1 00:00:05,520 --> 00:00:09,600 My name is John Whitaker. Tucker is still preaching and 2 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:14,200 teaching in Italy. So that means it's me today. 3 00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:16,440 So we're going to be in Acts Chapter 5. 4 00:00:16,840 --> 00:00:23,560 And a week or so ago, I was sitting in my living room and my 5 00:00:23,560 --> 00:00:25,400 granddaughter Briley came up to me. 6 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:28,280 And I'm not sure what prompted it, but she came up and she 7 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:32,360 asked, Papa, can can we? Can we look at some pictures in 8 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:35,520 the photo albums? If you're not familiar with 9 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:39,600 photo albums because you're young, there are these books 10 00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:43,440 that you put like actual physical, you know, pictures in. 11 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:47,760 So I busted out some photo albums and we started flipping 12 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:51,840 through the pictures. And before we knew it, it wasn't 13 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:54,720 just Briley sitting there, but my grandson Wes crawled up in my 14 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:56,400 lap. And then a few minutes later, my 15 00:00:56,400 --> 00:00:59,240 grandson Riggan, crawled up in my lap, and I had three little 16 00:00:59,240 --> 00:01:01,680 grandkids around me. And we were looking at these old 17 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:05,920 pictures in the photo albums from when my wife and I were 18 00:01:05,920 --> 00:01:08,120 younger and when our kids were younger. 19 00:01:08,600 --> 00:01:12,320 Well, Connor, who preached last week, said I should share some 20 00:01:12,320 --> 00:01:14,520 of those pictures with you all just for fun. 21 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:18,440 So here's the first one. It's a true historical artifact 22 00:01:18,440 --> 00:01:20,240 if we can put this first picture on a screen. 23 00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:27,840 This is my wife and I on our honeymoon May of 1989. 24 00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:31,400 Now, here's what you need to understand about how amazing 25 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:33,640 this picture is. I mean, this could be the very 26 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:38,240 first selfie in the history of mankind, and it's a selfie taken 27 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:43,400 with a film camera. Now, again, if you're young, you 28 00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:46,600 don't know how hard that is 'cause you don't get to see what 29 00:01:46,600 --> 00:01:48,680 it looks like right off the bat. And you can't say I don't like 30 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:49,640 it. Let's take another one. 31 00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:54,240 You get one shot and that turned out pretty good, right. 32 00:01:55,120 --> 00:01:58,360 So that was a while back. I've been another old picture 33 00:01:59,000 --> 00:02:01,080 that I brought along here. There you go. 34 00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:08,639 There's my son and my daughter. That's actually in May, 10 years 35 00:02:08,639 --> 00:02:13,480 later of 1999. And we're in New Zealand where I 36 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:15,800 was doing some preaching and teaching that May. 37 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,600 And so we were looking through these old pictures like that in 38 00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:25,600 these photo albums. And the reason I bring that up 39 00:02:25,760 --> 00:02:29,640 is because one of the ways I think of the book of Acts is I 40 00:02:29,640 --> 00:02:34,320 think of Acts sort of like a collection of snapshots, a photo 41 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,080 album from our church family history. 42 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:41,440 These are, these are family photos, snapshots put here by 43 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:45,920 the the author of Acts, Luke himself, to remind us where we 44 00:02:45,920 --> 00:02:48,560 came from and to remind us who we are. 45 00:02:49,080 --> 00:02:52,800 And so today in Acts chapter 5, we're going to look at 2 46 00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:58,520 snapshots, and each snapshot has their own sort of message, their 47 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:02,760 own story to tell. Just like the snapshots I put up 48 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:05,480 have their own story to tell. We're going to look at 2, each 49 00:03:05,480 --> 00:03:10,320 with their own story to tell. One, the first one, is a rather 50 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:13,960 challenging story for us to look at and to think about from our 51 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:16,440 family history, but Luke included it for a reason. 52 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:18,640 And then we'll get another one that's a little bit more of an 53 00:03:18,640 --> 00:03:21,360 encouraging, uplifting sort of story. 54 00:03:21,640 --> 00:03:25,920 And when you put those two snapshots side by side, as Luke 55 00:03:25,920 --> 00:03:30,280 does for us in Acts Chapter 5, it's going to really force us. 56 00:03:30,280 --> 00:03:32,480 I think this is what Luke is doing. 57 00:03:32,480 --> 00:03:37,720 He's forcing us to reflect on a really important question for 58 00:03:37,720 --> 00:03:42,280 what it means to be the church today and throughout time. 59 00:03:42,480 --> 00:03:47,200 All right, so Acts chapter 5, we're going to work our way down 60 00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:54,040 through this whole chapter, and in order to set up the first few 61 00:03:54,040 --> 00:03:57,800 verses of chapter 5, we have to make sure we don't miss the end 62 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:00,920 of chapter 4. At the end of chapter 4, Luke 63 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:05,160 summarizes sort of what's happening in the ministry of the 64 00:04:05,160 --> 00:04:09,600 church and he tells us that the apostles are preaching, teaching 65 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:13,280 and doing incredible powerful works of miracles and all of 66 00:04:13,280 --> 00:04:14,800 that. And it's leading more and more 67 00:04:14,800 --> 00:04:17,800 people to come to faith. And as they they come to faith, 68 00:04:18,399 --> 00:04:22,480 they're being extremely generous and they're even selling bits of 69 00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:25,760 property that vacation property up in Cascade or McCall. 70 00:04:25,760 --> 00:04:28,080 They're selling that off and they're bringing the money and 71 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:30,400 they're laying it at the apostles feet so that they can 72 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:32,360 take care of anyone who has a need. 73 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:35,720 We even get introduced to one of the major players later in Acts 74 00:04:35,720 --> 00:04:39,240 here, Joseph, a Levite. We know him as Barnabas and 75 00:04:39,240 --> 00:04:41,440 he'll be a traveling companion for the apostle Paul. 76 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:43,480 He did that. He sold off a piece of property, 77 00:04:43,680 --> 00:04:45,880 brought the money and said here, take care of the needy. 78 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:48,480 That's the setup for what happens in Chapter 5. 79 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:52,960 Chapter 5, we meet 2 characters and they're seeing all this 80 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:57,480 generosity and they're seeing all these people giving money, 81 00:04:57,480 --> 00:04:59,840 selling off property. And they're probably also seeing 82 00:04:59,840 --> 00:05:03,480 some of the the applause and the appreciation and the acclaim 83 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:04,280 they're getting. Wow. 84 00:05:04,280 --> 00:05:06,720 I can't believe Barnabas was so generous. 85 00:05:06,720 --> 00:05:08,160 Wow. I can't believe that person sold 86 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:09,480 that property and brought the money. 87 00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:11,680 Wow. And they decide to do the same 88 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:15,800 thing, except with A twist. So here's what happens in Acts 89 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:19,040 chapter 5, one through 11. Now, there was a man named 90 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:24,440 Ananias with his wife Sapphira. They sold a piece of property 91 00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:28,040 and they kept back some of the money for themselves. 92 00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:32,760 That's not the problem. It's what they do with that now. 93 00:05:32,760 --> 00:05:35,920 They kept back some of the price for himself with his wife's full 94 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:38,400 knowledge. They brought a portion of it and 95 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:41,600 they laid it at the apostles feet, just as the people at the 96 00:05:41,600 --> 00:05:47,680 end of chapter 4 had been doing. But Peter said to Ananias, why 97 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:54,400 has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to 98 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:56,960 keep back some of the price of the land? 99 00:05:57,160 --> 00:05:59,400 And then we get verse 4, which makes it really clear it's not 100 00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:01,720 just keeping back some of the price, it's that they were 101 00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:04,680 dishonest about it. They kept back some of the price 102 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:07,160 of the land and said they gave 100%. 103 00:06:07,360 --> 00:06:09,400 They wanted to look good like everyone else. 104 00:06:09,400 --> 00:06:12,400 They wanted to to get the benefit of being generous and 105 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:15,680 having everyone appreciate it while at the same time being 106 00:06:15,680 --> 00:06:20,000 self-serving and self seeking. So verse 4 says while it remains 107 00:06:20,000 --> 00:06:24,080 your own own, Peter says didn't it remain your own to do what 108 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:27,160 you wanted with after it was sold wasn't under your control. 109 00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:29,960 In other words, it was your money, it was your property. 110 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:32,440 You you could have done whatever you wanted. 111 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:35,800 If you wanted to keep back some of the price of the land, great. 112 00:06:36,040 --> 00:06:39,680 Just be honest about that. We we kept 50% for ourselves, 113 00:06:39,680 --> 00:06:43,680 gave 50% to the church. No big deal after it was sold. 114 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:48,040 Wasn't it under your control? Why is it that you've conceived 115 00:06:48,040 --> 00:06:52,600 this deed in your heart? You haven't lied to men, you've 116 00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:55,000 lied to God. Why? 117 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:58,600 Because God was the one that was at work in the church through 118 00:06:58,600 --> 00:07:01,720 His Spirit inspiring these works of generosity. 119 00:07:01,960 --> 00:07:04,000 God was the one that was stirring at people's heart to 120 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:06,640 sell their land and be generous to the church. 121 00:07:06,760 --> 00:07:09,480 And now you're doing it. And you're doing it with self 122 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:11,800 seeking, self-serving motivations. 123 00:07:11,840 --> 00:07:14,640 You haven't lied to men, you've lied to God. 124 00:07:15,120 --> 00:07:21,840 And as Peter said these words, verse 5, Ananias fell down and 125 00:07:21,840 --> 00:07:25,800 died, breathed his last right there in church. 126 00:07:27,480 --> 00:07:34,360 That would be a rough Sunday morning, and great fear came 127 00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:40,000 over all who heard of it. The young men got up, covered 128 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:44,040 him up, carried him out and buried him, put him in a stone 129 00:07:44,040 --> 00:07:48,960 tomb. Now, 3 hours later, verse 7, his 130 00:07:48,960 --> 00:07:51,440 wife comes back. I don't know where she was at. 131 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:53,720 Maybe she was at the mall spending some of this newfound 132 00:07:53,720 --> 00:07:56,840 wealth. But she comes back three hours 133 00:07:56,840 --> 00:07:59,040 later, not knowing what had happened. 134 00:07:59,040 --> 00:08:00,920 So her husband's dead. They've already put him in the 135 00:08:00,920 --> 00:08:02,440 tomb. She doesn't know what's gone on 136 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:05,640 in the last few hours. She comes back and Peter 137 00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:09,640 responded to her. Tell me whether you sold the 138 00:08:09,640 --> 00:08:13,280 land for such a such a price. He wants to know if she's in on 139 00:08:13,560 --> 00:08:15,040 it. Is this the full amount? 140 00:08:16,080 --> 00:08:20,200 And she said, Oh yeah, that's the amount that we sold the land 141 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:23,560 for. And so verse 9 then Peter said 142 00:08:23,560 --> 00:08:27,960 to her, why is it that you've agreed together with your 143 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:31,360 husband to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? 144 00:08:31,520 --> 00:08:35,400 Again, it was the Spirit's work. God had moved into the church. 