Month: August 2022

Righteous living/obedience attracts the Favour of God.

⁸ But NOAH FOUND FAVOUR in the eyes of the Lord.

⁹ This is the account of Noah and his family.

NOAH WAS A RIGHTEOUS MAN (Who he was), blameless among the people of his time, and HE WALKED FAITHFULLY WITH GOD (What he did). ¹⁰ Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth. Genesis 6

Noah’s character and his life brought him Favour in the sight of God.

² A good man obtains Favour from the Lord,
    but the Lord condemns a crafty man. Proverbs 12

The next man in Genesis who found Favour with the Lord was Abraham, the Father of all believers. The Lord had come down to see for Himself if Sodom and Gomorrah were as wicked as reported. Abraham and Sarah offered the three strangers hospitality and received their promise of a miracle son, within the year.

²⁵ Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! WILL NOT THE JUDGE (RULER) OF ALL THE EARTH DO RIGHT?” Genesis 18

God allowed Abraham into His counsel, what was going to happen to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. Amazingly, He also listened to Abraham’s repeated pleading on behalf of the Righteous who would be caught up in any coming judgement.

¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I HAVE CALLED YOU FRIENDS, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. John 15

Part of the Favour of God upon us is the sharing of His counsel with us!

Lot had gone to live in plain of the Jordan after he had separated from Abraham. We don’t know why Lot stayed in Sodom and Gomorrah where such great wickedness abounded, but he did.

¹² The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, ¹³ because we are going to destroy this place. Genesis 19

The men pledged to be married to Lot’s daughters laughed when he told them to get out because the city was going to be destroyed. We are often so attached to our material or physical world that we’re totally reluctant to leave it. (But someday we will) This happened twice in the account of Lot leaving Sodom.

¹⁸ But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! ¹⁹ Your  servant has found favour in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die.

Lot pleaded to go to the small town of Zoar and no sooner had he got there than burning sulphur destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Judgement fell quickly but the Lord preserved Lot and his immediate family.

²⁶ But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. (She ‘looked back’ to the old familiar places and forfeited her life. Luke 17:32)

God’s Favour will rescue us from imminent judgement on those around us.

God bless and keep you today and every day.

 

I woke up this morning at 03:20 and immediately thought of Revelation 3:20;

¹⁹ Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. ²⁰ Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. Revelation 3

The risen Christ speaking to the last of the seven Churches and He wasn’t happy. In verse 19 the Lord says those whom He Loves, He disciplines for their good. Then He gives a wonderful promise to the people of this Church, if they’ll open the door to His knocking, He’ll come and eat with them. We had some people in our home last night and it was good at the end of the evening to talk around a table. Christ wants that close fellowship time with us if we’ll only open the door of our hearts and lives to Him.

Some further 3:20 verses from various New Testament books;

²⁰ Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. ²¹ When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” Mark 3

Jesus was under constant pressure, crowds everywhere and even His own family wanted to stop Him. Sometimes even those close to us may not understand God’s calling on our lives.

²⁰ Everyone who does evil HATES THE LIGHT, and will not come into the light for FEAR that their deeds will be EXPOSED. John 3

Jesus explaining to Nicodemus that people fear exposure, they don’t want past their wrongs to be uncovered and yet confession and repentance (bringing things into the light) is often our way to perfect freedom. John’s Gospel deals more with the internal than the others.

²⁰ Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. Romans 3

If we try to keep the Law, we have to keep the whole Law (not just our bits) all the time and it can’t be done.

Peter said so, ^{10 “}Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? ¹¹ No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” Acts 15:10

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Our God can do much more than we ask or imagine. When we pray we enlist the aid of the King of the Universe and we have direct access through Jesus.

²⁰ But OUR CITIZENSHIP is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, Philippians 3

Perhaps the most important scripture is still the opening one from Revelation 3:20. Jesus the Lord of the Church, His body here on earth (that’s what we’re meant to be), is standing knocking on the door. He wants to come in to our company and have fellowship with us. He was talking to a Church, not unbelievers. Is He still saying the same thing to some of us?

God bless and keep you.

 

The concept of God’s Favour is introduced at the beginning of His Word.

