Not Persuaded

“The Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren.”—Acts 14:2 NASB

When Paul and Barnabas were in Iconium, they went to the synagogue to share the Gospel. As a result, many Jews and Gentiles believed. But some resisted. These were people who had an opportunity to hear about Jesus, but for whatever reason, they were not persuaded.

The Bible calls them people who “disbelieved.” As Kenneth Wuest wrote in his translation, they “were unwilling to be persuaded.” As a result, they “withheld belief.”

These people made a decision. They had the same opportunity as other Jews and Gentiles. They heard the same Gospel message. But by an act of their will, they determined that they would not be persuaded and would not believe.

All of us have opportunities like this every day. God has given us His Word and made promises to us. But He also has given us choices. And there are rewards based on the decisions we make. This applies to Christians as well as non-believers. All of us have been given wills, so we can refuse to be persuaded and withhold belief.

You have many opportunities to believe and to put God’s Word into action in your life. Now the choice is up to you. Will you decide to act in faith and believe in God? Or will you withhold faith and allow your life to be dominated by doubt? Are you willing to be persuaded by God? Or have you already made up your mind?

Reflection Question: Who have you been witnessing to who still needs to be persuaded?