Author: Ben Thomas

Acts 12

Acts 12 sits in the middle of troubling times for the church. Herod is persecuting the church, he kills James, the brother of John, and he seizes Peter and throws him in jail. In a short span, two crucial members of the church have been taken. But the church kept their faith and prayed to the Lord, and he delivered. Peter was miraculously freed by an angel in the night, and he made his way to the house of Mary. They couldn’t believe it! Peter was free, and soon after Herod was struck down by the Lord. 

There are many aspects to digest in this chapter. I think the first that spoke to me was the faith of the church members in times of trouble. The church was not new to persecution, they had already experienced the death of Stephen, and the Jews had been contesting them from the beginning. They knew what to do when trouble came, they lifted their voices up to the Lord. Luke describes their prayer as “earnest” which means it had sincere and intense conviction. 

This draws a beautiful picture for us as believers concerning our prayer life. While I hope none of our friends are thrown in prison anytime soon, we all have our problems that trouble us and even our faith. How good are we at lifting those concerns up to the Lord? Acts 12 makes it clear that a proper response to our troubles is to immediately give it to the Lord, full of sincerity and conviction. 

One of the best parts of this chapter is God’s immediacy in his resolution for the church. He hears the prayers of the people, and he saves Peter. Even the church wasn’t expecting such a quick resolution, as evidenced by their shock when Peter was at the door. They even thought it must have been his angel. God shows his power to his people, and at the same time gives a great example of how much power is in prayer. God can work in ways that we could never expect, and we should pray knowing that!

Life is full of bumps and turns, and it is difficult to navigate them on our own. When you are in the midst of your deepest struggles, are you earnestly lifting your prayers up to the Lord and giving your worries to him? If so, do you truly believe that he has the power to deliver you and supply you with what you need to move forward? Acts 12 gives us a brilliant example of why we should do and believe both of these things, and I pray that myself and fellow believers would never forget the wonderful power that is in prayer. 

3/4/25 – Acts 2

 

Jesus had risen into the heavens, and the apostles waited together to receive what Jesus had promised them. Ten days go by and finally there comes a rushing wind. Tongues of fire appear and rest upon them. The Holy Spirit, which Jesus had promised, came on the day of Pentecost. The power of this spirit flooded into them. They began to speak in many tongues, and all the Jews of many nations dwelling in Jerusalem were bewildered at the sight.

 

Acts 2 is the spark that ignites the explosion of the church, the beginning of a body that would be Jesus’ mechanism for spreading his name across the world. The Holy Spirit is here, and the apostles have been empowered to be witnesses to the truth that is Jesus. Though he is not with them in the flesh any longer, he has left his spirit with the apostles to do mighty works in his name. 

 

Following Pentecost, Peter provides clarity to the confused audience that has heard the many tongues produced by the spirit. He explains to them that this Jesus that they had recently crucified had been raised up by God, and that he was indeed the Christ. “… Therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” (Acts 2:36). Peter encourages them to repent and be baptized so that their sins may be forgiven, and also that they may receive the Holy Spirit. 

 

The crowd was “cut to the heart” with the words of Peter, and they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. With this devotion came many fruits, and the Lord added to their numbers day by day. The fellowship of believers was growing, and it was all possible due to the presence of the Holy Spirit.

 

Look at the mighty power of the Holy Spirit! Look how quickly it grasped the apostles and launched them into spreading the good news among the unbelievers. Look how it empowered Peter to address the crowd with such conviction. The Holy Spirit has now given ordinary men the power to proclaim the name of Jesus and be his image here on earth. 

 

This text reveals the importance of the Holy Spirit in us and the power it gives us to be witnesses for others. If we have faith in Christ and have received his Holy Spirit, we too have been empowered like the apostles. The living spirit of God has come to dwell in us and reign over our souls. We are no longer who we once were, we now have the spirit to guide us in everything we do.

 

When the spirit goes to work within us, it manifests itself in many ways. As we live in the spirit we cultivate traits that make us more like Jesus. It gives us love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23). We also may receive gifts from the spirit such as the tongues that the apostles spoke in on Pentecost. 

 

All of these traits and gifts that we receive from the spirit make us better fit to be witnesses of Jesus, because they make us more like him. This spirit lives in us right now, and by listening to it and being guided by it we can make a difference and show others the light of Jesus in this dark world. It is now our job to be like the apostles and go out into the world and live boldly in the name of Jesus Christ. Let Acts 2 be a reminder of the power that you have in Christ!

