Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

Acts 2:38
Peter replied: “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
On one occasion I was taking a group of friends to a railway station at the end of a conference. I spoke movingly to them about the excellence of my satnav and the help that it had been to me. We weren’t far away from the station when my passengers expressed some surprise at the route we had taken. There was grass growing up the middle of the road and it certainly didn’t look ideal. However, it was the way the satnav had brought me so I assured them that it must be right. Then, to my horror, the road came to an abrupt halt. It was a dead end! The only way to remedy the situation was to turn around and retrace our steps, and I had to admit that my wonderful satnav was, after all, not infallible.
There are times when the only way to correct a situation in our lives is by admitting that we have done wrong, and do a U turn. That’s called repentance and it was precisely what Peter told his listeners to do on the day of Pentecost. Their sins had caused the death of Jesus and now they needed to head in a completely new direction. If they were willing to turn their lives around in this way the result would be the gift of forgiveness. They would be set free to live a new life with God, which would be marked by baptism and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
It's always hard to admit that we have done wrong. It wounds our pride and so we will always be eager to find excuses to justify our actions. But when God shows us that we have sinned against Him, the only appropriate response is to admit that we have let Him down, turn right around and claim His gift of forgiveness.
Question
What is your own experience of God’s forgiveness?
Prayer
Lord God, I admit that I have sinned against You. I repent of my sins and ask for Your gift of forgiveness. Amen

Acts 2:36-37
“So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
In his Pentecost sermon Peter carefully explained to his Jewish audience that what had happened had all been in fulfilment of God’s plans. He was very respectful of their patriarch King David but pointed out that, despite all his greatness, David had not risen from death, unlike Jesus the Messiah whom they had had a hand in crucifying. Peter’s sharp challenge pierced them to the heart and they wanted to know what to do in response.
I wonder whether you can think of a moment when you were pierced to the heart. It’s an agonising moment when you know that you cannot avoid the challenge that has been put to you. It reminds me of the time when King David was confronted by the prophet Nathan. David believed he had got away with his adultery with Bathsheba. He had married her, having successfully arranged the murder of her husband. But the prophet Nathan bravely confronted David by telling him the story of a rich man who had cruelly prepared a meal for a visitor by killing not one of his many sheep, but the one much loved little lamb that was the family pet of a very poor family. David seethed with anger and was determined that the rich man should make generous restitution to the abused family. Nathan said to David: “You are that man!” (2 Samuel 12:7) Ouch. David had to admit that he had done wrong and come before God in repentance.
It’s not easy to be challenged, but when we are confronted by the truth it is vital that we take action.
Question
When have you been deeply challenged by someone else’s words and what action did you take?
Prayer
Lord God, thank You for loving me so much that You confront me with the truth about myself. Amen

Acts 2:17-18
“In the last days,” God says, “I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants—men and women alike— and they will prophesy.”
Peter responded to the suggestion that Jesus’ followers were drunk by making the practical observation that it was far too early in the morning for anything like that! He then went on to point out that Joel, in the 9th-century BC, had prophesied that in the last days the Spirit would be poured out upon everyone in exactly this way. In Old Testament times the Spirit came upon people, but it was normally the prophets, priests and kings. In this new era of the Spirit it would be fundamentally different. The leaders of the Church would continue to play a crucial role, but now the doors were flung open to everyone to receive the Spirit and to hear God speak with them.
We are still living in the last days, so should expect to hear God speaking through one another as His Spirit comes upon us. I find this incredibly exciting. We thank God for those He has called to be church leaders and for their faithful declaring of God’s word. But we should be expecting to hear God speak to us through everyone else in our churches as well – through the shy, retiring people just as much as through the bold, talkative ones. We need to do what I love to call ‘deep listening’: because we know that God loves to speak to us through one another within the Church, we need to give our best attention to one another. Deep listening takes time, effort and much love but, as we listen, we can be sure that we will hear God speaking to us.
Question
Who are the people who have spoken God’s word to you most clearly in recent months?
Prayer
Thank you, Lord, that You love to speak. Help me to listen out for Your voice speaking through my Christian brothers and sisters. Amen

Acts 2:11-13
“We all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other. But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!”
Despite only giving us a very brief summary of what actually happened on the day of Pentecost, Luke doesn’t miss out the fact that many struggled to work out what on earth was going on. For us, it is absolutely clear what a significant day it was, but for many people at the time it was thoroughly perplexing. Some asked genuine questions, and Peter was about to give them a very full explanation. But others concluded that the bizarre events could only be explained by alcohol.
When God works in your life in a big way there will always be a variety of responses. Perhaps you have felt led to be confirmed or baptised, or to change your job in obedience to the Lord, or to work for Him in another country. Some people will have questions and we should always be delighted by this. I remember the time when an uncle of mine became a minister. He had a well-paid job in the oil industry and lived in a beautiful home in the suburbs. As a minister, he lived in much smaller house in a far less attractive area and saw his income reduced enormously. There were inevitably many questions! Such moments give us, like Peter, a superb opportunity for explaining to people what our faith means to us.
Be warned, that there will always be people who will laugh off our experiences. It must have been very hurtful for the apostles to hear that some people thought that they were intoxicated. We should never be surprised by such responses, but should be patient and gracious as we explain what’s going on. It is hardest of all when such reactions are from people in our own families. We will need special grace to keep our cool and to respond wisely and graciously.
Question
How do you respond when people laugh at your Christian commitment?
Prayer
Lord God, help me to respond with Your wisdom and grace to those who are perplexed by my faith. Amen

Acts 2:5-7
At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers. They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed.
The arrival of the Holy Spirit caused a stir in Jerusalem. The city was packed with Jewish pilgrims from a huge area and they were eager to find out what was going on. What amazed them was that they were hearing God’s name being praised in their own languages. Luke provides us with a fascinating list of where the pilgrims had come from. To use the countries’ modern names they had come from, among other places, Rome, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt and other parts of North Africa (vv9-11). What a perfect moment for the Holy Spirit to be given. By the end of the day thousands of people had heard the good news of Jesus in their own language for the first time. They were able to take the message back home and start building Christian communities.
This was truly a ‘Kairos’ moment. The Greek word [itals]Kairos[end itals] is very special. It is one of two words which translates the English word time. The other Greek word is [itals]Chronos[end itals], which we know well from words like chronology. It’s the time that we measure with our clocks and calendars. [itals]Kairos[end itals] is better translated by the word ‘opportunity’. The day of Pentecost was an amazing moment of supernatural opportunity. Viewed in one way, it was just one more day in the calendar but, from God’s point of view, it was a turning point. Nothing would be the same after that day.
Writing to the Ephesians the apostle Paul comments: “be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days” (Ephesians 5:15-16). As we thank God for the miraculous outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, He calls us to grasp hold of today and to use every opportunity for serving Him.
Question
What are the special opportunities that God is giving to you at the moment?
Prayer
Dear Lord, help me to grasp every opportunity You give me for serving You. Amen