Background to passage: Pentecost, lame man and preaching on Solomon’s portico; now it gets real - Sadducees, rulers of the people, temple guards, priests, scribes, elders, a night in jail. The church/apostles are called to continue to minister in the name of the risen Christ, and in the face of great difficulty, they doubled down. Preached and prayed and God continued to move.
Acts 4:1–31 ESV
1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,
2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.
4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.
5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem,
6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family.
7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?”
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders,
9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed,
10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.
11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.
15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another,
16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.
17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.”
18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge,
20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened.
22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.
23 When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.
24 And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,
25 who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, “ ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?
26 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’—
27 for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
28 to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.
29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,
30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
Opening illustration: Chinese New Year, Muslim New Year, Jewish New Year (5784) began two weeks ago, and the SBC began to operate its church year from Oct-Sept, best I can tell because of school schedules and national holidays.
Main thought: This is where we are as a church. This morning I want to look at their motivation, their mission, and the means to accomplish it.
1) Motivation (v. 13, 21, 30)
Acts 4:13 ESV
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
Acts 4:21 ESV
21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened.
Acts 4:30 ESV
30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
1) Motivation (v. 13, 21, 30)
Explanation: Several places in this text we see the underlying motivation of God working through the apostles: his glory. God is very intentional about ensuring that his name be made great. Everything that was made, was made through him, by him, and for his glory. You and I exist for his glory, in that ever we do, we are to make much of him. We are to make every attempt in all we do to let people see his greatness. This is the best thing for us, the best thing for the world. The most satisfying thing in the universe is offered to people, and the way that God draws them in part is to see how awesome he is. Signs and wonders often accompanied the gospel pointing to God.
Isaiah 48:11 ESV
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.
Exodus 34:14 ESV
14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God),
John 5:23 ESV
23 that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
Illustration: Peyton Manning
Application: Personally/individually, we look at everything we do in light of the fact that it either reflects or deflects His glory. It either makes God look good or bad, which we know that only the former is true. In this text, and in this message, however, we must look at the way in which we reflect Christ as a church.
If you are known as a Christian who attends WHBC, does the way that you treat people on Sundays make people notice that you are like Christ? When you worship (and you do come to worship), does it reflect the glory of God? Do visitors come in and experience Christ on your face? When our community thinks about WHBC, do they marvel at the God that we serve? Do you point up?
If we are not impressed and enthralled with the goodness of God and all that he is, first we should get to know him better, but ultimately a watching world will not be impressed. Until we are pierced as we gaze into his glorious face, we will not be able to reflect it. Moses reflected the glory of God after he met him face to face. As a church this year, we must determine that we are going to learn the glory of God, kill the sin that dims the light, and let our ministries, behavior, worship by set ablaze by the glory of our God.
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2) Mission (v. 2, 10, 12)
Acts 4:2 ESV
2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
Acts 4:10 ESV
10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.
Acts 4:12 ESV
12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
2) Mission (v. 2, 10, 12)
Explanation: The mission is constant. Their mission was clear. It was to proclaim that Christ died and in three days was raised up in victory over sin. Notice what they said: you crucified, God raised, no other name. This was the mission in Acts 3, 4, 5, 7…proclaim the gospel.
2 Corinthians 5:20 ESV
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
1 Corinthians 15:3–5 ESV
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,
4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
Illustration: My grandmother worked at ORNL, they didn’t know what the mission was, but others did. It was part of the weapon and operation that would end WWII.
Application: The proclamation of the gospel is still at the core of everything that we do. It is the beginning step of disciple-making. We MUST be intentional about deciding if ministry does this or has evangelism as a part. We MUST decide whether or not some ministries need to be started or removed based on that. We have a limited number of laborers and dollars this year. Let us start fresh! Today begins our church year 23-24, and we have a chance to make evangelism central again. It will take some of you to step up and lead it. Others of you will need to commit to it. Others of you will need to pray through/for it.
