No Fear In Christ

No Fear in Christ

“But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” (Acts 16:19-21)

Paul and Silas were beaten and imprisoned for their radical evangelism. Prior to their imprisonment they shared the message of Christ and a woman by the name of Lydia, a wealthy woman who dealt in purple cloth and a slave girl experienced and received the message of Christ. Lydia was converted to Christianity and the slave girl freed of a spirit that allowed her to predict the future. Unfortunately, Paul and Silas preached a religion that was counter to Roman culture.

The religion Paul and Simon preached was Christ crucified and raised from the dead but Roman custom dictated no other gods other than the ones determined by Roman hierarchy were to be worshiped. It was a cause of dissension and controversy by suggesting there was One more powerful than the deities they worshiped.

Cultural mandates can be prohibitive of religious freedom and countries today exercise strict restrictions when it comes to faith. But when the power of the One true God is clearly demonstrated no mandate can denounce His power.