Kyle Kauffman

Have you ever seen someone before who looks so familiar that you know you’ve seen them before but you can’t quite seem to place where you’ve seen them? A similar reality might happen to us as we read Acts 21-23. On first glance what Paul does in this passage almost appears foolish. This great missionary goes to Jerusalem to offer a gift to the people there knowing that he will be accused, mistreated, and imprisoned by those very people. And yet what we discover is that we have seen this very story played out before in the life of the Savior who Paul has given his life to proclaim. We discover the path Paul walks in Acts 21-23 is familiar because it’s the path Jesus walked to save Paul (and us!). And we find that this is a path that every disciple of Jesus is called to walk down in some way. Though the ways we follow in the footsteps may look different then Paul, we find that every disciple of Jesus is called to follow in his footsteps of love.

Acts 21-23:11

Kyle Kauffman

The Poet C.T. Studd once famously said, “Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.” No one sets out to waste their lives. And yet there are all sorts of ways we can end up wasting our them. We all want to spend our lives well. But sometimes we never even slow down to ask, What does a life well spent look like? In Acts 20, we get Paul’s farewell speech to leaders of the Ephesian church. As we listen in to these passionate last words of Paul to this small group of men, we get a glimpse of what a life spent well looks like. We see what the greatest passion of Paul’s life was and how that got worked out into the ways he lived. And we find direction for what it means to spend our lives well rather than wasting them.

Acts 20