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A ruthless king launches the first political persecution against the early church, executing one apostle and planning a public execution for another to win favor with the crowd. Meanwhile, a small group of believers gathers in a house to pray earnestly for the imprisoned leader. What happens next reveals the breathtaking contrast between human power that seems unstoppable and divine power that no prison, chain, or decree can restrain.
📝 Study Notes, Scripture List, Transcript, and more: https://medicallake.church/sermons/delivered-from-death
#mlcc #church #churchonline
📝 Study Notes, Scripture List, Transcript, and more: https://medicallake.church/sermons/delivered-from-death
#mlcc #church #churchonline
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00:00Many of us remember the story of Joseph in the Old Testament.
00:03Remember Joseph, that young man, Joseph, who was loved by his father,
00:08not so much by his brothers.
00:09His brothers kind of hated him so much so that they wanted to kill him.
00:12They throw him in a pit, you know, and you remember the story
00:15in Genesis chapter 38, and I think it's 37, 39 and following.
00:21So they throw him in a pit, and his oldest brother, Reuben, says,
00:23man, we can't kill this guy.
00:25I mean, we just can't kill him, so we've got to do something else.
00:28And while he was gone, they end up selling Joseph into slavery, into Egypt.
00:34So he ends up in Egypt, and he's at the house of a guy,
00:37the captain of the guard named Potiphar, and he's doing really well there.
00:40The house is being blessed.
00:41Everything is going well.
00:42And then Potiphar's wife accuses Joseph of sexual assault,
00:46and he's thrown in prison.
00:49So he's been sold into slavery.
00:51First of all, hated by his brothers, sold into slavery, ends up serving well,
00:57and then something that he didn't do, he's accused of.
00:59He gets thrown into prison.
01:01He's in prison for a period of time, and then God uses an instance
01:07where the Pharaoh has a dream, and Joseph is called upon.
01:12He's brought out of prison.
01:14God says, yes, this is the guy, and the Pharaoh goes, hey,
01:17let's make him second in command.
01:19He's over all of the kingdom, and he's there to help the surviving nations
01:24and Egypt survive because an intense famine had come.
01:28So hated by his brothers, sold into, almost killed, sold into slavery,
01:33accused of sexual assault that he did not do, thrown into prison for a period of time,
01:38several years, at least two.
01:40He's in prison.
01:40We're not doing anything wrong, but he's in prison, and then he comes out,
01:45and God elevates him to the second in the kingdom, and when all is said and done
01:49after he reveals himself to his brothers, at the end of Genesis, we read this.
01:54Joseph is speaking, as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good
02:00to bring it about that many people should be kept alive as they are today,
02:05and that's the concept we're going to see in the text today is that men meant something evil to happen,
02:11but God takes that evil and makes something good out of it.
02:15That's really what it is, is what man meant for evil, God made something good out of it,
02:20and sometimes we forget, we see the chaos around us, we see the evil around us,
02:25and we say, it just seems to have the upper hand, and that nothing is being done about the evil in our world.
02:31Rest assured, there is evil, yes, but rest assured, God can take that evil and make something good out of it.
02:38It's an amazing thought.
02:39We get raptured, we forget that God can take something evil and make something good,
02:43and you've probably experienced that in your life, some of you.
02:47You know it is something evil, chaotic has come into your life, and all of a sudden God works,
02:51and something at the end, you're in a better state than you were when you first started.
02:56That's the text today in Acts chapter 12.
03:00There's a contrast at the end of chapter 11.
03:03We have the love of the Antioch church for the saints in Jerusalem,
03:06but now we're introduced to a man who hates the Christians in Jerusalem
03:10and wants to attack the Jerusalem church.
03:13So if you look with me, Acts chapter 12, open your Bible, turn on your biblical device,
03:17whichever the case may be, here's God's word, we want to look at it together.
03:21So here's what happens.
03:23About that time, so Luke is kind of undiscriminated in his time.
03:27We don't really know exactly the time frame.
03:29Probably about the general idea when Saul and Barnabas are bringing the offering to Jerusalem
03:35in that general time frame, so about that time.
03:39Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church.
03:45He killed James, the brother of John, with the sword,
03:48and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he was a people pleaser,
03:51when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also.
