Acts 5:27-32 (NRSV)
Read Acts 5:27-32 on biblegateway.com
Verse 27When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, Verse 28saying, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us." Verse 29But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than any human authority. Verse 30The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. Verse 31God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. Verse 32And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."
Devotion
“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” Just because it’s a cliche doesn’t mean it isn’t true -– especially the day after Easter. The first Easter became a new first day for the rest of the world’s life. It marked a fresh start.
Certainly Easter was a fresh start for Peter. The disciple who denied even knowing Jesus now stood before the council charged with filling Jerusalem with his teaching, witnessing to the crucified and risen Savior.
In baptism we are joined to Christ’s death and resurrection. Baptism is our Easter, but it is not just a one-time event. Martin Luther urges us to a daily remembrance of baptism, a daily dying and rising in Christ. In this baptismal remembrance, each day is a new beginning, a fresh start. As an Easter people we are not trapped or stuck in our past. Each day is a “first day.”
Prayer
God of new beginnings, bless this day as a first day. Through your Spirit, put the past in its place and open me to a fresh start. Amen.