In Acts 3, when the crowd gathered around Peter and John who were preaching following the healing of the lame man, word soon got to the Temple officials and they arrested Peter and John for their speaking out. This time Peter owns up to the fact that he knew Jesus and that he was preaching the good news (contrary to when he denied it and the rooster crowed three times). The decision of the Temple officials was for the apostles to be quiet and stop preaching. Peter and John's response: "We cannot stop speaking of the wonderful things we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:20). Christians today are too quick to shut up when they are threatened by higher-ups who think they have a voice. Schools say that students cannot pray or read the Bible in the school when there is no such law. The teachers cannot lead the teaching of the Bible or the public prayer, but students can on their own! When Government says one thing--God says another...obey God!
In Acts 5, why would God strike Ananias and Sapphira dead for only giving half the offering they could have given? Is it because God is greedy? No. Ananias and Sapphira promised all of the land money....not half. If they had promised half, and then given half, we would not read this in Acts today. Because they lied, and when given opportunity to tell the truth and lied again, then it angered God and an example was shown to everyone else that this is not acceptable!
When the apostles continued to teach in the name of Jesus, the Temple officials again brought them before them, arrested them, and told them NOT to teach about Jesus any longer. When they flogged (physically abused) them, they rejoiced that they were persecuted for Jesus. This sounds weird; however, it was told to the apostles that they would be beaten in the same manner that Jesus Himself would be. They rejoice because Jesus' words came true. Also, it was a joy to share in the suffering that Jesus suffered.
As teh church growed larger and larger, the needs of the people of the church also grew. The people of the church noticed that some of the needs were being overlooked and so they approached the Apostles about the need. In response, the Apostles delegated the responsibilities to men who were full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom and gave them charge over taking care of the daily distribution of food. It has always been a part of the church's responsibilities to care for not only the spiritual needs of the Christians but also the physical needs when the arise.
One of these men that were chosen was Stephen. Stephen was a man full of God's power and when he was encountered by some deceiving jews, he was arrested based on false accusation. Although it was unjust, Stephen used this as an opportunity to share the message of Jesus! We should always look at our lives circumstances as opportunities to share Jesus with people.
Proverbs 10:1-16
This is a second collection of Proverbs from King Solomon. In the first collection (chapters 1-9) we found a real basis for wisdom: Wisdom comes only from God; the opposite of wisdom is folly; the immoral acts one engages himself (herself) in is the extreme of a fools behavior and this person truly lacks all wisdom. This collection will include short snippets of wisdom. There is a distinct contrast between the wise (also called godly) and the fools (also called wicked). Are there any comparisons that speak to you? Do you have children and the proverbs based on youth are helpful? Do the proverbs pertaining to wealth speak to you? Highlight and/or write down the proverbs that speak to you to encourage you to live right for God.
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