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Arrested and Beaten - The Book of Acts · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And laid their hands on the apostles
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  Speaker 1: and put them in the common prison. Acts 5.18 Holy Spirit,
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  Speaker 1: strengthen me as I stand in the face of persecution
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  Speaker 1: and ridicule when I decide to reach out and offer
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  Speaker 1: a hand to those in need. When I feel arrested
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  Speaker 1: and imprisoned by the isolation of others, I will remember
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  Speaker 1: your sweet Spirit. and I will remember the life of Jesus.
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  Speaker 1: Like his disciples, he endured because the sacrifice was worth
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  Speaker 1: the scars, the souls were worth the scrapes, and their
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  Speaker 1: freedom was worth the fight. I will not give up
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  Speaker 1: until your mission is fulfilled in my life, Lord. I
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  Speaker 1: will remain relentless in my pursuit of your divine presence. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: with every fiber in my being, I say bring it on.
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  Speaker 1: Because I am a water-walking, giant-slaying, lion-killing, serpent-crushing, Jericho-crumbling, wall-building, presence-filled,
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  Speaker 1: anointed child of God. And I won't be stopped. In Jesus' name.
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  Speaker 2: Amen.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you for making prayer a priority in your day.
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  Speaker 1: To learn more about the Bible, stay tuned for today's story.
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  Speaker 1: Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Arrested and beaten. In our last story, Ananias and Sapphira
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  Speaker 2: were struck down for their false sense of holiness and charity.
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  Speaker 2: They feigned generosity to look holy, and paid dearly for
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  Speaker 2: their deception. Now we see the disciples following in the
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  Speaker 2: suffering of Jesus. Imprisoned and beaten, they maintain a hopeful
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  Speaker 2: joy that goes beyond comprehension.
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  Speaker 3: Inspired by the book of Acts. Hello, I'm Pastor Jack
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  Speaker 3: Graham with today's episode of the Bible in a Year.
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  Speaker 3: In our last episode, we heard how God dealt severely
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  Speaker 3: with Ananias and Sapphira for their greed and deception. He
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  Speaker 3: was showing the early church and us that sin is
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  Speaker 3: a serious subject, and it is costly when God's children sin. Today,
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  Speaker 3: we'll hear how the disciples continue to preach the risen
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  Speaker 3: Christ and the suffering that begins as a result of
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  Speaker 3: proclaiming the gospel. Despite the opposition and even imprisonment, these
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  Speaker 3: faithful servants remain joyful in their suffering as they hope
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  Speaker 3: and trust in the Lord. and we'll hear how God
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  Speaker 3: uses their circumstances to bring the message of salvation to
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  Speaker 3: more and more people. Listen to the Word of God now.
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  Speaker 2: It was as cold as it was dark where the
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  Speaker 2: disciples lay. The wet stone floors sucked the heat right
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  Speaker 2: out of their bodies as they shivered in their prison cells.
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  Speaker 2: The moonlight was barely peering out of cracks in the
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  Speaker 2: cobbled walls. The high priest had arrested Peter and the
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  Speaker 2: others and thrown them into prison out of fear. Their
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  Speaker 2: movement was increasing at an unmanageable rate, and they felt
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  Speaker 2: their power slipping through their fingers. John rested his head
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  Speaker 2: against the stone wall and prayed with his brothers. Echoes
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  Speaker 2: of their songs to God filled the depressing hallways. Their
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  Speaker 2: prayers and songs were interrupted by the creaking sound of
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  Speaker 2: the metal doors opening. Peter looked and saw that the
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  Speaker 2: prison doors had been opened. Peter looked to his left
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  Speaker 2: and to his right and saw a figure standing in
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  Speaker 2: the shadows. He emerged from the darkness and was revealed
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  Speaker 2: to be an angel of the Lord. Leave this place,
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  Speaker 2: but do not run away, he said. The angel's voice
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  Speaker 2: was deep and commanding. Go out and stand boldly in
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  Speaker 2: the temple. Speak to people all the words of life.
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  Speaker 2: So the disciples escaped the prison just as the sun
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  Speaker 2: was rising. They stood up in the temple courtyards and
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  Speaker 2: continued to preach the message of Jesus. The high priest
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  Speaker 2: emerged from his quarters to see Peter in the middle
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  Speaker 2: of the yard.' Seize them!' he yelled, and the temple
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  Speaker 2: guards tackled the apostles to the ground. James and John
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  Speaker 2: had their faces shoved into the dirt. This was not
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  Speaker 2: what they had in mind when they thought about following Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: but it was better, filled with more excitement and purpose.
