In this devotion, “God will not be stopped,” Dave continues his series from the Book of Acts, focusing on God’s sovereign wisdom for teaching in the Name of Jesus when facing opposition. And now, Dave’s devotion.  

Last week we learned how Peter and some of the apostles followed Jesus and were led by the Spirit in the Book of Acts. Remember, they didn't have the New Testament; they were feeling their way through it. They had good success teaching, preaching, healing and casting out demons, but the religious leaders didn't like it. They had the apostles arrested and jailed but an angel took them from the jail to the Temple, where they began teaching. When the Council came in to work the next day, they sent for the apostles and then learned that they were not in jail...they were teaching in the Temple. They had the apostles brought to them and tried to shut them up, but the apostles told them that they had to obey God and tell the truth; after all, they were witnesses—they saw it happen. Now, let's jump back into the story and listen to what happened next: 

When the members of the Council heard this, they were so furious that they wanted to have the apostles put to death. But one of them, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was a teacher of the Law and was highly respected by all the people, stood up in the Council. He ordered the apostles to be taken out for a while, and then he said to the Council, “Fellow Israelites, be careful what you do to these men. You remember that Theudas appeared some time ago, claiming to be somebody great, and about four hundred men joined him. But he was killed, all his followers were scattered, and his movement died out. After that, Judas the Galilean appeared during the time of the census; he drew a crowd after him, but he also was killed, and all his followers were scattered. And so in this case, I tell you, do not take any action against these men. Leave them alone! If what they have planned and done is of human origin, it will disappear, but if it comes from God, you cannot possibly defeat them. You could find yourselves fighting against God!” 
(Acts 5:33-39a) 

In today's passage we heard that the Council was "furious" and wanted to have the apostles put to death, but a Pharisee named Gamaliel intervened. He reminded the Council that people were poised to receive a Messiah. He mentioned Theudas and Judas the Galilean, both who led failed Messianic movements. He ended by saying, “I tell you, do not take any action against these men. Leave them alone! If what they have planned and done is of human origin, it will disappear, but if it comes from God, you cannot possibly defeat them. You could find yourselves fighting against God!” That's the truth, isn't it? Those man-made movements failed because they didn't come from God. The Jesus Movement is still going on today, two thousand years later, in various places all over the world. People are still being converted to Christ, hearing the message of the Kingdom, healed and delivered from demonic oppression.  

God will not be stopped by anyone ever...and that's very Good News! 

Thanks for listening. To learn more about Dave’s devotions, get a transcript or replay a broadcast, visit teachmi.com/dave.   

And please join us again for a new devotion when Dave wraps up his series on Wednesday.