Acts 11:23

"who, when he was come, and had seen the grace of God, was glad; and he exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord"Had seen the grace of God" God's grace manifested in the changed lives of the converts and in the fact that both Jews and Gentiles were getting along in one body. "He exhorted them all" Exhortation and encouragement was his talent (Acts 4:36). "Purpose of heart" "Resolute heart' (NASV). "To make up their minds" (TCNT). "With fixed resolve" (Wey). This phrase suggests that after the initial joy and excitement in becoming. Christian that one's enthusiasm may wane (Matthew 13:21). To live the Christian life and to be successful at it,. deliberate effort must be made to remain true to God. Diligence must always to exercised to keep God as the one true love in our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). "Cleave unto the Lord" "To keep on remaining loyal to. Persistence was needed in such. pagan city" (Robertson p. 158). "The Christian must constantly make it his aim in life to stick close to Christ. Only in this way can the temptations of. morally evil society be overcome" (Reese p. 418).