There is a similarity between this incident and that of Acts 4.
• But this time it’s not just Peter and John being arrested, the whole group of the apostles were arrested for preaching the gospel.
• Once again they make it clear that the necessity of their lives is to obey God, not men; therefore they would go on preaching the Gospel.
• They would not be intimidated. They would not bow to threats. They would not cower in fear of what man could do to them.
These apostles had already gone through the trauma of Peter and John’s arrest after the healing of the lame beggar in the temple.
• Now they face the same threat, this time by a more angered group of religious leaders.
• They were placed in a "public jail" which was the holding place for thieves and murderers. The high priest ’meant business’ this time. He was tired of all the commotion with these Gospel preachers!
• So he has them jailed in order to bring them before the Sanhedrin (Council of 70 elders of Israel) that they might silence them.
Then the angel of the Lord opened the gates of the prison, takes the prisoners out of the jail, and gives them the command to go preach the gospel: “Go, stand in the temple courts, and tell the people the full message of this new life.” (5:20)
• Now, don’t you think this would be a good time to give excuses? ‘Preach again? Each time we did that we got thrown into prison, and you ask us to do it again?’
• But they did not give any excuses, only a willingness to obey! And they did it again, opening in the temple courts, not in hiding.
When we obey God, it does not mean we will not have problems.
• In fact, it may mean more imprisonment for them, more questioning, more threats, and more problems.
• But they have already made the choice to obey God. 5:41 says when “the apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.”
Obedience is a choice you make. 5:29 – “We must obey God rather than men!”
• Peter and John made that stand in Chapter 4:19 “Tell me whether it is right in God’s sight to obey you rather than God.” And they are repeating it here.
That’s the stand we need to take in life – everyone obeys something or someone.
• You are either listening to the voice of tradition, the desires of your own heart, the lures of this world, or to the countless other noises around us.
• Obedience is the priority of obeying God over every other demands of life.
Be prepared to pay a price.
• The apostles were prepared to be arrested and imprisoned again. They were prepared to make sacrifices for the sake of preaching the Gospel.
• Obeying God does not mean everything will be fine. It does mean that God will see you through. The apostles obeyed God and they were sent back into prison.
There is a price to pay. If we want to choose an easy life, obeying God would be difficult.
• Moses obeyed God and he faced a very defiant Pharaoh. He obeyed God and saw the Red Sea. He obeyed God and the people grumbled against him.
• Elijah obeyed God and has to run from place to place to find food, and found a poor widow who did not have enough for themselves.
• David obeyed God and King Saul wanted to kill him.
• Paul obeyed God and has to run for his life. Even when you are in the centre of God’s will, you can face a shipwreck just like Paul.
Obedience can lead us to greater challenges and trials.
• Jesus says, “No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.” (John 15:20)
• But obeying God does mean that God is watching over us and will make a way for us. We can expect God to act, even in miraculous ways.
• 5:19 “During the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out.” (It happens again in Acts 12)
D. L. Moody talks about the joy of obeying the Lord. He says, “Joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows on through the dark; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows all through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can’t see and doesn’t know anything about. The Lord gives His people perpetual joy when they walk in obedience to him.”
No wonder Paul and Silas sing while being locked up in prison (Acts 16).
God will do His part.
• He opens prison doors. He orchestrates situations for their release. He gets Paul out of danger and difficult situations.
• When we obey Him, we can expect God to be there for us.
Members of the council were educated, ordained & religious, but they had no power.
• The apostles were ordinary laymen, yet God’s power was at work.
• It’s like Moses telling God, if you ask us to get into Canaan, then you need to open up the Red Sea and dry up Jordan River, and that’s what He did. You need to feed them with food and water, and that’s what God did.
We see this divine partnership in obedience.
• When we obey Him, God makes His presence felt. When we disobey, of course, you will be on your own.
• God has never called us into doing a task by ourselves. The call to obey is always a call to join Him at His work.
Peter tells the Council in 5:32, “We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
• They were not alone witnessing, the Holy Spirit is doing it with them!
• We do not bear witness alone. In fact, we cannot bear witness alone.
• The Holy Spirit shares with us the responsibility of telling people about Jesus.
So far we’ve seen the involvement of the angel of God, and the Holy Spirit.
• The apostles simply do what He tells them to do, and leave the rest to God.
• We obey God and trust that He will take care of the outcome or consequences.
Peter did not mince his words or change his message.
• In 5:30 he repeated exactly what he said that brought him trouble - that God raised Jesus from the dead! That’s precisely what they are against and do not like to hear.
• Do what God says you ought to do, and leave the rest to Him. He will see you through. You are never alone on this.
Although God has and will continue to do many things in an instant, He has chosen to accomplish some things gradually.
• Abraham waited for decades for the promise of his son Isaac. It took Noah half a lifetime to build an ark. The people of Israel wandered in the desert for 40 years and God took centuries to bring His Son Jesus into this world.
• Now, if we had been God would we have taken so long? Or, do we set out to make the end happen in a shorter time, and then move on to the next project?
Obedience calls for a patient trust in God. Leave the outcomes to Him.
• We are called to obey Him, and do His work, day by day, step by step. Even when the outcome is uncertain, we are to be committed to the work.
• This is the essence of obedience, and this is what the apostles did. 5:42 “Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.”
• Christ’s command to them to preach the Gospel did not skip a beat in spite of their arrest and flogging. Even though the religious and political environment was not favourable.
This is the attitude of obedience. Even after so many arrests, imprisonments, threats and rejections, nothing seems to dampen their spirit. They did not give up. They did not doubt God.
When we yield our life to Him in obedience, we can expect God to do His part!
• He is with us when we obediently prepare the songs for worship. He is with us when we obediently pray for a lost friend. He is with us when we give to someone in need. He is with us when we share the Gospel.
• Someone says, “The key to godliness is not more knowledge, but more obedience.” We experience God’s power because we obey, not because we know. When we walk in obedience, we are walking with Him. And His presence transforms us.
Lastly, we are not obeying rules. We are obeying God.
Our obedience is anchored in a loving and trusting relationship with Christ.
• Love makes obedience a thing of joy. The apostles obeyed the call of Christ, someone whom they know and experience.
• We obey God because of WHO He is. If you have a right view of God, you will have the right attitude of obedience. It’s not about a set of rules but about God.
• Andrew Bonar says, referring to all the petty laws in Leviticus:
“It is not the importance of the thing, but the majesty of the Lawgiver, that is to be the standard of obedience... Some, indeed, might reckon such minute and arbitrary rules as these as trifling. But the principle involved in obedience or disobedience was none other than the same principle which was tried in Eden at the foot of the forbidden tree. It is really this: Is the Lord to be obeyed in all things whatsoever He commands? Is He the Holy and righteous God, the Lord of your life?”
If we focus on the laws, it will be hard. Focus on the law Giver!
• The more I know Him, the more I want to obey Him. You listen to someone you love.
• We don’t always understand everything God is doing but we love and trust Him, therefore we obey.
• Fall in love with Him and you’ll obey Him. Know His heart, and you will do His will.
