Acts 19:1-7 (NRSV)
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Chapter 19While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul passed through the interior regions and came to Ephesus, where he found some disciples. Verse 2He said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?" They replied, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit." Verse 3Then he said, "Into what then were you baptized?" They answered, "Into John's baptism." Verse 4Paul said, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus." Verse 5On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Verse 6When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied- Verse 7altogether there were about twelve of them.
Devotion
Although I begin driving on the correct course, I often make wrong turns and lose my way. Soon, my GPS starts warning, “Recalculating,” to alert me about my mistakes. I need to listen to the GPS’s guidance and make corrections to get back on course! In Ephesus, Paul found disciples who began on a good course by following John the Baptist with the baptism of repentance. However, they didn’t heed John’s warning that they must later make a course correction to follow the one who was to come after him—Jesus. Much like a GPS, Paul told them to recalculate and begin again by being baptized in Jesus’ name. Upon doing so, they received the Holy Spirit. Likewise, we all sometimes get off course. Then, we must heed trusted people who tell us to recalculate. We need to hear the Word again and begin anew to proclaim Jesus’ good news.
Prayer
Guiding God, when we go astray, please stop our pride from interfering with hearing your call to recalculate our course. Lead us to begin anew and proclaim the good news of your Son. Amen.