Acts - 16

Acts - 16

Acts 5:33-42

Introduction

Have you ever known someone who has a “short fuse?” They are like a fire cracker…it’s a short distance from lighting to explosion. You said something, you did something, you looked at them the wrong way, and the simmer that was always there just under the surface boils over in a flash. Maybe it was a parent you were continually a victim of…or a sibling you had to endure…or a boss you could never seem to please. Regardless of who it is, you know you better tread lightly or risk incineration.

In Acts 5, the Apostles are standing in front of a group of Jewish leaders, known as the Sanhedrin, the Senate of ancient Israel. The Sanhedrin has been simmering for awhile, and now they are going to boil over.

After Jesus rose from the dead, He spent 40 days with His early disciples teaching them and discipling them. In Acts 1, Jesus ascends into Heaven where He now sits at the right hand of God, ruling and reigning over all His creation. In Acts 2, He sends the Holy Spirit onto those early Christians on the Day of Pentecost. An incredible miracle occurs as they speak to the crowds in languages they do not know so that the truth of the Gospel, the glorious news of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done, can go to the nations.

As a crowd gathers to witness this miracle, the Apostle Peter preaches the first Gospel sermon based on the work of Jesus to forgive sinners like us. 3,000 people respond and are baptized into Christ that day. The Church explodes into existence and experiences meteoric growth as more and more people place their faith in Jesus.

In Acts 3, the Apostles Peter and John are headed into the Temple in Jerusalem. Sitting by a busy entrance gate is a man who had been lame from birth. He’s been begging at this gate for over 40 years, relying solely upon other people’s generosity to live another day. Peter locks eyes with him and the man thinks he’s about to score a donation. Peter tells him, I don’t have any silver or gold, but what I do have, I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk.

As Peter helps the man up, Jesus miraculously heals him. He goes off leaping and praising God. This obviously draws another crowd as they have known this man as the beggar by the gate for the last 40 years. Peter preaches again to the listening crowd, telling them that just as Jesus Christ rose from the dead, He can now offer to you the hope of eternal life.

The Sanhedrin, populated mostly by Sadducees (a Jewish political party that was theologically liberal, denied most of the Bible, and did not believe in the resurrection) arrested Peter and John for an inquisition.

Standing in front of the Sanhedrin, the most powerful group of men in the nation, Peter fearlessly accuses them of killing Jesus (which they certainly had done) and preaches the resurrection of Jesus to them as well. The fuse is now lit.

They order the Apostles to immediately cease preaching in the name of Jesus. They further threaten them and send them on their way. The response of the Apostles is simple…they totally ignore the orders. They continue to preach and the Church continues to grow.

By the time we get to Acts 5, several weeks have gone by as more and more lives are being changed. People are being healed. Countless people, more than ever before, are placing their faith in the risen Lord Jesus Christ. The Sanhedrin has had enough. They’ve been in the background, simmering this entire time. So now they arrest all 12 apostles. But before they can hold their inquisition the next morning, an angel of the Lord miraculously rescues them from prison and instructs them to go back out into the temple courts to preach.

Once word gets back to the Sanhedrin that the Apostles, who are supposed to be snug as a bug in a rug in their cells are actually out preaching, they freak out. Arrest them again and now put the screws to them. Who do you think you are? We strictly ordered you to stop preaching about this Jesus. Yet here you are. You intend on blaming us for Jesus’ death. Stop this. Do what we command. Peter’s response is fantastic:

Acts 5:29-32 - 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Simple. Profound. Provocative. Peter reinforces the same message he’s been preaching the whole time and clearly declares…yeah, we don’t answer to you. I say it is provocative because it certainly provokes a response. The fuse was already lit, now it is time for the explosion. The simmering is about to boil over.

Acts 5:33 - 33 When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them.

