Tag: acts 4

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Daily Devotion July 26th

SUNDAY 26th

Acts 4:4:5-12

NIV (v12) – ‘Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.’

ESV (v12) – ‘And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’

We continue from yesterday and our brief look at John 3:16 ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.’

c) The Uniqueness of the message of the gospel – whoever believes in HIM

John 3:16 is crystal clear that God loved and therefore he sent, and it is also crystal clear as to who he sent, his only Son, and God has only one Son and his name is Jesus. And it was Jesus who he sent into the world to be the Saviour of the world, and it is only by believing on his Son that we can have life that is abundant and eternal, therefore the message of the gospel is a unique message, it is the only message that brings hope to this dying world.

For God did not send **** (insert every other prophet or religious leader, or god of this world here) to save the world, he sent Jesus. So, when we claim that Jesus is the only way to God as Jesus himself declared in John 14:6, ‘No one comes to the Father except through me’ we are not bigots or blinkered individuals, we are declaring the whole truth and nothing but the truth! And we know it to be so because God himself has said it. We need to be vocal in this multi-faith world in which we live by declaring the words of Peter in our text above, ‘And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’

d) The Ultimate aim of the gospel – to have eternal life – this takes us back to the whole reason why John said he had written the gospel ‘so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.’ Our problem is that we are dead in our trespasses and sin, spiritually dead, cut off from God and we need to be made alive again. And Jesus was the one who God sent into the world to make it possible. Galatians 2:20-21 ‘I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.’ Ephesians 2:4-5 ‘But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved . . .’

e) The Unequivocal consequences of not believing the gospel – perish – When the Bible speaks of perish as here in John 3:16, it is speaking about being eternally cut off from God’s presence, in a place which is described as a lake of fire, when we think of something perishing, we perhaps think of something like a piece of fruit which as it perishes, goes into a state of decay until eventually it is no longer existing, nothing left in any shape or form, but when the Bible speaks of perish here it is not to eventually no longer exist in any shape or form but to remain in an eternal state of being spiritually dead, but the extremely sad thing is that although spiritually dead, not without consciousness and feeling.* It will be eternity spent with regret for not believing, eternity spent without any reprieve, eternity spent without any comfort or any further hope of redemption, eternity spent in the very presence of the devil himself, for that is also where he will be, eternally alienated from God.

Heaven is real – but so is Hell. If you are reading this devotion today and you have never come to accept the offer of salvation which God has made available to the whosover, then as Scripture says, ‘Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart . . .’ Hebrews 3:7, ‘Behold, now is the favourable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’ 2 Corinthians 6:2, ‘How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard . . .’ Hebrews 2:3.

*  Jesus himself spoke of the reality of what Hell will be like in Luke 16:19-31 and the reality of future judgement is in Revelation 20:11-15

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Devotions

Daily Devotion May 25th

MONDAY 25th

Reading – Acts 4:13-31

We will continue today on the theme of the name of Jesus, but today from the book of Acts. As I did yesterday, I will give an overview of the verses that have reference to his ‘name’, you will need to turn to them if you want to find the context. ‘who calls upon his name’ (2:21), ‘every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ’ (2:38), ‘In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth’ (3:6), ‘And his name – by faith in his name’ (3:16), ‘or by what name’ (4:7), ‘that by the name of Jesus Christ’ (4:10), ‘there is no other name’ (4:12), ‘to anyone in this name’ (4:17), ‘teach at all in the name of Jesus’ (4:18), ‘through the name of your holy servant Jesus’ (4:30), ‘not to teach in this name’ (5:28), ‘not to speak in the name’ (5:40), ‘worthy to suffer dishonour for the name’ (5:41), ‘and the name of Jesus Christ’ (8:12), baptised in the name’ (8:16), ‘who call on your name’ (9:14), ‘to carry my name’ (9:15), ‘for the sake of my name’ (9:16), ‘who called upon his name’ (9:21), preached boldly in the name of Jesus’ (9:27), ‘preaching boldly in the name of Jesus’ (9:28), ‘forgiveness of sins through his name’ (10:43), ‘baptised in the name of Jesus’ (10:48), ‘risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ’ (15:26), ‘I command you in the name of Jesus Christ’ (16:8), ‘baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus’ (19:5), ‘invoke the name of’ (19:13), ‘and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled’ (19:17), ‘die in Jerusalem for the name’ (21:13), ‘calling on his name’ (22:16), ‘opposing the name’ (26:9).

