Before the Council

Before the Council – Manuscript Acts 4:1-20 Our Scripture this morning is found in the Acts of the Apostles chapter 4 verses 1-20. Last week, we saw the Apostles encounter the living God, be empowered with the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit working through them uttered the might works of God so that three thousand people came to faith that. After that, Peter and John, two of the leaders of the Church, went to the temple to pray. The felt this draw to spend time in communing with God. And as they were walking in, a paraplegic man asked for some alms. They had nothing to give, but instead the Holy Spirit worked through the two Apostles to heal that man. And as a crowd gathered, Peter and John boldly proclaimed the good news that the Christ had come and called the people to repent. And yet, two leaders in the fledgling Church now faced their opposition. I invite you follow along as I read Acts 4:1-20. And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand. 5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” 13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. 15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”1 This is the Word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Let us pray. Prayer of Illumination: O gracious God and most merciful Father, you have given us the rich and precious jewel of your holy Word. Assist us with your Spirit, that it may be written in our hearts t our everlasting comfort, to reform us, to renew us according to your own image, to build us up into the perfect building of Christ, and to increase us in all heavenly virtues. Grant this, O heavenly Father, for the same Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen. The Apostles’ preaching ended up causing a commotion. And that commotion ends up causing the opposition to form. This shouldn’t surprise us. Jesus said in John 15, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.”2 This is the first time that the early Church experienced the opposition that Jesus told them they would. As we examine this passage, we’ll see the opposition and the response to the opposition. The Opposition Peter and John encounter opposition after healing the paraplegic and proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ. Luke tells us who the opposition is. He tells us that the opposition is made up of the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees. The leaders in all of this were the Sadducees. The Sadducees were the theologically liberal group. They believed in moral law, because that was necessary for civic order. But they denied all of the spiritual and supernatural aspects found in Scripture. They didn’t believe in miracle. They didn’t believe in an afterlife. And they didn’t believe in a resurrection. They were material rationalists. They had come to power during the period between the Old and New Testaments. For many years they had gained control over the religious and political life in Jerusalem. So what Peter and John were preaching really got their goat. While the Sadducees were the leaders in the Sanhedrin, they were not the only ones opposing Peter and John’s preaching. The Sanhedrin was also composed of the Pharisees. Pharisees were more numerous and believed in the spiritual and supernatural aspects found in Scripture. They believed in miracles, the afterlife, and a general resurrection at the end of time. They were the religious fundamentalists. Luke also tells us that the captain of the temple also joined in the opposition. So there are the rulers, the fundamentalists, and even the military. These groups have little in common. And yet here they are united in their opposition to Peter and John. Opposition to the gospel is multifaceted. There will be those who, like the Sadducees, oppose the gospel because they don’t believe in the spiritual or the supernatural. Those in this group are losing momentum. Fifty years ago this was the main thinking found in sociology classes. They were looking around and saying, “Religion is slowly decreasing and it will eventually die out”. If you go back and watch any episode from the original Star Trek series, not a single world or group practices religion. They believed that religion and belief in spiritual and supernatural would die out. There are still people out there who deny the spiritual and supernatural. On the other hand, there are those who oppose the gospel, not because they deny the spiritual but because they deny what the gospel says. Maybe it’s another religion like Hinduism or Buddhism. One of the growing religious groups is neo-paganism. Neo-paganism is the return to traditional, pre-Christian European gods. It’s interesting to see that people are starting to worship Odin or animals. They might oppose the gospel because of its unique characteristics; belief in a Triune God, belief that salvation is only found in Jesus Christ. Or maybe the opposition is militarily and political. We don’t experience this so much here in America, but other parts of the world do. Every week we have been praying for Andrew Brunson. Andrew has been imprisoned in Turkey solely because he is a Christian minister. He did not take part in the coup in July almost two years ago; he is not working against the Turkish state. He is opposed solely because of the gospel. The opposition has no rational reason to unite and yet they are. Sadducees and Pharisees were known not to get along. And yet here they have united to oppose Peter and John. They have united to oppose the gospel. And the Sadducees, the Pharisees, the captain of the temple, and the priests have Peter and John thrown in prison for the evening. The next morning, the Sanhedrin reconvened. They interrogated Peter and John. This is where we see the Apostles’ response to opposition. The Response to Opposition The Sanhedrin questioned Peter and John, wanting to know, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” When Peter being filled with the Holy Spirit gave a bold response. He said, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Peter