Acts 4; Speak the Name Jesus

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Reaction to a miraculous Sign & Sermon

[Act 4:1 ESV] And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,

[Act 4:2 ESV] greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

[Act 4:3 ESV] And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

[Act 4:4 ESV] But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.

On Trial by Religion

[Act 4:5 ESV] On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem,

[Act 4:6 ESV] with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family.

By what name?

[Act 4:7 ESV] And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, "By what power or by what name did you do this?"

[Act 4:8 ESV] Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders,

[Act 4:9 ESV] if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed,

By Jesus Christ

[Act 4:10 ESV] let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead--by him this man is standing before you well.

[Act 4:11 ESV] This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.

Where did Peter get that statement?

These priest heard that statement before. 

Flashback!

[Mat 21:33 ESV] "Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and leased it to tenants, and went into another country.

[Mat 21:34 ESV] When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to get his fruit.

[Mat 21:35 ESV] And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.

[Mat 21:36 ESV] Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them.

[Mat 21:37 ESV] Finally he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.'

[Mat 21:38 ESV] But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.'

[Mat 21:39 ESV] And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

[Mat 21:40 ESV] When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?"

[Mat 21:41 ESV] They said to him, "He will put those wretches to a miserable death and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons."

[Mat 21:42 ESV] Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: "'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?

[Mat 21:43 ESV] Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.

[Mat 21:44 ESV] And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him."

[Mat 21:45 ESV] When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them.

[Mat 21:46 ESV] And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.

Jesus was quoting Psalms 118

[Psa 118:22 ESV] The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

[Psa 118:23 ESV] This is the LORD's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.

One Way for man to be Saved. 

[Act 4:12 ESV] And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

[Act 4:13 ESV] Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

Uneducated, Common men, “they had been with Jesus”. 

[Mar 14:49 ESV] Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled."

[Mar 14:50 ESV] And they all left him and fled.

[Mar 14:51 ESV] And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him,

[Mar 14:52 ESV] but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.

[Mar 14:53 ESV] And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.

[Mar 14:54 ESV] And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire.

Peter, John & the healed man. 

[Act 4:14 ESV] But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.

[Act 4:15 ESV] But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another,

[Act 4:16 ESV] saying, "What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

[Act 4:17 ESV] But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name."

[Act 4:18 ESV] So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

Seen & Heard

[Act 4:19 ESV] But Peter and John answered them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge,

[Act 4:20 ESV] for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard."

Stumped for the moment.

[Act 4:21 ESV] And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened.

[Act 4:22 ESV] For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

As long as the masses were in favor, so where the leaders.   

But when the masses turn against the Christians, the leaders find their “courage”.  

Things change in Acts 6 the stoning of Stephen, 

This is what Fellowship looks like. 

[Act 4:23 ESV] When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them.

[Act 4:24 ESV] And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, "Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,

[Act 4:25 ESV] who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, "'Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?

[Act 4:26 ESV] The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed'--

[Act 4:27 ESV] for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,

[Act 4:28 ESV] to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place.

What a Prayer!

[Act 4:29 ESV] And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,

[Act 4:30 ESV] while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus."

[Act 4:31 ESV] And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

Your Name’s Sake!

[Psa 25:11 ESV] For your name's sake, O LORD, pardon my guilt, for it is great.

[Psa 31:3 ESV] For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name's sake you lead me and guide me;

[Psa 79:9 ESV] Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name; deliver us, and atone for our sins, for your name's sake!

[Psa 109:21 ESV] But you, O GOD my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name's sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!

[Psa 143:11 ESV] For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble!

The Prophet Jeremiah 

[Jer 14:7 ESV] "Though our iniquities testify against us, act, O LORD, for your name's sake; for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against you.

[Jer 14:21 ESV] Do not spurn us, for your name's sake; do not dishonor your glorious throne; remember and do not break your covenant with us.

Communion:

[1Co 11:23 ESV] For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,

[1Co 11:24 ESV] and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me."

[1Co 11:25 ESV] In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."

Starting Next Week. 

[Act 4:32 ESV] Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.

[Act 4:33 ESV] And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.

[Act 4:34 ESV] There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold

[Act 4:35 ESV] and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

[Act 4:36 ESV] Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus,

[Act 4:37 ESV] sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.