Standing Firm in the Face of Fear

Scripture – Acts 12:1-5 ¹It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. ²He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. ³When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. ⁴After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover. ⁵So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

Reflection: – I really take the freedom I have for granted. I can’t imagine living in a setting where I have to keep looking over my shoulder. In many places in the world there are Christians who live daily with such risk. To openly claim allegiance to Christ carries great consequences for them. Yet they stay faithful. It leaves me wondering how strong my faith really is.

As we can see, a new round of persecution was breaking out in Jerusalem. James was killed. Peter was arrested. It looks like Herod’s strategy was to pick off leaders of the church one by one. This must have been quite intimidating for the rest of the believers. In the face of that, they stayed faithful, they stayed together and they prayed earnestly.

When have you experienced any kind of persecution because of your faith? What risks do we face as Christians today? How do we stand firm in the face of intimidation?

Reading for Sunday, August 24

Scripture – Acts 12:6-9: ⁶The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. ⁷Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists. ⁸Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. ⁹Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.