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“No One Is Beyond the Reach of His Amazing Grace” Galatians 1:10-24
“A Letter to the Recovering Pharisee” Galatians 1:1-9
Grace Abounds
A Sermon Series Through the Book of Galatians
“A Letter to the Recovering Pharisee”
Galatians 1:1-9
Introduction
The Pharisees who lived during the early church times were very religious. They paid very close attention to their theology, they were regular in their worship, and they would be considered a very moral group of people. But in all that attention to religious activities God was not in their hearts. Their religion was little more than hypocrisy – this hypocrisy was rooted in their belief that if they read their Bibles, tithed, kept the Sabbath, then God would do for them, what they had done for God.
This constant attention to trying to be good, follow the rules, and appear to be a good person was exhausting and ultimately was not pleasing to God because they were substituting their own righteousness for Jesus’ righteousness. They would say, “I don’t need Jesus’ gift of salvation, I can earn it myself.” So their daily lives reflected this idea of trying to earn God’s favor, and trying to manipulate God by their action to get him to do something.[1]
It is hard for a legalistic person, once they receive Christ, to leave legalism behind. So Jewish people become followers of Jesus, and while they say they need Jesus and his gift of salvation, secretly (deep down in their hearts), they believe God’s love for them is conditional upon how they behave.
Performance based “Christianity” denies the grace of God.
While we are saved by grace, recovering legalists struggle to live by grace. The gospel is something we receive for salvation, but it is also something that we live and breathe every day. The gospel gives us freedom – as we move through the book of Galatians, I want you to ask yourself, “Am I living my Christian life, as if I know God loves me and that His grace is enough? Or are you trying to make God love you by doing religious activity?”
Paul’s Salutation to the Churches In Galatia (vv. 1-5)
Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man[2], but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2 and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Paul in the opening verses comes out fighting. We can tell from these verses that there were people who were attacking Paul’s authority as an apostle. An apostle was an official spokesperson for Jesus, “an envoy, ambassador, or messenger who was chosen and trained by Jesus Christ as a special emissary for proclaiming His truth during the formative years of the church.”[3] The first 12 disciples were chosen, called, and commissioned by Christ himself to teach on his behalf (Luke 6:13-16; Mark 3:14-19). Paul understands that people have to accept him as an apostle before they will accept the gospel.
Paul was not apart of the original 12, and so his critics attack his authority. In order to advance their doctrinal error, they are attacking his credentials. These false teachers are arguing that Paul’s gospel was not from God but from man (Paul made it up), and that Paul appointed himself to be an apostle – Paul is explaining where Christianity came from. But also, they are accusing him of watering down the gospel to make it easy – so that he would popular saying what people wanted to hear.
When the authority of Scripture is denied,
a person can make truth into whatever they want Him to be.
They denied Paul’s authority (as an apostle) and then created their own gospel. When the authority of Scripture is denied, you can then add or take away the parts you don’t agree with.
“To the churches of Galatia,” – “The Galatians were going astray because they are adding Judaism to the gospel of Faith in Christ . . . Disturbed by these tendencies Paul writes this letter . . . I order that they may preserve faith in Christ alone.”[4] These false teachers are called “Judaizers” in other places because they wanted to require the new Gentile (non-Jewish) followers of Jesus to become a Jew before they could become a Christian. It is the gospel of Jesus plus the law of Moses (dietary laws, circumcision, and other ceremonial law, feasts and holidays) .
We see this in Acts 15:1 “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” . . . (v. 5) “But some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.”
“In turning from grace to a legalistic system of salvation by works, the Galatians had ignored the significance of the death of Christ. The heart of the gospel is Christ’s willing sacrifice of Himself for our sins. Salvation is not earned by one’s efforts to eliminate sin, but by one’s trust in God’s promise to forgive sin through the work of Jesus Christ.”[5] Without the cross, Jesus’ teachings and life example would introduce us to God, but we would have no way of having a relationship with Him – we cannot, in our own self-effort, be rid of our sin.
