MARCH 2, 2025 - "What Shall We Do" Acts 4:1-22

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This morning we'll be in Acts, chapter 4.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

We're getting Acts, chapter 4 today.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

I don't know if you you remember the movie Field of Dreams.

In that movie, field of Dreams, it's a movie about a man who was a farmer in Iowa and he took up a significant portion of his farm to build a baseball field because of a dream that he had.

And he went and then the movie is about this man reconciling a relationship or seeking redemption in a relationship with his father and he goes through all of these different adventures throughout the movie while doing that.

But there's a significant part in the movie.

Towards the end of the movie the bank is about to foreclose on his farm and they're trying to get him to sign some papers.

His brother-in-law works for the bank and they're trying to get him to sell the farm and he won't do it.

And then towards the end of the movie, one of the characters played by James Earl Jones, he stands up and makes this speech and the speech begins with people will come Ray.

And then he goes through and I wish I could use my James Earl Jones voice that I don't have and won't even try to use.

But the end of that little monologue he says this the one constant through all the years, ray, has been baseball.

America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers.

It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again, but baseball has marked the time.

This field, this game, it's part of our past, ray.

It reminds us of all that once was good and it could be again.

Oh, people will come, ray.

People most definitely will come.

As I was studying this week and preparing for this message, that movie came to my mind, especially that phrase people will come, ray.

Oh, people will most definitely come.

As I was studying for this passage, though, the phrase similar to that in my mind came this will come church.

Oh, most definitely, persecution will come.

See what we see, that in our passage today.

Let's remember what, what has happened in Acts so far, especially the last in chapter three.

In chapter three, peter and John, they enter into the temple and they come across this lame man sitting by the beautiful gate and as they pass by him, they stop and they talk with him and this man, this lame man, is healed by a continuation of the work of Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, through Peter and John, and, as the people saw, this man had been healed, they go out to Solomon's portico and Peter begins to preach a message, a message of faith and repentance to the people who are there.

And then we come to chapter four, and what we're going to see in chapter four is that, because of this sermon, because they preached about Jesus, peter and John are going to be arrested.

They're going to be arrested because they were preaching Jesus.

You know, today I hear so often where people say to me Grant, I don't know why this happened to me.

I was doing everything right, I was reading my Bible every day and I was praying every day and I had never been closer to God, I'd never felt closer to God.

And then this thing happens.

Whatever this thing is is and what we need to recognize is is just because we are living in obedience does not mean that trials and persecution won't come.

Peter and John are most definitely living in obedience and persecution comes to them.

They experience this persecution, but here's what we're going to find in them Even in the midst of that persecution, they remained witnesses, they continued to bear witness.

And so, as we approach this passage today, what I want us to see and the question that we want to answer is is how did Peter and John respond to this persecution?

And as we look at how they responded to this persecution, maybe we can find some things to help us remain witnesses.

But listen, we just sang some songs and I wasn't planning on doing this, but but it just struck me as I was, as I was sitting there singing, and then I stopped and just just listened, hear some of the songs, some of the things that that that we sang about.

We sang this morning that God would keep us safe, you know, and when, when we pray that we pray that all the time for God's protection and for God's safety.

But here's the issue.

Okay, understand this.

Safety according to the Bible, is not necessarily safety as we think today.

It's not when we think protect me and keep me safe.

If I was Peter and John, I would say protection is don't let me go to jail.

But when we pray for safety and when we pray for protection, really what we're praying for is another little line that we sang is that if I have been redeemed, let me sing a song forever to the Lamb.

Whether I'm in prison, whether I'm being persecuted, whether I'm going through trials, whether I'm going through everything, god help me find joy.

Another another line from a song help me find joy in the chaos and safety.

Bibl is not that nothing bad would ever happen to us.

Safety in the Bible is that we would never fall away from the one who has redeemed us.

Oh God, keep us safe.

And as we see Peter and John today, as we see their response to persecution, maybe it will help us to understand and help us to see how, even though we face persecution, we can still remain witnesses.

