AME Zion Universal Reading November 5th, 2023

Acts 15:1–15 (NLT): The Council at Jerusalem

While Paul and Barnabas were at Antioch of Syria, some men from Judea arrived and began to teach the believers: “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 Paul and Barnabas disagreed with them, arguing vehemently. Finally, the church decided to send Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem, accompanied by some local believers, to talk to the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent the delegates to Jerusalem, and they stopped along the way in Phoenicia and Samaria to visit the believers. They told them—much to everyone’s joy—that the Gentiles, too, were being converted.

4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, Barnabas and Paul were welcomed by the whole church, including the apostles and elders. They reported everything God had done through them. 5 But then some of the believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and insisted, “The Gentile converts must be circumcised and required to follow the law of Moses.”

6 So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue. 7 At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as follows: “Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles so that they could hear the Good News and believe. 8 God knows people’s hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. 10 So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? 11 We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.”

Monday

Acts 15:12–21 (NLT):

12 Everyone listened quietly as Barnabas and Paul told about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

13 When they had finished, James stood and said, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 Peter has told you about the time God first visited the Gentiles to take from them a people for himself. 15 And this conversion of Gentiles is exactly what the prophets predicted. As it is written:

16 ‘Afterward I will return

and restore the fallen house of David.

I will rebuild its ruins

and restore it,

17 so that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord,

including the Gentiles—

all those I have called to be mine.

The Lord has spoken—

18 he who made these things known so long ago.’

19 “And so my judgment is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood. 21 For these laws of Moses have been preached in Jewish synagogues in every city on every Sabbath for many generations.”

Tuesday

Psalm 37:27–40 (NLT):

27 Turn from evil and do good,

and you will live in the land forever.

28 For the Lord loves justice,

and he will never abandon the godly.

He will keep them safe forever,

but the children of the wicked will die.

29 The godly will possess the land

and will live there forever.

30 The godly offer good counsel;

they teach right from wrong.

31 They have made God’s law their own,

so they will never slip from his path.

32 The wicked wait in ambush for the godly,

looking for an excuse to kill them.

33 But the Lord will not let the wicked succeed

or let the godly be condemned when they are put on trial.

34 Put your hope in the Lord.

Travel steadily along his path.

He will honor you by giving you the land.

You will see the wicked destroyed.

35 I have seen wicked and ruthless people

flourishing like a tree in its native soil.

36 But when I looked again, they were gone!

Though I searched for them, I could not find them!

37 Look at those who are honest and good,

for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace.

38 But the rebellious will be destroyed;

they have no future.

39 The Lord rescues the godly;

he is their fortress in times of trouble.

40 The Lord helps them,

rescuing them from the wicked.

Wednesday

Psalm 121:1–8 (NLT):

1 I look up to the mountains—

does my help come from there?

2 My help comes from the Lord,

who made heaven and earth!

3 He will not let you stumble;

the one who watches over you will not slumber.

4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel

never slumbers or sleeps.

5 The Lord himself watches over you!

The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.

6 The sun will not harm you by day,

nor the moon at night.

7 The Lord keeps you from all harm

and watches over your life.

8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,

both now and forever.

Thursday

1 Corinthians 12:12–20 (NLT): One Body with Many Parts

12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.

14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. 15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?

18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body.

Friday

Acts 17:22–34 (NLT):

22 So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, 23 for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.

24 “He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, 25 and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. 26 From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.

27 “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. 28 For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 29 And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone.

30 “God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. 31 For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.”

32 When they heard Paul speak about the resurrection of the dead, some laughed in contempt, but others said, “We want to hear more about this later.” 33 That ended Paul’s discussion with them, 34 but some joined him and became believers. Among them were Dionysius, a member of the council, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.

Saturday

Isaiah 56:1–12 (NLT): Blessings for All Nations

This is what the Lord says:

“Be just and fair to all.

Do what is right and good,

for I am coming soon to rescue you

and to display my righteousness among you.

2 Blessed are all those

who are careful to do this.

Blessed are those who honor my Sabbath days of rest

and keep themselves from doing wrong.

3 “Don’t let foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord say,

‘The Lord will never let me be part of his people.’

And don’t let the eunuchs say,

‘I’m a dried-up tree with no children and no future.’

4 For this is what the Lord says:

I will bless those eunuchs

who keep my Sabbath days holy

and who choose to do what pleases me

and commit their lives to me.

5 I will give them—within the walls of my house—

a memorial and a name

far greater than sons and daughters could give.

For the name I give them is an everlasting one.

It will never disappear!

6 “I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the Lord,

who serve him and love his name,

who worship him and do not desecrate the Sabbath day of rest,

and who hold fast to my covenant.

7 I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem

and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer.

I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices,

because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations.

8 For the Sovereign Lord,

who brings back the outcasts of Israel, says:

I will bring others, too,

besides my people Israel.”

Sinful Leaders Condemned

9 Come, wild animals of the field!

Come, wild animals of the forest!

Come and devour my people!

10 For the leaders of my people—

the Lord’s watchmen, his shepherds—

are blind and ignorant.

They are like silent watchdogs

that give no warning when danger comes.

They love to lie around, sleeping and dreaming.

11 Like greedy dogs, they are never satisfied.

They are ignorant shepherds,

all following their own path

and intent on personal gain.

12 “Come,” they say, “let’s get some wine and have a party.

Let’s all get drunk.

Then tomorrow we’ll do it again

and have an even bigger party!”