In these opening verses reminds the churches of the what the gospel is; the resurrection, “who raised him from the dead,” and his crucifixion, “who gave himself for our sins.” In his rescuing us from the danger of our sin it was not for a “second chance” – “giving us another opportunity to get life right and stay right with God. He did all we needed to do, but cannot do. If Jesus’ death really paid for our sins on our behalf, we can never fall back into condemnation.”[6]
From these we see four things about the gospel 1) Jesus gave himself willingly, “who gave himself.” Jesus’ life was not taken, it was given. It was a voluntary self-sacrifice. John 10:17-18 “I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.” Matthew 27:50 when Jesus is on the cross he “yielded up his spirit.”
2) The purpose of the cross is that Jesus gave up his life willingly for our sins. We had a sin debt that we could not pay, and on the cross “Jesus paid it all.” The punishment we deserved, He took upon himself. He became our substitute (substitutionary atonement). It enabled God to forgive us by satisfying his pure justice. Even if your acts of goodness counted, what was owed is eternally more than you can contribute toward your salvation.
3) “to deliver us from the present evil age,” – The purpose of the gospel is to deliver – Jesus came to rescue us. We are saved so that one day, we can enter into eternity, but God’s grace and salvation extend also, to our present day-to-day lives. We have been freed from the evil of this age.
We were slaves to sin, now we are slaves to righteousness – the consequence of being a Christ follower is that we are freed from behavior that brings us destruction. Lightfoot said, “The Gospel is a rescue, an emancipation from a state of bondage.” Because we are free our lives now reflect Christ – an abundant life.
4) God initiatives our salvation, it originates from God “according to the will of our God and Father,” The cross was not an accident, or a historical tragic event that caught God off guard. He wasn’t in heaven hoping that everything would work out. In the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prays that the cup of wrath that was coming with the cross be removed, Matthew 26:39 “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” It was the Father’s will that the Son die for the salvation of the world.
Peter says in Acts 2:23, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” It has always been the plan for God the Father to give His Son for the salvation of the world. In these opening verses Paul discusses salvation and we don’t play any part in it. “The gospel is not about what we do for God; it is about what God has done for us.”
Paul then says, “to whom be the glory forever and ever .” – All the glory goes to God, not to us for being good. Ephesians 2:9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
“The great point that the Galatians are to note is the fact that grace and peace are ours (v. 3) “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” through the merits of Christ’s self-sacrifice alone. All is due to his death for our sins. We are able to add nothing by any works of ours. We are not delivered by any observance of the law. The whole epistle is aimed at this error; the foundation is laid already in the greeting.”[7]
Paul’s Concern and Reason For Writing the Letter (vv. 6-7)
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ (the gospel that originates from Christ).
Paul’s writing this letter is in response to his astonishment that the churches were in danger – there is an urgency in his writing. They like soldiers on the battlefield they are “so quickly deserting” – they are switching sides. The tense tells us that it has begin but has not yet been completed – there is still a chance for them to see their error.
An OT example of a similar event was Exodus 32:7-8 “And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’” When people don’t honor the authority of Scripture, they want to add to it, or take from if; “They think they are improving the gospel, but what they are actually doing is forging a golden calf in the furnace of unbelief . . . we’ve abandoned it for an idol made by human hands.”[8]
They were not just switching from one man’s philosophy to another man’s philosophy – they were deserting the God who gave them the true gospel. And they were accepting a distorted Paul and Barnabas had gone through and preached the gospel, they had received it, and then they went back (on their second missionary journey)[9] and spent time teaching them – and then when they left these false teachers have followed behind them and are trying to undermine their work. Paul is astonished at how quickly they swept in, and how quickly the churches were listening to them.
I think it’s important to note that these were teachers who said they were Christians – they would have acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah, and they would have recognized his death on the cross as being important (otherwise no one would listened to them).
They would have claimed to believe all the truths other Christians believed. But they wanted to improve the gospel by adding to it. If you add anything to grace then you have corrupted the gospel – it becomes a different gospel. The good news of justification by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, is the only gospel that saves the sinner.
