Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them. The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

We live in a country where our Christian beliefs are under attack. While we used to be largely a Christian nation, positions of power have often fallen to those who do not value Jesus, the Bible, and its teachings.

Christians around the world are persecuted severely at times for their faith, but we have not yet seen this in the United States. Persecution can also be more subtle. I was persecuted in high school by a teacher for presenting creation as an alternative theory to evolution. In college, my plan was shot down in wanting a speaker to present Biblical views on homosexuality, to counter another speaker on campus. I was told this would “disrupt the peace”.

What will I say when my faith is tested? I have heard many people in church and Bible studies wonder this. But God wants to bring us away from a position of wondering to a position of trusting.

When we are following his Spirit in a true relationship with him, his Spirit gives us the words to speak. I believe that is what happened here with the Apostles. The words were provided, the boldness infused into their surrendered hearts by the Holy Spirit.

So maybe a better question is: How do I more fully surrender my heart to Jesus Christ and allow his Spirit to work through me?

Thank you, Lord, for your work in my life. You instill spiritual confidence in me where I would shrink away in fear. I trust you to give me the words to say at the right time and in the right situations to stand for the truth.