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[0:00] Lord, I do ask you to bless your word. Holy Spirit, we are just at your disposal, praying that you would come and teach us and speak to us. We are so thankful that just as you promised Jesus that when you would ascend to your Father, you would send another comforter, the comforter that he may abide with us forever.

[0:19] That he would lead us into all truth and bring all things to our memory and show us things to come. And so as we open your word, it is with that promise that we dive into it, trusting that you will just make known to us the hidden things of your word, the hidden things of the spirit, the hidden things of our heart that maybe we don't even know are in there.

[0:39] We just thank you so much for your abiding presence. Despite our weaknesses, our shortcomings, and our failures, you are yet strong, Lord, that your grace is sufficient. And in Jesus' name, amen.

[0:52] All right, so we've come as far as Acts chapter 4. All right, quick recap. So Luke is writing this. He's either writing as just an account of what has happened after the ascension or possibly as, right, a brief in Paul's defense, maybe before Nero, to kind of spell out to a Roman authority, hey, here's what happened.

[1:19] I was thinking about it today, how you had Jesus with the apostles, Jesus resurrected, and then Jesus ascends, and there's like a void between his ascension and then the coming of the Holy Spirit, where, I mean, the disciples had the Holy Spirit because Jesus breathed on them and said, receive the Holy Spirit, but not yet been given in power.

[1:44] So it's almost like, where's God's witness in the world? It was silent at that time until the Holy Spirit came. And then once again, the disciples had someone there in their life directing them.

[1:56] Peter and John, after receiving the Holy Spirit, they kind of settle back into the routine here where they're continuing with the rest of the apostles and disciples going up to the temple at times of prayer.

[2:09] This was still a very Jewish movement, Christianity. And so they do that. They meet the lame man. You know, he gets healed. They, you know, very clearly the Holy Spirit must have prompted Peter.

[2:19] He heals him. And then all the people run together. They're amazed because we're going to find out in this chapter the dude's over 40 years old. So everybody knew about him. This was not done in secret.

[2:30] This wasn't like, are you sure you were healed? They all knew who he was. And Peter takes the opportunity to preach to the people. And that's where we then find ourselves in chapter four.

[2:43] It says, and as they spake, Peter and John, remember John is with him as well. But for whatever reason, John never speaks. Like it says they spake, but Peter's the only one that we get to hear about.

[2:55] And I think that's a reason. I think it's Luke and the Holy Spirit kind of showing Jesus has ascended, the Holy Spirit's come, and then he's very specifically pointing out the people by whom God is kind of moving forward his work.

[3:11] Peter is very prominent in the direction of the church. There's James. We know when Paul in one of the epistles says that, you know, I came to the apostles and James, who seemed to be, you know, somewhat of a leader.

[3:24] He kind of was the head of the church in Jerusalem. We know that John is no slacker when it comes to, you know, spiritual clout. But Peter primarily is the one that we're focusing on and that the Holy Spirit wants to put before us.

[3:39] And then it's going to transition into, you know, Paul. We're going to see Stephen. He's going to be very clearly pointed out of the seven deacons. Philip, Paul.

[3:49] So specific kind of like pinpoints throughout this work of the Spirit that's taking place right now. And Peter. And so in verse one, and as they spake unto the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them being grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

[4:14] I never saw this before until I was kind of like, oh, it's the Sadducees. You know, we're used to hearing about Pharisees. Pharisees are gone. After the gospels, you know, where Jesus is constantly like face to face with the Pharisees.

[4:26] Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees. You get to Acts and you don't see them anymore. It's going to be the Sadducees. The Pharisees, the only time they're mentioned, I think Gamaliel was a Pharisee. Paul says he was a Pharisee.

[4:38] And then at one point when Paul and Barnabas will come back to Jerusalem after like witnessing all the Gentiles and they're all rocked in Jerusalem by like, what are we going to do with the Gentiles? The Pharisees, it says those of the believing Pharisees wanted them to keep the law.

[4:52] And then they eventually say, no, no, no, just don't drink blood. Don't eat things, sacrifice to idols and don't commit fornication. So the Pharisees, and it's like, when Jesus gave them their chance, said, woe to you.

[5:06] And then it's like, they're gone. You know, they had rejected. But then you see God's grace because he's so gracious and he's so redeeming that there's those little snippets of like those of the believing Pharisees. So there's some that did believe.

