Empowered Disciples 8

Peter and John on Trial

This morning we are continuing our series on Empowered Disciples as we look at the middle section of Acts chapter 4.

Last week we started looking at chapter 4 which continues the story line from chapter 3 where Peter and John healed the lame man.

After healing the lame man a crowd gathered around them at Solomon’s portico and Peter preached his second sermon.

While preaching that second sermon the Jewish religious leaders came out and arrest Peter and John.

It was getting late in the evening and the Sanhedrin had already convened for the day, so Peter and John had to spend the night in jail.

The next day when Peter and John are brought before the Sanhedrin they are asked by what power or what authority do you do these things?

There reply is straight forward it is in the power and authority of the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Peter also takes this opportunity to preach a mini-sermon to the Sanhedrin.

Peter and John display extraordinary courage because they have been with Jesus and are filled with the Holy Spirit.

The Courts Deliberation

Peter had given his testimony.

It was now time for the Council to deliberate.

Acts 4:13–14 NASB95

13 Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. 14 And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.

The Sanhedrin assessed the evidence.

First, there was the courage, the sheer freedom with which Peter spoke.

They hardly expected this from men who had no formal education in matters of the law, who were ordinary laymen.

Then there was the fact that they had been with Jesus.

He too had been just a commoner to the religious leaders, but also with an amazing boldness and knowledge beyond His training.

Jesus has also been a threat to the religious leaders peace; and the Sanhedrin had condemned Him to death.

Finally, there was the healed man, standing with them before the Sanhedrin.

We are not told if the healed man was their voluntarily in support of Peter and John or whether he was summoned as a witness.

In any event there was the healed man standing there, exhibit A, a known sign.

The healed man would be hard to overlook.

It was hardly a clear-cut case.

The Sanhedrin just sat in silence.

At this point there was nothing they could say.

Indeed, Jesus was being fulfilled before the apostles’ eyes.

Luke 21:15 NASB95

15 for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.

The irony can scarcely be missed - the accused spoke with utter boldness and freedom; their accusers sat in stony silence.

Illustration

A teacher once noticed that one of her struggling students had suddenly become confident, articulate, and successful.

When asked what changed, the student replied, "I started spending time every day with a mentor who believed in me."

The evidence of that relationship was impossible to hide.

The religious leaders recognized that Peter and John were ordinary, uneducated men, yet they spoke with remarkable boldness.

The leaders could not deny what had happened because they "recognized that they had been with Jesus."

Application

People may not remember everything you say or every time you witness to them, but they will notice whether you have been with Jesus.

Time spent with Christ transforms ordinary people into extraordinary witnesses.

Ask yourself: Would those around me recognize that I have been with Jesus?

Key Truth: The greatest evidence of discipleship is a life transformed by the presence of Christ.

The Warning to the Apostles

Opposition is often evidence that God is working.

Acts 4:15–17 NASB95

15 But when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 “But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in this name.”

When the Sanhedrin ordered Peter and John out of the courtroom, they were following normal procedure.

Their custom after hearing the witnesses was to dismiss them in order to have as clear and open discussion among themselves as possible.

In this instance they were at something of a loss.

They really had no charge to lay upon them.

Further, the accused were popular with the people, for the news about healing of the lame man had already spread throughout Jerusalem.

There was only one thing they could do - they could threaten.

They would warn the apostles to no longer speak in this name.

Illustration

When a forest fire begins, authorities often try to contain it before it spreads.

The Sanhedrin viewed the gospel in a similar way.

They were not concerned with discovering truth; they were concerned with stopping the message from spreading.

Throughout history, attempts to silence God's work have often resulted in greater growth.

The more the gospel has been opposed, the more it has advanced.

Application

The world may not object to religion in general, but it will often object to the exclusive claims of Jesus Christ.

Followers of Christ should expect resistance when they faithfully proclaim the gospel.

Fear of opposition should never determine our obedience.

The Apostles Response

A genuine encounter with Christ produces a witness that cannot remain silent.

Acts 4:18–19 NASB95

18 And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge;

Although only implied at this point, this would also establish guilt should the apostles decide to transgress the courts order.

So the Apostles were brought back into the court and given the warning.

They were no longer to speak and teach in the name of Jesus.

The warning was given in narrative style rather than in direct speech, perhaps Luke’s way of underlining the timidity of the Council on the whole matter.

The response of Peter and John was in direct discourse; it was bold and almost defiant: “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God.

Illustration

Imagine a firefighter being told not to warn people that a building is on fire.

A lifeguard would not stop rescuing a drowning swimmer because someone told him to be quiet.

When lives are at stake, silence is not an option.

Peter and John understood that eternal souls were at stake.

Therefore they declared, "We cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."

Application

Every believer is called to be a witness, not merely a spectator.

We speak about what we love. If Christ has changed our lives, His work should naturally overflow into our conversations.

When human authority conflicts with God's authority, believers must obey God.

Questions for Reflection

Ask yourself:

Am I silent about Christ because of fear?

What opportunities has God given me to share my testimony?

Who in my life needs to hear about Jesus?

The Apostles Release

God honors faithful obedience, even in the face of opposition.

Acts 4:20–22 NASB95

20 for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” 21 When they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which to punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened; 22 for the man was more than forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.

The apostles could only speak of what they had seen and heard.

They were the eyewitnesses of Jesus’ entire ministry, they witnessed Him after His resurrection.

Peter and John had no choice but to defy the court’s order, for it had stepped in between their conscience and God.

The court had no alternative but to threaten them further and release them.

They could find no grounds for punishing them at this point, and they feared the apostles’ popularity with the people.

The man, born lame, was over forty years old, so the miracle was particularly striking; and the people took it for what it was, an act of God, a sign.

The lame mans healing had been a sign to the temple crowd in Solomon’s Portico that attracted the people to the gospel and ultimately to faith.

The healing miracle had also been a sign to the Sanhedrin, a pointer to the sole name in which salvation (the ultimate healing) is to be found.

There is no recorded response to Peter’s appeal to the Sanhedrin.

A theme begins here that will recur throughout the book of Acts - that theme is the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews.

That rejection comes specifically from the Jewish religious leaders.

Illustration

A small boat can endure fierce winds when its anchor is secure.

Peter and John faced threats and intimidation, but they remained anchored in God's power and purpose.

The Sanhedrin released them because the undeniable miracle and the people's praise of God made further punishment impossible.

Application

God is sovereign over every circumstance, even when opposition seems overwhelming.

Faithfulness does not always remove difficulties, but God sustains His servants through them.

The goal is not personal comfort but God's glory.

Conclusion Illustration

A lighthouse does not argue with the storm; it simply shines.

Ships find safety because the light remains visible in the darkness.

Peter and John stood before powerful men, faced threats, and experienced pressure to remain silent.

Yet they continued to shine the light of Christ because they had been with Jesus and could not deny what He had done.

Final Applications

Spend time with Jesus so His presence is evident in your life.

Expect opposition when you stand for Christ.

Speak boldly about what Christ has done for you.

Trust God with the results and leave the consequences in His hands.