A blameless and holy life

A blameless and holy life

 

Acts 24:1-23

 

Religious leaders, accompanied by lawyer Tertullus, come and accuse Paul of three crimes. The first is that he spread like a plague and shook the Jews all over the world, the second was that he served as the ringleader of the Nazareth faction, and the third was that he defiled the temple. After the Jews' accusation was over, Paul revealed that the accusation was groundless and that the real reason he was accused had to do with the resurrection of the dead. After hearing Paul's argument, the governor cannot make a decision and says that he will handle the case when the commander Lucia comes.

 

‘How you use your abilities’ is more important than ‘what abilities you have’ (2-4). Unlike Paul, who used his abilities (gifts, talents) for the kingdom of God and the gospel, Tertullus used his legal knowledge and eloquence to oppose the kingdom of God. For what and how are we using our capabilities (abilities, gifts, talents)?

 

Paul confidently defends his innocence because he has never committed a crime (11-13). Like Paul, Christians must live a blameless and sanctified life so as not to give the world a reason to criticize them. Let's think about whether there are flaws in us and our community that deserve the world's criticism, and how we can correct them.

 

God, help us use our capabilities (abilities, gifts, talents) for the kingdom of God! And help us to examine whether we and our community have any flaws worthy of criticism from the world and correct them, so that we can live blameless and sanctified lives!

 

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