The Mission: Our BIG God Will Prevail (Acts 12)
Acts: The Mission of the Church • Sermon • Submitted
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Here in the USA, we like BIG things! In fact, it will be a whole lot of fun to use the word “BIG” as often as I can, so I challenge you to try to count how many times I use “BIG” throughout the message!
I like BIG things! For example...
When I heard that Monster trucks would be at the county fair this summer, going to the show was a no-brainer. Watching BIG trucks fly over big ramps was guaranteed to be fun for the whole family, we night even get to see a Monster Truck wreck, How awesome would that be!?!?
At one point in time, I liked restaurant buffets. At one point in time, the buffet was a perfect pairing of American values. When given the choice between ordering one thing off a menu or ordering an unlimited quantity of food from a buffet, the buffet for most Americans is a no brainer! Someone described the buffet with these words:
With all that beauty and excitement and pure possibility, and the inevitable dangerous dark side, the buffet is not just an archetype of American cuisine; it’s a metaphor for America, in all its splendid, dangerous excess.
America has a big appetite!
We have a saying in our country, “Go big or go home!” Athletes in extreme sports are constantly trying to invent the next new trick. Winners of extreme events are usually people who can successfully incorporate an extra half-spin or more into a trick at great personal risk.
“Go big or go home” can mean leave nothing behind. Give whatever it is you are doing your very best at every given moment. If you do that you’ll be successful, or at the very least, have few regrets.
It can also mean to do everything with great extravagance. “Cost is no object.” Many things in our culture can be defined by this “Go big or go home” mindset. Americans tend to do everything BIG.
This morning, in Acts 12, we are going to see how God did BIG things over and over again. Acts 12 proves that God is bigger, greater, and far more powerful than anyone or anything that exists including the BIG hatred demonstrated against the Jerusalem Christians.
BIG HATRED (vv1-6)
BIG HATRED (vv1-6)
In order to understand just how big this hatred really was, we need to learn about this Herod mentioned in verse 1.
This was Herod Agrippa, the great grandson of Herod the Great, the great grandson of the man who slaughtered all male babies age two and under in the Bethlehem region at the time of Jesus’ birth. The Jews hated Herod Agrippa’s predecessors.
If Agrippa’s rule over Judea was to be successful, he desperately needed the support of the Jewish population. Prior to Acts 12, Agrippa strongly opposed Emperor Caligula’s plan to erect a statue in the Jerusalem temple of Caligula posing as a god because it would infuriate the Jews who Agrippa was trying to win over.
Agrippa took other steps to win over the Jews. For example, he moved his capitol from Caesarea to Jerusalem, he began rebuilding the northern walls of Jerusalem, and whenever Herod was in Jerusalem, he and his wife Cypros took great care to act like a Jew. One historian wrote this of their diligence:
The King is guided by the Queen, and the Queen is guided by Gamaliel.
When in Jerusalem, during the festival of Tabernacles, king Agrippa personally carried his own basket on his shoulder to the temple. Once time he read Deuteronomy 17:15 from the temple mount to the feast attenders, “You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother” to which the Jewish crowd replied “but you are our brother!” several times.
Agrippa’s efforts to please the Jews were, unfortunately driven by selfish motives. History proves He only intended to secure his personal well-being. He did this by supporting whichever opinion was most popular at any given point in time and ruthlessly suppressing those who held minority opinions.
It is helpful, I think for us to know these facts about Agrippa because we can contrast a fearful ruler to fearless Christians.
Please follow along in Acts 12:1-6 where we find the Christian minority being oppressed by the self-serving Herod...
1 About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. 2 He killed James the brother of John with the sword, 3 and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. 4 And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. 6 Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison.
This time, hatred and persecution didn’t come from the Sanhedrin, it came from from the highest authority in the land and was centered in the city of Jerusalem. Several chapters prior to this, almost the whole Jerusalem congregation scattered and fled. The BIG hatred and persecution we find in these verses proves the Jerusalem congregation continued rapidly grow.
The haters believed Christianity was getting “out of hand!” So there was this big division in Jerusalem which threatened the peace. Agrippa’s persecution was politically successful. The violence pleased the hateful Jews, verse 3, and James’ bloody end seems to have added many approval points to Herod’s political ranking. So encouraged, Agrippa successfully went after Peter, the head of the Jerusalem church. The biggest head honcho he could find.
Herod determined to win a big victory over God. Instead, it was God who got the....
