Conjecture and Assumption

Scripture Passage that Caught My attention today: Acts 21:37-39 Just as Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the tribune, “May I say something to you?” The tribune replied, “Do you know Greek? 38 Then you are not the Egyptian who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand assassins out into the wilderness?” 39 Paul replied, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of an important city; I beg you, let me speak to the people.”

Observation: They didn’t even know who they were arresting.

Application: Conjecture and Assumption are often similar to folly—they can lead us in unfruitful directions and have the potential for more harm than good. In the lesson above, much of the uproar surrounding Paul wasn’t even true. But the crowds had allowed themselves to get whipped into a frenzy unnecessarily. For a while even a life hung in the balance. I would like to think that today’s civilized world would be more rational. But often times such is still not the case. One need look no further than much of our political discourse to see that we both fuel and feed off of conjecture and assumption. When news shifted primarily from past tense (what did happen) to future tense (what might happen), conjecture and assumption rose to a whole new level. So it is both comforting and disturbing to know that Paul was personally well aware of what could be at stake. It’s comforting to know that he could relate out our situation. It’s disturbing to realize that times really haven’t gotten much better.

Prayer: Lord, help us to spend more time listening and searching and less time predicting and assuming. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(readings today included: Leviticus 23-24, Psalm 24, Acts 21)