Are You Shaken?

The Name of Jesus matters and the Name of Jesus filled and fills believers with Jesus the Holy Spirit. Way back in Jeremiah’s day, God called Jeremiah saying:

See, I have appointed you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and plant.” And the word of the LORD came to me, asking, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” “I see a branch of an almond tree,” I replied. “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.” (Jeremiah 1:10-12)

After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. (Acts 4:31)

The Word Almond in Hebrew is Shaken…and in Greek the Word Almond is Amygdala. The amazing thing about the Amygdala is she loves much. Simon aka the Rock and John aka the Forerunner are questioned (Acts 4: 5-31) by the authorities of their day because of the healing of a Lame Man. In Acts 3:6, they stand in front of the Gate named Beautiful. A Lame man has been Lame from birth. He can’t enter into God’s Holy Temple because he has no money. So the man is dependent upon the charity of others and is looking for a hand out, thinking this will open the Beautiful Gate and he’ll be in heaven. Not so. For the Rock says…I have no silver or gold…pay attention to us, pointing to himself and John standing in front of the Gate named Beautiful.  “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”

Now in Acts 4:31, the disciples were so shaken by the fulfillment of their prayers with the testimony of Peter and John who stood in front of the Gate called Beautiful because Jesus had said. I am the Gate (John 10:9) and boldly stated that “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). Thus hearing and seeing Peter and John speaking up, they too were filled like Peter and John with the Holy Spirit when their prayers confirmed the joyful news that God’s Word had been accomplished. So shaken they were of one mind and heart and thought they truly should “own” nothing and share all that they had and this would make God and themselves happy.

There is more to the story and it doesn’t stop there. The disciples need to put on the heart and mind of Christ the Bride who belongs to the Bridegroom (John 3:28-29) and use the gifts of God for the good of all–even if this means keeping the Gate of Heaven locked until the disciples are shaken. So shaken the disciples like Jeremiah see the Amygdala come to life and smell the perfume from the blossoms and drink the milk she brings to the disciples she calls–with the letters written in her name– some say is beautiful and others display every time they don a shawl to pray.

Acts 4:5-31