BIG WIN (vv6-11)
BIG WIN (vv6-11)
God was about to prove His Big power to small people. If you have section headers, in your Bible, verse 6 might have the words “Peter is Rescued” above it.
Wait a second… why did God allow James and many other believers to die, but rescued Peter? Didn’t Herod win? Didn’t James and the other martyrs lose? Herod thought he won, the Jews thought they won, but they were wrong. God would not have allowed the persecution to take place unless it was a win for His Kingdom and His glory.
How can Christian’s deaths be a BIG win for God? Simple, it is a matter of perspective. Most people believe death is to be avoided at all costs but that is the wrong perspective. The apostle Paul viewed death from God’s perspective. He believed, “for me to live is Christ (he keeps me alive to accomplish His mission), for me to live is Christ, but to die is gain.” Life is gain, death is gain.
James mission was over. James had run his race successfully and was rewarded. God rescued James as well! Remember when Jesus foretold his separation from the disciples? James was deeply troubled and maybe he even cried at that moment. Death was a win! James was reunited with his best friend again!
James and the other martyred believers won. Peter and the remaining believers won. God won.
Let’s continue reading from verse 6...
6 Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. 7 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” 9 And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him. 11 When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”
Slide: Antonia Fortress
Peter was likely kept in the Antonia fortress, attached to and overlooking the temple in Jerusalem. This which was probably the same place he escaped from before in Acts 5! Herod took no chances this time.
Herod went to great lengths to keep Peter in prison. Not only was he chained to two guards in his cell behind a locked gate, but verse 4 informs us that each shift of four guards were on duty outside Peter’s cell for only three hours. These short shifts were designed to keep soldiers awake and alert. When the angel struck Peter on the side and led him to freedom, they passed a second guard, and a final iron gate. Our Big God defeated Herod’s best insurance policy!
God wins all the time. If God didn’t always win, if God always didn’t have His way, He would not be sovereign. Our salvation would depend on whichever spiritual forces were winning at any given moment of time. There would be no assurance of salvation. God always wins. Why was Peter sleeping peacefully in verse 6? Because he knew God always wins.
What did Peter say in verse 11 when he finally came to his senses? “God rescued me!” The Jerusalem believers were about to learn of God’s BIG win in verses 12-16.
12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. 13 And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. 15 They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!” 16 But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed.
We just discovered these Christians had....
BIG AMAZEMENT, small prayers (vv12-16)
BIG AMAZEMENT, small prayers (vv12-16)
Peter immediately went to Mary’s house. She was the mother of James and John, sons of thunder, sons of Zebedee. When Peter arrived at her house, what was happening there? Many believers were in the house praying. Praise be to God that hated and hunted as they were, they did not to forsake their duty to pray. What had they been praying about?
Maybe they were there praying and comforting Mary because her son had just been martyred in verse 1.
This entire narrative took place during the weeklong feast of unleavened bread. It would have been common for Jews and Christians alike to meet together to celebrate. These early Christians’ celebration looked different from their neighbors: they celebrated by praying.
Perhaps they were praying for the persecuted and imprisoned to have the strength to stand for Christ no matter what torture they would endure.
Maybe they prayed for God’s will to be accomplished even through that awful persecution.
We must be careful not to link Peter’s release to their prayers. God’s action was not necessarily linked to man’s action. God did not release Peter people compelled Him to. God released Peter because that was God wanted to continue the mission.
Even though believers were faithfully praying, they didn’t pray BIG enough! What was their response to Rhoda’s discovery? They despised the girl’s youth, “You are out of your mind!” “That was an angel” “You are just seeing things. It is wishful thinking.”
Look at verse v16!!!! They were “amazed” when they realized Rhoda was telling the truth. God answered their prayers more abundantly than they had imagined! (BUILD EXCITEMENT) They didn’t dream big enough and they didn’t pray BIG enough.
“With man, this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” We serve the one and only God who can forgive sin, the only God who gives us faith big enough to believe in a big God. We serve the only God who provides peace BIG enough to comfort the mother of a martyr. Peace BIG enough to comfort the fatherless and the widows in their affliction. He is the only God who can cause a jailed believer to sleep deeply and peacefully even though a public execution awaits him at dawn. God is a BIG God! AMEN? (AMEN!)
If my God is so big, so strong and so mighty, why do I think there’s something he cannot do? We don’t pray BIG enough! We don’t pray OFTEN enough! Prayer is the only worthwhile thing we can do. God loves amazing His children! I think even if they had prayed for Peter’s release God may have gone even BIGGER so that they would be amazed even more.
