<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Acts 28;17-22<div><br></div><div><b>17. &nbsp;After three days he called the local leaders of the Jews; and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brethren, though I had done nothing against the people or the custom’s of our fathers, yet I wars delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.</b></div><div><b>18. &nbsp;When they had examined me, &nbsp;they wished to set me at libemrty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case.</b></div><div><b>19. &nbsp;But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation.</b></div><div><b>20. &nbsp;For this reason therefore I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.</b></div><div><b>21. &nbsp;And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brethren coming here has reported evil about you.</b></div><div><b>22. &nbsp;But we desire to hear from you what your views are; for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><span>In these verses,&nbsp;Paul addresses&nbsp;the Jewish leaders as ‘Brethren’. &nbsp;(He is not using the term in the same meaning as yesterday, when Believers called ‘brethren,’&nbsp;came to greet Paul.<b>)</b></span></div><div><span><b><br></b></span></div><div><span>The Jews certainly are Paul’s brothers ‘according to the flesh’. &nbsp;They are all biological&nbsp;descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they are together&nbsp;children of Israel, biologically.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>But, they are not yet&nbsp;spiritual brothers, born of the Word and the Spirit, and baptized into Christ. &nbsp;These are the true children of God,&nbsp;Abraham’s true children of the Promise, and the true Jews, us!</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>As has been Paul’s practice throughout his missionary journeys, he always goes first to the Jewish community in ever place he travels. &nbsp;The Jews must know that all the promises of God have come to be fulfilled concerning the long awaited&nbsp;coming Savior, the anointed One, the Christ. &nbsp;They must know he has come into this world as foretold by the prophets and that his name is ‘Jesus of Nazareth’.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Normally, up to this point, many Jews who hear Paul, receive his message gladly, but, when Paul continues to preach that this Savior is for the Gentile world as well, most Jews reject Paul and his message.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Although scripture clearly teaches that the Messiah comes for the Jews and the Gentiles,&nbsp;(see,&nbsp;Deuteronomy 32;43-52). &nbsp;The Jews simply will not hear of it. &nbsp; They have a certain self-righteous pride in their biological&nbsp;ancestry and in their own efforts to keep the law of God, (given through&nbsp;Moses), as well as the laws of men which have been layered upon the true will of God. &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The Jews simply can not conceive of righteousness given&nbsp;as a gift of God, given through faith in Jesus. &nbsp;They honestly believe their righteousness is of their own creation, their own efforts to be holy.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The ultimate straw that breaks the camels back (so to speak) for the Jews,&nbsp;is the idea that Gentiles are acceptable to God without circumcision. &nbsp;That ‘unclean’ Gentiles are full inheritors of the kingdom of God and all the promises of God. (see, Acts 10;13-15)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>In a word, the Jews miss out on the gift of the&nbsp;true righteous of God, because of their foolish pride. &nbsp;They prefer their own imperfect self-righteousness. &nbsp;This is an offense to God.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The gifts of repentance and&nbsp;faith alone save us. &nbsp;(see, Ephesians 2;8&amp;9)&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>What makes Christianity even more of a challenge to embrace, salvation involves being ‘born-anew’ of the water and the Word, it is the receiving of the gift of the Holy Spirit (see, Acts 2;38&amp;39),&nbsp;whereby we by faith&nbsp;walk in newness of life, indwelt by Christ (see, Galatians 2;20)&nbsp;by the Holy Spirit. &nbsp;This new life calls us into new living. &nbsp;We live no longer for ourselves, but to do the will of our Father in heaven.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>This new life is seen in us as we,&nbsp;<i>“By the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body” &nbsp;</i>(Romans 8;1-13) loving one another and even our enemies.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Our new life in Christ and Christ in us, is not burdensome to the new-man, (although our old-man forever resents and resists). &nbsp;I love what Luther teaches in this regard in the Small Catechism:</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, question 4,</span></div><div><span><b>“What does such baptizing with water indicate? </b>(Signify)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Answer: &nbsp;<b>“It indicates </b>(signifies)&nbsp;<b>that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.”</b></span></div><div><span>(Then Luther refers us to Romans 6;4.)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, we praise you for your love of the whole world, (Jew and Gentile alike),&nbsp;the cleansing blood of Jesus, and the gift of your own righteousness through the faith you have given into us! &nbsp;Bless us by faith&nbsp;to walk in newness of life, one in Christ, so that the world may know that you have sent Jesus and have loved us even as you have loved the Son, the <i>“hope of Israel.” &nbsp;&nbsp;</i>In Jesus we pray and praise you, Amen.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Love,&nbsp;</span></div><div><span>Dad/Baba/Eric</span></div><div><span>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</span></div><div><span>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”</span></div><div><br><br><div><a></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Acts 28;17-22
17.  After three days he called the local leaders of the Jews; and when they had gathered, he said to them, “Brethren, though I had done nothing against the people or the custom’s of our fathers, yet I wars delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.18.  When they had examined me,  they wished to set me at libemrty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case.19.  But when the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar—though I had no charge to bring against my nation.20.  For this reason therefore I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.21.  And they said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brethren coming here has reported evil about you.22.  But we desire to hear from you what your views are; for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”
In these verses, Paul addresses the Jewish leaders as ‘Brethren’.  (He is not using the term in the same meaning as yesterday, when Believers called ‘brethren,’ came to greet Paul.)
