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Give the Reason

Give the Reason
Words of Faith 7-25-16
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2016
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
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Acts 21
[37] As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, "May I say something to you?"
"Do you speak Greek?" he replied. [38] "Aren't you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the desert some time ago?"
[39] Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people."
[40] Having received the commander's permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic:

Paul was not surprised in the least that he was arrested. Surely he had prayed about how the Lord might use this arrest as He had used others. Paul struck up a conversation with the Roman commander. The commander was probably not as surprised that Paul spoke Greek but that he spoke perfect Greek with no accent like an educated person of the day. The commander had already assumed that Paul was an Egyptian messianic prophet they were looking for who had led thousands of “sicarii”-- dagger-carriers (translated here as terrorists). It was not a good thing then or now to be mistaken for a terrorist!
At this point, Paul revealed his Tarsus citizenship but not his Roman citizenship. His Roman citizenship was always a trump card that he held for a last use. His Tarsus citizenship was all that was needed to gain Paul the privilege to speak to crowd. When they were all silent, he spoke to them in Aramaic, a conversational form of Hebrew that had developed out of the Babylonian captivity. This was the common language of Jewish people in the time of Jesus.
There are several things we might observe here regarding Paul’s witness. Paul’s greatest concern was to find the right time to share the Gospel. He was not concerned about the arrest. He knew that God was in charge. Paul waited patiently. He did not force things. He did not lay all his cards on the table at once. He was “wise as a serpent and gentle as a dove”. Paul asked permission. We sometimes miss this simple device for opening doors. Paul spoke in the language of the people. Our struggle is often to find ways to communicate with people in a way they will understand without compromising the truth of the Gospel.
As we seek to be a witness for Christ we can practice some of these same principles. If we will listen, God will give us the opening. If we are patient, the opportunity will occur for us to speak in a way that people will understand. If we ask, permission will likely be granted. If we seek to speak in the language of the person we address, we will be understood.
People are very open for some understanding. If we watch and listen, perhaps the Lord will present a simple opportunity to share. We need not deliver a sermon in order to give the reason for the hope that is in us.
How do we do that? Listen for the opportunity. Wait patiently, don’t force things. Ask permission. i.e. “Do you mind if I share with you something that really helped me…?” Speak in the language of that person. Avoid “churchy” or theological language.
As Peter put it, “In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (Peter 3:15).”

Lord, I will be listening. Give me grace and courage to step up and give witness in gentleness. Help me to share the reason for the hope that is in me. In Jesus’ name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2001, 2016
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.