Nothing will be able to stop God’s plans!

Acts 5:27-42

²⁷ Then they brought the apostles before the high council, where the high priest confronted them. ²⁸ “We gave you strict orders never again to teach in this man’s name!” he said. “Instead, you have filled all Jerusalem with your teaching about him, and you want to make us responsible for his death!”

²⁹ But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. ³⁰ The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on a cross. ³¹ Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as Prince and Savior. He did this so the people of Israel would repent of their sins and be forgiven. ³² We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him.”

³³ When they heard this, the high council was furious and decided to kill them. ³⁴ But one member, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was an expert in religious law and respected by all the people, stood up and ordered that the men be sent outside the council chamber for a while. ³⁵ Then he said to his colleagues, “Men of Israel, take care what you are planning to do to these men! ³⁶ Some time ago there was that fellow Theudas, who pretended to be someone great. About 400 others joined him, but he was killed, and all his followers went their various ways. The whole movement came to nothing. ³⁷ After him, at the time of the census, there was Judas of Galilee. He got people to follow him, but he was killed, too, and all his followers were scattered.

³⁸ “So my advice is, leave these men alone. Let them go. If they are planning and doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. ³⁹ But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God!”

⁴⁰ The others accepted his advice. They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them go.

⁴¹ The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus. ⁴² And every day, in the Temple and from house to house, they continued to teach and preach this message: “Jesus is the Messiah.”

The leaders desperately wanted to stop the apostles from telling people about Jesus. The apostles had filled Jerusalem with their teaching and made the leaders look guilty of the death of, not only an innocent man, but the actual Son of God. Consequently the leaders were furious and wanted to put the apostles to death.

Then Gamaliel, one of the Pharisees, steps in and says one of the most profound statements that resonates with wisdom some 2000 years later. “Leave these men alone…for if their purpose is from human origin it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourself fighting against God”.

Well, with the benefit of hindsight we see that Gamaliel was absolutely right. The apostles purpose in preaching the resurrection of Jesus was not from human origin and therefore certainly did not fail, but continues to live on to this day.

This actually gives me great comfort. I want to live my life right in step with His plan, but sometimes I find myself wondering if my pursuits are ‘from human origin’ or ‘from God’.  I think that the wisdom of Gamaliel can be applied to my life as well. If what I am putting my energy to is from human origin it will not stand the test of time, but if it is from God nothing will be able to stop it from coming to pass.

In the end, nothing can stand in the way of the plans of God, both for the world and for my life. There are often set-backs and obstacles along the way, and, of course, life does not always go the way that I think it should. But today I am encouraged by looking back on the history of the Big Story that I am privileged to a part of. Nothing will be able to stop it!

Written by Shelley Witt