Their teaching was a second edition of the teachings of Christ, the utterance of simple, grand truths that flashed light into darkened minds, and converted thousands in a day. The disciples began to understand that Christ was their Advocate in the heavenly courts, and that He was glorified. They could speak because the Holy Spirit gave them utterance (Manuscript 32, 1900).
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17. No Excuse for Willful Ignorance—“I wot that through ignorance ye did it,”(Acts 3:17) said Peter; but this ignorance did not excuse the action; for they had had great light granted unto them. The statement is made that had they known that He was the Prince of life, they would not have crucified Him. But why did they not know?—because they chose not to know. They had no interest to search and study, and their ignorance proved their eternal ruin. They had had the strongest evidence on which to base their faith, and they were under obligation to God to accept the evidence He had given them. Their unbelief made them guilty of the blood of the only begotten Son of the infinite God (Manuscript 9, 1898).
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1-11. Sacredness of Vows and Pledges—The people need to be impressed with the sacredness of their vows and pledges to the cause of God. Such pledges are not generally held to be as obligatory as a promissory note from man to man. But is a promise less sacred and binding because it is made to God? Because it lacks some technical terms, and cannot be enforced by law, will the Christian disregard the obligation to which he has given his word? No legal note or bond is more obligatory than a pledge made to the cause of God (The Review and Herald, May 23, 1893).
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29. What Does God Say?—We are not to inquire, What is the practice of men? or, What is the custom of the world? We are not to ask, How shall I act in order to have the approval of men? or, What will the world tolerate? The question of intense interest to every soul is, What hath God said? We are to read His Word and obey it, not swerving one jot or tittle from its requirements, but acting irrespective of human traditions and jurisdiction (The Review and Herald, October 1, 1895).
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31 (Romans 2:4). Repentance the Gift of Christ—[Acts 5:31 quoted.] Repentance is as much the gift of Christ as is forgiveness, and it cannot be found in the heart where Jesus has not been at work. We can no more repent without the Spirit of Christ to awaken the conscience than we can be pardoned without Christ. Christ draws the sinner by the exhibition of His love upon the cross, and this softens the heart, impresses the mind, and inspires contrition and repentance in the soul (The Review and Herald, April 1, 1890).
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1-7. Responsibilities in God′s Work to Be Shared—The Lord here gives us an example of the care that should be exercised when choosing men for His service. In this case, one man was not made the only burden bearer of great responsibilities. Seven men were chosen, and they were to be closely united in their work (Manuscript 91, 1899).
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9-24 (2 Peter 1:14, 15). Paul and Peter Martyred in Rome—The apostles Paul and Peter were for many years widely separated in their labors, it being the work of Paul to carry the gospel to the Gentiles, while Peter labored especially for the Jews. But in the providence of God, both were to bear witness for Christ in the world’s metropolis, and upon its soil both were to shed their blood as the seed of a vast harvest of saints and martyrs.
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About the time of Paul′s second arrest, Peter also was apprehended and thrust into prison. He had made himself especially obnoxious to the authorities by his zeal and success in exposing the deceptions and defeating the plots of Simon Magus the sorcerer, who had followed him to Rome to oppose and hinder the work of the gospel. Nero was a believer in magic, and had patronized Simon. He was therefore greatly incensed against the apostle, and was thus prompted to order his arrest (Sketches from the Life of Paul, 328).
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