{"id":15265,"date":"2018-03-28T10:55:59","date_gmt":"2018-03-28T14:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/?p=15265"},"modified":"2018-03-28T10:55:59","modified_gmt":"2018-03-28T14:55:59","slug":"acts-devotional-commentary-acts-423-31-the-believers-pray-for-boldness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/2018\/03\/28\/acts-devotional-commentary-acts-423-31-the-believers-pray-for-boldness\/","title":{"rendered":"Acts Devotional Commentary [Acts 4:23-31] The Believers Pray for Boldness"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Believers Pray for Boldness<\/h2>\n
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23\u00a0<\/sup>When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.<\/span>\u00a024\u00a0<\/sup>And when they heard it, they lifted their voices\u00a0together to God and said, \u201cSovereign Lord,\u00a0who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,<\/span>\u00a025\u00a0<\/sup>who through the mouth of our father David, your servant,\u00a0said by the Holy Spirit,<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201c\u2018Why did the Gentiles rage,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and the peoples plot in vain?<\/span><\/span>
\n26\u00a0<\/sup>The kings of the earth set themselves,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0the rulers were gathered together,<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>against the Lord and against his\u00a0Anointed\u2019\u2014<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

27\u00a0<\/sup>for truly in this city there were gathered together against your\u00a0holy servant Jesus,\u00a0whom you anointed, both\u00a0Herod and\u00a0Pontius Pilate, along\u00a0with the Gentiles and\u00a0the peoples of Israel,<\/span>\u00a028\u00a0<\/sup>to do whatever your hand and\u00a0your plan had predestined to take place.<\/span>\u00a029\u00a0<\/sup>And now, Lord,\u00a0look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all\u00a0boldness,<\/span>\u00a030\u00a0<\/sup>while\u00a0you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed\u00a0through the name of your\u00a0holy servant Jesus.\u201d<\/span>\u00a031\u00a0<\/sup>And when they had prayed,\u00a0the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and\u00a0they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and\u00a0continued to speak the word of God with boldness.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Observations and Reflections<\/h2>\n
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\"Justin-Holmes1.jpg\"Having received John and Peter back from the council would have been a most joyous occasion. I am sure that many of the disciples expected them to also be crucified. However, the Lord had other plans for them. This believe was reflected in the prayer of the believers, which came from Psalm 2, which when read in full, fits even more seamlessly with the return of John and Paul from the hands of the religious leaders. Psalm 2 is considered a messianic Psalm of David. In other words, it’s prophetic in nature. No doubt, the believers present would have been reciting the rest of the Psalm in their heads, which reads as follows:<\/p>\n

Psalm 2<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\n

Why do\u00a0the nations rage<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and the peoples plot in vain?<\/span><\/span>
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>The kings of the earth set themselves,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and the rulers take counsel together,<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>against the\u00a0Lord<\/span>\u00a0and against his\u00a0Anointed, saying,<\/span><\/span>
\n3\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cLet us\u00a0burst their bonds apart<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and cast away their cords from us.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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4\u00a0<\/sup>He who\u00a0sits in the heavens\u00a0laughs;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>the Lord holds them in derision.<\/span><\/span>
\n5\u00a0<\/sup>Then he will speak to them in his\u00a0wrath,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and terrify them in his fury, saying,<\/span><\/span>
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cAs for me, I have\u00a0set my King<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>on\u00a0Zion, my\u00a0holy hill.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

7\u00a0<\/sup>I will tell of the decree:<\/span>
\nThe\u00a0Lord<\/span>\u00a0said to me,\u00a0\u201cYou are my Son;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>today I have begotten you.<\/span><\/span>
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0the ends of the earth your possession.<\/span><\/span>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup>You shall\u00a0break\u00a0them with\u00a0a rod of iron<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and dash them in pieces like\u00a0a potter’s vessel.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

10\u00a0<\/sup>Now therefore, O kings, be wise;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>be warned, O rulers of the earth.<\/span><\/span>
\n11\u00a0<\/sup>Serve the\u00a0Lord<\/span>\u00a0with\u00a0fear,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0rejoice with\u00a0trembling.<\/span><\/span>
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>Kiss\u00a0the Son,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>for his\u00a0wrath is quickly kindled.<\/span><\/span>
\nBlessed are all who take refuge in him.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It would seem to the believers present that God is protecting his anointed one(s).<\/p>\n

\n

\"Lydia.jpg\"I love the response that the people of God have when faced with persecution and danger. Their immediate response is to pray and turn to the all powerful God who is able to bring comfort, peace and courage during a hard time. They knew what was stake and following Jesus Christ came at a great cost. They knew that opposition and threats would be inevitable and that is why Jesus spoke of these things before they happened in order that they would be prepared. Furthermore it is why the Holy Spirit was sent as a means to lead and guide them.<\/p>\n

This was not news that would take them by surprise. They saw the persecution that Jesus faced during His ministry and because of how He was able to overcome it, they are able to find strength in Him to face hard times as well. The Church was far from being shut down. They were united and would stand strong against any threats that would come their way.<\/p>\n

The power of the Holy Spirit could not and would not be defeated. Jesus Christ set this plan in motion long before and everything that was prophesied back in the Old Testament had come to pass. In praying the words of the Old Testament in only affirmed God’s sovereign control and filled them with boldness.<\/p>\n

Fear could have easily played a major role in the life of the early church. Yet, with prayer and complete surrender to Jesus Christ, they find their courage and strength in Him. Let us also find encouragement in the fact that when we are faced with hard times, prayer to the almighty God is what will lead us to finding strength, courage and peace. He was and is able to provide courage to the early church and will continue to do so today.<\/p>\n

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[Featured image: by Cole Thomas, “The Course of Empire Destruction”, 1835]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Believers Pray for Boldness 23\u00a0When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.\u00a024\u00a0And when they heard it, they lifted their voices\u00a0together to God and said, \u201cSovereign Lord,\u00a0who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,\u00a025\u00a0who through … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12227,"featured_media":15351,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2280,7611],"tags":[7659,7614,7660],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15265"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12227"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15265"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15265\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15351"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dustoffthebible.com\/Blog-archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}