Daily Devotional For Friday, August 22, 2025

Good morning Southside and praising the Lord that Hurricane Erin did not hit us. I do not know if you have heard, but Dr. James Dobson died yesterday. He was 89 and was the founder of Focus On The Family and one of the best men God ever used to help Christian parents with parenting.

Do you ever feel you do not measure up? Do you ever feel that with all your failures, sins, and mistakes that God could never use you? Well, you can put those demonic thoughts aside. Jesus called 12 uneducated men, most of them were rugged fishermen to be His disciples. Look at Acts 4:13, “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.” (NASB). Mark 3:14-15 tells us why Jesus called 12 men to be His disciples – “And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach, (15) and to have authority to cast out the demons” (NASB). 

In Acts 4 we see how much Peter and John, just ordinary uneducated fishermen impressed the esteemed highly educated religious leaders who had gone to rabbinic schools for their theological training. Peter and John had no formal training at all; all they had was Jesus. Yet, their appearance before such a group of highly trained and educated rabbis was astonishing. They spoke with boldness with confident composure, being undaunted in their defense and testimony about Jesus. Having done miracles that could not be denied or hidden, the religious leaders did not know what to do. We know Peter and John were brought before very important religious leaders such as Caiaphas, who was responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion. While preaching on the resurrection, in that tribunal would have been a group of religious leaders called Sadducees. This group had full control over the Temple. Peter and John were teaching and preaching right there in the Temple that Jesus had been resurrected. Well, the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection and that is why they were “sad-u-see.” Acts 4:2 says the Sadducees were greatly disturbed by this. 

The Greek New Testament word translated as “disturbed” is [διαπονέομαι, diaponeomai]. This word can be also translated as “annoyed, irritated, and incensed.” Right here in the very center of power of the Sadducees, Peter and John were teaching and preaching something the Sadducees did not believe. This was a threat to their power and control as religious leaders. Just a few weeks earlier, these same disciples had been timid, fearful and in hiding after the crucifixion. What brought such a 180 change that these same disciples were fearless, confident, articulate and passionate men for the Gospel? They believed in Christ. What are the most obvious changes Christ has brought about in your life?

Now put yourself in the shoes of these Jewish religious leaders. To them, Jesus was dead. His ministry and movement were over. They saw Jesus die on the cross, something that would be an unforgettable experience and memory. Though they would like to forget it, they could not. Peter and John were to the religious leaders “uneducated.” The Greek New Testament word is [ἀγράμματος, agrammatos]. The letter in Greek as the first letter of a word often means “no or not.” You see the word that is translated as grammar in English? Meaning Peter and John to the religious leaders were illiterate idiots. Yet, when they taught and preached they were so much like Jesus that the presence of Christ was right then and there could not be denied. With a healed man standing with Peter and John, the religious leaders were baffled as to what to do. Acts 4:8-10 tell us that Peter and John were filled with the Holy Spirit, indicating that their emotions, their compelling wills and energizing bodies were like seeing Jesus all over again. 

Peter and John were so filled by the Holy Spirit that His daily communication to them was permeating that room. I like what pastor and author Alexander Maclaren has said: “A soul habitually in contact with Jesus will imbibe sweetness from Him, just as garments laid away in a drawer with some… perfume absorb fragrance from that beside which they lie” (Source: Alexander Maclaren, Exposition of Holy Scripture, Vol. 10, p. 140).

Seeing Peter and John, they were also seeing Jesus. The fragrance of Jesus permeated that room and those religious leaders could not deny it. New Testament scholar Kent Hughes writes this: “Practically, what does this mean for us? When we are filled with the Holy Spirit, Christ is the focus of our lives. The Holy Spirit does not promote himself. He promotes Christ” (Source: Kent Hughes, Preach The Word Bible Commentary, “Acts,” p. 65).

Assignment: When people see you, do they see Jesus? Do your attitudes, actions and attributes permeate with the presence of Christ and the Holy Spirit? If not, spending time in the Word daily and in prayer daily will do this for you. Compare for a moment: how much time do you spend on your phone on an average day versus being in the Word and praying? How much time do you spend watching TV versus being the Word and praying? They say, “Birds of a feather flock together.” Meaning we begin to look like who we hang out with in life. If the Lord held up a “spiritual mirror” in front of you, who does the world see reflected more – you or Him?

Scripture To Meditate On: 2 Corinthians 2:14, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place” (NASB).

Prayer To Pray: “Dear Jesus, help me to reflect You in every aspect of my life. When people see me, I want them to see You. I want to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that I live my life boldly and unapologetically for You. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly.