When they had brought (the apostles), they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than any human authority . . . the God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.” Acts 5:28-32

Skeptics of the Resurrection of Jesus, reckon without the reality of the lived experience of Jesus’s friends after his death. For what would cause the very men who abandoned Jesus at his trial and crucifixion, who hid behind locked doors for fear of the Jewish authorities . . . to just short weeks later, have the courage to preach about a risen Jesus in Jerusalem? Only an experience so profound, they could not be silent, would turn these men into courageous disciples.

Jesus’ disciples go throughout Jerusalem, talking about Jesus, calling for repentance, and appealing to the people to recognize Jesus as the Messiah. As they speak, they speak of a living Christ, a resurrected Lord, who had come to live among them. Whenever they retell the story of the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus, the authenticity of their words  were witness to their joy

The risen Christ was the source of their strength, their courage and their hope. Having seen Jesus resurrected, having talked with him and eaten with him, there could be no denying the reality of their experience. Regardless of what any human institution might demand of them, including the Jewish council, they could not stop.

As word gets out about Jesus’ disciples preaching in Jerusalem, they are brought before the religious authorities, who are not at all pleased with them. After thinking they had solved their “Jesus problem,” by getting rid of him, here is that name again. With his disciples making impossible claims. Part of the council is furious, the others uncertain.

Among them was a noted Pharisee by the name of Gamaliel. He warned against mistreating the apostles, pointing out other movements that had come and gone, their followers disappearing. Gamaliel cautioned, “If what is being planned and done is human in origin, it will collapse; but if it is from God, you will never be able to stamp it out and you risk finding yourself at war with God. ” Acts 5:38-39  (REB)

Who among us would want to be at war with God? Warring against God, leads to sleepless nights, troubled days and a nagging conscience. Rejecting God’s law of love, can cause our lives to simply be a shell of what they might have been. Gamaliel recognized the Council needed to wait this new group out, to see what kind of staying power it had.

Two thousand years have confirmed the ongoing truth of resurrection. People living in despair have found hope. The broken have been made whole. Those condemned by their sins, have found forgiveness lavished on them.

Just as those first Christians were encouraged to proclaim Jesus as Lord and Savior, others have been encouraged to speak for justice and righteousness. Proof of the resurrection of Jesus has never been an empty tomb, but in lives changed by the touch of the Risen Christ. Person, after person has discovered new life in the power of resurrection living. Two thousand years of faithfulness, hold their stories, their tales of courage, their love for all of God’s people, and their examples of faithfulness . . . all  working toward the vision of God’s Kingdom on earth.