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Aug 09, 2024 06:00am

Don’t You Tell!

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Don’t you tell!

Sisters. That’s an interesting relationship. One minute you’re hanging out together and the next you’re trying to kill one another.

If I caught my sister doing something she wasn’t supposed to, she would yell, “Don’t you tell!” Her threats of what she would do to me came in all sorts of promises of torture.

Was I going to be scared of her and the threats she hurled at me? Or was I going to trust my mom to handle it? I realized, her threats didn’t mean a thing. She could do whatever she wanted and I was going to choose what was right.

Now, let me say, there were times it was the other way around and I was the one getting into trouble. But for the sake of the story, my sister will be the antagonizer today 😉.

She was not going to silence me!

Acts 5:17-33
“17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy.
18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail.
19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out.
20 “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”
21 At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people. When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles.
22 But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported,
23 “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.”
24 On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to.
25 Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.”
26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.
27 The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest.
28 “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
29 Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!
30 The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross.
31 God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins.
32 We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
33 When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death.”

Why were the religious officials so upset about the apostles teaching about Jesus? Because this message exposed the truth about the Pharisees and the Saducees and their role in killing the Messiah. These leaders were furious and wanted to put a stop to the teaching. If people believed this, it would ruin everything for them. It wasn’t just about God’s law, it was the life they had enjoyed – the power, the position, and the praise. They would lose everything and they couldn’t let that happen.

But God’s message will not be silenced.

The angel of the Lord released them from jail and told them to go and preach the message for all to hear.

The apostles knew what would come. They knew the authorities would be angry and threaten them, and probably beat them or even kill them.

But they did it anyway.

Why?

Look at Peter and the apostles response in verse 29.

“We must obey God rather than human beings!”

No matter the cost. The truth must be told.

The apostles were bold in their witness. Do you ever wish you could be like that?

Why not? Why can’t you be? What has silenced your message? What keeps you from sharing the truth about Jesus?

If you have been saved by God, you have a purpose. The Lord has a job for you to do. We are to share the gospel – how we went from death to life – and how someone else can have that same transformation by the power of Christ.

Someone is listening. Someone is waiting for you to share with them.

Maybe it’s your best friend, your son, your daughter, your grandfather, your coworker, your boss, your neighbor, your old classmate…

What if YOU are the person God wants to use to bring them to Him? What if they are waiting on YOU to share the good news of what Jesus did for them? What if YOU don’t tell them?

God’s message won’t be silenced. He’s just waiting for your obedience.

Will you cower to the threats of man or obey the Lord?

Maybe, just the thought of sharing this with someone terrifies you. You’ve never been taught how to share the gospel. You don’t know where to begin, you don’t know if you’ll say the right things, or you’re afraid you’ll say the wrong thing. Let me help you. Go to follow.lifeword.org. This easy to understand tool will show you what it means to follow Jesus and teach others to do the same. I’ll put the link in the comments.

God’s Word will not be silenced. What an honor it is to be a part of His great plan to reach the world with the truth and offer salvation to any who will receive Him!