Suffer for the Foothills | Chip Stallings | October 11, 2026

Oct 11, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: When Love Costs More Than Comfort

Following Jesus means embracing discomfort as part of faithfulness. Paul’s declaration, “I am ready not only to be bound but also to die,” reveals a heart anchored in eternal purpose over temporary safety. Suffering for others isn’t a failure of faith but a mark of love mirroring Christ’s sacrifice. Just as Paul’s companions wept yet surrendered to God’s will, believers today must weigh their loyalty to comfort against the urgency of mission. True love for others demands a willingness to endure friction, rejection, or inconvenience. Eternal impact often grows in soil tilled by sacrifice. [46:25]

“Paul replied, ‘What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.’” (Acts 21:13, CSB)

Reflection: Where has your craving for comfort quietly overruled your willingness to love someone difficult? What one step could you take this week to prioritize their eternity over your convenience?

Day 2: False Accusations and Unshaken Purpose

Opposition often disguises itself as reasonable concern or moral outrage. Paul faced lies claiming he defiled the temple and betrayed his people—accusions meant to silence his mission. Yet he kept serving, even funding purification rites to bridge divides. When others distort your motives or misrepresent your heart, remember Jesus endured the same. Suffering for righteousness isn’t a detour; it’s part of the path. [54:08]

“They began shouting, ‘Fellow Israelites, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law, and this place.’” (Acts 21:28, CSB)

Reflection: When have false assumptions about your faith caused you to shrink back? How might you respond with grace next time while staying anchored in God’s truth?

Day 3: Testifying Through Bruises and Brokenness

Paul stood battered before the mob, yet seized the moment to share how Jesus transformed him from persecutor to preacher. Suffering didn’t disqualify his voice—it authenticated it. Our scars become microphones for grace when we speak from them, not in spite of them. Even in chaos, God positions us to declare His work. [58:51]

“I persecuted this Way to the death, arresting and putting both men and women in jail… As I was traveling and approaching Damascus, about noon an intense light from heaven suddenly flashed around me.” (Acts 22:4,6, CSB)

Reflection: What part of your story have you hesitated to share because it feels messy? How might your struggles uniquely equip you to connect with someone’s pain?

Day 4: Courage Is Fear Walking Forward

Jesus didn’t scold Paul for needing encouragement but met him in the barracks saying, “Have courage.” Fear isn’t failure—it’s the raw material for bravery. Paul’s journey to Rome required trusting God’s presence more than predicting outcomes. When mission feels overwhelming, Christ’s nearness outweighs the noise of threats. [01:07:14]

“The Lord stood by him and said, ‘Have courage. For as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so it is necessary for you to testify in Rome.’” (Acts 23:11, CSB)

Reflection: What fear have you mistaken as a “stop sign” from God instead of an invitation to rely on His strength? Who needs your encouragement to keep moving forward this week?

Day 5: God’s Rescue Through Unlikely Allies

Paul’s nephew and Roman soldiers became unexpected instruments of deliverance. God weaves support through both faithful relatives and secular authorities, reminding us He controls all systems. When opposition seems overwhelming, watch for divine appointments—the coworker who listens, the neighbor who asks questions, the official who shows unwarranted kindness. [01:13:44]

“Paul called one of the centurions and said, ‘Take this young man to the commander because he has something to report to him.’” (Acts 23:17, CSB)

Reflection: Who in your life—believer or not—might God be preparing to support His work through you? How can you cultivate humility to receive help from unexpected places?

Sermon Summary

Luke shows Paul walking toward Jerusalem with his eyes open. Agabus does not give Paul a warning to run from suffering, but a word to get ready for what faithfulness will cost. Paul’s friends want him safe, and their tears break his heart, but Paul says, “I am ready,” not only to be bound but to die for the name of the Lord Jesus. Their final response, “The Lord’s will be done,” echoes the surrender of Jesus in the garden.

Comfort becomes a real danger when it begins to shape what love is willing to do. The love of the foothills cannot stop where discomfort begins, because anyone truly loved will sometimes be worth suffering for. Paul does not chase suffering for suffering’s sake. Paul simply refuses to back down when the mission of Jesus requires a price.

Paul also suffers under false accusations. The crowd supposes that he has defiled the temple, turns the city upside down, and begins beating him. Paul’s efforts to respect Jewish customs cannot control the minds of people who have already decided he is the enemy. Satan is the accuser, and faithful love will sometimes be misunderstood, talked about, and rejected. The question is not whether people will approve, but whether God will be pleased.

