The Opposers… Jesus had his fair share of fight and jealousy

The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people… No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number… Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed. Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy – Acts 5:12-17.

It happened with the Early Church; and so it was in the beginning so shall it be in the end. Take heart! Fellow members… ‘Christians’ will be jealous of you and oppose you when a door of opportunity is opened for you. They will bring a case against you and say things to tarnish your character. Like these apostles in the Book of Acts, Jesus had his fair share of fight and jealousy.

And so it is in ministry for anyone in the will of God; doing the extraordinary will result in cliques formed against you. These are members who spend their lifetime in the church finding fault, opposing, attempting to block progress and demeaning the character of fellow members who are leaps and bounds ahead in responding to their call in ministry and sadly ignoring their opposers insecurities.

What is bad enough for these unstable individuals when they try to discredit your character, others who witness their pathetic demise do nothing in defense of those being opposed or persecuted. But in Acts one may take note of what the Pharisee named Gamaliel did, who was a teacher of the law and honoured by all the people. He said, “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God” – Acts 5:33-39.

His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. And guess what? The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name – Acts 5:40-41. So, faithful saints of Jesus Christ, when your fellow members discredit you rejoice and count yourself worthy of suffering as a result of their instability.

Teach me your way, O Lord,
    and lead me on a level path
    because of my enemies.
Give me not up to the will of my adversaries;
    for false witnesses have risen against me,
    and they breathe out violence – Ps 27:11-12.

How to explain salvation to non-believers

Salvation may be defined as freedom from the power of sin. In this way you are saved for eternal life. You are no longer lost to sin. Explaining salvation to a non-believer the main aim would be to assist such an individual to become a believer. It is therefore important to deal with the following:

What is salvation?
How was, and how is salvation received?
Why do you need salvation?

What is salvation?
A non-believer needs to be aware what this very familiar word is all about. Reiterating the definition – Salvation is freedom from the power of sin. One of the most common phrases or terms one often hear is that – only salvation lasts forever. This is implying that nothing else lasts forever. You can think as hard as you can, but you will not be able to think of anything else. Knowing this, what options do you have? What is your choice?

In reference to the definition, the word “sin” is involved. One may explain sin to be acting against what is good and moral. From the definition of salvation it speaks of the “power of sin,” which is saying that sin has power, meaning it has great influence over what is bad and immoral, which inevitably spells trouble. One also sees freedom in the definition. The opposite to all this is bondage, or being restricted. If one means well for him or her self, what would be the better option here? This is naturally a rhetorical question.

How was and how is salvation received?
One might be curious to find out how salvation came about. It came about after Jesus Christ gave His life through the shedding of His blood on the cross. This effectively saved you from all your sins, because He gave His life as a sacrifice for everyone. You therefore have no need to be troubled because the price for all sins has been paid for in this manner. The only thing left for you to do is to claim it.

How do you claim this great thing called salvation? It is claimed by accepting and believing that Christ died to save you from your sins. This requires repentance and baptism, which is participating in the death and resurrection of Christ and is a symbol of cleansing and purification. It is being born again. This involves making the decision to do away with the old and sinful life and take on a new life, which is holy and acceptable to God.

Why do you need salvation?
You may ask why it was necessary for Christ to go through all this suffering for you. It was necessary because you are just not capable of consistently upholding God’s command, in order to meet His requirements for eternal life. This provision was made for you through Christ, the risen one. You are able to seek His forgiveness, through confession, when you fail in obeying His word. This is so because no one is perfect, and you are all born as sinners.

Interesting inspirations as this one, and more from daily devotional – Devotions on the ROCK. The first edition available at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1978141696 in print and kindle.