Luke the physician wrote, “then departed Barnabas to Tarsus, for to seek Saul. And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch”, and in chapter eleven and verse twenty-eight of the book of Acts Luke shared how, “there stood up one of them named Agabus” where we read:
And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.
The verse begins, “And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world:” Luke began with the words, “and there stood up one of them” which means “and a particular one of the prophets sent from Jerusalem stood up” “named Agabus” or “whose name was Agabas which means locust”, “and signified by the Spirit” which means “and gave a sign and indicated through the third person of the triune God, the Holy Spirit, who is coequal and co-eternal with the Father and the Son” “that there should be great dearth” or “that there was going to exist a large, massive and abundant scarcity of harvest or famine” “throughout all the world” which means “over each, every, the whole and everywhere in the arable land, territory, ground and country”. Luke shared how one of the “prophets” named “Agabus” prophesied that a “famine” would occur throughout the “world”.
The verse goes on to say, “which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.” Luke continued with the words, “which came to pass” which means “that happened and occurred” “in the days of Claudius Caesar” or “within the sunrises to sunsets or time period of Claudius, which means lame, Caesar who was the fourth Roman emperor who came to power in 41 A.D. and was poisoned by his wife Agrippina in 54 A.D.”. Luke shared how the “prophesy” of “Agabus” concerning the “famine” occurred during the time of “Claudius Caesar” just as he predicted.
When we think through Luke's words in this verse, we learn about a “prophet” in the church known as “Agabus”, and he gave a prophetic word concerning a world-wide “famine”. This came to pass when “Claudius Caesar” was the Emperor of Rome, and we gain information concerning the “world” conditions during the time of the development of the church. God is able to build His church any time He desires, and He is always open to a relationship with people through His Son Jesus. Though the world conditions may vary, God is able to “save” people from their sins for all eternity when they believe and trust in Jesus. Those who meditate upon the “changing world condition” during this time should be able to understand that “world-wide” conditions do not change God's ability to redeem all who turn to Him.
Next time Luke shares how the disciples were, “determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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