They are ‘enraged.’ It is a word that literally translates as ‘cut to the quick.’ The short fuse was lit and then ‘boom.’ A good translation would be ‘infuriated.’ At Peter’s words, fury comes into them and explodes. Why? Peter did not say anything he hadn’t already said. He just continues to be faithful to the truth of the Gospel. Jesus was crucified, and then God raised Him from the dead, and now He offers forgiveness to sinners and eternal life to all who trust in Him.

This is the problem with insecure, theologically-liberal, Bible-deniers…they can’t handle being disagreed with. They can only respond with fury when people don’t do what they command. They want to take the Apostles and ‘put them to death.’ That phrase translates a word that means ‘execute.’ It is the same word used for what they did to Jesus in Luke 22. Just as they executed Jesus, they are now planning and plotting to do the same with His followers. But in God’s providence, there is a man on the Sanhedrin who will calm them all down and bring some reason to the madness.

Acts 5:34-39a - 34 But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. 35 And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men. 36 For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. 37 After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. 38 So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; 39 but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!”

Gamaliel the Elder was the most famous Rabbi of his day. He was a Pharisee, not a Sadducee. He is theologically conservative, believing in and following all the Scriptures. It is right that he was ‘held in honor by all the people.’ His nickname among the people was “The Beauty of the Law.” He is wise. He is the grandson of the most famous Rabbi in Jewish history, Rabbi Hillel, who had founded his own theological training school, which Gamaliel took over upon his grandfather’s death. And what we find out later in Acts 22:3 is that right now one of the students in his school is a promising young man named Saul of Tarsus. We know him as Paul the Apostle.

Gamaliel sends the Apostles out so they can have a private discussion. He warns them of rash and hasty decisions. Remember, the people are all in favor of the Christians. It would be a terrible political move to kill these men. And he offers two examples as to why they should let these men go. Theudas and Judas…two would-be false Messiahs who in previous years rose up and had a similar following. Josephus, the famed Jewish historian of the first century, wrote about both of these false Christs. And what happened to them and their movement? The men were killed and their followers dispersed. All was nothing.

On the surface, his words sound wise. He seems like the voice of reason. He comes out of this account seeming like the hero. But he is not. Why? Because his argument is predicated on the fact that they had already killed Jesus. Theudas was killed and his followers dispersed. Judas was killed and his followers dispersed. Guys, we already killed Jesus. Just give it some time and his followers will disperse too. He is not the hero of the story, he is one of the villains. He was not the lone dissenting voice at the trial of Jesus. No, he condemned Jesus to death right along with all the others.

But, he did get something right. If this is from man, it will eventually fail. If they’ve all just made this up, it will surely fail. If they are lying about Jesus, it will eventually come out. The truth always finds a way to win. If Jesus is still in his grave, just give it some time and let this play itself out. But…v. 39 - if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!

Yup. Exactly correct. And what has happened since these events in Acts 5? Did it just play itself out? Did the followers of this Jesus just disperse and the movement dissolve? Nope. Just the opposite. Even here in Acts 5 and into Acts 6, the Church continues to flourish. It’s meteoric rise has not stopped for 2,000 years.

Why? What’s the difference? Theudas was killed and his followers dispersed. Judas was killed and his followers dispersed. Jesus was killed and His followers united together and took the Gospel, the good news of Jesus, to the world. Why did their movements die, yet Jesus’ movement continues to thrive? There is one simple difference with this global movement called Christianity that sets it apart from Theudas and Judas, that sets it apart from all other forms of religion throughout history. And it is the truth the Apostles have been preaching the entire time…GOD RAISED JESUS FROM THE DEAD.

Theudas died, of course his followers dispersed. Judas died, of course his followers dispersed. Jesus died…and then God raised Him from the dead. And now, because Jesus is victorious over sin and death, He promises to all who will place their faith in Him to forgive their sins, to restore their broken relationship with the God who made them, and to grant to them the guaranteed hope of eternal life.

