God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1 (NIV)

When you look closely at Paul’s story in Acts 23, there is a striking tension. On one hand, religious and political powers are conspiring to destroy him. On the other hand, those same powers are being used to protect him. The same Roman system that will one day execute Paul is, for this moment, his shield.

That tension raises a deeper spiritual principle. Part of growing in faith often comes by discerning the Lord’s will within the contradictions, not from outside them. This means at some point you have to develop the spiritual discipline to consecrate your contradictions.

It’s a contradiction that God uses the Roman military, the very empire that would later execute Him, as an instrument for his protection. Here’s a point to think on: Even hostile people can be assigned to bless you. God’s protection often comes from unexpected sources.

Not all of God’s blessings are going to come to you through your friends. Some of them will actually be delivered to your doorstep through people who push you, challenge you, or even oppose you. God can take a system that was not built with you in mind and still use it as a vehicle to get you where He wants you to go.

That is why you cannot live your whole life trying to distance yourself from every contradiction. At some point, you must bring those contradictions to God. You place them on the altar and say, “Lord, I do not understand this, but I am going to trust that You are at work inside it.” That is what it means to consecrate your contradictions.

When you do that, you start to see what Paul’s story is teaching. There is no place, no plot, no plan, no pain, no power that is stronger than the protective hand of our sovereign God. Therefore, don’t limit where you expect God’s help to come from because He can use anybody. He can use any system. He can use any circumstance—even those people around you who seem like enemies to you and your faith.

So today, instead of asking God to remove every contradiction, ask Him to consecrate them.