10.27.19 - Seeing People as People (Kenny Camacho)
SCRIPTURE: Acts 16 (16:13-34)
After Paul and his first traveling companion, Barnabas, part ways, Paul and Silas continue to travel through modern-day Turkey and Greece. In the city of Philippi, Luke gives a detailed account of how Paul approached the places he visited on his missionary journeys: he would begin by looking for places where people are already open to spiritual conversations, join conversations there, and in all things, his guiding rule was to see all people as people. In Philippi, this comes into direct conflict with a culture that sees people as means to an end. Even when their words and actions lead to their arrest, Paul and Silas do not stop praising God...and they continue to empathize with others in ways that open new and surprising doors for sharing the Jesus story.
DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
When Paul and Silas go to the river to listen and speak to women gathered in prayer, the one woman who responds--Lydia--isn’t the woman they were looking for. But the Bible says “the Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said” and Paul and Silas respond. What lesson can we draw from this when it comes to the ways we approach and engage in conversations with others about faith?
After Paul releases a slave girl from a demon (Acts 16:16-18), her owners petition the court to arrest Paul for destroying their source of income. What does this story show us about the ways we see (or don’t see) one another and how God can work to shift our perspective?
When Paul and Silas are imprisoned (Acts 16:22-34), a miraculous earthquake appears to set them free...but they don’t escape. Why not? What does this story show us about their priorities?
Do you think Paul and Silas might have been ignoring God by not escaping when they had the chance? Have you ever had to choose between a door that God seemed to have miraculously opened...and your obligations to other people in your life? What did you choose? How do you feel about this now?