03:55Okay, I got one, now I'm going to get this other one.
03:57This was during the days of unleavened bread,
04:00which is immediately following Passover, a seven-day period where you eat only unleavened bread.
04:05And it's kind of known as the Passover time.
04:07So, during the days of unleavened bread,
04:10and when they had seized him, he put him in prison, that's Peter,
04:14delivering him over to four squads of soldiers, 16 guards to guard him.
04:19One man, a nonviolent man on that,
04:23intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
04:26In other words, probably to execute them in front of them
04:29because he wants to please the Jews.
04:30So, Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.
04:37So, the seven-day period, they're praying for him, that God would deliver Peter.
04:42So, this sets the stage and introduces us to a guy named Herod Agrippa.
04:47The first, this is the first political governmental persecution.
04:51We've had religious persecution, but now it's governmental persecution, political persecution.
04:56This is the last narrative that deals directly with the apostles here in Jerusalem,
05:02in the Jerusalem church.
05:03It's now to the Gentiles from chapter 13 following.
05:07So, we're going to see them a little bit in chapter 12, but that's it.
05:10The apostles in the Jerusalem church are going to go into the background,
05:14and the Gentile mission is going to come to the foreground.
05:16It's about probably 43, 42 AD, probably 43 because we know when Herod died.
05:24Historically, we know when he died.
05:26This Herod Agrippa, he ruled over a large section of, in fact, mostly all of Israel.
05:31He was friends with the emperor.
05:33He lived in Rome for a period of time.
05:34He came and the emperor gave him all of these provinces to govern over.
05:39He technically could be called king of the Jews.
05:42He was over all of these provinces.
05:43He actually thought he was, believe it or not.
05:46You can see it down at the end right here.
05:48This is the grandson of Herod the Great.
05:51Remember Herod the Great?
05:52That's a guy who killed all the infants in Jerusalem and the surrounding area,
05:56tried to kill the Christ child.
05:57They ran off to Egypt to protect the Christ child.
06:00That's his grandfather.
06:01His grandfather, Herod the Great, killed his son because he thought his son was trying to usurp the throne.
06:07Now, his son would be Herod Agrippa's dad.
06:09So, your granddad kills your dad and now you're serving in the same place, basically, where your granddad was at.
06:16That's this Herod.
06:18He wanted to keep popularity with Rome so he'd do whatever the Jews, whatever pleased the Jews,
06:24so that Rome would say, hey, good job, buddy.
06:25You're doing great.
06:26Keep up the good work.
06:28So, he arrested some, the text said.
06:30You notice that?
06:31It wasn't just James.
06:32James, he killed.
06:33But he said he'd arrested some.
06:34I don't know how many, 10, 15, 20, 50, we don't know.
06:37But some other people were arrested at the same time.
06:40James was the only one that was killed, we were told.
06:42James, John's, remember Peter, James, and John, how they went up to different places together.
06:47They were like the three that hung close to Jesus.
06:49He's one of them.
06:50This is that James, the brother of John.
06:54The other apostles did not replace James when he's killed after they replaced Judas as Judas' suicide.
07:00For whatever reason, maybe because the 12 were fixed and they weren't replacing any apostles after that,
07:05but they didn't replace James after he was killed.
07:11James is killed by the sword.
07:12That's not a typical way to kill a Jew in those days.
07:16A Roman citizen would be beheaded.
07:18You kill with a sword.
07:20But a Jew, normally you would be crucified.
07:22Or if the Jews were doing it, you'd be stoned with rocks.
07:25So, this wasn't typical.
07:26But he put him to the sword.
07:27And there's probably a reason he put him to the sword.
07:30Because in the Old Testament, God said,
07:33anyone who leads my people astray, anyone who makes them follow false gods,
07:37may they be put to the sword.
07:39So, Herod is pulling upon this passage out of Deuteronomy chapter 13.
07:43It says,
07:44It says,
08:14So, the Jews knew this.
08:18And the Jews felt, oh, these Christians, they're a blaspheming God.
08:23So, probably that's why Herod did, by the sword, is to please the Jews even more,
08:28saying, look, he's leading the people astray.
08:31He felt the continued persecution of the Christian would please the Jews.
