April 7, 2004	Read Acts 4: 1-22
This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders; it has become the cornerstone.
WE HAVE A FIRM FOUNDATION Peter was not afraid.  Many a person would have been, had they been in his spot. Peter and his fellow apostle John had been taken before the Sanhedrin to answer questions. “Questions” from this group were the same thing as accusations. And accusations could lead to a great deal of trouble. Peter and John had been speaking openly about the message of Jesus Christ. Further, and even more amazing, they had healed a man who had been unable to walk all of his life. And now, the Sanhedrin – whose plotting had earlier led to the crucifixion of Christ – demanded to know who gave Peter and John the power to do what they were doing. Peter was not filled with fear. He was filled with the Holy Spirit. And it gave him conviction. It gave him strength. The truth was on his side -- the very man they healed was standing right there! And even more so, Christ had risen from the dead. One imagines that Peter probably looked straight at the leaders of the Sanhedrin and spoke with a firm, steady voice, a touch of righteous anger underlining his words. Who gave us this power, he replied? We want you to know, he said – we want all of Israel to know – that this power came from the name of Jesus Christ, whom you crucified and who rose from the dead. "The rock that you the builders rejected," Peter said, "had become the cornerstone." What scathing irony! The people who considered themselves the leaders of faith had been blind to the truth – the man they sent to die on the cross was to be the actual salvation of all people and would become the foundation of Christianity. Christ, of course, knew the kind of person Peter was. He had called Peter "the rock" of the church that was to come. And coming from the man who was our cornerstone, the one whom we rely on every day, this was a great compliment indeed. That day, in front of the Sanhedrin, Peter had lived up to Christ’s belief in him. If only we all could live up to Christ’s faith in us – that would be quite an achievement. Dear Father: Whether it is a time of trial or just day-to-day living, give us the strength you gave Peter to live up to the message of your Son, Jesus Christ, and to let it be the cornerstone of our lives. KEN HOBART

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