Acts 4:29-31
Psalm 19:1 (ESV)
1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
God designed the heavens to create BIG AMAZEMENT. God loves showing off His power and comforting His children with His amazing power and Acts 12:17-19 reminds us that God does amazing things, whether we recognize it or not. Please follow along in verse 17...
17 But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to James and to the brothers.” Then he departed and went to another place. 18 Now when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. 19 And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent time there.
In these verses, we find three examples of...
BIG THINKING, small thinking (vv17-19)
BIG THINKING, small thinking (vv17-19)
Peter thought BIG. (vv11,17)
Peter looked UP for his answers. Look at his summary of events in verse 11...
Acts 12:11 (ESV)
11 When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me”
Big thinkers praise God according to verse 11 and in verse 17, big thinkers inspire others to praise the all-powerful, BIG, winning God.
Look at Peter’s instructions in verse 17. Paraphrased, Peter said,
“Go testify to James and all the Jerusalem believers that God is the BIG KING and Agrippa is a small king. Go testify that God’s power far exceeds the power of the small kings of the world!”
Peter praised God, but..
The soldiers thought small. (v18)
Verse 18 says...
18 Now when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter.
The soldiers could not come up with any rational explanation for that night’s prison escape. They didn’t look up for answers, they looked around for answers and this was not the first time Roman soldiers looked around instead of up.
Matthew 28:13,15
13 (the chief priests) said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.
The soldiers believed the chief priest’s explanation in Mt 28 and continued to propagate the small thinking chief priests lies.
The soldiers in Acts 12 used logic to explain Peter’s escape and even today, many people who read Acts 12 explain away these miracles. Why do people today think they can solve the puzzle when the soldiers who were living this out couldn’t solve the puzzle?
Closely examine verses 6-10 for the series of miracles Luke carefully and accurately recorded. There was no insider who...
snuck into what was perhaps the most heavily guarded cell that night. No person professional or otherwise could have entered past double guard posts, could have entered Peter’s cell via a squealing cell door, opened two pairs of noisy shackles attached to two wide-awake soldiers who would have felt the motion of the chains as the locks were worked. No person could have slipped past two sets of wide awake guards into a courtyard. No person could have accomplished all these things and then also slip past a heavy, bulky, noisy, iron gate into freedom.
This is why the soldiers were perplexed. “How could this have happened?” “Were you sleeping?” “No he wasn’t sleeping, I can vouch for him. He was wide awake the whole time!” (PAUSE) Look at verse 19, no soldier could be found who was derelict of his duty so a plural number of sentries were put to death.
The soldiers thought small and...
Herod thought small. (v19)
Remember, Herod went above and beyond normal methods to restrain a Roman prisoner. When Peter could not be found via logic, where did Herod look? Let’s read verse 19 again...
Acts 12:19 (ESV)
19 And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death.
Herod looked AROUND. He blamed the situation on human error instead of looking UP to the one true BIG God for answers! Herod sought answers from the wrong places: he didn’t believe miracles were possible.He was a BIGshot. After all, he was the first king in 35 years who was powerful enough to unite all Judea into one kingdom.
small thinkers rejoiced in their own savvy and their own great deeds. Herod was no BIG king. He was small and subservient to the KING of KINGS and Lord of LORDS who intentionally placed him on the Judean throne. Look at the contrast in these next verses. We read of a...
BIG KING, small king (vv20-23)
BIG KING, small king (vv20-23)
The Bible contains many accounts where king’s and other human authorities thought either God didn’t exist or thought they committed treason against God be thinking they were equal to or greater than God. We find one such account in Daniel 4:30-33 Nebuchadnezzar was on the palace rooftop one day when he said,
(VERSE SLIDES: reference is on last slide.)
“Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, 32 and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” 33 Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar.
Herod Agrippa I committed the same exact treason against God in Acts 12:20-23...
20 Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king’s country for food. 21 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. 22 And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” 23 Immediately 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.
Small thinkers and small kings think they can solve problems by themselves without God and without prayer. Many famines plagued Judea during Agrippa’s reign. God regularly used famine to cause entire nations to repent and exalt God. Herod used this famine to exalt himself. He thought, “Here is a political opportunity that will make ME look BIG.”
