The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Acts 5:28,38-39,
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name”… “in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
The second half of chapter five in Acts could be called, “A Tale of a Fool and a Wise Man”. Here we have the disciples indwelt with the Holy Spirit performing miraculous acts of healings, deliverances from demons, etc. and are called before the religious elites of the day, the Sanhedrin, because of their activities and for teaching the people. Luke tells us the Sanhedrin was filled with jealousy and had them jailed. The following day the high priest, “the Fool”, recalls the strict orders the Sanhedrin had given the disciples not to teach in the name of Jesus Christ. Having the apostles removed from their presence, Gamaliel, “the Wise Man” reminded the Sanhedrin that if the activities of the disciples were from God, the Sanhedrin would only find itself fighting against God.
If anything, this “Tale of a Fool and a Wise Man” points to the insanity of placing oneself in opposition to God. The online Jewish Encyclopedia recognizes Gamaliel as having a leading position in the Sanhedrin in first century Jerusalem. In this account Gamaliel brings someone into the discussion that seems to have escaped the consideration of the high priest: God. Rather than giving vent to their jealousy, wouldn’t it behoove the Sanhedrin to consider the possibility that this movement might be from God and if so, what would the prospect be of finding themselves as fighting against God?
“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” Psalm 14:1. Although many may not verbalize such, through their actions, attitudes and decisions such an outlook is often manifested. In my own life there have been those times when it seems my actions, attitudes and decisions reflected “the fool”. What an outlook of insanity it is to not fear the Lord and allow that posture to influence my actions, attitudes and decisions! “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your theme of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We’d love to hear from you!
(314) 814-8486
This electronic transmission and any documents accompanying this electronic transmission contain confidential information belonging to the sender. This information may contain confidential health information that is legally privileged. The information is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above. The authorized recipient of this transmission is prohibited from disclosing this information to any other party unless required to do so by law or regulation and is required to delete or destroy the information after its stated need has been fulfilled. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or takinf of any action in reliance on or regarding the contents of this electronicallytransmitted information is strictly prohibited. If you have received this E-mail in error please notify the sender and delete this message immediately
No comments:
Post a Comment