“Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer. Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” Acts 3:17-19

In today’s insight, Peter says to fellow Israelites, I know you and your leaders acted in Ignorance. You see, their ignorance led to their sin of betraying, falsely accusing, beating and crucifying the Savior of the World – Jesus Christ. But the truth of the matter is God used their ignorance and opposition to fulfill His eternal plan and purpose for humanity’s salvation. Through their ignorance and opposition, Christ suffered for the sins of humanity as a sacrificial lamb for our sins, and paid for our sins on the cross of calvary, exactly as pre-planned by the triune God in the eternity past.
Bible says in Psalm 118:22-23, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” The builders, the nation of Israel, rejected their own Messiah, who prophesied in the Old Testament. In short, through their rejection of Christ, God fulfilled His promise He made to Abraham and others in the Old Testament regarding the worldwide blessings coming on Jews and Gentiles in and through the promised seed of Abraham- the Messiah. (Genesis 12:3)
Dearly beloved, our insight today says ignorance can undoubtedly lead us into sins. In their ignorance, Israel and their leaders opposed Christ and crucified Him. You see, when God fulfills His plans and purposes, a heightened measure of opposition could happen. Don’t you know, there is always a fight between light and darkness? Secondly, no opposition will thwart God’s purposes. He will achieve His purposes and plans even in the midst of all opponents. Thirdly, He can also use the ignorance and opposition to contribute to the fulfillment of His plans. Amazing and mind-boggling thought!
Bible says in Isaiah 55:6-9, “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Fourthly, dearly beloved, it is essential to repent our ignorance and sins and turn to God for two things – wiping out or washing away our sins and for refreshing times to come into our lives. An absence of repentance and turning to God can add more sins and over time cause much weariness, exhaustion and hard times. Did you notice today’s insight directly links repentance and turning to God to wiping off our sins and times of refreshments? Repentance and turning to God = wiping out sins and times of refreshments. So the opposite will also be true. An unrepentant mindset and not turning to God by admitting our ignorance and sins will cause just the opposite- the added burden of sins and heaviness, weary times in our lives. The repentance should happen on an ongoing basis in a Christian’s life.

However, beloved, if you are still not a child of God yet, You need Christ as your savior for wiping out your sins and receiving times of refreshments. Do you know, repentance and turning to God does more than just the times of refreshments here on this earth. Bible says, when you repent and turn to God and trust Jesus as your savior, you will have eternal life with God in heaven all throughout the eternity. Bible assures this in many passages. Among the many passages, the one I love is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” By believing in Jesus who died and rose again for your sins, you shall not perish but have eternal life. What a deal from a loving God!
Got a moment for today’s prayer? “Father in heaven, I know you like to wipe away my sins and grant me times of refreshments. I agree with my ignorance and sins to you. Lord make me a new person by applying the blood of Jesus Christ in my life. I believe Jesus Christ died and rose again for my sins. Please save and bless me and guide me in your will every day. In Christ’s name, I pray. Amen.”