God is always in control. We can willingly participate when we allow Him access to our lives through Holy Spirit. He takes the teaching of Jesus and brings them to fruition in our life and in the lives of those we touch! His will will be done with or without our input but how gracious that He allows us to be a very small part of a very eternal picture!
Each day we draw closer to the return of Christ. Rest in and hold fast to your faith and see the power of God move. Unbelief stops us from entering into the peace that is available to all of us in our salvation.
Our free will allows us to accept or reject God and the salvation He gifts in Jesus. Lucifer the brightest angel fell because of his pride and covetousness. God hates pride and arrogance.
Isaiah 14:12-15
“How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!
For you have said in your heart:
‘I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.’
Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol,
To the lowest depths of the Pit.
Holy Spirit guides and protects us Jesus did not leave us alone to fend for ourselves.
2 Peter 2:9-10
then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. Carla
The Acts of the Apostles
Jesus told Ananias that Paul would suffer many things for the sake of the Gospel…
2 Timothy 2:9 for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained.
The infectious news first appeared in Jerusalem, then spread quickly from person to person and from city to city. It faced opposition everywhere it went. But the world was ill-equipped to fight it. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, the followers of Christ relayed the Good News about Jesus everywhere. In less than 35 years, the gospel had reached cities from Jerusalem to Rome.
Luke wrote the Book of Acts to show the fulfillment of Jesus’ words, “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He commanded His followers to make disciples of all nations (Luke 24:46–49).
Luke begins Acts with a reiteration of that commission and a description of how it would be carried out (1:8). This commission not only ties the Book of Acts to the Gospel of Luke, but it also provides an outline for the book: the witness in Jerusalem and Judea (1:1–6:7); the witness in Judea and Samaria (6:8–9:31); and the witness to the ends of the earth (9:32–28:31). The NKJV Study Bible
Luke 1:8 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 1:1-3 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, 3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
Acts 6:7 7 Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Acts 9:31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
Acts 28:3131 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
The New King James Version
No one stopped Paul’s ministry, and even though he was essentially under house arrest he continued his ministry with complete freedom. Luke (the narrator) concludes by reasserting a major theme of Acts: The progress of the gospel cannot be stopped. Faithlife Study Bible
Luke does not reveal what happened to Paul’s case. Apparently it had not yet been decided when Luke finished Acts. There are good reasons for believing that Paul was released, since he had been found innocent by all Roman officials up to this point. Ancient tradition tells us that Paul actually went to Spain as he desired. In his captivity letters, Paul expressed his hope of being released and his confidence that he would be released. Paul’s pastoral epistles contain items that cannot be fitted into the Book of Acts, suggesting that they were written later. For instance, Titus 1:5 implies that Paul ministered on the island of Crete, something that is not reported in the Book of Acts. Paul most likely resumed his missionary travels for a few more years before being rearrested, retried, condemned, and executed as a martyr sometime between a.d. 64 and 67. The NKJV Study Bible
The apostle preached not himself, but Christ, and he was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Though Paul was placed in a very narrow opportunity for being useful, he was not disturbed in it. Though it was not a wide door that was opened to him, yet no man was suffered to shut it; and to many it was an effectual door, so that there were saints even in Nero’s household. We learn also from Philippians 1:13, how God overruled Paul’s imprisonment for the furtherance of the gospel. And not the residents at Rome only, but all the church of Christ, to the present day, and in the most remote corner of the globe, have abundant reason to bless God, that during the most mature period of his Christian life and experience, he was detained a prisoner. It was from his prison, probably chained hand to hand to the soldier who kept him, that the apostle wrote the epistles to the Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Hebrews; epistles showing, perhaps more than any others, the Christian love with which his heart overflowed, and the Christian experience with which his soul was filled. The believer of the present time may have less of triumph, and less of heavenly joy, than the apostle, but every follower of the same Saviour, is equally sure of safety and peace at the last. Let us seek to live more and more in the love of the Saviour; to labour to glorify Him by every action of our lives; and we shall assuredly, by his strength, be among the number of those who now overcome our enemies; and by his free grace and mercy, be hereafter among the blessed company who shall sit with Him upon his throne, even as He also has overcome, and is sitting on his Father’s throne, at God’s right hand for evermore. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
1 Peter 2:15 (CSB) "For it is God's will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good.”
…how are Christians to live?
1. Honor.
Peter commanded Christians to "honor everyone" and "honor the emperor" (1 Peter 2:17, CSB). He used the same imperative both times, reminding us that every person, from the poorest among us to emperors and leaders, is to be treated with respect as greatly valuable. Indeed, we know God has created all people "in his own image" (Genesis 1:27, CSB), and He values people so much that His Son, Jesus, died for us while we were sinners (Romans 5:8).
2. Love.
Peter also commanded believers to "love the brothers and sisters" (1 Peter 2:17, CSB). This refers to God's family: the Church. "For the [God] who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call [us] brothers and sisters …" (Hebrews 2:11, CSB). Our love for fellow believers is total, unconditional and unearned (which was known as agape love in Greek). God Himself lavishes love upon us and empowers us to love others (1 John 3:1; 1 John 4:11).
3. Fear.
Finally, Peter instructed the exiles to "fear God" (1 Peter 2:17, CSB). While believers respect human authorities, this command serves as a reminder of our ultimate authority: God. Our highest allegiance belongs to God alone, for He is holy and righteous and holds all power (Matthew 10:28).
Friends, these instructions still hold true for us today. Whether we live in an area of relative religious freedom or a culture that's openly hostile toward Christians, we are called to honor everyone, love our brothers and sisters in Christ, and fear God.
In doing so, we "let [our] light shine before others, so that they may see [our] good works and give glory to [our] Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16, CSB).
Thankfully, just as absolute justice is an aspect of God's character, so is His steadfast love. These two attributes led Jesus to the cross. There, God's perfect love and perfect justice were powerfully demonstrated.
In love, God offered His Son for us (John 3:16).
In justice, God poured out the full measure of His wrath on Jesus, who died to take the punishment for the sins of all who will believe in Him (1 Peter 2:24; Isaiah 53:4-5).
Through God's mercy, we do not have to receive the punishment we deserve for our sin. Through His grace, by faith in Jesus, we receive righteousness we could never earn! First5
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