Conflicted
- drbuddyyoung
- 6 hours ago
- 2 min read
the 365 Journey
Outline Week 48
Acts 23:11 The following night the Lord stood by him and said, "Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome."
We all get conflicted. There are times when we face uncertain situations. Everything becomes muddled and unclear. We are unsure of what lies ahead. We want to foster faith, but became paralyzed by our fear. We can't find hope in our perceived hopeless condition.
Paul must have felt this internal conflict as he sat in a Roman barracks (Acts 23:10). He had faithfully shared the gospel and now was held in protective custody (Acts 24:23). His future was shaky, but his faith was sure. He had trusted God in the past and now he would trust Him in the present. It is here in the barracks that God breaks through and counsels Him. Miraculously the Lord manifests Himself to Paul and reassures him that in his conflict, He was to take courage. God's purpose and plan for his life was yet to be fulfilled. Here was the hope he need in a hopeless situation.
Like Paul when conflicted we need to take courage. Our text encourages us that when we are conflicted we should consider
Our Angst when Conflicted
The following night the Lord stood by him Acts 23:10 And when the dissension became violent, the tribune, afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him away from among them by force and bring him into the barracks.
Paul's future was in question. There was great uncertainty of what might happen next. Although conflicted, he was confident that the Lord of the crisis would prevail.
Our Assurance when Conflicted
". . . for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome."
As followers of Christ our angst is arrested by the assurances that we find when the Lord speaks to us through His Scripture. As Paul wrote, "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17).
Our Action when Conflicted
Take courage . . .
We can take courage not because we muster up some kind of magical might, but when we trust what the Lord tells us by His Spirit in His Scripture. Courage when conflicted comes from confidence in His word. When we believe what He says we become bold.
For Further Study
Comments