Strong Souls (1)

And when they had preached the gospel to that city and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting themto continue in the faith, and saying, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”Acts 14.21, 22

A right-side up world
The book of Acts recounts the incredible story of how the Christian movement grew from a small sect in a distant outpost of the Roman world to become a network of hundreds of churches involving multiplied thousands of believers with an impact that, as even unbelievers noted, was turning the Roman world upside-down (Acts 17.1-9).

The world had never seen anything like it. Suddenly, within a single generation, in towns and cities from Jerusalem to Athens to Rome, men and women of Jewish faith, pagan faith, and no faith at all were uniting together as one, confessing Jesus Christ to be their Savior and King, loving and caring for one another, and making an impact for good on their neighbors, their culture, and Roman society in every aspect of life. Full faith was coming to full bloom all over the Roman world, as the Word of the Lord increased and spread in every place. Believers created a new community – the Church – where worship was a joy, learning became a way of life, caring and sharing were everywhere the norm, goodness and kindness were extended to all, and the Good News of the Kingdom was everybody’s business and message.

As we work our way through the book of Acts we see this movement growing, gaining momentum, taking firm root, bearing astonishing fruit in courage and love, multiplying and expanding into new communities and regions – and all this in the face of implacable and at times violent opposition and resistance.

Which might raise the question in some of our minds: How did they do that?

Well, I think I know the answer. The early Christians were a people on steroids.

Spiritual stimulants
Our text says this clearly – at least, in the Greek. The phrase, “strengthening the souls”, is, in the Greek of the New Testament, episterizontes. You hear that – -sterizontes? These days we might translate this, “giving steroids.” The Apostle Paul and the others were “giving steroids” to those first believers! No wonder they had such strength and perseverance. No wonder they had such assurance of salvation, and bore the fruit and evidence of full faith in every area of life.

Of course, Paul and the others were not giving physical or bodily stimulants to the first Christians. Our word literally means, “to strengthen above normal.” Which is why “steroids” are called what they are. The Apostles were giving these people a measure of strength beyond what they’d ever known before – strength to worship, share, witness, edify, grow, love, and endure, the likes of which these folks had never known before.

They weren’t being “doped” to live for Christ. And they obviously weren’t being duped. They knew that what they had come to believe was true and life-changing. They longed to realize the expectations Jesus held out for them. They could not and did not deny that Jesus had transformed their lives and made them part of something bigger than their own interests, bigger even than the Roman Empire, bigger than time itself and the entire course of human history.

They had become citizens of the Kingdom of God, and they were experiencing the transforming power of that reality in all the mundane, everyday details of their lives, all their relationships, roles, and responsibilities. The result was a new way of life that filled them with hope, joy, and peace, and led them to practice righteousness and goodness, and to bear witness to their neighbors at every opportunity and by every means.

Paul was “giving them steroids” all right, but these were spiritual stimulants, not physical or bodily ones, and they had powerful effect in strengthening the souls of those first believers.

The primacy of the soul
The most important part of our text is the phrase, “strengthening the souls of the believers”. Consider: Paul and his companions, and all the Apostles, wanted to make sure their message would take, the people would grow to realize full faith in the Lord, the communities they had started would stick, and the movement of the Gospel and Kingdom would spread and increase. So what did they do? They didn’t encourage these believers to build permanent facilities, hire more staff, increase their giving, or add some new and proven programs for “discipleship.”

All they did was “strengthen the souls of the believers.” And that’s all it took.

The Christian movement grows from the inside-out, from the depths of the transformed soul into the daily words and works that fill up the time of our lives. We can try to become more confident and consistent in our Christian lives by all manner of outward correctives or adjustments. But real change – change that lasts and generates increasing power – begins within, in the soul of each believer. If we want to turn our world upside down, we won’t need more mega-churches, the latest slick (and expensive) training programs, bigger budgets, or better staff. We cannot grow the Church from the outside-in.

We’ll need believers with strong souls – you and I and all our Christian friends – and pastors and teachers who are committed to giving spiritual steroids to those entrusted to their care.

For reflection
1.  What does it mean for you to grow stronger in your soul?

2.  How does growing stronger in our souls affect the way we live each day?

3.  How confident are you that you are growing consistently stronger in your soul? Explain.

Next steps: How can we know when we are growing stronger in our souls? Talk with a church leader or pastor about this question.

T. M. Moore

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This week’s ReVision study is Part 4 of a 10-part series, “Full Faith.” You can download “Strong Souls” as a free PDF, prepared for personal or group study. Simply click here.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.