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. ³ In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. ⁴ But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. THE LORD LOOKED WITH FAVOUR ON ABEL AND HIS OFFERING, ⁵ BUT ON CAIN AND HIS OFFERING HE DID NOT LOOK WITH FAVOUR. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Genesis 4

The Lord made a distinction between the two brothers, He received the offering of Abel but not the offering from his older brother and firstborn, Cain. We’re not told exactly why; it may have been something to do with the earth now being cursed after Adam’s sin.

⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? ⁷ IF YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT, WILL YOU NOT BE ACCEPTED? (We are Fully Righteous through Christ’s sacrifice today) But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.’ 

God told Cain HE HAD A CHOICE (We all have Free Will), do the right thing and he would be accepted. How many people today are living life on their own terms, with a bit of religious observance when it suits and expecting God’s blessing or Favour? God also warned Cain that there was an enemy waiting for him if he chose the wrong way and he did.

⁸ Now Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let’s go out to the field.’ While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.

The first recorded murder followed soon after the Lord rejected Cain’s offering. Anger rose up and he killed his own brother out in the field, where he wouldn’t be seen. The Lord’s Favour and acceptance produced murderous anger in the older brother. There’s no record he tried to get right with God, instead he took revenge against his own brother.

¹⁸ “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. ¹⁹ If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. John 15

In John 15 and when Jesus said, ‘‘I AM THE VINE, you are the branches’’, He warned us about being hated by those who didn’t know Him. Jealousy over what they don’t want, but envious that believers have.

The first person mentioned in Hebrews 11, the gallery of heroes in the Faith is Abel. His sacrifice has never been forgotten, Hallelujah.

⁴ By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.

God’s Favour May cause even those close to us to resent us bitterly, but God’s Favour is worth everything in this life and in the life to come.

God bless and keep you today.

We have much for which to thank Peter and the early apostles, by the Spirit they laid the foundations of the new Church on earth. NO APOSTLES, NO CHURCH!

The Holy Spirit came as Jesus had prophesied on the day of Pentecost and many heard the Gospel in their own tongues. Acts 2:11

¹⁴ Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: ‘Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: Acts 2

The Spirit gave Peter words to refute the mockers and the Good News of Christ’s sacrifice was preached for the first time.

This was a power ministry, marked by signs and wonders from the outset Acts 2:43 ‘and the LORD (Yes He’s still alive and about to show it once more) added to their number daily those who were being saved.’ Acts 2:47

The Sanhedrin tried once again, as they’d done so often with Jesus, to block God’s Good News;

¹² SALVATION IS FOUND IN NO ONE ELSE, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.’

¹³ When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, ordinary men, (still obvious) they were astonished and THEY TOOK NOTE THAT THESE MEN HAD BEEN WITH JESUS. Acts 4

These had become very different men and were powerfully energised by the Spirit, NOTHING COULD STOP THEIR MESSAGE;

⁴⁰ His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

⁴¹ The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Acts 5

Peter was involved in two direct confrontations with RELIGIOUS GROUPS WITHIN THE CHURCH, in fact as we saw yesterday, it was his last recorded speech in the Book of Acts.

11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. ² So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers CRITICISED HIM (Religious love to criticise)  … Acts 11

God had sent Peter to Cornelius and religious men criticised him for obeying God. They didn’t give up and tried to introduce the same false teaching in Antioch and a meeting of the whole Church leadership was held in Jerusalem to rule on it. RELIGION HATES THE FREEDOM WE HAVE IN CHRIST! I was listening to a prophetic word this morning by Julie Green on Rumble. The Lord spoke through her about ‘religious quarrels’ and ‘don’t go back into religion, another kind of slavery, like Pharaoh in Egypt’.

Peter made mistakes along the way, but he was powerful for the Gospel message in his last days. Hallelujah

Fathersloveministry is a faith based ministry, please Donate on our webpage today and help support the Father’s work;

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Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, FOR GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER. 2 Corinthians 9:7

The Lord is no man’s debtor, Hallelujah.

God rewards those who give to Him, don’t miss out on your blessings, give to Him today.

We are available to seek personal words of direction and encouragement for those who want them. Please contact us on our webpage above. We can also provide counselling online, contact our webpage. A donation is normally required for this service.

The Lord bless and keep you today.