[5:18] But the Sadducees, they would be this, this would be the same people that Jesus was tried before. The Sadducees kind of came out of the, when Ezra and Nehemiah returned to the land, the Sadducees, the priests kind of became leaders and landowners.

[5:31] They're very powerful, very materialistic, and held a lot of authority. The high priest was always out of the Sadducees. The Pharisees were more those who believed in the oral tradition. Remember when Jesus said, you do set aside the commands of God to keep the traditions of men?

[5:46] It's because the Pharisees were very fixated on the oral tradition that they thought that's how God preserved his word. And so they were at odds with the Sadducees. But anyway, so that's who these Sadducees are.

[5:59] And this is, this is the response of religion, right? Jesus is being preached, lives are being changed, and religion comes in and they were grieved. What a word to use, grieved, because they taught the people and preached.

[6:14] This was not Peter's intention, right? But it was the Holy Spirit. Peter was set up remember the guy who got healed was holding him tight. He couldn't go anywhere. He's like, well, might as well preach. But it's interesting because verse 2 tells us two things.

[6:28] The Holy Spirit's kind of pointing out here. They taught the people and preached. So, on your own, go back and look at chapter 3. And the Holy Spirit considers that preaching and teaching.

[6:38] What's the difference? Well, preaching, I think, is when he's saying, you know, hey, this Jesus who God has raised up and he's pointing him out that he's the Holy One that you desire to murder. Him, the Prince of Life, God has raised from the dead.

[6:52] Teaching is where they go into the scripture and he says, as the prophets all said, as the scripture said, and he then taught out of the scripture. So, just two kind of different aspects. And they laid hands on them and put them in hold unto the next day for it was now even tied.

[7:09] So, what we're going to see as we go through this as an intro kind of to the chapter, I think specifically it's to point out we're going to see Peter's filled with the Holy Spirit. We're going to see later on the multitude of disciples are filled with the Holy Spirit.

[7:22] This will be Peter's second and third filling. The first time would have been at the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Interesting to note, I don't know of anywhere in Acts where they ask to be filled with the Spirit. When believers have not yet received the Spirit, baptized in the Spirit, they'll specifically say, have you yet received the Spirit?

[7:38] Or like when there's the coming up, there's going to be the revival in Samaria with Philip. And it says they sent Peter and John that they might receive the Spirit. But Ephesians tells us, right, do not be drunk with wine where is in excess, but be you being continually filled with the Spirit.

[7:52] So we think, God, fill me with your Spirit. But in Acts, you don't ever see them asking to be filled. What we're going to see is God is going to put them in positions of impossibility and they have to walk by faith in that and as they do, they're filled with the Spirit to accomplish that.

[8:07] It's like the Lord's putting in front of them, like, take that step. And as they do, God is there to fill them with His Spirit. So I find myself, I catch myself, and the application for me is, I'm like, Lord, fill me with your Spirit today.

[8:18] And, you know, and not really, but like kind of tongue-in-cheek, you know, you can kind of picture him being like, why? You know, what you got going to, what are you going to do? You know, I just want a really good day. But as He puts things in front of us, they're impossibilities.

[8:33] Because, and that's what the whole book, it's going to get kind of tiring, I mean, to say it over and over, but that's all Acts is. One impossibility after another, after another. There's nothing they do in this book that could be done without the Holy Spirit.

[8:44] They have to have the Holy Spirit. And so we're going to see throughout the whole book how the Spirit, Jesus was three years. We looked at all those, you know, through Mark, interacting with man.

[8:55] Now we're going to see how God is choosing to interact with man now that Jesus has ascended and the Holy Spirit's come. Applicable for us today because we're still living in the book of Acts. So, they put them in hold.

[9:09] This would be Peter, John, and the lame man. They're in prison. They're put in hold. This would be the same people who would try Jesus. If you remember, Jesus had said to Peter after his resurrection, Peter, do you love me?

[9:21] Feed my sheep, right? And then he said, there will come a day where they will lead you about by the hand and they will take you where you do not want to go. This he spake, signifying his death. Peter then turns to John and goes, what about this man?

[9:33] And Jesus says, don't worry about him. You know, what's it to you if I will that he live until the kingdom comes, until I return? So you got to think, Peter's thinking, this is it.

