Acts 4 - Be Bold With Your Testimony!

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Peter and John Before the Sanhedrin

The religious leaders were not happy that Peter and John were preaching about Jesus' resurrection. They thought they had effectively eliminated the threat of Jesus when they killed him. Note, their preaching and teaching centered around the resurrection of Jesus, as it should today. They seized them and put them into jail because it was evening. Amidst the persecution, the church grew from 3,000 to 5,000 people. The church often grows not declines in times of persecution.

The next day all of the religious leaders plus Annas, the high priest, and his family brought Peter and John before them. They asked them, "By what power or what name did you do this?"

We don't know if they were genuinely curious or trying to trap them. It was probably the latter.  

"In their thinking, the power resided in the name, because the name represented the character of the person." - Guzik

Peter, filled by the Spirit, responded by telling them that if they were asking him how the lame man got healed it was by the name of Jesus. Jesus further added that when they rejected Jesus, they had rejected the cornerstone in whom the whole building held together. 

Then, they made a very important statement, 

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” 4:12

This is z bold claim that Jesus is the only way ond may be saved and delivered from sin, death, and the power of the devil. The term "salvation" means both "healing" and "deliverance". It is being set free. While we would all like to think that "all roads lead to heaven", the bible doesn't teach that. We know God is loving, merciful, and fair, but that people won't face consequences for rejecting Jesus and is offer of forgiveness and salvation. 

If someone wishes to believe that all are saved or that there are many roads to heaven or that one can take the best of all faiths and blend them into one; fine. Believe so and bear the consequences; but please do not claim this is the teaching of the Bible.

Personally, I focus on the Good News that God wants all people to be saved. This is why God sent His Son, Jesus, to save the world. God loves all people equally and desires nothing more than they be saved and live with Him for eternity.  He sent His only Son not to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. As Paul said, 

"I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die." - Galatians 2:21

The leaders were at a crossroads. First, these men were not unschooled, as they presumed they would be. They spoke as educated men, who had been discipled by Jesus. It was clear the man standing there among them had been healed just as the apostles said. So as a middle ground, they thought they would just warn them and forbid them to keep teaching in Jesus' name. 

Peter and John replied that it was more important for them to obey God than man. They said,

"As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

What a great statement!  They could not stop speaking about Jesus' resurrection. Evangelism isn't a program, it is Christians speaking about what they have seen and heard. This is why we call it a testimony. While it is important to be able to give a reasonable explanation of the Christian faith, your testimony is probably more important. People might be able to argue theology, but they can't explain away your testimony or change Jesus has made in your life.  Your story is yours. It is yours to share in the power of the Holy Spirit. Don't let anyone silence your voice!

The Believers Pray

When Peter and John returned to the believers and reported all that had happened, they started praying. They remembered from Psalm 118, where David prophesied the rulers and kings of the world would rise up against the Lord, and His anointed one (Jesus). In this case, the actors were Herod, Pilate, the Jews and Gentiles, who all conspired to kill God's anointed one. But God allowed them to have the power to arrest and kill Jesus, because it was all part of His plan to save the world. 

Then, they asked the Lord to give them great boldness to preach in power and do many signs and wonders in Jesus' name. After they finished praying, the place they were meeting literally started shaking. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke boldly in Jesus' name. 

They were given an earthquake as a unique emblem of God’s pleasure. We don’t know the extent of the shaking; it may have been confined to the house itself. - Guzik

The same power that shook the house now lived in them. Do you realize the great power you have when you pray both individually and corporately with other members of the body of Christ? 

The Believers Share Their Possessions

One of the most powerful aspects of this new community of believers was how they viewed their money and possessions. I think we could learn a lot from them on this front. Not only were they one in heart and mind, but also shared with anyone in need by giving their stuff away. Those that could give more, gave more, and those who could give less, gave less. 

They continued to preach about the resurrection, and God worked powerfully through them. It says that even those who owned land or real estate would from time to time sell it and give the proceeds to the church to distribute to those who needed it. 

"This radical giving was absolutely necessary to meet the needs of this rapidly growing church. Remember, many of these Jerusalem Christians lived as refugees from abroad, having responded to the gospel on Pentecost." - Guzik

Have you ever been radically generous with your resources to help out a fellow brother or sister in Christ, who was in need?