Acts 11:19-30

Be still: Help us to see your hand at work in this passage. Amen.

Read: Acts 11:19-30

When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. (v23)

Encounter: The context of this verse is believers are fleeing to other areas due to persecution and some stop in Antioch and share the gospel. It goes well and a revival starts. Verse 23 reminds us of the right perspective to hold – God does the work. Every spiritual awakening, encounter, and word spoken that hits home and changes people is only possible by God’s power and his grace. 

I help run Bible studies in prisons and even though I have a responsibility to partner with God to do the work, I keep seeing that real change only happens through God. 

No matter how organised you are, how good your resources are, or how much you want Jesus to change the person sitting opposite you, you can’t change a human heart or save a single soul. The grace of God does that. That reality is stressful if you have trust issues (sometimes that’s me) but is a relief when you remember you’re just a girl (or boy) and actually saving people would be way out of your depth. I think relief is found in handing people over to someone who’s much bigger and more powerful than us and loves them more than we ever could. Maybe there’s a see-saw of responsibility and surrender that we should aim to get in balance.

Apply: Are there people in your life you feel pressure to get saved? On the flip side, are there people in your life whose salvation you don’t really care about at all? Write an honest prayer to God and ask for either the grace to surrender or more love to drive a greater sense of responsibility for the people around you.

Devote: Abba, thank you that real heart work is done through you. Help us to pray for our friends and then entrust them into your capable hands.