Sunday, January 11, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: Acts 18
Key Verse
Acts 18:15 — “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.”
Devotional Thought
What does this passage ask of us today? Perhaps it asks us to trust that God is quietly at work in the ordinary places—in tents, in synagogues, in courtrooms, and in the hearts of those we least expect. Paul arrives in Corinth, a bustling, morally confused city not unlike our own, and simply goes to work. He makes tents with Aquila and Priscilla, reasons in the synagogue every Sabbath, and waits. He does not wait for perfect conditions. He waits on God while doing the next faithful thing.
Then the Lord speaks to him in the night: “Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee.” How Paul must have needed those words. He had just shaken his garments at the Jews who blasphemed, declaring he would turn to the Gentiles. Yet God had “much people in this city”—people Paul could not yet see. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed with all his house. Many Corinthians heard, believed, and were baptized. For a year and six months, Paul taught among them, and the church took root.
Notice too the quieter servants. Aquila and Priscilla, tentmakers like Paul, took the eloquent Apollos aside and “expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.” They did not preach from a platform; they invited him into their home. A married couple, unnamed in the grand histories of the church, sharpened one of its finest teachers. In January, when the year’s resolutions may already be flagging, this is a gentle word: faithfulness is often hidden. God builds His kingdom through ordinary work, patient hospitality, and quiet correction.
And when the Jews dragged Paul before Gallio, the deputy refused to judge. The mob beat Sosthenes instead, and Gallio “cared for none of those things.” Earthly authorities will often shrug at injustice. But the Lord had already promised Paul that no man would set on him to hurt him. God’s protection does not depend on Rome’s attention. He is with His people whether the courtroom cares or not.
So today, take heart. You may feel pressed in the spirit, as Paul was. You may be working with your hands, waiting for open doors. Speak anyway. Hold not thy peace. The Lord has much people in your city too—people you have not yet met, whose hearts He is already preparing.
Reflection
- Where in your daily work or routine might God be asking you to “speak and hold not thy peace,” even when results are not yet visible?
- Like Aquila and Priscilla, who around you needs patient, private instruction in “the way of God more perfectly”—and are you willing to take them aside?
Prayer
Lord, we thank You that You spoke to Paul in the night and promised Your presence. Speak to us also, we pray, when fear quiets our witness and when the world shrugs at what is right. Give us the faithfulness of Aquila and Priscilla, the courage of Paul, and the teachable spirit of Apollos. Help us to labor quietly in the places You have set us, trusting that You have much people in this city. Strengthen us to speak Your truth with boldness, to welcome the stranger, and to rest in the promise that no man shall set on us to hurt us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.