Category: Devotions

Acts 3:21
“He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.”

One of the most important truths of discipleship is that God has perfect timing.
Jesus is in heaven until the time comes for Him to appear again.
Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4, “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son”
The Christmas story is centred around God sending Jesus at the perfect time and it is a signpost to the second coming of Jesus which will also be the perfect time.
So let me use the story of Mary to give 3 keys to this important principle in our discipleship.
1. God’s perfect time may be our imperfect.
Mary was from Nazareth. There was no one more powerful than Caesar and his law meant Mary had to travel to Bethlehem. In Bethlehem there was no family and there were no rooms. It looked like God was not providing.

2. Do what you should do in the imperfect situation.
Mary became responsible for the newborn. She swaddled the baby, the usual cultural practice. She had learnt that. She did it alone with no mother to help her. But she did it with joy!

3. She used what she had in the imperfect surrounding.
The manger was a feeding box for domesticated animals. Some people don’t see correctly, “I don’t have a cradle!!” “Yes you do, that manger can make for a cradle!” We need to see the possibilities of what we do have not what we don’t have.

All of this sits in the hands of prophetic declaration, as Peter said, “as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.”

The imperfect time for Mary was promised 650 years previously by the prophet Micah who singles out Bethlehem as being the chosen place (5:2).

It may be imperfect, the situation and surroundings may be so, but today, right now, this is the perfect time for God to fulfil His purpose in your life.

Acts 3:20

“… and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you-even Jesus.”

Christ is the sent one. Mass simply means ‘Go you are sent’. Christ-Go you are sent. That is Christmas.
Christmas is a celebration of Christ who was sent and who sends you and me into the world as a mission light.

When Christ came it was after a time of 400 silent years where there had been no prophetic word from God. God’s people were going through a time of barrenness. That generation were groaning for a Messiah.
Christ is still sent to a world who are broken, in need of a Saviour and desperate for healing.
We celebrate His birth as answer to the world today.

But Christmas is about being sent.
And this verse today shows us He will be sent again.
However at that time it will be different from the first coming.
The previous verse shows us that Christ will return at a time of returning to God for His people. It will be a time when although the world will still be desperate God’s people will be refreshed and enjoying freedom!

In the mean time ask God to send you today as He sent Christ for you.

Acts 3:19

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord”

There is a strong chance that this month you could be heading in many directions, rushing here and there, trying to get to the shops to buy presents, on the road to visit family and finding yourself not knowing how you are going to get everything done.
Christmas usually has this potential. That’s what the world has made of the story. Ask a simple question: Are you ready for Christmas? This can send the person into a spin as they realise with only just 22 days to Christmas the answer is a definite NO!
Is it possible it could be different this year?

Repent …. Stop, turn around from the magnetic pull of materialism and pressure to please people.

Turn to God …. It is not difficult to make this year more about Him than them or you.

That your sins may be wiped …. Sins weigh us down, sins of our own lives and sins from others and sins from a messed-up world It’s a lovely thought that this year your burdens can be lifted and taken away. Many will carry burdens because of suffering past and present. Burdens because of broken relationships. The list goes on. But He can wipe them all away.

Times of refreshing … Can you imagine starting the new year not worn out, not spiritually dry, but refreshed, awake and ready? He can do this for you!

So how we approach this Christmas season will determine how we come out of it.
Are you ready?

Acts 3:18

“But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer.”

I read yesterday that there are 354 prophecies regarding Jesus birth, life, death and resurrection. That’s an incredible amount. Though of course people like the Jews didn’t interpret these prophecies the way God told them. They were ignorant, v17.
For example, the suffering Servant in Isaiah was not the Messiah, it was their nation Israel.
What people don’t understand about Christmas is that it is celebrating what was foretold. This is the most powerful word of Christmas for me.
Foretold.
It helps me realise that God was, is and will be in charge of my life as He was for Jesus.
No surprise (His birth) and no suffering (His death) will ever be unknown by God.
In your preparation during this advent make sure you pause on the many scenes of the Christmas story and speak the word ‘foretold’ thanking God that who you are and where you are has always been known by Him.

Acts 3:17

“Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders.”

In the Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens highlights the 2 extremes still found today in our society, the want of the poor and the ignorance of the wealthy. If you have never read it I encourage you to do so this Christmas time.