[9:45] I'm going to get crucified. They took me in. You know, he's probably looking at John too. Like, John, the Lord said, you know, you're going to be alive until he comes. You know, maybe he's coming back. You know, there's a lot going on here probably in Peter's mind.

[9:58] He doesn't know what's going to happen the next day. He's just put in prison overnight by the same people who took Jesus. But I was thinking of how God uses those things that seem like this did not turn out well.

[10:08] Peter is going up to pray. You know, God, I'm just going to go pray. Oh, wow, the Lord used me to heal a man. Now I'm in jail. You know, how did this spiral out of control? What is going on? And yet, think of the guy who just got healed a whole night with Peter and John.

[10:24] Right? Think of the intense 101 to, you know, advanced class he just got on walking with Jesus, on who Jesus was.

[10:35] This guy, he's just like, tell me more. Tell me more. And Peter and John, you know how it is like when you're like in a spot that the Lord's put you in and you're not sure how it's going to come out, but you know you're in his will.

[10:47] You're just rejoicing. You're just like, ah, this Holy Spirit's with you. So you know that they are, they are pumped. And I think this guy, you know, he goes from being lame to probably coming out as a leader in the church overnight here.

[11:01] So they're put in prison. If you remember, Jesus said, he that is not for me is against me. So here are these guys that are specifically, they're not for Jesus.

[11:13] And the only other alternative is to be against him. But, you can't put Jesus on hold. That's what I was thinking of where it said they put them in hold. You can't put Jesus on hold.

[11:25] Howbeit, verse four, just thrown in here, many of them which heard the word believed, and the number of men was about 5,000. So in Acts 2, verse 41, we had 3,000 added to the church.

[11:36] It's like, whoa, 3,000 by that preaching of when they're speaking the gifts of tongues. Now you've got 5,000. This could either be 5,000 added or saying this is now a total of 5,000.

[11:48] I'm going with 5,000 added and saying there's now 8,000 people. You know, this is men, total number of men. So this isn't women and children and households. This is just specifically saying the men. So you now have these 5,000 that have been converted.

[12:02] I can't imagine, you know, you think of the Franklin Graham or Billy Graham crusades and it's like, we've had this many people come forward and this many of them, you know, gave commitments. This is just like, how many verses was that that Peter just kind of said, hey guys, it's not us.

[12:18] It was Jesus who healed this man. Remember in Mark, at the end of Mark, Jesus said, these signs will follow those that believe. And so that's what they're witnessing here because this is the Holy Spirit witnessing to the truth of the gospel through these miracles.

[12:35] In the context of the whole entirety of Jerusalem, there's a lot of people here. We're going to see in the next verse here, verse 6, where it's saying they were all together, all of the high priest's family were in Jerusalem at this time.

[12:48] Everybody was here because of Pentecost and we're only a couple days removed from that. I mean, there's a lot of press given to a very short period of time here.

[12:58] So yeah, Jerusalem is still bloated beyond means. So verse 5, And it came to pass on the morrow that the rulers and elders and scribes and Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest were gathered together at Jerusalem.

[13:18] And so, they're coming to inquire. They're coming to essentially put them on trial. And when they had set them in the midst, they asked them by what power or by what name have you done this?

[13:28] It's always good to inquire about Jesus. Always. Always, always. Doesn't matter what their motives are. Doesn't matter how wicked they are, their intentions. It's always good to inquire about Jesus.

[13:41] It's never a deep, dark hole that's always going to lead somewhere positive. And when they set them in the midst, they asked them by what power or by what name have you done this? And then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit.

[13:54] Here we go. Peter didn't, I don't think, Lord, fill me with the Holy Spirit. I gotta talk to these people. No, this is a fulfillment of what Jesus said, which was in Luke 12, 11, you know, that prepare not ahead what they're gonna speak to you or what you shall say to them, but when they shall drag you before elders and rulers, at that time, I'll give you what to speak for I will put my words in your mouth and you will be that to them words and wisdom.

[14:18] And I think one of the reasons that the Holy Spirit's using Peter, like, who's the more educated of the two? Probably John. Probably. We know that he is somehow related to the high priest because he goes into the house during the trial when Jesus is in there and Peter stays out in the courtyard.

