In Caesarea there lived a Roman army officer named Cornelius, who was a captain of the Italian Regiment. He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was everyone in his household. He gave generously to the poor and prayed regularly to God. One afternoon about three o’clock, he had a vision in which he saw an angel of God coming toward him. “Cornelius!” the angel said. Cornelius stared at him in terror. “What is it, sir?” he asked the angel. And the angel replied, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God as an offering! Now send some men to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon…

HATE EVIL & CLING TO WHAT IS GOOD, GODLY The church then had peace throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, and it became stronger as the believers lived in the fear of the Lord. And with the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it also grew in numbers. —Acts 9:31 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8Qby8TKLME This is how the early church grew stronger and then by the Holy Spirit’s encouragement the early church also grew in numbers. They had a proper fear of the Lord. “To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech” (Proverbs 8:13). “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD…

Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest. He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them—both men and women—back to Jerusalem in chains. As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the…

The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.” Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him. The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter. And as a lamb is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. He was humiliated and received no justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was…

At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing. —Job 1:20-22 I cannot keep from speaking. I must express my anguish. My bitter soul must complain. —Job 7:11 I am disgusted with my life. Let me complain freely. My bitter soul must complain. —Job 10:1 Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him……

“I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God. —Job 1:20-22 Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.” But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job…

But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. —Acts 5:29 “So my advice is, leave these men alone. Let them go. If they are planning and doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God!” The others accepted his advice. They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them go. The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted…

How could the two of you even think of conspiring to test the Spirit of the Lord like this? The young men who buried your husband are just outside the door, and they will carry you out, too. —Acts 5:9 Do we understand the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man? Have we understood the purity of God and the utter disgustingness of sin before Him? In the context of the verse above, Ananias and Sapphira thought they could agree to lie before the Lord God Almighty without ramifications, but they both “fell down and died” because of their conspiring to lie together against Him (Acts 5:5, 10). Think…

O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them… —Acts 4:24 “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” (Revelation 4:11). Let us put our “hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (I Timothy 6:17). We went for a “sunset cruise” on the lake last night with another couple in Christ. It was a beautiful night as the moon rose from the clouds and shone brightly on the water. A gentle breeze brushed against us but it had…

But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.” —Acts 4:19-20 Is the above verse the cry of our heart as well? Are we at the point where “We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard?” Is the Spirit of God stirring you to speak about Jesus, bearing witness to Him? This is the call of Acts 1:8. We are to be witnesses of the Lord Jesus. May that be the case in our lives even when opposition arises. Dear Father, may I be faithful in sharing the…