So let's read together in Acts, chapter 4.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

If you'll stand with me this morning as we give honor to the reading of God's word, we're going to read a long passage it's 22 verses this morning.

But let's stand and read together Acts, chapter 4, verse 1.

Acts 4:1

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, but many of those who had heard the word believed and the number of men came to about 5,000.

On the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with Annas and the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander and all who were of the high priestly family, and when they had set them in the midst, they inquired by what power or by what name did you do this?

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 well before you, as this Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone, 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.

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.

But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.

But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 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.

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.

So they called them and charged them not to speak or to teach at all in the name of Jesus.

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, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.

And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way.

Let's pray together, god.

Thank you for today and thank you for your word.

Change is forever.

Because of your word, jesus.

It's in your name we pray.

Amen.

You may be seated.

So understand what's happening Again, peter and John.

Peter had just preached the sermon and while they were there, while they were in the temple, it says verse 1 says as they were speaking, so Peter's not done, peter's preaching, and they come to arrest him and they don't let him finish.

See what's happening.

He while, as he is speaking.

They come in and they arrest Peter and listen to how they why they arrest him understand the capital of the captain of the temple.

And the Sadducees came to them greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

They hadn't broken any law, they hadn't broken a rule.

There was nothing officially illegal that they had done.

He had stood and he was preaching the resurrection because of Jesus, because Jesus had resurrected from the dead.

We will be resurrected from the dead.

They're preaching that in Jesus' name, resurrection is coming.

And it annoyed, annoyed the people.

It annoyed the leaders Not the people listening, but it annoyed the leaders, leaders.

So they came and they had them arrested just because they annoyed them.

But they arrested them and and I need you to understand this before we really get into to to their response to this but but they arrested them and they just they're going to, we're going to into this, but they're just going to ask them to stop.

They're going to ask them to stop preaching in Jesus' name.

Listen, it's all they can do.

They can't deny what has happened.

We're going to see it in a little bit, but you look there a lame man, man who is lame.

He's walking around.

Not only that, there's Jesus who's been resurrected and there there's not one time a denial of what has happened.

All they're doing is asking them to stop preaching in Jesus name, and they can't.

They're not going to because they are witnesses of Jesus.

So the question that we want to answer is how did Peter and John respond to this persecution, to what was happening?

Well, I think this passage, or I've arranged this message today around two questions, two questions that we find in this passage today.

The first one is in verse seven.

It says this and when they had set them in the mist, they inquired by what power or by what name did you do this?

This question was asked directly to Peter and John and we're gonna see how they respond to this question and understand how we can respond in times of persecution.

The other question that we find is later in the passage, and it happens in verse 16, when Peter and John had been dismissed and it's just the Sanhedrin together and they ask this question.

They say what shall we do with these men?

Now, while this question is not directly asked to Peter and John, we are going to see their response to this question to see how we should respond when things aren't going our way.

So so what was their response?

Well, first, this first question.

Let's address it first, in verse 7, that when they asked, by what power or by what name did you do this?

Let's see where Peter and John are at this point.

They've been arrested, they're in prison.

They spend the night in prison.

The next day the rulers come back to question them.

This ruling body is not Roman rulers, it's not political rulers.

It is religious leaders who have come to question them.

We would call them the Sanhedrin.

This group is made up of several different people, but one group that is in this is the Sadducees.

The Sadducees are.

There are some things we need to understand about them.

They are usually the aristocracy of the religious leaders, and there's some things they would deny.

They would deny the teaching of the prophets, holding only to the law, to the first five books, to the Torah.

So if the prophets had said something, they're not holding that as high as scripture, it is just the law alone they would deny demons.

They would deny that there are angels.

They would deny that there is immortality and they would deny that there is a resurrection.

Immortality and they would deny that there is a resurrection.

So this, that's one group that is here.

Another group that is is with them is the Pharisees.

The Pharisees are are more generally liked by the common Jewish man, by the common Jewish people.

