30th Day of Easter, Monday May 11: Acts 17:1-15

We’re following Paul and Silas now, as they work their way through Macedonia and Greece. The strategy is familiar: preach an interpretation of Hebrew scriptures based on Jesus as their messianic fulfillment. Some buy it, and others object strongly to having their world turned upside down. Which side are you on: eager to adopt novelty, or angry about unnecessary change?

Jason is the local patron in Thessalonica. He houses the evangelists, supports them, and when they are jailed, he bails them out. Similarly, in Beroea, ‘not a few Greek women and men of high standing’ took sides with Paul and Silas. The early movement was not limited to slaves – and Acts remembers warmly the courage it took for the privileged to be allies of the emergent movement.

Another anonymous group of believers spirited Paul away to Athens when opponents from Thessalonica brought the lynch mob to Beroea, and in turn moved Silas and Timothy to the coast after Paul. This was a community of people, making ministry possible, and remaining in place after the itinerants moved on. How do you make ministry possible – at what cost or risk to yourself?