I’m struggling with the right way to phrase this. We get caught up in all sorts of different things as Christians and as people. We argue about all sorts of different things in the church. We get excited or discouraged by things we see in the news. We lose sleep over personal issues that we have with others. I guess what I’m getting at is, we care about a lot of different things. We care enough to make a big deal out of them. Some of those things are important, some of things are worth the time and energy, and some of them aren’t. Our reading from Acts today makes one thing perfectly clear; however, as Peter says in Acts 4:11-12, “this Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” We care about a lot of things, and a lot of those things matter, but none of them matter as much as that. Jesus is and should always be the cornerstone of our faith, everything that comes after that matters so much less. There is no other name under heaven that saves us – not our good works, not our ideas, not our feelings, not our popularity, not our families.
"It’s still Jesus, it’ll always be Jesus, it’ll never stop being the power of Jesus, His blood is sufficient for your salvation. His blood is sufficient to sustain you, through every sin, and every challenge and every temptation. Jesus is enough.” (Jesus is Loving Barabbas, The City Church and Judah Smith)
Today’s B.I.B.L.E. Takeaways:
Blessings from God
Jesus is the cornerstone of our salvation, and there is nothing we can do to screw that up.
Instructions for Us
Acts 4:19-21 gives us an example of how we respond to this great news, to speak of the grace we have experienced and to glorify God.
Biblical Connections
In both Acts 3 and 4 we see Peter referring to Old Testament prophecies that point to Jesus as the Christ.
Laborious Understandings
The punishment given to Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:5 and Acts 5:10 seems pretty harsh, and I have no additional justification other than to remember that we all deserve death for our sins and our lives are a testament to the grace of God.
Enjoyable Passages
My favorite verse from these chapters is Acts 4:12 where the exclusive salvation of Jesus is so simply spoken.
Topics to Pray About:
Thank God for our salvation that rests only on Him
Confess to God the times when you add things on or care about things more than Him
Ask for God bless you with focus on Him as the highest priority in your life
Exclusive
Acts 3-5
I’m struggling with the right way to phrase this. We get caught up in all sorts of different things as Christians and as people. We argue about all sorts of different things in the church. We get excited or discouraged by things we see in the news. We lose sleep over personal issues that we have with others. I guess what I’m getting at is, we care about a lot of different things. We care enough to make a big deal out of them. Some of those things are important, some of things are worth the time and energy, and some of them aren’t. Our reading from Acts today makes one thing perfectly clear; however, as Peter says in Acts 4:11-12, “this Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” We care about a lot of things, and a lot of those things matter, but none of them matter as much as that. Jesus is and should always be the cornerstone of our faith, everything that comes after that matters so much less. There is no other name under heaven that saves us – not our good works, not our ideas, not our feelings, not our popularity, not our families.
"It’s still Jesus, it’ll always be Jesus, it’ll never stop being the power of Jesus, His blood is sufficient for your salvation. His blood is sufficient to sustain you, through every sin, and every challenge and every temptation. Jesus is enough.” (Jesus is Loving Barabbas, The City Church and Judah Smith)
Today’s B.I.B.L.E. Takeaways:
Blessings from God
Jesus is the cornerstone of our salvation, and there is nothing we can do to screw that up.
Instructions for Us
Acts 4:19-21 gives us an example of how we respond to this great news, to speak of the grace we have experienced and to glorify God.
Biblical Connections
In both Acts 3 and 4 we see Peter referring to Old Testament prophecies that point to Jesus as the Christ.
Laborious Understandings
The punishment given to Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:5 and Acts 5:10 seems pretty harsh, and I have no additional justification other than to remember that we all deserve death for our sins and our lives are a testament to the grace of God.
Enjoyable Passages
My favorite verse from these chapters is Acts 4:12 where the exclusive salvation of Jesus is so simply spoken.
Topics to Pray About:
In His Service,
J. LeBorious