Oooops!

Acts 18:17 The crowd then grabbed Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, and beat him right there in the courtroom. But Gallio paid no attention.

Once again, Paul had upset people. He was really good at it, too. All he had to do was make a reasoned explanation of how Jesus came to set us free, and he could make the crowds go wild!

Many believed in Jesus, and many, many resisted with all of their might, and occasionally with violence.

In today’s passage, the Jews were once again upset at Paul and dragged him into court before the Roman officials. This was a miscalculation on their part, however. A man named Gallio was now Governor of Achaia, and he didn’t want to hear any of it. He unceremoniously threw the Jews out of the court, and some local guys grabbed Sosthenes and offered him knuckle bumps and free dental work. And Gallio didn’t give a rip.

Oops! Bit of a reversal of fortune for Sosthenes.

We Christians can become victims in our own minds. “Oh, the devil is after me this week…” Yeah? It sounds like he caught ya!

“The whole world is against me because I’m a Christian…” Quit whining, the whole world doesn’t even know you.

Earlier in Acts 18, God had appeared to Paul in a vision and said, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent! For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.”

That’s a good lesson for us, too. Quit worrying about what the world thinks, or your friends think. Stand up, speak out for Jesus, don’t be silent. There are more Christians around you than you know, and your courage may rub off on them. We are called to win others fromChrist, not worry about a popularity contest. Let God take care of the naysayers and oppressors like Sosthenes, that’s not our job. Our job is to speak out and be counted.

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