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August 19 - Acts 4 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello, friends, it's Shaun here. It's Tuesday, it's the 19th of
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  August, and it's great to have your company as we continue
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  reading through this fascinating story in the book of Acts.
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  And you will hear again and again when the apostles get
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  pulled in front of a crowd or pulled into a very scary hall
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  with all sorts of cranky Sadducees and Pharisees staring
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  down at them, and they are asked to describe what they're doing
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  and why they're doing it. They give these speeches not
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  just about Jesus, but they give these speeches that start with
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  the patriarchs and talk through the faith of the Israelite
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  people and then present Jesus as the logical next step in this
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  journey with God. Because they're trying to
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  convince them that Jesus and what he brings is not some new
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  flesh in the pan, but this is the same God.
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  This is the the promises foretold long ago coming good in
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  the person of Jesus. So this is not a new religion.
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  They say this is your religion. This is the age old religion of
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  God walking with his people. And this Jesus is their God.
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  So next time they start at the very beginning, you can go, ah,
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  that's why they're doing it. So let us put down whatever it
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  is that's gurgling away in the back of our minds.
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  Come before our God to hear His words to us.
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  Let's do it. Let's read together Acts chapter
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  4. While Peter and John were
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  speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests,
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  the captain of the temple guard and some of the Sadducees.
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  These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John
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  were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a
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  resurrection of the dead. They arrested them and since it
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  was already evening, put them in gaol until morning.
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  But many of the people who heard their message believed it so The
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  number of men who believed now totalled about 5000.
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  The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and
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  teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem.
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  Anas, the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John
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  Alexander and other relatives of the high priest.
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  They brought in the two disciples and demanded By what
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  power or in whose name have you done this?
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  Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, Rulers and
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  elders of our people, are we being questioned to day because
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  we've done a good deed for a crippled man?
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  Do you want to know how he was healed?
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  Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of
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  Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ,
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  the Nazarene, the man you crucified, but whom God raised
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  from the dead. For Jesus is the one referred to
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  in the scriptures where it says the stone that you builders
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  rejected has now become the cornerstone.
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  There is salvation in no one else.
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  God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be
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  saved. The members of the Council were
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  amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for
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  they could see they were ordinary men with no special
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  training in the Scriptures. They also recognised them as men
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  who had been with Jesus. But since they could see the man
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  who had been healed standing right there among them, there
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  was nothing the Council could say.
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  So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and
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  conferred among themselves. What should we do about these
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  men? They asked each other.
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  We can't deny that they have performed the miraculous sign
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  and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it.
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  But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we
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  must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus name again.
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  So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never
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  again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.
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  But Peter and John replied, Do you think God wants us to obey
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  you rather than Him? We cannot stop telling about
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  everything we have seen and heard.
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  The council then threatened them further, but they finally let
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  them go because they didn't know how to punish them without
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  starting a riot. For everyone was praising God
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  for this miraculous sign, the healing of a man who had been
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  lame for more than 40 years. As soon as they were freed,
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  Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them
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  what the leading priests and elders had said.
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  When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their
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  voices together in prayer to God.
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  O sovereign God, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea and
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  everything in them. You spoke long ago by the Holy
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  Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant, saying, why
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  were the nations so angry? Why did they waste their time
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  with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepared
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  for battle. The rule is gathered together
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  against the Lord and against His Messiah.
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  In fact, this has happened here in this very city, for Herod
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  Antipas, Pontius Pilate, the governor, and Gentiles, and the
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  people of Israel were all united against Jesus, Your holy
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  servant, whom you anointed. But everything they did was
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  determined beforehand according to your will.
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  And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your
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  servants, great boldness in preaching your word.
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  Stretch out your hand with healing power.
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  May miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your
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  holy servant, Jesus. After this prayer, the meeting
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  place shook and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.
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  Then they preached the Word of God with boldness.
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  All the believers were united in heart and mind, and they felt
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  that what they owned was not their own, so they shared
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  everything they had. The apostles testified
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  powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God's
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  great blessing was upon them all.
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  There were no needy people among them because those who owned
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  land or houses would sell them and bring the money to the
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  apostles to give to those in need.
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  For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed
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  Barnabas, which means son of encouragement.
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  He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of
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  Cyprus. He sold the field he owned and
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  brought the money to the apostles.
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  Lord Jesus, help us to remember that your Spirit is 1.
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  Not of timidity, but of boldness.
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  And Lord, you ask us to step into scary places and to speak
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  your truth. Oh, and for us to do that, we
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  are going to need your help. Holy Spirit, come, come and fill
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  us with your truth and your boldness and bravery so that
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  when the time comes, we can open our mouths and speak.
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  Speak with authority and boldness so that people can hear
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  us and know that this is beyond us.
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  But this is from you, our wonderful, loving present God.
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  Thank you that you choose to engage our world, and thank you
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  that you use us as part of how you do this.
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  So we just surrender our lives to you and pray that you use us
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  mightifully or quietly or anywhere in between, however you
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  please. Because you are our God and our
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  Saviour, and we love you and we worship you, and we pray all
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  these things in your wonderful name, Jesus, Amen.