Give God the Glory
Lessons from the 1st Century Church | A Study through the Book of Acts • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 5 viewsHerod, in anger and opposition to the church, asserted himself into a place of honor and received glory that was not his to receive causing judgment fall upon him.
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Introduction |
We were left with a cliff hanger last week. James was dead. Peter had a divine jail break. God was being praised, but what about those prison guards? What about Herod? Were they going free? Was Harod going to go unpunished for the terror he was bring the disciples of the Lord? Within our text this morning we find that God is to be given all the glory. We find that God will not share His glory. We find that God will judge the ungodly and preserve the righteous. We find that we are to give God the glory!
Opening Passage | Acts 12:18-19
18 Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter. 19 When Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there.
Focus Passage | Acts 12:18-25
Outline |
A change of position (vv. 18-19)
Peter went from facing death to experiencing life
Within our last message, we found that Peter was beside himself as he was release from prison through a divine break through. He did not know whether it was a dream or not until the very end. In the end, he stood outside the home of Rhoda and knocked, knocked, knocked until they would let him in. Peter stood free. He went from facing death to facing life. He was giving God all the glory. Peter later writes…
12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against evildoers.”
How true this is. God hears the prayers of the saints. He protects/avenges His own. He is sovereign. He alone is the reason that we can wait and rest in seasons of deep prayer and dire circumstances. While Peter from facing death to experiencing life...
The guards went from experiencing life to facing death
Those guards stood outside the prison the night before without issue knowing that Peter was tight and had no way out, so they thought. Why would they think different? Peter had two chains holding him down. He had two guards in the prison with him and four guards outside of the cell. He was secure in his prison. We’ve all probably found ourselves locked up in our own prisons through doubt, self defeat, addiction, etc. May we learn the truth that Peter found that day: Peter had God on his side. Remember, God is for you and not against you. If God is for you, then who can be against you.
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
As God was on Peter’s side, He is on your side today. The enemy wishes to do nothing but destroy you. He wishes to destroy you through doubt, fear, self doubt, addiction, but we must trust the Lord. We must rest in the Lord. We must know that God will judge our case. We do not have to defend ourselves, for God has the battle won. He will judge the enemy for us.
12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against evildoers.”
The righteous is rescued from trouble, But the wicked takes his place.
These guards went from experiencing life to facing death, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution.
Misplaced Glory (vv. 20-23)
20 Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and with one mind they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because their country was supported with grain from the king’s country. 21 On an appointed day, after putting on his royal apparel, Herod took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. 22 The people repeatedly cried out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
The enemy does not care - ‘…Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon…’
Herod had played the Jews of Tyre and Sidon long enough and now he was going to show his true colors. His grandpa, Herod the Great, was a murder. His uncle, Herod Antipas I, was a murder. He was a murder. He truly is a vivid picture of the enemy. He is deceptive and will play your like a fiddle if you let him. When the opportune time comes, or his plan fails, all that is left is his true character, anger and rage, he was very angry. He will lure you in with all kinds of lies (money, power, popularity, beauty), but in the end the only result that will come is death. As Jesus told his disciples about the enemy…
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly.
Let us not fall for the tricks of the enemy. Snap out of the deception that he has drawn you in with and experience the truth life that the Lord wants you to have. Understand that we are called to be watchful and alert. We are to be on guard at all times because the enemy is always lurking around the corner to destroy you. Peter, knowing this from first hand experiences, writes…
8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
What are you willing to sacrifice for this world
The Jewish people of Tyre and Sidon had become so dependent upon Herod, their country was supported with grain from the king’s country, they were willing to do whatever was needed to garner his approval. They even decided to try to manipulate him and make a deal with him, and with one mind, they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace. To find what they were looking for, they were willing to make a deal with the devil. They were willing to put themselves into bondage, thinking he would bring them peace and were finding bondage. Many of us do this still today. We think we’ll find peace in drugs, alcohol, gambling, adulteress affairs, immoral relationships and the list goes on and on. What are you willing to sacrifice for the this world. How many of us are going to gain the whole world and lose our own soul? Is it really worth it. Jesus states…
26 For what good will it do a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul? Or what will a person give in exchange for his soul?
The enemy will accept any glory given. You give him an inch and he will take a mile.
As we look at society as a whole, we find…
Man has become a god unto himself
25 For they exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Man lives for the physical and ignores the spiritual
15 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 17 The world is passing away and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God continues to live forever.
Man lives by force and flattery instead of faith and truth
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.
God will not share His glory
The enemy will accept all the glory that we given him and bask in it while you and I grovel in our prison despair, depression, and fear. As we read in vv. 22-23...
22 The people repeatedly cried out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
8 “I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to idols.
11 “For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And I will not give My glory to another.
What Herod finds out is what we all need to know and understand, God will not share His glory. He will not be mocked. He will judge the enemy. As Paul writes to the churches of Galatia...
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, this he will also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will reap destruction from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.
Herod reaped what he had sown that day, just as the enemy will always to and if we are not careful, will reap ourselves.
23 And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.
God’s judgment is not always immediate. It was not this day either. The historian Josephus states that it would take five days of tremendous suffering and anguish before Herod would die. Five long days. Peter was in prison for about that same amount of time. God is just and righteous. God is sovereign. God will not be mocked. Give God the glory.
The Truth Marches Forward (vv. 24-25)
But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned when they had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark.
The truth marched forward without political clout or deep pockets - ‘…But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied…’
The truth marched forward despite the persecution of the enemy
Luke’s progress report of the church and growth of the gospel through
The word of God kept spreading (Acts 6:7)
The church throughout Judea…enjoyed peace…was being built up…continued in fear of the Lord…comfort of the Holy Spirit…it kept increasing (Acts 9:31)
The church kept increasing in strength and number daily (Acts 16:5)
The word of God was growing and prevailing mightily (Acts 19:20)
The preaching of God’s kingdom and the Gospel of Christ was unhindered and open (Acts 28:31)
Brothers and sisters we are on the winning team. Let us not lose faith but remain faithful.
The saints of God remained faithful to their mission of sharing the truth of God (v. 25)
Conclusion |
What are you living for today? What are you allowing yourself to be imprisoned by? Are you guilty of making a deal with the devil in your attempt to find peace?
God is the only source of peace. It is not in drugs. It is not in alcohol. It is not in wealth or popularity. It is found in Christ alone. Do you know the Lord? Do you know His peace?