“Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”

At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.“
Acts 5:17-21

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OCTOBER 9, 2024

Every time I read a passage like this, I feel baffled and stunned because the “villain” is not who you expect. The villains in this passage are the “godly” ones, the religious leaders. They are the most biblically literate, the most educated, the ones who lead the people in worship and speak for God! Their modern-day equivalent would be pastors, elders, missionaries, Bible teachers, and scholars. And yet, at the end of the day, even though they knew the scriptures better than anyone else, what they cared about was retaining power, having authority, and holding the people’s respect. They knew the whole scriptures and didn’t know God.

Do you ever wonder why? In the book of John, we read a conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees very similar to the situation in Acts. There, Jesus claims that these men, these religious leaders, do not know God at all and are children of the devil. What a strong statement! Again, why? What was it that the religious leaders wanted so badly?

I wonder if they were afraid to lose their relative comfort and face suffering. When we have power, the affirmation and respect of others, we have security, resources, our wants and needs are met. When we don’t have power, we are vulnerable; when we don’t have the respect of others we are vulnerable; when we don’t have power we don’t have security and we are risk of suffering.

Because the religious leaders were so focused on preserving what they had, they became blinded to the point that they made themselves enemies of God’s Son.

I get that. I want to protect myself and what I have. I don’t want to suffer. Following Jesus is hard. Following Jesus means giving up our resources and status and caring for anyone in need—even when it’s hard.

The religious leaders missed true abundant life in Christ because they weren’t willing to surrender their status and comfort to follow the path of suffering Christ calls us to.

Questions for reflection and discussion:

  • Where in your life is it hard for you to surrender to God?
  • In what ways are you avoiding Jesus’ call to take up your cross and follow Him?
  • What expectations do you bring to your walk with Christ?

 

Church Reading Plan: Ezekiel 42; Psalm 94