[14:34] So, we know that John may have had some more schooling. We know his father, the sons of Zebedee, right, that he was somewhat more wealthy. So, but here's Peter, filled with the Spirit.

[14:46] And Peter's just gonna, like, lay these guys out. And that's encouraging for me. I don't have a college degree. You know, I went to the school of ministry for two years. Got my marriage license at the end of it. But I don't have a college degree.

[15:02] You know, worked in civil service for 13 years. Came down here and the Lord just gave me the job I'm in now. I don't got any initials after my name or anything like that. And that's encouraging for me.

[15:12] I had this last year the opportunity to do a commencement speech for a graduation. And I was talking to the lady like, oh, how long should it be? I've never done this. She's like, well, here, here's the link to the YouTube video from last year's.

[15:24] You know, there's no link to the one I did this year. So, so I watch and the guy, he's like up there and she introduces him. This guy has his master's in theology, his PhD in divinity and there's something and something and I'm like, ah.

[15:40] But you know, I find it encouraging like, okay, I've got nothing to fall back on. So that means it's either the Lord or it's not. I can't fall back on anything except that.

[15:52] And here's Peter filled with the Holy Spirit, put in an impossible situation. He didn't ask for it. He didn't look to be here, but he's here because this is where the Lord wanted him. And he said to the rulers of the people and the elders of Israel, if we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man by what means he is made whole, be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel and that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him does this man stand here before you whole.

[16:27] Wow. That doesn't sound like Peter. I'm sorry. We just went through Mark. That does not sound like Peter. This is just someone else. And it's the Holy Spirit. He's a new man and he's been, out of his innermost being are flowing forth rivers of living water.

[16:42] Peter will eventually write in his epistle, be ready to give an answer to every man who asks you for the hope that is in you. And you know when he was writing that he's thinking back like, wow, that time they asked me that.

[16:53] Now did Peter have no traction at all in scripture? You know, no history with the Lord? No, he's three years with Jesus, right? We knew he was with John the Baptist when he first met Jesus.

[17:03] So he had already, you know, been hungering for that. He had a background in the scriptures because he'll quote them. Bob Ross, everybody knows Bob Ross, the painter, right? You know, people ask him, how long does it take you to paint?

[17:15] He'd say 30 minutes in 30 years. I can do it in 30 minutes because I've been doing this 30 years, right? And it's kind of like the scripture. It's like, I mean, this is my whole life.

[17:25] I've been in the word. So things just come up and things come out. You know, it's not like never picked it up because what does Paul say to Timothy? You know, that you may show yourself approved, rightly dividing the word of truth.

[17:39] And so that's what Peter's doing here. filled with the Holy Spirit, put in an impossible situation, the Holy Spirit meets him. And so he says to them, or be it known unto you and all the people of Israel that by this name, why do they keep fighting the truth?

[17:55] It's put in front of them again and again and again and they continue to fight against this. This, and I think this part is more of like an exaltation, right? He's kind of like, guys, this Jesus whom you crucified, God raised him from the dead.

[18:10] Even by him does this man stand here whole. And then verse 11, he's like, this is the stone which was set at naught of you builders, which has become the head of the corner. Guys, this is it.

[18:21] He's the chief cornerstone. This is good news. Off of everything else, every line is drawn off that cornerstone. Every part of this building is set off of the cornerstone.

[18:32] Guys, this is it. This is really good news. And neither is there salvation in any other for there's none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.

[18:42] There still isn't. Do you know of any religion where the religion would say that by this name you are saved? No. Like Muhammad, you know, Allah, Buddha, any Confucian, any other religion, Hinduism, none of them say that by this name, by the name of this God, this God will save you.

[19:04] They don't. It's usually some work, something you gotta do. And I think that's so cool how, you know, God and his sovereignty has made it that no, there will only ever be the name of Jesus that'll save.

[19:14] You can accept it or you can reject it but you're not gonna find another name. There's no other religion out there like, well, you know, I went down the street and they have this other name I can be saved by. It's not. It's still the only one that says this name saves you and you must be saved.

[19:31] Now, so they're all sitting here, the whole family. It's like a family reunion for the high priest and they're all sitting here. When they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled and they took knowledge of them that they'd been with Jesus.