They do believe in the, the prophets, that the prophets are pointing to a Messiah and they spoke for God.

They do believe that there is going to be a resurrection from the dead.

They do believe that our souls are immortal and will live forever.

They do believe that there are angels and that there is spiritual warfare and demons, and they do believe in these things.

And so this group of people has come together to question Peter and John, but there's also some others who were there.

It says that there is Annas, the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John and Alexander.

Now, this is kind of a side, but let's understand who they are.

We've seen them before when we were in the Gospel of John.

I don't know if you remember seeing them, but in the gospel of John not too long ago, we saw Annas and Caiaphas.

And here's what we know that Annas was not, at this point, not actually the high priest.

Caiaphas was.

Caiaphas was actually the high priest.

So why would it say that Annas is.

We talked about it in John.

I don't know if you remember this, but when we were there, annas was kind of viewed as the power behind the position and he's got several sons Caiaphas is his son-in-law that are going to serve as high priest down the line and people, people believe people hold Annas lost his position because Rome threw him out, not the Jews.

Rome threw him out of the position of high priest, rome appointed Caiaphas, so most Jews believe that Annas is still actually the high priest.

Caiaphas is just sitting in the seat, but both are very powerful people among the Jews.

Another is John.

Many commentators believe here that John and Annas had a son named Jonathan and many think that John here that is listed as his son.

They don't really know who Alexander is, but most will say this we know that he was of the high priestly family.

Peter and John are being questioned by very important people According to Jewish religion.

Again, I said this was a side note, but an interesting thing here.

Peter and John have been very close to the presence of Caiaphas and Annas before.

Do you know when, when Jesus was being tried, they brought Jesus to the house of Caiaphas and I don't know if you remember, but but John went in and he came back and he got Peter and they were in the courtyard.

And it is in in the courtyard of Caiaphas, when they are questioning Jesus before his crucifixion, that Peter denies three times that he was one of Jesus' followers.

But he didn't deny him straight to Caiaphas, he didn't deny him straight to Annas, he denied Peter before a servant girl and before common men in the courtyard.

But here Peter doesn't stand before a servant girl, he doesn't stand before just Caiaphas, he doesn't stand before just Annas, he stands before the Sanhedrin and they are questioning him about Jesus.

And you know what he does he bears witness to Jesus.

My question is what has changed?

I think a couple of things.

One, we've seen Peter be forgiven by Jesus.

And two, peter has been filled with the Holy Spirit, jesus.

And two, peter has been filled with the Holy Spirit and so no longer does he deny any longer, but he is filled with the Holy Spirit.

When they ask them then, by what power, by what name do you do this?

It says in verse eight.

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them Now, let's understand this.

What we're saying here, does scripture mean that Peter has filled again?

He's already been filled with the Holy Spirit right On Pentecost, and I told you that the difference in Pentecost with the Holy Spirit is that he came and he stayed with believers.

So when it says in verse 8 that he was filled with the Holy Spirit, does it mean that he is filled again with the Holy Spirit?

I don't believe so.

I believe it means he has been filled with the Holy Spirit and he is still filled with the Holy Spirit.

But guess the difference?

Now he is yielding to the Holy Spirit.

So as the Holy Spirit moves, as Jesus told him, the Holy Spirit would lead them all into all truth.

He is yielding to the Holy Spirit who has filled him and he begins to stand up and he begins to proclaim and preach Jesus.

So how does he respond to this question?

In what name do you preach?

How does he respond to this persecution?

He preaches Jesus.

Here's what he says about.

Jesus says rulers, people and elders of.

If we are being examined today concerning the good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man is healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ.

By the name of Jesus Christ and then skip down to the end of verse 10.

It says by him.

This man is standing before you.

Well, peter is pointing to the fact that it is not because of him and we we saw him do this back in verse 12, that it was not because of his power, it was not because of Peter or John's power, it was not because of Peter or John's piety that this man had been healed.

He had been healed by Jesus and it was a continuation of the work of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit through Peter and John, the work of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit through Peter and John.