If we don’t get serious about the proclamation of the gospel, our candle will be taken away. It may not be next week, or in a year, or even in 5. Right now the budget is tight, and we are in need of come key volunteers to improve ministries, but if we had to tell you to stop giving, there is too much; and even if we had all the volunteers we needed for current ministries and a dozen more, gospel proclamation is still the mission. Disciples are still the mission. Baptisms and teaching believers to do all of Jesus’s commands is still the mission. So, the question is: are you going to be faithful to do it? Are we going to be faithful to do it? Will you share your testimony? Will you tell the coworker that has been beside you for years, but only knows you as a “good” or “church-going” christian about Jesus? That neighbor, that family member, that friend, invite YES, but we must proclaim the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
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3) Means (v. 19-20, 29)
Acts 4:19–20 ESV
19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge,
20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
Acts 4:29 ESV
29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,
3) Means (v. 19-20, 29)
Explanation: In these verses, we see were Peter assumes commitment. In the first they are told to disobey God, and they said that they couldn’t help it, and that they WOULD speak of what they had seen and heard. This is the assumption behind the verse and Peter’s clear meaning. Second text is a prayer asking God to give them boldness to continue to speak, assumption: willing to/committed to speak. The means is you. You are plan A and there is no plan B.
Argumentation:
Illustration: I bent my truck tailgate this week. So I went down to the body shop to see what it would cost to fix it. My eyes about popped out of my head. The means to repair it was over $900, the means to replace it was almost that much. Even aftermarket parts, and used parts and wrecked parts...I decided that for that price I would have to live with a pretty significant “character mark” on my truck. Then someone told me to put a deflated soccer ball in there and with an air compressor, inflate it. Haven’t tried it yet, but the $15 means fits my budget.
Application: When we are motivated by the glory of God to see the fame of His name exalted, and we are faithful to speak the greatest news in the history of mankind,
2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV
21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
God will be faithful to give the increase because He is zealously committed to the magnification of his perfections among men and because he is committed to calling forth a people to put them on display.
1 Peter 2:9 ESV
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
What is required is “we.” We are the soccer ball. Main difference is that there are no new tailgates, aftermarket tailgates, used tailgates, wreck tailgates, or mechanics to straighten things. Every one of us needs to dig a little deeper. There are some of you out there who are burning the candle at both ends, and let me say thanks. However, there are many who are not involved. You come, some of you even regular, but you are not fulfilling your place in the body of Christ at Western Heights. Your spiritual gifts aren’t being used, the church is suffering, the kingdom of God is not being advanced because God has called you to serve and you are being disobedient. You don’t have to feel like it, nor hear an audible voice, just do it, and the feelings will come later.
Again this is all predicated on the love for the glory of God and the understanding of the proclamation of the gospel. We need people to clean. We need people to serve in the children’s ministry. We need people to cook for the youth group. We need people to teach classes. We need people to work in the A/V booth. We need people to work to follow-up with people in our ministries. We need people in security. Most importantly we need people to pray!
However, let me be clear about something, no service that you participate in should ever consistently remove you from the ministry of the word of God and the worship of his church. I realize some service will pull you out on a recurring schedule, but if you can never go, you are doing too much. You are saying to God the priorities of service outweigh the priorities of Christ. This is exactly why we need more volunteers. Those who are on the sidelines are forcing others to suffer spiritually. We have deacons and elders and their wives who rarely get a chance to worship because they are working. These things ought not be. We need to step up.
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Acts 4:31 ESV
31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
Closing illustration: Gentlemen, this is a football!” That is one of the most famous and often used sports quotes in history. However, most don’t know its real history or how to apply it to their businesses and lives.
In July 1961, Vince Lombardi kicked off the first day of training camp for the 38 players on his Green Bay Packers football team. The prior season had ended in a heartbreaking loss to the Philadelphia Eagles after blowing a lead in the 4th quarter of the NFL Championship Game.
When the players came in to start training camp, they expected to immediately begin where they left off and work on ways to advance their game and learn fancy new ways to win the championship in the new season. When they sat down and began, Vince Lombardi held up a football and said, “Gentlemen, this is a football!”
He then had everyone open up their playbooks and start on page one, where they began to learn the fundamentals – blocking, tackling, throwing, catching, etc. That was clearly not what they expected as players who were at the top of their game.
This hyper-focus on fundamentals allowed them to win the NFL Championship that season 37-0 against the New York Giants. Vince Lombardi went on to win five NFL Championships in seven years. He never coached a team with a losing season after that and never lost a playoff game again.
Recap
