October 4 - Persevering in the Faith
October 4
Persevering in the Faith
Bible Reading: Acts 4:1-20
1Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them, 2being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand. 5And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, 6as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. 7And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” 8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel: 9If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, 10let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. 11This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’ 12Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” 13Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus. 14And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. 15But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, 16saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.” 18So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. 20For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”
Acts 5:29
But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.
HAVE YOU EVER been ...
thrown into jail for talking about God?
hauled into court for being a Christian?
whipped and beaten for telling others about Jesus?
threatened for saying that Jesus rose from the dead?
Maybe you've never had any of those experiences. But Peter and John did.
Peter and John were two of Jesus' disciples. After Jesus died, rose from the dead, and went up to heaven, Peter and John started talking about what had happened. They told people that Jesus had come to save them from their sins and give them forgiveness and eternal life. But a lot of important people in Jerusalem (where Peter and John lived) didn't like what they were saying. So they arrested them and took them to court. They even had them whipped, then told them to stop talking about Jesus.
What would you do if someone said, "If you say another word about Jesus, we'll beat you up"? What would you do if people threatened to put you in jail--or even kill you--for telling others about Jesus?
Well, Peter and John just kept doing exactly what they had always done. They kept preaching about Jesus. They kept talking about how Jesus had died and risen from the dead. They kept telling people how to find salvation by trusting in Christ. They persevered even when other people threatened them and caused them a lot of trouble.
That's a great example for us to follow. Peter and John explained their actions by saying, "We must obey God rather than men!" (Acts 5:29, NIV). That's exactly what we should do, too. Even if our friends tease us and call us names, we should obey God. Even if doing the right thing might make us look silly, we should obey God. Even if doing what is right might get us--or a friend--in trouble, we should obey God. And we should keep obeying him, no matter what others say or do. That's perseverance. And that kind of perseverance is right.
REFLECT: Maybe you've never been in a situation exactly like Peter and John's, but you may have been tempted to give up or give in to pressure from other people. If so, what did you do? Did you persevere in spite of the pressure, or did you give in? What will you do the next time you face pressure to stop doing right (or to start doing wrong)?
PRAY: "Dear God, help me to be more like Peter and John when people try to get me to give up or to give in to pressure."