"..."These who have turned the world upside down have come here too."" Acts 17:6
The ministry and message of Easter does not end after Resurrection Sunday. Today, for example, is Resurrection Wednesday, the day the Lord made for His purposes and glory. He wants to redeem each day and every moment of time. We have hardly even begun to accomplish all He has planned for us. I will love Him day by day until He calls me home. Read this compelling report on the early disciple’s loves and deaths. May it inspire you to live for Him as if every moment was the moment He wanted it to be. Amen!!
Alive for Him, or die for Him, Pastor Fred
Peter: crucified upside down. James: beheaded. John: natural causes. Andrew: crucified on X-shaped cross. Philip: crucified. Bartholomew: skinned alive, beheaded. Matthew: stabbed to death. Thomas: speared to death. James: stoned, crucified, beaten to death. Jude: crucified. Simon: crucified. Matthias (replacement for Judas Iscariot): stoned and beheaded.
Paul: beheaded.
Jesus warned His original disciples before He was killed, "If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you" John 15:20b. And when their faith was finally tested, when Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, "...they all forsook Him and fled" Mark 14:50.
What happened to turn a group of cowards into a core of courageous couriers of the Gospel who turned the world upside down and were willing to die for their beliefs? One thing: they witnessed the Resurrection. This event had a transforming effect on the disciples, transforming them into apostles--"sent ones." When they saw the risen Christ 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, they were no longer afraid.
You may not be called to die for Christ, but you are called to live for Him--the resurrected Lord.
The Christian church has the resurrection written all over it.
F. G. Robinson
Posts
The image of each of their deaths brings tears to my eyes, and I’m in awe by their devotion.
ReplyDeleteI’ve lately been pondering the call of God on my own life. Though I’ve been begging Him for the revelation of specifics, I find sweet comfort in the simplicity of F.G. Robinson’s final sentiments: “…you are called to live for Him…” How gentle God is when conveying His answers to our prayers! We (or at least I do) get so busy being busy that we move dangerously far away from the one basic foundational truth of why we’re here – to serve Him, to live for Him, to love Him. Thank You, Father, for your patience and forgiveness as I whine and complain about not knowing everything, and thank You Pastor Fred for being His vessel.