And so he comes and he begins by saying this man, he is standing here, he is standing well before you because of the work of Jesus.

And then he begins to proclaim Jesus and he says this this Jesus whom you crucified, this Jesus whom you crucified.

We've seen him say that already, just just just the day, the day before, when he was preaching in solomon's portico.

In verse 14 of chapter 3 he says but you denied the holy and righteous one and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and you killed the author of life whom god raised from the dead.

To this we are witnesses.

Understand, and Peter is pointing it directly out to them.

Listen, don't blame it on Rome.

Pilate was going to let him go, but you, you asked for a murderer.

You asked for a murderer in his place and you, it was because of you Jews, that he was put to death, that he died.

And listen, while I understand that we've talked about this, that I understand that it is they hold guilt for the for for the crucifixion of Jesus, and I'm not taking that away from them.

Listen, I also need to need you to understand that guilt lies with us as well.

Jesus came as the sovereign plan of God to die for sinners.

Of what Paul says and what I would agree with myself, of which I am the worst, I am the chief Peter came to.

Jesus came to die for sinners.

He was crucified because of my sin.

He was crucified because of my sin.

He was crucified because of your sin.

And while, yes, we bear responsibility and we bear guilt for the crucifixion of Jesus, we also need to understand I've said it, I feel like I've said this week after week, but I need you to hear this Jesus was no victim, though.

He laid down his life Because the plan of God that was fixed before the foundation of time, that he would come and be our Messiah and would be our Christ and die for us.

And he says this Peter, this Jesus whom you crucified, but then he says this whom God raised from the dead, raised from the dead.

Understand that the resurrection.

The resurrection separates Jesus' crucifixion from all other crucifixions that had happened in Rome.

I had the opportunity to visit Israel I may have told you this before when I was at Mississippi College, and while there we went to Caesarea Maritima, which is in the north part of Israel, and it was where Roman rulers would have stayed and that, and while there, they showed us this stone that that had been been excavated, that archaeologists had found, and it was an inscription by Pilate.

Where they were talking to Pilate and someone asked him if he remembered Jesus of Nazareth whom he crucified, and he said a young man from Nazareth, I don't remember him, which astounded me, but here's what it tells us crucifixion was normal in Rome, it happened often.

The crucifixion of Jesus, yes, it was unique because he took upon himself the wrath of God and no one else crucified had ever done that.

But it was also unique because of this.

While Jesus was crucified by man, he was raised by God.

Crucified by man, he was raised by God, listen.

And all they had to do to disprove Christianity right here at the outset, right here at the beginning, all they had to do was disprove the resurrection.

If they could have produced the body of Jesus and said, said look, here's the body, he's dead.

Christianity is snuffed out Before the church ever begins.

They couldn't produce a body.

Now they're going to claim.

The Jewish leaders are claiming that it was stolen.

But you know what they know in their heart of hearts it was not stolen.

They know this.

They know that he had not, his body had not been stolen, and all they had to do was produce the body.

But they couldn't.

Not only could they not produce a body, people had seen Jesus, many people had seen Jesus and were bearing witness that not only was he crucified, but that he now lived and that he was living.

All they had to do was prove this one little point.

Yet they couldn't, because God had raised him from the dead.

So why?

Why did they not accept this?

Why did they not move on from this?

Well, he tells us in verse 11.

In verse 11,.

He quotes Psalm 118, verse 22, and he says this this Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.

Psalms 118:22

Why did they not accept If they knew that Jesus' body wasn't stolen?

Why could they not accept this?

If there are multiple, multiple witnesses who had seen Jesus alive?

Why could they not accept this?

Because they had rejected Jesus.

They had constantly and continually turned away from him and they had rejected him, but not Peter and John.

Peter stood and he preached, and he ends his sermon with this In verse 12.

And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which men must be, by which we must be saved.

Listen, that salvation is not salvation from persecution.

That salvation doesn't mean life doesn't get hard.

