The Acts of the Apostles 64

Subtitle: Just Who is the Prisoner?

Acts 16:25-34.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on November 19, 2023.

Have you ever noticed that there are some people who have a lot of things, but they are never thankful?  We all wrestle with this, but some people are especially bad in this area.  They are always complaining that they don’t have that, or that they do have this, or that something happened, didn’t happen, etc.  They tend to only see what they don’t have, but even this is not their problem.

Imagine all the things that you don’t have, but that you also don’t want.  I can think of all manner of things that I do not have and I thank God that I don’t have them.  How many bad things could have happened to me today that didn’t? 

Our title today asks the question, “Just who is the prisoner?”  There are people who have very little, but some of them are the most thankful people you will ever meet.  In fact, we tend to do one of two things when we run into them.  We may be impressed, like being around them, and try to be better at it.  Or, we may be annoyed by them, and do what we can to avoid them.  I ask the question because we don’t always know who is mentally imprisoned by things.

Being a prisoner is more about your mind than it is about the external circumstances.  Richard Wurmbrand was a Christian pastor in Romania when the communists took over.  He was imprisoned for standing against the communists.  Eventually, he was released and he came to the United States of America in order to exhort American Christians to pray for the persecuted Church throughout the world.

I mention this because we are often too fixated on what we don’t have, here in the land of plenty.  People elsewhere would be thankful for even 10% of what we have.  What about freedom?  Would we remain faithful to Jesus if we lost our freedoms overnight?  Would we complain that God doesn’t love us, or that “it doesn’t work”?

Let’s look at our passage and may the Lord help us to be a thankful people.

Paul and Silas end up in a prison in Philippi (v. 26-34)

Paul had cast a demon out of a fortune-telling slave.  Her owners used their power and relation to the people of Philippi to abuse Paul and Silas by having them beaten and thrown into prison. 

We do not know exactly what time they ended up in prison in stocks, but our passage picks up at midnight.  Here, we find Paul and Silas praying and singing hymns to God.  That may seem unlikely to most.  Of course, they were badly beaten and are not able to sleep.  What else do you do in such a case?  They were having a bad day.  Still, they look to God for help, but also to praise Him.

When your day is surrendered to Jesus like theirs was even the bad things will have something good in them  It is not like God causes them to be thrown into prison.  There are plenty of bad actors who do not like them.  There are enough sinners around you to put you in prison.  We don’t need to blame that on God because He allows it to happen.

We need to stop looking at God like a micromanager who is the direct agent behind everything that happens in life.  Of course, God takes full responsibility for the universe that He has created, but that is not the same thing as being primarily responsible for sinful acts.

Bad things can come into our life because of the sin of others, and it can come into our life because of our own poor or sinful choices.  We are in a sea of sinful choices that causes difficult and troubling things.  Yet, in the midst of that, God promises to help us if we will trust him and live for Him.  In fact, sometimes it is the “bad” stuff that does the most good.  Think about Jesus on the cross.

We are also very bad at defining what is good and what is bad.  There are many things in my life that I once thought were bad, but there was a blessing in them that I couldn’t see at the time.  God has shown me over time that they were not nearly as bad as I thought, and they were a lot better than I gave them credit for.  The next time you think that you are having a bad day, then think about this. Remind yourself that you are really bad at defining things.  Maybe this day isn’t nearly as bad as I feel like it is right now.

We need to let God redeem our thinking.  If you suffer for doing the right thing (like Paul and Silas were doing), it is not because God hates you.  No, He loves you, and He wants you to keep faith through it.

They are awake at midnight because God is their only hope and their only joy.  They may be in chains, but their minds are not in chains.  Our greatest chains are the ones in our minds.  May we learn to trust Jesus and throw off such chains.

Paul and Silas couldn’t sleep so they talked with God about their situation.  When you can’t do anything, that’s a good time to pray.  There is no prison that can keep you from praying.  It can only influence you not to pray.

What are some of the chains that keep us from praying?  We can let chains of anger towards God keep us from praying.  Why is this happening to me?  Yet, imagine if God did this to us?  What if God followed His anger and demanded of us why we were doing this to Him?

We can let chains of fear bind us.  Paul and Silas could feared that their going to die in that prison and that no one who had power cared for them.  But, that is not what they did.

They could have let chains of despair drag them down.  Why is God doing this to us?  We have served Him so well, and now this!  This isn’t worth it; I quit!  I’ve done all of this work for nothing, and God doesn’t care!

One of the greatest tests for a believer is suffering in one form or another.  Suffering tests our faith far greater than anything else.  Weak faith is easily stripped down in the furnace of affliction.  What if you lost everything in your life?  Would you be able to continue serving God, loving Him, being thankful?

Yet, the Bible tells us that God is in the furnace with us.  He has promised to work all the things we are going through for a good purpose, at least if we are one of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).  Ephesians 1:11-12 says that He “works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.”

Stories about heroes always sound amazing because they are about someone else.  But, what if it was me?  We have too many examples in Scripture to doubt that God is worthy of our praise even in persecution, or to doubt that He doing something good through it.

Sin is like chains.  It starts out small and is easily broken, but over a long period of time and continued sinning, it becomes thicker and thicker.  Soon, we are at its mercy and unable to get free.  Paul and Silas were not in bondage to sin, and thus, they were able to praise God in a tough situation. 

There are also chains of fleshly desires, the chains of being praised by others, and many others.  Don’t wait until they are so strong that you can’t get free.

At midnight, we are told that an earthquake shakes the jail and the chains break free of the walls and floors.  The cell doors open and Paul and Silas are freed from the stocks.  We don’t know if the shackles broke free from their hands.  The angel did this for Peter in Acts 12.  Sometimes God answers us sooner than we think He will.

I would not venture to say that most prayers are not answered right away because there are so many prayers of our heart and spirit that we cannot keep track of them all.  Yet, at least in the area of things that seem big in our mind, we can tend to prepare ourselves to settle in for the long haul.  You may pray for years for some things, months for others, days, etc.  Of course, how many Christians in history have ended up in prison due to persecution, and yet were not set free by God that first night?  The answer is most of them.

