Acts 4:1-12

Grateful for this afternoon, where we’re able to come and praise God. Along with all the guests that are here, we welcome you to our church. Thankful for the wonderful and powerful time of worship that the Lord has already given to us in Malayalam, and now again in English. We had a wonderful time the last couple of days traveling to Missouri. We hope that a lot of you that could not join us will be with us next time around. We missed all of you, but to those who came, I know that it was a wonderful time of fellowship.

But one of the things, as you were watching the story of Esther unfold on the screen, probably one of the characters that really caught your eye was Haman. There was a line in that portrayal of Esther that is said, “In the midst of everything, the happiness, the crowning of Esther, there was a snake in the garden. There was Haman.” You know that big, fat fellow that was walking around, the one that you saw there. But this snake has always been in the garden, ever since the Garden of Eden. And his purpose has always been to use Haman, and they come in different names, to destroy God’s people, to completely annihilate them and destroy them.

Satan still hasn’t learned his lessons, hundreds and thousands of years later. The church, it’s kind of like certain animals: you cut its head off only to find out that it grows right back. And that’s the way the church has been. The persecution has come in various forms and fashions all throughout history. Christians have been persecuted physically. Christians have been persecuted mentally, socially. In so many ways, the church has faced difficulties ever since its origin.

Especially as we go through this series “Acts: Church On The Rise”, we see that this has been the story of God’s people, especially very clearly since the beginning of the Church of the New Testament. But as we’ve learned from the story of Esther, Satan has always been in this business of trying to destroy God’s people.

The passage that we will focus on this afternoon from Acts 4 is where, for the first time in the history of the New Testament Church, the church is about to face persecution. Church historians tell us that within the first 10 years of when the Church of the New Testament was formed, there were five major persecutions that came upon the New Testament Church. And it’s very important for the believers of that time to be responding to that the right way.

See, now we have certain examples throughout history and in God’s word on how to respond to persecution. But these new believers had no blueprint, nothing of their sort on how to face persecution. All they had were the words of their Lord who had warned them, “If the world hated me, they will hate you as well. If the world kills me, they will kill you as well. But I will be with you always, till the end of the world.”

And he gave them so many instructions, just as that in Hebrews 6:12. The writer of the book of Hebrews, writing to a group of people who were undergoing persecution, wrote to them this, “You will not be sluggish, lazy, but imitators of those who through faith and endurance inherit the promise.” In the midst of facing persecution, difficulties, it’s very easy for the Christian to withhold or to withdraw himself and to go almost into hiding because he does not want to face what is facing him. But the word of God says we are not to be like that. We are supposed to have faith, endurance, and patience in our life so that we can inherit the promises that God wants to give to us. Not only in this world but especially in the world to come. How do we do that? The blueprint of that, we see it starting in the life of the church in Acts 4.

For those of you who have not been here the last couple of weeks, you’ll know the context of Acts chapter 4. A miraculous event has happened in Acts chapter 3. A man who was almost 40 years old has now been given the ability to walk. The Bible says he has never been able to walk in his life, and now, to a witness to all the people gathered over there, he has been able to walk.

The end of chapter three, where we ended, was a sermon of the Apostle Peter, which ran for a period of three hours long. We’ll see that in a minute, but the summary of it is given to us in God’s word. He pointed to them that this man is walking because of the power that is contained in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. “It is not us, but it is the Lord Jesus and the power that is contained in His name that has caused this man to walk.”

But, obviously, not everyone is happy with this situation. If you turn your Bibles to Acts 4:1-12, we see certain feathers being ruffled. We see the way in which the apostles will respond to the opposition they’re about to face, and this opposition will be unrelenting and will be with them all the days of their life.

“The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand. The next day, the rulers, elders, and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and the other men of the high priest’s family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: ‘By what power or what name did you do this?’ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, ‘Rulers and elders of the people, if we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man and are asked how he was healed, then know this: you and all the people of Israel, it is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.'”

What a beautiful passage of scripture that tells us the way we are to respond to the persecutions and difficulties in our life. What we should say, how we should respond, the attitude we should have, is clearly given to us in God’s word.

Acts 4:1 tells us the group of people that are coming against them, and the list is given to us in much detail by Luke. Who are these priests the Bible is writing about in Acts 4:1? Remember, this is the time of the evening sacrifice. It is the most important time of worship for the Jewish people as thousands of them are gathered together by the temple. And these priests are there. There were 24 groups of these priests that were serving at the temple in Jerusalem at that time. They came from all over Judea and Galilee. They were kind of on a shift work. They would be in Jerusalem for two weeks at a time. One group would serve for two weeks, and they would go away, and another group would come. So, one particular group of priests who happened to be serving at this very time, when this miracle is happening on this particular day, are now at the temple in Jerusalem. We do not know their number; we just know there are 24 groups of them serving in two-week shifts at a time.

