DAN THE CHILD OF GOD: November 5 Obeying God Acts 5:27-32 The high priest ordered Peter and the apostles to stop teaching about Jesus, but they ignored the order. When questioned about their actions, Peter replied, “We must obey God rather than men” (v. 29). What motivated them to follow the Lord with such conviction? God’s Sovereignty. Peter and the other disciples recognized that God had carried out His divine plan of redemption in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Convinced that salvation was found in Christ alone, they had the courage to speak boldly about their faith. They didn’t alter their words, even in front of a powerful authority. Instead, they gave allegiance to God and obeyed Him.Thankfulness. Their obedience was also motivated by gratitude. After betraying the Lord, Peter had wept over his failure (Mark 14:72). Think of the disciple’s joy to realize that Christ had forgiven him for his mistakes and restored him to a right relationship with God (Mark 16:7; John 21:15-17). With his past behind him, Peter became a leader of the Jerusalem church, with a passion to obey fueled by a thankful heart. God is in charge of our lives. He has rescued us from the bondage of sin, forgiven us, and brought us into His family. Grateful obedience should be our response too. Each day we have a choice. We can acknowledge God’s sovereignty and trust Him, or we can turn away and follow our own plan. Cultivating a thankful spirit will motivate us to stay the course and obey the Lord. Like Peter, let’s commit to following our heavenly Father wherever He leads.from Dr. Charles Stanley,God’s Peace through Prayer Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. - Psalm 106:1 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:4-7 We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry it out. There are times when we're caught off guard by life. We are suddenly faced with problems that can wipe out our joy in an instant. Our hearts are disquieted and our minds begin to race. When we are grappling with unsettling problems that come our way and cause us to worry, it's time to run to God in prayer. From his prison cell, Paul wrote this message: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand" (Philippians 4:6-7). The psalmist wrote, "Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation" (Psalm 100:4-5). God's gates are always open to us. He's waiting for us, whenever we're upset and in need of a friend. We'll still feel the painful emotions. We don't just hand them over to God and expect them to disappear. But we can experience God's peace through prayer. Prayer is a useful tool to help us work through our problems. He will give us his peace, reminding us that he's there with us. For this, we can be thankful. by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop.
Obeying God
Acts 5:27-32
The high priest ordered Peter and the apostles to stop teaching about Jesus, but they ignored the order. When questioned about their actions, Peter replied, “We must obey God rather than men” (v. 29). What motivated them to follow the Lord with such conviction?
God’s Sovereignty. Peter and the other disciples recognized that God had carried out His divine plan of redemption in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Convinced that salvation was found in Christ alone, they had the courage to speak boldly about their faith. They didn’t alter their words, even in front of a powerful authority. Instead, they gave allegiance to God and obeyed Him.Thankfulness. Their obedience was also motivated by gratitude. After betraying the Lord, Peter had wept over his failure (Mark 14:72). Think of the disciple’s joy to realize that Christ had forgiven him for his mistakes and restored him to a right relationship with God (Mark 16:7; John 21:15-17). With his past behind him, Peter became a leader of the Jerusalem church, with a passion to obey fueled by a thankful heart.
God is in charge of our lives. He has rescued us from the bondage of sin, forgiven us, and brought us into His family. Grateful obedience should be our response too.
Each day we have a choice. We can acknowledge God’s sovereignty and trust Him, or we can turn away and follow our own plan. Cultivating a thankful spirit will motivate us to stay the course and obey the Lord. Like Peter, let’s commit to following our heavenly Father wherever He leads.from Dr. Charles Stanley,God’s Peace through Prayer
Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. - Psalm 106:1
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:4-7
We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry it out. There are times when we're caught off guard by life. We are suddenly faced with problems that can wipe out our joy in an instant. Our hearts are disquieted and our minds begin to race. When we are grappling with unsettling problems that come our way and cause us to worry, it's time to run to God in prayer.
From his prison cell, Paul wrote this message: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand" (Philippians 4:6-7).
The psalmist wrote, "Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation" (Psalm 100:4-5).
God's gates are always open to us. He's waiting for us, whenever we're upset and in need of a friend. We'll still feel the painful emotions. We don't just hand them over to God and expect them to disappear. But we can experience God's peace through prayer. Prayer is a useful tool to help us work through our problems. He will give us his peace, reminding us that he's there with us. For this, we can be thankful. by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop.