Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion Premier

Acts 2:11-13
I love the carefulness of Dr Luke’s account of the day of Pentecost. He is giving us only a very brief summary of what actually happened, but he doesn’t miss out the fact that many people struggled to work out what on earth was going on! For us it is absolutely clear what a significant day it was, but for many people at the time it was thoroughly perplexing. Some asked genuine questions, and soon after Peter gave them a very full explanation. But other people concluded that the bizarre events could only be explained by alcohol.
When God works in your life in a big way there will always be a variety of responses. Perhaps you have felt led to be confirmed or baptised, to change your job in obedience to the Lord, or to work for him in another country. Some people will have questions and we should always be delighted by this. I remember the time when an uncle of mine became a minister. He had a well-paid job in the oil industry and lived in a beautiful home in the suburbs. As a minister he lived in much smaller house in a far less attractive area and saw his income reduced enormously. There were, inevitably, many questions! Such moments give us, like Peter, a superb opportunity for explaining to people what our faith means to us.
But, be warned, there will always be people who will laugh off our experiences. It must have been very hurtful for the apostles to hear that some people thought that they were intoxicated. We should never be surprised by such responses, but patiently and graciously explain what’s going on. It is hardest of all when such reactions are from people in our own families, and we will need special grace to keep our cool and respond wisely and kindly.
Question
How do you respond when people laugh at your Christian commitment?
Prayer
Lord God, help me to respond with your wisdom and grace to those who are perplexed by my faith. Amen

Acts 2:5-7
The arrival of the Holy Spirit caused a stir in Jerusalem. The city was packed with Jewish pilgrims who were eager to find out what was going on. When they heard God’s name being praised in their own languages, they were amazed. Dr Luke provides us with a fascinating list of where the pilgrims had come from. To use their modern names, there were visitors from, among other places, Rome, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt and other parts of North Africa. What a perfect moment for the Holy Spirit to be given. By the end of the day thousands of people had heard the good news of Jesus in their own language for the first time. They were able to take the message back home and start building Christian communities.
This was truly a kairos moment. The Greek word kairos is very special. It is one of two words which translates the English word ‘time’. The other Greek word is chronos, from which we derive words like ‘chronology’. It’s the time that we measure with our clocks and calendars. Kairos is better translated by the word ‘opportunity’. The day of Pentecost was an amazing moment of supernatural opportunity. Viewed in one way, it was just another day in the calendar but, from God’s point of view, it was a turning point. Nothing would be the same again.
Writing to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul comments: “Be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days” (Ephesians 5:15-16). As we thank God for the miraculous outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, God calls us to grasp hold of today and to use every opportunity for serving him.
Question
What are the special opportunities that God is giving to you at the moment?
Prayer
Dear Lord, help me to grasp every opportunity you give me for serving you. Amen

Acts 2:1-4
Pentecost Sunday marks the birthday of the Church. Jesus had asked his followers to wait for the gift of the Holy Spirit – and now he has arrived. Pentecost was a Jewish harvest festival and was held 50 days after Passover. It was one of the three annual pilgrimages and so Jerusalem would have been heaving with visitors from all over the region.
Jesus’ followers were probably gathered in the upper room where they had been in the habit of meeting. One can imagine them meeting quietly and prayerfully as they had done since the time of Jesus’ ascension. But suddenly, everything changed as they were overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit. A completely new era had just begun. A violent wind filled the whole house, symbolising the breath of life that the Holy Spirit brings. No one could miss the fact that something dramatic was taking place, and the tongues of fire that rested on each of them spoke of the cleansing and refining work of the Spirit.
As the Holy Spirit came upon them, they spoke in other languages as they worshipped God together. What an incredible moment! Our experience of the Holy Spirit might be very different from this, but we should be encouraged that he is the same Spirit. He wants to breathe life on us today and refine us with his fire. The Holy Spirit never leaves things the way they are. He is constantly challenging, renewing and purifying us as we worship God together.
Question
In what ways have you experienced the wind and fire of the Holy Spirit?
Prayer
God our Father, thank you for sending your Holy Spirit. Help me to welcome him today, so that I may become more like Jesus. Amen

