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On May 14, 2014: Acts 1-6 The Spirit Begins To Work · Teachings On This Day On FerventWord

• You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2014. We are here this evening in the book of Acts, looking at the chapters that we read this week as we are working our way through the Bible in three years. And so we started the book of Acts this week, and we'll be looking at chapters 1 through 6. Quick introduction here, the book of Acts was written by Luke. And you might remember we spent some time talking about Luke because he also wrote the Gospel of Luke. Luke was a physician, probably the servant of a high Roman official named Theophilus, who sponsored him to be able to have the medical education that he needed and perhaps even to fund the resources he needed in order to write the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts. We also note from the book of Acts that Luke joined up with Paul in his missionary journeys. And starting in chapter 16, you can see the change where he's talking about them and they and they went here. And then all of a sudden in the middle of chapter 16, he begins to say we went here and then we went there. And so he joins with them and is Paul's companion, it seems, for the duration of the book of Acts and possibly the duration of his life. The book of Acts was written probably around 63 AD and it covers the time period from when Jesus Christ ascended into heaven until the time where Paul is in the prison in Rome. And it's about 30 years of time that are being covered here in the book of Acts. We've been in the Gospels for a while, so I'm going to continue to say the Gospel of Acts. I apologize in advance. By the time we get to Ephesians or something, I might be over that. But we're covering about 30 years of time, which is important to understand. Because sometimes as we look at the Book of Acts, we wonder, you know, how come this kind of stuff isn't happening, you know, within the church today? And, you know, maybe there's some good discussion we could have around that. But one thing to consider is that these things are taking place over a period of 30 years. Now, this church hasn't existed yet for 30 years. But as I think back of the history of this church, there's a lot of things that we could look back and see, wow, God has done an amazing work. You know, as we've just been praying for the missionaries. It's amazing how God has sent out so many to go and establish churches. God has worked miracles and such. And so understanding the context of time also helps to understand and set our expectations for how God works within the church. So it's covering about 30 years. Here's the timeline of the book of Acts. It's about 32 AD when Jesus is crucified and then he is resurrected. Soon after that, the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the church and begins the work in the church there in Jerusalem. It's a few years later in 35 AD when Stephen is martyred. And we'll see that in our reading starting tomorrow. And then we'll get to see Paul's conversion, the salvation of Cornelius' household, the first Gentiles to be saved. And then the missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul as he goes three times out onto the mission field and then is imprisoned and taken to Rome. And so that brings us then to 63 AD, which is the end of the book of Acts where Paul is in Rome in prison waiting to appear before Caesar and to proclaim the gospel to him. And so those are the things that will be happening over this 30 year period as we look at the book of Acts. quick look at the geography regarding the book of Acts. This is a picture of or a map of the Roman Empire and the book of Acts really is recording the gospel going out from Jerusalem to the Roman Empire, to the ends of the earth as they knew it. Now Jerusalem is there on the far right, the bottom right here, you can see Jerusalem. This is where we've been spending our time in the Gospels. We've just been looking at, you know, Jerusalem and the little bit north of that in the Galilee where Jesus was ministering and we've spent a lot of time there. And in our chapters this evening, we'll be spending time there as well. It'll all be taking place in that area. And But then going forward in the chapters we're reading this week and on, we're going to be spreading out further and further all throughout the Roman Empire, all around the Mediterranean Sea. And the gospel is going to be spreading and being proclaimed throughout the whole world, just as Jesus said that it would. So that's a little bit of background on the book of Acts. And now let's get started in our chapters that we read this week. And we start in Acts chapter 1. And the key verse for Acts chapter 1 is Acts 1.8. It says, But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth. In verses 1 through 3, we have Luke's introduction. And here's where we find out that it's written to a man named Theophilus. And he talks about the first account, which was the gospel of Luke. And now he's continuing what Jesus began to do in the gospel of Luke. And he's talking about the first account, which was the gospel of Luke. And is going to be carrying on through the church. And so that's what is being recorded here. Is this continuation of the gospel of Luke. And the things that Jesus continued to do through his people. Well, it picks up then after Jesus has been resurrected and he is walking around on the earth for about 40 days before he ascends into heaven. And now he's gathered his disciples together for kind of one last meeting. And he's going to be sharing some things with them and then heading up to be on the right hand of the throne of God. And so Jesus tells them here in verses 4 through 8, you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And so Jesus is ministering to his disciples, preparing them for his departure. He's leaving for real this time. At first, you know, a while back we were looking at him leaving, which was going to the cross, and they didn't understand that. And Now they have a better picture, a better