145 00:08:35,559 --> 00:08:38,280 He's now dwelling among them. He's the one that's inspiring 146 00:08:38,280 --> 00:08:40,799 all this generosity. Why have you agreed with your 147 00:08:40,799 --> 00:08:43,520 husband to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? 148 00:08:43,679 --> 00:08:48,800 Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at 149 00:08:48,800 --> 00:08:51,480 the door, and they will carry you out as well. 150 00:08:52,080 --> 00:08:56,080 And immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last 151 00:08:56,080 --> 00:08:57,880 as well. And the young men came in, found 152 00:08:57,880 --> 00:09:01,160 her dead, carried her out, took her to the same tomb where her 153 00:09:01,160 --> 00:09:02,920 husband was at, buried her as well. 154 00:09:03,560 --> 00:09:09,280 And great fear came upon the whole church and over all who 155 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:13,880 heard these things. Now that's the first snapshot. 156 00:09:14,200 --> 00:09:16,520 And like I said, that's a challenging story. 157 00:09:17,680 --> 00:09:20,000 This is like a snapshot you don't normally put in your 158 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:24,760 family photo album, right? But Luke put it here because 159 00:09:24,760 --> 00:09:26,960 he's not trying to whitewash the story. 160 00:09:27,200 --> 00:09:29,320 He's not trying to make the church look better and say it 161 00:09:29,320 --> 00:09:32,200 was all perfect. Even from the beginning, there 162 00:09:32,200 --> 00:09:34,400 was difficult things that happened in the church. 163 00:09:34,560 --> 00:09:39,240 And in this case, you have this couple who, who they want the 164 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:46,240 benefit of holy actions and also they want the the self benefit, 165 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:48,240 the self seeking out of it as well. 166 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:55,040 In other words, this couple, they, they are trying to mask 167 00:09:55,040 --> 00:10:01,000 over cloak over self-serving and self seeking with holy behavior. 168 00:10:02,360 --> 00:10:08,240 And the church is brand new. We're six months, maybe Max a 169 00:10:08,240 --> 00:10:12,640 year into the church and God's like we, no, we're not going to 170 00:10:12,640 --> 00:10:15,120 do that. They're making a mockery of 171 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:19,760 God's work in the church, and God's like, we need to actually 172 00:10:19,760 --> 00:10:23,040 protect this thing so that it doesn't just get ruined right 173 00:10:23,040 --> 00:10:26,760 from the start. In fact, we see God doing this 174 00:10:26,760 --> 00:10:31,000 sort of thing in other places in the Scriptures as well, way back 175 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:35,080 in the Old Testament, like opening week of the Tabernacle, 176 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:38,440 the book of Leviticus, it's the tabernacle's just been built, 177 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:40,880 it's opening week of the Tabernacle. 178 00:10:41,080 --> 00:10:46,120 And Aaron's two sons, Nadab and Abaihu, they decide to go rogue 179 00:10:46,120 --> 00:10:48,400 and do their own thing with the incense offering. 180 00:10:48,400 --> 00:10:51,840 And instead of following God's instructions, so they it says in 181 00:10:51,840 --> 00:10:54,600 the Old Testament, they offer strange fire, whatever that 182 00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:57,960 means, go rogue, do their own thing, and God does the same 183 00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:00,160 thing. They die right there on the spot 184 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:02,240 in the Tabernacle. Why? 185 00:11:02,440 --> 00:11:05,680 Because it's the very beginnings, and little babies 186 00:11:05,680 --> 00:11:10,280 are way more vulnerable, right? And so God is protecting His 187 00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:12,560 Tabernacle, and in this case His church. 188 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:17,040 And Nadab and Abiah who died, and Ananias and Sapphira died. 189 00:11:17,640 --> 00:11:20,920 And what's the refrain in five one through 11? 190 00:11:20,920 --> 00:11:25,600 Did you hear it? Great fear came upon all those 191 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:30,120 who heard these things. Great fear came upon the church. 192 00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:35,040 Luke has included the snapshot to teach us a lesson about 193 00:11:35,040 --> 00:11:41,200 fearing the Lord, the God, that if the holy King, the high King 194 00:11:41,200 --> 00:11:44,400 of heaven, has moved in among his people, that he is to be 195 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:50,320 treated with the utmost respect. You don't just trifle with God. 196 00:11:50,560 --> 00:11:56,520 You don't just mock God's work. God is somebody to be treated 197 00:11:56,520 --> 00:12:01,760 with the utmost respect. That's what the snapshot is here 198 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:04,080 for. Whenever I read this, I always 199 00:12:04,080 --> 00:12:07,960 think about that famous scene in The Lion, the Witch and the 200 00:12:07,960 --> 00:12:12,840 Wardrobe by CS Lewis where the Pavenci children have entered 201 00:12:12,840 --> 00:12:15,920 into Narnia and they have met with the Beavers and the Beavers 202 00:12:15,920 --> 00:12:18,000 are going to go take them to see Aslan. 203 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:20,360 Aslan as the Christ figure in the book. 204 00:12:20,720 --> 00:12:25,840 And they learn from the Beavers that Aslan is a he's a lion. 205 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:28,160 He's a lion. And all of a sudden they get a 206 00:12:28,160 --> 00:12:31,640 little scared. A lion, really a lion. 207 00:12:31,800 --> 00:12:34,960 And this is what Mr. Beaver says to the Provinci children, if we 208 00:12:34,960 --> 00:12:37,680 can put this quote up on screen. Safe. 209 00:12:38,520 --> 00:12:43,200 Who said anything about Safe? Course he isn't safe, but he's 210 00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,840 the king. He's good, I tell you. 211 00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:50,800 Now, we need to make sure we hear that the way CS Lewis meant 212 00:12:50,800 --> 00:12:52,560 it. We live in a time and place 213 00:12:52,560 --> 00:12:55,400 where we talk about safe people and safe places. 