In our reading for today we discover that it was not long after the day of Pentecost when the authorities began to be concerned about the ‘name’. Even though they had seen tremendous evidence of the power that is to be found in the name of Jesus, they sought to ban any activity based around his name, verses 17-18 ‘But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name. So, they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.’ But what did the disciples do? They prayed for boldness, and after being filled again with the power of the Holy Spirit they went out and continued to speak the word of God boldly. (4:31) But it got them in trouble again, in Acts 5:28 ‘We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching . . .’ The apostles replied we must obey God rather than men.

The disciples had come to know the tremendous power and authority that was involved in the name of Jesus. Power and authority that was present in the name and through the name because of who Jesus was, the obedient and conquering Saviour, the one who God had declared to be Lord over all. And Jesus had commissioned the disciples or sent them to ‘go in his name’, this means that they had been given authority to exercise authority in the name of Jesus.

To attempt to use an illustration, a poor one I know, in themselves the disciples could do absolutely nothing, they would be like you or I going as a civilian and attempting to enter a property to do a search. It just would not happen. What we would need is a warrant, a document that gives us authority to go and to enter and search. And when Jesus gave the disciples authority to use his name it is as if he issued them a warrant, a document ‘his name’ that gave them the authority.  If we look at the period of time between Acts 4:18 when the disciples were charged not to teach or speak in the name of Jesus and the second time in Acts 5:28 ‘We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, we will see verses 12-16 in which we see how they exercised that authority. ‘Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.’ Wow what amazing results. Brothers and sisters, we need to collect our warrant!

As I have gone through these various Scriptures, there are many things that have been highlighted to me, things we know about and readily proclaim, the power in the name to save, the power that is in the name to heal, and the power in the name to deliver and set free.

In Acts 9, we find that Saul who later became Paul was going about with authority (a warrant) to bind those who call on the name, (verses 1-2 and 13-14) and yet as he who hated the name of Jesus was intent on causing suffering toward those who loved the name of Jesus, God was at work with a plan that in turn meant that Saul himself would end up suffering for the sake of the name. The name hater, the name despiser, the one who wanted to obliterate the name would himself become a carrier of that name, he would hold a better warrant, not a warrant that would lead to death for the believers, but a warrant ‘the name of Jesus’ that would lead to life for the unbelievers. (9:15-16) What an amazing evidence of the power in the name of Jesus to save and to transform a life. So much so, that he came to love the name of Jesus so dearly that we hear Paul saying many years later that he was willing himself to be imprisoned or even to die for the name. (21:13)

We are living in relatively safe times in the UK to be a believer in the name, sadly there are many nations where this is not so. We can so easily sing or say that we love the name of Jesus, that Jesus is the name we honour, Jesus is the name we trust because at this moment in time there is no risk involved in saying so. But what if? What if we were told that we were not to teach or preach the name? What if the authorities had warrants to arrest those who follow the name? What if our believing in the name means we would have to suffer many trials, or be imprisoned or be put to death? A lot of ‘what ifs’, but the challenge is for the now, we can believe freely on his name, we can declare freely about his name, maybe, the person God keeps placing into your heart and mind is someone who needs to know about the name, and you are to be the one who is to carry the name to them.

The name of Jesus is so sweet,

I love its music to repeat;

It makes my joys full and complete,

The precious name of Jesus.

Jesus! oh, how sweet the name,

Jesus! every day the same;

Jesus! let all saints proclaim

 Its worthy praise forever.

I love the name of Him whose heart

Knows all my griefs and bears a part;

Who bids all anxious fears depart,

I love the name of Jesus.

That name I fondly love to hear,

It never fails my heart to cheer,

Its music dries the falling tear;

Exalt the name of Jesus.

No word of man can ever tell

How sweet the name I love so well,

Oh, let its praises ever swell,

Oh, praise the name of Jesus.

W C Martin CCLI788682

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Devotions

Daily Devotion April 29th

WEDNESDAY 29th

Acts 3 and 4 – Rivers of Living Water

The ministries or the work of the Holy Spirit within our lives are many and varied. He not only helps us in spiritual ministries, but he helps us in our everyday living, he enables us to walk in his ways rather than in the ways and the desires of the flesh. (our subject in the devotion on April 2nd)

Within the scope of the Church the Holy Spirit not only empowers us and anoints us, he also equips us. He gives us the grace and the strength in our work and service for the Lord.

There is another area that we come to in today’s reading, and perhaps we overlook this when we look at this portion of Scripture, and it is this; I believe that the Holy Spirit makes us more aware of the needs of those who are around us, he sensitizes us to becoming more compassionate toward the less fortunate or those in need. In a sense it is the Holy Spirit working in our lives to make us more like what Jesus was like – it says in Matthew 9:36 that when Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.’

