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Divine Disturbance
Have you ever disturbed the world? Are you living a life that is disturbing to the world? A Christian who is living the way they should live will be a disturbance to the world. I am calling on all of us this morning to disturb the world!
In our text we have two things we want to look at this morning:
- the setting
- the sermon.
Acts 4:12
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.
The Setting:
Acts 4:1-3
And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.
The truth will always garner a response. That response will generally be negative. Never is that more apparent than when the truth being spoken is the gospel. Peter and John were accosted by:
- the priests – They believed much like the Sadducees, thus denied a resurrection.
- the captain of the temple – he would have been in charge of the police force—like a police chief
- the Sadducees – they denied the resurrection and were close to the Romans, thus giving them great influence in the culture.
They did this because they were “greatly disturbed.” Being confronted with the fact that one is a sinner and headed to hell is, indeed, a disturbing thing. I don’t mean to beat the proverbial “dead horse” as we go through the book of Acts, but I must say this: It is not the preacher’s job to make sinners feel comfortable. People living in a state of condemnation should not be comfortable. Too many churches today are trying to make people feel comfortable. I’m not about to make people feel more comfortable going to hell.
When I prepare sermons, I’m not always comfortable, and I am saved. Why am I not always comfortable? Because I am constantly being confronted with the fact that I am far from what Christ wants me to be.
So then, they were disturbed because Peter and John “taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” The Sadducees, of course, did not believe in a resurrection. Again, notice that they preached “in Jesus.” That can be translated “in, through, or by Jesus.” The point is that they were not preaching their ideas, but Jesus’ truth. And here you have people who murdered Christ, and Peter and John are teaching that He rose from the dead.
So what did they do to them:
Acts 4:3
And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.
Since it was against Jewish law to have a hearing in the evening, they kept Peter and John overnight in prison.
Now again we see the lesson that man cannot restrain the truth of God:
Acts 4:4
However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.
They killed Jesus in an attempt to do away with Christianity—it didn’t work! Now they arrested Peter and John to keep them from having any converts—it didn’t work! There were a little over 3,000 people in the church. Now they have 5,000 total in the church. So the church has gone from 3,000 to 5,000, about a 60% increase. But notice how the increase took place.
(I often cringe when I get fliers in the mail or emails about seminars. I can’t tell you how many times I get fliers which say things like “learn how to break the 500 barrier,” or “learn how to break the 1,000 barrier.” I don’t need a seminar, I can read! I can read the word of God. I see that God will add to the church. My responsibility is to be faithful. I’m not called to be a salesman but a servant of Christ. I’m not called to be a businessman, but a Biblicist. I’m not called to market the church, but to let God manage the church through me!)
So, far from “softening” the gospel presentation, they spoke with boldness. Even after seeing firsthand the persecution that comes from being a Christian, these people believed. We have people today who are too timid to say that Jesus is the only way. The extent of the persecution is that people may not like them. Big deal! These disciples faced much more harsh persecution and they were telling the truth.
In total, John and Peter had 11 people or groups of people opposing them in vv. 1-6. Now 8 more people or groups challenge them:
- the rulers – This is a general term for those in authority.
- the elders – These were older men who lived in Jerusalem and had great influence.
- the scribes – They were the teachers of the law.
- Annas the high priest – He was the real high priest whom the Romans had removed.
- Caiaphas – He was Annas’ son-in-law whom the Romans used as a puppet to replace Annas.
- John – nothing definitive is known about John or Alexander
- Alexander – we know nothing definitive about him.
- the family of the high priest
They all had one question: "By what power or by what name have you done this?" Now keep in mind the context. They are under intense persecution. This is the perfect time for them to water down the truth. What will they do? What would you do? What are you doing in your life now?
Proposition—
Peter confronts them with four disturbing facts in his sermon:
The Sanhedrin wished to put Peter on trial, but Peter was going to put them on trial by preaching the word of God!
I. |
They were guilty in crucifying Jesus – vv. 8- 10 |
Acts 4:8-10
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 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.
Notice first of all that Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit. Have you
ever wondered how Christians can be so bold in the midst of such
persecution? Well, they can’t. You can’t; I can’t. But God can make us
strong and that is what God, the Holy Spirit does here for Peter.
I have no doubt that Peter was remembering what Jesus had told them in
Mark 13:9-11.
Mark 13:9–11
But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.
I have heard some try to apply this preaching and say that they do not need to prepare their message for God will give them the words to say. Perhaps not surprisingly, God seems to always say something about giving money in those instances! At any rate, the context here has nothing to do with preparing sermons, but rather when you are confronted by hostile authorities.
I have on many occasions heard Christians and even preachers—in fact, I have been guilty of this myself—defame this or that government authority. Peter doesn’t do that. He is telling it like it is, but he is not name-calling. See Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit. There is a difference between being filled with the spirit and being filled with the flesh. When we rant about a public official we are usually doing so out of the flesh. We need to be careful about that.
So Peter puts these officials on the spot so to speak by saying in verse 9:
Acts 4:9
If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well,”
These men acted as if Peter and John had committed a real crime. So Peter, in effect, says "Okay, let’s get back to the issue you guys have with us. Now, remember that many unbelievers were watching this happen. So Peter reminds everyone of what is going on. I mean would the authorities really punish people for helping a cripple?