Our hope is not in how quickly God answers our prayers, but in the fact that He always answers.  If the situation doesn’t change today, then I need to remain faithful to Him, and remain a faithful light.  Waiting on the Lord is never easy.  However, His timing is always good, and we can trust it.  Even for those who perished in a prison, God did not fail them.  At the resurrection, they will rejoice that their prayer was finally answered!

We must also be careful of seeing the earthquake itself as the answer.  It is only part of what God is doing.  How long did they contemplate what to do?  Or, did they immediately ask God what they should do?  Does God want us to run?

I believe that Paul understood that God was doing a special work that would aid the Gospel in Philippi.  So, when it came down to it, he remained in his cell waiting to see what God would do next.

The story moves to the jailer.  After the earthquake, he is sure that the prisoners will escape.  There is one rule of a warden in charge of securing prisoners.  You guard this man, these men, at the risk of your life.  The warden despairs of any hope of finding the prisoners so he draws his sword in order to take his own life.  Paul and Silas can either see him outside the dark prison, or they hear him draw his sword and figure out what is going on, or perhaps the Holy Spirit tells them what is going on.  Regardless, they stop the warden from killing himself by ensuring him that they are all still in the prison.

At this point, the warden, shocked at all that has transpired, trembles and asks what he must do to be saved.  Wow, that is a turn around. 

We need to always remember that our worst days can become our best days because of Jesus.  The last 24 hours were not on Paul and Silas’ top ten favorites of ministering for the Lord, at least not yet.  They were in excruciating pain while they prayed and sang to the Lord.

We should note that even before they were released the prisoners and the warden could hear them praying and singing.  No doubt, they had pegged these men for loony bins, but your in prison.  The content of their prayers and songs would have resonated in their minds.  Who are these strange guys?  How can they be hopeful and praiseful in a time like this, in a place like this?

Whether Paul and Silas realized it or not, they were living out a sermon that night to a whole prison full of men who needed Jesus, even the jailer.

Sometimes God lets things happen in our life because other people are watching us, and He wants us to be a witness to them.  This is a holy moment when men who have been beaten for serving Jesus cry out to him in prayer and praise.  Those men were witnessing a holy moment.

Paul and Silas tell the jailer, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”  How did he know to ask for salvation?  Perhaps, it is from the content of their prayers and songs.  It may also be from the stories about the fortune-teller slave that was freed from a demon.  She had said they would declare the way of salvation.

Regardless, he is given the way.  We can sometimes make salvation much more complicated than it needs to be.  It all boils down to faith in Jesus.  If you keep your faith in Jesus, then everything else will be worked out.  Jesus will lead and help you.  Jesus has given this man powerful witness through Paul and Silas.  He will help him forward even when Paul and Silas are gone. 

Impact is good, but it cannot take the place of Jesus.  Thank God for people in your life who have impacted you and influenced your life for God, but in the end, keep your eyes  upon Jesus.

When they say that his whole household will be saved, it is not saying that he can believe for them.  Rather, he is in a pivotal position for the people of his household, family members and slaves.  Salvation is a personal work that impacts the world around us, starting at home.  Paul may have simply meant that his salvation would no doubt bring about the salvation of the home that he leads (i.e., the normal progression and not necessarily a guarantee).  However, he may actually be speaking prophetically.  It may be that the Lord is showing Paul that this man’s whole household will be saved.  Yet, this doesn’t change that they will each need to put their faith in Jesus, just like this jailer.

Several things happen in the dark early morning hours.  Paul and Silas spoke the word of the Lord to him and his household.  The jailer washes the stripes on their backs, which had been left unattended.  He and his family are all baptized.  Wow, what a day!

This jailer in one day went from being normal to being suicidal to being joyful.  Just who are these prisoners?  And, just who was the prisoner?  Paul and Silas didn’t act like normal prisoners because they knew that they were still free in all the ways that matter.  The served the Lord of Freedom.  Whereas, this jailer who was not in prison, was the one who really needed to be set free from the judgment that loomed over his head without Jesus.

The next time you are tempted to complain about your situation ask yourself this question.  Just who is the prisoner here?

Prisoner audio

The Acts of the Apostles 50

Subtitle: The Fallout of God's Help

Acts 12:12-19.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on August 6, 2023.

I have used the term "Fallout" because it features the repercussions or consequences of powerful actions.  When God acts, it is more powerful than a nuclear bomb, and yet more controlled than them as well.  Thus, it is much better than a nuke.  Still, there are powerful consequences to all involved when He gives His help- helpful to some and as devastating as a nuke to others.

The Bible makes it clear that God will eventually do something that sweeps aside all of the great power of man regardless of the period of time in which we live, or the part of the globe in which we live.  People have always been born and raised in situations of powerful governments and people that appear unlikely to ever change.  You can live your life and die without them changing. 

To our limited minds it appears they are immovable.  However, take heart.  God is doing something that is bigger than you, than a family, than a nation, a republic, or a world.  He will step in and judge the wicked at some point in a powerful act of His Sovereignty.

This can be hard on our faith in between the time of suffering and God's help.  Yet, in countless many little ways, God helps us even in times when it appears that the wicked are untouchable.

When God sweeps away their power structures and authority, it is a source of rage and frustration for the wicked, but it is simultaneously a source of joyful amazement for the people of God!

Let's look at our passage.

The believers are astonished (v. 12-17)

Peter has been freed from prison by an angel of God. As is often the case with prayer, God can astonish us simply by doing the thing for which we are praying.  This surprise can be because of the quickness of the answer, or because it is answered at all.  There is a level of weak faith in this matter.  However, this is not the hardened unbelief of the lost.  Rather, it is a remnant of our close connection to a lost world.  We grow to expect certain things from God, just as we do from certain people.  This doesn't make a person a failure as a Christian, but rather a human in need of God's grace.

The believers of Israel in the first century were not used to angels helping people out of jail.  So, in one sense, we can give them grace.  God was on the move with powerful works and they were not used to it.  However, in another sense, we can see that they have had three and half years of the miraculous ministry of Jesus followed with about ten years of God doing powerful things through the Apostles of Jesus.  Perhaps, they should be softly rebuffed with the response, "Ye of little faith!"