Jesus was a man who was moved with compassion. Today we are seeing all around us folk who are harassed and helpless, the easiest thing to do is to pass by them, to ignore them and think to ourselves, ‘someone else can see to them.’

In Acts 3, Peter and John were making their way up to the temple at the hour of prayer. On the journey was a man who was less fortunate than they were, a man who was harassed and helpless, a man who spent his day sitting and begging just to try and get by. He had been lamed from birth.

I think that the first thing that was triggered in the hearts of the two men was a supernatural compassion for the man. It would have been so easy to just walk by him. But he had a need and they could do something about it. But what they were about to do was something extraordinary. They couldn’t help him out financially , their pockets were empty, but because of the encounter that they had had in the ‘Upper Room’ they had something even more important to offer, something that would end the man’s hopelessness, and mean he would vacate the place where he had been sitting every day and do something that he had never experienced before, to walk and jump and to leap about. They had the Power of the Holy Spirit at work in their lives, they had the ‘faith to believe that something extraordinary could happen’ They had authority to minister ‘in the name of Jesus’ and so they spoke to the man (v6) and took the man by the right hand and ‘immediately his feet and ankles were made strong’ This in itself is amazing, but let’s not miss a major point, the healing was wonderful but through it they introduced the man to Jesus.

Now, I am not suggesting that we should go to every person we see begging in the streets, and begin to do this, what I am suggesting is that when we are truly filled with the Holy Spirit we will know and recognise the sensitivity of the leading of the Holy Spirit to go to those who he wants us to go to. It will not always be necessarily to go to someone in the streets, it can be anywhere, for the helpless and the harassed are found in our neighbourhoods, maybe in our families and maybe even within the community of the Church.

At first, this narrative does not seem to end too well for the disciples, they are arrested and put into custody! But it gives them a great opportunity to share the gospel again(4:7-12) and the verdict given was two-fold, 1) The authorities knew something spectacular had happened (4:13-14) 2) They forbade them from speaking or teaching any more in the name of Jesus. Then they were released.

But immediately the disciples were released from custody they reported back to the Church and they have a prayer meeting about the situation and God releases yet again another spectacular outpouring of the Holy Spirt. V31 ‘And when they had prayed, the place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirt and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.’

Hang on, ‘They were all filled with the Holy Spirit’ I thought that that had happened on the day of Pentecost? How come they were filled again? Well, can I suggest that the disciples who had been filled on the day of Pentecost had also been giving out as they had moved under the power of the Holy Spirit. They had received and they had also been giving, and (hopefully not to sound to disrespectful about spiritual things), they needed topping up again! In John 7:37-38, Jesus cried out ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink’, Jesus said that we need to drink so that out of our hearts will flow rivers of living water, ‘this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.’ (V39) This tells us, that for the rivers of living water to be flowing out they first need to be flowing in! We continually need to ‘drink’, to know what it is to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that he can overflow out through our lives as rivers of living water towards others.

Going back to where we started, as you picture Peter and John speaking to the lame man, allow your mind’s eye to look deeper, first see Peter and John before they make the journey, drinking the living water, they are filled with the Spirit and as they begin to speak to the lame man, in the Name of Jesus, the rivers of living water are flowing out and a need is met and God is glorified.

I am a big tea and coffee drinker, probably drink far too much and guess what, what goes in needs to eventually come out! The more I drink the more . . .!

Paul says in Ephesians 5:18 ‘. . . but be filled with the Spirit . . .’ Scholars tell us that it should read ‘Keep on being filled with the Spirit’ Keep drinking in the water Jesus offers, keep drinking, drinking and drinking, because, you’ve guessed it,  the more you drink the more the rivers of living water will flow!

Rivers of living water,

Rivers that flow from the throne,

Rivers o’erflowing with blessing,

Coming from Jesus alone.

Rivers of living water,

Rivers of life so free,

Flowing from Thee, my Savior,

Send now the rivers through me.

Whoso is thirsty come hither,

Here is abundant supply;

Water transparent as crystal,

Come without money and buy.

Cleanse me, oh, cleanse me, my Savior,

Make me a channel today;

Empty me, fill me and use me,

Teach me to trust and obey.

Then, and then only, Lord Jesus,

Through me the rivers can flow;

Thus and thus only will others

Learn Thy great fulness to know.

Now I surrender to Jesus,

Here I lay all at His feet;

Anything, anywhere only,

Just for His service made meet!

Unknown CCLI 7882682