SUNDAY January 8, 2023
Persecution
And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”
Acts 4:5-7
Annas, the High Priest, was corrupt. He enriched himself by taking advantage of the poor. When people came into the Temple to offer a lamb as a sacrifice for sin, the lamb had to be unblemished. Annas, who oversaw the money changers knew the people were being charged above the asking price for another “temple-approved” lamb.
His son-in-law, Caiaphas, became High Priest. He was appointed by Rome, and like Annas, he was also corrupt. John and Alexander named here are unknown persons. Yet all of them had one thing in common: They did not believe in Jesus Christ. He was not their Messiah! These leaders and their families came together in unity and made an agreement to plan a plot against Peter and John. In Jerusalem in the courthouse, they encircled them and began to interrogate them.
Peter and John were asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” The reason these religious leaders asked this specific question was so they could accuse them of listening to a false prophet and for spreading false teaching. They used Deuteronomy 13 as a guide to identify who was a true or false prophet.
Peter and John took no thought to the danger their lives were in. They were not intimidated by the crowd of men about them. They stood unafraid in the midst of them and would not compromise. In fact, they saw this occasion as a great opportunity to share more about Christ. They knew the Holy Spirit would empower them to boldly preach about Jesus Christ the Savior of the world!
As the world hated Christ––so it hates those who bear His image. It was the unregenerate religious world which most fiercely opposed Him––and sufficient for the disciple to be as his master.
~A.W. Tozer~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
