Finish the
Acts 18:1-10
Jeremiah 20:9
“When we are told that Jesus is with us, we remember that his is a presence which causes intense delight. We have seen men with money, who were not happy; we have seen men with honour, who were not happy; we have seen persons in power, with the command of empires, yet they were not happy; but we never saw, and never shall see, the individual who hath Jesus with him, that is not happy. To be near him, to have him with us, is to have our fears relieved, our griefs soothed, our wounds healed, and all our sorrows turned into joy.” —Charles Spurgeon
“One of the many lessons Acts teaches quietly, as it goes along, is that you tend to get the guidance you need when you need it, not before, and not in too much detail. Enough to know that the Lord Jesus has many people in this city, and that he wants you, Paul, to stay here and work with them.” —NT Wright
Acts 18:11-17
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
The
is what marked Paul’s time in Corinth, both theologically and philosophically.
Theologically, the cross reminds us that Christ died
us, and we die
Him.
1 Corinthians 2:3-5
“To unleash the power of God, Paul cultivated a personal presence of weakness. He was vulnerable and plainspoken. He did not try to impress them but adopted a posture of invitation. Of course, doing so resulted in fear and trembling, since he thereby opened himself up to rejection and mistreatment. But he had to take these risks in order to draw upon God’s power.” —Timothy Gombis, Power in Weakness, 58
If you want to experience God’s
power, you must endure Christ’s
pain.
2 Corinthians 4:7-10
Jeremiah 25:3
“Jeremiah did not resolve to stick it out for twenty-three years, no matter what; he got up every morning with the sun. The day was God’s day, not the people’s. He didn’t get up to face rejection; he got up to meet with God. He didn’t rise to put up with another round of mockery, he rose to be with his Lord. That is the secret of his persevering pilgrimage.” —Eugene Peterson, Run with the Horses, 110