The believers who had been praying for Peter would have presumably been praying for God to spare Peter from execution and enable him to be released.  We can pray things with our mouths that our heart does not expect to happen, i.e., "It would take a miracle...and God hardly ever does that."  Sigh. 

Let us always remember that the simple thing and the impossible thing are both easy for God to do.  God isn't sparing with miracles because they are hard to do, but because they don't always help our faith. Yet, I think that God enjoys astonishing believers from time to time.  He likes to give us surprises from time to time.

Our sanctified minds are not perfect at analyzing God's purpose and plan.  With the execution of the Apostle James, it may have appeared to them that God had finally moved them into martyr-mode.  Others had been killed, but the apostles had been spared up until now.  How quickly our faith meter can rise and fall based upon what we see on the ground.  As the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 5:7, "We walk by faith, not by sight."

Finding himself in the street at night, Peter naturally goes to a place where believers would gather.  In those days, this would often be the home of a believer that was large enough to accommodate a bigger group.  One of those places in Jerusalem was the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark.

By the way, there are a lot of women in the New Testament named Mary.  It can be hard to keep them clear.  There are at least six or seven with three different Mary's at the cross when Jesus died.

The believers were in the habit of gathering together and praying together, especially when there was trouble like Peter being in jail.  It is important for us to develop the discipline of praying for one another, but also to pray with one another.  Such a disciplines will serve us well in times of difficulty.  If you wait until trouble hits to reach out to others and try to pray, you will be less likely to do so, and do it effectively, when it comes.

Thus, we should have intentionality in our prayer life.  I don't want to pray only when I feel like it, or I think I need it.  In truth, we always need to pray alone, and to pray with others.  God help us to develop a disciplined relationship with Him through prayer.

As Peter knocks on the door of the gate (verse 13), a young girl named Rhoda answers.  She is so excited about it being Peter that she neglects to open the door and let him in.  She runs into the house and tells everyone that Peter is at the gate.  However, they think she is crazy.

When we are not inclined to believe something, we will grasp at every alternate explanation that we think is more believable.  However, the only evidence they have is that someone claims that Peter is currently at the door of the gate.  Rhoda, who is probably a teenager, claims that Peter is at the door.  She has seen him.  Yet, they say that she is crazy.  The word literally means that she is beside herself.  Of course, their only evidence of her being crazy is that she claims to have seen Peter. 

Think about it.  It is one thing to be skeptical and want to see for yourself.  However, if you were not there when Rhoda claims to have seen Peter, you can't use that as evidence of her being crazy.  You are the one who doesn't know anything.  You have to investigate.

Of course, because she insists that Peter is at the gate, they then change their charge to the idea that she has only seen "his angel."  What do they mean by this?  It is most likely a reference to his spirit, i.e., he must have been killed at the jail and we are being visited by his spirit.  Angels were spiritual beings and the term was sometimes used for all spirit beings by extension.  It is also possible that they are thinking it is Peter's guardian angel.  But, why would the angel look like Peter, and be at their door?

They have put forward the statement that Rhoda is either crazy or has seen Peter's spirit, but in no way, has she seen Peter.  We may not believe everything that everyone says, but we should be careful of making pronouncements about things that we did not see.  You should go and check it out yourself, or hold your peace.  By the way, this has led many an atheist to Christ (checking it out for themselves).

God is not stuck in your boxes.  I am the servant, and He is the master.  We should walk more humbly among one another than that.

Peter, of course, is still at the gate and continues knocking.  He has escaped from prison, and is now standing in the street in the middle of the night.  If the guards come looking, they will find him easily.  The believers finally open the door and now they are astonished.  There is some irony here.  They thought that Rhoda was mad, but now they are "astonished."  This word means to stand outside of one's self, but it didn't have the connotation of actually being crazy.  It meant something more like being amazed at something that seems incredulous.

No matter how much faith you have, you are still a human being who is mortal and framed in by limitations.  However, God isn't.  When He moves, it is often mind-blowing even to His people.  If you think about it, even just the normal activity of God's creation is amazing.  On top of this, He does astonishing things when we are not expecting it.  God has made astonishing promises to believers that are easy to talk about, but do we really believe?  The general resurrection of believers into immortal bodies seems incredulous to 21st century humans, but it is God's promise to the saints of every age.  Prepare to be surprised, and astonished!

Yet, if God could spring Peter with an angel, why not James?  That is the question isn't it.  Why does God do what He does, and not do what He doesn't do?  You will never be satisfied with an answer in that area.  Besides, from another perspective, we could say that James has been promoted to the side of Jesus, but Peter has been left on the earth to continue working.  James' testimony is that Jesus is worth dying for, and Peter gives the same testimony.  Yet, he is spared this time.

It is the privilege of the people of God to be amazed at the grace and mercy of God.  It is our privilege to be amazed from time to time as we pray for God's help.  We can shout together, "That's our God!  That's the One that we've been talking about!"  Let us praise our amazing God, and our amazing Savior!

After explaining all that has happened, Peter tells them to let the other apostles know that he has been freed, and then leaves.  This is one of those "underground church" lessons.  They would be looking for Peter at any time.  The first place that the gestapo will look is at the homes of your known associates.  We must be wise as serpents, but harmless as doves.

The wicked are frustrated (v. 18-19)

We will now look at how God's activity affects the wicked.  Of course, the wicked are always upset when God helps the righteous.

We are told that there is no small stir among the soldiers.  When they awakened and saw that their prisoner was gone, they knew this was a matter of life and death, theirs.  This was the day that Herod intended to try Peter, and execute him, no doubt.  Guards were always under threat of death for losing a prisoner, but especially a prisoner like Peter who "disturbs the Roman Peace."  They would have only so much time to look for Peter and then they would have to come clean to Herod.  They would not be able to sweep this under the rug.

Herod is finally told.  Verse 19 says that Herod searched for Peter and couldn't find him.  Of course, this means that he sent people out to search for Peter.  When they came up empty handed, Herod interrogates the guards and then has them executed.  He who lives by the sword shall die by the sword.

Man's military operates much like a machine.  It is very methodical and all about function.  It is not a place of grace and mercy, but of harsh realities.

