Taking A Stand
Text: Acts 4:1-22
Introduction
1. Have you ever had to stand up for something you believe in? When we stand, it's normally because there is some sort of opposition facing us. So we have to muster up the courage and take action to stand against that opposition.
2. When I first became a Christian I was in high school. In those days I carried my Bible with me everywhere. One day as I was sitting in the cafeteria having lunch with some of my friends, one of the guys I used to party with came up to the table I was sitting at, grabbed my Bible, threw it on the floor and began stomping on it. Later that week, I was at a home Bible study, and one of the older guys that was a part of that group gave me a ride home. On the way home I was telling him the story about the guy stomping on my Bible. What he told me has always remained with me. He said, "Mark, one day someone is going to ask you to make a choice between your Bible and your life. What will you choose?"
3. Our world is polluted with so many images that aren't Christlike, and I have to daily take a stand for purity and holiness.
A. I can't let garbage into my mind and heart. I have to take a stand against anything that would hinder my relationship with God.
B. See, we all have weaknesses and temptations, and we will also face moments in our faith where we have to take a stand against things that try to hinder where God desires us to be.
C. The only way we can live a God-honoring life is by taking a stand.
D. In Acts chapter 4, we see some men who take a stand for their faith in Christ.
4. When we take a stand for Jesus we must remember...
A. Jesus Is Our Foundation
B. We Have To Obey God In The Midst Of Opposition
C. When We Stand For Jesus He Shines Through Us
5. Let's stand together as we read Acts 4:1-22
Proposition: If we are going to follow Jesus, we have to put him first above anything or anyone else.
Transition: First, we must understand that...
I. Jesus Is Our Foundation (1-12).
A. Has Now Become The Cornerstone
1. Peter and John had just performed a miracle. They told a man who had been crippled from birth to stand up and walk, and he did! They then seized the opportunity to preach the Good News. But not everyone saw it as good news.
2. Luke tells us, "While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees. 2 These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead."
A. While Peter and John were still speaking, the priests, the captain who commanded the temple guard of chosen Levites, and a group of their Sadducee supporters came upon them suddenly and unexpectedly.
B. As verse 3 indicates, it was now evening (about sundown), and since the miracle took place about 3 P.M., Peter and John had continued to talk to the crowd about three hours.
C. Undoubtedly they explained the full gospel further and probably had time to answer questions from the crowd.
D. The high priest was a Sadducee, as were many of the priests in Jerusalem. They claimed to be religious but did not accept the traditions of the Pharisees and did not consider the Old Testament prophetical books or the Writings to be on the same level as the Law (the Torah, the Pentateuch).
E. They also denied the existence of angels and spirits and said there was no resurrection.
F. They were not excited about the miracle, but they were disturbed because there was such a great crowd around Peter and John.
G. Then they were "very disturbed" (upset, deeply annoyed, exasperated) because the apostles proclaimed in Jesus "the resurrection of [out from among] the dead."
H. As James D. G. Dunn points out, "Jesus is the defining center of the new movement; and... his resurrection is the key point of emphasis and differentiation in its preaching (Horton, 99).
3. As a result, "They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning.
4 But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of believers now totaled about 5,000 men, not counting women and children."
A. Peter was preaching a resurrected Jesus, and the Sadducees understood that this was evidence for the truth of the resurrection of all believers.
B. Because this teaching was against their doctrine, the Sadducees felt they could not tolerate it. They therefore "seized Peter and John" (arrested them) and threw them in jail overnight.
C. "It was evening," too late to call the Sanhedrin together. But it was too late, also, to stop the gospel from having its effect.
D. "Many who heard the message believed." We can be sure they were soon baptized in water (probably the next day) as well as in the Holy Spirit.
E. The number is given as "about five thousand" men. The Greek may be translated "became about five thousand," so some take this to mean the total number of believers was now up to five thousand.
F. But the way it is stated here indicates the number was so large that they counted only men (Gk. andrōn, "men, males").
G. There must have been a large number of women and children who believed also. Acts 3:9 says all the people saw the crippled man, and 4:1-2 indicates they were teaching all the people, both men and women.
4. Then Luke tells us, "The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest."
A. The next day the "rulers" with the "elders and teachers of the law" who were in Jerusalem assembled.
B. With them came, specifically, Annas, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and all the rest of the relatives of the high priest who happened to be in the city.
