RPG Adults
BROTHERLY LOVE
SATURDAY, JANUARY 23
Acts 11:27-30
1 John 3:16-18
“…whoso hath this world’s good,
and seeth his brother have need…”
BROTHERLY LOVE
It is highlighted in the Scriptures that love for the brethren should not just be in words but according to deeds also. Genuine faith is always manifested in actions. The show of love by the brethren in Antioch to the apostles and saints in Jerusalem is an example of what true brotherly love is. They were new Christians, and further showed forth their new life in Christ in this passage.
Hunger coming: Prophets came from Jerusalem and one of them prophesied of a coming great famine. Agabus did not just announce this because of some vision or dream but was signified by the Spirit. The word “signified” (Acts 11:28) basically means to intentionally produce an impression to indicate something. This was from the Spirit of God. The dearth was a scarcity of food or failure of grain harvests such as famine that led to hunger. The prophet did not say it would only be in Jerusalem, but throughout all the world, including Antioch. But knowing that they had resources while the saints in Jerusalem could not attend to their livelihood because of the persecution, they were moved to send relief.
Help sent: It was not a forced collection of relief but a collection according to how the Lord prospered each of them. The word for relief is related to where we get the word deacon which describes arrangement for provision for the brethren in Jerusalem. They knew they would also experience the famine, but they were burdened for the needs of the believers in Jerusalem who had practically nothing. This is the Christian spirit lived out by the disciples in Antioch. Read James 2:14-16.
Do you feel this burden for Christian brethren in third-world countries? Or do you think they are just less fortunate to have been born there? Do you think it is by your own sweat that you have accumulated what you have and you do not want to share? Read your Bible, brethren, and see whether your thinking is according to God’s way!
THOUGHT: Am I loving the brethren in deed and in truth?
PRAYER: Father, give me a compassionate heart for those in need.