The word Paul uses in v. 7, “want to distort the gospel,” perverts the gospel, literally “reverses.”[10] All other world religions say that you do something to save yourself. The grace of God, and the gospel from Jesus reverses this – God does everything, you do nothing. Any edits to the gospel reverses it, and places it in the giant pile of worthless world religions. There is only one way to be rid of our sin – there are not multiple ways to God.
How does one go from following the true gospel, to readily accepting man’s attempt at religion? There are two things involved, “but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel,” The false teachers were troubling the church, so trouble or heartache comes along, and then combined with distortion of the truth (to make God in one’s own image). Something in your life happens, and an alternate version of reality presents itself.
Paul’s Warning For Those That Preach a False Gospel (vv. 8-9)
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.
Paul then gives scenarios where a false gospel may appear – suppose Paul, or those who were with him on his journeys, or even an angel from heaven appeared – if anyone preaches a gospel different than grace alone, faith alone, Christ alone – they are to be accursed. The true standard of Christianity is not the messenger, but the message. Preachers can change and move away from the truth they once preached, and demons can appear as angels.
Paul is saying that even his apostolic authority derives from the gospel’s authority, not the other way around. The Bible judges the church, the church does not judge the Bible. Scripture is the plumbline that we hold up everything the church does and believes. My authority as your pastor comes from Scripture – you should follow me as long as what I say lines up with the Word of God. The word of God does not means what I want it to mean – I have authority only as long as what I say lines up with Scripture.
Paul uses the word accursed or anathema, referring to what should happen to someone who preaches a false gospel – This is an OT concept of setting something aside or devoting something to destruction. A different gospel brings condemnation – it is ternal life that is at stake.
______________________
[1] Philip Graham Ryken, Reformed Expository Commentary, Galatians (Philipsburg, New Jersey; P&R Publishing, 2005) 3.
[2] This could be a reference to Paul and Barnabas being sent out on the first missionary journey from the church in Antioch.
[3] John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Galatians (Chicago, Illinois; Moody Press, 1987) 2.
[4] C. Marius Victorinus, Ad Galatas, quoted in F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Eerdmans, 1982) 21.
[5] MacArthur, 6.
[6] Timothy Keller, Galatians For You (USA; The Good Book Company, 2013) 16.
[7] R.C.H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians to the Ephesians and to the Philippians (Minneapolis, Minnesota; Augsburg Publishing House, 1961) 29.
[8] Todd Wilson, Preaching the Word, Galatians Gospel-Rooted Living (Wheaton, Illinois; Crossway Publishing, 2013) 30.
[9] Acts 13:13-14:23
[10] Keller, 18.
“The Church that Sets Apart and the God Who Sends Them Out” Acts 13:1-13; The First Missionary Journey, Part One
“A Summer Journey;
Following the Apostle Paul Through His Missionary Journeys”
A Sermon Series
“The Church that Sets Apart and the God Who Sends Them Out”
Acts 13:1-13; The First Missionary Journey, Part One
Introduction
When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.” To that, Calvert replied, “We died before we came here.” Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
Prayer
A Church with A Heart to Share the Gospel (vv. 1- 4)
“Now there were in the church at Antioch[1] prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. 4 So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.”
It is the church at Antioch that prays and fasts, lays hands on them, and it is the church that sends out those set apart and called by God. The church fasted and prayed to make sure they were hearing rightly, acting appropriately, and that their hearts were right in how they sent them out. Paul and Barnabas leave and return to the local church. And when they return they give a report of all that God did while they were away.
Missions begins with the prompting of God, submitting by called missionaries, and are supported and sent by the local church. In this passage, “for the first time a local church was led to see the need for witness beyond them to the larger world and commissioned missionaries to carry out that task.”[2] The witness to the (Acts 1:8 ) “ends of the earth,” begins.