Peter then lays out who really healed this man. In doing so, Peter confronts these leaders once again with the fact that they crucified the Christ. Look at the first part of v. 10:
“let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified”
Peter makes it clear to all that they had crucified the Lord. By now it should be obvious that whenever Peter is preaching, he is not concerned about his reputation, but about Christ. He’s not concerned what the people were doing to him, he is concerned with what they did with Christ. Now he is making it clear that the lame man was healed in the name of Jesus, which is to say, by his power and authority. So in essence, Peter is saying you’re problem is not with us, but with the God-man that you thought you got rid of.
So Peter confronts the leaders with their sin of murdering Jesus and he then sets forth another disturbing fact:
II. |
Jesus rose from the dead – v. 10 |
Acts 4:10
whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.
Peter reminds them yet again that Jesus rose from the dead. Lest the people think that Peter is some crazy man for claiming that a dead man healed a man, he makes it clear that Jesus is not dead. Now we will see next week, that these leaders realize that they can’t do anything to them concerning the man’s healing. So the leaders turn their attention back to the message of the resurrection.
Now I wonder what was going through the mind of these leaders. I mean, they thought that they had rid themselves of their problems when they murdered Jesus.
So Peter confronts the leaders with their sin of murdering Jesus, and the fact of the resurrection and he then sets forth another disturbing fact:
III. |
They rejected Christ – v. 11 |
Acts 4:11
This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
According to Jewish tradition, when Solomon’s temple was constructed all of the stones were cut out of the quarry, so that there would be no sound of a hammer while constructing the temple. So all of the stones were precut and hauled to the temple site to be assembled. They were then stacked and numbered by the architects so that they would know what stone went where. There was one stone sitting in the middle of the construction area. It was a large stone and no one knew what it was for. And the workman had to work around it. In fact, some would even stumble over it. So finally the workers decided that this stone was simply getting in their way. So many workers took what would have been like crow bars, and began rolling the large stone away. They rolled it down into the Kedron valley, east of the temple. Over time the weeds and bushes grew up over it and you could barely see it.
Then finally the time came for them to put the corner stone in—the stone that would unite the whole building. The most important stone of all. They sent to the quarry and said we are ready for the corner stone. They said we already sent the cornerstone. The architects said no you didn’t. The workers at the quarry said yes we did.
You all know what happened. The stone they had rejected and stumbled over, the stone they rolled down into the Kedron valley, was the chief cornerstone. They had to go down and roll this large stone up hill!
I think this is exactly what Peter had in mind here. Spiritually speaking these Jews were rejecting Christ—the Chief Cornerstone. Why? For the same reason that the builders rolled away the chief cornerstone of the temple. It was getting in the way of what they were doing. Jesus was a nuisance to these unbelieving Jews.
Jesus is a nuisance to the world. They don’t want Jesus to get in the way of their sin-filled lives. Again, we are not called to soften the gospel by removing this chief cornerstone, but rather we are to confront the world with the Chief Cornerstone!
This is why the world hates Jesus. Just as the chief cornerstone for the temple kept tripping up the builders, Jesus “trips up” the sinners' lifestyle.
So Peter confronts the leaders with their sin of murdering Jesus, the fact of the resurrection, the fact of their rejection of Christ and then he sets forth another disturbing fact:
IV. |
Jesus is the one and only way of Salvation – v. 12 |
Acts 4:12
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."
This fact is very applicable to our day. This fact rubs people the wrong way. Our culture is one in which there are no absolutes, there is no absolute truth. So we are considered foolish and narrow minded when we say that Jesus is the only way to heaven.
Well guess what? We didn’t say it, Jesus did! We need to confront people with what Jesus said. We need to have John 14:6 memorized! We don’t decide what truth is, the Bible tells us what truth is.
Here are Peter and John in a hostile environment and they are not backing down. We have people today who can’t even go on a show like Larry King and say that Jesus is the only way. Now we don’t have to come off “holier than thou” when we share the gospel. We just have to make it clear that Jesus said He was the only way to heaven. When we make it clear that Jesus said it we are doing two good things. To begin with we are turning people’s attention away from us to Jesus. Secondly, we are using Scripture (like John 14:6) and “faith cometh by hearing the word of God!”
But my point is this, and this was Peter’s point: There is only one way to heaven. In this context, he is speaking to everyone, but he is also highlighting Israel’s rejection of Christ. We must not give in to our society.
| Conclusion: | |
| To the believer: | We need to be bold witnesses like Peter. This will only happen if we are living a spirit-filled life. If there is anything that might quench the Spirit in our lives, then we need to confess that and get back on track now. |
| To the unbeliever: | Perhaps you have been rejecting Christ. Maybe he has gotten in the way of your lifestyle. So you have just kind of rolled Him away. Well, friend just as you can’t throw a boomerang away without it coming back at you, you can’t throw Jesus away. You will confess that He is Lord. The only question is will you do it now and be saved, or will you do it just before you are cast into the Lake of Fire? |
