Tuesday, February 02nd, 2010 | Author: Chris
What stood out to you today as you ready through Acts chapter 12?
Category: Daily Scripture Reading
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10 Responses
Tuesday, 2. February 2010
WOW!!. Can you see the power of prayer. I have no doubt that Peter was delivered out of prison because of those faithful believers that were praying in Mary’s house. This is an awesome example of a powerful mixture of faith and prayer. Not only was Peter delivered but also Herod was struck down as a result of the church praying.
When we come together as a church and pray in unity with a pure and sincere heart like the early believers did then there is nothing we can not do for the kingdom of God. If anyone doubted the power of prayer, doubt no more, God moves when the church prays.
Tuesday, 2. February 2010
Confession: Throughout the last few years, my perception and interpretation of the Bible has changed…it started becoming more difficult for me to understand who God really is, partly because the last few years have been challenging years for me. I started reading passages like that found in Acts 12 with great confusion. How could a good God allow His children to die and go through pain?
In Acts 12 James is killed and Peter is in prison, and later a great miracle happens where an angel of the Lord leads Peter out of the prison, unshackled and unseen by the many prison guards.
This seems contradictory to me at first glance. James dies and no miracle happens for him, and Peter is set free from prison with an awesome visual image of God’s miraculous ability to set free no matter what the circumstance.
I used to focus so much on only what I wanted to remember from the Bible…only the good miraculous things. But now as I focus on the Bible as a whole (good and bad and everything in-between) I start seeing a clearer picture of who God really is.
He is sovereign. We cannot manipulate Him to do what we want. We follow His lead, not the other way around. And that my friend is a hard lesson to learn. And I am still learning it… believe me. It is a hard concept to grasp because we pretty much get everything we want when we want it in our society. And we are told that is the way it is supposed to be. It’s hard to reprogram your thinking…but with God all things are possible!
The one thing I know to be true is that He promised to be our help in time of need. He is there always at the right time and the right place and His promises are gold. He has never failed me. He has not always given me what I wanted…but He always gave me exactly what I needed when I didn’t even know I needed it.
God bless you all!!
Tuesday, 2. February 2010
Wow Dana, that was an awesome confession! I think we can all relate to this. The great thing is, when we confess to God and others, we receive radical healing that will propel us into a better future!
Tuesday, 2. February 2010
Yea, I agree with you John, the church was praying together late into the night for Peter and their prayers were answered.
Tuesday, 2. February 2010
Verse 23 talks about how the angel struck Herod, because he did not glorify GOD when he was giving his speech to the people and he was eaten by worms and died.
May we only give glory to God thru everything we do.
Wednesday, 3. February 2010
I love the human reactions/emotions that take place with Peter thinking he was dreaming the angel as it led him out and when Rhoda was so overjoyed she forgot to let Peter in.
At the risk of sounding blasphemous, it makes the bible seem more real to me.
Wednesday, 3. February 2010
v24: Herod tried to destroy the church, but persecution only fanned the fire as the “the word of God continued to increase and spread.” What Herod failed to understand was that the church was not just a movement of people, but a movement who’s source of power and purpose was Jesus. Herod wasn’t messing with people, he was messing with the Author of Life.
Wednesday, 3. February 2010
I think this chapter illustrates that faith is trust in the living God, not psyched-up confidence in a particular outcome. I love the fact that the people praying for Peter’s release didn’t believe it when it happened. (Even Peter didn’t believe it until the angel left and he was standing there out in the street.) Their confidence may have been deficient, but they trusted the living God and He answered them.
Thursday, 4. February 2010
I like how Peter told people about what happen and how he told them to tell other people.
Thursday, 4. February 2010
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