214 00:12:55,400 --> 00:12:58,000 But CS Lewis wrote this long before that phrase was ever 215 00:12:58,000 --> 00:12:59,800 used, and he's not referencing that. 216 00:12:59,800 --> 00:13:04,520 What he's trying to say is as land is large and powerful and 217 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:08,200 majestic and mighty, and he deserves to be treated with 218 00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:12,600 honor and respect. And it's the same that's true of 219 00:13:12,920 --> 00:13:16,280 the Spirit of Christ who's now come to live among his people, 220 00:13:16,360 --> 00:13:18,960 live in US and among us and is at work within us. 221 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:22,880 And the whole reason Ananias and Sapphira met the faith they did 222 00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:26,640 is because they're they're making a mockery of God and his 223 00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:28,680 work. They lied to the Holy Spirit, 224 00:13:29,080 --> 00:13:33,320 they're testing the Lord God, and they're mocking his work. 225 00:13:33,920 --> 00:13:39,400 If the High King of Heaven, the Holy King himself is at work 226 00:13:39,400 --> 00:13:43,120 within us, if he's moved in among us, and he's the one 227 00:13:43,240 --> 00:13:48,080 stirring up our lives to do good works, if that's true, then 228 00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:55,480 purity and holiness and absolute loyalty is our highest priority. 229 00:13:56,720 --> 00:13:58,320 That's why this snapshot is here. 230 00:13:58,520 --> 00:14:02,920 That's snapshot number one. God deserves to be honored and 231 00:14:02,920 --> 00:14:06,120 treated with the utmost respect. And the best way we can do that 232 00:14:06,240 --> 00:14:09,960 is with lives of holy obedience and loyalty. 233 00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:15,920 Now snapshot #2 picks up a little bit later after telling 234 00:14:15,920 --> 00:14:19,000 about Ananias and Sapphira. What Luke does is he gives 235 00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:22,360 another little summary of all these miracles being take taken 236 00:14:22,360 --> 00:14:25,680 place by the hands of the apostles and people coming to 237 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:29,680 faith in Jesus in droves. And then all of a sudden in that 238 00:14:29,680 --> 00:14:33,760 context, here's what happens because so many people are 239 00:14:33,760 --> 00:14:37,480 coming to faith in Jesus. Verse 17 says, now the high 240 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:41,080 priest, that's the Jewish high priest who's in charge of the 241 00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:45,400 temple in Jerusalem, and all these people in Jerusalem and in 242 00:14:45,400 --> 00:14:47,880 the temple are hearing about Jesus and putting their faith in 243 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:50,920 Jesus. So the high priest rose up along 244 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:53,120 with his associates. That's the other priest. 245 00:14:53,360 --> 00:14:55,320 And Luke tells us they're Sadducees. 246 00:14:55,320 --> 00:14:58,360 That's one particular group of Jews sect among the Jews. 247 00:14:58,680 --> 00:15:02,320 They were the wealthy priest who ran the temple and had power 248 00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:05,520 over the temple. So these guys rise up and 249 00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:09,280 they're filled with jealousy. These ordinary apostles are 250 00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:12,960 preaching Jesus as the king, the Messiah, and everyone's 251 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:15,760 believing them, and they feel like their power base is being 252 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:17,760 undermined by the preaching of Jesus. 253 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:20,040 So they're jealous. Verse 18. 254 00:15:20,160 --> 00:15:23,880 So they laid hands on the apostles and they put them in 255 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:27,640 jail. And then what Luke does is 256 00:15:27,680 --> 00:15:30,840 telling the story is it's actually quite humorous. 257 00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:33,920 It seems like these guys who are supposed to be in charge of the 258 00:15:33,920 --> 00:15:37,720 temple have lost all power to control and stop the message 259 00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:39,200 about Jesus. So look what happens. 260 00:15:39,480 --> 00:15:41,440 The apostles are in jail. Verse 19. 261 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:47,480 Now during the night, an Angel comes and breaks the apostles 262 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:50,880 out of jail, an angelic jailbreak. 263 00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:53,600 It's not the last one we'll see in the book of Acts either. 264 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:55,280 We'll see another one in chapter 12. 265 00:15:57,040 --> 00:15:59,320 During the night, an Angel of the Lord opened the gates of the 266 00:15:59,320 --> 00:16:02,080 prisons, led the apostles out, and then says this to them. 267 00:16:02,080 --> 00:16:06,480 Verse 20, go stand and speak to the people in the temple. 268 00:16:06,520 --> 00:16:09,080 The whole message of this life. Here's the guys who are in 269 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:12,000 charge of the temple trying to stop the preaching of Jesus in 270 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:14,440 the temple and in Jerusalem. The Angel breaks him out. 271 00:16:14,440 --> 00:16:17,240 Jail says go first thing in the morning, keep on preaching. 272 00:16:18,640 --> 00:16:21,360 So guess what they did upon hearing this, verse 21? 273 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:24,480 They obeyed. Verse 21 says they entered into 274 00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:26,880 the temple at Daybreak and they began to teach. 275 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:32,120 Now morning shows up. The authority figures have no 276 00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:33,960 idea that an Angel broke them out of jail. 277 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:37,000 They don't even have any idea at this point that they're in the 278 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:40,400 temple preaching, because they seem completely helpless to stop 279 00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:43,640 this thing. And so they gather together. 280 00:16:44,440 --> 00:16:47,240 So when the high priest and his associates came, they called in 281 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:49,440 the whole council. This is the Supreme Court of the 282 00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:51,760 Jews. They gather the entire Supreme 283 00:16:51,760 --> 00:16:54,840 Court of the Jews together, even all the Senate of the Sons of 284 00:16:54,840 --> 00:16:57,920 Israel, and then sent orders to the prison, go fetch those guys, 285 00:16:57,920 --> 00:16:59,520 bring them here because we want to have a trial. 286 00:17:00,360 --> 00:17:04,680 But they're not there. So the officers came, didn't 287 00:17:04,680 --> 00:17:08,599 find the apostles in prison, returned and reported back, 288 00:17:08,599 --> 00:17:12,960 verse 23 saying we found the prison door securely locked. 289 00:17:13,560 --> 00:17:16,079 We found the guards standing in front of the doors. 290 00:17:16,400 --> 00:17:19,240 We open the doors, but no one was there. 291 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:22,200 I mean, like, I don't know how the Angel did. 292 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:24,160 I would have loved to seen the video of how the Angel broke 293 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:26,400 these guys out of jail. But however he did it, it was 294 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:28,960 like, these are not the apostles you're looking for, right? 