Good morning!
Text: Acts 1-3; Proverbs 9.
In Acts 3, Peter and John bring miraculous healing to a crippled man, and attract a whole lot of attention. The Lord uses the excitement to give Peter an audience, and we get to read the account of Peter’s presentation of the Gospel. In it, he brings the crowd to see their sin, and then tells the people ,
“Repent therefore, and turn again that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…” (Acts 3:19-20)
That word, “refreshing” brings to mind a cool breeze on a hot day, a drink when parched, or the comfort that comes when an ordeal has ended and a good night’s sleep has finally come.
It is amazing that the simple change of heart and mind called “repentance” brings refreshment. Just the turn from sin and to the Lord heals and renews. And indeed it does. All we need to do is see our sin as the Lord does – as something to be rejected – and act on it. “Turn”, Peter says. That’s it – all it takes. It is so simple, yet so many times we struggle with feelings of suffocation and oppression from our sin. Want to be refreshed? “Turn.” That’s it!
in Him, Mike