July 12th, 2011
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Opposition

Please see the links to our EXTRA Bible Study notes at the bottom of the page.

Opening Prayer

Lord, if my spirit flags, quicken it: if my trust wanes, restore it: if my focus gets blurry, sharpen it.

Read Acts 4:1-12

[1] The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. [2] They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. [3] They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. [4] But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand. [5] The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. [6] Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest’s family. [7] They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?” [8] Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! [9] If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, [10] then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. [11] He is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ [12] Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“Real Christianity bumps up against the ways of the world, and points of conflict pierce serious believers. Following Jesus is not always comfortable and pain-free” (James Howell).

Think Further

Jesus experienced conflict. He promised his followers the same (John 15:18-20). It is easy to condemn the priests as being obsessed with power and consumed by self-interest. No doubt these were factors, but so was their desire to protect truth. Guarding the truth is essential, but in our enthusiasm we should beware of missing the new things God is doing. Our commitment to truth needs to be balanced with a humble openness, recognizing that none of us has a complete understanding. Each of us needs to ask whether through our background, existing understanding, or personal preference we might end up resisting God’s work, because our “zeal is not based on knowledge” (Rom. 10:2)

In our world, one of the primary causes of opposition is our conviction that Jesus is unique and that he constitutes the only way to God. This sort of exclusivism is alien to today’s thinking, but the Bible does not permit any other understanding (12). This should not lead us to arrogance or intolerance, however. We, like all people, stand in need of God’s grace and come into relationship with him only on that basis. Those with different religious convictions deserve to be treated with dignity, respect and love—but that does not mean accepting other ways as equally valid.

A second source of opposition is confrontation with wrong and injustice. Peter is ready, as he was at Pentecost, to remind his hearers that they bear responsibility for the death of Jesus (10). This does not place them in a special category; for the rejection of God’s saving purpose is a sin common to all humanity. This is a call, in line with that of the Old Testament prophets, to recognize their failure and to return to God. This is a call which still needs to be issued today.

Apply

Pray now for any folks you know who are facing opposition for the sake of Christ and who are finding the going tough.

Closing prayer

Lord Jesus, You are the way to God, the truth about God, and the life in God. Help me never to forget or compromise that, no matter the opposition.

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