Gtcotr/ss062622
Acts 18 NKJV
9 Now the Lord spoke to Paul
in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent;
10 “for I am with you, and no
one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.”
11 And he continued in Corinth a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
Two weeks ago I accompanied 30 people from our Church to Greece where we followed the “Steps of Paul” from Philippi to Corinth as recorded in the 16th, 17th, and 18th chapters of the book of Acts. We walked the streets of the cities Paul visited, studied the culture of his day, read the words he spoke to the various people he encountered, and gained a greater understanding of the Word of God. There were so many magnificent experiences, and each person had their favorite individual sites.
One of my favorite places on this trip was the ancient city of Corinth. During our time in Corinth we reviewed the culture and customs of the day and realized what the Apostle Paul, and indeed the members of the Church in Corinth, faced on a daily basis in that particular city. One of our group, Ben Lancaster, added to our understanding from something he had studied by comparing this Gentile city of Corinth in Paul’s day to the city of Las Vegas in our day. Corinth was a sin-filled, vice driven, high-energy, money motivated haven of carnal pleasures. Any and everything sinful could be found and purchased in the city of Corinth.
The
city’s largest temple was dedicated to the mythological Greek goddess Aphrodite,
whom the ancients associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, and passion. It
is said that the temple owned more than 1000 prostitutes who walked the city in
search of those who could be tempted by their promises of pleasure in exchange
for money. Even a traveler new to Corinth could easily recognize one of these
temple prostitutes not only by the way they adorned their bodies with gold
earrings and costly apparel, but also because of two other distinct marks of
identification.
Frist the temple prostitutes wore leather sandals, the soles on which were carved the words, “Follow me”. (The world continues to cry “follow me” or else!) Every step taken in the dusty streets of the city left a trail that could be seen and was meant to excite the impulse driven carnal nature of the flesh. As well there was a second, very evident, identifying feature shared by each of the temple prostitutes which was easily recognizable even at a distance … it was their shaved head.
Certainly, not everyone who had a shaved head was a prostitute, but every prostitute had a shaved head. The citizens of Corinth, of which many became Born-Again Believers and members of the Church there, were very familiar with these visible signs and as such the Church needed some guidance from the Apostle Paul concerning how to help someone who had been a prostitute and had gotten saved and delivered to feel welcomed and accepted into the congregation while integrating into the family of God once freed from such slavery and deception. Paul’s letters to the Corinthian Church encouraged the Believers in Corinth to pay special attention to these things and to make sure they were accepting each new convert without making them feel shame or appear different.
Many people through the centuries since have imagined the Apostle Paul to be a male chauvinistic misogynist when it was actually by the grace and goodness of God that Paul wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to correct divisions and meet the desperate needs of so many unfortunate and abused individuals who came to Christ and found hope of building a new life with their families in Church.
Paul lived in Corinth for 18 months after his first visit and while he was there, he wrote the book of Romans. At the end of our tour of the ancient ruins of the city that day, while we were gathered in front of the “Bema” in the town square, at the very place where Paul was brought before Gallio, the Roman Proconsul of the Province governing Corinth, we opened the book of Romans and imagined together what Paul must have been experiencing when he received the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to write the Book of Romans.
Paul is right smack in the middle of the Las Vegas of the Mediterranean, surrounded by more than 1000 prostitutes who are publicly enticing citizens and visitors to engage in the lust-filled pleasures of the flesh in exchange for money as a sign of worship to a pagan goddess who had captured the minds and the commerce of the whole city.
In the midst of what was perhaps the most sinful city on the face of the earth in any generation, Paul knew the heart of God was to save sinners. Standing where Paul stood, knowing what he had experienced, we read the heart of the Gospel message from the hand of Paul.
·
Romans 3:23 All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
·
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
· Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved
Romans 10
14 How then shall they call
on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of
whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?
15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”
17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
The more we share the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things, the more others will want to call on the name of the Lord for the things they need.
*******
Note: If we have time, I want to share how our Church is sending and supporting people who are preaching the gospel of peace every day.
Let me show you how this is working in our world today.
GTCOTR on campus and online family, because you have sent preachers to bring glad tidings of good things, people have seen, heard, believed, and called on the name of Jesus and have been saved this week.
Locally:
·
Families
fed
o We have about 4000
families in our COTR Food Pantry database who have come to us for help.
o We currently feed about
18 to 20 families each week, which is down about half the number it was prior
to COVID.
·
People
are prayed for at our Food Bank
·
Needs
are met
o Including receiving a
70# box of food, about 20 to 25 pounds of meat, can goods, noodles, spaghetti,
rice, beans, and other types of food each week.
o We give lots and lots
of toys to needy children each year
o Thanksgiving meals
with turkeys and all the trimmings
o And we talk to every
person, find their needs, and do whatever we can to help.
·
Lives
changed and people are born-again and encouraged because of your support and
the hard work of those you enable.
·
It
takes a lot
o It takes money – which
you give
o It takes time – which
you give
o And it takes hard work to shop and load and sort and box and hand out – which is done because we care.
The Philippines:
·
Families
fed
o Including 160 children
·
People
prayed for
o Including 86 Families
·
Needs
met
o Including giving our
hygiene kits
·
Lives
changed
o Bible studies in 20
homes in Mindanao, a Muslim city
o Plans to sponsor
Muslim children for their studies and start a house church
o Because of your support and the hard work of those you enable.
Elburgon:
· Families fed; children blessed; people prayed for; needs met; lives changed … because of your support and the hard work of those you enable by God’s grace.
India:
·
The
same testimony … Time fails to tell of all the ministry that went on this week
from families, children, workers, Christians, and Hindus being blessed alike.
Meals are being given out, lives are being changed, people being saved,
churches planted, ministers taught, and needs are being met every single day.
· You are making a difference and it is because of your support and the diligent work of those we enable and cover in prayer.
Gioto Dumping Site:
·
There
is never enough time each week to just show the pictures I receive or read the
testimonies I receive of all God is doing in just this one place.
·
One
report I received yesterday was concerning one of the orphans someone in our
church sponsors. (There are now 71 children in our sponsorship program) I was
informed that the last little girl from one certain orphan group who live at
the Dump Site, gave her life to Jesus yesterday.
o It is because you support and enable those who would not have any way to go and tell, share, and care for them if you did not help. Thank you so very much.
Time today does not allow me to show you everything you have done this week or all the places around the world you have made impact this week in Indonesia, Russia, across the US, Mexico, the Ukraine, and so many other nations. However, I do have one more praise report. Yesterday Bishop Steve and Nancy Kibiri signed the papers on the home we are purchasing. This is because you send preachers to proclaim the Good News to those in need.
I
want to thank you on behalf of Almighty God and all of those we have reached
out to and blessed with food and clothing, water and shelter, care and prayer,
love, and Jesus this week. You have done well …
