Disciples: Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Make it clear to us which of these two is Your choice

As the twelve stood together, Peter shouted to the crowd, Peter: Men of Judea and all who are staying here in Jerusalem, listen. I want you to understand:

My heart is glad; my soul rejoices; my body is safe.

When the people heard this, their hearts were pierced; and they said to Peter and his fellow apostles, Pilgrims: Our brothers, what should we do?

Whoever made a place for his message in their hearts received the baptism; in fact, that day alone, about 3,000 people joined the disciples.

They were unified as they worshiped at the temple day after day. In homes, they broke bread and shared meals with glad and generous hearts.

During those days, the entire community of believers was deeply united in heart and soul to such an extent that they stopped claiming private ownership of their possessions. Instead, they held everything in common.

Look, it was your property before you sold it, and the money was all yours after you sold it. Why have you concocted this scheme in your heart? You weren’t just lying to us; you were lying to God.

When he reached the age of 40, his heart drew him to visit his kinfolk, our ancestors, the Israelites.

But our ancestors still resisted. They again pushed Moses away and refused to follow him. In their hearts, they were ready to return to their former slavery in Egypt.

Stephen: You stubborn, stiff-necked people! Sure, you are physically Jews, but you are no different from outsiders in your hearts and ears! You are just like your ancestors, constantly fighting against the Holy Spirit.

Some devout men buried Stephen and mourned his passing with loud cries of grief. But Saul, this young man who seemed to be supervising the whole violent event, was pleased by Stephen’s death. That very day, the whole church in Jerusalem began experiencing severe persecution. All of the followers of Jesus—except for the emissaries themselves—fled to the countryside of Judea and Samaria.

You aren’t even close to being ready for this kind of ministry; your heart is not right with God.

You need to turn from your past, and you need to pray that the Lord will forgive the evil intent of your heart.

Philip: [ If you believe in your heart that Jesus the Anointed is God’s Son, then nothing can stop you. The Ethiopian said that he believed.]

They began speaking in foreign languages (just as the Jewish disciples did on the Day of Pentecost), and their hearts overflowed in joyful praises to God. Peter’s friends from Joppa—all of them Jewish, all circumcised—were stunned to see that the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on outsiders.

After God moved Saul aside, He made David king in his place. God had this to say about David: “I have found David, son of Jesse, to be a man after My own heart. He’s the kind of king who will rule in ways that please Me.”

but even then God revealed Himself by doing good to you—giving you rain for your crops and fruitful harvests season after season, filling your stomachs with food and your hearts with joy.

God knows the human heart, and He showed approval of their hearts by giving them the Holy Spirit just as He did for us.

In cleansing their hearts by faith, God has made no distinction between them and us.

One of them, Lydia, was a business woman originally from Thyatira. She made a living buying and selling fine purple fabric. She was a true worshiper of God and listened to Paul with special interest. The Lord opened her heart to take in the message with enthusiasm.

The jailer wakes up and runs into the jail. His heart sinks as he sees the doors have all swung open. He is sure his prisoners have escaped, and he knows this will mean death for him, so he pulls out his sword to commit suicide.

Paul: Please, you’re breaking my heart with your tears! I know exactly what I’m doing. I’m fully prepared to be bound, and more—to die for the name of Jesus, the King.

We wait. Just before dawn, Paul again gathers everyone on the ship—all 276 of us. He urges everyone to eat and encourages us not to lose hope. Paul: Listen, men, we’ve all been under incredible stress for 14 days. You haven’t eaten anything during this whole time. I urge you to take some food now because it will help you survive what we’re about to face. And I want to assure you—not one of you will lose a single hair from your head. We’re all going to make it—all 276 of us! Then Paul takes a loaf of bread and gives thanks to God in front of all of them. He breaks it, takes a piece, and begins to eat. A fresh surge of courage seems to fill their hearts as they also begin to eat.

Make their hearts hard, their ears deaf, and their eyes blind. Otherwise, they would look and see, listen and hear, understand and repent, and be healed.”