understanding. And so Jesus says, okay, I'm really going away this time. And here's what I want you to do. Wait in Jerusalem. I know I've called you to go out into the world and to preach the gospel, but you're not fully equipped yet. He says, wait, and then you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. And so he gives this promise of the Holy Spirit. And the purpose of the Holy Spirit coming upon them, he says, is that they will be his witnesses. They will be empowered to testify of Jesus, to declare Jesus to the world around them. And with that promise, with that, you know, command to wait until this promise is fulfilled, in verses 9 through 11, Jesus is taken up into heaven and And there he is at the right hand of the Father, even to this day, until he comes to gather his church together, which we call the rapture of the church, and we're looking forward to that. And so he's there at the right hand of the Father in heaven. Well, then the disciples in verses 12 through 26, they decide that they need to choose someone to take Judas's place. And so they choose Matthias to take his place. Now, there's lots of discussion about this between scholars and those who study these things. You know, was this God's will? Was this God's plan? Was Matthias supposed to be the replacement for Judas? Some would suggest that the Apostle Paul was to be the replacement for Judas. So maybe they jumped the gun here and they did something that really God didn't intend for them to do. and that's not a discussion I can resolve this evening we really don't know and so there's different people who have different perspectives but in verse 24 I think it's interesting it says that they prayed as they've you know making this decision and trying to replace Judas they prayed to God and said you oh Lord know the hearts of all show which of these two you have chosen and This is one of the reasons why there is a question, because it doesn't seem that they prayed and said, God, do you want us to find a replacement for Judas? They had the idea. They came up with their best candidates. They said, okay, here's two candidates, Lord. Which of these two do you want to, you know, replace Judas? And then they cast lots, and that's how they chose. And so whether or not this was of the Lord, we can't say for sure, but it gives us a little bit of insight about how we should pray. Sometimes we limit God too much and say, Lord, which of these two things do you want me to do? When maybe God wants to do something completely different that you haven't thought of. And so limiting God in that way sometimes limits our options and perhaps limits us on the blessings and the benefits that we receive from God. Or at least, you know, leaves room for there to be some uncertainty about what God is doing. And so I'd encourage you to kind of leave the door a little bit more broad and let God direct you. When he speaks specifically, then go specifically. But also when you don't know, then don't limit God to just things that you can imagine because maybe God wants to do much, much more. Well, here in Acts chapter 1, we also get an outline of the book of Acts based on verse 8 here in chapter 1 because Jesus tells his disciples, not only will they receive power, but they'll be his witnesses in Jerusalem and then in Judea and Samaria, a little bit further region, and then to the end of the earth. And the rest of the book of Acts really records this progression of the gospel going out further and further from Jerusalem through the apostles and the work that God is doing. Here's a quick look at the map for that. So Jerusalem is right there in Israel. That's where Jesus was crucified. He's right outside of Jerusalem when he ascends into heaven. The disciples are waiting there in Jerusalem for the promise of the Holy Spirit. And then over the next few chapters, we're going to see the work that's happening through the disciples around the temple and in the area of Jerusalem. But then it's going to expand. And as we go further into Acts chapter 8, 9, and 10, you're going to see that expand into the regions of Judea, which is the southern part of Israel. And then Samaria, which was the central part of Israel. And so the gospel is going to expand and then it's going to be expanding much further very quickly after that and go out to the ends of the earth and the whole Roman Empire. And so we'll see that progress throughout the book of Acts. Acts chapter 2 now, verse 4 is the key verse. It says, So here in verses 1 through 4, the promise is fulfilled. The Holy Spirit comes upon the disciples that are gathered together in the upper room. There's about 120 of them, it says. The Holy Spirit falls upon them. They are empowered here to speak with other tongues as the Holy Spirit gives them utterances. And this is all happening on the day of Pentecost. Now, the day of Pentecost, it was one of the three required feasts on the Jewish calendar. The first one was Passover. Now it's interesting as you look at the feasts and we studied this as we were working our way through Exodus and Deuteronomy that these feasts represent things that God is planning to do. And so you have the Passover feast which foreshadowed and represented Jesus Christ, His sacrifice, the crucifixion there, as He was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And so that's the Feast of Unleavened Bread, as the sinless Messiah was crucified for us. And then you have the Feast of Harvest, also known as Pentecost. And it's here at this time, on this day, that the Holy Spirit is poured out and the church begins. It takes place 50 days after the Passover Sabbath. Whatever day the Sabbath fell during the Passover week. Then 50 days after that, that's Pentecost. And that's the time when the Lord has chosen to really begin the work of the church and baptize his disciples with the Holy Spirit. Then we also have the feast of ingathering or tabernacles. And so seeing how the first one, Passover, represented his crucifixion, then the second one represented the beginning of the church, the birth of the church, and the power of the Holy Spirit. The third feast