Danger
Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are
they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they ministers of Christ? I am
talking like a madman – I am a better one: with far greater labors, far more
imprisonments, with countless floggings, and often near death. Five times I
have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was
beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for
a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from
rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles,
danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false
brothers and sisters; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night,
hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked. And, besides other
things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches.
Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I am not indignant?
2 Corinthians 11:22-30
Danger comes in a lot of forms. Paul got it from within and from
without. In today’s world we would say he could have been killed by friendly
fire as much as enemy fire. But, Paul was willing to suffer so that people
could come to know Jesus. Jesus cares for people, and He moves His personal
needs to the background. Can the same be said about us?
God’s love in our heart
gives us a heart for the lost.
Our Daily Bread –