And the next thing the Bible says, the captain of the temple guard, in a way in which you would understand, is these are basically a chief of the police who is in charge of security at the temple. The third group of people who are there, Sadducees, came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people.

One thing you will see in your Bible is that in the gospels, the people that predominantly oppose the ministry of Our Lord are the Pharisees because what he was teaching went against, in their mind, against the law that they had been teaching and went against what they were trying to impress upon the mind of the Common Man.

The Sadducees only came into conflict with Jesus at certain times. But when you study the book of Acts, we see the most important group that came against the apostles were not the Pharisees; it was the Sadducees. You know why? They were the wealthy of the community. They were the ones who were in charge of the temple. Their establishment was about to be challenged by this new entity known as the church that was there. So it was important for them to protect their interests at all costs. 

The Sadducees are not religious at all. All they care about is money and power. They were the aristocrats of the Jewish Society. They were in the minority, but because of their money, their complete influence over the Jewish system and worship, they made sure who were the priesthood, they appointed the high priest. They also made sure that the temple was guarded and everything that was to be done in the temple was done properly.

The Sadducees only believed in the first five books of the Bible. Those were the only inspired books to them. Because you do not find Resurrection in the first five books of the Bible, the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection. That’s why in the later passages says they were telling them, “You are preaching the resurrection of the Dead.” That is something they could not understand. But all they really care about is that things are in order.

The Sadducees also had another reason why things have to be in order. The only thing that Rome really cares about is order. They don’t really care which God you’re worshiping, they don’t really care which temple you’re going to. In fact, the Romans would often look at Jewish people and say they are a bunch of crazy people, but we don’t really care as long as what they’re doing is orderly. That’s why many religions and many group of people existed within the realm of the Roman Empire.

But now there’s a problem within this established system where everything is going as prescribed. There comes these two men from Galilee, and suddenly thousands of people are gathered around them and they’re listening to what they’re saying. They’re like, “Oh, this is not good. We are about to lose money. Why? These people don’t come to the temple. We don’t get the offering. They’re going to start challenging our authority.”

And look at verse 2, the Bible says they were greatly disturbed. This is not a simple annoyance. This is greatly disturbed, meaning they were shaken to the core. They were literally, in fact, there’s only one other time this word is used in the New Testament, and that’s in Acts 16:23-24 when Paul is walking in Philippi and the demon-possessed woman comes after him day after day and says, “These are men of the most high God,” and the Bible says Paul was deeply disturbed and he turned to the woman. So that’s the same kind of annoyance that is in the mind of these people. These apostles were a nuisance.

Now, you might ask, “What is wrong with teaching the people?” The problem here is that you are teaching. Why? You don’t have the authority to teach. We decide who can teach and who cannot. So, more than the message, the problem is who is doing the teaching. “Who are you? Which Bible college did you go to? You cannot teach over here. Where did you learn our scriptures? Do you understand the Old Testament by heart? We don’t know your credentials. What are your degrees? Who said that you can come to the temple and teach?” There’s a problem here.

Secondly, remember, these are Sadducees. They don’t believe in the resurrection. These men are proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. So there’s a theological problem. There’s also a problem with authority. 

So, what do they do in verse 3? “They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail.” The next day, when did the miracle of the man who was lame happen? Three o’clock in the afternoon. Remember, now it is at least six o’clock in the evening. Next time you complain about your pastor preaching for 40 minutes, 45 minutes, Peter had been preaching for the last three hours.

It was now evening, and because it was already evening, they decided to put them in jail. The word of God here also is very profound. They didn’t just come and grab them on the shoulder and said, “Come with us.” The Bible says they seized Peter and John. The word that is used over there is of violently being taken away. They’re basically being manhandled. They are taken, literally forced, and taken to jail.

And look at verse 4, “Many who heard the message believed. But God’s spirit had already done the work that he wanted to do in those three hours. Many had believed. Look at this, the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand. Praise God! In Chapter 2, it was three thousand. By the time you come to chapter 4, it is now five thousand.”

Luke could have used the word to describe mankind in verse 4. This does not include women and children. But he used the word to describe men only in verse 4, which there’s no doubt the church had now grown to 5,000 men. In the church, in a matter of days and weeks, by the power and work of the spirit of God, I think by this time, the church was probably about 13,000 to 15,000 people strong. Because usually, more women believed than men. You add children to it, and now the church is about 14,000, 15,000 strong.