Though military language is used of believers in the New Testament (i.e., the armor of God, spiritual battle, etc.), God is not a man trying to act the part of God.  Of course, this is what generals, kings, and presidents do.  God is not desperate for you to never fail.  He can afford to have mercy and grace upon those who are more than His spiritual warriors, but are also His children.

This brings us to a principle.  When you are on the wrong side of God, you had better get used to frustration and rage.  Herod ends up with egg on his face and doesn't like it.  He sends a message to the other soldiers through the execution of the guards, and he sends a message to the people of Jerusalem as well.  This is no laughing matter.  Herod will not be made into a spectacle!  He may suspect that the guards had to have helped Peter escape.  Regardless, he is finding out the hard way that it is no fun to be fighting against God.

We are told that Herod then goes down to Caesarea.  It was no longer fun and rewarding to go after these Christians in Jerusalem.  It was fun for a time, but then God stepped in.  Yet, not all of the enemies of God's people are so easily dissuaded.  It is not always fun for believers either.  Yet, we always have the confidence that our God loves us and is working all things for our good.  He fights our battles!

This is the destiny of all the wicked, to be frustrated, and at the mercy of the cruelty of one another.  We could even say that Herod is "beside himself" in anger.  Yet, there is coming a day of great shame and loss for the powerful people of the earth and their armies.

Believers must once again take hold of the truth that God has not given this world to the wicked.  It may appear so, but it is only temporary.  They are taking advantage of God's grace and mercy.  Yet, they will be judged in the end.

God has particular judgments throughout history in which things changed overnight that people though would never change.  On top of this, God has a final day of wrath that will bring this Age of Grace to a close.  What will we choose, desperate frustration and shame, or the joy of amazement as our Savior steps in?  Those who choose the Lord Jesus will not be put to shame in the end!

Let me end by reminding us of the War of Independence.  When the united colonies won their independence from Great Britain, it was a big deal, a judgment of God.  But, it is a drop in the bucket to what Christ will do when He comes back to liberate humanity from the usurpers and their sycophants.  We must choose which side we will be on.  Some will always choose the side of the wicked against God.  Yet, in His mercy, He has given us this Age of Grace so that men can choose.  Choose this day who you will serve!

God's Help audio

The Acts of the Apostles 49

Subtitle: Will You Die for Jesus?

Acts 12:1-11. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on July 30, 2023.

Our title asks a question that can either be extremely uncomfortable for an American Christian, or it can be something that is so unreal that we don't give it the full gravity it deserves.  In other words, we can be quick to discount it because we think that we will never face such a thing.

My goal today is two-fold.  First, I believe that the point is not whether you would ever face martyrdom for Christ, but that you would have such a spiritual relationship with Christ that you could walk into the valley of the shadow of death and fear no evil.  Even if God were to reveal to you that you were going to die for Him, it still takes faith and trust in God to walk forward and say, "Whether I live or die, it is all for the Lord!"  Yes, this is easier said than done.

Second, I believe that this question is itself at the heart of being a disciple of Jesus.  The word martyr actually means a witness.  In English, we connect it to those who are killed for their faith because that person is giving the ultimate witness of the worthiness of Jesus.  Yet, you cannot serve Jesus without dying to your own fleshly desires.  In this way, all Christians are called to die for Christ while they are alive.  Discipleship is continually facing this question.  Is Jesus worthy of my devotion to His leading?

On top of this, all saints will eventually die, and the biggest question will not be what took their life, but whether they lived their life as a witness of the love of Christ.  Our life needs to be a witness of the salvation of Jesus regardless of whether we are martyred or die in our sleep at home.  This is why Jesus tells us that we need to pick up our cross and follow him.  People who die for things really believe in them.  God helps us to be a people dying to our fleshly desires for the sake of Jesus.

Let's look at our passage.

The Apostle James is martyred (v. 1-4)

Luke explains another attempt to remove the apostles of the Church of Jesus.  This time it is by "Herod the king."  Initially, persecution came from the religious leaders and was imprisonment with threats.  It was the death of Stephen that took that persecution to a lethal level.  Saul of Tarsus hunted Christians down and brought them before the Council.  This seemed to fizzle out after his conversion in Damascus.  This introduces another serious persecution that seems focused upon the apostles themselves.

We know that this happens roughly 11-14 years after the death of Jesus because of the mention of Herod the King.

It is hard to keep track of the mixed up Herodian family, and what parts of Israel they are ruling over.  Herod the Great was alive at Jesus' birth and died several years later.  His kingdom was split up into four parts among his sons, but intrigues led to a soap opera like movement of who ruling what.  After Herod the Great's death, there was only one person during 3 years that could be called "Herod the King," and that is Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great.  He ruled shortly over all the parts of Israel from AD 41 to AD 44.  By the way, his son, Herod Agrippa II, is the Herod we will meet later in Acts 25.

Herod Agrippa started by ruling over a small city north of Damascus, but through his connection to several Caesars, he was given control of parts of Israel incrementally from AD 38 to AD 41.  Thus, he had rapidly rose from obscurity to Jerusalem to king over Israel.  In fact, some saw this as a possible restoration of the Kingdom of God to Israel.  It would be short-lived.  In three short years, it would fall apart again.

We are not told why this new king of Israel would seize James the apostle and execute him with the sword.  He is summarily dispatched in the span of two sentences.  James was one of the top three disciples with Peter and his brother John.  He should not be confused with James, the brother of Jesus, who didn't follow Jesus until after the resurrection, and is the writer of the book of James.

It is interesting that the three disciples closest to Jesus had such a variety of experience.  James is the first of The Twelve Apostles to be martyred.  He served as such for about 11 to 14 years.  Whereas, his brother, John, lived over 60 years after the death of Jesus.  He was the last of all the apostles to die.  Peter was in the middle, being martyred around 30 some odd years after the death of Jesus.

With the mind of flesh, we might ask which of them God loved the most.  Of course, they had argued so much about which of them was the greatest.  Is James the most loved because God took him home first?  Or, is John the most loved because he lived the longest?  Of course, you could make a case for both, but I think the question misses the point.  God loved them all, and their relative lengths of life have little to do with how much He loved (loves) them.