Typically, when we think of the first mission trip in the history of the church, we think that Paul was the main leader – but it actually seems to be Barnabas (whose name is mentioned first on two occasions) who recruits his cousin (Col. 4:10) John Mark, and Paul begins his first missionary journey nine years after his conversion on the road to Damascus.
Barnabas, the mature Christian, spoke up for Paul earlier in Acts 9:26-30 “And when he (Paul) had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.”
The church can set apart people for ministry, and recognize a calling upon a person’s life by laying hands on them, but unless they have the sending out power of the Holy Spirit, the ministry task they seek to do will be in vain. Set apart and sent out by the Holy Spirit – recognized and supported by the local church.
Barnabas and Saul Sharing the Gospel at Cyprus (vv. 5-12)
“5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. 6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
Review the map
Paul’s missionary strategy was to go to the Jewish synagogues and preach – at Cyprus as they preach the gospel, a proconsul named Sergius Paulus wanted to hear what they were saying, so he summons them. Often, rulers would consult with fortune tellers and magicians to predict weather, battles, etc. So there, among those surrounding the proconsul, was a Jewish magician named Bar-Jesus (ironically meaning son of Jesus).
“As Paul was trying to give the word of God to the proconsul, he was interrupted by this false prophet who was doing everything he could to impede the presentation of the gospel and prevent the proconsul from having a favorable response to it.”[3]
If the proconsul learned about the one true God, how Jesus could save him from his sins, and how a person could have direct access to God – they could talk to God themselves, pray to God themselves, have access to God themselves – eliminating the need for a go-between (i.e. goodbye false prophet magician).
There Are People Who Don’t Want Others to Know About Jesus
Because of How It Would Affect Them,
So They Will Work Against The Work of the Church.
9 But Saul, who was also called Paul[4], filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.”
Paul’s response, guided by the Holy Spirit, is direct, aggressive, and he calls out evil for what it is, even adding a physical consequence to the sin (blindness). The fortuneteller who supposedly could see the future, now could not see anything right in front of him and had to be led around.
(v. 9) Saul is his Hebrew name, and Paul is his Roman name.[5] There is a transition that happens here; from this point forward he is called Paul (and up to this point he was called Saul). He is so enraged at this supposed Jew false prophet’s resistance to the world receiving the gospel that Paul becomes the leader in the effort, and now he is identified with the Gentile world (his Roman name).
Luke, the author, lets us know that this is the point where a calling from God became Paul’s life’s mission – to reach the Gentiles with the gospel. A calling upon a man’s life changes everything about him – it gives his life focus, it becomes who he is; his whole world in consumed with it.
I was called into ministry when I was twenty-one years old. I went to seminary for four years, and eventually served in my first church in Maryland. All of which required that I was away from my Alabama home. Over that course of time my grandfather, who I was fairly close to, began to lose his memory. Over the years at Thanksgiving, Christmas and vacation trips, He slowly forgot who I was. Eventually in his later years he would be at my parent’s house, where we would be visiting, and he would turn to me, having forget all the years of me spending weeks of the summer at his home, or building things together, etc. and he would look deeply at me and call me, preacher. The only memory left of me, preacher.
Note that what astonished the proconsul wasn’t the judgement that fell on Bar-Jesus, it was the “teaching of the Lord,” It was the truth of the gospel proclaimed by Paul and Barnabas. Miracles in the New Testament are there to authenticate God’s true agents of revelation. Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leaders came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him” (John 3:2). The proconsul’s response to the miracle was to believe the words of the missionaries.
(v. 12) “Then the proconsul believed,” – What was it that he believed? He was a Gentile and would not have the foundational knowledge of the OT (there were no dots to connect), he was not keeping the law, he had not been circumcised. So how does he come to place his faith and believe in Jesus as a Gentile and be truly saved? When Paul goes back and reports all that they have seen God do on this missions trip, this causes the need for a church counsel in Jerusalem (Acts 15).