You know, that might seem not like a large number. But let me tell you this. There are different estimates on how much the population of the region was at that time. The estimates run anywhere from 25,000 to 85,000. They didn’t have good censuses like we do today. But Josephus tells us, and he is a very accurate historian, that there were 6,000 Pharisees who were living in the land, in the region of Palestine. 6,000 Pharisees. So now, the church is bigger than the group of Pharisees.

Here’s the transcript formatted for better clarity:

If you take 25,000, which I think is a lower number, the majority of the people in Palestine that day are now part of the church. Now, if you take 85,000, still, the miraculous work of God! Almost 20 percent of Palestine are now believers of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now you see why these people are upset. Now you see why they’re being thrown into jail. This is not a small group anymore. The church is already numbering in the thousands. They know that if they do not stop them right then, all their influence, all the money, all the things they worked so hard for all their life will be gone. 

And that is exactly why they had thrown Peter and John into jail. And in verses 5-6, the next day they come together; the rulers, the elders, and the teachers of the law. They meet in Jerusalem. This group is known as the Sanhedrin. It numbers about 70, and there’s one high priest to break any tie. If 35 people vote in one direction and 35 people vote in the other, the high priest will cast the deciding vote. So, 71 council members, known as the Sanhedrin. Every rule of law and everything is decided by them. It is the supreme court of power of the Jewish people of that time.

And the Bible then tells us the people that are there. Annas, the high priest, was there. Even though by the time of the writing of this, Annas is not the high priest. The word that is used over here is kind of like a former president. If somebody becomes president of the United States, even if years go by, you will still refer to them as the president. It is still President Clinton, President Bush, President Carter. It doesn’t matter whether they’re in office or not. Annas was the high priest in Jerusalem from 86 to 15. By the time this comes around, Annas is no longer the high priest, but the retired high priest is part of the Sanhedrin.

Then you have the second person that is there, Caiaphas. You all know who Caiaphas is. He was the one that presided over the trial of our Lord. And this is nepotism at the highest order by the way. That is going on in the Sanhedrin. You know who Caiaphas is? He is Annas’s son-in-law. So the next one who’s sitting in Sanhedrin is the present high priest in Jerusalem, who is Caiaphas. 

Then you have two men, John and Alexander, and the Bible says “others of the high priest’s family”. You know why? The Bible says that Annas had five sons. John and Alexander were two of them. So now you have the high priest, his sons, the high priest’s son-in-law; basically, the almost entire family. So out of this 71, probably about 35-40 belong to the family of Annas and Caiaphas. You know how you can make sure that you have control of Sanhedrin? Just put your family members in there. A lot of people do that even today, right?

So Annas, Caiaphas, along with the family members, are sitting there, and they’re assembled in their place. An artist has depicted it. What is this place? It looks like this. It’s a very intimidating place. It is a hall known as the Hall of the Hewn Stone. These 71 men would sit in elevated places. It’s a circular-shaped hall, and whoever is on trial will be brought to the middle. There, they’ll be asked questions from all different directions. They would have to defend themselves before the Sanhedrin. This is not an easy thing to do.

The most influential people in the Jewish system are sitting all around them, not 10 or 20 but 71 of them. Whoever is on trial stands right there in the middle, facing questions from all directions. Sometimes you don’t even know which direction to look at. Their seats are elevated to show they have more authority and power.

So, I want you to picture this. Two ordinary fishermen, probably wearing old, worn-out clothes, now coming. The next day, in verse 7, Peter and John are brought before them and began to question them. By the way, I love the question. If you ever play tennis, this is kind of like somebody who does not know how to serve well. They could have asked a lot of questions, but this is good because the answer to them is readily available.

“By what power or what name did you do this?”

Oh, how perfect. Peter and John have no idea what they’re going to ask them. Probably all night, they spend time in prayer waiting for the Lord to give them the wisdom and courage to stand. Nowhere in God’s word does it say they resisted the arrest or tried to stand against them violently. They willingly went to jail. Now the next day, they stand on that setting.

“By what power, what name did you do this?” Look at the next verse, verse 8. “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit.” See, this is something the Sanhedrin does not know about. This is something they have never encountered before. There have been many people who walked in the midst of them for many centuries. But now they’re about to face opposition they’ve never seen before. Now standing before them is a man not under his own wisdom or power or abilities. Here comes a man, an ordinary man from Galilee, a fisherman, who is now standing before them not by his own power but by the power of the Holy Spirit that is filling him completely.

