Day 15 Acts chapter 5 verse 30 to 42 Acts 5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. 31:Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. 32:And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. 33:When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them. 34:Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space; 35:And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men. 36:For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought. 37:After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed. 38:And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: 39:But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God. 40:And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41:And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. 42:And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ. Peter’s sermon is merely a declaration of the truth of the resurrection backed up with personal witness and it caused conviction in the heart of his hearers. There is no record that Peter was disappointed with the response. Previously 3000 had responded to the declaration of the gospel by repenting. These men respond in hostility. How often do we speak of the reality of the living Christ in our lives, We speak of His sinlessness and the need for salvation. There are glorious moments when people respond in faith but we would be unusual indeed if we never had a hostile response. It does not make the message less true or relevant. Gamelial’s advice shows some understanding of the issues that others lacked. He was quite clear that they were in danger of fighting God if they laid their hands on these men. What was of God would prosper but that which was not would fail. His advice is often misused today. We see movements rise and flourish which are clearly not scriptural and when we lift our voice to speak against them we are greeted with words that describe their size, particularly in comparison to Bible believing Christians. However we need to realise that the disciples presented their message with the evidence from the scriptures of the old testament and on those grounds their critics could not gainsay it. If they had been able to fail it at this first post than Gamelial’s advice would not be needed. The long view is needed in this matter also. In spite of all the waves of heresy that have attracted great numbers of supporters over the years, the truth has survived and never been without its adherents. What God establishes remains. We should not let men silence our voice when we speak out for truth by misusing Gamelial’s words to us. Remember he was one who opposed truth!
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 23:55:47 +0000
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