Paul and Barnabas Sharing the Gospel at Antioch in Pisidia (vv. 13-45)
13 Now Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John left them and returned to Jerusalem,
The text doesn’t explain why John Mark left them to return to Jerusalem, but later in the book John Mark wants to rejoin the effort, and Paul says, no.” Acts 15:36-39 “And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brothers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” 37 Now Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul thought best not to take with them one who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39 And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other.”[6]
It seems that there was a leadership change, where Paul took the main leadership role, and Barnabas moved to the second in command, John Mark didn’t like it, so he left – or when they landed on the shore at Perga something really scared him (they would face severe resistance there). Or it may have been John Mark was a part of the group from what chapter 15:1 who would say, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” The salvation of one man led Saul to become Paul and it drove another man to abandon the work entirely.
it was an abandonment in the work. John Mark chose his reason over the work of getting the gospel out and it was a blow to the missionary group. John Mark weighed his options and decided to leave.
Everyone must choose what will have priority in your life: 1) your own self-comfort, safety, personal life goals, personal doctrinal beliefs 2) or the work of the gospel and the salvation of others.
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[1] Followers of Jesus were first called Christians Acts 11:26.
[2] John B. Pohill, The New American Commentary, Acts (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1992) 288.
[3] R. C. Sproul, Acts: An Expositional Commentary (Stanford Florida; Ligonier Ministries, 2019) 191.
[4] (v. 9) after this verse, Saul is called Paul for the rest of the book.
[5] Paul was his Roman cognomen.
[6] Twenty years later in 2 Timothy 4:11 Paul specifically requests John Mark’s assistance; so by then he has proven himself to be a faithful servant of the Lord, even if earlier in his life he left the team.
The Power of a Praying Church – Acts 12
The Power of a Praying Church
Acts 12
Introduction
Last week we looked at how Jesus taught the disciples to pray, and what has become known as the “Lord’s Prayer.” And I challenged you (and myself) to begin praying through the booklet “40 days of Prayer.” As of today we should be on day 7. If this is new to you, that’s fine, just jump in with us today. The booklets are outside the sanctuary.
Today we will look at the power of the church, prayer. Prayer has been described as the electricity to the toaster. The appliance with worthless until it is plugged into the wall socket. We can have great dreams, good plans, but unless God leads the way, changes our hearts, and guide our decisions through prayer then we are like an unplugged toaster.
Also, when you have a church family you do not have to go through hard times alone. One of the ways that we support and love one another is that we pray for and with each other. So prayer is not a program or even something we do once a month at a meeting – it is the lifeblood of the local church and believers.
Prayer – so before we jump into today’s passage, let’s pray. Jesus, we come before you today in recognition that apart from you we would be nothing, can do nothing, and will accomplish nothing. We call out to you, to show us what you would have us to do, to be, how to think, how to serve You and our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We also pray that you will show us the importance and power of prayer this morning. Amen.
The Power of God Displayed in Impossible Situations (vv. 1-4)
About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. 2 He killed James the brother of John with the sword, 3 and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. 4 And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
The Herod in these verses is Agrippa I, a nephew of Herod Antipas who beheaded John the Baptist. Herod Agrippa through political maneuvering had managed to expand his kingdom to about the same size as his grandfather’s, Herod the Great;[1] who killed baby boys at the time of the birth of Jesus.
Herod Agrippa had James the “son of Zebedee” beheaded and, because it delighted the Jews, he intended to kill Peter. Polling data told him the majority of the citizens approved of that action so he captured Peter.
Herod Agrippa was a politician who desired to look good before the Roman Empire – one of the ways to look good was to keep the peace. So, if it pleased the Jews to kill Peter, this would help maintain the peace. He was also careful not to break the customs of the Jews by executing a man during the Passover.[2]
The Passover was the first of the three great festivals of the Hebrew people. It referred to the sacrifice of a lamb in Egypt when the people of Israel were slaves. The Hebrews smeared the blood of the lamb on their doorposts as a signal to God that He should “pass over” their houses when He destroyed all the firstborn of Egypt to persuade Pharaoh to let His people go.
In New Testament times, Passover became a pilgrim festival. Large numbers gathered in Jerusalem to observe this annual celebration. Jesus was crucified in the city during one of these Passover celebrations.