295 00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:34,240 Somehow he got them out without the guards ever knowing and 296 00:17:34,640 --> 00:17:37,280 they're not there. Now it gets even better than 297 00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:39,240 this. While they're getting this 298 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:42,200 report and wondering what in the world has happened to the 299 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:46,560 apostles, Verse 25, someone comes into the council chambers 300 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:49,600 and reported to them. Guys, the men you put in jail 301 00:17:49,600 --> 00:17:52,360 yesterday, they're in the temple teaching and preaching. 302 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:57,600 Well, at that point they're like, OK, that's not what we had 303 00:17:57,600 --> 00:18:01,200 in mind. So verse 26, the captain of the 304 00:18:01,200 --> 00:18:03,920 temple guard along with some police officers, this is like 305 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:08,120 the temple security team. They proceeded out into the 306 00:18:08,120 --> 00:18:11,680 temple to bring the apostles back without violence because 307 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:15,480 they were afraid of the people. So they, they, they got to do it 308 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:18,760 kind of real subtly, not be too over the top. 309 00:18:18,760 --> 00:18:19,720 Why? Because they don't, they don't 310 00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:22,480 want the people to turn on them and attack them, so they bring 311 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:25,560 them back. Verse 27, when they brought them 312 00:18:25,560 --> 00:18:28,440 in, they stand them in the council chambers. 313 00:18:28,440 --> 00:18:30,360 So here's the entire Supreme Court. 314 00:18:30,360 --> 00:18:33,480 They meet in this semicircle and they're in their semicircle, and 315 00:18:33,480 --> 00:18:37,640 here comes the 12 apostles. These guys that, you know, not 316 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:41,160 long before were just fishermen and tax collectors and ordinary 317 00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:44,440 people that have been transformed by the message of 318 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:46,120 Jesus. They're standing before the 319 00:18:46,120 --> 00:18:48,520 Supreme Court. And the high priest questioned 320 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:54,520 them saying, verse 28, we gave you strict orders not to 321 00:18:54,920 --> 00:18:59,360 continue teaching this name, and yet you fill Jerusalem with your 322 00:18:59,360 --> 00:19:01,800 teaching. Now, last week when Connor 323 00:19:01,800 --> 00:19:04,560 preached, he talked about how Peter and John were brought 324 00:19:04,560 --> 00:19:07,760 before the council, right? And in that case, they just 325 00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:09,520 threatened them. And what they did was they 326 00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:12,720 issued an official court order, no more teaching or preaching 327 00:19:12,720 --> 00:19:14,800 Jesus. So now they've got like some 328 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:18,000 legal teeth to, you know, to deal with the apostles, right? 329 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:20,600 Because they violated an official court order by teaching 330 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:23,160 and preaching. So we gave you official orders 331 00:19:23,360 --> 00:19:26,720 and yet you keep doing it. You keep teaching in this man's 332 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:29,240 and not only that, he says and you intend to bring this man's 333 00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:32,960 blood upon us, which I always find a little ironic because 334 00:19:32,960 --> 00:19:36,800 back at the trial of Jesus, they said let this man's blood be 335 00:19:36,800 --> 00:19:39,360 upon us and our children. But now they want to distance 336 00:19:39,360 --> 00:19:40,840 themselves from things are getting out of hand. 337 00:19:41,120 --> 00:19:43,320 There clearly seems to be some spiritual power going on. 338 00:19:43,360 --> 00:19:51,280 It's not our fault he's dead. Peter replies, verse 29, this 339 00:19:51,280 --> 00:19:54,320 famous statement and you should mark this, highlight this note 340 00:19:54,320 --> 00:19:57,920 this right, Peter replied in this moment to them, we must 341 00:19:57,920 --> 00:20:04,600 obey God rather than men. You gave us a strict order, but 342 00:20:04,600 --> 00:20:07,360 guess what? God's orders are higher than 343 00:20:07,360 --> 00:20:11,200 your orders. God deserves our allegiance more 344 00:20:11,200 --> 00:20:15,240 than you. We must obey God rather than 345 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:17,600 men. And then he preaches a little 346 00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:20,680 mini sermon. The God of our fathers 347 00:20:20,880 --> 00:20:25,720 resurrected Jesus raised him up whom you crucified. 348 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:30,280 His blood is on your hands. You crucified Him whom you put 349 00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:34,680 to death on a cross. He is the one whom God not only 350 00:20:34,680 --> 00:20:39,880 raised up, but exalted to His right hand as Prince and Savior. 351 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:43,240 He is God's right hand man seated in the heavens, Messiah 352 00:20:43,240 --> 00:20:47,200 ruler over all to grant repentance to Israel and 353 00:20:47,200 --> 00:20:50,840 forgiveness of sins. And, and the apostles saying, 354 00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:52,280 and we're witnesses of these things. 355 00:20:52,280 --> 00:20:54,960 That's our job. Our job is to tell people about 356 00:20:55,040 --> 00:20:57,920 Jesus and the resurrection. We're witnesses of these things. 357 00:20:58,080 --> 00:21:01,760 And then he says, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given 358 00:21:01,760 --> 00:21:04,800 to those who obey him. Remember who Peter's talking to 359 00:21:04,800 --> 00:21:07,840 and the apostles are talking to the people who run the temple. 360 00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:11,160 And what did Peter just say? God gives the Spirit to people 361 00:21:11,160 --> 00:21:13,600 who obey him. Since we have it and you don't, 362 00:21:14,720 --> 00:21:17,120 what does that say about you? Maybe you're on the outs with 363 00:21:17,120 --> 00:21:20,920 God right now. When they heard this, 364 00:21:21,040 --> 00:21:26,160 understandably, since, you know, Peter just accused them of 365 00:21:26,160 --> 00:21:28,640 killing the Messiah, when they heard this, they were cut to the 366 00:21:28,640 --> 00:21:30,320 quick. In our language, we would say 367 00:21:30,320 --> 00:21:33,520 they were pissed off, they were ticked off, right? 