that was required every year, Passover, Many scholars believe, and I would agree with them, that this represents the second coming of Jesus Christ, his return and what he's going to be doing in establishing his kingdom in the millennium. And so these things that we see there in the Old Testament have significance and meaning that portray and picture and speak forth of the things that are going to come in God's plan. So right now, we're 50 days after Jesus has been crucified, right? It's a few days after he has been ascended up into heaven and now they receive this promise that he gave them of the Holy Spirit. Well then in verses 5 through 13, there's a multitude that gathers together. So this is not some quiet, you know, little scene that happened, you know, in some corner. They were in the upper room, but this pouring out of the Holy Spirit was so dramatic, it took the disciples outside, it seems, because then a whole crowd gathers around. And there's this great confusion about what is going on, because there's this, well, it The people are speaking in tongues and there's this great movement that's happening. There's this great commotion and this crowd has gathered. And in verses 14 through 39, Peter gets up and he gives his first message under the power of the Holy Spirit. Throughout the Gospels, we got to see a lot of things that Peter said that were not influenced and empowered by the Holy Spirit. And there was a lot of times that he was putting his foot in his mouth, right? Well, here, Peter gets to speak this time under the influence of the Holy Spirit. And he brings forth a powerful message. And 3,000 people get saved as Peter essentially says at the end, repent and be baptized. As Peter is declaring the gospel to them, he is revealing where they're at and who Jesus is. And they come to Peter in verse 37 and say, what do we need to do? They were cut to the heart, it says. The gospel message penetrated their heart. And so they said, what do we need to do? It's interesting because we see this clearly as a work of the Holy Spirit. That God was working and reaching their hearts. Peter wasn't giving an altar call and saying, come on guys, come on up. And kind of begging people to get saved or to get right with the Lord. But as they heard the gospel, they were touched. Their heart was reached. And they understood where they stood with God and what they had done regarding Jesus Christ. And so what is it that they need to do? Well, it's the same thing that all of us need to do in order to be right with God. And that is to repent and be baptized, to turn from sin and to follow Jesus Christ. Well, this is really the beginning now of the church because 3,000 people get saved. And so the church now continues to meet in verses 40 through 47. It tells us that the church continued steadfastly. In the apostles doctrine, in the breaking of bread, in fellowship and in prayer. And so there was this new beginning of the church where the believers in Jesus Christ would gather together. And they would fellowship. They would have discussions together. They would talk about the Lord. They would encourage and help each other through the things of life and through the things of ministry and the spiritual things that they were learning. They would also break bread together. That is that they would have meals together and they would just enjoy, you know, one another's company, enjoy one another's presence in that way. They would spend time in prayer together. And so they would be seeking God. They would be praying for one another and lifting up the needs of the congregation. But they also continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine. And these things provide for us a model of the church even to this day. These are the things that we seek to be steadfast in even as they were steadfast in. The doctrine that is the Word of God, the breaking of bread and fellowshipping together in prayer. We emphasize these things for a reason because we trace it all the way back to the very beginning as these 3,000 get saved. Here is what they do. Here is what they continue steadfastly in. And so that's what we endeavor to do as well. Well, I want to take a moment and talk about this work of the Holy Spirit here in Acts chapter 2. Because there is a lot of variety of opinions and ways to discuss these things. And I like to refer to this event as the empowering of the Spirit. And I like this word empower because it gives a clear picture of what the Holy Spirit does in this way. But also it kind of summarizes the three ways that this experience is referred to. These three ways are all referring to the same thing or same event. In Acts chapter 1 verse 5, Jesus says, John baptized you with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. And so what we have, what we refer to as the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This is, you know, a powerful work of God where he immerses us That's what baptism is, the immersion of us in the Holy Spirit. Then in verse 8 of Acts chapter 1, Jesus is still talking and he says, you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. So he's talking about this event that's yet to happen. He's telling his disciples, you will be baptized. The Holy Spirit will come upon you. This is two ways to say the same thing. He's talking about what will happen in Acts chapter 2, when the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the disciples, and they are empowered, and Peter stands up and preaches the gospel, and the people get saved. And so this is two ways to say the same thing. But then in Acts chapter 2 verse 4, when what Jesus promised would happen actually happens, it's described a third way. It says, when they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. And sometimes we get caught up in discussions and there's a little bit of confusion about the different works and the different roles of the Holy Spirit. And I think a lot of times it's because we forget that these three things are the same. The baptism of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit upon you, and being filled with the Spirit... are all used to describe this same occurrence when the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the disciples there in that upper room. And so that's why I like to refer to it as the empowering of the Spirit. To kind of summarize all three of these together, this is what the Holy Spirit does. He empowers us through the baptism, through Him coming upon us, through filling us with the Spirit, so that we then will be His witnesses to the world around us. So these three things are the same. That is the empowering of the Holy Spirit. But you also might have, and there's sometimes confusion about, well what's the difference then between the indwelling of the Spirit and the empowering of the Spirit? Because there is a separate work that is different for us regarding the Holy Spirit. And so let me just walk you through these very quickly. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is received by every believer at conversion. When a person believes in Jesus Christ, then they are forgiven and the Holy Spirit begins to indwell. It's received by every believer at the moment of conversion. The empowering of the Spirit, however, is received by believers at various times. And we'll see that as we continue throughout the book of Acts in the coming couple weeks, that there's different points where people are baptized with the Holy Spirit as opposed to receiving the Holy Spirit immediately upon conversion for indwelling. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is received automatically. There's no special prayer that needs to be prayed. There's no, you know, certain sequence that has to happen. It's something that happens automatically. It's part of conversion. You cannot be born again without the Holy Spirit dwelling within you. You cannot be a child of God without having the Holy Spirit. Paul deals with that in the book of Romans chapter 8. And so there is this automatic reception of the Holy Spirit for those who believe in Jesus. The empowering of the Spirit, on the other hand, as we go through the book of Acts, we'll see that there's this asking, that there's this seeking God for the Holy Spirit that precedes this empowering. And so many times the disciples are praying to be filled with the Spirit or empowered by the Spirit, and then God does so. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is a permanent condition. It's not something that comes and goes. And if that were the case, we would be in trouble because then our salvation would come and go. The Bible talks about the Holy Spirit as our guarantee, as our seal of salvation. And that's a permanent condition that we are sealed. We have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us as believers. And so if you're having a bad hair day, it doesn't mean that the Holy Spirit has left you. You know, if you wake up grumpy, it doesn't mean you've driven him out. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is permanent for all believers. The empowering of the Holy Spirit is not a permanent condition, but it's something that is commanded to be repeated. In Ephesians chapter 5, Paul commands us to continually be filled with the Holy Spirit. It's something we actively, continually request and receive from the Lord. And then finally, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is primarily for work within the believer. The Holy Spirit dwells within us to produce the fruit of the Spirit. Galatians chapter 5, right? The fruit of the Spirit is love and joy and peace and patience and kindness and gentleness and long-suffering. These are things that the Holy Spirit is working within us to do, to give us insight into the Word of God and to develop us to be more and more like Christ. And so there's this internal work that the Holy Spirit is doing within us as He indwells within us. The empowering of the Holy Spirit has a different focus. It's primarily for reaching unbelievers. As Jesus said in Acts 1.8, you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and then to the ends of the earth. And so there's this focus and this emphasis on reaching others and testifying of Jesus Christ to the world around us that comes as a result of the empowering of the Holy Spirit. And so there's these two different aspects to the work of the Holy Spirit in our life. The indwelling, which happens automatically, and the empowering. And I think this is important for us to understand as believers because, well, the empowering of the Holy Spirit is received by asking. And there needs to be this earnestness and this desire, this request from us to God to be filled with the Spirit, to be empowered to be a witness for Jesus. Peter, as he was giving this message in Acts chapter 2, he concludes the message when they said, hey, what do we need to do? He says, repent, be baptized, and he says, you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This is in Acts chapter 2 verse 38. And then he says in verse 39 something very important. He says, For the promise is to you and to your children and to all who are afar off as many as the Lord our God will call. The promise of the Holy Spirit is not just for the apostles or not just for those disciples who are in the upper room. It's not just for the select few who serve the Lord in certain ways. He says this promise is for as many as the Lord our God will call. And so I would exhort you and I want to encourage you. And as we spend time in the book of Acts over the next few weeks, we'll be continuing to exhort you and encourage you to be filled with the Holy Spirit. That this is something that God desires for you. But as James said, sometimes we have not because we ask not. And so we need to ask the Lord. to fill us, to baptize us, that the Holy Spirit would come upon us, that we would be his witnesses to the world around us. Well, let's go on now to Acts chapter 3, verse 6 is the key verse. Verse 6 says, Then Peter said, Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Rise up and walk. Here in verses 1 through 10, you have Peter and John heal a lame man. They're on their way to the temple. They're going to go to pray as they