Stand Fast
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Category Archives: Jesus
Acts 6- The Chosen
And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. Acts 6:1-4
As we study the book of Acts, we still see the roles and responsibilities start to develop and how the Church handled it. The Apostles were being burdened with “secular work” as distributing food to those in need, and it was taking a toll on their spiritual work. Anyone who’s been in ministry knows, it takes alot of time and dedication to study the Word of God, and remain in the Will of God
The Apostles decided to appoint a group of seven men to take over this duty, so the Apostles can be freed up to focus on their spiritual work. Now I know some would look at this and say the Apostles are being lazy or even egotistical. However from my experience being bi vocational , working in the Ministry and having a secular job, I understand the burden the Apostles faced here. There is just not enough hours in the day!
Notice the Apostles said they will “give themselves over to pray continually and the ministry of the gospel” How many people live a sacrificial life like this? Not many, to dedicate your life to God is harder than you think. Remember the Apostles already walked away from their careers when they were called by The Lord to serve
And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. Acts 6:5-7
Notice this move pleased the rest of the Church, there was no grumbling or gossip, everyone was pleased to serve and follow Gods will. Imagine if the Church today was more like this! Notice they selected the seven men who were all filled with the Holy Spirit and had faith. Everyone has different callings from God, these men humbly accepted their roles with great joy to serve God
And lets see the result “The gospel increased and the Church multiplied” Since the Apostles were freed up to focus on the ministry, the gospel of Christ was spread even more generating more disciples! God knows what he is doing!
From a human perspective it may have seemed like a vain move but God knows what he’s doing! We are all given different gifts and different roles all for the same main purpose, to glorify Jesus Christ! Amen!
Trusted with the Gospel
Acts 5- Fighting Against God
And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God. And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Acts 5:38-40
There was a religious leader named Gamaliel, he was very well respected and honored among the leaders. He advised them to leave the Christians alone. His logic was very clear, if the Christians were not from God, then the movement would die out. However if the Christians were with God, then the religious leaders would actually be fighting against the living God!
Now if the religious leaders really had any fear or respect of God, they would have let the Christians alone, however notice what they did after they agreed with Gamaliel. They beat the Apostles and forbid them to speak the name of Jesus! It just shows you the heart of the Pharisees and Sanhedrin , really didn’t love God but loved their religion more!
And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ. Acts 5:41-42
The Christians counted it as joy to suffer for the name of Jesus! The more the persecuted Christians, the more they grew in number. Since Jesus rose from the dead, Satan has been trying to eliminate Christianity, however it just kept growing , even today where billions of people identify themselves as Christians
As Gamaliel said, if Christianity isn’t from God then it would have just died out. The fact is , even after over 2,000 years since Jesus rose from the grave, Christianity is alive and well. Christianity will never be eliminated because God is with us, the Holy Spirit lives inside of us, and Jesus is on the throne as King of Kings and Lord of Lords
Christians rejoiced at suffering for the name of Jesus, is this still the same mentality the Church has today? We need to get back to our roots since the beginning, to live is Christ and to die is gain in Jesus Name Amen!
Acts 5- Obey God Rather Than Man
Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison. But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life. Acts 5:17-20
While the Church continued to grow in number, the religious leaders began to get jealous and decided to throw the Apostles in prison to try and shut down Christianity. Little did they realize that God was on the side of the disciples and not the religious leaders. While the Apostles were in prison, it looked like a hopeless situation, the authorities were against them and the Church had no money or power
However God was with them, and sent an Angel to free them from prison. Imagine the religious leaders, who believed they were doing God’s work, try to comprehend and explain that God was actually against them. The Angel gave them clear commands “Go and preach the gospel”!
And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told, Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.Acts 5:21-23
When the religious leaders went to bring the Apostles to judge them, they were nowhere to be found. Imagine the humiliation of the religious leaders and officers, when the Apostles disappeared. There was no evidence of a break out or foul play. It was a miracle that could only be explained by God Almighty
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow. Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. Acts 5:24-25
While they looked for the Apostles they found them on the street corner preaching the gospel, just as they were instructed. Imagine most people would be hiding for fear of their lives, however the Apostles had faith and were obedient to God, no matter what the consequences were
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men Acts 5:29
When the Apostles were asked, why are they doing these things, they bodley proclaimed “We obey God rather than Man” Even though there lives were threatened and they were thrown into jail, the Church obeyed God rather than live in fear of Man
This should be the model and example for the entire Church today, Obey God rather than live in fear of Man. If God is for us , who can be against us in Jesus Name Amen!
