Welcome to our new project, the Daily Bible Devotional. The goal is to help you understand and apply

scripture as you go through a New Testament Bible read five days a week, Monday through Friday,

as we move from Matthew straight through to Revelation. In under four minutes each morning, we will recap the chapter, make some application,

present thought questions for the day, and offer a prayer together.

I'm excited about exploring God's Word with you, so let's get started.

Good morning. Welcome to our Bible study today from Acts chapter 12. King Herod persecutes the church,

killing the Apostle James, the first Apostle martyred for the cause of Christ. He also arrests Peter,

planning to execute him after Passover.

The church prays fervently to God for Peter's deliverance. An angel miraculously frees him from prison, guiding him past the guards. Initially, thinking this is a vision, Peter soon realizes

he is free and heads to a home where the disciples are gathered in prayer.

Overjoyed, yet astonished, they welcome him in.

Furious over Peter's escape and unable to recapture him, Herod executes those guards.

Later, Herod permits the people of the region to call him a God,

and immediately an angel of the Lord strikes him dead, yet, quote,

the word of the Lord continues to grow and to be multiplied.

This chapter begins and ends with King Herod. He strikes a blow against the church by killing James,

but is ultimately killed by God and rendered irrelevant.

Explaining why God allowed James' death is difficult. However, it is humbling and important

to recognize that God permitted this to fulfill his greater purpose of spreading the gospel.

Furthermore, God placed limits on what Harry could do, freeing Peter before he could be killed.

We must always trust that God is in control, even when evil men planned terrible acts.

In the end, God spared Peter to continue his work and eliminated Herod.

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