[19:52] Ignorant, unlearned, so these words, unlearned, unlearned is like that they are unlearned in any art. They have no learning whatsoever.

[20:04] I believe ignorant literally is where we get idiot from. They're a bunch of uneducated idiots. Flat out is how the world's looking at them. They know that but what can they not get past?

[20:16] This boldness. Remember what they said about Jesus? Never had any man speak with such authority as this man. This is something we've not seen. So here's Peter, the most bumbling, thick-headed of all of them speaking with an eloquence and an authority that is just knocking these guys out.

[20:34] And they marveled and they took knowledge of them that they'd been taught by Jesus, that they had learned from Jesus, that they'd been with Jesus, relationship, and they've been with Jesus.

[20:45] How did Jesus train his apostles? Did he send them to a seminary? Did he send them to school? Did he have them memorizing scripture? He just kept them with him. He just said, live with me. You're going to see how I do life.

[20:57] You're going to see how I interact with the Father, how I interact with the world around me, how I interact with the Holy Spirit. And then I'm also going to talk to you about that. How many times did he take them aside and said he took aside the disciples and spoke to them privately?

[21:08] As he got closer to the end, he spent more and more time alone with them. Why? Look how many people just got saved. How many were added to the church? 8,000. No leaders and you got 8,000 people filled with the Spirit.

[21:21] Woohoo! Running around like, yeah, Jesus! It's your understanding that the young boys when they were in the synagogues in the temple, did they not memorize a lot of stuff?

[21:33] It's my understanding that as they got older, age 6, maybe they understood the opportunity and people did memorize a lot. Yeah, and you can see that because of like, even in chapter 1, before the Holy Spirit is poured out, where Peter's scripture is coming to mind, you know, and when Jesus breathed on them and said, receive the Spirit and said, and he opened their minds to understand the scripture, well, that has to be in there to understand it.

[22:01] You know, you have to have some ability to understand what's in there for then that to happen. So yeah, I think, I think Peter did. Like, Peter ties in a ton of, like, just like we looked at, those obscure Psalms that he's pulling from here, there, and everywhere.

[22:15] It's like, this means this and this and this. I do think he understood the word quite a bit. But when he's with Jesus, you don't see Jesus specifically emphasizing, all right guys, you know, how are you doing with your lessons?

[22:26] How are you doing with your studies? The lesson was himself, spending time with Jesus. They gained everything they needed. And so, they took note of them that they had been with Jesus.

[22:41] And beholding the man which was healed, standing with them, they could say, nothing against it. The work of God cannot be disproved. No work of God can be disproved, ever.

[22:53] But it can be disbelieved. And that's what ends up happening here. I feel bad for this guy because like, when Peter talks up here, he says, that if we this day be called into question for the good deed done to the impotent man, this guy's gonna forever be known as, hey, he's a lame man.

[23:10] He's like, I'm not lame anymore guys. I can walk. Right? But isn't that what happens? You know, people who know us in this state, God does a work. And then they're like, yeah, but, yeah, that's who you really are.

[23:22] It's like, no, that's not who I really am. That was lame. That's totally changed. I'm not that anymore. But at the same time, right, what a witness to be like, hey, you're the lame guy.

[23:33] Well, I was. But let me tell you what Jesus did. And then I had this all night Bible study. It was amazing. So this is the guy who'd never been in the temple before and now like, whoo, he's in before the high priest being examined and they have nothing they can find.

[23:50] They beheld him which was healed standing with them and they could say nothing against it. Then why keep trying? When they commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves.

[24:03] Why would they kick them out? Well, I think because they were afraid of what Peter might say next. They weren't going to talk in front of him. It's like, we got to move him aside and we'll think about this. And that's, so often, you know, you go to talk to someone or someone, the Lord's working their life, they push the Lord aside, they silence him so that they can come up with all these other voices to drown his out.

[24:27] Saying, what shall we do to these men? For that indeed a notable miracle has been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem and we cannot deny it.

[24:38] But they're not going to believe it. Right? Then don't. Stop denying it. Don't deny it. The Holy Spirit's done a work, an impossible work in a life that was never expected.

[24:50] Don't deny it. Right? I can be very judgmental. God can work in someone's life and change them in a way I never thought they would and I can think, well, yeah, but, you know, for now.

