The religious leaders at Jerusalem seem to have been stunned and confounded by the great out-pouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost and by the conversion of so many to Christ. But they quickly rallied their forces against the apostles, as they had against Christ, and attempted to silence the gospel. Their efforts were futile. As always, the powers of darkness were confounded by the Prince of Light. Study this record of the first persecution of God's servants and be assured that the cause of Christ cannot fail. The God and King whose cause we serve rules this world in absolute sovereignty. He must prevail! It is written, "He must reign till he hath put all his enemies under his feet."

PETER AND JOHN WERE ARRESTED FOR PREACHING THE GOSPEL (vv. 1-4). The powers of darkness were against them. They had invaded the very domain of satan. They were in the temple at Jerusalem preaching the gospel of Christ! They could not do otherwise. This is what the Lord had sent them to do. After healing the lame man, while they had the attention of the crowd, they preached Christ to them.

WITH GREAT BOLDNESS THESE TWO MEN BARE FAITHFUL WITNESS TO CHRIST IN THE MIDST OF HIS ENEMIES (vv. 1-2). The principle point of their doctrine on this occasion was the resurrection of the dead. "They preached THROUGH JESUS the resurrection of the dead." Peter and John knew their business. They did not meddle in the affairs of the state. They did not seek, or become involved with social reform. They did not even attempt to shut down the dens of vice in Jerusalem. These men were preachers. So they preached. They pointed sinners to Christ and proclaimed him as the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). Declaring only what they had seen and heard, they preached the fact of Christ's resurrection from the dead. To preach the resurrection by Christ is to preach these five things:

1. The Death of Christ as the Substitute for Sinners (II Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13; Acts 3:13-15).

2. The Resurrection of Christ as the Representative of God's Elect (Heb. 6:20; Eph. 2:5-6; Acts 3:13).

3. The Exaltation of Christ as Lord over all (John 17:2; Rom. 14:9; Acts 2:32-36).

4. The Second Coming of Christ (I Thess. 4:13-18; Acts 3:19-21).

5. Salvation and Eternal Life to All Who Trust Christ (John 11:25; Rom. 10:9-13; Acts 3:19, 26).

The gospel which Peter and John preached was made effectual to many by the Holy Spirit (v. 4). Though the preachers were persecuted, the Word of God grew and prevailed. A few days earlier three thousand souls had been converted by the grace of God (Acts 2:31). Now faith had been granted to five thousand more. Two sermons were preached in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the church grew from one hundred and twenty to more than eight thousand believers in Jerusalem!

Yet, to the religious leaders of the city the gospel of Christ was an offense (vv. 2-3). The doctrines of Christ's substitutionary atonement, resurrection glory, and free salvation were offensive to the pride, religious works, and self-righteousness of these men. They were grieved by that which should have made them rejoice. They were grieved by the glory of Christ! Not only were they offended by the message of salvation by grace through the merits of the crucified Substitute, they were also fearful of losing their hold on the people. So they arrested Peter and John. For the present, these faithful servants of God only had to suffer imprisonment. Later, they would be put to death for preaching the gospel. The Lord wisely trains his people for suffering by degrees. He sends lesser trials to prepare them for the greater. From the very beginning, the history of God's church has been a history of suffering at the hands of persecutors. It is a history written in blood. The cause of the persecution is the preaching of the gospel of the free grace of God flowing to sinners through the merits of Christ's precious blood. This message is an offense to self-righteous, religious people (Gal. 5:11).

THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS OF THE NATION TRIED TO INTIMIDATE PETER AND JOHN INTO SILENCE (vv. 5-7). These "rulers, and elders, and scribes" were the men of greatest respect, power, and influence in the nation of Israel, the sanhedrim. They asked Peter and John, "By what power, or by what means have ye done this?" Had they replied, "Jehovah, the only true and living God, did this," their answer would have been true; but it would have been a denial of Christ! The sanhedrim would have said, "Bless his name," and the affair would have ended. But Peter knew that the object of their hatred was not God as they conceived him to be, but God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ. He had faced those men before and wilted (Lk. 23:54-62). He would never deny his Lord again! Picture Peter standing in the midst of this ecclesiastical court. He braced himself, planted his feet firmly, not knowing what they might do to him, but being fully aware of his own responsibility, he spoke as a faithful servant of God.

BOLDLY, WITH DEFIANT CONVICTION, PETER PREACHED CHRIST TO HIS PERSECUTORS, WITHOUT COMPROMISE (vv. 8-10). He was filled with the Holy Spirit, who taught him what to say and gave him the courage to say it (Lk. 12:11-12). He was altogether innocent of any evil in the matter at hand. He had done exactly what the Lord had commanded him to do. Yet, he knew he was in the place where God had put him. So he seized the opportunity and boldly confessed Christ in the very teeth of his enemies. (Read his confession in verses 10-12). In this confession Peter places great emphasis upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, as do all the Scriptures (Isa. 9:6-7; Matt. 1:21). "God hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name!"

His name is PRECIOUS (Song of Sol. 1:3; I Pet. 2:7). POWER is associated with his name (Phil. 2:9-11). His name is the source and cause of the believer's PARDON (I John 2:12). We are saved by faith in his name (John 1:12-13; Rom. 10:13). All that God does for sinners in grace he does for Christ's sake (Eph. 4:32). All true PRAYER is offered to God in the name of Christ, our Representative and Substitute. To call upon his name is to trust him as our Savior. We come to God only in his name (John 14:13-14). The believer has PEACE through the name of Christ (John 14:27; 16:33). The name of the Lord is our PROTECTION at all times (Prov. 18:10; II Sam. 22:1-4). The PRESERVATION of God's elect, our eternal security, is in his name (John 17:11). What would become of his name, if one of his believing ones was lost? His name is the theme of all true PREACHING (Lk. 24:47). In the Word of God, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ is always associated with PROSPERITY (Jer. 23:5; Rev. 19:11-16). "The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." "He shall not fail!" The Lion of the tribe of Judah shall prevail. The Lamb of God shall be satisfied. His people shall be saved. His cause shall be triumphant. His enemies shall bow before his feet. His name shall be glorified (Rev. 5:9-14).