usually do. And they come across this man who is lame from birth, from his mother's womb it says. And so he was carried there and he would beg there and seek for some kind of alms and support that he would live. And so Peter looks at him and says... I don't have any silver and I don't have any gold, but here's what I do have. In the name of Jesus, rise up and walk. And there's this great miracle that happens as this man who was lame from birth rises up and begins to walk. This great miracle happens and then Once again, there's this great commotion. A crowd is gathered because all of a sudden, it tells us that this guy is walking and leaping and praising God. And the people are beginning to notice because as they go into the temple, there wouldn't normally be a lot of jumping around and shouting and things like that. And so people are noticing, they're seeing what's happening and they're starting to recognize the guy. Because if you could imagine, they would go to the temple to pray every day, several times a day. And so, you know, these are the people living around Jerusalem, so it's easy access to them. And so they would go to the temple regularly to pray. Right? And so they would see this guy all the time because he was always there begging and looking for some kind of help and support. And so as they see him, they're thinking, hey, is this the guy? He looks familiar. You know how like sometimes you run into people and you know them, but you know them from a different context? You know what I mean? Like I know you from church, but then I see you at the grocery store and it's like, who are you again? I can't remember. And then it's like, oh yeah, that's probably what it was like because they knew him in the context of begging at the gate. But they're seeing this guy jump around and they're thinking, who is this guy? They realize this is the guy who was lame. And so this commotion begins as they recognize this guy and this crowd gathers and Peter says, hey guys, stop looking at us as if we have done this. As if this was something, you know, we're so great or we're so holy and this miracle was done because of that. He says, no, this was done by faith in Jesus Christ. And he uses this as another opportunity to preach the gospel and to declare the name of Jesus Christ. And once again, he has the opportunity to call them to repentance. And in verse 19 here of Acts chapter 3, he says, Repent therefore and be converted, I like this, that your sins may be blotted out so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. I don't know if you've ever been in a state. Well, actually, I do know. You've been in a state where there's not times of refreshing because there's been, well, this sin. Perhaps in a backslidden state or before you ever knew the Lord. And I've been there. And I know that the weight that is carried, the guilt and the burden that is there, the destruction from sin, and this understanding of refreshing that comes from the Lord at repentance. Oh, this is some glorious news for those who are under that weight. That the Lord provides this refreshing with the sin being blotted out and he refreshes those who repent and are converted. And so Peter calls them to repentance and more believe in Jesus as a result. One last thing here in chapter 3 before we move on. I really like verses 1 through 10 where Peter looks at this guy who's lame and he says, you know, silver and gold I do not have. And this is part of what I believe is, you know, an aspect of what we practice as the Flashlight Fellowships. Because realistically, there's not a lot that we have that we can offer to people. Silver and gold we don't have. But here's one thing that we do have. We have the opportunity, we have the capacity to connect with people and to present their needs to the Lord. And we have a real audience with the Father. And so it's a real opportunity for us to minister to people without... whatever funds or resources we might think that we need, we can say, well, I don't have silver. I don't have gold. You know, sometimes when people are approaching us requesting money, this is a good response. I don't have silver. I don't have gold. But here's what I do have. I have a relationship with God and I would gladly lift up your needs to him and present them to him. And so we have an opportunity then to share the gospel with And to pray for people, even though we cannot support them or help them in other ways, perhaps. Well, Acts chapter 4 now, verse 13 is the key verse. It says, In verses 1 through 4, Peter and John are arrested. This is continuing on from chapter 3. This great miracle has happened. This man is healed. And so the crowd gathers and Peter is preaching. And the religious leaders are not happy about it. Just as they were not happy about Jesus preaching and speaking to the multitudes and the works that were going on there, they're upset with Peter and John now because this miracle has taken place. We also see here in verse 4 that people are believing. It says that the church grew to 5,000 as a result of the work that God was doing there. And so there's, you know, many more people are believing in Jesus. And it tells us in verse 2 that these religious leaders are greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. It really bothered them. First of all, these were Sadducees who taught that there was no resurrection. And these guys were teaching that Jesus resurrected, but that also in him, those who believed would be resurrected. And so this bothered them. And so they arrest Peter and John. They want to put an end to this ministry. And so in verses 5 through 7, they put them on trial and they demand, what are you doing and by what name have you done this? By what authority, by what power, by what name have you healed this man? They're demanding to know who gave you the right to do this. And so Peter responds in verses 8 through 12, it's by the name of Jesus. He says, let it be known, in verse 10, to you, to everybody, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead by him, this man stands here before you whole. And so Peter declares, this was