368 00:21:34,120 --> 00:21:39,520 And they intended to kill them. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a 369 00:21:39,520 --> 00:21:42,600 teacher of the law, respected by all the people, This is not 370 00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:45,920 just, this is not just any rabbi or any Pharisee. 371 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:50,240 This is Gamaliel the Elder. This is Gamaliel number 1. 372 00:21:50,360 --> 00:21:53,920 He, he was one of the greatest rabbis of the 1st century. 373 00:21:54,680 --> 00:21:57,600 In fact, when he died, the reports went out through 374 00:21:57,600 --> 00:22:03,120 Jerusalem that the glory of the law has departed, that, you 375 00:22:03,120 --> 00:22:06,480 know, honor for God's teaching died with Gamaliel. 376 00:22:06,480 --> 00:22:08,760 He was that highly held in respect. 377 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:11,400 He was the apostle Paul's rabbi and teacher as well. 378 00:22:12,280 --> 00:22:15,920 He stands up in the middle of the council and gives orders to 379 00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:17,840 put the apostles out for a little bit. 380 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:23,320 And then he says in verse 36, I, I suggest that you take care 381 00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:27,240 what you do with these men. For some time ago a man named 382 00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:31,160 Thudus rose up claiming to be somebody important, and a group 383 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:33,920 of about 400 people join him. He was killed. 384 00:22:33,920 --> 00:22:37,640 All who followed were dispersed, came to nothing, right? 385 00:22:37,680 --> 00:22:40,640 And then he says there was another one, a guy named Judas 386 00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:42,640 from Galilee. He rose up in days of the 387 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:44,760 census. He drew some people after him, 388 00:22:44,760 --> 00:22:46,640 gathered some followers. He too perished. 389 00:22:46,760 --> 00:22:49,160 And all those who followed him were scattered. 390 00:22:49,400 --> 00:22:53,400 Fact, in the decades around Jesus's life, there were, there 391 00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:57,520 were numerous claims to be messiahs, numerous revolts 392 00:22:57,520 --> 00:23:01,080 against the Romans. Gamaliel highlights 2 of those 393 00:23:01,080 --> 00:23:02,840 and basically says, and guess what? 394 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:04,840 They've all kind of petered out and come to nothing. 395 00:23:05,280 --> 00:23:08,840 And then Gamaliel says this verse 38, he says, So in the 396 00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:14,800 present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and leave 397 00:23:14,800 --> 00:23:16,800 them alone. Why? 398 00:23:17,240 --> 00:23:21,240 Because if this action or plan is from men, it'll be 399 00:23:21,240 --> 00:23:24,600 overthrown. But if it's from God, you won't 400 00:23:24,600 --> 00:23:29,880 be able to overthrow them. Now his advice is good advice, 401 00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:32,800 but it's only partially true. We know of plenty things that 402 00:23:32,800 --> 00:23:35,040 are of men that have stuck around for a long time. 403 00:23:35,560 --> 00:23:38,920 Other false religions and other ideas that acclaim divine 404 00:23:38,960 --> 00:23:41,720 sponsorship, Buddhism, Hinduism, right? 405 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:45,120 All sorts of false ideas that have been around for a long 406 00:23:45,120 --> 00:23:48,240 time, but have, and they're purely from men and they've 407 00:23:48,240 --> 00:23:50,440 stuck around. But the second-half, totally 408 00:23:50,440 --> 00:23:53,600 true. If it's from God, you won't be 409 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:56,960 able to stop it. If it's from God, you won't be 410 00:23:56,960 --> 00:23:59,360 able to overthrow it. Completely true, right? 411 00:23:59,920 --> 00:24:02,960 So that's his advice. In fact, he says, in fact, if 412 00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:05,600 you continue down this course, you might even find yourself 413 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:10,560 fighting against God. Like if this really is from God, 414 00:24:10,600 --> 00:24:13,600 and if God really is here and God really is working through 415 00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:17,520 them, then you might even find yourself not only disobeying 416 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:21,160 God, but opposing God, fighting against God. 417 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:23,920 Well, his advice made sense. So verse 40, they took his 418 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:28,040 advice after calling the apostles back in, they flogged 419 00:24:28,040 --> 00:24:29,920 them. That is, they whipped them. 420 00:24:30,480 --> 00:24:33,600 By Jewish law, you could whip somebody up to 40 times. 421 00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,320 Frequently they just did 39 in case they miscounted so they 422 00:24:36,320 --> 00:24:39,920 wouldn't break the law, right? So they whipped them, flogged 423 00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:42,840 them and ordered them again. Don't speak in the name of 424 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:49,080 Jesus, and they let them go. So the apostles, verse 41, you 425 00:24:49,080 --> 00:24:53,600 got to hear what what's said. This is so powerful. 426 00:24:53,720 --> 00:24:56,600 So the apostles went on their way from the presence of the 427 00:24:56,600 --> 00:25:03,680 council, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer 428 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:08,360 shame for the name of Jesus. They just got whipped. 429 00:25:09,240 --> 00:25:13,320 They they just got beaten and ordered again. 430 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:16,760 And they they go back home rejoicing. 431 00:25:16,760 --> 00:25:19,160 Why? Because we got to be treated 432 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:23,920 with disgrace for the name of Jesus, we got to be dishonored 433 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:26,760 for the name of Jesus. Jesus who suffered the ultimate 434 00:25:26,760 --> 00:25:30,400 disgrace of crucifixion for us. Well, we got to suffer a little 435 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,280 taste of disgrace and dishonor for him. 436 00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:37,760 And so they go home rejoicing because they've been counted 437 00:25:37,760 --> 00:25:39,880 worthy to suffer shame for his name. 438 00:25:40,080 --> 00:25:44,280 And then the story ends by saying, and every day in the 439 00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:49,520 temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching and 440 00:25:49,520 --> 00:25:53,600 preaching the name of Jesus. Like, it didn't matter how many 441 00:25:53,600 --> 00:25:55,720 orders, It didn't matter that they had been whipped. 