Nougat 8

Sometimes when I think of God’s grace, I’m overwhelmed. God gives us so many opportunities to get things right, and we certainly don’t deserve all that grace. If that wasn’t enough, we often take that grace for granted, acting as if God works to fulfil our agenda, rather than us being beholden to God. Take the religious leaders for example, they got another chance to make things right after the crucifixion fiasco. I’m not sure they even recognised it as that kind of opportunity. What’s your take on their action, as you consider Today’s Holy Nougat

Acts 4:15-16 CEVDCI

[15] The officials commanded them to leave the council room. Then the officials said to each other,

[16] “What can we do with these men? Everyone in Jerusalem knows about this miracle, and we cannot say it didn’t happen.

No Cover Up

They didn’t even recognise that God was giving them the chance to make things right. They felt chagrin that they couldn’t pretend the miracle away. We could say they were being ostriches, trying to bury their head in the sand. But, even then, that truth would not stay hidden.

Self-Check

Have we ever tried to cover up God’s grace simply to make ourselves look good? Did we feel remorse when God’s Spirit confronted us?

Application

With the evidence walking around in front of them and others, it really would have been smarter for the religious leaders to see God in the miracle. But, they felt the sting of the threat and decided to devise a plan of action. At this point, they didn’t know what their plan was, they only knew they needed a plan. Ironically, these religious rulers didn’t reach for the Ummim and the Thumim, they didn’t call for a day of fasting, nor did they spend time seeking God’s face.

They put the detainees out of the room and tried to determine their own plan of action. That’s TROUBLE in all caps right there. How could they, the religious leaders and teachers of the day, fail to call for godly intervention in a situation such as they were faced with?

How could we?

Yet far too often, when the going gets tough, we don’t trust that God is working God’s purpose out, and, in turn, we fail to seek God’s directive. I guess God should be happy that we don’t try to stamp God’s name on our self-directed actions.

As we continue this earthly journey, I pray that when faced with situations such as these, our first thought will be to seek God’s face. Then perhaps we’ll see that no cover-up is God’s way of offering us an opportunity to do right.

Point to Ponder

Could our current situation be a reminder to seek God’s way before doing anything else?

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May all we seek be found in Christ