Paul turns suffering into an opportunity to share God’s ways. The same crowd that had been beating him hears his story of meeting Jesus on the Damascus road. Paul does not hide what he once was, because the change Jesus made in him becomes a living, breathing billboard of grace. The crowd listens until Paul says Jesus sent him to the Gentiles. Their anger exposes the danger of seeing people through hurt, anger, politics, or old histories rather than through God’s eyes.

Jesus stands by Paul in custody and says, “Have courage.” Fear may be real, but fear does not get to be the final word. Jesus sends Paul onward to Rome, and God protects him through Paul’s nephew, Roman soldiers, and a secular government. God works through people known and unknown to accomplish his will.

Christ’s suffering sets the pattern for Christian faithfulness. Jesus did not stop loving when love cost him everything. The foothills still contain neighbors, coworkers, families, and communities that need Jesus, and faithful love must choose obedience over comfort, even when it costs convenience, reputation, or ease.

Key Takeaways

1. Comfort must not become the master Comfort is not evil, and God’s gifts should be received with gratitude. Comfort becomes a problem when it gets hold of the heart and starts deciding where obedience ends. Love that quits at discomfort will never make the eternal impact Christ calls for. [42:06]
2. Faithfulness may require costly suffering Paul is not looking for pain, but he is ready when faithfulness requires it. The mission of Jesus does not promise safety from difficulty in a fallen world. Suffering for Christ is not shameful when it comes through obedience to his name. [47:27]
3. False accusations cannot silence gospel love Paul tries to honor Jewish customs, yet people still suppose the worst and turn against him. Faithful people cannot always control how others interpret their actions. The desire for God’s praise must be stronger than the fear of people’s accusations. [53:55]
4. Jesus transforms old stories into grace Paul tells the crowd that he once persecuted the church, then declares what Jesus did to change him. Sin splatters, but grace can make a former life into evidence of Christ’s power. A changed life can become a living, breathing billboard of God’s grace for people who remember the old story. [60:26]
5. Christ gives courage for the next step Jesus stands beside Paul after rejection, violence, and threats, then tells him to have courage. Fear can be the first emotion, but it does not have to be the final one. Christ’s presence enables faithfulness wherever he sends his people next.

## [66:57]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[38:11] - When Following Jesus Gets Costly
[40:12] - Comfort in a Fallen World
[43:29] - Loving the Foothills Through Suffering
[45:13] - Agabus Warns Paul About Jerusalem
[47:07] - Ready to Suffer for God’s Mission
[48:20] - Safe Assumptions and God’s Will
[52:17] - False Accusations Against Paul
[57:25] - Sharing God’s Ways in Suffering
[60:26] - Paul’s Testimony Before the Crowd
[62:02] - God’s Story for All People
[66:57] - Jesus Says Have Courage
[72:44] - God Protects Paul From the Plot
[77:51] - Do Not Be Surprised by Suffering
[79:32] - Choose Faithfulness Over Comfort

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Acts 21:10-14
“After we had been there for several days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. He came to us, took Paul’s belt, tied his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews in Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him over to the Gentiles.’” When we heard this, both we and the local people pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul replied, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” Since he would not be persuaded, we said no more except, “The Lord’s will be done.” [45:51]

Acts 23:11
“The following night, the Lord stood by him and said, “Have courage! For as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so it is necessary for you to testify in Rome.” [01:06:57]

1 Peter 4:12-16
“Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you as if something unusual were happening to you. Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may also rejoice with great joy when his glory is revealed. If you are ridiculed for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or a meddler. But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed but let him glorify God in having that name.” [01:18:18]

Observation questions

What did Agabus do with Paul’s belt, and what did he say would happen to Paul in Jerusalem? [45:51]
How did Paul’s friends respond to the prophecy, and how did Paul describe their weeping?
What details show that the accusations against Paul were based on assumptions rather than clear evidence? [54:23]
In Acts 23:11, what did Jesus tell Paul to do after the conflict and violence in Jerusalem? [01:07:00]

Interpretation questions

Why did Paul understand Agabus’s prophecy as preparation for faithfulness rather than a command to avoid Jerusalem? [48:38]
What does the response, “The Lord’s will be done,” show about surrendering personal fears and desires to God’s plan? [50:16]
Why was Paul able to speak about Jesus to the same crowd that had been beating him, and what does this reveal about the purpose suffering can serve? [57:43]
First Peter distinguishes suffering for doing wrong from suffering as a Christian. How can a believer tell the difference between the two in a difficult situation? [01:19:05]

