There is no greater compliment than to have people say that you spend too much time thinking about Jesus. If so, you are in good company. For not only did the apostles spend their every waking hour thinking about Jesus, but they also had the blessing of spending three and a half years in his presence.
When Peter and John ended up on trial before the Jewish leadership, the more they spoke, the more it became obvious who they reminded them of. Luke writes of their reaction:
“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” (Acts 4:13NIV).
It is my prayer for you and for me that everyone who meets us will take note that WE have been with Jesus.
Too often our spiritual temperament reflects that of a man who has just woken from a nap; pleasant, but not particularly alert. By contrast, our brothers, the apostles, were always wide awake, organised, and ready to defend the cause.
When the Jewish authorities told Peter and John that they must not speak or teach at all in Jesus’ name, Peter and John did not humbly apologise and assure them they would keep their religion to themselves. Instead, they proclaimed in the hearing of all:
“Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20NIV).
In other words, “No matter what you decide to do with us, we can’t and won’t stop telling everyone what Jesus has done for us.”
The apostles’ fearlessness was born of experience—so is ours!
John Staiger
0 Comments