Bible Verse of the Day Monday March 14th 2022

Acts 23:10 The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them. He ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks.

Picture a situation where you are relaxed in your favorite recliner, watching your favorite television show. Suddenly, a crashing sound comes from your front door, and a group of armed police comes rushing in. They have come to arrest you because they got word that you were a Christian. The officers ask you if this is true, and you respond that you are, in fact, a Christian.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

From the time spoken of in the above verse (Romans 1:16), Paul was a prisoner, first under Jewish authority until they handed him over to the Romans. He finally died in Roman captivity, although we do not know the form of execution that ended his life. Paul wrote in his letter to the Christians in Ephesus: “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Ephesians 4:1). 

Someone told Dwight Moody once that they had found a great Bible verse for when they were afraid (Psalm 56:3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you). Pastor Moody replied that he had a better one for them (Surely God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid Isaiah 12:2a). The Apostle Paul trod the rocky road he did on his way to the Roman Prison where the Lord took him home, Symbolically, Jesus was in the same city in front of the same council, standing trial for the same crime. You may go through very tough circumstances and feel that you don’t sense God anywhere around you. But know this: as a child of almighty God, He is standing next to you. He may be standing in the shadows, but He is standing next to His children!

I ran across a story just recently. It was just after WWII, and a group of American soldiers found a little cellar where Jews had hidden out. As they entered, they found someone had written these words on one of the walls. “I believe in the sun, even when it does not shine. I believe in love, even when it is not shown, and I believe in God even when I cannot see Him work.” We can be assured that God is right there with us and at work through all the circumstances of our lives. He will never leave or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:8, Hebrews 13:5).