Ignorance is found in every class not just the wealthy.
Ignorance cause people to believe things that are not true, like the earth is flat!
There are many humorous examples of people’s ignorance. But ignorance also causes pain, division and prejudice. Ignorance causes war. The world is in a mess in many places because of ignorance.
Ignorance is passed down the generations.
Ignorance can be taught from temples, mosques, synagogues and churches.
Last night I saw my neighbour put her Christmas tree up.
Ignorance takes God’s gift and hangs him on a different tree. A tree of wood that was the act of salvation for everyone.
This month many will be ignorant.
It’s up to us to enlighten them.

Acts 3:16

“By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.”

And now to the crux of the matter. This is how the crippled man who they knew very well for they had seen him daily begging at the temple gate became healed.
Faith in the name of Jesus.
This commences what would become central to the church’s message. Nothing happened without faith in the name of Jesus.

The Church needed to be able to answer the following questions:
Who is Jesus?
Is Jesus alive and present before this problem?
Is there faith from the one speaking the name of Jesus and the one receiving from Jesus?
The Church still needs to answer those questions as it preaches the gospel to a lost world.

In our sophistication and experiences. In our disappointments and tiredness, perhaps today we need to bring our problems to Jesus. The problems at work, at home, in your body or your finances. Answer these 3 questions today and perhaps you will see this first reported miracle in ‘Acts’ happen again today!!

Acts 3:15

“You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.”

This reference to the Old Testament God, ‘Author of life’ is given to Jesus. He is the Christ. The coming Messiah. More than this He is the one you killed. You killed who you worship and who you ancestors followed. The can be nothing more damning than this.
But!
God raised him!
The fact is you cannot kill off the author of life!
The wonderful thing is that He is the author of our lives too and although through many mistakes and the circumstances of life our enemy has sought to kill off our story, he cannot kill the author! The author is still writing your story through the highs and lows of your life.
We are witnesses of this!

Acts 3:14

“You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.”

Jesus is the Holy and Righteous One, not me.
To realise this is like a heavy weight lifting off the shoulders.

The Jews brought the charge against Jesus, but the Roman law said he was innocent.
Jesus in my today would still be found innocent of any wrongdoing, in work, leisure, home, unlike me.

The Jews accused him of blasphemy and offence against God but the only people offended were the Jew not God.
Jesus in my today would still have no fences between Him and God, unlike me.

Jesus was just. He kept the religious law, he fulfilled it. The commandments and the teachings of Moses, Jesus kept.
Jesus in my today would keep every commandment in deed and heart and mind, unlike me.

The “unlike me” is written because it is true and I see it in Peter’s response.
I am not seeing an angry Peter but someone who is quiet but serious in tone. How do I see that?
Peter repeats the same word that he said in verse 13. “Disown”.
That’s his word, that’s his story, that’s his failure too. He was not accusing them angrily and trying badly to hide his own failings. He was and will always be known as the denier. Peter is saying “unlike me”.

Holiness and righteousness is a gift given to us by Jesus, but we don’t own it, we have not achieved it, we have not accredited it by some good behaviour.
When it comes to the passing of judgment on another person we are often loud. Like the crowd before Barabbas, “Release him!” And before Jesus, “Away with him!” In our quickness and loudness we are often wrong.

Jesus is Holy, unlike me.
Jesus is Righteous, unlike me.
All I need to do is own Jesus, belong to Him. I don’t hold the badge of who He is, I hold the badge of belonging to who He is.
He is unlike me and that is what gives me freedom.

Acts 3:13

“The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go.”

Peter doesn’t want them to think they belong to any God but the one and only true God. That’s why he uses this title known throughout Scripture. It is this God who glorified Jesus.
The glorification is the resurrection and the ascension.
The glorification came because you handed him over and you disowned him even though there was an opportunity for freedom.
And the point is ….
Whatever man throws God uses.
When man does their worst at you, God will do the best.
You may be in the hands of evil men. You may be in the control of a manipulating person. Or perhaps your very own no longer want you. The feelings are nothing but torturous. But these feelings will not last. For God will not leave His servants to rot.
He will not leave you hanging in your suffering.
He will raise you. He will glorify His children.
That’s what a true Father does and He will do it for you!

Acts 3:12

“When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?”

The red carpet. Oh how so many love to roll it out.
Oh how so many more love to walk on it!
Healing hands.
Financial influencers.
Inspirational communicators.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, we are so privileged tonight to have with us 2 men who have been used mightily by God in the complete healing of the well known temple gate crippled beggar. Put your hands together … Peter and John!”

Can God trust you with success?