Read: Acts 2:41–47 | Listen: Acts 2

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:42

After Peter finishes speaking, the unthinkable happens. About three thousand people accept his message and are baptized! What is his message? Jesus, his rabbi, is the Lord and Messiah who died for the sins of the world and rose again. This sudden expansion leaves Peter and his fellow disciples with a problem. How can they teach three thousand new believers to follow Jesus? Led by the Holy Spirit, they invite this new community to devote themselves to their teaching and to fellowship. Luke calls these leaders apostles, which means “sent ones.” They are God’s messengers, and their Spirit-inspired teaching becomes the foundation of our New Testament.

God invites us, too, to devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching. The same Holy Spirit inspired every book of the Bible, and all of it is useful for teaching and training us (2 Timothy 3:16). The apostles taught how the Old Testament points to Jesus and reveals the human story. The New Testament records their encounters with Jesus and shows how salvation is lived out in community. Like the early church, we devote ourselves to Scripture by studying it and applying it to our lives. This devotion takes many forms: spending time with God each morning, reading the Bible as a family, memorizing Scripture, or engaging with it in a small group. One thing is clear, though: returning to it often is vital.

TODAY: Ask God to open your heart to his Word. Pray, “Father, open my heart to what you have to say in Scripture. Help me fall more in love with your Word daily.”