We will also see that there is no move to replace James as one of The Twelve like they did with Judas.  Judas did not serve the purpose for which God was calling him.  Whereas, James did fulfill his post.  He had given witness to his nation and to the Church about the identity and worth of Jesus, the Christ.  Why God only had him work about 14 years, Peter over 30, and John over 60, is an unknown to us.  Yet, they were taught directly by Jesus, and empowered directly by the Holy Spirit as gifts from Christ to the new believers.  They would help to ensure that the Church was founded upon a solid and true foundation by teaching and writing down the words of Christ.  No one needed to "take their place, or position," after they were gone.  They all finished the work that God sent them to do.

It reminds me of the parable of the workers.  Some men are hired to work for the day, but more workers are needed.  The owner hires new workers several times throughout the day, even hiring some to work the final hour of the day.  When they were being paid, the owner starts with those who worked one hour and gave them a whole day's wage.  This cause those who worked all day long to think they might get more, but instead they were paid a day's wage.

We need to understand that the labor of the Lord for each of us is not about mere numbers.  God does not need to maximize all He can get out of us.  Why is He not more protective of highly effective workers?  Why do some lazy Christians live long lives?  Historically, it is common for men and women who are spiritually powerful in the work of the Lord to die early.  We have stories of missionaries who traveled to Africa to spread the Gospel and were killed in the first year.  Yet, their witness broke open the Gospel in those areas.

When we became a believer, we didn't know all that the Lord would have us do, and what He was calling us to.  We can look at a person who dies at a young age and think that it is tragic because of what they could have done for the Lord had they lived longer.  We should be careful of this kind of thinking.

God has a purpose for each one of us that is important no matter how long it is.  However many days I may have to work for Him, it is my job to be faithful to the end.  The range between all of the Apostles dying was about 50 years.  Yet, each one of them would step into the presence of Jesus and hear the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant!"  The worrying about who is the greatest and will sit closest to Jesus is all gone in that moment, as you look into the glory of Jesus and are no longer in the flesh.

So, James is quickly killed, and little is made of it.  It simply was.  There is a story that surface in the early A.D. 300's by Christian bishop and historian Eusebius.  He relates that James actually led his guard to faith in Christ.  The guard was then executed along with James.  Whether this is true or simply a legend, James had done his part faithfully, whether we have all the details or not.  How many people have served the Lord and there is no book to recount their exploits.  Yet, the Lord knows those who labor for Him, and He will reward them fully!

We are told that Herod noticed that his execution of James "pleased the people."  Because of this, he proceeds to arrest Peter, intending to execute him as well.  However, it happens to be Passover week.  Therefore, he plans to hold Peter until the feast is done. 

Herod is a political creature of Rome.  He knows that he has to please the people enough to keep them peaceful, but in the end, he really has to please his Roman overlord, Caesar.  The leaders of this world have to become good at playing this tension between the people and their overlords, both in the natural and in the spiritual.  To them, people like James and Peter are merely fodder for their political intrigues.  We do not need such politicians.  What we need are people who are willing to be servants of the rights of the people, rather than serving their own flesh.  Yet, for all of their politicking, it really does come down to what God decides.

We can become so focused on the actions of politicians that we lose sight of the reality of what really matters.  "O, no!  Herod has executed James.  Now he has Peter.  O, woe is us!"  In fact, up until these verses, God has protected the apostles.  It is possible that the Christians had begun to think God would never let them be killed.

Herod Agrippa is actually falling into a classic trap of his abuse of power.  His arrogance in the face of God will only lead to his dishonor and demise.  Yet, his execution of James only gives him greater honor before Jesus.  We must resist the fleshly temptation to be fixated on what the powers of government do, rather than focused on pleasing the Lord Jesus.  He has the final word in all things!

Peter is freed from prison (v. 5-11)

In verse eleven, we see that an expectation had been built up.  Everyone knew that Peter was in prison, and that Herod planned to do to him what he did to James.  I'm sure there was much anticipation during the Passover feast and then the week of Unleavened Bread.  I'm sure they couldn't wait for Passover to finish so that they could see the spectacle. 

I pray that  you can hear me when I say this.  How many people are saying in their minds, "I can't wait for church to finish because there is something more exciting that I want to do."  Who cares about the old ritualistic traditions of our forefathers?  We just want to see something spectacular.  Yet, we forget that God has an expectation too.  We can be guilty of looking down on the things of God, whether in Israel or in the Church, and lusting after things that are actually in rebellion to His will.  O, how we need to seek God for a change of heart, a heart that is not lusting after the things of the world, but strongly desire the things of God.

Whereas James was summarily executed, Peter is going to be freed from prison, protected by God.  Yet, it is interesting that God let Peter stay in the prison until the night before he was to be brought before Agrippa and the people.  We don't want to read too much into the timing, but we should at least talk about the dynamics here.

What is God doing in this delay?  He could have set him free on day 1, but He waits until the last day.  He may be letting Peter sweat.  Maybe, this is more a time of intimacy.  The Lord could have revealed to Peter what He was going to do, but it doesn't say.  After the martyrdom of James, Peter could have wondered if it was his time.  As each day went by, he may have become convinced that he would be executed and surrendered himself unto God's will.  We just don't know.

This is where we need to learn to discipline of calming our hearts before the Lord in prayer.  It is typically the questions, the things we don't know, that agitate us and fill us will anxiety.  Why wasn't James released?  Why did God have Peter stay in prison to the last night?  Why is Peter released?  We can keep asking such questions that are all about why God does what He does.  However, it will not bring us peace.  The wisdom of God is so far above us that we can only receive glimpses of its glimmering glory.

Thus, the best thing that prayer can do for us has nothing to do with getting answers to all of our questions.  Rather, it is through prayer that we humble ourselves down before the Lord so that we can receive the strength to do for Him what He would have us do, what our flesh doesn't want to do.  Therefore, when you are in times of trial, and you do not know what God is doing, quiet your questions and fears before Him in prayer so that you can receive the strength to do His will.  The nice thing about being in prison is that you have tons of time to pray, to work things out with the Lord.  For James, it was to die in honor to Jesus.  For Peter (at least this time), it was to be set free by God in honor of Jesus.  May God help us to patiently serve Him as He leads us.

