June 30, 2025 • 26 mins
What happens when following Jesus puts you at odds with everyone around you? When doing the right thing costs you something meaningful—comfort, relationships, or future plans? This transformative episode explores the courage of the early church in Acts 5, where ordinary believers faced extraordinary opposition yet remained steadfast in their mission.
The apostles, once hiding in fear after Jesus' crucifixion, now boldly performed miracles in the same temple courts where their teacher had been condemned. As their influence grew, so did the resistance from religious authorities. Arrested, miraculously freed, and then arrested again, Peter stands before the high council with a declaration that would redefine authority itself: "We must obey God rather than any human authority."
Most striking is how these followers responded to suffering. After being flogged—a punishment designed to humiliate as much as hurt—they left "rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the Name." This profound reframing challenges our modern tendency to view hardship as something to avoid or as evidence we're doing something wrong. For the early church, resistance wasn't just expected; it confirmed they were walking in Jesus' footsteps.
The message speaks directly to our struggles today. Standing firm in your values at work, setting healthy boundaries in relationships, or identifying openly with your faith will sometimes invite opposition. Yet the gospel has always advanced not through comfort but through costly obedience. You don't need to be fearless to follow Jesus—just willing. The same Spirit that empowered the apostles remains available to us as we navigate our own challenging terrain of discipleship.
Wonder what might happen if we became communities known for choosing obedience over approval? What could God do through people who understand that resistance doesn't mean we're off track, but that we might be right where we need to be?
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to our Madison Church online audience.
I'm Stephen Fieth, lead pastor,glad you're joining us and want
to invite you to join us inperson soon.
As a matter of fact, if youjoin us in the next two weeks,
you'll get to hear from aspecial guest speaker, kyle, who
will be continuing andconcluding our series Activated
in Acts, and so it's going to bea really good time.
I want to invite you all, ofcourse, to that as well.
(00:22):
To begin today, let me ask youwith a question what do you do
personally when obedience withGod puts you at odds, as it so
often does, with the peoplearound you and maybe, more
specifically, those closest toyou, the people that you really
like?
I mean, what do you do whendoing the right thing will
(00:44):
actually cost you something,something like your comfort, a
close relationship, maybe anaspect of your future that
you're going to have to let goof, something that you really
counted on, worked toward,invested in, and you have to let
that go?
I know many of you pretty well,I think, and I know that for
(01:08):
many of you, myself included, wewant to follow Jesus.
Well, I mean, we're trying.
We don't always get it right,we don't always do it well, but
the heart is there.
And let's be honest that as wefollow Jesus, the path isn't
always easy.
I would go as far as to saymany of you recognize that the
path following Jesus is oftendifficult, hard and challenging.
(01:32):
That's the tension we live intoday.
I can do what God wants, butthat's probably going to take me
down a rougher, a moredifficult terrain than if I
don't do what God wants and I dowhat I want to do.
It'll probably be a smootherroad, at least for now, and
that's the tension that theearly church also faced.
Jesus' resurrection andascension happens and his
(01:55):
followers don't scatter, theydon't shrink back, they waited,
just like he commanded them to.
And then the Holy Spirit cameand suddenly this small and
uncertain group became a boldand spirit-led movement.
Now, as we've been going throughActs, we've seen that at first
(02:17):
there's this movement ofChristians that is growing and
there's an external threat thePharisees, sadducees, the
Sanhedrin.
It's external, the threat is onthe outside.
But then we talked about lastweek how now the threats and the
pressures are starting to notjust come from the outside but
also from the inside.
And today, as we get to Acts 5,and we're going to start
(02:37):
reading out of verse 12, if youwant to follow along.
We're going to see that theexternal threats escalate.
And I got to be honest with you.
If this is your first Sundaywith us or you're popping in,
you haven't been here in acouple weeks, you haven't been
following.
This will be all brand newstuff to you and that's great.
I'm happy for you.
But if you've been with us thelast few weeks, this feels like
(02:58):
the third time I've had to givean almost exact sermon as the
week before.