442 00:25:55,720 --> 00:25:57,600 It didn't matter that they told them not to do it. 443 00:25:57,800 --> 00:26:00,080 They're like, we got to obey God rather than you. 444 00:26:00,080 --> 00:26:03,160 So sorry, we're going to keep preaching and teaching Jesus. 445 00:26:03,200 --> 00:26:07,400 And they just kept doing it. And the leaders in Jerusalem 446 00:26:07,680 --> 00:26:12,040 helpless to stop it no matter what they did. 447 00:26:12,880 --> 00:26:18,560 And so in this snapshot, what we have is this real, major message 448 00:26:18,840 --> 00:26:23,960 that men can't stop God's work. If the high King of heaven is 449 00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:26,840 moved in among his people, and if he's the one that's working 450 00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:31,160 through US and in US, if he's the one empowering us to teach 451 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:33,720 and preach the name of Jesus, then it doesn't matter what 452 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:36,600 people do and how much opposition they give and how 453 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:40,960 much they mock it on social media or in the halls of power, 454 00:26:40,960 --> 00:26:44,360 if they issue edicts and orders to try to stop it, men can't 455 00:26:44,360 --> 00:26:46,800 stop God's work. They can't stop it. 456 00:26:47,200 --> 00:26:49,000 They'll be fighting against God. And guess what? 457 00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:54,200 Here we are, nearly 2000 years after this event happened, and 458 00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:57,120 we're sitting here on a Sunday morning, thousands of miles 459 00:26:57,280 --> 00:27:01,040 removed from Jerusalem. Why 'cause it's true. 460 00:27:01,320 --> 00:27:04,800 If God raised Jesus from the dead and Jesus is King and Lord, 461 00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:09,000 well, men aren't going to stop his work as he promised. 462 00:27:09,080 --> 00:27:11,840 The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 463 00:27:12,400 --> 00:27:18,280 Men can't stop God's work. So snapshot #2 so you have 464 00:27:18,360 --> 00:27:20,600 snapshot number one. If the High King of Heaven is 465 00:27:20,600 --> 00:27:25,400 moved in among us, then holiness and purity and absolute loyalty, 466 00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:29,960 that is our ultimate priority. And snapshot #2 and if we're 467 00:27:29,960 --> 00:27:33,400 loyal to Jesus and we're obeying him and following him, then 468 00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:36,240 nobody can stop his work in and through us. 469 00:27:36,480 --> 00:27:40,920 And when you put those two snapshots together side by side, 470 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:45,160 like Luke has done here in Chapter 5, it forces us, I 471 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:49,600 think, to really reflect on and ask a really important question. 472 00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:54,760 And that question is this, What's the greatest threat to 473 00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:58,240 the progress and the power of the church? 474 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:03,840 What's the greatest threat to the progress and power of the 475 00:28:03,840 --> 00:28:06,560 church? In fact, if you look at that 476 00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:09,600 Ananiasis of fire story, it's like sandwiched between 477 00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:13,800 persecution, persecution, Ananias and Sapphira. 478 00:28:13,800 --> 00:28:16,480 In the middle, God didn't strike down dead the members of the 479 00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:19,520 Sanhedrin. God didn't strike down, you know 480 00:28:19,520 --> 00:28:22,680 in chapter 5, the members of the Sanhedrin, but in the middle he 481 00:28:22,680 --> 00:28:26,840 struck down two people who made a mockery of his work, even 482 00:28:26,840 --> 00:28:30,200 claiming his name and cloaking over their own greed and self 483 00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:34,000 seeking with holy acts. What's the greatest threat from 484 00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:36,120 God's vantage point to the progress of the church? 485 00:28:37,320 --> 00:28:43,280 It's not opposition from the outside, it's sin and disloyalty 486 00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:45,760 and unfaithfulness on the inside. 487 00:28:46,480 --> 00:28:51,640 That's the greatest threat to the progress of the Church, that 488 00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:55,280 that with all the opposition. And it just seems like in the 489 00:28:55,280 --> 00:28:58,240 last five or six years in our country, I've seen more people 490 00:28:59,160 --> 00:29:01,880 in the news and on social media and more Christians expressing 491 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:03,120 their concern. But they're going to come and 492 00:29:03,120 --> 00:29:04,600 take our freedom. We're not going to be allowed to 493 00:29:04,600 --> 00:29:05,320 meet. We're going to lose our 494 00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:07,360 nonprofit status. We're right there. 495 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:08,760 They're going to try to close us down. 496 00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:11,200 And we're all worried about opposition from the outside. 497 00:29:11,440 --> 00:29:14,840 What Acts chapter 5 tells us is those may be some real concerns, 498 00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:20,640 but they can't stop God's work. Opposition from the outside, in 499 00:29:20,640 --> 00:29:25,320 whatever form it comes, can't stop the resurrected king from 500 00:29:25,320 --> 00:29:28,400 getting his work done. But you know what can threaten 501 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:32,600 it? Our own laziness and disloyalty 502 00:29:32,600 --> 00:29:35,840 and disobedience and unfaithfulness and purity. 503 00:29:36,200 --> 00:29:38,280 Those of us who claim the name of Jesus. 504 00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:41,960 If we're marked by those things, that's a far greater threat to 505 00:29:41,960 --> 00:29:44,720 the work of God than what happens on the outside. 506 00:29:45,880 --> 00:29:49,360 I was fishing and a number of years ago with a friend of mine 507 00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:53,680 who had become a Christian in Communist China in a house 508 00:29:53,680 --> 00:29:56,440 church. And he he talked about his house 509 00:29:56,440 --> 00:29:59,000 church being the kind of place where 100 and 5200 people would 510 00:29:59,000 --> 00:30:02,680 gather on a Sunday morning under threat that at any moment some 511 00:30:02,920 --> 00:30:06,560 Chinese agent might infiltrate their church and they might not 512 00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:09,400 know it or might just barge in on a Sunday morning and arrest 513 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:11,520 them all. In fact, his pastor had been in 514 00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:15,240 prison multiple times, totaling up to almost 15 years in prison 515 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:19,360 by the Communist government. And I'm, I'm fishing with this 516 00:30:19,360 --> 00:30:20,880 guy. And this is what he says to me, 517 00:30:21,000 --> 00:30:25,080 startled me. He said, you know, now that I'm 518 00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:28,240 in America, it's a whole lot harder to be a Christian in 519 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:33,320 America than in China. I was struck by that. 520 00:30:33,800 --> 00:30:37,840 Like, you had real persecution. You had government opposition. 