Tag: shaun

by Shaun Caudill

It only takes one person who is obedient and has faith in Christ to change things. In Acts 27, things were bleak. Paul was traveling as a prisoner on a ship headed to Italy. The centurion, the owner of the ship and the captain had set sail against Paul’s dire warnings that everything and everyone might be lost in the storms at sea. The storm was horrendous and it seemed that all might be lost, but then Paul spoke. Starting in verse 21, Paul states that he had heard from an angel of the Lord that no one would perish, but the ship would be lost. Paul was not commanded by God to share this message with the whole ship, but he did so in order to do two things: 1) proclaim his God as the one true God and 2) to give comfort to those on the ship. When the time was coming closer for the ship to crash, Paul encouraged everyone to eat because they would need the strength, and that is exactly what the group did. They ate and were encouraged. There are times when we will be in bleak circumstances and we will encounter people who have no hope. As Christians, what are we to do? We should not give people false hope that sounds good in the beginning, but later reveals itself to be empty. We should not lie, telling others God has told us something, if in fact He has not. We should, however, be quick to give people the truth of the Bible and speak that which gives hope. Because Paul spoke up in that dark moment, the entire crew’s attitude changed, and they began to live in hope. It only takes one person. Will you choose to be that person?

by Shaun Caudill

There are times when we are so fearful of dying that we forget to live! Life is such a beautiful gift, but we must remember that a long life is not the goal in and of itself–but a life well-lived by faith to the glory of God. The Bible also tells us that there are some things worth dying for in order to find life. Jesus’ own words in Luke confirm this, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Paul was prepared to die, but that doesn’t mean he was recklessly seeking after danger. There were times when his mission meant he wisely escaped threats to his life, just like it is wise for us to avoid unnecessary danger during this pandemic. After having received salvation on the road to Damascus by placing faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul had been given a ministry to proclaim this same message to others. For years, he had been faithful in this endeavor and then in Acts 21, as Paul and those accompanying him arrived in Caesarea, a prophet came to reveal to him that if he went to Jerusalem, he would be bound and turned over to the Gentiles. It would seem from this warning that suffering and possibly death was implied. You would expect for Paul to receive the warning with gratitude and make plans to travel away from the danger, but that is not what Paul did. God had already revealed to Paul (Acts 20) that in Jerusalem he would experience affliction and possibly worse, yet Paul stated, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” Paul was confident in what the Lord had revealed to him and wanted nothing more than to please God.

The Bible makes this clear when Paul states, “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Phil 1:21) Are you living a life that is pleasing to the Lord in all areas? Do you need to stop today and repent of attitudes, actions, or thoughts that are in rebellion to God? Are there things God has called you to be obedient about but you have resisted out of fear? Is there someone that God has placed on your heart to share the Gospel with, but you have been too scared? The Bible encourages us to seek after God and be about living a life that is pleasing to Him. Remember, it’s never too late to start living!

by Shaun Caudill

As important as it is to know what you believe, it is just as important to know why you believe it. Asking others the question, “Why do you believe what you believe?” is part of the ministry that God has given us to help others recognize their need for Christ.

In Acts 17, we see Paul reasoning with his audience. Twice in this chapter, the Bible uses the word “reason.” When we reason with others, we discuss two opposing views and respectfully show how one is a better foundation than the other to build one’s life upon. Acts 17:17 says “So he reasoned…with [them].” It is not a verbal argument to prove one person is better or superior than another but a discussion of which idea is more truthful. This is what Paul does as he talks with others in this chapter. In fact, when Paul is in Athens, he is so moved in his spirit by the idol worship that he begins to preach. He finds ways to reason with others about why Christ is the true God. The Bible shows us that Paul used what was familiar to his audience, as well as Scripture, to help people see if their worldview lined up with God’s truth. Notice that some scoff and walk away, but others think about what Paul states. They admit that it makes sense and want to know more. When you talk with others, do you reason with them, or do you argue with them? Can you let someone make up their own mind, or are you frustrated when people don’t believe what you want them to?

In the same way that Jesus used parables to get people to think, Paul reasoned with others to make them come face to face with their own beliefs so as to create a crisis of decision. I’ve come to realize that I have not walked in other people’s shoes and sometimes don’t understand the reason a person holds a particular belief. It could be because of a personal hurt or painful situation they have experienced. If I argue and make them feel stupid, I may being doing greater damage–even if I am right. If I share God’s truth and then ask questions, causing them to think about what they believe and why, they will have to wrestle between themselves and the Holy Spirit to come to the truth. Would you ask God to help you become a minister of helping people ask “Why?”

by Shaun Caudill

Peter was in an impossible situation. In Acts 12, the Bible tells us that Herod had killed James, and there were particular Jews who had loved that decision. Because of their accolades, Herod decided to wreak more havoc on the Christians. So, he arrested Peter and threw him in prison. Peter now found himself surrounded by four squads of soldiers and chained, with two chains, in between two soldiers. In the near future, Herod planned to present Peter to the masses and let them decide what they wanted to do with him (spoiler: the crowds would have demanded his death). What could Peter do? What could the church do? They did not have the strength to stand against such overwhelming odds. In verse five, we have our answer. The church began to pray. They began praying for Peter, but not just praying…praying earnestly.

