CAPITAL BIBLE CHURCH April 26, 2015 SERMON NOTES PASTOR BILL HAKEN A.D. the Series Stand Acts 4:18-20 Here, in Acts chapter 4 we see Peter and John standing up for Christ. Look at the beginning of chapter 3 for the background. They had healed a man in the name of Jesus! At beginning of chapter 4 they put them in prison overnight. The next day hauled them in front of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish Council of 71 Before they let Peter and John go, they threatened them. Let s look at the threat and Peter and John s response. Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, Which is right in God s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard Acts 4:18-20 They told Peter and John to stop teaching in the name of Jesus. Peter and John stood up for Christ. Even though they were facing threats, they took a stand and told the leaders they would keep preaching and teaching Christ! In life, you will face people or things that try to get you to stop living for Christ. This could be caused by a temptation from the evil one, a relationship, a family member, a job, a friend, or even a tragic and unexpected event. Remember what Jesus said in John s Gospel: In this world you will have tribulation and troubles, but be of good cheer I have overcome the world. John 16:33 If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, that is why the world hates you. John 15:18, 19 That s why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 16:13: Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong...be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the tricks of the Devil. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:10, 11, 13 Peter and John faced major opposition. They were arrested, put in prison, and threatened, but they continued to stand for Christ. The same thing, but worse is happening around the world today.
A Christian genocide at the hands of Islamic extremists is unfolding in the Middle East. Entire Christian populations have been eliminated, and the ultimate aim of ISIS is to eradicate the world of Christianity. "Everyday there's a new atrocity, from the beheading of the 21 Coptic Christians, to the kidnapping of 300 Christians along the Khabour River in Syria to the execution of 30 Ethiopian Christians in Libya." Churches have been demolished, crosses burned and replaced with ISIS flags, homes destroyed, entire communities displaced, religious conversions forced, human torture enacted, children slaughtered, and all in plain sight. In many cities every single Christian has been taken care of - displaced, murdered or forcibly converted, and just as the Nazis painted the Star of David on the homes of Jews, Jihadists have painted the Christian N (the first letter of the Arabic word for Christian ) on the homes of indigenous Christian communities to identify them before destroying them. They have proclaimed that they will not stop until Christianity is wiped off the earth from the land of its birth all the way to your own backyard. A new book of martyrs is being written every single day in the Middle East. Johnnie Moore writing in his new book Defying Isis. So, what happened with the birth of the church in Acts 4 is happening today and we as believers need to be prepared to stand. Today, I want to give you three truths to help you stand firm in your faith when life comes at you at full force. 1. When we Stand, Jesus is our foundation. In Acts 4, we see Peter and John take a strong stand for Christ in the face of people who wanted to throw them in prison and even destroy their lives. One key reason Peter and John were able to stand firm in their faith is because Jesus was their foundation. Their lives were built on the solid rock of Christ. Look at Acts 4:8-12 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved. Peter believed that Jesus is the cornerstone. Jesus was his everything. Jesus was his foundation. They were walking and talking in the name of Jesus Christ. They knew that salvation was found in no one else. Their lives were all about Jesus. He was their foundation.
If Jesus is our cornerstone, no matter what we face in life, we have a firm foundation to stand on. We can stand on Him, for Him, and we can walk in His strength, talk in His strength, and live in His strength. Everything we are and do is all about Him! We all face trouble and opposition, but we can take a stand when we make Jesus our foundation. Jesus is a cornerstone and foundation that will never crack or grow weary. He s a cornerstone that makes a solid foundation for us to stand on seven days a week and twenty-four hours a day! When the storms of life come, Jesus is our firm foundation. On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other rocks are sham rocks (fakes, false). Like Peter and John, is Jesus your foundation, the cornerstone you build your life on? 2. To Stand, we have to obey God in the midst of opposition. Facing opposition isn t a matter of if but when, which means we will have many opportunities to obey or disobey. In this world you will have tribulation and troubles... It s not enough to just believe. God hasn t called us to just believe our faith must be a vibrant, active faith that we live out. Peter and John had a vibrant, active faith. Look at Acts 4:18-20 again: Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, Which is right in God s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard. This came down to whether Peter and John would stand and obey God or bow down and give in to their fears, logic, and doubt. See, it s easy to fall into the trap where we know a lot but do little with what we know, especially in the face of opposition. Peter and John not only listened to God, but they also obeyed and did what God told them at the risk of their own lives! To stand firm in our faith, we have to do what James tells us. He says we must be doers of the Word, not hearers only - But don t just listen to God s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. James 1:22 Otherwise, we re like the disciples in Luke 6:46 Why do you call me Lord and Master and do not do the things I command you? We are to walk by faith not by sight - and keep walking even through the valley of the shadow of death.
