The Only Way

THE ONLY WAY

a prayer to open

Holy Spirit, come. Center my heart.

Fill my mind. Guide my steps.

While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees. These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead. They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning. But many of the people who heard their message believed it. . . .

The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem. . . . They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. . . . There is salvation in no one else! ” . . .

The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. . . .

“What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.” So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.

But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

Peter’s and John’s belief in the Resurrection and in salvation in Jesus alone put them at odds with the religious leaders. Such beliefs threatened the leaders’ authority and the structures upon which their authority was based. The disciples were such a threat that the authorities commanded them on multiple occasions not to speak the name of Jesus. We face similar problems today: Many people in positions of power find the notion that Jesus is the only means to salvation too exclusive, too narrow, and an affront to modern ways of thinking. The name of Jesus continues to threaten power structures and authorities that seek to advance anything other than God’s Kingdom. Will we shut our mouths or follow the example of Peter and John?

• Read this passage again. What word or phrase stands out to you? Sit quietly, reminding yourself that you are in God’s loving presence, and ask him to show you how that word or phrase connects to your life.
• Why is it good news that Jesus is the only way of salvation? How would you answer this question when speaking with a friend or colleague who doesn’t believe in him?
• What are the power structures and authorities that the name of Jesus threatens in our country? How could you reflect God’s love and light to those structures and authorities? (Consider your social-media posts, words about political figures and structures, the way you pray, how you debate important issues, and so on.)

Father, thank you for salvation through Jesus. Help me to be a light in this world. I want to represent a different way—the way of Jesus, the way of love and grace. By your Holy Spirit, grant me the power to walk in the ways of Jesus even when it is unpopular and I am criticized. Give me the words to share your invitation to life that is truly life through Christ. And more than anything else, let my life speak the hope I hold and the forgiveness I know. Amen.