Have you ever felt as if you were the only Christian around? Maybe you’re the only believer at

your workplace, or on your team. Or in your family. That’s not a good feeling.

In Acts 18, we find Paul in Corinth. He was in the synagogue every Sabbath, reasoning and

trying to persuade Jews and Greeks that Jesus was the Messiah they were waiting for. But

many of the Jews opposed him. He might have felt as if he was the only believer around, but he

wasn’t. Let’s see what the writer of Acts tells us:

And he left there and went to the house of a man names Titius Justus, a worshiper of

God. His house was next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue,

believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians

hearing Paul believed and were baptized. (Acts 18:7-8 ESV)

How encouraged Paul must have felt! Not only did he find other believers, but he was also able

to share the good news of Jesus and baptize many new believers.

But God didn’t stop there. Scripture goes on to tell us that He spoke encouragement to Paul

directly.

And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and

do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have

many in this city who are my people.” (Acts 18:9-10 ESV)

Such a great reminder that we are not alone as believers. Although we see so much sin around

us, the Lord has many in this city who are His people. We can find similar encouragement today

when we join each other for worship. The author of Hebrews reminds us of the importance of

gathering for worship:

And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good work, not

staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each

other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25 HCSB)

I hope you plan to attend church tomorrow and bring a friend!

By Jennifer Preston

Jennifer attends IBC Georgetown with her husband David. She is a Senior Software

Development Engineer with CVS Health.