The last time we read of Peter, Acts 15 is at the Jerusalem Council, as a Governmental Apostle. (God’s calling never leaves our lives, though time may alter how it’s outworked)

Some men came down from Judea to Antioch (without authorisation! V 24), the enemy wanted to oppose the powerful work of God among Gentile Believers. They taught the need for circumcision, a hangover from the Law of Moses and the original Covenant with Abraham. Paul and Barnabas sharply disputed with them and eventually were sent to Jerusalem to secure a ruling from the Central Church, the final authority.

⁵ Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.” Acts 15

The distorted thinking within the Church soon manifested and a decision had to be made whether or not the new Gentile Church would obey the Law or live by Faith alone. (We should remember how strongly this very subject was contested in the days of Martin Luther)

⁶ The apostles and elders met to consider this question. ⁷ AFTER MUCH DISCUSSION, Peter got up and addressed them:

Peter was the senior Apostle in Jerusalem at Pentecost, but he waited until others had their say. TRUE AUTHORITY will always allow others their say, Christ was never a dictator.

⁸ God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. ⁹ He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 

Peter spoke as an eyewitness to the baptism of the first Gentiles in the Holy Spirit (God had told him to have no hesitation, to go to Cornelius and those waiting with him)

¹⁰ Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? ¹¹ No! We believe it is through the grace of OUR Lord Jesus that WE ARE SAVED, JUST AS THEY ARE.” 

These are the last recorded words of Peter in Acts! He refuted any crossover of the Law into the new Church. He also stated that the Jews would only be saved by Faith in Christ. They are a Covenant people, but need their Messiah as much as we do.

The false teachers who went on their own accord to Antioch, disturbed the people and caused a mess in the Church. The Jerusalem leadership then had to make a ruling on the future requirements for the Gentile believers. Something positive, clarity of belief and the new ruling came out of the confusion and misleading teachings. God had placed Peter right at the forefront of the Gentile Church being birthed. Peter the man who’d led at Pentecost, also spoke with authority and countered the arguments of those believers from the ‘party of the Pharisees’. God had more in Mind when he sent Peter with the servants to Cornelius. We don’t always understand the Lord’s dealings in our lives, but He’s wiser than us and knows what our future holds.

God bless and keep you today.

A gate and a door to open and two different angels. Acts 12

Acts 12 begins with King Herod arresting and persecuting some of the Church.

² He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. ³ When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. Acts 12

Herod, though king, was a man pleaser and eventually it cost him dearly.

²⁵ Fear of man will prove to be a snare,
    but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. Proverbs 29

Peter was awaiting trial in prison and the Church was praying earnestly.

⁶ The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. ⁷ Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, AND THE CHAINS FELL OFF PETER’S WRISTS.

¹⁰ They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. IT OPENED FOR THEM BY ITSELF, AND THEY WENT THROUGH IT. 

It was the night before Peter’s trial and he was sleeping, as best he could, while chained between two guards. The first angel arrived, no doubt in answer to prayer and Peter, as if in a dream was set free. Heaven had to intervene and release Peter, otherwise he may have suffered the same fate as James, the brother of John.

Peter went to the house of the mother of John Mark, were many people were praying for his release.

 ¹³ Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door.¹⁴ When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!” (Funny incident in a serious situation)

¹⁶ BUT PETER KEPT ON KNOCKING, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.

Peter had to KEEP KNOCKING UNTIL THEY OPENED THE DOOR TO HIM, he surely wasn’t expected. The angel had left him and he now had to get them to open the door for him.

¹⁹ After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed. (Did someone have to die, a blood sacrifice to satisfy false gods?)

Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.

Herod moved on for the last time. He made a speech wearing his royal robes from his throne and the people said it was a god, not a man. (False praise that puffs up man’s ego is a trap).

²³ Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

Some lessons from the account of Peter’s great escape.

If you’re in a prison, literally or figuratively (somewhere too strong for you to get free), PRAY EARNESTLY AND ENLIST THE HELP OF OTHERS!

If you need a door to open, don’t give up, KEEP KNOCKING!

We as believers need to live our lives here in the Fear of God and not the fear of man.

God bless and keep you today.

The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. Acts 11:1

There are some events that just have to be broadcast and the fact that the Gentiles had ‘received the word of God’ was definitely Front Page News. Peter had followed the leading of the Spirit, but now the repercussions followed. Opposition often follows any genuine move of God’s Spirit, it’s almost a confirmation that it’s from God. Religious spirits hate anything that threatens to change the current state of affairs.