08:35Yeah.
08:36He was a people pleaser.
08:37We have to remember this, though.
08:40No earthly king can hinder, ultimately, the kingdom of Jesus.
08:45No earthly king.
08:46He may try to stop the kingdom of Jesus.
08:48No earthly king can do that.
08:5116 men to guard a nonviolent criminal.
08:56That doesn't, that seems like an awful lot of people to me.
08:5916, I mean, maybe two, but 16 people.
09:01That's like an overkill.
09:03I think maybe, maybe the Sanhedrin told Herod Agrippa what happened to them when they arrested
09:09Peter.
09:10Maybe that's what the case was.
09:12Maybe the Sanhedrin told Agrippa about their experience with Peter in prison.
09:15That's possible.
09:16Remember what happened?
09:17It's recorded in Acts chapter 5 when Peter was in prison upon the Sanhedrin.
09:21But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him, that is, the party of the Sadducees,
09:26and filled with jealousy, they arrested the apostles and put them in public prison.
09:31But during the night, an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out
09:35and then said, so maybe, the Sanhedrin said, you better secure this guy because last time
09:40we lost him.
09:41He got out of prison last time.
09:44Herod Agrippa thought he could secure Peter with all the soldiers, showing the futility of
09:50man's attempt to restrain God's hand of deliverance.
09:54Who does man think he is?
09:56When God sets out to deliver someone, who's going to get in his way?
09:59No one.
10:01So the believers are praying fervently for Peter, probably a multiple day, and not just
10:05an intensive all-nighter.
10:07It was like multiple days they're praying for Peter's deliverance.
10:10James had been killed.
10:11Now Peter's in prison.
10:14Dr. Alan Ratpath often said, let us keep our chins up and our knees down.
10:19We're on the victory side.
10:22Keep praying.
10:23Chin up, knees down.
10:25We're on the victory side.
10:26So they're praying and they're praying for him.
10:29Now the drama intensifies.
10:31It was the night before the trial.
10:33In other words, the night before the execution on the following day, this is what takes place.
10:38Look with me in verse number six.
10:39Now when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter, on that very night, so the day before
10:47the trial and I'm sure his execution, Peter was sleeping.
10:53He was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains and centuries before the door
10:59were guarding the prison.
11:01And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him and a light shone in the cell.
11:05He struck Peter on the side and woke him saying, get up quickly.
11:09And the chains fell off his hands.
11:12And the angel said to him, dress yourself and put on your sandals.
11:16And he did so.
11:17And he said to him, wrap your cloak.
11:18He's like step by step.
11:19You know, it was like a child, step by step, wrap your cloak around you and follow me.
11:24And he went out and followed him.
11:26He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing
11:31a vision.
11:32Remember, he saw the sheet come down before.
11:33So he's thinking he's seeing a vision here.
11:35It's not a vision.
11:36When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into
11:40the city, the final gate.
11:42It opened for them of its own accord.
11:46And they went out and went along one street and immediately the angel left him.
11:50So he's outside free.
11:52The angel leaves.
11:53When Peter came to himself, when he was, whoa, he said, now I am sure that the Lord has sent
11:58his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were
12:03expecting, which was my death.
12:05When he had realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, whose other
12:10name was Mark.
12:11This could be the place where they had the upper room could be her home.
12:14The, where the upper room took place at, she had a large home, a wealthy woman could
12:18be her house, whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.
12:23So they're still praying for him.
12:25And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant game, a girl named Rhoda came to
12:30answer, recognizes Peter voice.
12:32Oh, it's Peter out there in her joy.
12:34She did not open the gate, but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.
12:39I'm thinking this, he's right there.
12:44Let him in, you know, but she runs in.
12:47She's so excited.
12:48She's running in.
12:49So she reported that Peter was standing at the gate and they said to her, you're out of
12:54your mind.
12:55You're crazy.
12:57But she kept insisting that it was so.
12:59And they kept saying, it is his angel.
13:01But Peter continued knocking.
13:04And when they opened, they saw him and were amazed, but motioning to them with his hand
13:09to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison.
13:12And he said, tell these things to James and to the brothers.
13:17James is a different James, James and the brothers.
