This week we are in the book of Acts. There are a lot of chapters but if you read every day you can make it through without too much trouble. If you want to make it through on the weekdays, though, we have to read 7 chapters a day!
Today's reading Acts 1-7
Today's devotion -- Acts 4:23-31
23On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reportedtaken from www.biblegateway.com
all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24When they heard this,
they raised their voices together in prayer to God. "Sovereign Lord," they said,
"you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 25You
spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:
" 'Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain? 26The
kings of the earth take their stand and the
rulers gather together against the Lord
and against his Anointed One. 27Indeed Herod
and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in
this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28They
did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. 29Now, Lord,
consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great
boldness. 30Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and
wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus."
31After they
prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled
with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. (NIV)
This section of text is called the 'Believer's Prayer'. It occurs right after Peter and John healed a crippled man and had to justify their actions in front of the Sanhedrin. They had been jailed over night and were told not to preach in the name of Jesus again. Instead of giving in to the authorities, they pray that they can speak God's word with great boldness!
How often do we actually speak about God's love and Christ's salvation to others who are not Christians? I know that I don't do that often. There is a time to be silent, but I know that I'm silent probably 99% of the time. It probably ought to be the other way around! I want others to know that God is good, and that he is responsible for all good things. That he loves each of us more than we can imagine and that he holds the only promise of an eternal life of glory.
Why don't we talk about Christ more? I know that I am really hesitant to push people away -- for years before I became a Christian I was very put off by those who pushed their religion (and I didn't realize the difference between religion and relationship). I'm also concerned about how I might answer tough questions that come up about God -- those like "Why would a loving God allow bad things to happen to good people?"
I want my life to reflect God's love, but if I don't let my words also speak about it, will others realize what I'm trying to reflect? I'm sure Satan is thrilled when others think that Christians are 'good people' who do nice things for others...without a link to God's love and power.
Pray with me today that God will 'enable his servants to speak his word with great boldness.' If all the Christians in the world today would pray that (and act upon it) for just one month, imagine how the world could change!
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