Daily Devotion for Lent 2020 - Day 6

Scripture Reading: Acts 4:23-37 (NRSV)

The apostles have had enough of hiding and are now moving forward to proclaim their message with boldness.  They reference the second Psalm which would have originally been applied to King David.  Verse seven reads, "I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have begotten you."  We can see how a Christian reading would re-apply this to Jesus.

The Psalm was "us against the world" prose and the apostles are certainly identifying with it after they had been told by the authorities to keep silent.

We see the Holy Spirit come upon the apostles once more and the place where they gathered was shaken.  This may be reminiscent of Isaiah 13 that speaks of God's wrath against those who are in opposition.  Verse thirteen especially stands out as it reads:

Therefore I will make the heavens tremble,
    and the earth will be shaken out of its place,
at the wrath of the Lord of hosts
    in the day of his fierce anger.    (NRSV)

The shaking of their gathering place acts as a sign to show us that God is with them as they settle into their roles as witnesses to all the earth even when there are road blocks.

And as we look to see how they will retaliate with the wrath of God, we see that they took care of those in need among them.

Huh?  Luke would never write for Hollywood with this kind of response!

As the apostles were led by the Holy Spirit, their actions speak louder than their words.  Those who were part of the fellowship were willing to fund this new movement with all they had.  Would Christianity have been able to get off the ground without this kind of faithful witness?

This kind of behavior shows that they took the words of Jesus seriously as Luke records him saying from Luke 12:32-34:

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.  Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."   (NRSV)

What little birds do you often encounter that need your help?

The church today in North America has more access to resources than ever before.  Yet, the church often struggles financially.  I've read that the average percentage of giving to the church per family is 2.5% today while during the Great Depression, it was 3.3%.  If people increased their giving even by a percentage point, what would our witness look like?

Prayer for the day:

Make us worthy, Lord, to serve our fellows throughout the world
who live and die in poverty and hunger.
Give them, through our hands, this day their daily bread,
and by our understanding love, give peace and joy.  Amen.


Prayer by Mother Teresa of Calcutta, 20th Century

Photo by Markus Goller via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.