13:19Then he departed and went to another place somewhere else.
13:22We don't know.
13:24Now, when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter's.
13:29Like, where is this guy?
13:32And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered
13:36that they should be put to death, according to Roman law.
13:39Then he went down, that's Herod, went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent time there.
13:46And then the story is going to pick up later at Caesarea here.
13:49So here we see Peter was so sound asleep that the angel would come and say, hey, get up.
13:54I mean, the word could mean strike hard or just nudge.
13:57I'm guessing the angel didn't beat him.
13:59I probably just nudged him.
14:00Get up.
14:01Now, wake up.
14:02He's sleeping.
14:04It's a night before his trial.
14:06And he knows what happened to James.
14:08It's a night before his execution.
14:10He is sound asleep.
14:12How many of us could do that?
14:14I mean, the night before you know you're going to die, you're pretty sure you're going to
14:19die the next day, you can be sound asleep.
14:20How could he do that?
14:23How could Peter sleep so confidently the night before his trial?
14:27And the answer is simple.
14:28He knew he was in the hands of God.
14:32Everything had to pass through the loving hands of his heavenly father.
14:35Nothing could come to him without God's hands bringing it to him.
14:38And he rested knowing that God was with him.
14:42Boy, don't we need that?
14:45We're not necessarily in prisons now in America.
14:48They are.
14:48They understand that.
14:49But to know that in the midst of chaos of life, that God is with us, that his hand is for
14:56us, not against us.
14:59He wrote, Peter did later on in his first letter, 1 Peter 5, 7, casting all your anxieties on
15:05him because he cares for you.
15:08He understood that well.
15:09And that casting actually means rolling.
15:12So take all of your anxieties, bundle them up, figuratively speaking, and roll them on
15:18God is the idea because he cares for you.
15:21Why hold on to the anxieties any longer?
15:23Let him go.
15:24Cast them on him.
15:26And then the psalmist said, in peace, I will both lie down and sleep for you alone.
15:31Oh, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
15:34I can go to sleep at night knowing God's hand is protecting me.
15:37His hand is there.
15:38That's how Peter could sleep when he knew that he was going to die the next day.
15:43Also, there was something that he knew.
15:45Something had been told to him.
15:46A prophecy was given to him.
15:48The Lord Jesus told him specifically, you're not going to die a young man.
15:52You're going to die an old man, and you're going to die by crucifixion.
15:55So there was nothing any human being could do to him because of God's promise.
16:00It's not your time, Peter.
16:01He's not an old man at this point.
16:03How do I know that?
16:05Because it's recorded.
16:06John 21.
16:06Truly, truly, I say to you, Jesus is speaking to Peter.
16:11When you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted.
16:15But when you were old, and he's not old at this time, when you were old, you will stretch
16:19out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.
16:25This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.
16:28And after saying this, he said to him, follow me.
16:32Peter understood when God makes a promise, he will keep it.
16:39God's promises are valid.
16:40They're always valid.
16:42When he makes a promise to us, he will keep it.
16:44I have a book in my office that says all the promises of God.
16:47This author went through all the Bible and picked out all the promises of God.
16:51How well can we sleep at night when we know the promises of God?
16:55We can hold on to this.
16:56I will never leave you or forsake you.
17:00You're never going to be on your own.
17:01You'll never be alone.
17:02I will be with you always.
17:03My spirit dwells within you.
17:05I will give you wisdom and understanding, and you can walk in my ways.
17:09The promises of God, hold tight to them.
17:12Hold tight to them.
17:14So the angel, like a parent, almost has given Peter directs, put on your jacket, put on your
17:18shoes.
17:19Come on, Peter.
17:19Come on, let's go.
17:20Let's get them on.
17:21He could have just snapped and all the stuff would have been on him, but he made Peter do the
17:24work himself.
17:25I like that.
17:25I like that.
17:26This is the second time an angel has delivered Peter, chapter five.
17:30We saw already, we read that.
17:31This is the second time an angel has come.
17:33So it says in the text that the iron gate, the last gate, the Praetorium, actually, this
17:37thing that was close to the Temple Mount area where the soldiers resided at.
17:42The last gate going out was a big iron gate, okay?
