Scripture
11And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth. 12As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men. Acts 17:11-12
Observation
In stark contrast to the Jews in Thessalonica who had run Paul and Silas out of town after bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the people of Berea were “more open-minded.” Instead of being closed off they were curious. They asked questions and they studied to see if what Paul and Silas were saying actually matched the Scriptures they were quoting. This was not a monologue, this was a dialogue about faith and Jesus honored the seeking heart of Bereans. As a result of this many Jews believed, including well known Greek women and men!
Application
We seem to be seeing the same open-mindedness to Jesus happening here in America. Prominent and well known men and women are being bold about their faith in Jesus on the national scene. Did you notice how many of the players were talking about God? Jesus was at the Super Bowl in a way I can’t ever remember seeing before. I’m not just talking about Christian artist Lauren Daigle kicking things of or the “He Gets Us” commercial about how each of us can be an “every day Jesus” by loving those around us. I’m talking about the very bold declaration of winners of the Super Bowl making it clear this was a gift from God! FOX News reports, “Tom Rinaldi met with head coach Nick Sirianni shortly after the clock hit triple zeroes, and Sirianni gave credit to the Lord for the victory. "God’s blessed us very much," he said. "He gave us all the talents to be able to get here, so first and foremost, thanks to Him. … Thank God, thank you Jesus." During the trophy presentation, he said to Terry Bradshaw, "All glory to God." Darius Slay also thanked his "Lord and Savior" when speaking with the NFL Network after the game. In speaking with Erin Andrews, Jalen Hurts, the game's MVP, said, "God is good. He's greater than all the highs and the lows." Now, maybe you’re thinking they are just speaking from the high of an Eagles win over the predicted three-peat of the Chiefs, but this faith declaration has been in multiple interviews prior to the Super Bowl. The true test of faith is when we lose right? Though Patrick Mahomes suffered a blistering defeat he made it clear from the beginning, "I'm going to use that stage and that platform win or lose to give glory back to Him". I want to make sure I'm glorifying him while I do it. It's not about winning or losing, it's about going out there and being the best that I can in His name. Jesus Christ is my example. He's my Lord and Savior. Jesus is everything to me at the end of the day. I pray before game. Before every game, I walk the field and I do a prayer at the goalpost. I just thank God for those opportunities and I thank God for letting me be on a stage where I can glorify Him". Just like the Bereans in Paul’s day their’s an openness to talking about spiritual things that I don’t recall ever seeing. This is backed up by recent Barna research that found “Over three in four U.S. teens (77%) say they are at least somewhat motivated (52% very, 25% somewhat) to continue learning about Jesus throughout the rest of their lives. Less than one in five are unmotivated (6% somewhat unmotivated, 10% not at all motivated), while another 7 percent are unsure.” How do we go about witnessing of our faith? Keep it relational. “The majority of teens (especially non-Christians) says someone who listens without judgment (66% Christian, 72% non-Christian) seems like a person who’s comfortable sharing their faith.” We could very well be on the verge of the next Great Awakening for this generation! Pastor Greg Laurie recently wrote, “I haven’t seen anything like this in decades. The last time I felt such cultural stirring was during the Jesus Movement when an entire generation found hope and transformation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That was when I personally came to faith in Christ, and it was the start of a movement that changed countless lives.”
Prayer
Jesus, I love hearing Your name given the glory You deserve instead of being used as a curse word! I love that both teams whether they were the winners or losers were giving You the praise! I can help but get excited at the open-mindedness of this next generation. They want to know more about spiritual things and I pray that this would lead them conversations with those who follow You! I pray that we would not get distracted in this season of openness but would see the need to share our faith in the context of the relationships You’ve put around us. That we would show that in both wins and losses You are real and You love us!
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