He and His disciples ate a Passover meal together on the eve of His death. Like the blood of the lamb which saved the Hebrew people from destruction in Egypt, His blood, as the ultimate Passover sacrifice, redeems us from the power of sin and death.[3]
There was a political tension between the Jews and the Romans – So Herod is holding Peter as an “ace up his sleeve,” if something were to happen during the Passover feast. The Jews were looking forward to his death. In v. 11 we see “from everything the Jewish people were expecting (NIV says anticipating).”
The Power of God is Dispersed By Interceding Saints (vv. 5-12)
So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. 6 Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. 7 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” 9 And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him. 11 When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” 12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.[4]
Knowing that Peter had allies, Agrippa took extra precautions against any attempt to free the prisoner – as Peter had already escaped from prison before. Four relays of soldiers took turns guarding him: four guards at a time, one on either side of him (to whom he was chained) and two at his cell door.[5]
I love this picture of Peter. He has taken his sandals off and they are lying by his bunk. He has stripped down to his underclothes and is soundly sleeping – while chained to Roman guards. Did peter’s snoring keep the guards awake? What was it that gave Peter so much resolve to endure the pressure and threat of death that he was able to be sound asleep? So soundly, that the Angel had to strike him?
His Relationship With Christ
Peter was able to sleep so soundly because first, he had seen the transfigured Christ; Luke 9:28-33 “Now about eight days after these sayings he took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. 29 And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were talking with him, Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure, [2] which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. 32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they became fully awake they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. 33 And as the men were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said..”
Peter had seen the resurrected Lord; John 21:2-4 “Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4 Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.”
Peter spent three years with Jesus, he had been with Him constantly – He saw the miracles, he experienced the masterful teaching, Peter was amazed at Jesus’ servant heart when he washed his feet. Peter denied him, heard the rooster crow, raced to the tomb after the resurrection, he knew the heartache of doubt. He saw the resurrected Christ on the seashore, and in the upper room.
Peter slept because he had a relationship with Christ – He knew that if he were to die, he would be with Christ. If he were to live, then he could continue to live for Christ. Another apostle had such a faith while facing death.
Paul in Philippians 1:18-21 “What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Sometimes we think the worst thing that can happen to us is to die – but Peter and Paul show us that is far more devastating to the believer to forget why he is here, and the all-important relationship they have with Christ.
Experience
Acts 5:18-20 “. . . they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.”
Peter had already been rescued one time by an angel – if it were God’s will, He would do it again. That is the wonder of Christianity – through our relationship with Christ, and daily experiencing his power, we have hope and faith for tomorrow. If your execution was in the morning could you sleep tonight? In light of all the ways God has provided for you, and shown you that He loves you would you rest easy?
He Knows His Church Is Praying
Peter is shackled with two chains, he is chained to two guards, he is surrounded by specially trained soldiers, who knew if the prisoner were to escape it would cost them their lives. Peter is in a barred room, within the Roman prison. For an average man, escape would have been impossible.
But this man had a very special group of people on his side. His church is praying for him. The church is praying for their pastor. They knew that if God does not step in a do something Peter is going to die, just like James. The church knew that there was no hope for Peter, other than prayer.
The Church’s Prayers Are United
There prayers were united because they were “gathered together.” Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” When believers gather together there is power.
James 5:16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” Within our unity of prayer, there must also be purity in the congregation. Then the prayers of the righteous are (NIV) “powerful and effective.”
The Church’s Prayers Are Earnest
They were “praying” – this Greek word was used to describe a muscle that has been stretched to its limit. They were straining in their prayer; they were stretched in their prayer. This was not a flippant prayer, but a prayer that pushed them to the point of strain, praying with all their might.
The same Greek word used here of the way in which the followers of Jesus were praying for Peter is used in Luke 22:44 for the way in which Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane.[6] Luke writes, “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”
The Church’s Prayers are Unceasing
“Unceasing” – they had prayed through the night, late into the night. They kept on praying until they heard that God had done something. Other translations have fervent. The origin of the word used here references the pleads of one being tortured on a rack that pulls them apart. The pleadings are urgent.