• The Book of Acts is sometimes referred to as the Acts of the Holy Spirit, He was the one who was initiating all the change. We listened to an episode of Elijahstreams last night where the speaker, Johnny Enlow, said that it was the Holy Spirit who ‘Driving the events’ in society today. He also said that things would never again be as they were, so we shouldn’t yearn for the past.

² So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticised him (these people all had something in common and wouldn’t accept others who didn’t, often the way) ³ and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.” 

A number of times in Acts we read that the apostles were sent out from the Church in Jerusalem. Acts 8:14, 11:22 But on this occasion it was the Spirit of God that told Peter to go with the Gentiles. He was wise in taking six other men with him who could confirm his account.

Peter had to go up to Jerusalem and speak with the elders of the original church. He gave then a detailed account –  (eyewitness detail gives credibility to our words and is hard to refute! That’s part of the reason our testimony is so powerful) – of the vision he’d had three times. Then the arrival of the three messengers from Cornelius, (no time to discuss the next move) with his request for Peter to come to him. The Holy Spirit is good at arranging things His way.

Peter was a leader ‘out on a limb’, but he had to defend his actions before the Elders in Jerusalem. He couldn’t ignore them, they held governmental authority of the recently born Church. Peter’s account came down to the fact that soon after they’d arrived with Cornelius, God’s Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles. He couldn’t undo or oppose God’s sovereign will for these people. Thankfully the elders accepted Peter’s explanation and began to support the Gentile Church.

In the coming days we too may see a very different Church being birthed on the earth. Many standards that people have clung to for their identity may become obsolete, but we can never oppose the moving of God’s Spirit. We need to find out  if there’s LIFE in whatever is being done in the Name of the Lord and be flexible. We are not the judges of the New Life in Christ.

God bless and keep you today.

The birth of the Gentile Church was tremendously significant, but powerful religious traditions had go before it could happen. Acts 10:14-16

¹⁴ “SURELY NOT, LORD!” Peter replied. Acts 10

Peter’s words were a bit of a contradiction, ‘Surely Not’ and ‘Lord’, can’t exist together for him or us! We all have different mindsets, especially religious ones and they can be great hindrances to what the Lord wants us to do for Him.

We saw in Friday’s blog that the angel instructed Cornelius to SEND FOR PETER, Acts 10:5, whatever God was going to do was through the apostle Peter. We should note that Cornelius responded at once to the angel messenger. There were a chain of events leading up to the meeting in Cornelius’ house.

The NEXT DAY Peter (after he met Cornelius’ servants) started out with them, and some of the believers from Joppa went along. Acts 10:23

³³ SO I SENT FOR YOU IMMEDIATELY, and it was good of you to come. NOW WE ARE ALL HERE in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”

Russell Walden says that OUR Response Time to God, may well determine HIS Response Time to us. Cornelius and Peter both responded at once to the revelations they’d received.

I once met with a young friend who was seeking direction for a major change in his life. (Whether to leave his employment and join Youth With A Mission through their Discipleship Training School, DTS, in Amsterdam). The answer was Yes, but I also told him that he should be like Abraham, Genesis 22:3 when challenged about sacrificing his only son, Isaac.

³ EARLY THE NEXT MORNING ABRAHAM GOT UP AND LOADED HIS DONKEY. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. Genesis 22

He’d got the confirmation he was seeking but he had to move without hesitation, or risk losing his momentum.  Thankfully he went forward with his calling.

When Peter got to Cornelius’ house and the people waiting there, he received a confirmation and revelation of God’s will that was to change everything.

³⁴ Then Peter began to speak: “I NOW REALISE (A Now Revelation!) how true it is that God does not show favoritism ³⁵ but accepts men from every nation WHO FEAR HIM AND DO WHAT IS RIGHT.

Peter saw that God was doing a new thing and followed the leading of God’s Spirit by visiting non-Jews in a Gentile home. He was later criticised for this by the circumcised believers in Jerusalem, Acts 11:3, but in a sense it was too late. The apostle had gone in faith and not sought permission from a central committee. Hence the foundation for the new Church was laid, Hallelujah.

Religious barriers can be a great hindrance to new things that God wants to do by His Spirit. I believe the coming victorious Church will look and be very different to the religious organisations of the present time.