The word “filled” here is used in the same way that it’s used in the Gospels when the entire boat was filled with fish. The Holy Spirit has taken over Peter. Every fiber of his being is now saturated with the power of the Spirit of God. The words that are about to come out of the mouth of this man are not man’s words anymore. It’s the Spirit of God giving them utterance.

Now, he is about to speak. “Rulers and elders of the people.” How do we know it’s the Holy Spirit? Our Lord told them, “Do not worry about any of these things.” Matthew 10:17-20. “Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. On my account, you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.” This is an intimidating group: councils, synagogues, governors, and people of authority. But don’t worry. Look at the next words: “But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it.” I love what God’s word says here. Not only will I teach you what to say and how to say it – you know there’s a difference between what to say and how to say it, right? What to say and how to say are different. Two people can get up here and say the same thing: one can make you cry and the other make you laugh because of the difference in how you say it. “At that time, you don’t have to memorize it ahead of time. You will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” 

They are now about to face an opposition that is supernatural. What is about to come through their lips are not going to be the words of any man. Oh, what abilities, gifts, and aid God gives to us. The Bible doesn’t say an angel will speak through you; the Bible says the Spirit of God will speak through you. Who is the Spirit of God? He is the third person of the Trinity. He is equal to the Father; he is equal to the Son; he is God. He was there from the beginning; he is pre-existent. He is to be worshiped, not to be grieved, he is to be adored. He is someone that we count as equal with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We sang that this morning, “I believe in the Father, I believe in the Son, I believe in the Holy Spirit; our God is three in one.” When you stand before the rulers of this world, you are not alone. My spirit will speak through you. 

God does this so beautifully and has done it throughout the years. There was a Methodist preacher of the 19th century, his name was Peter Cartwright. He was known as the Lord’s Plowman because he was so assertive and forceful in his prayer. Look at this picture; you can tell he is assertive and forceful, and there is no leniency with him. That’s why he’s known as the Lord’s Plowman, which means he will go and plow out everything that needs to be plowed out. The story is told that one Sunday morning when he was to preach, he was informed that President Andrew Jackson would be in the congregation. They warned him, “Preacher, we know you like to say whatever the Lord is laying on your heart, but Andrew Jackson is here; do not say anything out of line.” Wrong thing to say to a preacher like this. When Peter Cartwright stood to preach, he said, “I understand that Andrew Jackson is here. I have been requested to guard my remarks. Andrew Jackson will go to hell if he does not repent.” By the way, say only that in the context of this. The congregation was shocked and wondered how the president would respond. After the service, President Jackson shook hands with Peter Cartwright and said, “Sir, if I had a regiment of men like you, I could whip the world.” Why? Men of conviction, men of courage, men filled with the power of the Spirit of God. 

See, for people like Peter Cartwright, for Peter of the New Testament and John, the audience doesn’t matter. There is one who is greater than any audience in this world who is watching and listening to how you respond to that. And there is also one in your heart that is greater than anyone you are facing, and the words he gives to you are greater than any words any of these rulers could say to you. 

“Elders and rulers of Israel, if we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: it is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.”

There’s no sugar-coating the gospel. There’s no mincing the words. There are no apologies. There are no words like, “I’m sorry, we’ll preach by the Sea of Galilee, not in the temple. We’ll do better. We won’t mess with you. You do your thing; we do our thing.” You always hear that, “You do your thing; we do our thing.” No, you can’t do your thing; there’s only one who can save you.

“Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.” Where does this wisdom come from? It’s from Psalm 118. Peter, oh, the filling of the Spirit of God, has immediately made him an expert theologian at that very moment. The Spirit of God is reminding him of the verses. Psalm 118, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” These men had read this all their life; suddenly they understood who this was talking about.  “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” There is no second route. There are no second options. All roads don’t lead to heaven. It doesn’t matter what you believe; it matters *who* you believe. The difference is the difference between heaven and hell. There is no other name. Buddha cannot save you. Muhammad cannot save you. Allah cannot save you. Krishna cannot save you. No other name given to men by which we must be saved.

What do we learn from this section?

Be confident in knowing that the trials and persecutions that you face for Christ are not without His knowledge. If these men had not been dragged to the jail, they would have never gotten an audience before the 71. You cannot just walk into the Council of the Sanhedrin. But I can imagine Peter and John thinking in their hearts: “These men would never hear the gospel unless and until we spent the night in jail. Now we get a captive audience listening to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Can we believe in our lives that the trials and persecutions that we face for the Lord are ordained and mandated by the Lord for use for the glory of His kingdom? What is happening in Manipur is not an accident. God is allowing it to happen. I know that’s difficult for us to swallow. God is allowing it to happen. BJP cannot do anything unless the Lord allows it to happen. And if the Lord allows it to happen, then there’s a purpose behind it that we do not understand today. We have to trust in the Lord. He knows what He’s doing. Something far greater, something far more beautiful is about to happen from the ashes of Manipur that you and I cannot comprehend because there’s nothing that happens in a vacuum or void. God has a purpose behind the trials and persecutions that come in the midst of His church.

