Acts 17:1-9: a reflection

1Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2Paul, as was his custom, went in to them; and for three Sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4Some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas: of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and not a few of the chief women. 5But the unpersuaded Jews took along some wicked men from the marketplace and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar. Assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them out to the people. 6When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers before the rulers of the city, crying, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!” 8The multitude and the rulers of the city were troubled when they heard these things. 9When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

When Paul preaches the gospel in Thessalonica and many believe, the opposition levels an accusation that unwittingly testifies to the gospel's power: These who have turned the world upside down have come here also. The message of Christ, proclaimed and received, was transforming lives and communities so thoroughly that its opponents described it as turning the world upside down. The gospel was no small or tame thing; it was upending the old order, changing people, overturning the way things had been. Its impact was such that even its enemies acknowledged, in their hostility, its world-changing power.

Notice what the gospel was said to be doing: turning the world upside down. The accusation was meant as a charge against Paul and those who received his message; but it unwittingly testified to the gospel's power. The message of Christ was not a tame addition to people's lives; it was transforming and upending, changing people so thoroughly that it seemed to turn the world upside down. The gospel overturns the old order, transforms lives, challenges the way things have been; its impact is world-changing. Even the opponents' hostile description bore witness to how powerfully the gospel was at work, transforming and upending wherever it was received. The gospel is a world-changing power, not a tame thing.

That is worth taking to heart, for the gospel is a world-changing power, and we should not expect it to be tame. We can treat the gospel as a mild, comfortable addition to our lives, expecting it to change little; but the gospel that turned the world upside down in Thessalonica is a transforming, upending power, meant to change us and challenge the old order. To receive the gospel is to be met by a world-changing power, not a tame thing. Do not treat the gospel as a mild, comfortable thing that changes little; it is a world-changing power, meant to transform and upend, as it turned the world upside down in Thessalonica. Let the gospel do its transforming, upending work in you, not treating it as a tame or comfortable thing, as those who received it were said to have turned the world upside down; for the gospel is a world-changing power, and to receive it is to be met by something that transforms and overturns, not a mild addition that leaves us unchanged.

Lord, when Paul preaches the gospel in Thessalonica and many believe, the opposition levels an accusation that unwittingly testifies to the gospel's power: these who have turned the world upside down have come here also. The message of Christ, proclaimed and received, was transforming lives and communities so thoroughly that its opponents described it as turning the world upside down. The gospel was no small or tame thing; it was upending the old order, changing people. Its impact was such that even its enemies acknowledged its world-changing power. Show me what the gospel was said to be doing: turning the world upside down. The accusation was meant as a charge; but it unwittingly testified to the gospel's power. The message of Christ was not a tame addition to people's lives; it was transforming and upending, changing people so thoroughly that it seemed to turn the world upside down. The gospel overturns the old order, transforms lives, challenges the way things have been. Even the opponents' hostile description bore witness to how powerfully the gospel was at work. Take that to my heart, for the gospel is a world-changing power, and I should not expect it to be tame. I can treat the gospel as a mild, comfortable addition to my life, expecting it to change little; but the gospel that turned the world upside down in Thessalonica is a transforming, upending power. Keep me from treating the gospel as a mild, comfortable thing that changes little; help me let it do its transforming work in me, Lord, not treating it as tame, as those who received it were said to have turned the world upside down.