Part 4: Shaken to Obey

“And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply” (Acts 4:14).

When people see the evidence of being with Jesus, there is nothing, no accusation they can truly bring against us. But that doesn’t mean they won’t scheme against us. The Sanhedrin “confer with one another” (v. 15) on how to deal with the spreading news, which threatened their status, concluding, “so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name” (v. 17). Thus they summoned the apostles and ordered them “not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus” (v. 18).

What are we to do when the government orders us not to speak in Jesus’ name? What are we to do when authorities tell us to shut our doors, do not hold services, or close your church for the safety of others? Yes, Christians are to be obedient to the governing authorities (Romans 13:1). However, obedience to God is paramount (Exodus 19:5, I Samuel 15:22, Jeremiah 7:23, Romans 6:17, II Corinthians 10:5, Philippians 2:12, etc.). How then are we to respond when governing authorities order us not to speak of or assemble for or obey God? The same way the disciples of Jesus did, whose example is recorded in Scripture for us to see and learn.

“¹⁸And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; ²⁰for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard’” (Acts 4:18-20).

How could they give this answer? Because they had been shaken by the presence of their Savior. He had washed their feet, eaten the Passover with them, and told them, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15). And then they watched Him be arrested, tortured, and killed for the sins of the world. But just when they thought everything was lost, they beheld Him standing in their presence, risen from the dead! They were so shaken they were willing to do whatever it took to fulfill His command of sharing the Good News with all the world (Matthew 28:18-20).

Are we so shaken? When it comes to submitting to the voice of men or the voice of God, which will we choose? It should not matter what the Supreme Court says about marriage, what a policy maker says about life, what a counselor says about gender, or what a governor says about the assembly of the Lord’s Church, we should choose to obey and proclaim the One who created all things and has the authority to judge the living and the dead (II Timothy 4:1). Is that always easy? Certainly not.

“²¹When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened” (Acts 4:21).

It seems that if we are serving the community as the people of God should be, the public might side with us and even sway the government. Sadly, what used to be ministries of the Church have now been turned over to the social services of the government, resulting in less and less cultural influence. It still proves true, though, that the more involved churches are in serving the community, the more impact for the Lord they might have.

However, we must be ready to still serve, love, and share the Gospel even if the culture and government are against us. The apostles were willing to do that because of how much Jesus had changed their lives. Today, people are persecuted for their faith all around the world. Even in America, society seems to be more and more hostile to Christianity. We must start resolving in our minds now that we will be ready to stand firm when “threatened”.

In recent years, many have bowed to the governing authorities in so many ways because they do not want their lifestyle affected or they do not want to be the target of social or government reactions. Some are genuinely afraid of what the culture or the government might do to them.

It is easy to say what we should do, but it is a whole different matter to be in the situation and know what we would do. Yet, if we want to see revival in the land, if we want our children to be faithful and saved, if we truly love Jesus and are shaken by what He has done for us, then we will embrace His words: “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Therefore, “¹⁴ If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, and of God, rests upon you… ¹⁶ but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but to glorify God in this name. ¹⁷ For it is time for judgement to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the Gospel of God?... ¹⁹ Therefore, those who suffer according to the will of God are to entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right” (I Peter 4:14-19).

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September/October 2025 Printed Newsletter

October 2, 2025

Flooded Marine Reptile

By Matt Miles • October 2, 2025

The Flood during Noah’s day was a devastating judgement against the sin and wickedness of the time. Most people focus on what the Lord did as He saved the eight people and animals on the Ark. Yet while they were being saved, the Flood destroyed the earth and left behind some remarkable things. Geology around the globe shows water burial of plants and animals. Many of the animal remains show signs of drowning and then burial. One particular reptile that shows this is the Ichthyosaurus. From what we can understand, water was her home for everything in life, even giving birth to live young. This well designed creature may even help us trust the Word of God when it comes to the history of the Flood. In our Mobile Museum of Earth History we exhibit a research replica of an ichthyosaur called Stenopterygius quadriscissus . She is from Holzmaden, Germany and is one example of hundreds that have been found in the area. The reason we can so confidently state this fossil is a “her,” when we rarely know for sure about fossil animals, is because she is pregnant. She has three babies present with her remains: one under her tail, one in or near the birth canal, and one still inside. Our fossil is in situ, which means the fossil remains in the rock matrix it was buried in. So, the presence of momma and babies are how they were buried and not articulated in some manner after excavation. This is important to show the rapid, watery burial that must have taken place to lock this scene in the fossil record. The Flood trapped organisms all over the world in different life positions. Sometimes the fossils left behind have shown eating, hunting, sleeping, swimming, nesting, or drowning. When it comes to ichthyosaurs around the planet, there is a significant number of females that seem to be pregnant. They have been found in the fossil record on at least four continents. A fair assumption would be that Ichthyosaurs had a certain time of year they mated and gave birth to young, much like sea turtles today that nest from late spring to late fall depending on the region around the world. So it should come as no surprise that we find pregnant ichthyosaurs all around the world as the Flood lasted an entire year. It would have buried the females that were pregnant near their location of habitat. Evolutionists maintain that ichthyosaurs lived tens to hundreds of million years ago and each of the mothers found in the fossil record just died while giving birth. This is difficult to support in a millions magnitude time scale. That would mean every time a disaster happened, millions of years apart, the right conditions existed to quickly bury ichthyosaurs that just so happened to be pregnant. It just might take some “faith” to trust that “miracle” would happen over and over again through eons of time. Or you can have faith that the Word of God’s history is correct with a judgement of man’s sin bringing global devastation through the Flood during Noah’s 600th year of life. The Word of God is trustworthy, with even the fossil record showing us glimpses of historical evidence in support of our faith. I’m so thankful we don’t need blind faith to trust our salvation! Blessings.

Our God Whom We Serve Is Able

By Ryan Cox • October 2, 2025

14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 …if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:14-18 In the 6th century BC, three young men stood up for their faith in the one true God, for which someone attempted to kill them. Today, in the 21st century AD, one young man was gunned down for his faith in the one true God. And sadly, Charlie Kirk is not the only one. According to The Esther Project, martyrdom for the cause of Christ is commonplace around the world ( theestherproject.com/statistics ). On average: 322 Christians are killed monthly. 214 churches or Christian properties are destroyed monthly. 772 forms of violence (beatings, kidnappings, etc.) against Christians are committed monthly. 100,000 to 160,000 Christians are killed annually in the 21st century. 1.093 million Christians were martyred between 2000 and 2010. And more than 70 million Christians are believed to have been martyred since the 1st century, with more than half killed in the 20th century alone under communist and fascist governments. And how should Christians respond? Peter wrote, “ if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but glorify God in this name ” (I Peter 4:16). Jesus took this a step further; He told us, “ …love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you ” (Matthew 5:44). Now, as Shawn Grant, minister at Kissimmee Christian Church, FL, preached on the Sunday following the assassination, th at may not be what you want to hear right now, but that is what Jesus has told us we must do. Why? So the world will see the difference Jesus makes! The night of and the days after the assassination, businesses did not have to board up their stores. Police and soldiers did not have to be deployed. There were no riots, no property damages, no police spat upon – only tears, prayers, and a witness to the world that Jesus is the answer. So noticeable is this to the world, there were more international press requests for the Charlie Kirk memorial service than are requested for Super Bowls. Within seven days of his death, Kirk’s ministry Turning Point USA had received over 54,000 campus chapter requests. And most importantly, scores of videos of young people considering or even deciding to give their lives to Jesus have been posted to social media platforms.