IN THE DARKEST HOUR EXPECT A MIRACLE
by Pastor Jim May
What a wonderful God we serve. I can truly say that serving the Lord is a wonderful privilege. To be used by God, even in the very smallest of manner according to our opinion, is a great privilege indeed. Though most of the members of the Body of Christ will never stand in the “limelight” and have the honor of teaching or preaching the Word of God, what really matters is that God has called you to do a work for Him. What an honor it is to serve the King of Kings and to be counted as a member of His royal family!
The day that you accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior and began your journey with Him, you became a marked man or woman.
God placed His mark upon your heart – forever identifying you as one of His own dear children. He has given his angels charge over you, to keep you and protect you. The Holy Ghost has come upon you and moved into your life to tabernacle with you. The Lord Jesus Christ dwells within your heart. What a high honor! What a glorious thought! What a wonderful knowledge, just to know that the Creator of the Universe lives with you 24-7 and He has promised never to leave you or forsake you, even to the end.
On that day that you accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior and began your journey with Him, you also became a marked man or woman in another way as well.
On that day, Satan marked you as well. Oh he can’t mark you as one of his own, because you belong to the Almighty, Omniscient, Omnipresent and Omnipotent God; but he marked you as a target for every power of hell that he bring against you. Satan’s job is to kill, steal and destroy everything that you are and he never rests and never quits in his pursuit of your eternal soul.
It doesn’t matter how long you have served the Lord, the devil will pursue you. It doesn’t matter how spiritual you may become, the devil will never stop trying to kill you. It doesn’t matter what position you may be given in God’s kingdom, or how much knowledge you have of the Word of God, or how much anointing of the Holy Ghost is in your life, the devil will never give up. We can never allow ourselves to let our guard down. The devil is a powerful adversary and he is like a prize fighter in the ring, standing there in front of you to deliver a knock-out blow the instant you let your guard down. And you aren’t in the ring with the devil for ten rounds; you’re in this fight for the rest of your life on this planet.
There can be only one victor in this fight. Just like in any prize fight, there are going to be rounds when you seem to be whipped. Satan bloodies your nose, blackens your eye, and makes you hurt from the crown of your head to the very soles of your feet. Every time you forget he’s there, a good solid punch to some part of your life, quickly brings you back to the reality of the battle for your very soul.
Sometimes it’s a rabbit punch to the kidneys and your back, or stomach begins to hurt. Sometimes he is able to connect with your face and your teeth begin to hurt, your nose feels like it’s broken, and your vision is blurred for a while. But somehow, you manage to get up and go another round. It’s as though there is a force within you that just keeps lifting you up off the mat one more time. You get a little refreshing from some cool water of the Word of God, there’s a little healing salve applied to your wounds by the anointing power of the Holy Ghost, and you get a new surge of energy as the power of God flows through you.
I’ve seen that power flow in so many ways.
Some of you, when that surge of power hits you, can’t help but lift your hands and praise the Lord! Sometimes your praise and worship goes even further because you have really felt a strong surge of power and glory, and you might even shout and dance in the Spirit for a while.
Some of you may just stand there, bowing your head, as the tears of joy begin to flow. It’s as though that power surge of the Holy Ghost in your life just opens up the fountains in your head and you can’t help but weep for joy.
Some of you might just stand there quietly, not making a sound, but the look on your face, and peace that comes over you is so overwhelming that you can’t seem to move so you just stand there and bask in the glory of God’s presence around you and in you.
However you are affected by the power of the Holy Ghost, it is such a wonderful feeling when that anointing of power comes.
In 1 John 4:4 the Bible says, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
The battle for the souls of men has been going on since the first man was created. In the 12th Chapter of the Book of Acts we will see that Satan has launched an all-out war against the disciples of Jesus. Let us turn to Acts Chapter 12 and begin reading.
Acts 12:1-3, Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread)
The “days of unleavened bread” according to historians and Bible scholars, covers the time period of the end of March and the beginning of April in our calendar. It was also around the time of the Passover Feast in Israel.
Rome was an occupational army in a foreign land. Governor Herod had duty to keep the peace and to make the land of Israel a profitable venture for Caesar. As a part of his duty it was always necessary to try to do things that would please the Jews, especially at the time of their great national feasts and holidays. Satan placed in Herod’s heart that the one thing he could do to make his Jewish subjects happy was to show them that he was “on their side” by persecuting the fledgling Christian Church. If he could stop the church from growing and destroy all of the followers of Christ, his popularity with the Jews and with Rome would soar, and just maybe he could get a promotion to a better place or position in the Roman government.
