A Study of the Book of Acts
Sermon # 23
“The Power of Prayer”
Acts 12:1-24
“but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.”
Acts chapter twelve is set in a context of mounting persecution, about which the people of God seem to be unable to deliver themselves. Seemingly all that they could do was pray. Sometimes we as Christians feel the same way about situations that we face, it could be someone we love with an incurable disease, insecurity about our jobs, trying to turn someone who is straying away from the Lord or the moral decline of our nation. Does anything sound more ridiculous to a lost world than a group of Christians praying for God’s help in the middle of a crisis.
I wonder if the words of 1 Peter 3:12 are a commentary on the time recorded in Acts 12, “ For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil.”
I. GOD SEES OUR TRIALS 12:1-4
“ For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous,” 1 Peter 3:12a
“Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. (2) Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword. (3) And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also. Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread. (4) So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover.”
Between A.D. 41-44 , the fifth of the Herod’s spoken of in the New Testament ruled. This Herod, is grandson of Herod the Great, who killed the babies in Bethelem and is the nephew of Herod who had beheaded John the Baptist, this is Herod Agrippa. He was more popular than any of the previous Herod’s. Herod Agrippa did everything in his power to retain the favor of the ruling Jewish party. Because he sensed the it was politically expedient he began persecuting Christian and had already had the Apostle James beheaded. This had so pleased the Jews that he had Peter arrested and he planned to put him to death as soon as the religious feast was over.
Herod was obviously very much afraid that Peter would escape as others had escaped in the past. No doubt he was aware that Peter and John had previously escaped (actually they had been released by angels as recorded in Acts chapter 5). Herod was determined that this was not going to happen again. Verse four tells us that Peter was guarded by four quarternions (squads of four soldiers each). Roman soldiers stood guard in three-hour shifts. So there were always four soldiers guarding Peter (apparently two chained to him and two standing guard outside the cell).
It must have been quite a shock that James had not be delivered as Peter and John had been. Imagine how stunned and shattered they must have been when the sad news that James had been actually been executed by beheading. James was the first of the apostles to lay down his life as a martyr. When Peter was imprisoned the church assumed nothing, they immediately began to make earnest prayer for him.
II. GOD ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS 12:5-17
“… And His ears are open to their prayers;…” 1 Peter 3:12b
A. THE CHURCH PRAYS v. 5
“Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.”
God had determined to save, Peter but the way in which God had determined to save Peter was in response to the prayers of the Christians who were praying.
The church prayed specifically. In Acts 12:5 we read in the Greek text that they prayed “concerning him” meaning that their prayers made specific request on behalf of Peter.
The church prayed earnestly. The word translated “constant ” prayer is a word that means “to stretch or to straining with great intensity” This praying began as much as a week earlier.
The church prayed perseveringly. When Peter reached Mary’s house, even though it was in the middle of the night, the church was still praying.
B. GOD DELIVERS vv. 6-10
“And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison. (7) Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands. (8) Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and tie on your sandals”; and so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment and follow me.” (9) So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. (10) When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.”
Here we are brought face to face with the mystery of God’s sovereign will. It is his will that Peter goes free yet it was his will that James die. Was James not delivered because, as some teach today, he lacked sufficient faith to be delivered. I think not. In speaking of faith the author of Hebrews says in chapter eleven beginning in verse 32 “And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: (33) who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, (34) quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. (35) Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. (36) Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. (37) They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— (38) of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth.(39) And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise,” (NKJV)
It was not Peter’s faith was greater it was that God’s will was different for James than it was for Peter. Peter was delivered from prison but James was delivered into the presence of the Lord. It was as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered when threathened with the fiery furnace by King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel (3:15) “who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?” They responded by saying,
“…….O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. (17) If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king.” Daniel 3:16- 17 (NKJV)
They said in effect that God would either deliver them from the fiery furnace or through the fiery furnace, but either way God will deliver them.
Verse six says, “And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night,” that is the night before he was to be executed. Why do you think that God waits for the last minute to deliver? Because he is not going to deliver us as long as we have strength or means to save ourselves.
In order for the angel to deliver Peter he has to first awaken him from a deep sleep. In the midst of all his trouble, knowing that he faced death in the morning, the apostle was in a deep calm sleep. To wake him, the angel had to hit Peter. And then like a befuddled child he had to tell him to “ Get up…Put your clothes on…Put on your shoes…put on your cloak …now follow me.” As Peter stood his chain simply fell off and he walked out of the cell. As he walked down the hallway, verse ten says that “the gate opened of its own accord,” actually the word is authomate – that is the gates opened automatically.
Psalm 126 records what it was like for Peter when he came to himself and found himself alone and in the street. Psalm 126:1 says, “When the LORD brought back the captivity of Zion, We were like those who dream.” (NKJV)
vv. 11- 17
“And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.” (12) So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying. (13) And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer. (14) When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate. (15) But they said to her, “You are beside yourself!” Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, “It is his angel.” (16) Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. (17) But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Go, tell these things to James and to the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place.”
When Peter came to himself he released that he was not dreaming but had been miraculously released. He immediately went to where he knew the church would be praying. When he arrived he knocked on the outer gate and asked to be admitted. The household servant named Rhoda, whose name means “rose,” was sent to the door. The poor little rose answered the door and became so befuddled at the sound of his voice that she ran back into the house to announce his arrival with ever opening the door and letting him in. It is humorous to picture Peter outside pounding on away at the door, while the girl is inside, having forgotten to let him in, trying to explain to these Christian’s that answer to their prayers is at the door.
The poor church members do come away looking much better than Rhoda. When she tells them who it is, they at first tell her that she is beside herself and when she insists they tell her it must be Peter’s ghost.
III. GOD DEALS WITH OUR ENEMIES 12:18-24
“But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil.” 1 Peter 3:12c
“Then, as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers about what had become of Peter. (19) But when Herod had searched for him and not found him, he examined the guards and commanded that they should be put to death. (20) And he went down from Judea to Caesarea, and stayed there. Now Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; but they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king’s personal aide their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food by the king’s country. (21) So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them. (22) And the people kept shouting, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” (23) Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died. (24) But the word of God grew and multiplied.”
I would imagine that it is somewhat of an understatement to say that the next morning there was “no small stir among the soldiers” about what had become of Peter. It was sheer panic and for good reason. When Herod found out that Peter was missing, all the soldier who had guarded Peter were put to death by his orders.
There is a kind of poetic justice in the death of Herod. He who had killed James and sought to kill Peter and so God took his life. He played the politician and politics killed him.
He dressed in such a way that people exclaimed of his splendor and yet he died a shameful and slow death of being eaten by worms. This was a very humiliating way to die.
Conclusion
When life beats us to our knees we are in the right position to get help. James had been beheaded and now with Peter in prison just hours from execution, the church must have wondered whether prayer was of any value. It may have been that they had all but given up and that is why they were so surprised when the answer came.
Let me close with this illustration. “Just before World War II in Itasca, Texas, there was a school fire that took the lives of 263 children. It was a horrifying tragedy. After the war Itasca built a new school with the finest sprinkler system in the world. Never again would the citizens of Itasca be caught with such a tragedy on their hands. Honor students were selected to take citizens of the community on tours through the new school, to show them the finest sprinkler system ever assembled. The town continued to grow, and seven years after the new school was built an addition was needed. As the new construction began, it was discovered that the sprinkler system was never connected.” [Howard Hendricks, message to the International Congress on Biblical Inerrancy in San Diego, March 4, 1982, as quoted by R. Kent Hughes. Acts: The Church Afire. ( Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1996) p. 272.]