C. Annas here is called the high priest. He was officially high priest from A.D. 6-15- Then his son Jonathan was appointed for about three years.
D. Next Caiaphas, the son-in-law of Annas, was made the official high priest (A.D. 18-36). But Annas remained the power behind the position and kept his honorary title.
E. The people did not accept his deposition by the Romans and still considered him to be the true high priest.
F. In the Old Testament, Aaron and each of his successors was made high priest for life. The Law made no provision for the secular governors to change this.
G. Consequently, Jesus was taken to Annas's house first, then to Caiaphas. Annas and Caiaphas, along with some of the rest of the relatives of Annas, formed something of a "closed corporation" that ran the temple and controlled its vast income and wealth (Horton, 100-101).
5. After setting the scene for us, Luke continues with, "They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”
A. They made Peter and John stand in the midst of the assembled court, which was basically the same one that convicted Jesus.
B. Then they began their inquiry by asking them, "By what power or what name did you do this?"
C. "What" (power, name) is used here in a derogatory way. The emphasis on "you" shows contempt. They were trying to awe the disciples or even scare them.
D. Perhaps they remembered how the disciples had fled in fear when Jesus was arrested. Verse 13 shows the reason for the Sandhedrin's contempt—the disciples were "unschooled, ordinary men," not educated in their schools (Horton, 101-102).
6. But "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, 9 are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? 10 Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead."
A. Peter had indeed once cringed before a girl in the courtyard when this same group was gathered around Jesus.
B. Now there was a difference. Peter, as he began to speak, was filled with the Holy Spirit. The form of the Greek verb here indicates a new, fresh filling.
C. This does not mean he had lost any of the power and presence of the Spirit he received on the Day of Pentecost. In view of the pressures of this critical situation, the Lord simply enlarged his capacity and gave him this fresh filling to meet this new need for power to witness.
D. They were not to worry or take any advance thought of what they should speak. The Spirit of their Heavenly Father would speak in (and by) them.
E. Therefore, instead of trying to defend themselves, the Spirit would make their words a witness. We may be sure Peter and John had slept well the night before and awoke refreshed.
F. Peter, filled anew with the Spirit and sensing His presence in a powerful way, did not let the Jewish leaders frighten him.
G. As Paul told Timothy (2 Tim. 1:7), God has not given us a spirit of timidity (cowardly fear), but "of power, of love, and of self-discipline." Politely, Peter addressed them as "rulers and elders" (Horton, 102-103).
H. Then, in a dignified way, he told them that if they were making a judicial examination concerning the good deed done for a weak human being, by what means the man had been (and still was) "healed," then Peter had the answer.
I. Peter proclaimed that by the name of Jesus—whom they crucified ("you" is plural) and whom God raised from the dead—by Him this man stood before them restored to health.
J. What a contrast Peter makes between what these leaders did to Jesus and what God did through Him! Notice also how he emphasizes the significant name of Jesus, not only here but also throughout this response (Horton, 103).
7. Then Peter said, "For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ 12 There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
A. Peter quoted a passage that most of these same chief priests and elders had heard from Jesus himself.
B. On one occasion they had challenged Jesus' authority to teach. He gave them parables and then quoted Psalm 118:22.
C. Peter, however, makes it personal. "This one [emphatic] is 'the stone you [plural] the builders rejected, who has become the cornerstone."
D. He became "the cornerstone" because He is exalted to the Father's right hand. God had accomplished His purpose in spite of their opposition (Horton, 103-104).
E. Then Peter explains what this means: There is no salvation in anyone else (the salvation which they hoped to be brought by the Messiah is not in anyone other than Jesus), "for there is no other name under heaven given to men [human beings] by which we must be saved."
F. "Must" (Gk. dei) is an emphatic word indicating compelling necessity. If we do not find salvation through the name (Person) of Jesus, we shall never find it.
G. Nowhere in the entire world is there another Savior—there never has been and never will be.
H. It is not popular to be so exclusive. Most unbelievers who are not atheists want to think that there are many ways to find God.
I. Some cults, the Baha'i, for example, even try to combine what they suppose is the good in various religions. But all this is in vain.
J. God has rejected all other ways. In Christ alone is hope.
K. It is this that places the heavy responsibility of the Great Commission upon us. If there were any other way of salvation, we could afford to take it easy.