Application questions

Where might comfort, convenience, safety, or protecting a reputation be quietly deciding the limits of obedience in your life? What would choosing faithfulness over comfort look like in one specific situation this week? [01:23:32]
Who is someone you have become hesitant to love or reach because they may reject, misunderstand, or talk about you? What is one gracious step you could take toward them?
Is there a person whose past has made it easy for you to assume they would not be open to Jesus? How could you begin seeing that person through God’s eyes instead of through old stories, hurt, or assumptions? [01:02:36]
Paul did not hide his past; he showed how Jesus changed him. What part of your story of grace could help someone see that Jesus still transforms people? [01:05:07]
When fear rises around speaking about Jesus or standing for what is right, what would it mean to let fear be a first emotion but not the final word? [01:08:43]
Who around you may be suffering for doing what is right or trying to follow Jesus faithfully? How can you encourage that person in a concrete way this week? [01:23:50]

Sermon Clips

39s

#LoveThatSacrifices

“Because look, anyone that we truly love, we will willingly suffer for them. It's a part of what love is all about. We should see to it as we're loving the foothills that their eternity matters more than our comfort. Because if we back down, whenever love becomes becomes costly, we will never make the eternal impact that Jesus has called us to make.”

39s

#JesusIsWithUs

“Because the same Jesus who stood beside Paul is the Jesus who will be with us as we fulfill his mission. That is his promise at the end of great commission. Isn't it? That I will be with you always, even to the ends of the earth. Church, loving the foothills doesn't exempt us from suffering. It actually involves suffering. If Jesus didn't stop loving you when it cost him everything, who are you going to keep loving even when it costs something?”

80s

#NeverStopSharing

“reaching them may cost us something. It may cost us comfort. It may cost us our convenience. It may cost us our reputation. But remember this, we aren't being asked to do something that Jesus has been unwilling to do for us. Jesus willingly suffered to bring us salvation, and now he calls us to willingly sacrifice so that others can hear about Jesus. is the question. Who needs Jesus enough for you to be willing to suffer so they can hear? Don't give up on them because they rejected your invitation. Don't stop loving them because they appear to be too far gone. Don't stop sharing Jesus because it costs you something.”

33s

#CourageOverFear

“We can't ever have courage unless we first have fear. I tell my boys that all the time. I tell myself that often too. If you're not having fear at some point in your life when you're not living courageously enough, you're not living daring enough, you're not... And you're also not being aware of, like, the real possibilities of what could happen in your life around you. There's all kinds of reasons that there could be fear, but if that's a first emotion, it's not a final one. We don't get to have courage unless we first have fear.”

32s

#PurposeInSuffering

“We're not just walking through suffering for suffering sake. There's purpose in it. There's opportunity in suffering. See, as Paul was being brought into the barracks by the soldiers, Paul asked if he could speak to the to the crowd. Again, this is the... What was this crowd doing? They were just they were just beating him, same crowd. You see, when you're suffering, you might not be where you want to be, but you can still take the opportunity to share about God's ways.”

57s

#GodIsGreater

“So, why is this such a big deal that God works through secular power? I think it's a big deal because God is at work in anyone and through anything to fulfill his will. We may be intimidated by powerful people at work. We may be intimidated by powerful people in the government. We may be intimidated by powerful people in our families, in our schools, in our groups of friends. But we need to be encouraged that God is bigger than all of them. He will work through people that you do know, and he will work through people that you don't know. We may suffer, but we should not be surprised by the suffering, and we should not be scared silent because of the possibility of suffering.”

46s

#LivingTestimony

“And so, if we kind of subtly, even passively by not reaching out or then even get frustrated internally or even maybe say something publicly about another person because of maybe who they used to be or who you thought they once were, that becomes a barrier to the gospel. As opposed to, and here's the tremendous thing that can happen, is that people can see the change that Jesus made in your life, that's not who you are anymore. Like Paul said about the Ephesians, you all once were like this. And they can see the difference that Jesus made in your life and you become a living breathing billboard of God's grace.”

36s

#FaithfulnessCosts

“To be very clear, Paul was not running from city to city to circumstance to circumstance, trying to find suffering. Let's be super clear about that. He wasn't looking to try and suffer. But when faithfulness to God's great commission required suffering, what did Paul say? He was ready to suffer. Sometimes suffering comes from surprising places. The first way we see some some suffering coming to the apostle Paul here was from safe assumptions.”

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East Valdese Baptist Church This sermon · AI assistant

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