50 Ways to Get Through Easter... Confirmation!

“But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” (Acts 5: 39)

Today’s word: Confirmation!

Today’s word, Confirmation, does not necessarily mean a discussion of the famed Sacrament, or that great line from Billy Joel’s Only the Good Die Young... “You got a nice white dress and a party on your Confirmation!”. Nope, we’re gonna take this word in a totally different direction. Today, the warning is that you better CONFIRM who dealing with before you go persecuting folks!

If you read Acts 5: 37-42 you’ll see the brief, but very important appearance by a guy named Gamaliel, a Pharisee who loved to teach the law. Gamaliel warned his fellow members of the Sanhedrin that they’d better be careful before persecuting anymore followers of Jesus. He said, “have nothing to do with these men, and let them go. For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

It just so happens that this “lover of the law” was wiser than his title claimed him to be. Gamaliel offers us all good advice today! If you are struggling against something or someone, and if it of human origin, that is someone else’s “bad idea”, then let it go. The bad idea will fade away, and not bother you anymore. But if someone is trying to help you, let’s say with the love of God, then listen to them, and consider all they have to say! Let us CONFIRM the fact that we are not fighting with the Father, Son or Holy Spirit. This is not a threat, but an observation of salvation history. Pharro saw it, and many a king saw it, and Pilate saw it... When God is in the mix, God wins!

Seek CONFIRMATION of who you’re dealing with in your struggles. If you’re fighting the “enemy”, we’ve got your back, and WE will battle with you! But if you’re “wrestling with God” (see Genesis 32: 25-22), then we’re gonna watch, and be ready to welcome you in when God is done. God will not destroy you, God will change you, and CONFIRM that you are His, to love and to celebrate, and to wrestle with every now and then!