Going After the Noble Prize

Mike Johnson

Are you going for “The Noble Prize”? You might think, “How can I go after that prize? I don’t know anything about physics, chemistry, or physiology. I am not involved in the field of literature. I am not a well-known person who has done a lot for world peace. This prize is not within my reach.” If that is what you think, you have misunderstood the question. I did not ask about the Nobel prize but the noble prize. The noble prize is more valuable than the Nobel prize. What is the Noble prize? It is not a prize in the sense of the Nobel prize. However, being “noble” is something we need to pursue.

Acts 17:1-9 tells of Paul and Silas at Thessalonica. Some believed their preaching, and others did not. Those who did not believe tried to apprehend Paul and Silas but were unsuccessful. The preaching of Paul and Silas had caused quite a controversy. However, at the next stop, Berea, they were met with a completely different attitude. Acts 17:11 says of the Bereans, “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

The Bereans were more noble. Why were they called that? First, they received the word with all readiness of mind.” Also, they “searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” The Bereans were not a group who accepted anything they heard, which seemed right. No, they examined the teachings that they heard. They knew that false teachers existed, and they wanted to make sure that what they accepted was the truth. They were an examining audience.

The Bereans were going after a noble prize. Are we doing the same thing? Are we willing to receive the word and search the Scriptures to make sure that what we hear taught is the truth? Let us all seek the NOBLE PRIZE!