How many of you know that just about everything that happens in this world happens because of power and position? A few dictators want more power and control, so the whole world is plunged into World War II. A drug warlord wants more power and wealth, so he peddles his product of death and destruction to the children of the world just to get what he wants. A man, whose only goal in life is a higher position in the company and a bigger salary, will destroy the reputation of his boss, and walk all over anyone who gets in his way just to get what he wants. It’s all about money, power and position!
So it was with king Herod. This was not Herod the Great who had killed all of the babies when Jesus was born. Nor was he Herod Antipas, who had beheaded John the Baptist. This Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great.
In his effort to please Rome and the Jews, he determined to kill the Apostles of Jesus, the very foundation of this Christian movement that the Jews hated so much.
He seized James, the Son of Zebedee and the brother of John and had his beheaded.
The Jews were ecstatic! Finally, Rome was going to get rid of the blight of blasphemy that had come into Israel and threatened the very foundation of Jewish law and culture through this man Jesus of Nazareth. True, they had killed Jesus about 10 years prior, but his followers seemed to flourish more after his death than before and this group of heretics was growing every day.
Upon James’ death, the Jews began to celebrate and praise Herod even more. The power hungry dictator fed off of the glory that the Jews gave to him and he hungered for more, so he decided to pursue his course of action even more and captured Peter, the Apostle to Jews, with the intent of executing him the next day.
As this story continues, we will see that Peter is delivered by the power of God, but before we continue let me tell you that God does not share His glory with anyone; not with a preacher behind the pulpit, or a missionary in a foreign land, or a performer on the platform, or with a heathen king! Herod was going to meet his end and it wouldn’t be long in coming.
During this time of unleavened bread, on the second day of the feast, the Romans incorporated into the Jewish Passover feast, a festival of their own, that was held in honor of the Roman emperor Claudius. On this day King Herod Agrippa I, appeared in the great theatre of Caesarea. He walked into the theatre clothed in magnificent robes containing a lot silver which was a costly and brilliant material. It was early in the day and the morning sun was just beginning to make it’s journey across the skies. As the sun’s rays fell on the king, the eyes of those who stood before him were dazzled with the brightness of the lights that seemed to come from within his own robes and surrounded him in a bright light. Well-placed men of the kings court, who had been trained to project their voices here and there among the crowd proclaimed that the refection of the sun and glow about the king was a supernatural phenomenon that showed the divine nature of the king as a man, but also as a god. When the king spoke and made gave forth a great speech to them, much like the films when we see Adolf Hitler stand before the huge crowds of Germany, all of the people would begin to shout, saying, ’It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.’
In the midst of this idolatrous worship, God sent an angel that suddenly smote Herod and he was carried out of the theatre a dying man. Herod died in 44 AD of same disease that had killed his grandfather. He was filled with worms and died a horrible and painful death. Herod Agrippa I was to die at age 54 after having reigned as king for only four years.
But let’s look at what God did in the midst of Herod’s plans to destroy the church in its infancy.
Acts 12:4–6, “And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.
Have you ever felt like you were hemmed in on all sides by the attacks of the devil? Some of you have felt like that before and perhaps some of you are feeling the pressure of Satan’s attacks even now! You have cried, prayed and done all that you know to do but the pressure is unrelenting, the sickness just will not go away, the finances just won’t come the way you need them to; and you begin to wonder if God is going to ever set you free.
The church is praying for you, but the church often feels that their prayer just isn’t being heard, like the church at Jerusalem that prayed for Peter. The church was praying for Peter all right, but they didn’t seem to have much faith in their prayers being answered. I don’t have time today to pursue that course. It will have to wait another time. But remember, even though they may doubt their own prayer’s effectiveness on your behalf, your brothers and sisters in Christ are concerned about you. We all know, that except for the grace of God, we could be facing the same trials that you are facing at any moment. The fact is, all of us are facing our own prison right now! The devil is doing his best to keep you bound and gagged. He wants you to feed on nothing but bread and water, and to keep you separated from other Christians and he is planning to execute you as quickly as he can.
Your prison may not be one of stone, bricks, iron bars and chains, but your prison is just as real! Your prison is a prison of sickness, of doubt, of frustration, of fear. Your prison keeps you separated from God’s people, maybe because you can’t seem to get to church or go have time to be in God’s house. Or maybe you are here, and you still can’t seem to fit in or connect with what’s going on. Satan has you so bound up that you can’t seem to move at all and you can even sense the presence of demonic powers in the midst of your prison. You aren’t possessed because you can’t be, but you are oppressed and you can’t seem to break free! Your in your prison, all bound up, hemmed in by the powers of hell, and it just seems to be the darkest hour of your life.
