The Bold & The Power-filled
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He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.
“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name.
When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
But godliness with contentment is great gain,
for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.
But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.
Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,
to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,
which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.
As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,
thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.
And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried,
and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.
And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’
And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house—
for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’
But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’
And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’
He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’ ”
The Bold & The Power-filled
Big Idea: Believers are bold proclaimers of Truth
When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.
And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,
who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, “ ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’—
for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.
And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,
while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
Prayer was given upon news of what had happened to Peter and John before the council. (Healing, in the power and name of Jesus)
Prayer acknowledges that whatever had happened to them, God was sovereign over all. They saw in their persecution fulfillment of scripture. (psalm 2)
The Interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles The Prayer of the Apostles
Instead of launching words of indignation against the Sanhedrin and its unjust demands, the apostles automatically turn to God, the Omnipotent, lay the case before him, and ask him to enable them to resist those demands. A great critical moment has come: all their preaching and teaching must henceforth be done in open violation of the highest legal power and authority of their nation. They must, therefore, depend wholly upon the still higher power and authority of God.
The prayer begins with recognizing the sovereignty of God. Everything that was happening was not only known by God, but orchestrated by Him. Vs 28 “your plan had predestined to take place”
The Nations rage:
Acts Affirming God’s Sovereignty (4:24b–28)
The word translated “rage” is used in “late Greek writers, primarily of the neighing of high-fed, spirited horses.”9 William Barclay comments, “They may trample and toss their heads; in the end they will have to accept the discipline of the reins.”10 The great thrusts of evil are the work of one whose power is limited. Satan is on the loose, but he is on a leash. Moreover, these people may have great plans, but they are “in vain” (kenos). This word means “empty things.
Prayer was not a plea for relief from the persecution, but for the power to obey even in the persecution.
How can we view our present circumstances as under the sovereignty of God?
How can we not just resign ourselves, but become willing participants in these circumstances?
How can we confidently pray for power to be obedient to our Lord?
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
But what does that mean?
Full context is necessary: When Paul wrote Romans 8:28, what did he have in mind? We can know by seeing what else he wrote: That is the context
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.
Not only the human race, but all creation is eagerly longing.
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Make no mistake, Christians look at the world and all of its corruption and we groan, almost impatiently, was we wait for it to be made new. And even nonbelievers sense that there is something amiss. This world cannot be all there is. Even on our best days, we will find that things are not always just right, but something is missing. We all sense this, believer and nonbeliever alike. The difference is that the believer knows and has hope for the time when it will be made new.
For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?
But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Now, just a note on this passage. I was once taught that this refers to speaking in tongues, but that is not what this is saying at all. You just need to read it simply. The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the SPIRIT himself intercedes FOR US with gleanings too deep for words. This clearly is not saying that we are the ones interceding with groaning, it is the Spirit.
Some have said this means the Holy Spirit causes a person who cant put their prayer into words to speak in tongues or to make weird noises or something. But again, we only need to see what Paul clearly writes here: The Spirit himself intercedes for us, not with us or through us. There are other passages that may speak of tongues, but this is not one of them. I believe that the meaning is clear, when we are in weakness, and do not know what to pray for as we ought, He intercedes for us. And that is a good thing, because not one of us prays perfectly as we ought to. In every prayer we pray, our sin nature is involved and we really cannot help allowing our personal preferences and desires come into the prayer. But the Spirit takes our imperfect prayer and intercedes for us.
And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
So we pray our own will often, and sometimes the will of God, and the Spirit takes our less than perfect prayers and then interceded According to the will of God.
And now, finally, we have some context for verse 28:
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
So before you quote Romans 8:28 flippantly to someone who is having a tough time, “We know that for those that love God all things work together for good. So this situation is going to turn out very comfortable for you”, remember the context in which Paul wrote this famous verse. Sadly, the context is not as famous as the verse.
Paul said there was suffering, but the future glory will be so great that this suffering will seem minimal. He said all creation is groaning in wait for the day it will be free of corruption. He said that we also groan inwardly as we wait for adoption and redemption, that he groan, but we also hope and wait with patience.
