Acts 12:12-19

Speaking of Peter here, the angel had just sprung him from jail and left him in the middle of the street. Thankfully, Peter caught on quickly and realized it wasn’t a dream. He went to the home of Mary, John Mark’s mother, where several believers were gathered in prayer.

I feel for Rhoda, for she has gotten a bad rap throughout history as the one who didn’t open the door for Peter. Being so overjoyed at hearing his voice, she ran to tell the others but forgot to open the door, leaving him exposed out in the street. Yet here they all were, praying for something to happen—and it did—and they didn’t believe Rhoda.

How many times have we done the same thing? We pray for something, God answers, and yet we struggle to believe it. We even declare our disbelief by saying, “I can’t believe it!” We must be careful not to miss God’s answers, realizing they do not always come in the way we expect.

I love the next statement: “Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking.” This is one of those moments where I can almost picture Jesus shaking His head with a gentle chuckle. I wonder how many times we have caused the same reaction from the Lord?

Those at Mary’s house were obviously overjoyed when they finally opened the door and saw that it was indeed Peter, so much so that he had to quiet them down. There was no sense in alerting others to his presence, or he might end up right back where he had been before. He then left and went to another place, though Scripture does not tell us where.

There was quite a reckoning the next morning when Peter was found missing. Scripture says that Herod conducted a thorough search for him, and when he could not be found, he interrogated the guards and sentenced them to death. It must have sounded like a fanciful tale to Herod, but the reality was that God had intervened. Sadly for the soldiers, the consequences were severe, even though Peter’s escape was entirely beyond their control.

This passage reminds us that God is able to answer our prayers in ways that exceed our expectations. The believers were faithfully praying for Peter’s deliverance, yet when the answer came knocking at the door, they struggled to believe it. How often do we do the same? May we not only pray with faith, but also watch with expectation, trusting that God is at work even when His answers arrive in surprising ways.