The Debate - Pt. 2: The Submission of the Missionaries ( Testimony vs. Talking)

Baptist Daily Devotional
12 minutes ago
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Rev Osei Kwabena Nkrahene | August 23 2025 | Acts 15:6-21

KEY VERSE:

“And all the assembly fell silent, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul as they related what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.” Acts 15:12 (ESV)

MESSAGE:

As the debate over Gentile inclusion in the early church intensified, the missionaries—Barnabas and Paul—offered their submission. Their report wasn’t a theological treatise or a philosophical argument. It was a testimony. And it had a profound effect: the assembly fell silent.

They stopped arguing. They stopped defending theories. They simply listened.

The power of their submission lay not in its length or eloquence, but in its substance. They spoke of what God had done—signs and wonders among the Gentiles. Their testimony was living proof that the grace of God transcends ethnic, racial, and cultural boundaries. Barnabas and Paul, themselves Jews, had embraced their

Christian identity and become vessels of divine outreach beyond traditional limits.

Their submission was effective because it rested on the power of God, not human reasoning. When we testify to God’s saving and transforming work in our lives—through His grace and the Holy Spirit—we present evidence that no skeptic can easily dismiss. The weight of divine activity silences opposition and opens hearts to the Gospel.

FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE:

Is your life a living witness to the power of God at work in ordinary people? Does your testimony quiet the arguments of those who doubt the Christian faith? Let God work in you so powerfully that, like Barnabas and Paul, your life compels others to stop, listen, and believe.

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus Christ, help me remain faithful to my calling. Let my life be a testimony so compelling that no argument can stand against it. May Your Church speak with such clarity and power that the world cannot help but listen—because they see what You have done and are doing through us. For Your Name’s sake. Amen.

THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING.

SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!

The 365 DAILY BIBLE READING Day 235: 2 Chronicles 31–34 — Revival under Hezekiah and Josiah

DAILY word study: LISTEN The word “listened” comes from the Greek ēkouon (from akouō), meaning “to hear with attention, to understand, to give audience.” It is more than hearing sound—it is paying close attention with the heart.

In Acts 15:12, the whole assembly fell silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul. Their listening was an act of respect and recognition. Arguments stopped because God’s work among the Gentiles demanded careful attention. Listening created space for testimony to shape the church’s decision.

Reflect on This: Do I only hear God’s Word, or do I listen with attention and obedience? Who around me needs my full, humble listening today?