Daily Devotions

Tuesday, April 14, 2026

But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them … “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.” And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. (Acts 2:14a, 36-41)

Peter has just explained to the crowd in Jerusalem what happened over Passover—that Jesus, the Man they had crucified, was actually God’s chosen Messiah and Savior, that He has risen from the dead and now rules everything. No wonder the people are scared to death! And they ask: “Brothers, what shall we do?”

It’s a good question, isn’t it? How exactly do human beings make up for the crime of crucifying God? How can they even begin to apologize for such a terrible evil? They can’t. But they don’t have to, as Peter tells them. Jesus has already handled all our sin, guilt, and shame through His own self-sacrifice—His death and resurrection. The good news for the crowd is the same good news we have today—that God wants us back, no matter who we’ve been or what we have done. He wants us to be in His family as forgiven and beloved children of God. He offers to give us all these gifts freely, through Jesus, our Savior.

That’s why Peter doesn’t say “Do this” or “Do that” to make up for our sins. No, he says simply, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children.” None of us need to do anything. Jesus is holding out the gift of love and forgiveness and peace to us right now. When we trust in Him and are baptized into Him, we become His own people forever. And He will never reject us or turn us away from Him.

WE PRAY: Dear Jesus, thank You for loving me and making me Your own. I want to be Yours forever. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Reflection Questions:

1. When were you baptized? If you have not been, how could you receive this gift?
2. Why do you think it’s so hard for human beings to believe in a truly free gift, like the ones Jesus gives us?
3. If Jesus has loved you this freely, how does that change the way you deal with your neighbors?

Today's Readings:

Judges 1-3
Luke 12:32-59

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