SATURDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER

It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.

The Jewish elders thought that putting Jesus to death should have been enough to stop his followers from talking about him anymore. Clearly, they had misread the situation! Peter and John knew the risks they were taking as they preached and healed people in Jesus’ name. Even when they were offered a “get out of jail free” card—a simple warning—they continued with their work. “You don’t get it,” we can imagine them saying. “We can’t stop talking about this!”

What happened? Why was the good news about Jesus just bursting out of them? Peter and John put it succinctly: what they had personally “seen and heard” was too good to keep to themselves (Acts 4:20). Jesus truly was Israel’s Messiah. And not only that, but he had risen from the dead and given them his own Holy Spirit! They were filled with so much awe and gratitude that they had to proclaim it.

Like Peter and John, you, too, have seen and heard good news that can’t be silenced. By faith you know that death is not the end. The grave has no power over anyone who is striving to live in Christ. Sin is not the end, either. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, you have been set free from slavery to sin and the burden of guilt and shame that comes with it. Now, through the Holy Spirit, God lives in you, speaking words of guidance and comfort, filling you with faith, hope, and love.

And then there are all those “particular blessings” that God has given to you alone: your loved ones, your own gifts and talents, and the specific ways he has called you to serve him.

You have so much to be grateful for! You have so much to offer the people around you! In prayer today, ask the Lord for the courage and joy to “speak about what [you] have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). Then look for just one simple way you can follow Peter and John’s example.

“Lord, show me how I can proclaim your good news today.”

Acts 4:13-21
Psalm 118:1, 14-21
Mark 16:9-15