Microchurch Minute
Peter, by accessing the power of the Holy Spirit inside of him, healed a crippled man – no one could deny that. What were the officials to do? Condemn him of a good deed? Clearly not. So, their alternative was to forbid Jesus’ from being discussed. In the present day, we see a lot of “separation of church and (fill in the blank)”. Governing officials do their best to keep the Lord out of legal matters and everyday lives. But we are called to bear witness! Our loyalty and duties are to the calling that God has placed on our lives. We answer to our Heavenly Father, because we know that our home is in heaven.
Relative truths are often easier to embrace. It’s easier to believe what you want and give good wishes to those who disagree with you. But, if you have accepted Jesus Christ into your heart, you have accepted that He is the one true way to eternal salvation! And to build on that, once you have truly accepted Jesus into your heart, you have accepted the calling to love people like Jesus did. If I genuinely love someone, do I not want to see them in the mass of believers rejoicing at the throne of God in eternity? If you are simply comfortable accepting that you’ve been saved and are secure if your eternity, while flippantly disregarding the eternal path of those that you claim to love, do you really love them?
Earthly trials and tribulations. We will all face them, God told us it was coming. When you’re in the muck of it, are you praying for God to take it away or are you moved to pray for the boldness to press through it? We just saw that Peter and John were reprimanded for acting in faith and serving the calling God placed on their hearts. Did it scare them into a corner and force them to stop performing miraculous acts in the name of God? It sure didn’t! They returned to their own people and joined together with them to pray and ask for boldness to continue. We can speak with this confidence, as we believe in God, the creator of all things and source of all life.
We’re given this beautiful view into the early church. We are reminded that the community prays together. They surrender earthly goods and share amongst themselves. There’s a whole lot of together-ing going on, and it leads them to a whole heap of God’s grace working through them. We should see that our spiritual brothers and sisters are cared for. We will all go through seasons of being the givers and seasons of needing to be the receivers. But through it all, pray. Continue to speak the truth of God’s goodness in what He has done, is doing and will continue to do.
Microchurch Minute
Hey y’all, let’s jump into Acts 5. We see a warning to the early church regarding regarding the transparency of our hearts and our motives. Ananias and Sapphira seemingly donate proceeds from a sold property to the apostles, but they lied about the amount. Peter confronted them both, and in keeping with their lie, God struck both of them dead. What can look good on surface level, God can see to the heart of. His church is not to be a vessel for our own self-promotion and profit.
Believers continued to meet as the apostles were performing signs and wonders in God’s name. So many people were converting to Christ! All of this success drew criticism from the high priest, who jailed the apostles. But God sent and angel to release them with instruction to continue preaching. How did that go over? Well, as you can imagine the high priest was definitely shocked. The apostles were then brought in for questioning. Peter boldly laid out facts for the council, confirming that they rejected and crucified Jesus – but in return, the Almighty God had used the crucifixion to exalt Jesus and recognize exactly Who He was. They wouldn’t stop preaching the Word of God. Upset at the response, the council beat the apostles before letting them go. So then what did they do? Go on sharing the word of God, just as they were divinely instructed to do – rejoicing as they walked away. Can you imagine rejoicing after a beating? When we suffer for the word of God, we can trust that opposition is coming. Remember, in chapter 4, the apostles were asking for boldness for where their missions would take them. I challenge you to do the same.
Microchurch Minute
Good afternoon, church family. We were blessed to gather and discuss Acts 6, as we reflected on why we worship God. While we recognize there are many reasons, it boils down to the empty tomb. The absolute, foundational truth of Christianity is made evident in the lack of Jesus’ body here on earth. The truth is His resurrection and the fulfillment of prophecies leaves us with no doubt that our Creator is worthy of all honor and worship and glory! Have you found yourself worshipping God in a way that differs from your spouse or loved ones? (hint: do your Sacred Pathways homework to learn more about different styles of worship) God, in His great wisdom, blessed us each with different strengths to be used in the body of Christ and to serve His purpose. As we see in Acts 6, it is wise to recognize these strengths within each other and encourage our spiritual brothers and sisters to embrace their God-given tasks according to their strengths. Be bold in your spiritual gifts. Continue to speak the Good News through earthly opposition. God has enabled and placed you for a reason.
Microchurch Minute
We enjoyed reading through Acts 7 together on Sunday morning. During our brief overview of the Genesis-Deuteronomy, we were able to also read through the apostle, Stephen’s final trial. His death did not come swiftly, but by the process of being stoned. Throughout his trial, Stephen was given ample opportunity to recount his statements, in what would have been an attempt to save his earthly body. We see a bold and Godly example here, of a a man who spoke the truth of Christ, no matter the cost. Do you allow God to speak through you? Do you speak with the confidence of the creator of the universe as your backbone? We must be in tune with the Lord’s message and in a position willing to share with who God is calling us to. See, God doesn’t need us to spread His good news to the ends of the earth, He allows us to be a part of it! Continue to be bold in sharing the good news. Remembering that at times, this will put you in the uncomfortable position of having to forgive those who speak against you, in your full surrender to God.
Microchurch Minute
Miracles, signs & wonders. What a time to be alive. I’m not just talking about the days of Philip’s ministry in Samaria either. I believe that God has blessed brilliant minds of the present day with gifts that they are able to train and utilize for His glory. We place a stagnant comfort in the idea that we can just go to the doctor for healing when we’re sick. But, the reality of this fact is that God provided the healing to us through the hands of the gifted medical staff we got to encounter. Do you choose to see the Holy Spirit in your everyday life? I challenge you to do so, by way of constant realignment of your heart and mind with His calling. I believe it is in the moments of our deepest dependency upon the Lord, that He allows us to see Him move in mighty ways. After Philip baptized the eunich, he was immediately taken away and the eunich went on rejoicing! While we are called to share the good news of Jesus Christ, we must remember to keep the focus on him and not ourselves. When the Lord calls you to move in someone’s life, be sure to listen prayerfully as He allows you to plant the mustard seed and then get out of His way to allow all honor and glory to be attributed to the only One worthy of it all.