[25:03] No, God's done a work. Don't deny it. You know, you think every time this poor guy sprained his ankle or something or if he ever fell down and broke his leg again, it wasn't, it didn't take, it wasn't a true healing, I knew it.

[25:18] Every time he sat down, his feet, my foot fell asleep. No, stop denying it. Romans 1 tells us that when they knew God, they chose not to believe God, but they denied him and chose to worship the creature more than the creator.

[25:39] That's what we're seeing with the Sadducees right now. They will absolutely refuse because it changed, it completely changes their entire world. The world that they have grown up in, the world they've made for themselves cannot receive Jesus into it and still be the same.

[25:55] And I think that's one of the biggest hindrances in people's lives to receive Christ and ours to grow in Christ. We recognize that accepting Jesus into a situation will completely change that situation, but I might not always want it to change because I'm very comfortable with how it is now.

[26:10] But, this is their genius idea, that it spread no further among the people, let us straightly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.

[26:24] And this is the weakness of the enemy, right? This is all he can do. Satan roams about as a roaring lion. I mean, this is the best he's got after all this. Yes, we're going to get a little further where it's going to ratchet up and they're going to, you know, beat them.

[26:36] But, it's, the Lord takes it in stages, right? He doesn't throw us straight into the lion's den, right? That was at the end of Daniel's life. Daniel had gone through a lot of history with the Lord when he got to that point.

[26:49] It wasn't when Daniel was first brought into Babylon that it was like, into the lion's den! No, what was his first test? Hey, don't eat according to the pagans. Okay, you know, I'm just going to eat a little different, you know, and God stepped it up.

[27:01] Here you have Peter and John, they're being threatened. Don't ever speak in this name again. But Peter and John answered, I bet these guys are like, God, will you just be quiet? Stop talking.

[27:12] Don't talk anymore. Please. But Peter and John answered and said unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge you.

[27:25] For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. So they speak up, you have Peter and John, so maybe this is some of John's speaking right now.

[27:35] And they kind of put it to these guys, say, what's your standard, fellas? Is your standard so low? You know, our standard is God. What's yours? I didn't know this was in here because I looked up, but we cannot but speak the things which we've seen and heard.

[27:49] It's a weird way to say it. We cannot but. In other words, we have to. Like, we have no choice but to speak the things which we've seen and heard. But stuck in between but and speak in the Greek, that phrase there is dunami.

[28:04] It's like power. Dunamos. It's the same word for like ability, power. And so they're saying, but we cannot help but by power and compulsion, we must because it's the Holy Spirit telling us to speak the things which we've seen and heard.

[28:20] And here's the thing, guys. We can only speak what we've seen and heard. That's what they're saying. If you haven't seen it, you haven't heard it, anything else lacks truth and power. It must be something we've seen and heard. I can only speak to you about, you know, what I have, what I've experienced.

[28:34] You know, I can speak to you by the authority of the word but I can't speak to you like as a testimony for my own life about all the healings I've done and the hundreds of thousands of people at the crusades I've led. I've never done that.

[28:45] You know, but I can speak to you of what I've seen and heard of Jesus and of his word. Right? I don't have anything to offer you. My life's pretty ho-hum. But I have Jesus and his life's amazing and the walk in the spirit and the walk by faith.

[28:58] You can take the smallest step of faith which seems like in your mind and in your heart in the middle of your day that nobody knows about and the Lord challenges you and says, you give that to me and you walk in faith in that.

[29:09] Like, okay, Lord. And you push that off to him. Man, you think you're just part of the Red Seas when you step in that. Then the Lord comes through for you. It's like, thank you, Lord. I'll never doubt again until the next time.

[29:22] Anyway, so we can't help but speak with power and authority the things which we've seen and heard because it's not us. It's the Holy Spirit. So when they had further threatened them, well, we're going to threaten you some more, they let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them.

[29:36] Same with Jesus. Well, they didn't let him go. But that wasn't because of their choice, but because Jesus had predetermined what would happen. Because of the people, for all men glorified God for that which was done.

[29:51] And here have the contrast between these religious dudes and the people. The people recognized it was God. The Sadducees did too. They just didn't want to accept it. So you see, religion will always look to man.

[30:03] True faith looks to God. The people glorified God. Religion said, well, there must be an explanation. They didn't cross the Red Sea. It was the Reed Sea. It was only knee deep. Jesus didn't really die.

