"As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?' And I answered, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.' Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand the voice of the on...  Read More

"Brothers and fathers, hear the defense that I now make before you." And when they heard that he was addressing them in the Hebrew language, they became even more quiet. And he said: "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. I perse...  Read More

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”— Ephesians 4:32 (ESV) The temple gates closed behind Paul as the crowd dragged him away. That image invites a question: Can we keep our hearts open when others hurt us? Today's verse grounds kindness and forgiveness in God's grace. Jesus bore our sin at the cross. Through faith in Him, we receive mercy we...  Read More

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”— Psalm 56:3 (ESV) Paul entered the temple hoping to address misunderstanding. His day ended with a beating and arrest. Yet God had not abandoned him. Soldiers arrived, stopped the attack, and preserved his life. Protection came with chains. Trusting God did not make Paul's hardship disappear.Today's verse acknowledges fear and directs it toward God. Perha...  Read More

“If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.”— Proverbs 18:13 (ESV) Paul's accusers saw Trophimus with him in the city and assumed he had brought him into the temple. They supplied missing facts with imagination. An assumption became an accusation, then a riot.Our words can damage friendships and reputations, too. Today's proverb calls us to listen before answering. We may n...  Read More

“For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”— Galatians 5:14 (ESV) Paul knew religious ceremonies could not save anyone. Yet he participated in purification and helped four men with their vow expenses. He wanted to address false reports without changing the gospel. This was liberty bending low for love.We can understand our freedom and still use it care...  Read More

“When we had come to Jerusalem, the brothers received us gladly.”— Acts 21:17 (ESV) Before the rumors, riot, and chains, Paul received a glad welcome in Jerusalem. After a demanding journey, he found believers pleased to see him. Their kindness belongs to the story of God's work. Ministry often begins that simply: someone notices another person and makes room. A church guest may carry grief, lonel...  Read More

"And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember ...  Read More

"for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God. Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted...  Read More

"And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the ...  Read More

"how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ."— Acts 20:20-21 (ESV)"but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back and are dest...  Read More

"Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him. And when they came to him, he said to them: 'You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews.'"— Acts 20:17-19 (ESV)"So, being affectionately ...  Read More