Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men.  Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered.  Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail.  But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” 
Acts 5:35-39

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Have you ever felt like you’re living in a hot mess, and so much around you feels plain ugly and evil? Unless I am gazing out at an extraordinary mountain vista, or having our weekly lunch at Portillo’s with my Bible-loving girlfriends, or kissing the sweet cheek of one of my grandchildren, evil appears to be winning in 2025. 

It seems so much worse to me lately than even the late sixties and early seventies, but as I ponder, I remember people in my life back then who tried to influence me away from Jesus. One of my best friends tried to convince me that the Bible was a bunch of fairy tales, and if I believed, I would be a fool. Before I accepted this as truth, my Christian club leader told us that the Disciples were persecuted and they wouldn’t have died for a lie or a fairy tale, which gave her (and me) something profound to think about.

Lies and half-truths have always been present in the world. In our passage today, Gamaliel, a Pharisee, pointed out that if God was behind Peter and John, the Gospel movement would be impossible to stop (Acts 5:39). Good would eventually prevail. 

When I first began studying the Bible, I would often gloss over the sections that discussed other people leading movements that attracted many followers. Today’s Scripture discusses Theudas, who led 400 people away from the truth, and Judas, who led a revolt against the authorities.

These movements died out and came to nothing. 

However, our band of diverse, Jesus-loving Disciples led a movement that continues to this day. The Gospel truth of Jesus coming to forgive us our sins is being spread in all the nooks and crannies all over our country and the world! God’s presence is being made known. Evil seems like it permeates, but it will eventually wither and die in God’s glorious light.

Next Steps

Continue to shine His light in the dark places, and stand on the side of the Gospel. This song says it so well. I was fortunate enough to sing it around the campfire in the late 1960s and 1970s. Consider teaching it to the children in your life. 

Don’t forget, this summer, we are committing to a goal of 50,000 acts of service! As we continue on in our Unleashed series, we want to be the hands and feet of Jesus to our neighbors in our communities. You can log your act of service here. Let’s be bold, commit to acts of kindness, and witness God move powerfully through our communities!