Sermon Audio

Sunday we will finish looking at Peter’s interaction with the ruling council in Jerusalem. (Acts 4:13-22) Peter and John were arrested in the Temple court after they healed a lame man and proclaimed the risen Jesus to the crowd that gathered. After their arrest and questioning, Peter boldly proclaimed Jesus as God’s messiah to the council as well. He told them that there is salvation in no one else for there is no other name given by which men must be saved. This Sunday we will see the response of the council and examine Christ’s witnesses as they are opposed. Jesus has called His disciples to a life that witnesses to His glory and the gospel. This is exactly what Peter and John demonstrate as their boldness is evident to the religious leaders. They spoke with authority and confidence just as Jesus has done before this same council. The leaders could not help but recognize that these men "had been with Jesus." That was the source of their witness...and ours.

Peter and John truly believed that the gospel is the power of God. They truly believed that the risen Jesus was with them and therefore, they were not afraid to speak. Even when they were warned to never again speak in the name of Jesus, they respectfully tell the council "we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard." This Sunday, we will look at our witness and how we draw strength from being with Jesus, and we will also look at the the obstacles that hinder us from speaking of what we have seen and heard.

Joseph ascends to the height of power and just as in his trials, God is with him. Joseph is faithful to Gods call.

Chapter 4 begins a turning point in the book of Acts. As the disciples obey Jesus’ command to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, opposition to the gospel mission rears its head. In fact, after chapter 3, there are only three chapters in the rest of the book of Acts that do not mention some form of persecution or opposition. This will be a reality in the life of the church until Jesus returns. However, opposition does not hinder the progress of the gospel. Historically just the opposite is true. The church grew most exponentially in the first three centuries under the most extreme persecution. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation even in the face of opposition.

Peter’s sermon at the end of Acts 3 was earth shaking for the people in the Temple courts. But as he stood before the crowd, the leaders of Jerusalem appeared to arrest he and John. These are the same men who turned Jesus over to be crucified and declared Him a blasphemer just two months earlier. Yet Luke tells us that despite this show of Temple authority, the gospel message took root in many hearts (Acts 4:4). And Sunday, we will see Peter give basically the same sermon before the Sanhedrin that he gave in the Temple courts. Through this, we will examine why the gospel always bring opposition (both worldly and spiritually) and we will see how we stand faithfully in the midst of it. We also see why we MUST stand faithfully - because "there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)

Joseph is faithful in prison but he is forgotten rather than helped. He must wait on God's timing.

As the church of Jesus Christ, everything we are and everything we do must be grounded in and focused upon the gospel. What Jesus accomplished for His people in His death, burial, resurrection, and exaltation is the hub around which all of the Christian life turns. The gospel is not just the baby steps of the Christian life. It is everything! We will see this demonstrated clearly in Peter’s second sermon (Acts 3:11-26). Peter stands before an amazed crowd of people in the Temple courts. They are amazed because Peter seemingly just healed a man who had been lame from birth, and now he was leaping, walking, and praising God. Peter will explain to them what this is all about, but instead of focusing on the man’s physical healing, Peter uses the man as an illustration of something much greater. Peter proclaims that Jesus is the glorified Messiah whom God, through Moses and the prophets, promised to sent to His people. He shows the people God’s salvation and calls them to turn to Jesus and receive true healing in His name.

As Peter begins explaining who healed this lame man, he will introduce Jesus by saying, "The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus..." (Acts 3:13). When Peter says "glorified his servant," he is referencing the fourth "servant song" in Isaiah. He is claiming Jesus is the suffering servant of Isa. 52:13-53:12. So in addition to reading Acts 3:11-26, I would encourage you to read Isa. 52:13-53:12 as well. This prophecy tells us how the Father "glorified his servant, Jesus."

Peter’s point is that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s purposes in all of history. This is the moment to which all of Scripture has led. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. There is no deeper theology and no higher spiritual level that being "in Christ."

Joseph is faithful to God in his slavery - and God is faithful to him.

As we begin Acts 3, the church in Jerusalem is alive and growing. The Holy Spirit indwelled the disciples and through Peter’s sermon, God saved 3000 people. Last week we saw the discipleship life of the early church as they devoted themselves to worshiping, connecting in discipling relationships, and served one another. Acts 3:1-10 shows us the early church in operation. This section chronicles the healing of the lame beggar at the beautiful gate. Though we will only examine the event itself in the first 10 verses of chapter 3, I would encourage you to read the entire chapter before Sunday. The event of this man’s healing is explained by Peter in his sermon that follows in the Temple court. While the actual healing of this suffering man shows the compassion and the ministry of the church, and indeed, many people have drawn hope from the healing power of Jesus from this text, Peter’s sermon shows us the point of this miracle. The healing of this man’s physical infirmity is a sign that points to a greater reality. This miraculous event demonstrates that because Jesus is the messiah and has fulfilled the promised salvation, the coming kingdom of God is breaking into reality now. His physical healing is a glimpse of what is to come when all things are made new and the Christ who has brought deliverance, comes again in power and glory.

Peter’s sermon emphasizes that this healing miracle should lead the people to trust in Jesus so that their sins would be forgiven and when the Christ comes to restore all the things, they would receive times of refreshing from His presence (see Acts 3:19-21)

The healing of the beggar is not a declaration that all physical infirmities will be healed in this life. It is a preview of the kingdom to come when all sickness, disease, suffering, death and sin will be done away with forever. And that healing only comes by faith in the risen Messiah who is glorified at the Father’s side.

Peter has just preached his Pentecost sermon, the Holy Spirit moved and three thousand people are converted in a single instant. Now the Jerusalem church is faced with a logistical nightmare. In one moment it time, the church went from 120 people to 3,120. How can all these new Christians grow as disciples? How can the church disciple all these people with no infrastructure or programs? They did so by being devoted to worshiping together, connecting with one another in discipling relationships, and serving one another. That is the pattern of discipleship presented in Acts 2:42-47. The early church met in the Temple courts, and in smaller groups in their homes. They praised God together. They loved and cared for one another when needs arose. And God moved among them, adding to His church daily. Sunday, as we examine this passage, we will see the early church’s method of making disciples and we will see the discipleship that Christ calls for each of us to invest ourselves in.