makes three points in his response to the Sanhedrin. The first point that he made is what he and John did was a good deed. In verse 9, he said “if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man”. In essence Peter said, “Are you really opposing us because we did a good deed?” The Sanhedrin wanted to use the good deed as a front to their real issue. Their real issue is what Peter and John had been preaching. They didn’t have their permission for it. And Peter points out that it is illogical for them to oppose them for doing good. People opposing the gospel might question why Christians do good and even be against it. As Christians, we might see a need in the community and want to respond. We might want to set up schools or clinics or shelters. And those who oppose the gospel might oppose simply because Christians are doing it. About five years ago, Russia passed a law against Non-Government Organizations that received funds from foreign countries. While it mostly targeted political groups that President Putin didn’t like, it also made religious work by Christians more difficult. It made evangelism and holding a make-shirt worship service illegal. Putin might make the case that he is targeting those who might seek to do damage to Russia, it seems to me at least that it is because there is an opposition to the gospel. An opposition to what the gospel says about truth and how we are to treat others, including our enemies. Opposition is not always logical. Peter’s first point is that this opposition is illogical. His second point is that the person who really healed the man was Jesus the Christ. Peter said, “by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well”. Peter’s point is this, “Jesus is the one who did this. The very Jesus you condemned to death by crucifixion was raised from the dead by the Father. And it is through him that this man was made well”. Yes Jesus has ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father. But he is still active in his Church. He is still active renewing people’s hearts so they come to faith. He is still active working to undo the effects of sin. Peter and John didn’t heal the man. Jesus did. Do you believe that Jesus is still active today? He is. He is active through the person of the Holy Spirit. We looked at this a few weeks ago when we were in our series on the Apostles’ Creed. We said one of the things that the Holy Spirit does is speak Jesus’ words to us. The Spirit, he points us to Jesus. And so as we are filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus is active in us. He works to renew our hearts and our minds. He works in us to undo the effects of sin just as he undid the effects of sin by making this man able to walk. Peter’s first point what to point out the illogical nature of their opposition. His second point was to say that Jesus is active. His third and final point is that Jesus needs to be the foundation. In verses 11 and 12 Luke records these words by Peter. He says, “This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Today when we build a house or a building, the very first thing we do is dig a hole and lay the foundation. The foundation is underground. In the ancient world they didn’t lay the foundation underground. They laid the foundation at ground level. So the foundation needed to be perfect. The way they ensured it would was by placing a cornerstone at the farthest corner; the corner farthest away from the door. That cornerstone was specifically crafted to withstand the weight and guide the rest of the foundation. What Peter is saying is that Sanhedrin rejected the cornerstone. They had the perfect foundation for everything in life, the perfect foundation for union with God, and they rejected it. Without this foundation, life will be unsteady, like a ship tossed about the raging seas. Without this foundation, there is no union with God. Peter is making it as clear as he can that unless Jesus is the foundation for our lives there is no hope for salvation. If we make our family the foundation of our lives, it will crumble. Why? Our family, our wives, our husbands, our kids aren’t meant to bear that weight. If place that weight on them, it will cause our marriages to strain and our children to resent us. If we make our careers the foundation of our lives, it will crumble. We will become consumed by our work. We will always be looking to improve it, to make more money. And our coworkers, our bosses, our employees will resent us. If we make our morality the foundation of our lives, it will crumble. Why? Because we will need to constantly keep up appearances. We will need to justify our behavior to show we are always moral. It will cause a holier-than-thou attitude. And our friends and family will feel the strain. The foundation for our lives needs to be Jesus the Christ, his atoning work on cross, death, and resurrection. Anything else and our lives will crumble. We will not find salvation anywhere else. Anything else we build our lives on will crumble. He alone will be able to withstand the weight we put on the foundation. As Peter and John say these things, the Sanhedrin is astonished. They see the boldness that the two of have as they stand before the leaders of Jerusalem and they are amazed. They know that Peter and John are uneducated in their schools but have a boldness, a conviction that they have only seen once before. They recognize that they had been with Jesus. The Sanhedrin also realizes there is nothing they can do. People have seen and heard about the healing; people will know that this man was lame from birth but now can walk. So they know that they can only warn or threaten the Apostles not to continue preaching in Jesus’ name. But they respond saying, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard”. Even in the face of opposition, the Apostles say they can only do what God has said they are to do. This boldness only comes through the Spirit. The Holy Spirit empowers believers to withstand opposition and response with the gospel. Let us pray.