521 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:39,960 Your pastor had been in jail. It's harder to be a Christian 522 00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:42,040 here than there. Why? 523 00:30:42,600 --> 00:30:45,080 And here's what he said. He looked at me and said, well, 524 00:30:45,080 --> 00:30:50,880 because in America you have so much stuff that it's easy to be 525 00:30:50,880 --> 00:30:54,160 distracted. It's easy to go your own way. 526 00:30:54,160 --> 00:30:57,400 It's easy to show up in church and and somewhat claim 527 00:30:57,400 --> 00:31:01,080 allegiance to Jesus. But there's no real cost to it. 528 00:31:03,000 --> 00:31:05,720 There's no real cost. You can look Christian, you can 529 00:31:05,720 --> 00:31:09,560 play Christian, you can pretend to be Christian, but there's no 530 00:31:09,560 --> 00:31:14,400 real cost. In China there's a cost and 531 00:31:14,400 --> 00:31:17,280 there's not as much stuff. So you're either in or you're 532 00:31:17,280 --> 00:31:21,480 out. The church. 533 00:31:21,480 --> 00:31:26,160 Father Tertullian famously said about 150 years after the events 534 00:31:26,160 --> 00:31:30,520 of Acts 5, he said this about the opposition and the threat 535 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:34,400 and the killing of Christians. He said kill us, torture us, 536 00:31:34,520 --> 00:31:40,720 condemn us, grind us to dust. The more you mow us down, the 537 00:31:40,720 --> 00:31:46,200 more we grow The seed is the blood of Christians. 538 00:31:48,360 --> 00:31:53,000 Opposition from the outside will never stop the work of the King 539 00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:56,120 of heaven. But our laziness, our 540 00:31:56,120 --> 00:32:00,280 disobedience, our disloyalty, our unfaithfulness, now that's a 541 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:04,880 real threat to the progress and the power of the church. 542 00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:11,120 And so here's here's like, So what do we do with that? 543 00:32:12,320 --> 00:32:16,320 Here's what I would say based on what's said in Acts chapter 5. 544 00:32:16,520 --> 00:32:19,560 I would say just obey. Just obey. 545 00:32:21,200 --> 00:32:24,440 Be like Peter and the apostles. We must obey God rather than 546 00:32:24,440 --> 00:32:26,640 men. Just obey Jesus. 547 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:29,560 When you read something in scripture where Jesus says do 548 00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:31,720 this, just start doing it to the best of your ability. 549 00:32:32,040 --> 00:32:34,960 If you stumble and you fall down, pick yourself up, dust 550 00:32:34,960 --> 00:32:36,560 yourself off. Remember that Jesus is full of 551 00:32:36,560 --> 00:32:39,040 grace and mercy. Confess it and get back to 552 00:32:39,040 --> 00:32:41,760 obeying Him and just obey. And the more you obey, guess 553 00:32:41,760 --> 00:32:43,720 what? It gets easier to obey. 554 00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:46,240 So just obey. When you read something from 555 00:32:46,280 --> 00:32:49,640 Jesus, pray without ceasing. Just begin to pray more often 556 00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:52,600 and more frequently pray. When you read something from 557 00:32:52,600 --> 00:32:56,080 Jesus, like love your neighbor as yourself, just begin to do 558 00:32:56,080 --> 00:32:57,720 it. Whoever you're around, treat him 559 00:32:57,720 --> 00:32:59,640 as a neighbor and love him like Jesus tells you to. 560 00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:03,680 When Jesus says that love your enemies and pray for those who 561 00:33:03,680 --> 00:33:05,720 persecute you, Guess what? Just do it. 562 00:33:06,080 --> 00:33:08,280 Those people who don't like you, who oppose Christianity, just 563 00:33:08,280 --> 00:33:10,400 love him. Just love him like Jesus says. 564 00:33:10,560 --> 00:33:12,680 Don't worry about the outcomes. Jesus can take care of the 565 00:33:12,680 --> 00:33:14,960 outcomes. He's He's protected his church 566 00:33:14,960 --> 00:33:16,680 for 2000 years. He'll keep doing it. 567 00:33:16,960 --> 00:33:20,240 You just obey. Just obey. 568 00:33:20,240 --> 00:33:22,840 Why? Because the high King of heaven 569 00:33:22,840 --> 00:33:27,120 lives here. He's in you, He's among us, and 570 00:33:27,120 --> 00:33:33,920 he deserves the highest honor. And the best way to honor Him is 571 00:33:33,920 --> 00:33:38,360 by doing what He says. Acts chapter 5 says to you and 572 00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:43,120 me that King Jesus, this is his work, it's about him. 573 00:33:44,160 --> 00:33:47,520 And our responsibility is let's just obey him. 574 00:33:48,480 --> 00:33:49,800 Let's just obey Him. Why? 575 00:33:50,760 --> 00:33:55,360 Because men can't stop his work and sin and disloyalty on the 576 00:33:55,360 --> 00:33:57,040 inside. Well, that's a real threat. 577 00:33:57,280 --> 00:34:02,160 So let's be as loyal and holy and pure and faithful and 578 00:34:02,160 --> 00:34:06,200 obedient as we can by the power of the Spirit who lives among 579 00:34:06,200 --> 00:34:10,639 us. Jesus is the one who laid down 580 00:34:10,639 --> 00:34:14,120 his life to make this thing called church happen. 581 00:34:15,159 --> 00:34:17,080 It's not about you, it's not about me. 582 00:34:17,239 --> 00:34:20,840 It's not about how how much advantages our life or makes our 583 00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:23,040 life better. It's not about, you know, how 584 00:34:23,040 --> 00:34:25,320 good it is for us. Ultimately, ultimately, this is 585 00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:29,280 about Jesus, about his honor, about his name. 586 00:34:29,960 --> 00:34:33,719 And when we believe that, we can walk away from ridicule, 587 00:34:33,960 --> 00:34:38,320 mocking, opposition, rejoicing because we look a little bit 588 00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:41,840 like Jesus and we can be treated with shame for his name. 589 00:34:43,040 --> 00:34:47,080 So let's honor Jesus with our life and just obey. 590 00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:50,920 Just obey like Peter and the Apostles. 591 00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:55,199 Thanks for joining us today. If you would like to watch the 592 00:34:55,199 --> 00:34:57,760 full service, check out the link in the description. 593 00:34:58,040 --> 00:35:02,000 For next steps and to learn more, visit calvaryboise.com.