Today’s devotion reminds us of our identity and purpose after salvation. Be a witness for Christ!

Bible reading of the Day

AM – Ezra 9,10

PM – Acts 1

𝕿𝖎𝖙𝖑𝖊: 𝕭𝖊 𝖆 𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖓𝖊𝖘𝖘 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝕮𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖘𝖙!

𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝟏:𝟖 𝐊𝐉𝐕

𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒍𝒚 𝑮𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖: 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒏 𝑱𝒆𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒎, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑱𝒖𝒅𝒂𝒆𝒂, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝑺𝒂𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒂, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉.

In the opening of this book, Luke mentions that he has already documented Jesus’s life and ministry. He then shifts attention to Jesus’s actions after His resurrection. For those living at the time, the resurrection was considered an accepted fact, supported by many infallible proofs demonstrating that Jesus had truly risen and conquered death. This truth is fundamental to the existence and function of the church.

Our actions should be based on truth, acknowledging that life continues beyond death. Jesus demonstrated this by rising from the grave, a reminder we must keep in mind as we serve Him. Our purpose on earth isn’t just to improve the world but to spread the gospel and prepare people’s hearts for death and eternity. Ignoring this duty risks us missing Jesus’ instructions and commissions.

The Lord Jesus Christ wanted to teach the disciples about world mission, but the disciples were more interested in prophecy. 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝟏:𝟔-𝟕 states, “𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒂𝒔𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒎, 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝑰𝒔𝒓𝒂𝒆𝒍? 𝟕 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎, 𝑰𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒑𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓.”

The Lord Jesus Christ emphasized the purpose of every believer—people like you and me—in this world. When asked questions, Jesus explained that there are certain things we are not meant to understand. This isn’t a secret we can uncover with our intelligence or cleverness; rather, it’s knowledge that God has deliberately kept from us. We should accept this and avoid trying to discover what God has restricted us from knowing. Yet, before His ascension, Jesus also reaffirmed our identity as His witnesses, both in Jerusalem, in Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth.

Many of us have also forgotten our true identity, our purpose, and why we are here. 𝔅𝔢𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔞 𝔴𝔦𝔱𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔦𝔰 𝔠𝔥𝔞𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔫𝔤𝔦𝔫𝔤; 𝔭𝔢𝔬𝔭𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔣𝔱𝔢𝔫 𝔡𝔬𝔲𝔟𝔱 𝔬𝔯 𝔲𝔫𝔡𝔢𝔯𝔪𝔦𝔫𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔠𝔯𝔢𝔡𝔦𝔟𝔦𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔶 𝔱𝔬 𝔡𝔦𝔰𝔱𝔬𝔯𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔱𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔪𝔬𝔫𝔶. They may try to discredit you for speaking the truth. In my ministry experience, I’ve noticed that people frequently misunderstand how I approach them, and even my messages are often questioned or scrutinized. However, these concerns are unimportant to me. What matters most is fulfilling my responsibility to please God when I preach and to serve as a faithful witness for Christ.

Similarly, the disciples suffered torment and death not because of their wrongdoings but because they proclaimed the truth! This presents a significant challenge for all believers saved by God’s Grace. He explicitly instructed us to serve as His witnesses of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Rather than wasting time dwelling on your weaknesses and struggles, surrender them to the Lord. Let Him empower and guide you so you can be a faithful and effective witness for Christ.

The resurrection of Jesus clearly showcases God’s power. It either happened or it didn’t. If it did, it transforms everything about life and eternity. It remains the most important fact in human history. This is what we observe—God’s power to forgive sins and defeat our greatest enemy, death.