Acts 1:24-26
After the ascension of Jesus, the eleven disciples needed to find a successor to Judas Iscariot. They identified two candidates whom they considered to be suitable, Barsabbas and Matthias. We don’t know anything about them, but clearly they had spent time with Jesus and were part of his wider circle of followers. What might strike you as strange is that, having committed the decision to God in prayer, they then cast lots. This certainly isn’t a method that I have ever employed but it was their way of leaving the decision up to God. They played their part in choosing two people who they believed to appropriately qualified, but then they let God decide.
We don’t hear of anyone else casting lots in this way in the New Testament and so many people have assumed that the practice belonged firmly to the period before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Once the Spirit had been given, the Church could look to him to guide them in their decision-making. That isn’t to say that decision-making has now become easy, but it does mean that we can confidently lean upon the Holy Spirit and seek his guidance in every detail of our lives, without resorting to apparently random measures like casting lots.
The pages that follow in Acts give us an amazing account of how the Holy Spirit guided his people. Step by step, he led this small, weak and confused group of ordinary people into becoming a large missionary movement that turned the world upside down.
Question
In what way are you seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit today?
Prayer
Loving God, thank you that you have given me your Holy Spirit to enable me to make good decisions. Amen

Acts 1:12-14
The days between Jesus’ ascension and Pentecost were filled with prayer. The disciples knew that they had to wait and they didn’t want to do this alone. We read that they met together in an upper room, which may well have been the place where they had gathered for the Last Supper. What matters is that they were together and it is interesting to note that the eleven disciples were joined by Jesus’ mother and his brothers. While we know little about his brothers, John records that, prior to his death, they did not believe in him (John 7:5).
What an amazing time of prayer it must have been! Jesus had told them that the Holy Spirit would be poured out on them but hadn’t informed them when this might happen. They simply had to wait in expectation, with the confidence of knowing that God had a perfect plan. In one sense prayer is always like this.
Although we live in the privileged days of the Spirit, whenever we pray there is much that we do not know. We only partly know God’s plans for our lives, our church and our world. As we pray, we open ourselves afresh to the breath of God’s Spirit and invite him to meet with us.
Prayer is the privilege of every Christian and we will often pray by ourselves. But there is something very important about praying with our Christian brothers and sisters. Jesus said: “For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20). As we pray together the risen Lord Jesus Christ stands with us, strengthening and inspiring us. What could be more exciting than that?
Question
Why is waiting so important in our Christian lives?
Prayer
Gracious Lord, teach me more about the importance of expectant prayer, and help me to treasure the opportunities you give me to pray with my Christian brothers and sisters. Amen

Acts 1:9-11
The ascension of Jesus brought his ministry on earth to an end in an amazing way. It is not surprising that the disciples looked intently into the sky to see where he had gone. They were probably longing for him to come back down again. As they stood there, they were told that the day will come when Jesus returns in the same way as he left.
The second coming of Jesus should be our confident expectation. It should be constantly in our minds as the most wonderful promise. When I was a small boy, I must confess that I thought of it entirely as a threat. Whenever I couldn’t find my mother in the house, I assumed that Jesus had returned and I’d been left behind. But the fact that Jesus will return is presented to us in the New Testament as a cause for encouragement. It is a reminder that history is in God’s hands and, at the time that he chooses, the curtain will be brought down.
The knowledge that Jesus will return one day should spur us on to ensure that we keep our minds focused on serving the Lord. Jesus told a number of parables to stress the importance of keeping alert all the time because we don’t know precisely when he will return. The parable of the ten bridesmaids (Matthew 25:1-13) is an encouragement to us all to be fully prepared so that we don’t miss the moment. The parable of the servants (Matthew 25:14-30) reminds us that we need to work really hard with whatever resources we’ve been given. Whether or not Jesus returns during our lifetime is not the point. What matters is that we are always ready.
Question
In what way is your life affected by the fact that Jesus might return today?
Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ I pray that I will always live in readiness for your return. Amen