Daily Devotion with Pastor Tong Liu: Today's Passage

Acts 2:29-36

"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. ...Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

Book of Acts can also be called Book of Acts by Jesus, because no matter where the disciple went, their messages are exactly the same, which is Jesus is Christ and Jesus is the Lord. These two things are extremely important messages in the early church and they are equally important today. The fact that Christ came to life is important because all men have sinned and the Bible says that the wage of sin is death. If Jesus wants to be the savior of mankind, He must first be victorious against the authority of death. Through crushing the authority of death, the authority of sin can also be crushed. Therefore, Christ must die for us and then be resurrected from death in order to prove that He can overcome death and sin, that He can save mankind of sin.

The resurrection from death also proved that Jesus is Lord. Verse 34 says that "For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'" After Jesus resurrected from death, God lifted Him to the highest and sat at the right of God's throne, and made the enemy His footstool. The authority of sin and death as well as devil Satan have all been nailed to the cross and crushed by the salvation of Christ! Now, Jesus has absolute authority, and by His holy name we may come before Father God to enjoy the benefits of salvation.

Jesus is the Lord, and He is also Christ. What does Christ mean? On the one hand, Christ means Messiah in the Old Testament, the one whom Israelites of the Old Testament time were expecting. On the other hand, Chris also means "the anointed one." The church today is referred to as body of Christ in the Bible, which originated from Jesus and also the anointing of Jesus. Because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the church today may be glorious testimony for God in the world, much like how Jesus Christ performed miracles in the world through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Because church is the body of Christ, we may also receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit to preach in the end time that Jesus is the Lord, so that the hearts of people will turn back to the Lord.

Pray with Pastor Tong

Lord Jesus, we thank you because you are the Lord and the Christ! Let us keep a heart of faith and courage as we spread your message around the world. May the anointing of your Holy Spirit be with us always, so that when we preach you message and manifest your authority and power, hearts will turn back to you. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!