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  Speaker 2: We warned you not to teach his name, Caiaphas spat.
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  Speaker 2: Peter thought about fighting, but then remembered the words of Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: Those who live by the sword will die by the sword.
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  Speaker 2: Peter drew a deep breath and calmly replied, We obey
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  Speaker 2: God before men, priest. Caiaphas bubbled over in rage and
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  Speaker 2: had the guards strike Peter in the jaw. Andrew jolted
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  Speaker 2: forward but was met with a quick kick to the stomach.
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  Speaker 2: Caiaphas leaned over to Andrew and said, I should kill you.
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  Speaker 2: I should kill you all. Right before he was about
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  Speaker 2: to give the word, a Pharisee by the name of
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  Speaker 2: Gamaliel rose up. Stop, he shouted. We have had false
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  Speaker 2: prophets rise up before these men, have we not? God
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  Speaker 2: has a way of pruning those who do not speak
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  Speaker 2: the truth. If these men are fools, then we should
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  Speaker 2: stay away from them. They will die eventually and their
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  Speaker 2: movement will fade. But if these men speak the truth...
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  Speaker 2: Then it is us who are in danger if we
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  Speaker 2: strike them down. Gamaliel was a voice of reason for
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  Speaker 2: the Pharisees and was able to keep them from killing
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  Speaker 2: Peter and the others, but not without a swift beating.
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  Speaker 2: All the disciples were taken into the courtyard and beat
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  Speaker 2: with clubs and whips. Then they were tossed by the
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  Speaker 2: roadside to hobble home. The men lay on the ground,
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  Speaker 2: sore and bleeding, but on each of their faces was
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  Speaker 2: a smile. They were glad to suffer for the name
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  Speaker 2: of Jesus. They were glad to suffer so that others
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  Speaker 2: might thrive. It was their honor. So each day they
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  Speaker 2: rose up again to go preach. And each day they
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  Speaker 2: were either thrown in prison or beaten. This became the
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  Speaker 2: rhythm of their life. No one had killed Christians at
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  Speaker 2: this point until a man named Saul came.
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  Speaker 3: Today's Bible passage begins inside a prison cell. Peter, John,
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  Speaker 3: and the other apostles had not listened to the warnings
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  Speaker 3: of the religious leaders, and they continued to preach Christ
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  Speaker 3: and the gospel all over Jerusalem. The high priest and
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  Speaker 3: the Sadducees were jealous of the influence these men were
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  Speaker 3: having on all the people, so they had them arrested
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  Speaker 3: and thrown into prison again. But God sent an angel
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  Speaker 3: in the night to open the gates of their cell.
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  Speaker 3: The angel told them to leave and go teach in
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  Speaker 3: the temple court so that people might hear all the
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  Speaker 3: words of life. This was the driving force, the passion
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  Speaker 3: of these men now, to tell all who would hear
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  Speaker 3: that Jesus is Lord and that he would make a
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  Speaker 3: way to free everyone who trusted in him from their
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  Speaker 3: sins and to save them forever. This was the mission
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  Speaker 3: of Jesus, the mission that he had given them, and
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  Speaker 3: now the disciples were carrying out this work and witness
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  Speaker 3: of the gospel. The next morning, when the guard went
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  Speaker 3: to get the men out of prison to bring them
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  Speaker 3: before the council of the people of Israel, they found
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  Speaker 3: only an empty cell. And when they heard the report
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  Speaker 3: that the men were missing, everyone was perplexed. How could
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  Speaker 3: they have escaped? Soon their questions were answered, because the
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  Speaker 3: apostles had not run away. They were right in the temple,
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  Speaker 3: courageously continuing to tell people about Jesus. So, they were
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  Speaker 3: taken from there to the high priest and the council
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  Speaker 3: of religious leaders and questioned, interrogated. These religious leaders reminded
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  Speaker 3: the apostles that they had been strictly warned and told
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  Speaker 3: to stop talking about Jesus and proclaiming this message. But
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  Speaker 3: Peter reminded them once again that they were to obey
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  Speaker 3: God and not men. So, they laid out the gospel,
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  Speaker 3: how Jesus had come from God and these very men
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  Speaker 3: had crucified him, but he arose, conquering death to bring
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  Speaker 3: grace and forgiveness to all who would believe in him.