We must obey and keep walking up the mountains of life, and we must keep walking when the storms of life come against us. One of the main challenges to obeying God in the midst of opposition is when we begin to wonder about the outcome: Will God help us? Will God come through in the way we hope He will? Will we have to suffer for standing firm? All the answers are Yes We know that if God doesn t show up the way we want Him to, this could get real ugly really quick. Oftentimes, we have to battle our flesh and common sense to stand firm. For Peter and John, common sense would ve been to keep a little quieter about Jesus so that they weren t thrown in prison, beaten, or, even worse, killed. Our flesh tells us to back up and back down. Our flesh says, Just go with the crowd. Be popular. Don t ruffle anyone s feathers. But a major part of obeying God is standing firm and trusting God even when it doesn t make sense. Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will direct your steps literally, make your paths straight. In my school days, I attended Harrisburg Christian School through the 8th grade (all they had at the time), then did 9th grade in Lower Paxton Jr. High School, and grades 10-12 at Central Dauphin. I took a stand for Christ, and some laughed at me and called me deacon. But the head of the student council told me after one World Cultures class that he wished he knew what he believed as well as I did! Living for Christ isn t always easy. We will face opposition. But we must obey God in the midst of opposition and stand firm because He is worthy! Since He died for us, the least we can do is live for Him. We must take a stand by being obedient. 3. When we Stand for Jesus, He shines through us. It s powerful to watch what happens when Peter and John stand firm in their faith. Acts 4:4 says, But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand. Because they stood firm, many people heard the message of Christ and believed. Many people were snatched out of the kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of light because two men stood firm in their faith in the face of opposition. When we stand, people see Jesus in us and God will use our boldness to bring people into a relationship with Him. These men stood firm in their faith, and the number of men grew to five thousand. Wow! Powerful things happen when we stand firm. When we stand firm in our faith, God will use our resolve to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine!
I want to show you another way God shines through us when we stand for Him. Acts 4:13 says, When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. We also see that people who hadn t yet crossed the line of faith were amazed and astonished by the courage and boldness of Peter and John. People who didn t even know Jesus were impacted by His Gospel through the lives of two men who stood firm. The seed of the Gospel was planted into the hearts of unbelievers because two men took a stand. I think it s safe to say that some of these people ended up accepting Christ as their Lord and Savior. And it all began because of the boldness of two men who came under attack. We must stand firm on the foundation of Jesus Christ because every time we do, the seed of the Gospel is planted into hearts. When we stand firm, we re standing on the cornerstone and Jesus is shining brightly through our lives. Our courage will encourage and astonish people as we point them to Jesus by standing firm on the foundation of Christ Jesus. When we stand for Jesus, He will also shine through our conversations and words. Acts 4:31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. When we stand firm and then we pray, the power of God is released upon our lives in a powerful way. God s power then gives us the courage to speak the Word of God boldly. I encourage you to stand firm in your faith and watch Jesus shine through your words and your life! Lastly, notice what happens in Acts 4:32-37: All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need. Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means son of encouragement ), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles feet. Acts 4:32-37 When we stand firm for God and pray to Him, the Holy Spirit gives us the power to stand together and let our light shine. God builds His Church through people who stand firm on the solid foundation of Christ, who pray, who are filled with the Spirit, and who stand together in faith. This is how God built the early church, and this is how God is still building His Church today. He s looking for men and women who will stand for Him. No matter the opposition, we must stand for God so that He can shine through us.
APPLICATION It s vitally important that you understand you will face opposition in life as you surrender your life to Christ. The enemy of your soul, Satan, wants to do everything possible to oppose you and hinder you from coming to Christ. If you don t have a relationship with Jesus Christ, I want to encourage you to press past any opposition and to give your life to Christ. Peter and John left everything to follow Jesus, and once Jesus became their foundation, God used them to do mighty things that have literally impacted millions and millions of people. At work, stand firm in your faith. At school, stand firm in your faith. Around your family, stand firm in your faith. When no one is watching, stand firm in your faith. In public, stand firm in your faith. In the face of opposition, adversity, when all hell is breaking loose, stand firm in your faith. God is faithful and wants us to be a light everywhere we go. Remember that when we stand firm in our faith, God s light shines brightly through us.