done in the name of Jesus. It was done in the power of Jesus. It was done by faith in Jesus. Of course, they don't like this. And so that religious leaders, the elders, they wrestle with what to do with these guys. They're perplexed, it tells us in verse 13, because it says that they saw the boldness of Peter and John, but they're thinking, these guys aren't educated. Remember Peter and John, where they were when Jesus commanded them to follow him? They were on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. They were fishermen. They weren't educated, you know, by the highest rabbis. Well, in the minds of the Jewish leaders. In our minds, of course, it was the greatest education ever because they were with Jesus for those three years. They realized at that point, these guys didn't go to our schools. They didn't, you know, study under our rabbis. They didn't have training like our guys have training. But here's what they did have. They had been with Jesus. Time with Jesus transforms every person. Even though we might not have much to offer, in fact, Paul says that's the way that God works. That God doesn't call the lofty and those who have the great educations and those who are the high and mighty. He calls the lowly and the base. And it's those that God works with and He transforms and changes and then uses for His glory. So the elders, it tells us that they're wrestling because they can't deny that this work has been done. It says that this guy was 40 years old. And so it says in verse 21 that they couldn't find any way of punishing them. They couldn't figure out what they could do because all the people saw this. There was this, all these witnesses. Remember when they were negotiating with Judas of Iscariot. Judas Iscariot. They were trying to find a secret time, a quiet time when nobody would be around to arrest Jesus. And they were really afraid of the people and you can see that carried on. There was all the people who witnessed this and so they couldn't do anything. They couldn't figure out a way to punish them. And so what they do instead is they command them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus. It's always a little bit humorous to me as I kind of try to picture this and put myself there in that spot. It's like, man, we can't stop them. We can't deny this. I mean, it really happened. So all we can do is just say, don't speak in the name of Jesus anymore. Don't you mention his name because we don't want anybody else being healed and we don't want people to follow you. And so they command them to stop preaching the gospel and speaking in the name of Jesus. Well, the disciples go out from there and gather back with the church. And in verses 23 through 31, we see that the church prays for boldness. So they receive the command to stop speaking in the name of Jesus. But they don't listen to that command because, well, it violates what God has instructed them to do. And whenever man commands you to do what God has, or not to do what God has called you to do or commanded you to do, you have to obey God instead of man. You put God first. And so they go back to the church and they don't pray Help us to, you know, obey them and not preach in your name. They say, help us to have boldness, to be faithful to you, to preach the gospel to the world around us. And so the church prays for boldness. And verse 31 tells us that when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and they spoke the word of God with boldness. And so in chapter 2, they were filled with the Holy Spirit. And here we see them once again filled with the Holy Spirit. And the place is shaken. And the result is they go forth from this prayer meeting speaking the Word of God boldly. And so God answers their prayer. Their request is for boldness, to be faithful, to speak the word of God as he has called them to. And God answers this prayer, fills them with the Holy Spirit, and enables them and empowers them to speak his word boldly. Well then in verses 32 through 37, we see that the church has all things in common. Another thing that the Holy Spirit was doing at this time was he was working in their midst as they were gathering together and seeking the Lord. There was needs that were there within the body. And so members of the body who had property, they would sell their property and provide the needs of the congregation and the people within their midst. And so there was this great sharing that was going on as they were ministering to one another and meeting one another's needs. practical and physical needs as they gathered together as a church there. Well, that brings us now to Acts chapter 5, verse 42 is the key verse. It says, "...and daily in the temple and in every house they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ." Here in verses 1 through 11, we have the situation that happens with Ananias and Sapphira when they lie to the Spirit. Now, again, this is continuing on from chapter 4. So, the disciples were sharing the things that they had and ministering to one another in that way. And Ananias and Sapphira try to participate in that. And they have a piece of property and they sell it. And then they bring the money to the church. They bring it to Peter and say, here's the money that we got for selling our property. We want to help the people that are in need. But there was an issue with this situation because Ananias and Sapphira kept some of the money from the sale of the property for themselves. Now, Peter indicates in this passage that that wasn't the issue. It wasn't that they kept the money for themselves. The issue was that they pretended as though they were giving all the money that they received to the church. that they were not keeping back some for themselves. There was nothing wrong with them keeping some for themselves. In verse 8, when the wife comes in, so the guy comes in, he gives the money. Peter says, why have you tried to lie to the Holy Spirit? And he falls down dead. He goes and gets buried. And then the wife comes in a little bit later, and Peter gives her an opportunity to set things right. He says, in verse 8, did