THE BOOK OF ACTS – Chapter 4, Peter and John Arrested and Released, Sharing among Believers

 

THE BOOK OF ACTS – Chapter 4

Peter and John Arrested and Released, Sharing among Believers.

You are about to read about the ongoing establishment and the earliest practices of the Church. There was no written manual for the Apostles or the early Church to follow. The Apostles would take the teachings and examples of Jesus and live them out. They would go out and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that Jesus had commanded them.

You and I should have received these same teachings and practices to obey and do. If your understanding or your application of these teachings and practices is anything other than what the Bible presents, beware. Some contemporary teachers, preachers and pastors will say, “times, technologies and methods have improved  and therefore some of our practices and ways of “doing Church” and presenting the Gospel have been modified to fit our current day”. Whether by design, out of arrogance or out of ignorance, these are false teachers. Jesus warned of this and tells us to avoid them, call them to account and follow only Jesus.

Peter and John Arrested

Acts 1:1, As they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them, verse 2, being greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. Verse 3. And they laid hands on them and put them in prison until the next day, for it was already evening. Verse 4. But many of those who had heard the message believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

(Commentary Break): There is a lot of detail regarding the priests, the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees, and the resurrection from the dead, which I will leave to you, the reader, to discover on your own (or use this link). Our focus  in this commentary is on the fact that they apprehended Peter and John and put them in a prison cell for what singularly appears to be for proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. But you can be certain it had a lot to do with the fact that about five thousand men came to believe. This was alarming to the static religious establishment and a threat to their grip on the hearts and minds of the people, to their status in the community and their livelihood. But this is just the first of many teachings and signs of a new way of life with God that is shaking the Jewish Empire and soon, the entire world.

How are these things with you, your church, and your walk with Jesus? Is there a chance that we have drifted too far from the conditions and the commitment of these early Christians? Is it possible that we are not willing to upset our status quo, just like the priests, the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees? Is this the reason for our meager results when we preach the Gospel and proclaim in Jesus the resurrection of the dead? (End Commentary Break).

Verse 5. On the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem; verse 6, and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and all who were of high-priestly descent. Verse 7. When they had placed them in the center, they began to inquire, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?” Verse 8. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people, verse 9. if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, verse 10, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by this name this man stands here before you in good health. Verse 11. He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS, but WHICH BECAME THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE. Verse 12. And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among mankind by which we must be saved.”

(Commentary Break): These verses speak for themselves. Verse eleven which speaks of the cornerstone is drawn from Psalm 118:22 and Isaiah 28:16, where it is used to describe the Messiah. This cornerstone is not just foundational but also unifying, bringing together Jews and Gentiles into one spiritual house. The use of this metaphor underscores the essential role of Christ in God’s redemptive plan and the futility of any spiritual edifice not built upon Him. Then Peter goes on to simply and powerfully proclaim Jesus as Savior, the Messiah. This is our truth and our example. (End Commentary Break).

Threat and Release

Verse 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. Verse 14. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.

(Commentary Break): Please take notice. The rulers and elders and scribes along with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and all whom were of high-priestly descent, observed that Peter and John were uneducated and untrained men, but were amazed because they recognized that their confidence and miracle working power came from having been with Jesus! They were left speechless.

Now-a-day, in the twenty first century, if you aren’t highly educated and trained in one prestigious seminary or another and don’t have a master’s degree or a doctorate in some ministry field, you are marginalized or ignored by most church organziations. Having walked with Jesus your entire life is secondary. (End Commentary Break).

Verse 15. But when they had ordered them to leave the Council, they began to confer with one another, verse 16, saying, “What are we to 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. Verse 17. But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let’s warn them not to speak any longer to any person in this name.” Verse 18. And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

(Commentary Break): Even when faced with the truth, the rulers, elders,  scribes and the high priests moved to silence their opposition. Ritual and tradition given priority over the Word and Works of God. Today, there is a global effort through false religions and the world Marxists-Globalist movement to do the same: They command us not to speak or teach at all in the Name of Jesus!

(Many are being threatened in churches even in America today, that if you ever preach salvation through Jesus, alone, or If you preach the Gospel of Jesus in those churches, you will never preach in them again. They have turned away from the Word of God. I know from firsthand experience. I continued to preach sin and salvation, Jesus and the Cross, until I was expelled). (End Commentary Break).

Verse 19. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, make your own judgment; verse 20, for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Verse 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; verse 22, for the man on whom this miracle of healing had been performed was more than forty years old. Verse 23. When they had been released, they went to their own companions and reported everything that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. Verse 24. And when they heard this, they raised their voices to God with one mind and said, “Lord, it is You who MADE THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE SEA, AND EVERYTHING THAT IS IN THEM, verse 25, who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Your servant, said,

‘WHY WERE THE NATIONS INSOLENT,

AND THE PEOPLES PLOTTING IN VAIN?

Verse 26. ‘THE KINGS OF THE EARTH TOOK THEIR STAND,

AND THE RULERS WERE GATHERED TOGETHER

AGAINST THE LORD AND AGAINST HIS CHRIST.’

Verse 27. 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, verse 28, to do whatever Your hand and purpose predestined to occur. Verse 29. And now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant it to Your bond-servants to speak Your word with all confidence, verse 30, while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.” Verse 31. And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

Sharing among Believers

Verse 32. And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. Verse 33. And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. Verse 34. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales verse 35, and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each to the extent that any had need.

Verse 36. Now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement), verse 37, owned a tract of land. So he sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

(Commentary Break): Verses 19 through 37 speak for themselves. (You can click here for commentaries. To review all the verses, just scroll verse to verse). But the pattern had been established. The preaching of the Gospel and the unity within the Church, created unparalleled and exponential growth, despite the severe and deadly persecution that followed. (End Commentary Break).

It is very apparent that the Church in the twenty first century is sorely divided, even fractured. But this is part of the Plan of God to perfect His Creation and prepare The Bride of Christ for His return. Like in the early days of the Church, in these Last Days, God will once again allow His Church to go through a period of deception and severe persecution as found in Daniel 12:10, when “Many will be purged, cleansed, and refined, but the wicked will act wickedly; and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand”. This is being  and will continue to be accomplished through the increasing intensity of Tribulation Seals ONE through FIVE, (also known as the Birth Pains of the tribulation; see Matthew 24:8), which were inaugurated at or around the time of the Birth of Jesus.

Please pay close attention to what has occurred and will soon occur through the Acts of the Apostles as the demonstrate our way to unity and safety in Christ Jesus!

Your Brother and Friend,

Mike Young

PREVIOUSLY: THE BOOK OF ACTS – Chapter 3, Healing the Beggar, Peter’s Second Sermon.

NEXT: (coming soon). THE BOOK OF ACTS – Chapter 5, Ananias and Sapphira, Imprisonment and Release, Gamaliel’s Counsel.

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