Acts: Day Thirteen

If you have 5 minutes!

Read Acts 3:11-16

11 While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. 12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “People of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.

Peter’s speech here shares a similar pattern with that he delivered at Pentecost. Again, it is a speech given spontaneously in response to the powerful workings of the Holy Spirit. Further, as at Pentecost, Peter’s tact is to demonstrate to the crowds that – rather than a failed Messiah – this Jesus they had crucified has, in fact, been vindicated by God and this demands a response!

The urgency with which Peter directs the awestruck crowd’s attention to Jesus is starkly contrasted later on in Acts when, in chapter 8, a magician called Simon sees the Holy Spirit’s power as an opportunity to further his own fame and popularity.

Are there times when we’re tempted to use the gifts God has given us to further ourselves rather than point to Christ? If we’re really honest, perhaps none of us has totally pure motives in this regard so how can we increasingly grow in this area? For example, recently I have felt challenged to try and worry less about how people might respond to things I think God is calling me to say or do than I currently do. For the key players in Acts, they simply accepted that what they did and said would have a mixed response but did and said it anyway!

If you have a bit longer :-)

Be wise in your dealings with outsiders, but use your opportunities to the full. (Col. 4:5)

Who is going to do you harm if you are devoted to what is good? Yet if you should suffer for doing right you may count yourselves happy. Have no fear of other people: do not be perturbed, but hold Christ in your hearts in reverence as Lord. Always be ready to make your defence when anyone challenges you to justify the hope which is in you. But do so with courtesy and respect. (1 Peter 3:13-15)

Again, as at Pentecost, Peter seizes the opportunity that suddenly presents itself in order to tell the crowds about Jesus.

On the scale below – it’s scale week this week! – where would you place yourself? Where do you think Peter would be?

Thinking back over the last week, are there times when you now recognise you could have said something about your faith in Jesus but didn’t? How do you feel about this?
Are there ever times when it’s wise to deliberatly not say anything about Jesus or your faith in him?

And if you’re really keen!...

Peter pulls no punches in telling the crowds what they’ve done wrong: handed Jesus over to be killed; disowned him before Pilate, though Pilate had decided to let him go; disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released instead; killed the author of life!

How well do you think such forceful rhetoric would go down in our contemporary culture?
Does the fact that it would probably be unpopular mean Christians shouldn’t ever be so blunt?
Currently “insulting” conduct is outlawed in the UK. Some MPs want this clause to be scrapped saying it restricts freedom of speech and has led, for example, to a street preacher being arrested because passerbys found him offensive.[1] What do you think? Should we as Christians concern ourselves with such matters? If so, what do you think the Government should prioritise: freedom of speech or the freedom for people to live their lives without being insulted? Whatever you think, maybe just spend a few minutes praying for the Government and asking that God would help them find a good and healthy balance between protecting people from slander and abuse while allowing people to express their beliefs without fear of recrimination.