And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. And when Gallio was the deputy of Achaia, the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment seat, Saying, This fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law. And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you: But if it be a question of words and names, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such matters. And he drave them from the judgment seat. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. And Gallio cared for none of those things.

Acts 18:11-17

While I’m writing, the riots in America continue to get worse. It is almost like all the quarantined people are using up their pent-up energy to resort to destruction and insanity. As America attempts to open the economy, some businesses are opting to close because of vandalism and danger to their employees and customers. So sad.

Much to the Jewish leaders’ dismay, Paul stayed in Corinth for 1 ½ years. To try to hinder the influence of Paul’s preaching, the Jews provoked a violent uprising against Paul (yes, I had to look up what insurrection really meant) and took the matter to Gallio, the governor or proconsul or chief deputy, with the complaint that Paul’s teaching of worship was contrary to Jewish law. Too funny, before Paul can even start to defend himself, Gallio dismisses the case. Gallio was a Roman and he didn’t want to bother with the stress of trying to discern Jewish law. God has an amazing sense of humor and in keeping with His promise in verses 9 and 10, Gallio drove them out of the tribunal. This tribunal was a sort of outdoor court room. The Greeks responded by taking Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue who probably replaced Crispus, and beat him in front of the tribunal for all of Corinth to see. Poor guy. Gallio ignores the Jewish violence. By the way, Sosthenes later received Christ as Paul records in I Corinthians 1:1.

God always keeps His promises. It may not look that way to us especially in the midst of crazy violence and pandemics, but His Hand is always working in our lives. Perhaps not in the way that we can predict, or in the way that we want, but His promises are always fulfilled for our spiritual good and for His glory. Are you trusting God to do the best for your spiritual good? Trust Him! It is quite the adventure!

Written by Kaye Dee Richards. Kaye Dee lives with her husband Colin in Morrison, CO. They have 4 children, Joshua, Amelia, Victoria, and Julia.
To contact Kaye Dee, leave a comment, message us on Facebook or email comments@thebeautifulspirit.org