In any public conference, people of varied classes attend. Some come out of curiosity to know more about the topic, others come ready to mock and ridicule, while some others are die hard supporters. Today, we read in Acts that almost the whole town turned up to hear the Word of God, both pagans and Jews. It is evident that the pagans were very happy to hear the message from St Paul because eternal life was also offered to them. Some of the Jews, however, reacted differently. They were jealous. Could it also be their pride and prejudice, since their sense of entitlement was being infringed upon by the lower class of society? What lessons can we learn from the experience of Paul and Barnabas?

To be bold in proclaiming the Word of God and allowing God to work through us is to take seriously the words and work of Jesus as told to Philip in today's Gospel. We need to remember that, while we do what we can to evangelize, we are just sowers of the seed. Once we sow the seed, we make room for the Holy Spirit to tend the seeds to grow. There will always be resistance, people who have hardened hearts and will not be convinced no matter the many good works we do. As Jesus exemplified, no one deterred Him from His mission. Our work too must be anchored in Him.