Acts 16:2–3

Timothy was well thought of by the believers in Lystra and Iconium, so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the area, he arranged for Timothy to be circumcised before they left, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek.

This is a fascinating moment. Paul had just come away from the Council of Jerusalem where the decision had been clearly made that it was unnecessary for Christians to obey all the Jewish law. He, more than anyone, passionately believed that it was not necessary for men to be circumcised and in his letters he was scathing of those who insisted on it. So why did he insist that his new companion, Timothy, should go through a ceremony which he believed was entirely unnecessary? The answer is clearly that he believed that their priority was to preach the gospel and that they must ensure that nothing got in the way of that. If Timothy was to work effectively among Jews then it would be much more helpful if he were circumcised. Timothy’s mother was a Jew and so he already had much in common with Jews, and his circumcision would make it much easier to relate to them.

Paul set out his thinking on this subject in 1 Corinthians 9:20. He wrote: “When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those

who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law.” The particular challenge that Paul was facing may feel very far removed from our own situation, but the principles are the same. There are many people for whom the good news of Jesus is a completely foreign language. That means that we need to go out of our way to make connections. We also need to look at ourselves and see if there is anything that we could change in order to get closer to them. For Paul nothing in the world was more important than bringing other people to Christ – and that should be the same for us too.

Question

What could you do to reach out more effectively to your family, neighbours or work colleagues with the good news of Jesus?

Prayer

Lord God, thank you for Paul’s example. Help me to be humble enough to learn from it. Amen