Wednesday 26 Apr 2023

April 26: Acts 8:1-8

Key Verse: Acts 8:6
When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said.

Devotion:
It is hard to stop a crowd of people who have been worked up to do something; whether they are right or wrong, it is hard to stop them once they get going. The people of the Sanhedrin were doing their uttermost to stop the apostles from preaching about Jesus because it was seemingly undermining their power and control of the people. What they could not control, in the end, was the spreading of the truth!

A young man got involved with this and turned vigilante to work with the Sanhedrin to try and quash the work the apostles were doing. The followers of Jesus began to spread far and wide to avoid being caught up in the things which were happening so they could continue to tell people the truth and show them God was more powerful than the people in the Sanhedrin. No longer were the Sanhedrin acting in God’s interest!

Philip went to Samaria where he was able to tell people the gospel story and through prayer, faith and trust in God, he was able to do many things which caught people’s eyes. His prayers were being answered by God because of his faith in Christ. Through him God was able to do many things. He became a light in these dark times, a light which people could look to and be encouraged by. A light which was opening up the truth!

Jesus taught the disciples to go out and make disciples by showing them what God can do when people believe and trust in Him. It is hard to do this when you are being shouted down and persecuted – sometimes it is best to walk away from the persecution and try some place else. To find out where God wants us to be we need to be willing to make changes according to His will in our lives.

Points to Ponder:
Are you stuck trying to do what you think is right?

Are you listening to what God is telling you?