The word earnest means to have a passionate desire in pursuit of an object. The church was passionate in seeing God work on Peter’s behalf because they knew that God was their only hope. The Bible does not say exactly what they prayed for on Peter’s behalf. They might have been praying he be freed from prison, or they could have been praying that he preach the Gospel boldly. Maybe they were praying for strength for him to be strong and not deny Jesus as he was surely going to be executed, but whatever they were praying for, they were praying earnestly to God. And what happened next? Peter was supernaturally freed from prison! It was such a miraculous event that even when he showed up to the house where they were still praying for him, they didn’t even believe it was him

There are times when we pray that we seemingly don’t see as dramatic results as what happened to Peter with our prayers, but the Bible reveals the truth to us. Prayers may not always have as dramatic results as we would like, but they are always powerful and effective if we come to God with earnest prayer. James 5:16b says, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Prayer is not an obligation we are required to do. It is a conversation of intimacy that we are privileged to engage with our God who has redeemed us. We must remember that God will not listen to our prayers if we pray yet are still nurturing sin in our heart (Psalms 66:18). Prayer must be repentant (Psalms 139:23-24) but also earnest. What would happen if our prayers individually and together with Christian brothers and sisters were earnest about the current worldwide crisis? What if we prayed for God to start working to reconcile Democrats and Republicans to sincerely work together for what is best for our country? What if we had earnest prayer for countries that were slaughtering and persecuting our brothers and sisters in Christ? Would it make a difference? You might say, “Shaun, all that sounds good, but somethings are just the way they are. It won’t change. It’s not possible.” Matthew 19:26 says, “…’With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” Take a moment to meditate on this truth and think about Peter showing up at the front door of the Christians who were praying earnestly for him. Do you believe that your prayers truly have impact? That they are powerful and actually affect the world around us as God’s Word states? What does your prayer life reveal about praying earnestly, and what will you do about it?  

by Shaun Caudill

I was having a discussion with someone when they bluntly told me that Christians needed to stop trying to convert people of other religions to Christianity, especially the Jews. They emphatically implied that if people have sincere religious beliefs then they were on their way to heaven. How does the Bible answer this statement?

In Acts chapter 10, the Bible introduces us to Cornelius. Cornelius is a God-fearer, which means he is a follower of the Jewish faith even though he is not a Jew by birth. He has made a choice to leave whatever Gentile beliefs he has and to follow God through the Jewish faith. And how does he practice his faith? He faithfully prays, gives alms, and fears God. Not only that, but the Bible even states that God communicates a vision of an angel giving him a message. By most standards, we would state that Cornelius was Christian…and we would be wrong. Even though Cornelius was seeking after God, he did not have the complete revelation. The vision of the angel told him that he needed to hear a message from the apostle Peter. Why? We must remember that giving of our money to causes, praying faithfully, or having a fear of God is not what saves us from our sins. In addition, I can have a vision from God, but even that doesn’t give me salvation. In fact, there are several stories from current missionaries that reveal that people are having visions of Jesus Christ, but in all those testimonies the people having the vision are led to someone who shares the Gospel message with them in order to receive Christ for salvation. This is exactly what happens here in Acts 10. When Cornelius and his household hear Peter state, ‘To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him (Jesus) receives forgiveness of sins through his name’ (Acts 10:43), the Holy Spirit comes, and then they are baptized in the name of Jesus. It is faith in Jesus and His death, burial, and resurrection that saves us. There are times when we will encounter others who tell us they pray, give generously, and even go to church, but we don’t need to make assumptions. Let’s find ways to talk with others about Christ because regardless how we think or feel about a person’s religious conviction, the Bible reminds us in Acts 4:12, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

by Shaun Caudill

God’s display of power during Pentecost got the Jews’ attention. Many of the Jews had traveled from distant lands to come and celebrate this feast when something shocking took place. A bunch of uneducated men started to speak in every language for every Jew represented there. How was this possible? Though some tried to explain it away as just a drunken episode they were having, Peter proclaimed to them that this was the power of God! He began preaching to them about who Jesus was and how the Jewish people as a whole had crucified and killed Him. Peter then stated that God had raised Jesus from the dead, confirming that Jesus was the Lord and Messiah the Scriptures had foretold. Many were convicted of their sins and became followers of the risen Jesus right then and there. In fact, the Bible tells us that 3,000 Jews became Christians that day!

Was the power of salvation only working through the apostles though? Absolutely not! It was amazing that Peter and the other apostles could speak and do such powerful works, however, we know from the Scriptures that they were just common men with no special education or training beforehand. During their time with Jesus, they had learned over and over that it was through faith in Him that these powerful works were done. Even at times when they seemed to fail, Jesus would rebuke or encourage them that it was all about faith in who He was and what He had taught them.

In Acts 1, Jesus told the apostles they would receive power from the Holy Spirit. This power became evident as they all spoke to the crowd as Peter preached. So why would it be wrong for us to think that Christians only came to faith through the power displayed through the apostles? The end of Acts 2 gives us some insight. It states that the new Christians “. . . devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” New Christians were living out their new faith and were showing great love and compassion to one another by providing for needs and taking care of one another. Do you know what happened as these “common Christians” lived out their faith? The Bible tells us that “the Lord added daily to the number of those being saved.” Outsiders watched how Christians loved and took care of one another as they were introduced to the gospel and were convicted by the Holy Spirit. That is the truth we each need to grasp a hold of. It is God who saves, not any person. It is not the talented or special that God uses but those who join with God in His mission and live out their faith in Christ to this lost world. It is not our power that changes lives, but His power living through us. Are you trusting Christ and living out your faith in Him to see others come to Christ? He wants to use even you!