Now is the time to do what Peter did! Do you know what he did? The Bible doesn’t say that he sang praises like Paul and Silas in the midnight hour. The Bible doesn’t say that he rebuked his guards and jailor in the name of the Lord and commanded the demons to leave. The Bible doesn’t say that he prayed all night long for deliverance. The Bible doesn’t say that he became a militant Christian using the power of the Holy Ghost like a sword to attack the injustice of the world! NO – Peter didn’t do any of these things that we think we have to do! What did Peter do? HE WENT TO SLEEP!
Peter went to sleep! Can you imagine that? Here he was bound in chains, in a cold damp cell in the deepest dungeon, guarded by 16 of the roughest, toughest, hardnosed veteran Roman soldiers that Rome could produce and all of them were well-armed and hoping that Peter would give them an excuse to beat him. He was facing certain death in a few hours. He was probably hungry and cold and without any money to buy his way out. But Peter went to sleep!
I don’t know about you but I am impressed by Peter’s ability to sleep at a time like this. What that says to me is that Peter had perfect peace in his heart and mind! He knew that God was in control. He knew that no matter what happened to him it was worth it just to have served the Lord. He had fought back once and denied Christ three times and he would not allow that to happen again. He had learned the secret of peace in God! He had learned to be content in Christ no matter where he was or what his circumstances were.
That’s the kind of peace that only Jesus can give. Peter doesn’t seem to be as concerned about his condition as the rest of the church was. They were up all night praying while Peter slept in prison. He just rested in God’s care!
John 16:33, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
Peter knew in whom He had placed his trust. Peter knew that God would not let him down. He was going to be delivered, either by getting out of prison, or by going on to Glory to be with his Lord. And God was already at work to honor Peter’s faith.
Acts 12:7-10, “And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.”
Wow! What a dream! Peter thought he was dreaming. In his dream he was awakened by a bright, glorious light, like he hadn’t seen since Jesus ascended into Heaven. An angel appeared in that light and poked him in the side and told him to get up, get on your shoes, and his coat and get ready to go. In his dream, Peter did what he was told and followed the angel. They walked past those 16 Roman soldiers and the soldier never saw them. They seemed to be frozen in time, unable to move and blind. Then they passed the jailors and the same thing happened. Man, what a dream! There must have something in that bread and water I had. Finally they walked up to the gate and it opened up like the doors to Walmart. Down the street they went, with no one chasing them. Man, what a dream! If only it could be true! Pinch me God, so I’ll know it’s only a dream.
I serve a powerful God! His ways are far above my understanding! He is able to perform things that are impossible to me. With Him all things are possible! 2 Peter 2:9, "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished…" I believe that Peter learned this on the night he was delivered from prison and he wrote it down to pass on to anyone who would hear.
My friends, there is nothing too hard for God. You might feel hemmed in right now, but get ready, your deliverance is already planned, the angel has been dispatched, and in God’s time and manner, you will be set free. Rest in the calm assurance that God is in control. Rest in the peace that comes only from knowing that your Redeemer lives and that He has already purchased your salvation. Rest in the knowledge that by His stripes you are already healed. Rest in knowing that Jesus will never leave you nor forsake you! Just learn to rest in Him!
Acts 12:11, “And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.”
God “pinched” Peter and woke him up. Then Peter realized, “It wasn’t a dream! It was real! Praise God, somehow, some way, I can’t understand how He did it, but He did! I’m free! I’m free! I’m free!”
Can’t you just feel the excitement with Peter? Can’t you just imagine how much he felt like running and leaping for joy and shouting praises?
When the trial is over and your spirit is set free from the oppression of the devil, oh how wonderful that feels! Have you ever known that feeling of freedom? Have you ever felt the elation of that moment in time when all the burdens of sin, the sickness that held you for so long, or the pressures of life have finally come to an end?
John 8:36, "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."
Are you bound up this morning? Do you feel hemmed in by the devil? Are you ready for a deliverance?
The same God that delivered Peter, and the same God that delivered Daniel from the Lion’s Den, and the same God that delivered Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego from the fiery furnace, the same God that Delivered Israel out of Egypt, and the same God that delivered Paul and Silas from prison, is the same God that will deliver you today!
God is a Deliverer! He will do it again! And, He will do it for you! The devil may think he’s won, you might even wonder if it will ever be true – but God won’t let you down. The world may think you are finished – But God – But God – But God has the last word.