17:45So he's walking along.
17:47He still thinks he's in a vision.
17:48He's walking along, and all of a sudden, the gate goes and opens up for him.
17:53And we're going, yeah, big deal.
17:54I walk into lakes, and the door does the same thing.
17:56Who cares?
17:57I mean, it happens all the time.
17:59We're not even amazed anymore that the door opens up, because we see it all the time when
18:02we walk into his door.
18:03Oh, yeah, the door opens up for me.
18:05Now, Peter, this door just opens up all in its own accord.
18:08Some have asked a very good question.
18:12It's a very good question.
18:15God allowed James to be killed, but he delivered Peter.
18:21Why?
18:22I have an answer.
18:23I don't know.
18:25I don't know.
18:27All I know is that God is good.
18:30God is just.
18:31God is holy.
18:32God will never do anything wrong.
18:33The Father always does that which is correct.
18:36I trust God's wisdom and his love.
18:39I don't have an answer for that.
18:41I don't have an answer for that.
18:43When a tragedy strikes, and one person is struck, and another family is not struck, and
18:47you say, why?
18:48I don't know.
18:49I don't know.
18:50But I trust and love God, and I trust the love of God and the wisdom of God.
18:55I don't have an answer for that.
18:57So the scene now shifts to the praying believers, and they're at Mary's house.
19:03Her son was John Mark.
19:06This John Mark, this John Mark was Barnabas' cousin.
19:10You say, well, why is that important?
19:11Because they're going to be traveling together shortly, and they're going to be going on a
19:14mission together with Paul.
19:15His name is James, and Barnabas, and John Mark.
19:17They're traveling together.
19:18So we're introduced now to John Mark.
19:21John Mark.
19:22So in Colossians 4, we read this.
19:25Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, greets you, and Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, that gives
19:29us the information there, concerning whom you received instruction.
19:33If he comes to you, welcome him.
19:34So he's introduced to us now because he's going to play a role later on.
19:38John Mark is considered to be the human author of the gospel according to Mark.
19:41This is the same John Mark here.
19:44So we see this, and it's okay to laugh at this story.
19:47It's funny.
19:49Rhoda's at the door.
19:50Here's Peter's voice.
19:51Doesn't even open the door to him.
19:52It just runs away, and she's so excited.
19:55This servant girl, she's a household servant, almost to say a slave, a household servant.
20:02And the believers claim Rhoda was raving mad and being totally irrational.
20:08That's what the text means.
20:09You're out of your mind, is what the text says.
20:11You're out of your mind.
20:12You're raving mad.
20:13You're being totally irrational.
20:15It's not possible.
20:16We're only praying for the deliverance of Peter.
20:19He can't possibly be delivered.
20:21Think about that.
20:23We're only praying for the deliverance of Peter.
20:25He can't possibly be delivered.
20:26There's something wrong with you.
20:27You're stark raving mad.
20:28But she kept insisting, and they kept saying, and both of those are written in a way that
20:35it was, they just did it one time.
20:37They did it over and over again.
20:38So she's going, he's here.
20:39No, he's not.
20:39He's here.
20:40I told you.
20:41No, he's not.
20:41And they just go back.
20:42I don't know how long it lasted.
20:4430 seconds, a minute, five minutes.
20:46I have no idea.
20:46But they're going back and forth.
20:47And she's going, yes, no, yes, no.
20:50And it's going back and forth.
20:53Just this angel, they're saying.
20:55Well, it was a common Jewish belief for the day that everyone had a guardian angel.
21:00Maybe it comes from Matthew 18.
21:01Maybe.
21:02Matthew 18, verse 10.
21:04See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that in heaven their angels
21:08always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
21:10Maybe, maybe that's where it came from.
21:13But here's the kicker.
21:15It was believed that your guardian angel only appeared after you died.
21:20So they're thinking Peter's dead.
21:22Not that he's been delivered.
21:23He's dead.
21:24His angel's right there.
21:26But Peter's standing out there going, guys, let me in.
21:30God just delivered me from prison and there's guards up and down the street.
21:34Could you get me out of the street and into the courtyard, please?
21:37So he keeps on knocking.
21:39Let me in.
21:39Let me in.