you sell the land for so much, for this amount that your husband said? She said, oh yeah, that's the price that we sold it for. And so Peter tells her, hey, you're trying to lie to the Holy Spirit. And she falls down and breathes her last. And so these two died, not because they kept some of the money. He says, look, when you had the property, you could do whatever you want with it. And when you sold it, you could do whatever you want with the money. But when you try to... like, you know, you're doing something great and giving all of this money, but you're really not, well, that's an issue. And so the Holy Spirit called them out and held them accountable for that. Now, We are grateful that God is gracious and he doesn't address every sin that we practice in this way because we wouldn't be here tonight. None of us would be, right? God is gracious. But here at the beginning of the church, the Holy Spirit worked in this way and God brought these immediate consequences to Ananias and Sapphira. And let me just say, without trying to freak everybody out, God can do this at any time he wants to. No, I'm just kidding. Amen. But seriously, he could. And so that's what we need to keep in mind. You know, God has the right. If we're trying to pull something on the Lord, he can deal with us however he chooses. Now, he is gracious and merciful and we're thankful for that. But let's not try to take that for granted and see how much we can get away with because God might use us as an example for the importance of holiness. Well then after that in verses 12 through 16, it says that many signs and wonders were done. And so God is continuing to work in their midst and miracles are happening and more people are believing in Jesus. And so in verses 17 through 32, it says, The leaders come against them again and the high priest then imprisons the apostles. And so there's this persecution that's continuing as the multitude is healed in verse 16. Then in verse 17, the high priest is filled with indignation. And so as the work is continuing and expanding, there's a great work happening. The religious leaders are getting more and more frustrated. And so they imprison not just Peter and John, but it says that they imprisoned the apostles. Well, then in verse 19 and 20, an angel goes in and releases them and sets them free. It's interesting. The angel tells them, go into the temple and teach the people in the name of Jesus. So he doesn't set them free and say, run for your life. But he sets them free and says, go back into the midst of their realm, the temple, and continue to be faithful and boldly preach the name of Jesus. I was kind of thinking about it like this. It's not exactly the same, but we've been praying for Pastor Saeed there in Iran who's been in prison. And if the Lord sent an angel to open the doors and let him out and then send him back into the midst and say, go to the, you know, capital and preach the name of Jesus, we would say, dude, you know, don't do it. That's crazy. You know, you have your opportunity here. Get out of there. But they were going to be faithful to the Lord. And so the angel tells them, teach in the temple. Preach in the name of Jesus. That you have to follow Jesus first and honor him even above your own life. And so the religious leaders are pretty upset about this. In verse 28, as they finally catch up and find out where the apostles are at, they say, hey, didn't we strictly command you not to teach in this name? I love verse 28 though because it goes on to say, You have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood on us. What did they say? You have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine. Remember what Jesus told them in Acts chapter 1 verse 8. The Holy Spirit will come upon you and you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem. And that's, well, that work is about done. The city of Jerusalem has been filled with the doctrine of Jesus Christ. And as we go forward in the next few chapters, now we're going to see it continue to spread into Judea and Samaria because Jerusalem has been filled with this doctrine. Well, as they're frustrated with them and seeking what to do with them, in verses 33 through 42, one of their leaders, Gamaliel, advises the council to leave the apostles alone. Gamaliel was a very well-known, influential, very powerful leader in the Jewish council and the religious leaders at that time. And so he says, he stands up and kind of intervenes a little bit and says, hey guys, he gives a couple examples. Remember this guy and he tried to lead a revolt and that guy tried to lead a revolt and they came to nothing. And he says, look, if you guys fight with these guys, you might find yourselves fighting against God. So leave them alone. If anything comes of it, then it's from God. And if you're fighting against that, you're fighting against God. And if it's not of God, it'll fizzle out. And no matter how popular it is, you know, it'll die down. And so just leave them alone. And so the council agrees. And they say, just stop preaching in his name. So still the same command. But they don't, you know, get rid of them immediately yet. And so in verse 41 it tells us that they departed, the apostles did, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus. And so they were beaten, they were abused, they were imprisoned. And so they rejoice in that saying, hey, you know, we had a good opportunity there to represent Jesus and to be worthy of suffering for his name. But then in verse 42, it tells us that they didn't stop. They didn't stop preaching. They didn't stop teaching. They continued to be faithful to what God had called them to in presenting Jesus as the Christ, the Savior. Well, our final chapter for the evening is chapter 6, verse 3 is the key verse. It says, So here in Acts chapter 6, we have kind of the first difficulty that happened within the church. Whenever there's a gathering together of people, whether they're believers or not, there's going to be some problems. It's just a part of our sinful nature. And whenever we gather together, we're going to rub each other the