The resurrection changes everything. It is the one differentiating factor. It is the hinge pin of our faith. If you take out Jesus’ resurrection, the whole enterprise falls and comes to nothing. Let me show you how the Apostle Paul put it, that promising student of Gamaliel, as he wrote to a church in the city of Corinth who were, just like the Sanhedrin, denying the resurrection:

1 Corinthians 15:12-19 - 12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

You see what I mean? If the resurrection of Jesus did not happen, then it all falls apart. If Jesus is not risen:

your faith is futile. You are wasting your time believing in this Jesus. Your time at Church could be better spent sleeping in, watching sports, doing anything and everything else. If Jesus is not raised, your faith is worthless and accomplishes nothing. You are still in your sins. You’ve been living a fantasy, thinking that you are forgiven and that you can stand before God confidently because Jesus paid the penalty for your sins. But if he is not raised, that isn’t true. You are guilty of all your sins and you must bear all the eternal consequences of them. Those who died are not with God. You have stood beside the casket or next to the grave of a loved one and you have drawn comfort from your belief that this faithful, Christian family member or friend of yours is now with the Lord. But that’s false hope. If Jesus is not risen, your friends and family are not with the Lord. They are just lost, separated from God for all eternity.

Therefore, Paul is right to conclude in v. 19 - If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. If Jesus is not raised, what a sad little group we are. Who ignorantly hold on to our false beliefs, trusting in, hoping in something that is not real.

Without Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, Gamaliel is 100% correct…it’s all just going to go away. But thankfully, mercifully, just as the Apostles declared in Acts 5, Paul declares reality in the next verse. 1 Corinthians 15:20 - 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. It’s true! It’s real! God has raised Jesus from the dead. Now, your faith is not fantasy, it is fact. It is not worthless, but the most valuable thing in your life. Now, if you have trusted in Christ, your sins are indeed forgiven. You stand before God faultless. Forgiven. And now, those loved ones who have died in Christ…they are with the Lord now and forevermore.

The resurrection of Jesus makes all the difference. It certainly made the difference for the apostles. Look at their incredible response to what happens:

Acts 5:39b-42 - So they took his advice, 40 and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

They call in the Apostles, flog them (39 lashes with a 3-stranded leather whip), command them yet again to stop preaching about Jesus, and let them go. These men don’t leave ashamed. They don’t leave limping and into hiding. They leave rejoicing. They have been deemed worthy of suffering for the Name they so fearlessly preach.

This is what resurrection people do. They just keep coming back. Nothing and no one can keep resurrection people in the grave. Tertullian, the early church father, said, “Kill us, torture us, condemn us, grind us to dust…the more you mow us down, the more we grow; the seed is the blood of Christians.”

The apostles not only rejoice, they return to what the Lord called them to do. And they double-down. Now they aren’t just preaching in the temple…they are now going house to house teaching and preaching about who Jesus is and what Jesus has done. Nothing can keep resurrection people in the grave. Nothing can keep the Gospel in the grave.

ILL - James Chalmers was born in Ardrishaig, Scotland in 1851. At the age of 15 he felt God’s call to take the Gospel to cannibals, to those tribes scattered in various places around the world. So in 1877, at the age of 26, he sailed for the Cook Islands of Polynesia to join in a pioneer work to New Guinea, where he would serve Christ for the next 24 years. Only 24 years because in 1901, at the age of 60, he was murdered by those same cannibals he sought to save.

Seems like such a waste. Seems like such a failure. And it seemed that way until WW2. Some American fighter pilots were shot down by enemy forces over New Guinea. When they were finally rescued, they had become Christians. They had been led to Christ by a tribe of former cannibals who had themselves become Christians after witnessing the brutal death of an old missionary whose faith he was willing to die for.

Because of who Jesus is…the promised Christ who came to save, the Savior, the Ruler of all creation // Because of what Jesus has done…lived sinlessly so He could stand before God innocently and take the penalty for your sin upon Himself and taste death so you would never have to…He can now save you. Can now forgive you. Can now promise you eternal life. Death could not keep Jesus in the grave. Neither will it keep you in the grave. Nothing can keep resurrection people in the grave.