God bless and keep you today.

Does God want you to ask Him for something now? Acts 10

We saw yesterday that God used Peter mightily, from healing the bedridden Aeneas to the raising of Tabitha from the dead. These resulted in many people giving their lives to the Lord.

⁴³ Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon. Acts 9

The chapter ends with Peter being settled for some time in the home of Simon the tanner, by the sea. The apostle Peter didn’t feel the need to return to Jerusalem, the centre of the new Church. I’m sure he was following the leading of God’s Spirit, but he didn’t feel the need to be at the centre of the Church directing affairs. (Not driven by the need to control) Peter stayed in someone’s house by the sea.

Acts 10 recounts the birth of the Gentile Church and is one of the most significant events in our Bible for present day believers. It’s also interesting to look at God’s dealings with the people involved in these matters.

We’re told who Cornelius was and of his generosity to the poor and his devoted prayer life. Then an angel came to him with a message from God.

The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. ⁵ NOW SEND TO JOPPA to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. ⁶ He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.” Acts 10

God was about to do something unprecedented and Cornelius had to send for the apostle Peter to come to his home. God could have done it Himself, without Peter, but He wanted His apostle to be there. We may not understand why, but is GOD WANTING US TO ASK SOMEONE TO DO SOMETHING TODAY? It may be that God needs/wants someone else to be involved in His solution for us!

God was also at work in Peter preparing him for the coming move of His Spirit among the Gentiles.

¹¹ He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. ¹² It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. ¹³ Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”

¹⁴ “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”

¹⁵ The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”

¹⁶ This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

Peter had a religious Jewish mindset (John Wimber, founder of the Vineyard Churches, used to talk about our World View) and God had to shift his belief system. God is fully aware of OUR INTERNAL STRUGGLES when He’s asking us  to do something. We can be challenged because we don’t understand what He’s doing and why, but He works with us to overcome inner resistance.

God doesn’t override our individual personality, He works with us to shift us to a place of trust. What a patient and good God we serve.

Fathersloveministry is a faith based ministry, please Donate on our webpage today and help support the Father’s work;

fathersloveministry.co.uk

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, FOR GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER. 2 Corinthians 9:7

The Lord is no man’s debtor, Hallelujah.

God rewards those who give to Him, don’t miss out on your blessings, give to Him today.

We are available to seek personal words of direction and encouragement for those who want them. Please contact us on our webpage above. We can also provide counselling online, contact our webpage. A donation is normally required for this service.

The Lord bless and keep you today.

¹⁴ When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, THEY SENT PETER AND JOHN TO THEM. Acts 8

WE SHOULD TREASURE CLOSE FRIENDSHIPS WITH OTHERS IN THE BODY, they probably have a limited life span! This is the last recorded time where Peter and John ministered together. The Twelve who’d lived closely with the Lord for three years were now scattered for the sake of the Gospel, but they’d received an important promise when still with the Lord. These Twelve would be together again for all eternity, never to be separated.

²⁸ Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Matthew 19

Peter, despite many slips and stumbles in his early days (be encouraged) with the Lord became a mighty man of God.

¹² The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. … ¹⁵ As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats SO THAT AT LEAST PETER’S SHADOW MIGHT FALL ON THEM AS HE PASSED BY. 

Peter carried the presence powerfully wherever he went. The next time we see him in Acts 9 he’s ministering along the coastal plain of the Mediterranean Sea, away from the capital city. The Lord is still using him powerfully to heal the people and win the lost for His Kingdom.

³³ There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralysed and had been bedridden for eight years. ³⁴ “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. (Peter was the conduit, Jesus Christ was the source) Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. ³⁵ All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. (There was an overflow into the whole area, the Gospel was spreading out from the centre.) Acts 9

Then Peter received another emergency call to the coastal city of Joppa, today it’s probably Jaffa, one of the oldest port areas near Tel Aviv.

³⁶ In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. (What a wonderful testimony) ³⁷ About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 

They sent two disciples to ask Peter to come at once, which he did. He was taken to an upstairs room where the body lay.

⁴⁰ Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. ⁴¹ He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. (The believers turned from mourning to great joy, a complete reversal.)

Once again many in the area of Joppa believed in the Lord.

There’s no limit to how God can and will use His servants in the coming days, so long as we’re yielded to His will.

God bless and keep you today.