21:41So they were praying for Peter's deliverance, but thought he had gone to heaven, not that
21:47God had answered their prayers.
21:49Okay.
21:50We laugh, but we go, oh, man, I've been there before.
21:54Sometimes even believers have a hard time believing God answers prayers.
21:59We're praying for his deliverance, but it can't be happening.
22:02What?
22:03You're praying for his deliverance, but it can't be happening.
22:05It can't really be delivered.
22:07It must be dead.
22:07Now, even believers sometimes have a hard time believing that God answers prayers.
22:13There's a story that J.K.
22:16Johnston talked about.
22:18Stories told about a small town that historically been dry, which means that it was no alcohol
22:22in the town.
22:23But then a local businessman decided to build a tavern.
22:27What?
22:27A group of Christians from a local church were concerned and planned an all-night prayer meeting
22:33to ask God to intervene.
22:35God, stop this.
22:37It just so happened that shortly thereafter, after the prayer meeting, lightning struck the
22:42bar and it burned to the ground.
22:44Whoa.
22:45The owner of the bar sued the church, claiming that the prayers of the congregation were responsible.
22:54That's what they were praying for, wasn't it?
22:57Instead, the church hired a lawyer to counter-sue them, saying it's not our fault.
23:03The presiding judge, after his initial review of the case, stated that no matter how this case
23:08comes out, one thing is clear.
23:10The tavern owner believes in prayer and the Christians do not.
23:13You burned my place down.
23:19We didn't do that, but you're praying for it until you shut down.
23:24William McDonald said it well.
23:26Instead of chiding others, we should be greatly comforted that God answers such faithless prayers.
23:32We all tend to be unbelieving believers at times.
23:36Thank God that he answers faithless prayers at times.
23:40Kind of like the guy that was Jesus in Mark 9, 24.
23:43Immediately, the father of the child cried out and said, I believe, help my unbelief.
23:49Just be thankful that God even answers prayers that are faithless prayers.
23:53Yeah.
23:54So the announcement was too good to be true.
23:57It's too good to be true.
23:58The Puritan Thomas Watson said, the angel fetched Peter out of prison, said the Puritan preacher
24:04Thomas Watson, but it was prayer that fetched the angel.
24:09That's right.
24:11So Peter's out.
24:12He says, we got to warn others.
24:14He may be coming to get others.
24:15So go tell the others.
24:16Go tell James.
24:17Not the same James because James has been killed.
24:19This is James.
24:20This is, this would be the, this is James who was the oldest of Jesus's younger half brothers
24:26and the author of the book of James.
24:28So that's this James who takes over a leading role in the church in Jerusalem.
24:31There's no mention of telling the other apostles.
24:35Maybe they were gone on a mission.
24:36Maybe they were, they were somewhere else perhaps because he didn't say anything.
24:39Hey, go tell the other apostles.
24:40He didn't say anything about that, about Agrippa's persecution.
24:44So Peter goes somewhere else to escape Agrippa.
24:48We don't know where it's speculation.
24:50Doesn't do us any good to speculate.
24:51He just went somewhere else.
24:54And other than our brief appearance in chapter 15, this is the last time we're going to see
24:58Peter in the book of Acts.
24:59It's going to move on to, to mostly Paul.
25:01And his missionary journeys.
25:04So Tyre and Sidon, two cities on the coast are introduced to us.
25:08Herod is now in Caesarea.
25:10Look at verse number 20.
25:12Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon and they came to him with one accord
25:18and having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace.
25:23So he's mad at them.
25:25They want to reconcile.
25:25And the reason is because their country depended on the king's country for food.
25:29And on an appointed day, which was probably a feast day for Caesar, Herod put on his royal
25:37robes, took his seat upon the throne and delivered an oratation to them in the theater of Caesarea.
25:43That's a little addendum there.
25:45And the people were shouting, the voice of a God and not a man.
25:50Immediately, an angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give God the glory and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
25:58And then 24 and 25 kind of move us into what's taking place here.
26:03But the word of God increased and multiplied.
26:05So out of evil comes good.
26:07And then 25 leads us into what's going to happen in the second half of the book of Acts.
26:12And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark.
