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“"The Price to be a Servant of Christ"”

Thoughts for Today:

In any normal situation, Paul would not boast about his credentials and service record. However, this was an extraordinary circumstance and as a result we gain a very significant insight into the degree of punishment Paul received as a minister of the Gospel of Christ. Let's take a look at some of these specifically:

Floggings. Paul basically is saying he had been flogged so many times he couldn't keep track, but at the hands of the Jews, he was flogged five times. This Jewish form of punishment (prescribed in Deuteronomy 25:1-3), said that under no circumstance was anyone to be flogged more than forty times. So just in case they made a mistake in counting, the terminology used was "forty lashes minus one."

Beaten with rods three times. (Acts 16:22: "The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods.") The Book of Acts contains only one account of Paul being beaten with rods. Clearly, it does not provide us with every detail and circumstance regarding what Paul endured throughout his life. This type of beating was administered to the feet, which often resulted in broken bones. It was a Roman form of punishment and therefore should not have happened to Paul because he was a Roman citizen (Acts 22:25-26).

Shipwrecked three times. Only one of Paul's shipwrecks is recorded in the Book of Acts (Acts 27:14-44). However, just as with all the other persecutions Paul mentions in this chapter, he endured many more.

Even at this point in his ministry, Paul had suffered greatly. He had been beaten, stoned, imprisoned, shipwrecked and exposed to death many times. It is truly humbling for me to consider the great price Paul paid to share the Gospel.

Questions to Ponder:

Becoming a servant of Christ can be a costly endeavor. Are you willing to pay the price? At what point would you back away? How much pain could you endure? The Lord provides His ministers of the Gospel with the strength, endurance and fortitude to do His will. Will you rely upon Him? We are weak, yet He is strong. We have limitations. He is infinite.

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About the author

Pocket Devotions are written by Mike Brooks. A retired businessman, he is Moderator of South Shores church, leads the Deacon Board, serves on the finance committee, and he teaches a Men's Bible study and the Men's Ministry. Mike has a passion for evangelical missions. He is the husband of Sherry; the father of Ryan, Natalie, Krissy, Rebecca, and Amanda; the father-in-law of Ariel; and the grandfather of Conner and Christian.