“Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied“ (Acts 9:31).
The fear of God was one of the characteristics of the early church and the key to its growth. Paul had been accepted among the believers in Jerusalem and wished to stay there, the intellectual epicenter, to redeem his past as a persecutor and to convince his former companions, doctors of the law. But God had other plans for him. When your plans do not coincide with God’s plate it is better to listen and obey Him. Paul’s new friends learned of a plot to kill him, and they helped him flee to Caesarea so from there he could travel to Tarsus, his home town (see Acts 9:28—30). It was not easy to return home as an apostate Jew who had left the faith of his fathers and now belonged to the much hated new ‘sect.”
When Paul fled Jerusalem, peace was restored there, and Peter became stronger in his preaching and in the organization of the new church. Our anguish, no matter how intense it may be, will never be eternal. Following Jesus’s guidance, Christian communities were organized in all the cities and towns of Israel. They enjoyed peace, they learned and developed, they were reverent before God, their congregations grew, and they were strengthened by the Holy Spirit. It’s almost like an equation: peace allows you to learn more, it makes you reverent, you grow, and the Holy Spirit strengthens you. The church prospered because of the fear of God and the Holy Spirit’s work and encouragement in each believer. The enemy tries to interfere in your life using fear as a remote control.
Today’s verse shows a simple method to increase our numbers: a church that fears God and is full of the Holy Spirit is a church that grows in numbers and in strength. Before offering training courses, the church should make sure that the congregation respects the fearsome name of the Lord of Hosts. When this happens there is happiness, peace, and joy. Growth of the congregation will come in an unexpected and natural way. We don’t need more preachers but rather more God-fearing Christians. ‘Foremost among those who were called to lead the church from the darkness of popery into the light of a purer faith, stood Martin Luther. Zealous, ardent, and devoted, knowing no fear but the fear of God, and acknowledging no foundation for religious faith but the Holy Scriptures.” —The Great Controversy, ch. 7, 113. ‘Some one must advance; some one muse venture in the fear of God, trusting the result with Him.”—Life Sketches of Ellen G. White, ch. 31, p.194
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Taken from: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2023
“DAUGHTER OF MINE” Do Not Be Afraid
From: Arsenia Fernandez-Uckele
Collaborators: Xiomara Perdomo & Esteban Cortes