[30:15] He swooned. For the man, verse 22, was above 40 years old on whom this miracle of healing was showed. What does that matter? Well, I think it's just showing us, again, that there was no doubting this.

[30:28] This was unquestionable. This was not like, oh, it was a 10-year-old kid or we never saw this man before. He just showed up and said he was healed. This was not one of those someone came on stage, they swung the sports coat and they fell down.

[30:40] Like, hey, he's saved. He's healed. Nobody really knows the history. Everybody knew this man's history. And being let go, they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

[30:52] There's a big contrast there, right? They left the chief priests and went to their own company. They are not of their company. Do you have a company? I hope so. I hope you have your own company you can be a part of.

[31:04] I hope you have people you can be in fellowship with. That when you are threatened, you can go there. When the enemy threatens, when a voice says, don't do what God has clearly showed you to do, you have people that you can go to.

[31:18] And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord and said, Lord, thou art God, which has made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is.

[31:30] Who by the mouth of thy servant David has said, why did the heathen rage and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up together against the Lord and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou has anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered together.

[31:51] For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. So they're praying to God with one accord. That doesn't mean they're all praying at the same time and the same thing.

[32:02] So you got one dude, one person praying and they're all agreeing in prayer, right? Maybe you've been in prayer meetings where everybody prays because I don't need to hear you pray. God needs to hear you pray. I'm not going to answer your prayer. He is. So there's times where it's like you grab a person, maybe a couple of you pray and everybody's praying throughout the room.

[32:17] Or there's a time where one person's praying. We're all agreeing together in prayer and taking turns. So this is one of those times where they're all agreeing with whoever's praying here. And he starts with authority. God, you are the Lord.

[32:29] And this word here, like Lord, is not the usual word for Lord. This is more like a very severe, authoritative master. Like God, you are master of heaven and earth and the sea is your authority.

[32:45] And then it shows here, based on God's authority, the futility of man. Where he says, David says, why do the heathen rage and the kings of the earth imagine a vain thing? And then he points out that all that was done to Jesus in verse 28 had nothing to do with, it didn't say, for to do whatsoever their hand and their counsel determined.

[33:05] No. And so they're encouraging themselves that, hey, just as this counsel has come against us, the same way they came against Jesus, this wasn't the counsel. It was what God had determined beforehand for Jesus.

[33:16] This is what God has determined beforehand, you know, that we should walk through too. Their current prayer is based in past faithfulness of God. They saw how faithful God was to Jesus and how predetermined that was and so they can know the things in their life are the same.

[33:34] And now, Lord, behold their threatenings and grant unto your servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word by stretching forth thine hand to heal and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child, Jesus.

[33:48] What didn't they pray? They didn't pray what I would have prayed. Lord, these guys are threatening us. Protect us. Keep us from them. May you just shut them down.

[33:59] That's the enemy, Lord. Let your word go forth with power. Please don't let us go to jail again. Help, help, help. Right? No. They, they, why?

[34:09] Because they didn't have, they didn't have an earthly perspective. They had a heavenly perspective. They're like Paul. Remember Paul? Whatever situation he's in, we're going to find out eventually, right? He's like, I'm a prisoner of the Lord.

[34:20] Oh, I'm in a shipwreck? Well, I'm there for the Lord. I'm a prisoner? Oh, I'm a prisoner of the Lord. Oh, I'm sent to the Gentiles? Oh, I'm, I'm an apostle of the Lord. Everything was, the situation he was in, he didn't look at it like, oh no, my, my circumstances have changed.

[34:35] He just looked at it like, oh, this is a new situation for the Lord. I, an inspector, and construction site, for the Lord. You know, what are you?

[34:45] For the Lord, in that place that you're in. And, and so that's what they're essentially praying. Lord, and it's funny because they're not asking anything for themselves. They're recognizing who it is who did the work.

[34:57] Stretch forth your hand to heal. The signs and wonders may be done by the name of your holy child, Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were all assembled together and they were all, what?

[35:09] Filled with the Holy Spirit. Did they ask for filling? Nope. And they spake the word of God with boldness. First prayer, then the filling. What were they praying for? Impossibilities. Things they wanted God to do that they couldn't do on their own.