During Peter's incarceration, God's people are constantly praying.  We should not make too much of this, nor should we make too little of it.  Did they not pray for James?  Perhaps, James death happened before anyone knew about it, i.e., there wasn't time to pray.  We can latch onto the concept of constant prayer as the answer for everything.  We can then turn it into a mechanical lever to get what we desire from God.  Prayer is never about logging in hours, or impressing God with our unceasing devotion to saying things to Him.  It is about relationship.

Therefore, we must not look down on this privilege of the children of God to seek His favor in certain things that we are facing.  We should not quit praying because God did not answer in the way we hoped, in the way we asked Him to do.  Prayer has an element of wrestling with the Lord and discovering His purpose in the things that confront you.  Jesus tells us to pray, to ask.  The Word also says, "You do not have because you do not ask."  We need to be an asking, seeking, people, but not just seeking the answer that we want.  We are ultimately seeking the heart of God as we ask for specific help.

The best prayer always ends with a surrendered recognition that God knows best how our lives can bring glory to the cause of Christ.  And yet, this should not cause us to refrain from asking for specific things out of a false piety.  Wrestle with the Lord!  You may come out limping, but there is a blessing in it.

Notice that Peter is sleeping on the night of his trial, and sure death.  Lord, help me to be a man who can lay his head down to rest on the night of his execution.  I believe that Peter has prayed as well.  He has found a place of rest and peace in his soul in the midst of a turbulent time.  Do you remember the time when Jesus was sleeping in the boat during a storm?  Jesus wasn't afraid.  He was at peace with the Father's will.  Yet, Peter and the other disciples were desperately afraid of the storm.  Here, we see Peter demonstrating that he has not only seen things about Jesus, but he has also learned some things from him.

In the middle of the night, Peter is brusquely  awakened by an angel.  He is chained between two soldiers with two more at the cell door.  These men are supposed to be awake.  What are the chances of four guards all sleeping, as well as those who should have been guarding the outer part of the prison?  This is a supernatural sleep that has come over them.  A bright light is shining upon Peter as he gets up and dresses to leave, the chains simply fall from his wrists as he stands.  Multiple barred doors would be passed, but Luke especially mentions the iron gate that opened into the city from the prison.  These open of their own accord before Peter and the angel.  As they turn down a street, the angel is gone and Peter realizes that it wasn't a vision, or a dream.  It was real, and he was free!

One thing happens with James and a very different thing happens with Peter.  Even with Peter, God could have delivered him by any number of things.  Yet, it happens through, what we would call, a supernatural intervention.

I have entitled this sermon, "Will you die for Jesus?"  This can be a question of your faithfulness.  Would you choose Christ in the face of the threat of death?  Would you lay it down as an offering for His glory, and as a witness of Him to others?  Yes, we celebrate as we read that Jesus is worthy to open the scroll.  However, it is quite another thing to think that he is worthy for me to let go of the rest of my life and suffer death for his cause.  There are Christians all across this world today who are making such choices.  Sometimes you are not even given a choice.  It just happens, as we see in some of these attacks on churches.  Yet, Jesus is worthy of it all!

A cynic may ask what kind of God would ask such a thing from His followers.  However, that question can be turned around.  What kind of humans would put God in the position that the only way He could save us was to become one of us, and then sacrifice His perfect life for our sakes?  Jesus is the One who has loved us to the greatest degree.

It is not that God wants us to be martyred.  Rather, this is where sin leads us.  Back in the Garden of Eden when He told them not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they wanted to know anyways.  Knowledge here has the sense of an experiential knowledge.  We had to know for ourselves.  As much as our flesh likes sin, our flesh doesn't like the consequences of sin, where it takes us.  The moment of pleasure perhaps is fun, but then there is the payment of the results of the decision.  Those who live for the pleasures of their flesh pay a high price because we were not designed to live solely for pleasing the flesh.  Thus, we destroy ourselves and the people around us through our sin.  Sin leads to these kinds of places where people seek to put other people to death, or at least subjugate them.  They were putting to death people who are only trying to do good things.  How horrible is that?  The same is happening today all around this world, these united States included.

The title of this sermon can also be read as a question about God's will.  Has God decided that I will be a martyr for Him, or will I live a long life and die in my bed at home?  Of course, as a general rule, we don't know what our end will be.  Did God favor Peter over James?  Did God favor John over Peter?   These are questions of a weak faith.  No, God loved them all.  Yet, His purpose had differences within their lives.  Thus, by a manifold and glorious witness, the Church will show forth the great glory of Jesus Christ to the nations.

May God help us not to fear His decisions over our life.  I'm reminded of the song, "Lord, Don't Send Me to Africa."  It is a humorous song, but there is truth in it.  A man who doesn't want to serve in the nursery, will do so simply to avoid something that he thinks is worse, i.e., going to Africa.  In many ways, we can be a church that is telling God that we will serve him in all these ways that we want.  Be careful when you find yourself telling God the ways and places where you are willing to serve Him.  Yes, He could send you to the place you don't want to go, but He could also just pass you by looking for someone who is serious about serving Him.  Without saying it out loud, we have all kinds of limitations on what we are willing to suffer to follow Jesus, and it will not serve us well in the end.

Perhaps, the American Church is getting exactly what it has been asking for without realizing it.  We can tell God that we want revival, but our hearts are really saying that we want exciting services that conform to our comfort level.  God could care less how great our music sounds, building looks like, and soft our chairs are.  O God, we will serve in any way possible to keep having fun services, but just don't send us to (fill the blank for yourself).

Think about those who sign up for the military.  They all go to boot camp, and then, they receive training to be fighters.  However, when they get in the foxhole during a battle, some have the mettle to face it and some do not.  No boot camp and no human training can put that mettle in you.

What is the difference between courage and cowardice?  I believe that at the root of it is faith.  Not faith that we can't be harmed.  Cowards are not able to do the right thing by trusting God.  Whereas, a courageous person knows they might die.  Yet, they go forward in faith that it is better to die in honor than to die in dishonor.  They are not looking to die.  In fact, they work hard to avoid dying.  Yet, the situation becomes harder and harder, narrower and narrower, until you find yourself between that rock and a hard place.  There you are.  O Lord, help me not to be a coward, but instead, to bring you glory through courage.

