TO BE UNITED AS ONE, LIKE MY FIRST CENTURY BROTHERS AND SISTERS…
I MUST BE CONVINCED THAT JESUS IS WHO HE SAYS HE IS.
The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.
Acts 4:1-4 NIV
You are the judges here, so we’ll leave it up to you to judge whether it is right in the sight of God to obey your commands or God’s. But one thing we can tell you: we cannot possibly restrain ourselves from speaking about what we have seen and heard with our own eyes and ears.
Acts 4:19, 20 VOICE
We have an important message to tell. We want to tell you about the person who was already there before the beginning of the world. We have heard him speak. We have seen him with our own eyes. We watched him and we touched him. He is the Word that gives us life with God.
1 John 1:1 EASY
But make sure in your hearts that Christ is Lord. Always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks you about the hope you have. Be ready to give the reason for it. But do it gently and with respect.
1 Peter 3:15 NIRV
2. I MUST BE CONVICTED BY THE MESSAGE JESUS PROCLAIMS.
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.
Acts 4:8-12 NIV
The one who believes in the Son has eternal life; but the one who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
John 3:36 NASB
When the people heard this, they ·felt guilty [were deeply distressed; were cut/pierced to the heart] and asked Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do, ·brothers [men, brothers]?” Peter said to them, “·Change your hearts and lives [Repent] and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. [For] This promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away [ both in space and time; may refer to Gentiles and/or Jews scattered outside the land of Israel]. It is for everyone the Lord our God calls to himself.”
Acts 2:37 - 39 EXB
3. I MUST BE CHANGED BY THE JESUS I BELIEVE IN AND PROCLAIM.
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished, and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say.
Acts 4:13, 14 NIV
“What sorrow awaits you teachers of law and Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either. “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell you yourselves are!”
Matthew 23:13-15 NLT
but exalt Him as Lord in your heart. Always be ready to offer a defense, humbly and respectfully, when someone asks why you live in hope. Keep your conscience clear so that those who ridicule your good conduct in the Anointed and say bad things about you will be put to shame.
1 Peter 3:16 VOICE
You are living among people who do not know God. So be very careful that you always live in a good way. Sometimes these people may wrongly say that you do bad things. But if you continue to live in a good way, they will see that you really do good things. As a result, on the day when God comes as judge, they will give honor to him.
1 Peter 2:12
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