Acts 4:1-13
New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)
4 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.
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.”
13 When they saw the
courage of Peter and John and
realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they, were astonished and
they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
Anyone who thinks they
cannot spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ because they are not a seminary
trained preacher needs to read this scripture.
What was Peter proclaiming in this scripture passage? He was telling the people what He had
witnessed, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Peter was simply giving testimony of what had happened in his own life. He wasn’t talking about the Greek origin or
trying to impress the people with his own interpretation of the scriptures, he
was simply sharing his own personal testimony and he was doing it with
boldness. He was so bold in his
proclamations that the people in charge of the temple came up to Peter and John
while they were speaking and took them away to jail. Take special note though, because of what
they had to say, about 5,000 people became believers that day. Five thousand people believed the words of
both of these men, they believed because it was their own personal testimony
and it was shared with conviction.
I have sat through many sermons on a Sunday morning. I have heard messages that are intriguing and
have kept my attention and I have heard some that were simply words on a paper,
maybe there was good content but it was given without conviction. The sermons that stand out the most to me,
that touch my heart and cause me to examine my own life are the ones that are
delivered with conviction, that are heartfelt, and that share a personal
testimony of how the scripture is true for them. It is a sermon that is spoken with
boldness. My point in saying this is not
to put down any of the messengers of God but to encourage everyone that words
spoken with boldness, as a witness, a testimony of Christ’s resurrection power,
are the ones that will touch the hearts of man.
You don’t need a seminary degree to proclaim the Gospel. You may not stand on a pulpit to share God’s
word but we are all called to share.
These men were in the temple courts where there was obviously a crowd
for us though it may mean going out amongst the people. It may mean getting on Facebook and writing
out our testimony as that is where it seems people are today. No one has to teach you how to share your
testimony because, if you are a believer, you have the Holy Spirit to guide and
direct you. You know who you were before
you knew Him and you know how He changed your life. You know now who you are as
a believer so it is time to get out there and share the Gospel of Jesus
Christ. There are no excuses when it
comes to sharing our faith, this is something that God wants us to do and it is
something that we should want to do. We
may think that we are not qualified and could easily argue that Peter and John
who had not formal schooling in theology walked with Christ and learned from
Him. That is a good argument but haven’t
we too had a walk with Christ, have we not died with Christ, Paul writes, Galatians 2:20 New International Version 1984 (NIV1984) 20 I have been crucified with
Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the
body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%202:20&version=NIV1984)
We not only know Christ
but have been crucified with Him. We
have the Holy Spirit within us to guide us.
The life we live is through the faith in the Son of God, we need to tell
that to others. We need to let them know
that because He loved us, we can love Him.
He gave Himself for us! What are
we giving in return?
I came across a website
while preparing a Sunday School lesson, http://www.shareasyougo.com/. You can get on this website and share your
story. Write it down, thank God for your
salvation by sharing it with others. You
can also post comments on this blog and share your salvation testimony with
others. Share it with people all over
this world. Go out and with boldness
declare the Name of the Lord to others.
Seek Him and know Him then
share Him with others.
Seeking Him with all my
heart,
Sheila
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