And then he says the Spirit helps us in our weakness, we do not pray as we should but the Spirit intercedes for us. He intercedes for us not based upon our will, but upon God’s will, and through all of this, for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28 is not to be used to promise someone things will get better before Jesus comes again. They may get better for that person and they may not. When Paul writes that all things work together for good, he doesn’t mean for good right now, but the ultimate good, that is a view for eternity.
Now, getting back to Acts 4. If we can trust in what Paul said in Romans 8, that in our difficulty we can trust that all things work according to God’s purpose, then we can also pray as the believers did in Acts 4. That we can plead with the Lord, not that he take away our trials, but that he himself will strengthen us in those trials, that we could pray “grant to your Servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while YOU stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.
Speaking Truth to Power
But here is how the powerful will sometimes respond to a message of Righteousness and self-control:
Alarm
Dismissal
Bribery
Violence
Murder
And after five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and a spokesman, one Tertullus. They laid before the governor their case against Paul.
And when he had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying: “Since through you we enjoy much peace, and since by your foresight, most excellent Felix, reforms are being made for this nation,
in every way and everywhere we accept this with all gratitude.
But, to detain you no further, I beg you in your kindness to hear us briefly.
For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.
He even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him.
By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.”
The Jews also joined in the charge, affirming that all these things were so.
And when the governor had nodded to him to speak, Paul replied: “Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I cheerfully make my defense.
You can verify that it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship in Jerusalem,
and they did not find me disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd, either in the temple or in the synagogues or in the city.
Neither can they prove to you what they now bring up against me.
But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets,
having a hope in God, which these men themselves accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust.
So I always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man.
Now after several years I came to bring alms to my nation and to present offerings.
While I was doing this, they found me purified in the temple, without any crowd or tumult. But some Jews from Asia—
they ought to be here before you and to make an accusation, should they have anything against me.
Or else let these men themselves say what wrongdoing they found when I stood before the council,
other than this one thing that I cried out while standing among them: ‘It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.’ ”
But Felix, having a rather accurate knowledge of the Way, put them off, saying, “When Lysias the tribune comes down, I will decide your case.”
Then he gave orders to the centurion that he should be kept in custody but have some liberty, and that none of his friends should be prevented from attending to his needs.
After some days Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, and he sent for Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus.
And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.”
At the same time he hoped that money would be given him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him.
When two years had elapsed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And desiring to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.
Alarm
Why are they alarmed?
Should we tone it down so as not to alarm them?
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,
training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,
waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.
2. Dismissal
Sometimes this means putting it off,
Paul at the Areopagus
Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.”
So Paul went out from their midst.
But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.
3. Bribery
Do for me and I will make things go well for you. Felix hoped Paul would bribe him:
At the same time he hoped that money would be given him by Paul. So he sent for him often and conversed with him.
He realized Paul had access to money
Now after several years I came to bring alms to my nation and to present offerings.
Regardless of the response of the powerful or wealthy to the gospel, we must continue to present it.
Violence and Murder
When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul.
There were more than forty who made this conspiracy.
They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste no food till we have killed Paul.
Now therefore you, along with the council, give notice to the tribune to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him before he comes near.”
Murder
Matthew 14 John the Baptist killed for confronting Herod on his immorality.
How do we withstand the possibility that speaking the truth may subject us to ridicule, hate, even violence?
By Praying for the empowerment that only God can grant us.
Daniel
Stephen
John Bunyan
William Wilberforce
John MacArthur
Voddie Bauchum
“We cannot continue to send our children to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans.”
― Voddie T. Baucham Jr., Family Driven Faith: Doing What It Takes to Raise Sons and Daughters Who walk with God
Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.
But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;
persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;
always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak,
knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence.
For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
God is calling His church to a new era of boldness. Boldness in proclaiming the true, biblical gospel, and the true, biblical Jesus.
Boldness in proclaiming truth to power.
Boldness in defending biblical morality.
Boldness in being willing to stand in proclamation, not matter the cost;