Let me close by reminding us of Philippians 4:6-7.  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

The real attack in life is not about Herod executing James, and then seizing Peter.  The real attack is what such things do to our hearts and minds.  Satan wants to bully you into the coward position.  He wants to get between you and Jesus in any way possible. 

This is why taking up your cross is so important.  In the end, all Christians are martyrs (witnesses) for the Lord.  We all are called to daily lay down our life and follow Jesus, whether life or death.  No saints of the past are alive today.  They all lived their lives and then laid them down for Jesus, whether in their beds or by a tyrant's sword.  Only a person, who has lived a life of crucifying their flesh to live for Jesus, will  be willing to die for Jesus because that is what they have been doing all along.  May we learn to die daily so that regardless how the Lord chooses we should die, it will all be for His glory!  Amen!

Die for Jesus? audio

The Acts of the Apostles 28

Subtitle: Stephen's Defense IV

Acts 7:30-36.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on December 18, 2022.

We have been looking at Stephen’s defense before the Sanhedrin, although he is actually on offense here.  Last week, he reminded them about the rejection of Moses. 

Today, we are going to be reminded of the fact that God later sends Moses back to Egypt to serve as His representative.  He would be used first to deliver Israel from their bondage, and second to bring them to their promised inheritance.

Deliverance in God is not just about getting out of trials and difficulties.  We cannot say, “God get me out of this difficulty,” and then, “I’ll take it from here,” after He delivers us.  God is a deliverer, but He is not AAA.  Of course, if the AAA guy tries to tell you how to live your life, you will remind him that you are only paying for him to tow your vehicle to the shop.  However, with God, there is always a positive thing that God is bringing us towards when He delivers us out of difficult things.

Let’s look at our passage.

Remember that the rejected Moses came back to lead them out of Egypt (vs. 30-36)

Stephen calls to their attention that the rejected Moses is sent back to Egypt to lead Israel out of slavery.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why he would be pointing this out in light of the events surrounding Jesus. (The backdrop to this found in Exodus 3-4).

We last saw Moses hightailing it out of Egypt because Pharaoh has put his picture on the Top 10 Most Wanted List in all of Egypt’s post offices (just kidding about the picture).  At 40 years of age, Moses flees from Egypt into the Sinai and then keeps going into what we would call northwest Saudi Arabia, the land of Midian in those days.

The Midianites came from a man named Midian.  He was the offspring of Abraham and his marriage with Keturah, whom he had married after Sarah had died.  The several sons that he had with her were given gifts and sent eastward so that they would not interfere with God’s promise to give the land to Isaac.

Moses meets a “priest of Midian” named Reuel, and also called Jethro.  He marries one of Jethro’s daughters and has two children.  It is 40 years later (Moses would then be 80) that God shows up to call him back to Egypt. 

This part of the life of Moses is skipped over very quickly.  In fact, this happens a lot in the Bible.  Sometimes Christians can wonder why God doesn’t do something supernatural everyday in their life, but we forget that even biblical prophets sometimes felt the same way (see Habakkuk 3:2).  God does do amazing supernatural things from time to time, but He also is with us in the in between times of routine.  It is there that we live out the faithfulness of trusting Him.

In fact, human beings were not created to be in a frenetic state of excitement all of the time.  It would kill us.  So, we serve God greatly during the times of routine, even if it doesn’t seem to be something great to us.

This brings up another issue.  If the only thing you ever do is marry and raise a family to replace yourself in the next generation with the torch of faith, then that is a great thing.  Think of how many people have failed to do this, and have even caused the fall of people from believing God.  We can be very poor at seeing what is really great.

We don’t really know where Moses received his understanding of God.  Was it all from the bush forward, and directly from God?  Or, is it possible that this priest of Midian, his father-in-law, still held to the faith of Abraham his ancestor?  There is no way to know.

Let us notice that the call of God upon Moses began long before he could show himself faithful to God.  God did not spare the child in the basket because his faith was so strong.  Yet, there comes this time as an adult where God comes knocking, and Moses is going to need to respond with faith.  It looks like Moses was a little shaky in his faith.  At one point, he even tells God that the plan is great, but that He should do it with someone else.  So, what is the key to responding in faith when God comes knocking?  The key is to live a life of faith during the routine times.  It may seem like God isn’t doing anything, but nothing in our life goes to waste with God.

The forty years of being trained in the wisdom of Egypt in the house of Pharaoh and the forty years of learning to be a husband, father, and shepherd in the desolate wilderness would be important parts of God’s preparation in the life of Moses.  Don’t get me wrong.  Everything you are going through is important for you right now, but it is also preparatory.  We are not generally told why God allows us to go through what we do, but God will not waste it in the end.  God often uses the routine times to build in us the greatest thing that we can have and that is faith in Him.  So, let’s be faithful today.

At 80 years of age, Moses has a spectacular event.  The Angel of the Lord appears to him in the middle of the wilderness in a burning bush.  It is clear that he is not intending to go back to Egypt, but God has different plans.  Don’t you just love it when God has plans other than what you have?

It is not a burning bush that draws his attention.  I have read that bushes on fire are a common thing in that area.  However, this bush is not being consumed by the fire.  This is what causes Moses to go over and see what is up with this bush.  It is then that he finds out that this is no normal bush and it is no normal fire.  It is the Angel of the Lord.

This picture of a natural thing on fire by God and yet not consumed is an important one.  It is a good picture of how God made human beings.  Our God is a consuming fire, and yet, He created us to be filled with Him and yet not be destroyed.  Of course, our fallen, mortal state does need to be resurrected in order for us to be perfectly fit to dwell in the presence of God.  However, even in our mortal state, God has made us to be capable of being filled with His presence and displaying His glory without dying.  Two things operate together to make this possible.  First, there is His work of mitigating, or moderating, His powerful glory.  However, there is also our faith in Him.  God is to be feared because He does not suffer fools.  However, the believer who trusts in Him does not need to fear that God’s presence will consume him.

This also connects to the Day of Pentecost.  The 120 believers had tongues that looked like fire come down and set above their heads.  They each became a bush on fire from the presence of God, and yet not consumed.  Quite the opposite, they become a source of life.  They are not a big Redwood, or a Cedar of Lebanon, but rather just a simple bush on fire of God.