The Jews certainly are Paul’s brothers ‘according to the flesh’.  They are all biological descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they are together children of Israel, biologically. 
But, they are not yet spiritual brothers, born of the Word and the Spirit, and baptized into Christ.  These are the true children of God, Abraham’s true children of the Promise, and the true Jews, us!
As has been Paul’s practice throughout his missionary journeys, he always goes first to the Jewish community in ever place he travels.  The Jews must know that all the promises of God have come to be fulfilled concerning the long awaited coming Savior, the anointed One, the Christ.  They must know he has come into this world as foretold by the prophets and that his name is ‘Jesus of Nazareth’.
Normally, up to this point, many Jews who hear Paul, receive his message gladly, but, when Paul continues to preach that this Savior is for the Gentile world as well, most Jews reject Paul and his message.
Although scripture clearly teaches that the Messiah comes for the Jews and the Gentiles, (see, Deuteronomy 32;43-52).  The Jews simply will not hear of it.   They have a certain self-righteous pride in their biological ancestry and in their own efforts to keep the law of God, (given through Moses), as well as the laws of men which have been layered upon the true will of God.  
The Jews simply can not conceive of righteousness given as a gift of God, given through faith in Jesus.  They honestly believe their righteousness is of their own creation, their own efforts to be holy.
The ultimate straw that breaks the camels back (so to speak) for the Jews, is the idea that Gentiles are acceptable to God without circumcision.  That ‘unclean’ Gentiles are full inheritors of the kingdom of God and all the promises of God. (see, Acts 10;13-15)
In a word, the Jews miss out on the gift of the true righteous of God, because of their foolish pride.  They prefer their own imperfect self-righteousness.  This is an offense to God.
The gifts of repentance and faith alone save us.  (see, Ephesians 2;8&9) 
What makes Christianity even more of a challenge to embrace, salvation involves being ‘born-anew’ of the water and the Word, it is the receiving of the gift of the Holy Spirit (see, Acts 2;38&39), whereby we by faith walk in newness of life, indwelt by Christ (see, Galatians 2;20) by the Holy Spirit.  This new life calls us into new living.  We live no longer for ourselves, but to do the will of our Father in heaven.
This new life is seen in us as we, “By the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body”  (Romans 8;1-13) loving one another and even our enemies.
Our new life in Christ and Christ in us, is not burdensome to the new-man, (although our old-man forever resents and resists).  I love what Luther teaches in this regard in the Small Catechism:
The Sacrament of Holy Baptism, question 4,“What does such baptizing with water indicate? (Signify)
Answer:  “It indicates (signifies) that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.”(Then Luther refers us to Romans 6;4.)
Prayer:  Merciful Father, we praise you for your love of the whole world, (Jew and Gentile alike), the cleansing blood of Jesus, and the gift of your own righteousness through the faith you have given into us!  Bless us by faith to walk in newness of life, one in Christ, so that the world may know that you have sent Jesus and have loved us even as you have loved the Son, the “hope of Israel.”   In Jesus we pray and praise you, Amen.
Love, Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”

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