Category: Acts

Acts 17:24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.

Since Paul is spreading the Good News of Christ in these chapters, there is so much truth we can hold on to here. God is not relegated to church buildings and He is not served by human hands because He is helpless. He is the Creator. We are the creation. He gives us “life and breath and everything else.”

Acts 17:25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

And why does the God of all Creation do this? So that we would seek Him, reach out for Him, and find Him because “he is not far from any one of us.” Simple yet profound and fundamentally life changing.

Acts 17:27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.

Lord, Thank You. Who You are and what You do and have done for us is mind-blowing. And yet, You want us to seek You, to reach out for You. You want relationship with Your people. Help me, daily, seek to strengthen my relationship with You. Draw me closer. Amen.

Acts 17:28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

Have a blessed day.

Acts 16:6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.

I truly believe that God directs our steps, and today’s scripture shows a beautiful illustration of this idea in action. Paul and his companions tried to go to the province of Asia and to Bithynia, but the Holy Spirit did not allow them to. They were finally, successfully, allowed to go to Troas, and they did much good there.

Acts 16:7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.

Was God directing them to something (or someone—Luke, the author of this book)? Was that the reasoning behind where they were allowed to go and not go? Was God keeping them from some danger or harm by directing their steps as He did? Does it even matter that we (or they) understand the why if God was glorified in the doing?

Acts 16:8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.

Lord, I love You with every fiber of my being. I know You have me—mentally, physically, emotionally—exactly where I am in this moment for a purpose, and that purpose is to shine Your light and glorify Your name. Help me not to get caught up in the why, Lord. Help me to do what You have me here to do—glorify and praise You. Amen.

Acts 16:9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

Have a blessed day.

Acts 15:2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.

What strikes me about today’s reading is that it begins and ends with disagreement and dispute, just as so often happens with Christians and churches today. The conclusion drawn at the time, which still holds true today, is that believers are “under no obligation to the rituals…except the sensitivity which love demands.” So simple. So true. So easy to forget.

Acts 15:5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

“We are saved by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, not by any conformity to the law,” and yet, so often we tear each other down. Jesus said, “Love one another,” and yet we add stipulations. “I can’t love you because you don’t vote like me, believe like me, love like me.” Jesus, Help us.

Acts 15:8-9 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.

Lord, You tell us to love one another as You have loved us. And You love us fiercely and unconditionally. Forgive us for putting limits and conditions on the way we love one another. Help us to love each other as You love us, regardless of the personal sacrifice involved in such love. You are worth it, Lord. Amen.

Acts 15:11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

Have a blessed day.

Acts 14:15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them.

What struck me in today’s reading is the lengths that those spreading the gospel had to go through during this time. On the one hand, they were dealing with people who thought they were Greek gods come to earth. They had to try to work through education to enlighten the people on God’s power and Jesus’s love.

Acts 14:18 Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

On the other hand, they had to work against other groups preaching other truths who stoned Paul, they thought to death, and carried on as though it were nothing. Paul, who wasn’t dead, essentially brushed it off and went back to preaching the good news.

Acts 14:19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.

Lord, sometimes Your command to “love one another as I have loved you” feels so difficult. Today’s passage, however, reminds me that what You ask of me is absolutely doable. Help me to love You and love Your people always. Amen.

Acts 14:20 But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

Have a blessed day.

Acts 12:9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.

Peter thought he was dreaming. He didn’t worry about how the chains came off, how he would slip away without the guards waking, how the iron gate to the city would open. He trusted it would unfold as it must in his dream. And everything turned out fine.

Acts 12:10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

How often do I worry and fret about what might happen, what could happen, how in the world is this impossible thing going to happen? Much more often than I’d be willing to admit. But I also know that I am a deeply loved child of God, that He cares for me, loves me fiercely, wants the best for me. No amount of worry or stress about potential outcomes can override His love.

Acts 12:11 Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

Lord, Forgive me for my doubts and fears. As Your beloved child, I have a claim to Your peace which surpasses all understanding. Help me to boldly claim that peace always. Amen.

Acts 12:12 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.

Have a blessed day.

Acts 11:1 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

The boundary-breaking work of Jesus, the inclusivity of Jesus, was pretty radical—both then and now. For a group who had gotten very adept at both establishing and adhering to very elaborate rules of faithfulness, the Jews struggled with Jesus’s provocative inclusion of the Gentiles.

Acts 11:2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him….

I’ve said many times before that it’s disturbingly easy to “armchair quarterback” a situation, but if I had been a part of that time and culture—rule follower that I am—I probably would have been appalled by Peter’s actions, demanding explanation as well. Jesus, forgive me.

Acts 11:3 …and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”

Lord, Thank You for giving me compassion for those struggling with the radical changes You brought to the church. Forgive me that sometimes I get so carried away with following the rules that I lose sight of You. Help me. Draw me closer. Amen.

Acts 11:4 Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story….

Have a blessed day.

Acts 10:3 One day at about three in the afternoon [Cornelius] had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”

There are lots of contrasts in this chapter. Cornelius willingly accepts the message of the Lord and sends for Simon Peter to hear what he has to say. Peter balks at God’s vision, replying at first, “Surely not, Lord!”

Acts 10:4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked.

However, as commentary points out, “Peter was willing to re-examine his traditions and prejudices in light of God’s word….” He goes to preach Jesus to the gentiles, and they enthusiastically receive the word of God and “the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message” (v 44).

Acts 10:13 Then a voice told [Peter], “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”

Lord, Thank You for the times when I react immediately like Cornelius, asking Your will when You call. Forgive me for the times when I balk at Your instructions like Simon did at first. Help me to continually re-examine everything in my life in light of Your sovereignty, love, and grace. Draw me closer. Amen.

Acts 10:14 “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”

Have a blessed day.

Acts 9:1 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples….

Saul’s conversion reminds me of a saying: “If you think you’ve blown God’s plan for your life, rest in this. You, my beautiful friend, are not that powerful.” Saul was murderous and zealous in his persecution of Christians, yet God still used him as a powerful force to grow the early church.

Acts 9:15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.

This was by no means an easy transformation. It involved blindness and fear, trust and rebirth, and a healthy dose of humility. When Ananias lays hands on him, Saul was filled with the Holy Spirit and became a new creation. God used him in powerful ways, often revealing each next step only as he needed it.

Acts 9:17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Lord, Thank You for the redeeming power of Your love. Thank You that You can take the ashes of my life and turn it into beauty. Help me remember that You can use all things for our good and Your glory. Guide me step-by-step, Lord. Amen.

Acts 9:23 & 25 After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him….But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.

Have a blessed day.

Acts 8:1 And Saul approved of their killing him.

We see a wide cross section of the early church in Acts 8. Saul was persecuting Christians, convinced that was the right thing to do. Simon the sorcerer thought he could buy the power of the Holy Spirit. He believed and was baptized (v 13), but he still thought the power of the Holy Spirit was much like a parlor trick. These two are slow on the uptake, but there is still hope for them.

Acts 8:18-19 When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, “Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

Philip, however, was listening for and obedient to the direction of the Holy Spirit (v 26-27), which allowed him to minister to an Ethiopian who was struggling to understand scripture. Notice he was spending time in the Word, even though he struggled to understand. We can learn a lot from both Philip and the Ethiopian.

Acts 8:34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?”

Lord, Thank You for this look at Your nascent church—the bumps and missteps as well as the victories. Help me, like Philip, to listen for and be obedient to Your direction. Help me, like the Ethiopian, to sit with Your word, even when I struggle, and to find others who can help me understand. Draw me closer to You. Amen.

Acts 8:35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

Have a blessed day.