"Even Me?"

 

“Even Me?”

 

When our Men’s Bible Study Fellowship resumed after the summer break we began with the final phase of Acts 1:8 in which Jesus challenged His followers to be His witnesses “…to the ends of the earth.” This effort began in Chapter 13 when the leaders of the Antioch church obeyed the Holy Spirit’s voice and commissioned Barnabas and Saul (soon to be known as Paul) “…to the work to which I (i.e. the Spirit) have called them.” (Acts 13:2). Three men were part of the “sending team”, none of whom are mentioned elsewhere in Scripture: Simeon, Lucius and Manaen. (Some Bible teachers have linked Lucius to the Lucius mentioned in Romans 16:21 but this is conjectural.)  This is another case where “less than prominent” people were used of God to accomplish His purposes (see 1 Corinthians 1:26-29).

One of our group members became intrigued by Manaen “…who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch….” (Acts 13:1) so he did some research. Information is sketchy but it appears he was a foster brother of Herod Antipas (“the tetrarch”), a son of Herod the Great. The Herods were powerful and ruthless rulers (Herod the Great ordered the killing of young boys when he heard of one who was born “…king of the Jews….” from the Magi {Matthew 2:1-12}; Herod Antipas executed John the Baptist {Mark 6:14-29}; “the Great’s” grandson Herod Agrippa had the Apostle James beheaded {Acts 12:1-2}). So Manaen grew up in a political family where the end justified the means. But somehow through God’s providence he became a follower of Christ and respected leader in one of the most influential churches of the first century. Its cosmopolitan make-up is show by the brief backgrounds of the prophets and teachers who were Jews and Gentiles from different areas.

What can we learn from the little we know about this man of God? First, God can reach anyone from any background or in any location (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:11). Then too He calls those who would be looked down upon by the “elite of the world” (reread 1 Corinthians 1:26-29). And He uses people from diverse backgrounds to reach people with His message (1 Corinthians 9:19-23).

In my humanness I sometimes wish God had said more than He did about Himself, His work and those He’s called to Himself. But He’s told us what we need to know to live for and serve Him (“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by His own glory and goodness.”—2 Peter 1:3, emphasis added). Manaen shows how God can use even me (and you). So let’s use the gifts, talents and resources He’s entrusted to us (as Manaen did) to enrich others as well as ourselves.

 

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan