Acts 13:52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Luke rather wisely did not try to record every sermon preached on this missionary journey, but as a representative sample, he recorded what was said in Antioch of Pisidia. He records the enthusiastic response they got at first, and then the jealous reaction of the Jewish leaders in the town. Those people couldn’t stand the fact that these itinerant preachers were getting a much better response than they ever had, and their jealousy drove them to persecution. People are funny that way! They managed to drive Paul and Barnabas out of the district, but the end result was hardly what they intended, and it is recorded here. I think the use of “disciples” in this verse is deliberate, because it includes both Paul and Barnabas as well as those in Antioch who had committed themselves to Jesus as Lord. Throughout the history of the Church, persecution has almost always had this result. Persecution sharpens our awareness of what is really important, and as a result, we turn our hearts more fully to the Lord. The natural result of that is what it says here: being filled with joy and the Holy Spirit. It has long been said that “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” Areas of the world where persecution is active today have a very low percentage of lukewarm Christians! Just a few years ago an American was delivering relief supplies to persecuted people in South Sudan, and he told a pastor there that believers in America were praying for them. The pastor responded that his flock prayed for the believers in America, because they had no persecution to keep their faith sharp! I think that pastor had real insight from the Holy Spirit. As Jesus famously spoke to the believers in Laodicea, their physical comfort made their faith lukewarm, to the point that they made Jesus nauseous. (Revelation 3:15-17) That is a major danger in countries like the US and Japan, where “creature comforts” abound. Untested faith is generally weak, and that is dangerous. The thing is, even in the “lap of luxury” in physical terms, we are still totally dependent on God. Failure to recognize that can be deadly. God allows persecution, and trials of various sorts, to help us focus on Him and our dependence on Him. The better we recognize that, the more we too will be filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

I am constantly reminded of my past stupidity and pride, which sadly doesn’t make me immune to it again! I have had trials of various sorts, but I don’t think any of them would qualify as persecution for my faith. That occasionally bothers me! However, I take it as a blessing and seek to move forward in faithfulness. I am definitely not a “type A personality,” driven to “succeed” in all I do, but at the same time, ministry in Omura has not exactly been overflowing in accolades and “successes.” My “trial” has been to keep doing what the Lord has shown me to do, until He shows me to do something different. So far, He’s kept me here for 43 years! Omura was at one time a spiritual hotspot, with Lord Sumitada Omura being the first Christian feudal lord in the country, and the Lord has given me the vision of Omura again being the foremost Christian city in the country. That is obviously humanly impossible, but nothing is impossible for God. When that will happen is the Lord’s business, but meanwhile, I’m to be faithfully obedient, praising the Lord for His plans, whether they line up with my wish list or not!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all that You are doing. Physical activity is supposed to be picking up, with scaffolding going up this week, but spiritual activity is more important. Help me be sensitive and obedient at all times, so that Your will may be done on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!