26:19So Tyre and Sidon, two commercial ports on the Mediterranean Sea, they were dependent on food from Galilee, grain and food from Galilee, which was under Herod's jurisdiction.
26:31So they needed him and they're apparently starving.
26:34They needed food from him.
26:36So they probably bribed Blastus to get a meeting with Herod so that he could come out and show favor to them so they could get food.
26:43That was the idea.
26:44What we're told in the text here is that he did not just die.
26:49God killed him.
26:51God killed Agrippa.
26:53An angel of the Lord executed the judgment, justice on him.
26:57As he's standing up in the theater at Caesarea, given this oration, the people cry out, it's a God and it's not a man.
27:06Here's likely the place.
27:07This is likely the place, the location where he gave the speech.
27:10We took some pictures while we were there at the theater in Caesarea.
27:14Oh, that went awful fast.
27:15Can we go back again?
27:16Yeah, let's do that again.
27:17Let's run them again.
27:19That's okay.
27:19Just leave it alone.
27:19It'll go by itself.
27:21There you go.
27:24So this is the entry into the theater.
27:27We're going down this way right here.
27:29The theater, you'll see the seating on the right, right over there.
27:32In the next picture, you're going to see a very beautiful woman.
27:35There we go.
27:36There we go.
27:37So that's probably the place he gave the oration at, right there, in that theater in Caesarea.
27:41So the Jewish historian described what happened that day.
27:46He said,
27:47And on the second day of which shows, he put on a garment made, that's Herod Agrippa.
27:52He put on a garment made wholly of silver, and of a contexture truly wonderful, and came
27:59into the theater early in the morning, at which time the silver of his garment, being
28:03illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun's rays upon it, shone out after a surprising
28:08manner, and was so resplendent as to spread a horror over those that looked intently upon
28:14him, and presently his flatterers cried out, one from one place and another from another,
28:20though not for his good, that he was a God.
28:24So you can see he's standing up with this garment made of silver, and the morning sun is shining
28:29on him, and he's glistening.
28:30People are gliding, and oh, he's got to be a God, not a man.
28:34And he didn't say, nope, you got it wrong.
28:37You got it wrong.
28:38He forgot Isaiah 42, 8, I am the Lord, that is my name, my glory I give to no other, nor
28:47my praise to carve idols.
28:49God says, enough, you are not a God.
28:52You are not the king of the Jews.
28:54My son is the king of the Jews.
28:56You are not.
28:59Josephus also described Herod's death, which I'm not going to tell you about.
29:03It is horrendous, literally, well, I thought I was going to tell you, but basically, his
29:09bowels came out of him.
29:10It was horrible.
29:12Five days later, he died.
29:14It was that bad.
29:15So if you want to take the time, go back and read Josephus.
29:17It's disgusting what happened to him.
29:19This is because he did not give glory and honor to God, but took the honor upon himself.
29:26It's believed that Herod died, historically, we know, in 44 AD.
29:30So that's why I think it was probably 43 that this all started taking place, because Herod
29:35died in 44.
29:36And with the death of Herod, now the persecution of the church ends for a moment.
29:40It picks up later on, but it ends for a moment.
29:42Remember, this is political persecution.
29:45So we can look at it like this.
29:46The word of Agrippa was silenced, but the word of God increased.
29:51God kept, God took something, something evil and made something good out of it.
29:55And the last summary of the Jerusalem church ended on a positive note.
30:01The word of God increased.
30:03Yeah, something evil God makes good out of.
30:06The word of God increased.
30:07What Herod Agrippa meant for evil, God brought about something good from it.
30:13Man meant it for evil, but God brought about something good from it.
30:17Many of you maybe know Richard Wurmbrandt.
30:21God's among the brother, Richard Wurmbrandt.
30:24He was a Romanian Christian that lived during the time of the Soviets' occupation of Romania.
30:30He was in prison for 14 years because he's a believer.
30:34Simply because he's a believer, he's in prison for 14 years.
30:37Other believers are in prison with him.
30:40And they figured out a way to communicate.
30:42They can't talk to each other.
30:43It's like solitary confinement.
30:44But they figured out a way to communicate by tapping on the metal pipes.
30:47And so they could communicate.
