Ananias and Sapphira are a bad example of generosity in the early church. This chapter also shows us the witness of the apostles in the face of opposition.
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Acts 5 – Verse by Verse
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Tag Archives: sin
A Prayer Prompted by John 20
Dear Lord Jesus,
We have not seen you like these early disciples, nor do we expect you to appear personally to us, and yet we have taken that step to believe. With Thomas we proclaim that you are our Lord and our God.
We thank you for dying for our sins and rising from the grave. You truly have defeated sin and death.
As the Father sent you and as you sent those earliest disciples, we accept the mission you have given us. We are sent to proclaim the forgiveness of sins to all who believe, who put their faith and trust in Christ and Christ alone. Please empower us to carry out that mission.
Breathe your Holy Spirit onto us and fill us with his presence and power.
In your name we pray,
Amen
A Prayer Prompted by John 8
Heavenly Father,
Help us to take an attitude toward sin and toward sinners much like the one that Jesus had. Help us to demand repentance in ourselves, earnestly desire it in others, but help us to avoid condemning them, knowing that we ourselves have sinned.
Cause us to always see Christ as the light of the world, so that we might walk in that light and not walk in darkness ever again. Make us Christ’s true disciples, people who would abide in your word and let your word abide in us. Let that word transform us and help us to grow.
Since we know and understand that Jesus is truly God, we worship him, Father, even as we worship you.
We know that people’s eternity hangs in the balance and is decided on their response to Christ. Make us useful in the proclamation of the gospel, in calling children of the devil out of darkness, out of the bondage and slavery of sin, and into freedom, into the bright, clear vision of your marvelous light.
In Christ,
Amen
A Prayer Prompted by the Crucifixion in Luke 23
Lord Jesus,
We thank you for enduring the cross in our place so that our sins can be forgiven. We thank you for humbling yourself beyond anything we can imagine for our sake. Teach us now to live for you and teach us to live like you did, to the glory of the Father and for the benefit of others.
Help us to love even as you did, even to the point of death. And help us to forgive those who sin against us, even as we have been forgiven.
We want to be like you, Lord Jesus.
Amen
Central Reflections 