Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Paul’s Arrest
Dear Friends,
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles (21:27-36):
When the seven days were nearly completed, the Jews from the province of Asia noticed him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd, and laid hands on him, shouting, “Fellow Israelites, help us. This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place, and what is more, he has even brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this sacred place.”
For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him and supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. The whole city was in turmoil with people rushing together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the gates were closed. While they were trying to kill him, a report reached the cohort commander that all Jerusalem was rioting. He immediately took soldiers and centurions and charged down on them. When they saw the commander and the soldiers they stopped beating Paul. The cohort commander came forward, arrested him, and ordered him to be secured with two chains; he tried to find out who he might be and what he had done. Some in the mob shouted one thing, others something else; so, since he was unable to ascertain the truth because of the uproar, he ordered Paul to be brought into the compound. When he reached the steps, he was carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob, for a crowd of people followed and shouted, “Away with him!”
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We had a mostly cloudy day yesterday, but there was no rain. We are supposed to have some sun today.
Below you will find the message of Our Lord, the Son of God, given to Father Melvin. Jesus spoke to him these words,
“At times you can be attacked by your own people, so be careful My brother Melvin and all My brothers and sisters who are members of the Kingdom of God. Look at Saint Paul who was a Jew, yet he was attacked in Jerusalem in the temple and the Jews wanted to kill him. If the soldiers had not come, he would have been killed for sure. So the soldiers saved him for a trial later on. The only thing that Saint Paul did was to try to show the Jews that I, the Savior of the world, have come and every Jew should follow Me. His proof that I am the Son of God was the fact of My resurrection from the dead. Only God could come back to life after being buried for three days, or if I brought a person back to life with My own power, which is the power of God. This is what I did in the case of Lazarus who was buried for three days.
“Come My brothers and sisters, do not doubt that I am the Son of God and your only Savior. I gave My life by dying on the cross so that heaven could be opened to you and that your sins could be taken away. Follow Me and you will enter heaven one day. I bless you all.”
Father Melvin