L. But there is no hope for anyone apart from the salvation through Christ. This may sound intolerant. "But it is also true." Only through Him can we enter into the inheritance and glory God has promised to those who love Him (Horton, 104).
B. Here I Stand
1. Video Clip
2. We can stand in the face of opposition because we have Jesus as our firm foundation.
A. Romans 8:36-37 (NLT)
36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) 37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
B. There is a time coming, and in some cases is already here, that we will have to stand in the face of opposition.
C. There are those even now who come against what believe as followers of Jesus.
D. They say that the Bible is merely a book of myths and fairy tales.
E. They say that there are many ways to God.
F. Many even say that there is no God.
G. But we know that Jesus is the Son of God and the only way to salvation, and that the Bible is the inerrant word of God.
H. No matter what they say or do to us can change the fact Jesus who he said he was, the Son of the Living God.
I. We must agree with Martin Luther who said, "I cannot and I will not recant. Here I stand!"
Transition: With Jesus as our foundation...
II. We Have To Obey God In The Midst Of Opposition (13-18).
A. Warn Them Not To Speak In Jesus Name
1. Even though they hated to admit it, these religious leaders had a hard time refuting what Peter had said to them/
2. Luke writes, "The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say."
A. The priests and elders were "amazed" when they saw the "boldness" of Peter and John; they perceived they were "unschooled," not having attended a rabbinical school or having sat under a great rabbi like Gamaliel, and were "ordinary men."
B. This does not mean they were totally unschooled. They had gone to the synagogue schools in their hometowns, but they were not professional teachers or trained speakers like the scribes and lawyers.
C. Ordinary laymen did not speak with authority like this. It must have been hard for Peter and John to face such snobs. But the key to their courage and freedom in speaking was not their own talent or ability. It was, of course, the new fresh filling with the Spirit. He gave them the words to say.
D. Then something else struck these Jewish leaders. The phrase "recognized" does not mean they inquired further of them. Rather, the Greek simply means they gradually recognized that they "had been with Jesus."
E. Perhaps the words of Peter jogged their memory of what Jesus had said. As they thought about their confrontation with Jesus, they remembered He had had disciples with Him. Now they recognized Peter and John as having been among them.
F. The Jewish leaders must have been shocked, for they had believed they would be rid of Jesus by crucifying Him. Jesus had spoken with authority; and now His disciples, trained by Him, spoke with that same authority.
G. Jesus had done miracles as signs; now His disciples were doing the same. Their use of the name of Jesus was not just repeating a formula. They had known Him personally. Jesus had commissioned them and was with them as He had promised (Horton, 105-106).
H. Now the elders were confronted with something else. The man who was healed was standing erect and strong with Peter and John. Suddenly, the priests and elders had nothing else to say. What could they say against such a miracle (Horton,106)?
3. Since they couldn't argue with what Peter was saying, "they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves. 16 “What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it."
A. The leaders then commanded Peter and John to go out of the room where the Sanhedrin was meeting.
B. The Sanhedrin then engaged in a discussion among themselves. They did not know what to do with Peter and John. They could not deny that "an outstanding miracle" had been done by (through) them, visible to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
C. This could imply that they did not deny the resurrection of Jesus. The thing that bothered them was the fact that the apostles were using it to teach a future resurrection for all believers.
D. In order to avoid this problem earlier, they had bribed the soldiers to say the body of Jesus had been stolen.
E. Some, even today, contend that the women and the disciples looked in the wrong tomb. But the women paid special attention to where Jesus was laid.
F. Actually, these Jewish leaders were neither stupid nor unsophisticated. They knew how difficult it is to get rid of a body and, so, would have made an intensive search for the body if they had not known He was risen from the dead.
G. But it takes more than mere knowledge, or a mental acceptance, of the truth of Christ's resurrection for a person to be saved (Horton, 106-107).
4. So they came to the conclusion that "to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.” 18 So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus."
A. Even though they had no logical reply to Peter and John, the Sanhedrin did not return a verdict in line with the facts of the case.
B. Instead, they sidestepped their responsibility and decided the best course was to suppress the disciples' teaching about Jesus and the resurrection.
C. They knew they could not bribe the disciples. They would therefore threaten them to speak no longer "in this name" to anyone.
