Grow. Pray. Study. Daily Guide from the United Methodist Church
of the Resurrection - Wednesday, 8 January 2014 – "We are all Witnesses to
that fact"
Daily Scripture: Acts 2: 22 “You that are Israelites,[a] listen
to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth,[b] a man attested to you by God with
deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you
yourselves know— 23 this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan
and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those
outside the law. 24 But God raised him up, having freed him from death,[c]
because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. 25 For David says
concerning him,
‘I saw the Lord always before me,
for he is at my right
hand so that I will not be shaken;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
moreover my flesh will
live in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
or let your Holy One
experience corruption.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
you will make me full
of gladness with your presence.’
29 “Fellow Israelites,[d] I may say to you confidently of our
ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to
this day. 30 Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to
him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Foreseeing this,
David[e] spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah,[f] saying,
‘He was not abandoned to Hades,
nor did his flesh
experience corruption.’
32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are
witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at[g] the right hand of God, and having
received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this
that you both see and hear.
Footnotes:
a. Acts 2:22 Gk Men, Israelites
b. Acts 2:22 Gk the Nazorean
c. Acts 2:24 Gk the pains of death
d. Acts 2:29 Gk Men, brothers
e. Acts 2:31 Gk he
f. Acts 2:31 Or the Christ
g. Acts 2:33 Or by
Reflection Questions:
Today's reading is a part of the sermon Peter preached in
Jerusalem less than two months after Jesus' death. Luke published Acts sometime
between 60 and 80 C.E. If Peter's claim that "we are all witnesses"
had been false (or if Luke's account of the sermon had been an invention),
there would have been many people still alive who could have easily discredited
his words. Yet Luke confidently recorded Peter's bold sermon.
Peter anchored his beliefs about Jesus firmly in specific
historical facts ("you yourselves know this"—verse 22, and "we
are all witnesses"—verse 33). Does it seem likely to you that the
Christian faith could have spread throughout a hostile Roman empire if Rome
could have easily shown that its claims were false? In what ways did Peter put
his veracity on the line by proclaiming these as facts just two months later in
the very city where they happened?
The facts of Jesus' death and resurrection led to the
Christians' faith, which Scholar N. T. Wright summed up this way: "It
declares that God, knowing how powerful evil was, had long planned to nullify
its power by taking its full force upon himself, in the person of his Messiah,
the man in whom God himself would be embodied." What freedom from fear and
guilt have you found in trusting that nothing worse can ever happen to you than
happened to Jesus, and that "the worst thing is never the last
thing"?
Today's Prayer:
Lord God, Peter preached that you had acted decisively, in
Jesus, to defeat evil. Give me the vision to live each day confident that
ultimately "the wrong shall fail, the right prevail." Amen.
Wednesday, 8 January 2014 – Insight from Rev. Steven Blair
Rev. Steven Blair is the Congregational Care pastor of Live
Forward and Live Well Emotional Wellness Ministry. www.cor.org/liveforward
“Do What You Say, Say What You Do”
WEDNESDAY, 8 January 2013
Acts 2: 22 “You that are Israelites,[a] listen to what I have to say:
Jesus of Nazareth,[b] a man attested to you by God with deeds of power,
wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know—
23 this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and
foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside
the law. 24 But God raised him up, having freed him from death,[c] because it
was impossible for him to be held in its power. 25 For David says concerning
him,
‘I saw the Lord always before me,
for he is at my right
hand so that I will not be shaken;
26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
moreover my flesh will
live in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
or let your Holy One
experience corruption.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
you will make me full
of gladness with your presence.’
29 “Fellow Israelites,[d] I may say to you confidently of our
ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to
this day. 30 Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to
him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Foreseeing this,
David[e] spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah,[f] saying,
‘He was not abandoned to Hades,
nor did his flesh
experience corruption.’
32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are
witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at[g] the right hand of God, and having
received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this
that you both see and hear.
Footnotes:
a. Acts 2:22 Gk Men, Israelites
b. Acts 2:22 Gk the Nazorean
c. Acts 2:24 Gk the pains of death
d. Acts 2:29 Gk Men, brothers
e. Acts 2:31 Gk he
f. Acts 2:31 Or the Christ
g. Acts 2:33 Or by
Every once in a while the internet catches someone who is a
sponsor for one product, using the competitor’s product instead. A Nike spokesperson found in Adidas gear, a
Coca-Cola endorser caught drinking a Pepsi, it happens. When it happens, the actions of the person
call the words of the person in question.
It is funny when others are caught in this moment of
hypocrisy. It is unpleasant when it
happens to us. When we raise our voices
at our kids telling them to “Quiet Down.”
When we give our friend a great piece of advice that we cannot take
ourselves. Our actions call our words
into question, and vice versa.
In today’s Scripture we see Peter giving his most famous
sermon. Just days earlier he had denied
even knowing Jesus and then hid in an Upper Room for fear of being added to
Rome’s crucifixion list. Roughly 50
days later, Peter is in Jerusalem filled with a power that is beyond him. (In preachers’ words, Peter was “feeling
it.”) He had the boldness to tell the
Truth even when it was risky.
“This man was handed over to you (Fellow Israelites) by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge;
and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the
cross.” (Acts 2:23)
Where did this life change come from and how did this Jewish
fisherman from Galilee end up preaching this powerful message to a crowded
Jerusalem room that included some elites?
Jesus.
“God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of
it.” (Acts 2:32)
These words could have been seen as fantasy or delusion. But the way Peter said it and the obvious
newfound boldness found in his life all pointed to something having
happened. Peter and the rest of the
disciples would continue with this message: “The Crucified Jesus is in fact the
Messiah, the Son of God. He has been
raised to life conquering both Death and Rome.”
This message was considered by many as fantasy or delusion, but the way
the disciples lived it added power to their words. All but one of the remaining disciples were
martyred for their belief in Jesus. No
one recanted and said it was all a hoax.
Each one lived and then died for this Belief.
Our call is to make our Lives reflect the same truth that God
raised Jesus to life.
> If you believe that God raised Jesus to Life, then you are
called to be a messenger of Hope in dire situations.
> If you believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins,
then you are called to be an extension of grace to all people.
> If you believe that a Crucified Messiah is the image of
God’s ultimate power, then you are called to see similar acts of sacrifice,
humility, and compassion as strong actions.
Peter’s life showed the power of his words.
Does ours?
Are we different enough because of what Jesus is doing in our
hearts for others to say “Something REAL is happening here?” Or are we endorsing Jesus with our words and
choosing competing behaviors with our actions?
We need to have actions that match what we say our convictions
are.
We also need to be willing to publicly endorse with our words
what drives our actions.
Be Like Peter.
Do what we say.
Say what we do.
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United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, KS 66224 United States
(913)897-0120
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