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27 When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us." 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than any human authority .30 The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him." (Acts 5:27-32 NRSV)
A blessed and joyous Wednesday to you, Eradio is my prayer. May we continue to pray for one another, pray for our brothers and sisters who have asked prayers from us. We pray in faith because God answers prayer! Pray for peace in the Ukraine, and peace in the hearts of those who lack peace.
Here we find the story of Peter and the disciples being "called on the carpet" for their continued sharing of Jesus. They stand before the council, aka The Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews in Jerusalem. These were the men behind stopping Jesus. Or, so they thought. Peter and the eleven continued doing what they had been taught, what they saw and experienced, and what they knew they had to do. They had been witnesses to life, a life unlike one they had lived prior to coming to faith in Jesus, and so there wasn't really an option not to do what they were doing, and to stand in front of the council was just another opportunitiy to share Jesus and His message as they had heard it. To hear, "We gave you strict order not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching (Sounds like they are doing a great job!) and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us." And their resposne shows where their hearts were; "We must obey God rather than any human authority." The one who knows, loves, trusts, and walks with God, knows their first and only loyalty is with God, and God's teachings and instructions. To come so far and have seen so much, they knew they had to share Jesus. They continued their defense, "The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, Whom you had killed by hanging Him on a tree." Please note they pull no punches; they say what they knew to be their truith; We share the same God for our ancestors are the same, yet you killed Him by hanging Him on a tree. "God exalted Him at His right hand as Leader and Savior that He might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins." They continue preaching that which they knew; God has chosen Jesus to do what Israel needed; A call to repentance and the offer of forgiveness of sins. Though these men were the ones with blood on their hands, they still stood in need of asking and receiving forgiveness of sins and receiving the fullness of life that Jesus intendend for Israel.
They close their defense with this statement, "And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit Whom God has given to those who obey Him." When you experience what Peter and the eleven had, they were witnesses. They saw what they saw and never would they forget that. An eyewitness to history never forgets nor shuts off the sharing of that experience with others, even those who were responsibile for having caused such an event. They further risk anger by saying they, the disciples, were among those who had God's Holy Spirit as their witnesses, and God only gives this to those who obey Him, meaning that those on the council were not obedient and thus were unaware of the Holy Spirit. Yet, I truly believe had any member of the council desired to repent and draw near to God, they would have been forgiven and welcomed. I think of dear Nicodemus, a member of the council who had become a believer in Jesus and I believed, a witness blessed by God to have the Holy Spirit accompany him for the rest of his life.
You and I are witnesses to the mighty works of God in our lives. We have seen too much to ever keep quiet about what awesome God could do ahd has done in us. And there is a whole lot of folks who have yet to hear.
PRAYER: Loving God, we have seen and heard and experienced so much, that we cannot be quiet about You and Your love. Embolden us to share with certainty the news that You are awesome and You love us all. Remind us that we must be obedient to You always; in Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord. Share with faith that which has blessed you!
Receive my blessings of hope and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