D. By this the Sanhedrin recognized that the name of Jesus included the message of the gospel.
E. When they called Peter and John back into the room, they tried to use their own authority to impress the apostles and commanded them "not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus."
F. This probably implied that they were also not to use the name of Jesus in healing the sick (Horton, 107-108).
B. Defend The Faith
1. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Silence in the face of evil is itself evil. God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act."
2. In the face of opposition we must defend the faith.
A. Jude 1:3 (NLT)
Dear friends, I had been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we all share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people.
B. It is not popular today to stand for Biblical principles.
C. It is not popular today to say that Jesus is the only way.
D. It is not popular today to call sin what it is...sin!
E. People don't want to accept what the Bible teaches.
F. People want to believe that any way you choose is right.
G. People today don't want to believe that there is a right way and a wrong way.
H. But as disciples of Jesus we must stand in the face of opposition.
I. As disciples of Jesus we must stand for what the Bible teaches.
J. As disciples of Jesus we must defend the faith!
Transition: If we obey God in the midst of opposition...
III. When We Stand For Jesus He Shines Through Us (19-22).
A. Do You Think God Wants Us To Obey You
1. When we obey Jesus good things happen.
2. You have to love what Peter and John to these religious leaders when they ordered them not to talk about Jesus. Luke says, "But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? 20 We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”
A. But these threats did not intimidate the two apostles.
B. Calmly and courteously, but very firmly, they put the responsibility back on the Jewish leaders to "judge" whether it was right before God to listen to them rather than to Him.
C. Then Peter and John boldly declared that they were not able to stop talking about what they had "seen and heard."
D. They were not hearsay witnesses. They were firsthand witnesses. As He had for Jeremiah, the Holy Spirit made the truth like a fire in their hearts and within their bones, so they could not stop.
E. Because they were filled with the Spirit, they were fulfilling Jesus' command to be His witnesses. "The Spirit is the God who cannot be gagged" (Horton, 108).
3. Since they acted on the courage and wisdom that they Holy Spirit provided for them God caused these two disciples to shine. Luke says, "The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn’t know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising God 22 for this miraculous sign—the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years."
A. The Sanhedrin members wanted to find some way to punish Peter and John.
B. The implication is that they did try to find some punishable offense, but they could not because of the people: Everyone kept glorifying God for what was done, especially since this man who was born crippled was now "over forty years old."
C. Therefore, they simply added more threats to their previous warning and let them go.This was a big mistake on their part, for it let the people know God could deliver from the Sanhedrin.
D. It illustrated that the Jewish leaders had no case against these apostles, nor did they have any way to refute their message.
E. However, the Jewish elders, chief priests, and teachers of the Law who rejected Jesus remained "uniformly hostile" to the followers of Jesus (Horton, 108).
B. Victory In Jesus
1. Since the death of Jesus Christ, 2000 years ago, 43 million Christians have become martyrs
A. Over 50% of these were in the last century alone
B. More than 200 million Christians face persecution each day, 60% of whom are children
C. Every day over 300 people are killed for their faith in Jesus Christ. — World Evangelical Encyclopedia
2. When we stand for Jesus, he stands for us.
A. Matthew 10:32-33 (NLT)
“Everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But everyone who denies me here on earth, I will also deny before my Father in heaven.
B. When we stand firm for God and pray to Him, the Holy Spirit gives us the power to stand together and let our light shine.
C. God builds His Church through people who stand firm on the solid foundation of Christ, who pray, who are filled with the Spirit, and who stand together in faith.
D. This is how God built the early church, and this is how God is still building His Church today.
E. He's looking for men and women who will stand for Him.
F. No matter the opposition, we must stand for God so that He can shine through us.
Conclusion
1. First, some of you here may be wavering in your faith.
A. If that's you, God says, "Fear not, trust in Me."
B. Jesus has overcome the world, and He will help you overcome whatever you're facing.
C. Stand firm in Christ today. God is with you. You aren't alone.
D. We all face challenges, and together God wants us to stand firm, to obey Him, to grow in Him, and to let Him shine through our lives.
E. Please come up front and let us pray for you.
2. Second, there may be some of you who haven't ever surrendered your life to Christ.
A. I want you to know today that Jesus wants to be the cornerstone of your life.
B. He died on the cross and rose again so that you could trust Him with your life.
C. He did all this because He loves you. He wants to forgive you and be the cornerstone of your life.