The cross itself is the most ignoble tree of the earth, and yet the Son of God hung on that cross as the fire of God’s wrath came down upon him.  The cross is a place of consuming and Jesus did die.  Yet, he was not destroyed because He is the Lord of life.

This angel speaking from the bush is no normal angel.  It is the Angel of the Lord.  This passage in Exodus is one of the classic passages of demonstrating that this angel is unique from all of the others.  Though he is an angel (messenger), he speaks as if he is God.  In another place, God refers to this unique angel as having His Presence within him and having His Name upon Him.  Some scholars of Israel before the first century would even refer to this as being a Visible Yahweh versus the Invisible Yahweh.  It was a way of God accommodating Himself so that people could see and interact with Him.  Of course, this Angel of the Lord could only be the Lord Jesus Christ.

Regardless, the Angel tells Moses to remove his sandals because he is on holy ground.  The idea of sacred space is huge in the Old Testament.  You don’t just walk into sacred space without making sure you have permission and do it in the proper way.  To us moderns, it may appear that God is creating arbitrary barriers to approaching Him, but it is anything but arbitrary.  We are taught to be very careful how we treat holy things, things set apart for God’s purposes, as opposed to the common things that are for our own purposes.  Christ makes us holy and shows us how to humbly approach God the Father in prayer.  This space is not holy because of its coordinates on the earth.  It was holy because God was there.

This brings up another issue.  What are God’s holy things?  Do you not know that you were made to be a holy, sacred space, for God?  Do I treat my life as a common thing to do whatever I want, or do I recognize that I am a holy person set apart for His purposes, and so I should be careful what I do?  How many Christians tell themselves that fornication isn’t so bad because many people are doing far worse in this world.  Yet, this excuse will not stand us in good stead.  We should not fool ourselves that God won’t care.  The only way to fix this is through repentance and faith in Jesus.  This can cleanse us so that we can go forward.  When the temple was defiled, you couldn’t just say, “Oops!” and then just continue on with sacrifices.  They would have to stop and cleanse the temple before they could resume service to God.  For Christians, we must listen to the conviction of the Holy Spirit, instead of grieving Him, and repent before the Lord while putting our trust in the way that Jesus shows us to live, in Him period.

The Lord also let’s Moses know who is talking to him, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Moses hides for fear of dying from seeing God, but God instead reveals to Moses a new name for Himself.  He is to be called Yahweh, The Being One.  In the past, He is the Being One; in the present, He is the Being One; in the future, He will still be The Being One.  All things that exist find their source in The Being One.

Following this, the Angel has a message of deliverance for Israel.  Three phrases are given by Stephen to represent God’s message:  I have seen their oppression; I have heard their groaning; and, I have come down to rescue them.

Have you ever doubted that God saw your difficulties and heard your cries?  Have you doubted because He didn’t come down and rescue you in the past?  This is part of the faith that we are called to have.  Imagine how many Israelites died in slavery before this moment.  A generation passed away in liberty and then finally a generation will see deliverance.  Is this fair?

We don’t always understand the timing of God, but know this: He always sees and hears, even if He doesn’t come down to rescue.  Death itself is a type of rescue that takes the righteous into the presence of God.  I doubt that in the Resurrection those who experienced deliverance in Egypt will grouse over those who didn’t.  This kind of thing becomes irrelevant in light of eternity because they all had to have faith, whether waiting for deliverance, or being delivered. 

So, why does God wait for deliverance?  First, it calls for us to learn humility, which is an essential part of imaging God.  Some would emphasize that none of us deserve deliverance, but I think this misses the point.  There are things that we need to learn and experience before we are delivered.  This is true as individuals, or as a nation, or as a world.  God’s timing optimizes His grace with our ability to learn.  God sees you and He has a day of deliverance for you regardless of how your trial goes.  In fact, the cross itself is God declaring, “I see you; I hear you; and I have come down to save you!”  In some ways, Moses is a type of Christ, but in this burning bush episode, he is a type of us coming to the cross and receiving a revelation of who God is.  There as the wrath of God burns upon the Son of God, He tells us that He sees us and hears us and will save us.  Yet, this burning God/man is asking you to participate in His deliverance of others!

Did God need Moses to deliver Israel?  Why is God in Midian convincing Moses to go to Egypt?  God technically doesn’t need us in the sense of our abilities, but He does need us in the sense that He created us to bear His image.  No father needs their son to come and work with them.  The boy isn’t good at it and often gets in the way.  But, a father also needs, or wants badly, for his son to grow up and become a man like He is.  Of course, we will never be Gods like our Father is, but we can participate in His divine nature as Sons of God.  God often waits because it is the only way we will ever learn to become like Him, and He calls us to join Him in the deliverance of others (as well as ourselves) because He wants us to learn to become like Him!

Stephen emphasizes that God sends Israel a deliverer that they had rejected, “the Moses whom they disowned.”  If they wanted to be delivered, then they would have to get behind Moses and follow him.  There would not be another.

Moses would become a savior and a ruler over them because God chose him.  However much Moses had been trained to lead, it is not he who would do the heavy lifting of saving Israel and bringing them to the promise land.  God would do the great wonders and signs.  Whereas, Moses is His representative.  Even surviving in the desert is not mainly at the ability of Moses, but the provision of God.  The ruling of Moses is mainly him explaining the laws that God had legislated.  The ruling, and saving, of Israel by Moses is overshadowed by the Angel of the Lord, the true Savior and Ruler of Israel.  Moses was simply a mediator.

This is the tension that exists between being called of God and yet not to do it in our own wisdom, strength, reason, etc.  Sure, our past is preparatory, but not always for us to do what we think.  Many times, our training helps us understand that God is working due to the contrast.  Ultimately, we must be prayerfully making decisions and asking God for wisdom. 

Are not our people in slavery today under the Pharaoh of this world?  Can we not hear the Holy Spirit saying that He sees, hears, and has come down?  Who among us will choose to labor with God?  Perhaps today, He is intersecting your life and calling you to come with Him to work for the souls who are held in bondage to sin in this world.

Defense IV audio