The church had prayed perhaps for days, and now on the eve of Peter’s execution – their prayer continues. We must not stop our prayer, even if the situation seems to already worked out before us.
Could their pleadings not only have been for his life to be spared, but also that he would not deny Christ as he had done earlier in his life? Peter had denied knowing Christ three times after Jesus’ arrest, and then the rooster crowed.
The Angel led him only the length of one street, he left him all alone in a city that wanted his head. It would only be a matter of time before they came looking for him – where would he go?
He went to a place where he knew he would be safe, a place where he would be loved, taken care of, those who knew his history and prayed all the more fervently for him, – he went to this family’s home because it was a home that was known to be a house of prayer.
It is not the craftiness of Peter that got him out of jail – Peter was asleep when the angel came. It wasn’t the sympathy of the jailers that enabled Peter to find deliverance – they would later lose their lives over Peter’s escape! There was no explanation for Peter’s escape except for the power of God!
It was the power of God that sent the angel! It was the power of God that loosed the chains! It was the power of God that opened the iron gate! It was the power of God that had changed the heart of a fisherman from coward to fearless apostle!
Once free Peter came to his senses and arrived at the same conclusion. In verse 11 we read, “When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” It was the power of God!
Also, just as an aside, In Acts 5 the popularity of Peter and the apostles is so prevalent that when the Roman soldiers are ordered to arrest them, Acts 5 says, “Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but not by force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.” But by Acts 12 the Jewish people would have been delighted to see Peter executed. We don’t share the word of God based on its popularity – but because it is our mission.
The Power of God is Doubted and the Saints are Surprised (vv. 13-17)
13 And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. 15 They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!” 16 But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. 17 But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to James[7] and to the brothers.” Then he departed and went to another place.
When Peter arrived at Mary’s house the followers of Jesus were still praying. They had been up all night long praying for Peter. I don’t know what they were praying about. I haven’t a clue if they were praying for Peter to be comfortable, for the living conditions to be cordial, or for Herod not to kill Peter.
I believe that they were praying for Peter to be spared, released, comfort but when he showed up at the door they didn’t believe the young lady who said, “He’s here!” They ignore the answered prayer when it’s right at their door. They try to rationalize the answered prayer, They said, “You are out of your mind!” They even try to explain awaythe answered prayer by saying, “It is his angel!”[8]
The followers of Jesus were praying, they were even praying earnestly, but they weren’t praying with expectation. When you come to know the desires of God’s heart for your situation (and for our church), ask for Him to move in the situation, and pray as though you know He is listening – and when the answer knocks on the door, answer the door.
Conclusion
The purpose of prayer is to draw us close to the heart of the Father so that our wills, our deepest desires, our passions will be those of the Father and not our own. When we draw close to the heart of the Father then He will be glorified through our lives, our words, and our works done for His glory! Then when we know God’s will and pray accordingly we should expect Him to do great things.
You have been challenged with the 40 Days of Prayer, so how do you bring it about? You begin with prayer.
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[1] Frank Stagg, The Book of Acts, The Early Struggle for an Unhindered Gospel (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1955) 128.
[2] Clifton J. Allen, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Vol. 10 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1970) 76.
[3] (from Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
[4] J. Jeremias, TDNT, III, pp. 175ff. There were other ancient stories of doors opening and fetters falling off as a story motif. Sudar Singh was thrown into a dry well for execution. FF. Bruce, 236.
[5] F.F. Bruce, The New International Commentary, The Book of Acts (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Eerdmans Publishing, 1988) 234.
[6] I. Howard Marshall, Tyndale New Testament Commentary, Acts (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Inter-Varsity Press, 1980), 208.
[7] This is James the brother of Jesus. James the “son of Zebedee” had already been killed by Herod.
[8] The Jewish people believed that people had a guardian angel, and that this angel resembled the person they watched over. (Allen, 77).
