Devotion: Acts 5:12-16

Devotion: Acts 5:12-16

 The Apostles Heal Many

 12The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. 13No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil[a] spirits, and all of them were healed.

I have been reading that passage for the last few hours. Not only because the baby kept interrupting and i had to keep taking a break but because the text had me confused. In verse 13 it says no one dared joined them and in verse 14 the very next verse it says more people believed and were added to the number. At first reading the text it felt like a contradiction and to be honest i am not sure i fully think its not but something bigger jumped out at me.

What were the apostles doing that meant that so many people were added to the church? The early text talks of them performing miraculous signs and wonders. The verse that follows say that they were healing the sick. If you look at the context around you see the disciples teaching and meeting the needs of the poor. So what were the apostles doing that added many many many people to the church? They were meeting the needs of the people they met and teaching them about a better way of life. 

You see the disciples weren't holding big tent meetings or running huge campaigns or investing loads of money in new programmes. The disciples were meeting the needs of everyday people they met as they walked to the synagogue or went to prayer meeting or to work. The disciples used their everyday life to touch the lives of those they met. What does that mean for us today? What should I do? 

For me personally it means i need to open my eyes a little more and see people and see how i can help in their situation. My life as a Christian is more than just the church i attend or the programmes i support or the tithe i return. My life as a Christian is my life not just a compartment of my life. It is the dominant part of who i am a core part of what makes me, me. So i need to follow through with who i have decided to be and reach out to those around me. What about you?