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  Speaker 3: What a change! has taken place in these men's lives.
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  Speaker 3: These men who had fled in fear when Jesus was
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  Speaker 3: taken to the cross and hid in terror after his
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  Speaker 3: death and burial are now standing without fear before the
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  Speaker 3: same men who had sent Christ to his death. What
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  Speaker 3: was the difference? The presence of Christ, the Holy Spirit,
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  Speaker 3: the promised helper that Jesus had sent filled them with
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  Speaker 3: the very power of God so that nothing any human
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  Speaker 3: ruler could do to them would stop them from preaching
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  Speaker 3: the good news. It is that same spirit to which
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  Speaker 3: we now have available to us today in Christ. We
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  Speaker 3: can be filled with the boldness and confidence to share
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  Speaker 3: our faith in Christ with anyone and everyone and fulfill
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  Speaker 3: the mission and commission of Jesus. Isn't that amazing? God
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  Speaker 3: will use us to preach the gospel. The apostles' words
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  Speaker 3: stirred up deep anger, even hatred among the council. They
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  Speaker 3: wanted these men dead, but a lone voice of reason
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  Speaker 3: stood up to speak. A man named Gamaliel reminded the
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  Speaker 3: council of others who had come before and led movements,
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  Speaker 3: and eventually these movements went away. But then Gamaliel spoke
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  Speaker 3: these words in Acts 5, 38-39. So in the present case,
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  Speaker 3: I can tell you, keep away from these men and
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  Speaker 3: let them alone. For if this plan or this undertaking
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  Speaker 3: is of man, it will fail. But if it is
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  Speaker 3: of God, you will not be able to overthrow them.
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  Speaker 3: You might even find yourself opposing God. Well, his words
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  Speaker 3: were convincing, and the council took his advice. They had
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  Speaker 3: no reason to hold or imprison these men, so they
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  Speaker 3: released them. But first they beat them and threatened them
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  Speaker 3: and warned them never to speak in the name of
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  Speaker 3: Jesus again. Well, did this stop Peter and John and
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  Speaker 3: the rest of the apostles and the work of the church?
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  Speaker 3: Not at all. And rather than leave that place licking
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  Speaker 3: their wounds and lamenting their persecution, they rejoiced that they
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  Speaker 3: were counted worthy to suffer in the name of the
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  Speaker 3: Lord Jesus. What the council meant for intimidation was actually
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  Speaker 3: fuel for their fires. They went out every day teaching
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  Speaker 3: in the name of Jesus, preaching and telling more and
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  Speaker 3: more people what Christ could do for them if they
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  Speaker 3: would put their faith in him. Soon, however, the patience
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  Speaker 3: of the council would run out and a new enemy
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  Speaker 3: of the gospel would emerge, a zealous young rabbi by
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  Speaker 3: the name of Saul. We'll hear about him the next time.
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  Speaker 3: Dear God, we thank you for today's reading, which reminds
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  Speaker 3: us that you can do great things through us when
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  Speaker 3: we are yielded and surrendered to you. when we tell
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  Speaker 3: people about Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit.
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  Speaker 3: We remember that witnessing is sharing Jesus in the power
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  Speaker 3: of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.
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  Speaker 3: So may we boldly witness and tell our family and
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  Speaker 3: friends and people that we meet of the love and
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  Speaker 3: the grace of our Lord Jesus. No matter what kind
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  Speaker 3: of opposition or resistance we face, may we be courageous
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  Speaker 3: in sharing Christ. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for
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  Speaker 3: listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack
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  Speaker 3: Graham of Dallas, Texas. You can download the Pray.com app
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  Speaker 3: and make prayer and Bible study the priority of your life.
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  Speaker 3: And if you enjoyed this podcast, tell someone about it.
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  Speaker 3: Pass it on. Let others know because it is our
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  Speaker 3: desire to get God's Word to as many people as
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  Speaker 3: possible as fast as possible. And if you want to
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  Speaker 3: know more about what it means to be a Christ follower,
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  Speaker 3: what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, then
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  Speaker 3: go to jackgraham.org, jackgraham.org. And we have many resources that
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  Speaker 3: are available for you there. God bless you.