That salvation means that we now have a relationship with Almighty God, who will walk with us forever.

Almighty God, who has saved us from our sins, who has saved us from our sins, who has saved us from our transgressions, who has taken us from being dead to now being alive.

And there is no other name, no other name under heaven that can save us but Jesus.

How did they respond to this question.

They continued to point to Jesus.

They didn't back down and they didn't bow out.

They continued to point to Jesus.

Second question here, hold on.

You know what let's do, because I got a lot on this second point, because I got a lot on this second point, let's put a pin in this and come back next week, because I don't want to rush through it and I think it's important for us to hear.

So let's close here.

Listen to me.

I don't know where you are today, but if you've never trusted Christ as your Savior, I need you to hear what Peter just said.

Let me read it to you again from the words of Scripture 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.

Listen, if you've never trusted Christ as your savior, understand that you are dead in your trespasses and sins.

And Jesus was crucified because of your sins.

You sent him there, I sent him there, I sent him there.

But he is no longer dead because God raised him from the dead and because of that resurrection he now can offer us life, and that is the salvation that he has offered to us Life in his name.

Not life, necessarily, that doesn't get persecuted, but life that, in the midst of persecution and in the midst of chaos, finds joy, finds peace, finds hope.

And if you've never trusted Christ as your Savior, I invite you today to do so.

Maybe right now.

If your life, if you are in the midst of persecution Listen and persecution is different, because I doubt that there's anyone in this building that's going to walk out of these doors and proclaim Jesus and be arrested Not here, anyway.

Let me tell you what there are people all across this world that if they walked outside this morning and declared the name of Jesus and that he was crucified and arose, guess what?

They would be arrested.

And so our persecution may look differently today, but understand we are still persecuted and understand that we still face spiritual warfare as well.

We face a persecution from the enemy and he makes it look like chaos and he makes it come.

He sends it in trials and in tribulations, and we face things every day in this chaos.

And listen, salvation doesn't mean that we're not gonna face trials and persecutions.

Salvation is that means that in the midst of those trials, in the midst of those persecutions, in the midst of the chaos, we find joy, we find hope, we find peace, and this morning, if you are in the midst of that chaos and you feel like hope is gone, turn to Jesus.

If you've trusted Christ as your Savior and life is overwhelming, hear me turn to Jesus.

You have been filled with the Holy Spirit.

So maybe, like Peter, you just need to yield to the Holy Spirit and find peace and hope and joy.

I'm going to pray for us.

They're going to come in and we're going to sing a hymn of invitation as we are singing.

If you have not trusted Christ as your Savior, we're inviting you to come and trust.

Come down.

We will pray, we do.

There are counselors who will take you out, share with you how to trust and follow him.

If you have and you just find in the midst of this chaos that you feel like giving up, that hope is lost, listen, I encourage you to come down.

Let us pray with you, let us walk with you through this.

Or maybe you just come to need to kneel at these steps and make them an altar and cry out to God and yield to him.

If you're looking for a church home, as we sing this hymn of invitation, we invite you to come Unite with us here at DeSoto Hills.

Let us journey together.

However, god is leading you.

As we sing this hymn of invitation, invitation, we invite you to come and make a decision for him.

Let me pray, god.

We thank you for today and we thank you for how you love us.

God, we ask you that today, in the midst of this invitation, father, that you will be honored and glorified.

God.

We pray that today, right here, in the midst of this invitation, father, that you will be honored and glorified.

God.

We pray that today, right here in this midst, as Spirit, you are working and moving among us.

As you are calling people to salvation, god, they will answer that call, as you are calling people to repentance and confession, father, we pray that you will give them the faith that they need to answer that call.

And, father, we pray that you will give them the faith that they need to answer that call.

God, we ask you to move and work as only you can.

We love you, jesus.

It's in your name we pray.

Amen, stand with us.

We have a decision to make.

Now is the time.

Thanks for listening to this week's sermon.

If you have any questions for our pastor, feel free to reach out at desotohillscom.