wrong way. You know, we're going to get bumped into. We're going to bump into others. There's going to be some difficulties. And in this case, what's happening is... The widows are not being cared for fairly. It seems that there's some partiality. Some are getting more provision than others. Jerusalem had a bigger population of widows than the rest of the region because it was a popular place to go, especially for elder people. And they would teach that resurrection really only happens for those who are in Jerusalem. That's why you'll notice if you go to the Mount of Olives, you know, there's tons of graves on the Mount of Olives right there across from Jerusalem because people wanted those front row seats to be resurrected right there at the temple. And so there was this tendency, this trend for people to go to Jerusalem and the surrounding region whenever they were older. And so the guys would die many times and the wife would be left as a widow. And so there was this great need for widows there within their midst to who had no means for providing for themselves. And so the church took up that responsibility and was distributing, remember all the properties that were being sold and the different things that were being given. So the church is distributing that to these widows who have need. But there's this complaint, and whether it is just or not, we don't know. But they felt like, the Hellenistic Jews, felt like they weren't getting their fair share. The Hellenistic Jews were those who were not born in Israel, but they were born elsewhere and had, you know, moved to Israel and to Jerusalem later on. And so their primary language was Greek and they were kind of foreigners, even though they were of Jewish descent. And so there was this nationality differences. There was these, you know, cultural differences. And they felt like, hey, you know, we're not being treated fairly. And so they present this problem to the church. And the apostles say, you know, our job and what God has called us to is really to focus on the word of God and prayer. And so we need to be faithful to that. And so here's what we suggest. You guys appoint seven men Who are faithful. Who are full of the Holy Spirit. And we'll give them responsibility over this. We'll give them charge over this. And they can manage and make sure. That everything is provided fairly. And so that's what they do. They present seven men. One of them is Stephen, who we'll read about over the next couple chapters as we read this week. Another one is Philip, who we'll hear about again in chapter 8 and see God do a great work through him. And so this is the beginning for these guys of their ministry and what God's going to do in their lives. Well then in verses 8 through 15, Stephen, who is one of these seven, he is on trial with the Jewish council. It tells us in verse 8 that Stephen was full of faith and power and did great wonders and signs among the people. And so now Stephen is working. There's miracles that are happening through his ministry. People are taking notice and there's this dispute now that's happening between some of the religious leaders and Stephen. And as they go back and forth, they're not able to really handle his wisdom because the Holy Spirit is speaking through him. And that causes some problems. He's about to give a great testimony and then he's going to become the first martyr. And we'll read about that this week as we look at chapter 7 tomorrow in the book of Acts. And so we get to see then this work of the Holy Spirit in Stephen to be a witness to Jesus to the very end. Well, as we finish up our time together this evening, I want to invite the worship team to come on up and prepare. And we want to end with a worship song and an opportunity for us, the body of Christ, To seek the Lord for the empowering of the Holy Spirit. We've seen this a few times here in our portion this evening and we'll continue to see it throughout the book of Acts. Jesus told the disciples, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. You'll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And that took place in Acts chapter 2 verse 4 when they were filled with the Holy Spirit. Peter told those who had gathered together in Acts chapter 2 that this promise isn't just for them, but it's for all who will believe. It's for all who will turn to Jesus Christ. We saw this again in Acts chapter 4 when the church gathered together and prayed that they would have boldness, that they would be faithful to the call and to the mission that God had given to them, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. And then here in Acts chapter 6, As there is this need for service within the church, for responsibility within the church, they gave the counsel to seek out men who are full of the Holy Spirit. The point is that this is something that is to be part of our lives, that God wants you to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And if you're serving in any capacity, You need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. If you have any responsibility in your home, in the workplace, at church, you need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. It's a promise that God has given to you as well as to these that we've been reading about here in the book of Acts. And so I want to encourage you this evening to ask for God to fill you or baptize you or for the Holy Spirit to come upon you, however you want to call it, But seek God and ask for Him to fill you and empower you with His Holy Spirit. We're going to have a few people right up here in the front. And so as they lead us in this song, if you want to come up and receive prayer for the work of the Holy Spirit in your life, then I would encourage you to come on up and receive that prayer. If you want to pray right where you're at and seek the Lord on your own or maybe ask someone next to you, that's fine as well. But let's just take this last few moments as we close out the service to seek the Lord, to ask and receive the power of the Holy Spirit. Let's worship Him. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.