Josephus wrote that Agrippa was:
clad in a garment woven completely of silver so that its texture was indeed wondrous, he entered the theatre at daybreak. There the silver, illumined by the touch of the first rays of the sun, was wondrously radiant and by its glitter inspired fear and awe in those who gazed intently upon it.
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary
Herod intentionally wowed his audience with his BIGNESS. He looked like a BIG KING, he spoke like a BIG KING, and the people thought he was a BIG king. After the speech, verse 22,
22 the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!”
Herod’s divine duty as a small king was to point his subjects to the KING OF KINGS. He failed his duty. This was the perfect opportunity for Herod to deflect/reflect all the praise, honor, and glory to God, but he didn’t do that. He was so full of HIMSELF. Josephus wrote that when the people chanted, “the voice of a god and not of a man” Herod did not rebuke the crowd. Instead (SLOW) he basked in their worship and so usurped the praise due to God.
God hates usurpers. No person nor angel nor any other created being is BIG enough to sit on HIS throne. In the words of a popular Christian musician, “Who’s gonna stop the king? No one, no one!” The BIGGEST KING of all commanded his angel to strike the usurper dead. Death comes to small kings, but the KING of KINGS is immortal and cannot die. Small kings do not give commands to angels, only the KING OF KINGS has the power to do that. According to Acts 17:25, only the KING OF KINGS holds all life and breath in his hands.
Why did God strike Herod Agrippa down? “Because he did not give God the glory.” All kings exist to glorify God, all humanity exists to unanimously shout God’s glory to the whole world. When we fail to glorify God we will experience BIG consequences. When we successfully glorify God we will experience BIG rewards.
BIG CONSEQUENCES, BIG REWARDS
BIG CONSEQUENCES, BIG REWARDS
The small king blamed people, killed people, and reasoned that God did not exist. When we follow small kings, we become inundated by wrong information. Their fear, hatred, lies, and human logic fester and pollute our thinking. That pollution seeps into every aspect of our being.
IMAGE: Pollution (toxic seepage, waste heaps, battery corrosion)
Consider all the logical pollution we encountered in Acts 12.
First, everything in life must have a rational explanation. That is pollution. We were not created to live by logic. Hab 2:4, Heb 10:38, Gal 3:11, Rom 1:17 all state, “the just shall live by faith.” What logic has been driving our choices today? This week? This month? Put off logic, and put on faith. Logic leads to death, but the reward of the righteous is life and freedom.
Second, logic polluted prayer. Mary and the Christians prayed according to the laws of nature. They didn’t pray big enough.
This brings us to the third area of Spiritual pollution...
Small kings rebel against God, as Lucifer once did. Over and over in our text this morning we are reminded that small kings lose and boy do they lose BIG! Over and over we read that God won, God Won, GOD WON, and when we walk Spirit led lives, pollution will be overcome. WE WILL WIN!
Fourth, small kings propagate heresy which lead to eternal damnation. Their message: I am in control, God is not. I deliver you, God does not. I protect you, God does not. I have power over life and death, (SLOW) God does not.
BIG people think small, small people think BIG.
BIG people are prideful people. They don’t need God, so they look around for answers. They think small because they cannot comprehend God’s mighty things.
small people think big. God’s children put off pride, self-esteem, and self-worth. God has revealed the deep things of Heaven to his humble Children.
Verse 24 is the key verse for this whole chapter. It says...
24 But the word of God increased and multiplied.
Whatever evil things these Christians endured, it was all to the glory of our unstoppable God. Whether it was hatred, martyrdom, torture, imprisonment, loss of a loved one, or whatever, the persecuted Christians endured, increased, and multiplied because the Word of God is all powerful. God’s words cannot be silenced, God’s work cannot be stopped, God’s throne cannot be overthrown. We serve the very same One True, BIG God of Acts 12. This week we need to look up to our BIG GOD for help, he alone can rescue us, he alone can save us, he alone makes life worth living.
Our Big and Awesome God, we come before you now because we need help!
Our Big and Awesome God, we come before you now because we need help!
Put off pollution
not to look to authorities for the wins for you were the one who set them in place to begin with. May we wholly trust you for victories even when our rulers stand opposed to you and commit treason against you.
may our authorities be brought to the place where they sincerely reflect all honor and glory to you.
victory over battles.
We praise you for the uncountable victories your Word has won. Your Word has never known defeat! Please give us complete confidence in that very same Word. May we constantly know it better and use it more often.
What a Big God you are. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
Verse for bulletin… something about GOd’s greatness