City Life Starter

Written by Megan Meier

The Word

“22 Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you.23 And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’ 24 And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. 25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’26 God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.’” Acts 3:22-26 ESV

Reflection

First of all, thank you so much Scott and Aisha for letting me borrow your speciality in law! And yes, the title of today’s devotional is from Lee Strobel’s book (recommended read!).   

Peter refers to many prophecies from the Old Testament, or Tanakh as it was called then, regarding Jesus Christ. He starts with the words of Moses:

“15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen…18 I [God] will raise up for them a prophet like you [Moses] from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.19 And whoever will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I myself will require [judge] it of him.” Deuteronomy 18:15,18-19

Moses had delivered the Israelites from four hundred years of slavery, but he was not the Deliverer. He was 120 years old at the time, and he knew his time on earth was ending. Anything he wanted the Israelites to remember he had to say right then and there. He told the Israelites to keep their eyes open for the Messiah, who will come from their brethren (an Israelite). Moses emphasized the Messiah will only say what the Lord God put in His mouth, and he further warns that those who will not listen to Him (and the Word of God) will be destroyed.  

Jesus proved He was the Prophet Moses spoke of:

“28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.” Matthew 7:28-29 ESV

The scribes underwent rigorous study of the Law of Moses – the Torah – for years to qualify for their position. Their intensity of study was beyond that of any medical or law student. Afterward, they were responsible for copying, preserving, and interpreting the Hebrew Scriptures. The scribes knew the Law of Moses backwards and forwards. But Jesus is the Law of Moses, so He knew it better than them. He not only knew the Law of Moses backwards and forwards, but inside and out. He knew the reasons for the Law and the whole point of the Law (which the scribes had missed).

Peter also refers to the books of Samuel, in that Jesus is the eternal faithful priest who only does what is on God’s heart and mind (1 Samuel 2:35) and is King Forever from the line of David (2 Samuel 7:12-16). He further references God’s promise to Abraham:

“18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” Genesis 22:18

God tested Abraham by commanding him to sacrifice Isaac. The command made no sense because God promised that the Messiah would come from Isaac’s line (Genesis 17:19, 21:12b). At the last second, God sent an angel to stop Abraham and sent a ram as a substitute for his son (Genesis 22:9-14), foreshadowing what Jesus would be many years later for us. Jesus, the descendant of Abraham, Isaac, and David, became the Blessing. 

Application

Peter was able to make his case for Christ because he studied the Scriptures on a regular basis. When evangelizing, be prepared with the Scriptures to back your case because people will ask questions.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, please prepare me to stand up for You when witnessing to others. In Your name I pray, amen.