For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. – Acts 2:39

Scripture reading: Acts 2:37–41

Peter’s sermon quoted Old Testament prophecies that were fulfilled in Jesus Christ and culminated with the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, to inaugurate the New Testament Age. The hearers, 

“were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’  And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.’” 

Christian missions include the command to “repent,” a basic condition for entry into the Church. Since those who heard Peter’s message were adults, their baptism followed their confession.  But Peter didn’t stop; he declared that the “Promise” (the Gospel) was for them, their children and for all people who were included in God’s eternal plan of salvation.

This fact encourages and sustains missionaries in their work, realizing that their labors will not be in vain! Reading Acts and the Epistles, we discover the way God works in missions. One missionary plants the seed of the Word and later another one builds upon it. Finally, God gives the increase as He sovereignly determines. And the phenomenal growth of the New Testament Church is the witness to His mighty acts at the very beginning of the church’s life. Early in the fourth century, the number of Christians in the Roman Empire had become substantial. Paganism was declining, while the followers of Jesus Christ showed by word and deed, the renewing power of the faith.

Suggestions for prayer

Pray for your missionaries asking the Lord to grant them patience and hope.

This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Bassam Michael Madany hasserved as a missionary in Syria, and in 1958 he began a 36-year radio and literature ministry to the Arab world. After retirement Bassam & his wife Shirley began an Internet ministry, Middle East Resources, to provide a “Christian Response to the Global Challenge of Islam.”