Secondly, lives that are yielded completely to the control and power of the Spirit of God: how do you get words to say when you stand before those? You may never stand before a Sanhedrin, a council, but you will have friends that you stand before. How do you respond to them when they ask you, “Jason, why do you go to church?” “Danny, why do you go to church?” Do you know what to say? But if your life is lived in the control of the Spirit of God, the same God who filled Peter with the Holy Spirit at that time and gave him words to say, will give you the words to say. And that would be effective, it will be transformative. He will produce the intended work that God wants you to do.

Thirdly, be faithful to not dilute, adulterate, or compromise the message of the Gospel. Salvation is found in no one else. Only one name is able to save still today, that is the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. George W. Bush was asked many years ago: “Do you believe that Muslims and Christians will go to heaven?” He should be a believer, but he answered, “Yeah, I do. I believe there are different paths that God has created for us to reach Him.” But, No one name under Heaven by which we might be saved. President Obama was asked, “What is your theology? What is your Christianity?” He answered, “My mother died without believing in Jesus, but I believe that she is still in heaven.” No one name given under Heaven by which we might be saved.

What I’m trying to tell you is this: there are people of power and authority that are claiming other ways to get to heaven. Famous preachers will sit in nationally televised interviews and claim that they do not know if there are more than one way to reach heaven. And yet many of us don’t have a problem listening to their sermons on television or attending their churches because it is a mega-church. The Bible does not make any qualms about its message. I have more respect for an unbeliever than one who adulterates or compromises the pure message of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. One name under Heaven by which we might be saved.

A lot of people say, “Christians are arrogant, close-minded. How can you say that you’re the only right one and everybody else is wrong?” Let me ask you the other side of it: what gives you the right to demand of God as to who goes to heaven? Heaven is God’s home; He decides who gets to go there. Who are you as a mortal man to tell Him that? The arrogance of a human being to say, “God, you are not fair. You are not letting everyone in.” God does not have to let any one of you into heaven. His place is holy. Only holy people can enter heaven. He gets to decide who gets to go to heaven. The decision he made? “Those who believe in the name of my Son are the only ones who can enter the gates of Heaven.”

The Gospel is not your idea. The Gospel is not your message. The Bible says, “Before the foundations of the earth were laid, it was my God’s plan.” He gets to decide who gets to heaven and who does not. We are not better, but God, by His grace, has shown us the better way. “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me.” No one. No one. No one.

That’s why what we proclaim, what we believe, what we live out is so important. If there was any other way, my God did not have to die on the cross. If there was any other way, my Lord did not have to become a man. But because there was only one way to save us, He became a man. He suffered, He died, He rose again, and for the last two thousand years, He has been sending us out, the church, to the ends of the Earth with this one message: “No other name given under Heaven by which we might be saved.”

So, be faithful to the message of the Gospel. Even if you’re called different kinds of names in your life, people will hate you. Do not be surprised. People will kick you out of society. Do not be surprised. You will lose friends. Do not be surprised. But, God has placed the truth of God’s word deep in your hearts so that you will be faithful in communicating His Gospel to a dying world.

I’ll end with this: a lot of people say, “Pastor, I don’t tell the Gospel as it is because I don’t want to come across as being hateful.” You know what the most hateful thing to do is? Telling somebody a lie, and they will end up for all eternity without God. That’s being hateful. You know what love is? Speaking the truth as it is, concerned about the eternal destiny of the person sitting in front of you, and saying, “Even if you don’t agree with me, let me tell you, Jesus of Nazareth is the only one who has died for your sins on the cross. I love you, but let me tell you, you are a good person, but your goodness will not get you to heaven. There’s only one name that is given under Heaven by which we will be saved.”

Heavenly Father, we thank you. Oh God, in the midst of the persecutions of life, we are not alone, but we are there because You ordained it to be. We thank you for the power, anointing, and the filling of the Spirit of God and the wisdom that comes from it that He gives to us in the moments when we desperately need it. We pray that as a church we will not adulterate or compromise the Gospel message. Salvation is found in no one else, but only in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Give us, O Lord, that passion and zeal to be able to communicate the Gospel. Not out of hate, but out of love for our fellow men. Because we are concerned about their eternal destiny. In Jesus’ name, Amen.