[35:21] And they were then filled with the Holy Spirit. You're going to see the filling of the Holy Spirit. We've seen it already. Peter, filled, speaks. John and Peter, filled, speaks. Here, they spake the word of God.

[35:32] Filling always leads to speaking. Always leads to a witness. The multitude of them that believed were one heart, one soul, neither said any of them that all of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things common.

[35:46] And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and great grace was upon them all. Great power of the Holy Spirit and the great grace, as Paul says, this grace is sufficient.

[35:59] The great grace overcoming their shortcomings. We can have power, we can have the word, but without grace, it's so easy to see each other's shortcomings. Neither was there any among them that lacked.

[36:11] And we will pick up back into this as we come into the next time with Ananias and Sapphira, but this kind of sets the stage for them. Neither was there any among them that lacked, for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them and brought the prices of the things that were sold.

[36:28] This is a reflection of their heart, where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The treasure wasn't in their things, it was in each other, the work of God. They laid them down at the apostles' feet. There was a recognition of authority taking place here.

[36:41] And distribution was made unto every man according as he had need. And they're just reflecting the same thing the Lord is doing. The Lord, by the Holy Spirit, is just giving out to every person as they had need in the Spirit.

[36:53] And so they're reflecting that in their relationship with one another. And Joses, and that's a hard name to say, so they decided to call him Barnabas, which is being interpreted the son of consolation, a Levite of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.

[37:13] Because he had first given it to the Lord, it was all to the Lord's, it was no big deal then to give it to whoever else. You know, the Lord doesn't require of us what we do not have.

[37:28] Like, he doesn't go, well, this person gave more. Well, I don't have that. He only asked to give of what we have. And Barnabas, this is what he had, it was no big deal to him, and he came and laid it at their feet.

[37:39] And so we have this picture of the Holy Spirit putting the disciples in impossible situations that only God could fulfill, that only God could meet.

[37:51] And then, as it closes out the chapter, we have again this picture of how that works out among the believers, that as the Lord is supplying all of our needs, well, it's very natural then that I'd look to supply the needs of those around me.

[38:04] How can I withhold when God's not withheld anything from me? Even though I've been pointing out how they didn't ask for the filling of the Spirit, we do have where Jesus says in Luke 11, 13, how much more than will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask.

[38:21] So, but we also have the assurance that as we walk forward in faith, because that's what they were doing, they had to open their mouth, they had to take those steps of faith, God is there to supply, and he will fill with his Spirit for everything we need.

[38:35] Has he given his Spirit? Yeah, we just saw that in Acts chapter 2, the Spirit's been given. Is he willing to fill and supply? Yes, he is, for sure. And who's the picture he's held up in front of us?

[38:45] Peter! Okay? If God can fill Peter, and God can use him in such a way, then, you know, we don't have to be very smart, educated, or eloquent of tongue.

[38:58] So, let's pray. Jesus, thank you so much for another opportunity just to look at your word, Lord. Thank you as we walk through the book of Acts, Lord, and just this narrative and this story, trying to get in the heads of these people, Lord.

[39:10] Again, just thinking of that long night, Peter, John, and the lame man, they didn't know what was coming, they thought they were going to be crucified, maybe Jesus was going to return, and then just talking about you, sharing with you the fellowship they had, and thinking of that lame man, how, what a blessing it was for him, looking back at his life and thinking, I never thought I would walk, and on top of that, I never thought I would know who the Messiah was, and then on top of that, that the Spirit of God would bring that into my life, and he will never leave me or forsake me, wow.

[39:46] So, Lord, as we go out into what you have for us, Lord, wherever you place us, that we would let the Holy Spirit fill us as you put us in impossible situations, Lord, that we would open our mouth to speak, and that you, Lord, would do whatever you want to do, that, Lord, some people will believe, and some people won't, but there's still only one name by which we can be saved.

[40:08] Lord, there's still only one option to either be for you, or the default is against you. Lord, we pray for those that don't know you, that we work with, with our families, and Lord, send out laborers into the harvest, and Lord, if you would use us, here we are, Lord.

[40:24] Fill us, equip us, send us, but Lord, let us not wait for the feeling of the filling, or the knowledge of the equipping, but to look at your word and know that as we walk forward, you're going to make up what we lack.

[40:39]  And in Jesus' name, Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.