"During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.)The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea. This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul." Acts 11:27-30
The responsiveness to need by Christians is amazing, and a glory to God! The unresponsiveness of Christians to need is a selfish shame. The early church was a picture of the potential of believers to find and do God's Will. They did so by being decisive, generous and compassionate. I note in this passage that each disciple, according to their ability, made a decision of what to give to alleviate the effect of the coming famine on brothers and sisters far away. They did more than talk, they acted. They also, literally, put their money where their mouth was. It is one thing to care, and another to respond. We must do both, and with the right heart and the personal commitment. Three observations to wrap up today's devotional. 1) The sum total of the end result was more important than any individual effort. 2) The timely response unified together was miraculous. 3) The integrity of each disciple making a prayerful decision about how generous to be, was truly exemplary. We have much to learn from the early church about decisiveness, compassion and generosity. Believers across the world are suffering and we are seemingly hamstrung to respond. Praise God for how much Christians glorify God by caring through giving. And Lord, forgive us for any shameful selfishness that hampers God's plan in any way.
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