Crush Satan
Acts 5- The Holy Spirit is God
But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. Acts 5:3-5
One of the clear scriptures that the Holy Spirit is God is Acts Chapter 5. Here we see a married couple , Ananias and Sapphira , sold a piece of property to give the profits to the Church, which sounds like a good thing. However they lied to the Holy Spirit about how much they made, and hid some of the money for themselves
Peter called them out on their sin, and when Ananias confessed his sin , immediately died. This event obviously brought great fear among the Church. I believe God used this moment to demonstrate that the Holy Spirit is God and as Jesus taught “Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is an unforgivable sin” (Matthew 12:31)
As Peter stated “You have not lied to men but to God” , its very clear that the Holy Spirit is God and we should pay honor and respect to the Holy Spirit as we do the Father and Son.
And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him. And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much. Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. Acts 5:6-9
Then his wife Sapphira tried to lie to the Holy Spirit also and was immediately struck down with death. As Peter said “How can you tempt the Spirit of The Lord”? Again it demonstrates the deity of The Holy Spirit. Again this sent a strong message to the Church, the fear of God was among all of them!
Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. Acts 5:10-11
As it stated “A great fear came upon all the Church” Do you think God was trying to send a message? The message is The Holy Spirit is God and Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven or tolerated. How many false prophets and religions should read this chapter! Scripture is clear The Father , Son, and Holy Spirit is God Amen!
God Of Hope
Acts 4- What Is The Church?
And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all. Acts 4:32-33
One of the reasons to study the book of Acts is because it gives you a great view of what the Church looked like in the 1rst Century. Often we hear people debate what is the Church? What does a real Church look like? What are the requirements for a Church? If you study the book of Acts, it will answer all these questions and ideas. First thing to note is the word Church is typically derived from the Greek word Ekklesia which means “group of called out believers” or more simply “Christians” the Church is a community of Christians
So when you first understand that the Church was not an organization or corporation but it was a family, it was a community of Christians who took care of one another. As it shows us in the scripture, the Church was united and everyone took care of each other. Nobody was in need of anything because the Church took care of each other as a family.
Secondly their faith in Christ was the central foundation that kept them all together. They didn’t become a “member of the Church” for social or political reasons, they were believers and part of the Body of Christ that loved one another just as Christ commanded us to
Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, And laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need. Acts 4:34-35
Notice everyone in the Church , sold all of their possessions and shared the profits among the body of believers. Can you imagine your Church doing this today? Can you imagine your Pastor asking everyone to sell all their stuff and give the profits to the Church to distribute among the members? This shows you how far the Church has strayed from where we were. You would share your money or possessions with your family members, because you love and trust them. But how many people in your Church would you do this for? Alot of Christians won’t even talk to some members of their Church
We need to get back to the Church of Acts, we need to get back to a family of God. How do we do this? Its only through Jesus Christ that we can become Born Again and humble ourselves. This is why studying the book of Acts is eye opening , how far we have fallen as the Ekklesia
Jesus wants us to love one another, to forgive one another, to be a family. Remember if your going to Heaven, your not going alone, your fellow brothers and sisters will be there also. We need to get back to the 1rst Century Church in Jesus name Amen!
Acts 4- Believers Prayer
And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. Acts 4:23-26
Again the Apostle Peter quotes the Old Testament (Psalm 2) to show how Jesus is the fulfillment of Christ. As prophesied by David and all the prophets of the Old Testament, Jesus fulfilled all things. When the religious leaders were challenged by the Apostles, they had no response because you can’t deny the Word of God and everything that was fulfilled by Jesus
The religious leaders were trying to make examples of the Apostles by challenging them but what they actually did was strengthen the faith of the Christian believers. If the religious leaders couldn’t even disprove that Jesus is The Christ, then who would? Nobody because Jesus fulfilled the entire Old Testament!
For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word, By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. Acts 4:27-30
What made the Apostles preach with such boldness? Why were they willing to give up everything for the movement and even willing to lose their life for Christ? Because they knew Jesus is The Lord and it was reinforced by the signs and wonders performed by Christ and the Apostles through the Holy Spirit!
And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. Acts 4:31-32
Notice after the Church prayed together in unity, they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They preached the gospel with boldness and they took care of each other as a family, as the body of Christ was meant to
May your faith be strengthened by the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the signs and wonders God performed through him and the Holy Spirit. May the Church be united and strengthened in Jesus Name Amen!
Unashamed of Jesus 