As part of my Beth Moore’s lesson, I read Acts 18:1-18. Everything is flowing nicely when out of the blue, in verse 18 the writer, Luke, mentions that Paul stops for a haircut because of a vow. I thought to myself, “OK, so he got a haircut. What’s the big deal? And what was the vow.” Beth left me hanging for a day but pulled through eventually and offered some answers.
Numbers 6: 1-8 talks about the Nazarite vow; it is a vow of separation. It was offered to both men and women. To take part in it, one must abstain from anything that comes from the grapevine and not cut their hair as a symbol of separation to God. Act 18:1 tells that Paul was entering Corinth. Corinth was known for its worship of the Goddess Aphrodite who represented love, lust and sexual perversion.
Paul’s example of separating himself to God before entering into strong temptation is one we should all take more often. If he had not taken this vow, had not abstained from the things of the vine, and had tried to enter this city by his own strength, he would not have been able to resist the temptation he surely encountered.
How often do we consider the temptations we will encounter prior to the actual encounter? I don’t know about you, but I know I don’t often enough.
I like the seemingly random verses…