2/18/24 – Psalms 1-2

 

Many times, the Bible calls us to walk in righteousness. After hearing our call, it is only natural for us as Christians to fall into a frantic search. What is righteousness? What must we do to achieve it? Can we truly achieve it? The synchronization of these two chapters happens to point us to the answer. Psalms 1 points us to the law, and Psalms 2 eludes to the perfect fulfillment of that law that came to save us from our inability to execute it. 

 

Psalms 1 starts by defining what a blessed man is, he “walks not in the counsel of the wicked” and “his delight is in the law of the Lord”. The author says the blessed man “is like a tree planted by streams of water”. The law nurtures him, replenishes him, and gives him all that he needs to grow and prosper. The wicked however don’t adhere to these ways, and the author declares they are instead like “chaff in the wind.” The Psalm concludes, “for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”

 

It is clear that the law is good. We are to delight in the law. In the case of the Israelites, the law was given to them to set them apart as God’s chosen people and guide them toward the Lord. It is sacred to them, when they follow it the Kingdom prospers and it falters when they stray away. We must follow it to be righteous before the Lord.

 

But the problem since the beginning of time has been that people don’t fulfill the law. We have all failed to practice the law perfectly, we are all wicked in the eyes of the Lord. This is partly what Psalm 2 highlights. “Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed.” The world is full of wickedness, the rulers do not delight in the law, and they plot against those who do. But something (or someone) is coming. “As for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.” The Lord has a plan. 

 

In summary, Psalms 1 recognizes a beloved standard to keep, while Chapter 2 acknowledges how the world has fallen desperately short. However, that is not the end, the Lord has prepared a king. We are lucky to know this king. He shall enter into a broken world to live a perfect life. He shall commit the ultimate act of love, dying on a tree on our behalf. The author says of him, “Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” 

 

The psalmists unknowingly speak of the antidote to our unrighteousness. Though we cannot fulfill the law spoken of in chapter 1, Jesus can and did. If we wish to walk in righteousness, we should plant ourselves close to him like a tree by a stream of water. Only while being in him and accepting his gift of grace can we be in righteousness, in no other way could we come before the Father than through him. He is the law fulfilled, we must look to him and his example in everything we do. Only by doing this may we walk in righteousness!

In John 12, we witness one of the greatest acts of adoration in the Bible. 

 

While among his companions after the resurrection of Lazarus, Jesus sits on the receiving end of a simple yet captivating act of worship. Mary of Bethany, using a pound of expensive ointment anoints the feet of Jesus with her hair. One of the disciples, Judas Iscariot, sits in objection to her actions, claiming that the ointment should have been sold instead and that the money should be given to the poor. But Jesus interjects, saying “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” 

 

When I first encountered this passage, I remember thinking this to be an unorthodox form of worship. Doesn’t this seem like a bit much? After all, Judas claims that the perfume could be sold for three hundred denarii. How could an object like this be used so carelessly? This question is where the faith of Mary shines through and selfish Judas is put to shame. 

 

Mary knew something that few others did. She saw what Jesus had done, raising her beloved brother from the dead. She knew that Jesus was indeed who he claimed to be! She must have been overwhelmed with emotion and gratitude for Jesus. She wanted to show him how worthy he was of her praise. By using such an expensive ointment she shows us how much she treasures Jesus in her heart. To her, Jesus is worthy of the highest worship she can afford. It didn’t matter how much the ointment was worth, Jesus was worth more. What a wonderful act of love and adoration we get to witness. All Mary can see, and all she cares to see is the glory of Jesus right in front of her. 

 

What a shame it would be for an act of such pure worship to be challenged. Unfortunately, this is exactly what Judas opts for. Judas seems to be missing this love that Mary has for Jesus, he instead seeks personal gain over Jesus. John makes this evident, “He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.” It’s no wonder the act of Mary couldn’t reach the heart of Judas, he was too busy looking out for himself. 

 

After reading this, turning the spotlight on my own life was difficult. Likely because I have known myself sometimes as Judas is in this passage. I have been selfish, ignorant, and unwilling to see the wonderful Jesus sitting right in front of me, all because I have been too busy worrying about myself. But how freeing is it to instead be like Mary, to fall at Jesus’ feet, and to worship him with all of our heart! To value him higher than everything that we have to offer, to know that we could stack the whole world together and it still wouldn’t be worthy compared to him. He is truly priceless!

 

Jesus is worthy of all the love and praise that we can muster up (and more). Mary encourages us to practice the wreckless love that she embodies, and also to give Jesus our all. May the Lord give us the strength to love and worship as Mary did!