I'm With Jesus / Remember the Value of Praying to God

Articles

Kevin Heaton
09/10/23 - The Zephyrhills Beacon

I’m With Jesus

(by Kevin Heaton)

When we turn to Acts chapter 4 we find the following take place after Peter had healed a lame man and preached Jesus to the people in Acts 3:

"And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand. On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, 'By what power or by what name did you do this?' Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, 'Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead--by Him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved'" (Acts 4:1-12).

Peter and John were bold in the face of persecution for the name of Jesus. They proclaimed the good news even to those who arrested them and would threaten them.

What is perhaps even more astounding than the boldness of Peter and John is the reaction of the Jewish leaders toward their boldness.

Acts 4:13 tells us: "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus."

The Jewish leaders acknowledged that there was something great and special about Peter and John, even though they were just uneducated, common men. It is interesting that they admitted that it must have come from their being with Jesus. They themselves

acknowledged the greatness of Jesus and they would have known of it because of their own dealings with Him.

Shouldn't the same be said of us today that there is something special in our lives? Don't we want people to be able to say of us "He/she has been with Jesus"?

How can we "be with Jesus"? By spending time with Him in His Word. Colossians 3:16a says "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly" and 2 Peter 3:18 tells us to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." Finally, Romans 10:17 proclaims "faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ."

After we have spent time in the Word of Christ, people will know that we have been with Jesus if we are putting His Word into practice. Matthew 5:16 - "let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." John 15:8 tells us - "By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be My disciples."

Can people say of you that you have been with Jesus? Can they say that of me? We need to spend time with Jesus. We must show Him living in us as Paul said in Galatians 2:20 - "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

To God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ be all praise and glory and honor and wisdom and power and might and knowledge and love and truth!

Remember the Value of Praying to God

(by Kevin Heaton)

God's children need to remember what one writer has said: "God loves the sound of your voice; talk to Him often."

1 Peter 3:12 - "For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears open to their prayers."
1Thessalonians 5:17 - "Pray without ceasing."
1 Peter 5:7 - "...casting all your anxiety onto Him, for He cares for you."
Philippians 4:6 - "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God."
Colossians 4:2 - "Continue in prayer and watch in it with thanksgiving..."
Matthew 7:7-11 - "Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you. For each one who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, if his son asks a loaf, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks a fish, will he give him a snake? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father in Heaven give good things to those who ask Him?"