30:49And one time they said, you know, we miss having communion together.
30:53And they said, we really would like to have a communion together.
30:55And they said, but we don't have anything.
30:58We don't have any unleavened bread.
30:59We don't have any wine.
31:00We can't possibly do it.
31:01And one of them said, well, listen, God created out of nothing.
31:05So nothing must be something.
31:06We'll just pretend like we have the elements here so we can celebrate this communion together.
31:12So they did.
31:13They pretended.
31:14They didn't have any bread.
31:15They didn't have any wine.
31:16But they took the Lord's Supper together.
31:19They remembered what the Lord had told them to do.
31:24And Larry Libby says, in his later years, Wurmbrand would remember many communions,
31:30but none sweeter, none richer than the one with nothing at all.
31:3414 years in prison for being a Christian.
31:37How deeply was the Lord moved by this man's admission of utter emptiness?
31:42Consider the postscript.
31:43On a recent trip to Bucharest, I spoke with a Romanian television producer who had just
31:48interviewed the famous pastor, now in his late 80s.
31:52Christians in post-revolution Bucharest were proudly giving Wurmbrand and his wife a tour
31:56of the new Christian bookstore in the heart of the city.
32:00The first one in living memory.
32:02There had never been a Christian bookstore in the city at all.
32:04The first one in living memory.
32:06The Wurmbrands were then conducted to an underground warehouse room stuffed with Bibles and Christian
32:11books.
32:12So they're up looking around, they go in this warehouse, they go downstairs in the warehouse.
32:15It's full of Bibles, it's full of Christian books discipling, it has God's Word and teachings
32:21of God's Word throughout the whole area of this underground space at the warehouse.
32:27Wurmbrand, as he peered into the little room, a look of puzzlement came over the old man's
32:32face.
32:32Then shock.
32:34Then boundless joy.
32:35The warehouse he was standing in was his former cell.
32:43And the very place where he had once shared communion with no wine and no bread was now
32:48overflowing with God's Word, God's comfort, and God's exhortation.
32:53Nearly crippled in his feet, the old man leaped for joy.
32:57What man meant for evil, God made something good out of it.
33:01That's what God does.
33:02He makes good out of evil.
33:05So 24 and 25, it's moving us to chapter 13, that's all it's doing.
33:09But to let us know that God, the Word of God increased.
33:13It's spread abroad.
33:14More people were coming to the faith is the idea.
33:17So this section teaches us a lot of things.
33:20There are some things he teaches, and that's this.
33:23Stay faithful in telling others the gospel message, for God will not allow the gospel
33:27to be silenced.
33:29He will not.
33:30Man will try to silence the gospel.
33:32God will not allow it to be silenced.
33:34Stay faithful.
33:36Two, rejoice, for when God wants to deliver someone, no person can stop him.
33:41No person can stop him.
33:43Third, do not worry about your circumstances, for believers are in God's hands.
33:51Don't be anxious about anything.
33:53By prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God.
33:56And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
34:01Jesus.
34:03Four, rest in the Lord, for God always answers prayers.
34:08And he keeps his word.
34:09We could say that too.
34:10And the last one, do not be discouraged, for God makes something good out of the evil dumped
34:18on us.
34:20And boy, we know what it means to have evil dumped on us, don't we?
34:24Not so much as they do, but we know it.
34:27And God can take what is evil and make something good out of it.
34:31Let's pray.
34:31Father, thank you.
34:33Thank you that you're at work preserving your word and the gospel message.
34:37And even though some of your saints may die, your word increased.
34:41It traveled more and more.
34:43More and more people believed on you.
34:45More and more people heard the gospel message.
34:47Your word increased.
34:48So even though this was evil, what Herod did to James, you're able to take that evil and
34:54make something good out of it.
34:56Thank you that you taught us a valuable lesson about praying.
34:59And even when we don't fully believe to pray anyway, because you won't even answer faithless
35:04prayers.
35:05So thank you, Father.
35:07Thank you for your goodness towards us.
35:08Thank you that you're always faithful to us.
35:11And thank you that we can rejoice because we know whatever we're experiencing at the moment,
35:16we are in your hands.
35:18We thank you in Jesus' name.
35:21Amen.
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