In Acts 4 we are told that, ‘When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus’ (v. 13 NIV).

The real question for us today is; how did they know? Here we have two different men hanging around together, one called Peter who, in spite of his strong character and saying that he would never leave Jesus, denied Him not just once but three times; and the other called John who had a pretty steady and consistent character. On that day the council, the religious leaders, perceived something that set Peter and John apart from the religious people of their day.

This provoked me to ask the question, as the world looks upon me, upon us, WHAT CAN THEY TELL when we are at home, at work, in our community? So, to help us navigate this world in which we live today, in these very challenging times, let’s look at the characteristics of Peter and John that set them apart from others.

1. They reflected the compassion of Christ

The biblical definition of compassion is: ‘the awareness of the need of others with a compelling desire to eradicate their need’.

Therefore, they demonstrated their compassion by a) going together to the temple to pray, in other words to stand in the gap for others and intercede on their behalf (as written in Acts 3:1: ‘Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer’) and b) in the power of the Holy Spirit the man stuck at the temple gate called Beautiful was completely healed.

Let me break down further my understanding of compassion:

–         Compassion is not found in religion but in relationship.

–         Compassion is being ready to get involved to help others, it’s what I would call compassion in action. These two men stopped and focused their attention on a man in desperate need. Peter spoke to the man with authority, gave his right hand, lifted him up on his feet and the man walked away completely healed.

–          Compassion also has a cost. Acts 4 tells us that they were arrested, ‘They seized Peter and John and…they put them in jail until the next day‘ (v. 3 NIV).

May we all reflect Christ’s compassion as we journey this life in our endeavours to affect the lives of desperate people around us, that the world will recognise not only that we have been with Jesus but that Jesus lives within us.

2. They display tremendous courage and boldness  

Acts 4: declares, ‘Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”’ (v. 18-20 NIV).

Their courage and boldness are an example to us today. As they stood firmly on their conviction to not keep silent but to stand for what was right – so should we! May we ask God to enlarge our capacity to be filled afresh with the power of His Holy Spirit to be courageous and bold, to stand against the attacks of the Enemy.

3. They were totally committed to serve

‘Commit’ is a word that in Hebrew literally means ‘to roll’. When we ‘commit’ or ‘roll’ our works to the Lord, we are offering everything we do completely to Him.

Not only were they committed to Jesus but also to one another, as they were partnering together in the gospel. Commitment is not to be taken lightly; here is God’s promise to us today ‘Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday’ (Psalm 37:5-6 NKJV).

It is also important to note that their commitment was demonstrated in their unity. Here is what they did: they praised the Lord together, prayed with great boldness together, were thirsty for God’s Word to be manifested amongst them together. God declares in His Word; ‘where there is unity, God commands the blessings’ (see Psalm 133:1-3 NIV), which releases His manifested presence through boldness and courage in the Holy Spirit. Acts 4 tells us what happened: ‘After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly’ (v. 31 NIV).

So, it’s not surprising that the religious people of their day ‘took note that these men had been with Jesus’ (Acts 4:13 NIV). May this be said about ALL of us as we continue to serve God faithfully in whatever capacity we have been called into.

Let me leave you with this question; as the world looks upon us ALL today, CAN THEY TELL THAT WE HAVE BEEN WITH JESUS? If not, let’s reconsider our priorities and make sure that we spend time with Jesus and never, ever forget that each one of our lives is a billboard to the world in which we live in. So, WHAT MESSAGE ARE WE PROMOTING?