SCRIPTURE: “But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people, And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also. Acts. 17:5-6 (KJV)
QUOTE: “If you desire to make a difference in the world, you must be different from the world.” – Elaine S. Dalton
NOTE:
Mid 2011, one of the biggest piece of news is the passing of Steve Jobs. If you visit the Apple website, you will see a photo with the caption – `Steve Jobs, 1955-2011, only 56 years old, but within that short space of time he had touched the lives of millions in this world. He was co-founder of the Apple Computer. Forced to leave Apple in 1985, he returned in 1996.
In the decade following his departure from Apple, Apple faced bankruptcy. When Steve returned to Apple, he turned the company around, such that the company had reserves more than that of the United States Government by July 2011 (Apple: 75.876 by Billion / U.S. Government: 73.768 by Billion). This is really a remarkable thing. He also began the so-called i-generation – the iTunes, the i-touch i-phone, i-pad. On the day he left the world, the newspaper carried the headline “i-Sad”. Steve Jobs had indeed affected his generation and the Generation Next! By his God-given brains he extended the frontiers of Apple as a company and conquered the Mobile phone Industry!
ILLUSTRATION:
And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also …How Steve Jobs and Apostle Paul are similar and different?
Their similarities:
(A) Both were full of visions and ideas.
(B) Both wanted to change the world.
(C) And both were both great salesmen.
They were different because, whereas Steve Jobs did not simply sell some products, but also sold dreams which was one of the reasons for his successes. Apostle Paul on the other hand did not sell any material or physical product; rather he marketed the life-changing-product for eternity, which is the Gospel, the message that assures deliverance from eternal doom.
REFLECTION:
- Given an opportunity, what do you think is the most effective way of changing or transforming the world?
- What difference are you making with your product?
TWO YEAR BIBLE READING: Nehemiah 1 – 2, Psalm 82