frosty.  Any other "gospel" interferes with the pleasure of the revelation of Himself.  Listen 7 minutes and you'll see.  bewithme.us Google podcasts, etc.

Join me in the next book chronologically in the New Testament.  It is Galatians  and boy is Paul MAD.  He sets the stage with a nice little greeting and then lays into them with observations of desertion, distortion, discarding and a "gospel contrary."  With this start, we will begin to unravel what Paul is so Jazzed up about.

When Paul was in the region of Galatia, first they wanted to mistreat, then they wanted to stone him, then they DID stone him, then they left him for dead.  Apparently, this morphed his heart into theirs.  The people from this region were the first to receive an apostolic letter just after Paul visited on the first missionary journey.

May our good Lord give us the days and the discipline to discover the treasures in this book.  Watch as Paul defends and defines what "the Gospel" is. It was good stuff then, and it is good stuff now.  Listen 7 minutes.  Yes, this is a good listen to START with.  Jump on. Enjoy. Subscribe if you like it. bewithme.us

Some ended up BELIEVING. Some DISBELIEVED, which I think means anything but YES. The newly appreciated Holy Spirit is doing His work.  Paul says that just open your eyes and ears, the Holy Spirit has been SAYING stuff to your fathers, through the prophets for CENTURIES.  Now He is doing His job in helping you remember it.

There is some good concluding emphasis on how you are to be a good Christian.  Hear, See and UNDERSTAND with your heart.  Then, Turn and repent.  Then God would heal, just like He has always said.  Paul makes his case to all who visit him while in custody in Rome under some sort of a house arrest for TWO YEARS.  

And so concludes ACTS.  But the Church is not concluded; the actions of God are not concluded.  The Holy Spirit is not concluded.  I congratulate you who have walked this history with me over these 161 episodes.  Please join me today for the ongoing conclusion of Acts.  Then, consider coming back tomorrow as we start SEASON 6 in the book of Galatians. It is the next chronological book following ACTS. Thank you for being a part of this.  May the Lord give us another day!  bewithme.us or [email protected] or on your favorite Podcast directory. 

Good News: Paul finally makes it to Rome. Yet, he needs the support and encouragement of local believers because he is a prisoner and has nothing.  They share their "units of encouragement" with him.

Paul has a guard and a chain and an apparent inability to go to the temple so he calls the Jewish leaders to him. He doesn't revile or attack the people who have accused him.  In fact, they are nowhere to be seen or even heard from.

Paul speak of HIS HOPE which is the relatively UNBELIEVABLE concept of the first resurrection (Jesus) and then those who believe.  Some do believe after hearing and exposition from the OLD TESTAMENT.  You too can fall in love with God from the Old Testament.  Listen 7 minutes and then subscribe for a daily podcast on Stitcher, Spotify, Google, Audible, or Apple Podcasts.

Paul, recently shipwrecked, imprisoned and bereft of stuff finds BROTHERS and SISTERS in the family of God.  These are people he's never met before.  They have something that he needs: COURAGE.  He lacks UNITS OF COURAGE, so to speak.  He needs a recharge of courage.  He gets some of THEIR courage.  That is, Paul "TAKES (their) courage."

How do you get a people like that?  Generally, it is by giving your courage units to them when they need it.  You GIVE courage units sometimes.  You GET courage units sometime.

We GIVE courage now to the people around us who have been most SHIPWRECKED, most ARRESTED and most imprisoned.  Then, when I am most shipwrecked, I can TAKE SOME OF THEIR COURAGE.

Share this podcast with the most shipwrecked person you know.  bewithme.us or apple google Spotify podcast directories.

Imagine going to the grocery store. Everybody you see there has a poisonous viper or two attached to their limbs.  That is, they are getting immediate, proportional and specific judgment for their falling short of holiness. Everybody should be swelling up and dropping dead in aisle 9. "Imminent penalty clean up crew to aisle 9 ASAP."

We are all in big trouble, except for the fact that God is patient toward us, and we don't get what we deserve, at least not right away.  Why? Because He doesn't wish that anyone should perish.  So, He's made a way out of this mess.  He's made away that our penalty, our VIPER, can affix itself on another. Substitutionary Viperness.  We receive it by faith.  By His vipers we are healed.

Listen 7 minutes to a crazy picture of sin, penalty and delayed justice.  Then share, subscribe and support by checking out bewithme.us

Paul and all who sail with him are "brought safely through" as their ship crashes on the island of Malta.  The Lord was true to His word.  He did grant Paul and "all who sail with you" their lives.

There is of course, near treachery as the soldiers wish to preemptively kill the potentially escaping prisoners.  They are prevented by the Centurion.  I am hopeful that just maybe he has pondered what it means to be brought safely through.  I think it should generate a spirit of gratefulness in him and in us too.  

Listen 7 minutes as we consider the implications and the gratefulness of being brought safely through.  

Sometimes God's grace spills over to the people around us; to those who "sail with us." Today we follow Paul as grace pours out to the 276 people who are on his ship. 

Let's think today who we'd humbly ask the Lord to spill grace upon.  Think about the people who sail this life with us. There are relatives of the previous generation; current generation spouse, brothers and sister and cousins; next generation children and maybe grandchildren; people in your church; physical neighbors and people you share interests with; co-workers or even your Facebook friends.  Who'd you ask the Lord to have grace if you got 276 slots to ask?

Sometimes the Lord gives grace to "those who sail with us." At least He did this one time.  Join me to listen and consider for 7 minutes.  Then share, like, promote, and subscribe.  Bewithme.us.

Today we pause to consider the implications of a line from Paul, "...of the God to whole I belong." If this is remotely true, the implications are epically comprehensive. 
I belong to God so I need to be a good steward of my body
I belong to God so I need to master my appetites
I belong to God so I should have a tongue that reflects that
I belong to God so I should love His church and love the people He loves
I belong to God so I could consider the uses of my time treasure and talents
I belong to God so I should be ready to hear from Him in His Word, people and preaching
I belong to God so I should be close to worship, just like Paul.
I belong to God and I could be thunderstruck because He's also given Himself to me, He belongs to me I say in a humble way.

Consider with me the depth of this association.  bewithme.us.

God sends an angel. "Meh".
There is a God to whom I BELONG.  "well, now we are talking!"
I don't mean any disrespect to this particular angel, but in the big scheme of things, I am relatively Unimpressed with this angel.  What I am very very very impressed by is that there is a God out there who considers me as Belonging to Him. He considers me family. I am under His care.  He's one that allows my worship appropriately.  

During this sailing voyage they start to lose things: they lose DIRECTION; and control; and cargo; and ship parts; and eating; and finally they lose HOPE. 

It is then, that Paul urges the sailors to TAKE HEART.  Why? Yes, there's been an angel who stood before me. (Big whoop.) But there is a GOD who has let me BELONG TO HIM.  Subscribe at bewithme.us or write at [email protected]