15 “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”
Some things God does are so unbelievable that when we see them we must restart our brain’s computer in order to accommodate the new information. This is what seems to be happening with the disciples. They have seen Peter arrested and thrown into prison. They know the next step will be a public trial and his execution. They don’t expect justice from this ruler. They know his is doing this for political gain and they know they are on the wrong side of political popularity. The standard Jewish practices appear peaceful. They don’t stir things up too much politically. But this new group of Jesus-followers is an unknown commodity. Even after Peter is let out of jail by an angel, it is hard for these disciples to believe it is him. It is too much to believe that God would spring him from prison. There are sixteen guards watching him. It seems impossible. And then a servant girl tells them Peter is knocking at their door. The impossible is standing at the gate. They don’t know how to process the information, perhaps shaking their heads and saying, “What did you say?” Their first reaction is to try to come up with a rational explanation for what happened. They want to explain the event within their framework. But when Peter keeps knocking they have no choice except to open the gate and let him in. There are truths that keep knocking at your door, but you are afraid to open the door and let them it. It would mean changing the way you look at everything in life. But maybe you need to look at life from a very different angle. Maybe opening the door is exactly what your life needs.
The Arnold Journey 