I mean, the pattern goes likethis the disciples go out, they
preach Jesus, people get pissedoff, they get arrested, they get
yelled at and they're released,and that's exactly what happens
in today's story.
So let's read out of verse 12,and I'm going to skip 13 and go
(03:21):
to 14.
It says the apostles wereperforming many miraculous signs
and wonders among the people,and all the believers were
meeting regularly at the templein an area known as Solomon's
colonnade.
Yet more and more peoplebelieved and were brought to the
Lord, crowds of both men andwomen.
(03:42):
Now don't forget that, likeweeks prior, months prior, these
were the same people who, whenJesus is crucified, go into
hiding, shut the shades, turnthe lights off, lock the doors,
don't go outside, because theywill find us, they will torture
us and they will kill us, justlike they did to Jesus.
This is quite the shift fromwhere they were a few months ago
(04:05):
.
They are now performing signsand wonders in full view of the
public.
We are not behind closed doorsanymore.
They've taken up space atSolomon's Colonnade as a section
of the temple courts in whichJesus himself used to preach and
teach.
This grassroots movement isstarting to gain traction, and
(04:28):
they're doing it in the veryplace that Jesus had been not
just opposed but eventuallycondemned, and the impact that
they're having is unmistakable.
People from all over, just asthey did with Jesus, as we're
following Jesus through theGospel of Luke, we see people
from all over, just as they didwith Jesus, as we're following
Jesus through the gospel of Luke, we see people from all over
hear about Jesus and they'rebringing the sick to him to be
(04:50):
healed.
And now the same exact thing ishappening with the apostles
they're laying them on mats,bringing them, hoping that even
Peter's shadow passes over them.
Now this is interesting for youtheology, biblical study nerds.
Luke is very intentionalbetween the gospel of Luke and
(05:10):
the book of Acts, showing thatwhat the apostles are doing is
something that Jesus did, plusmaybe a little extra.
It goes back to this idea thatLuke talks about, where Jesus
says it's better that I go sothat the Holy Spirit can come
and you will do greater thingsthan these.
So what Luke is trying to pointout for those of us paying
(05:30):
attention is that people wouldcome to Jesus.
And what did they try to do?
Touch the cloak on the ground.
Right, they're trying to touchthe cloak so that they could
experience healing.
If you could touch the cloak,you would be healed.
And in this case Luke isshowing they don't even got to
touch Peter.
Actually, if they fall into hisshadow, they will be healed.
And so Luke's trying to pointthat out, that Jesus kept his
(05:53):
word that they will go on andthey will do greater things.
That same power that flowedthrough Jesus is now flowing
through his followers, and it'sconfirmed to all that Jesus's
work did not end.
It did not die on the cross.
It really had just begun.
In this moment, deeply public,it was undeniably powerful and
(06:17):
inherently dangerous, but it wasmagnetic.
People saw something real andthose people wanted in.
Well, most people wanted in.
Some didn't.
The religious leaders, andespecially the Sadducees, are
filled with jealousy.
They're filled with jealousy.
The apostles' growing influencethreatens their control, and
(06:40):
they respond with a publicshowing of force.
The apostles are arrested andthey're thrown into jail, but
during the night, an angel ofthe Lord comes, opens up the
door, leads them out and says goback, keep preaching, which is
exactly what they do Now.
You can imagine the Sadduceesthe next day going into work,
you know, going into the templeor the court, wherever they're
(07:02):
getting ready to do their thing.
They're getting ready tointerrogate the prisoners Peter
James, john, you guys got toknock it off, stop doing this.
And as they're getting ready tobring the prisoners in, they
find out that the prisonersaren't there.
And as they go to investigate,they find that the guards are
still standing there.
They're like yep, nope,nobody's come in, nobody's come
(07:22):
out, we got it.
And they go beyond that andthey look at the jail cell and
it's empty, but it's stilllocked from the day before.
Their confusion, though,doesn't last very long, because
they know exactly where to look.
They say where did we arrestthem yesterday?
Let's go back there.
And of course, that's wherethey are doing the exact same
thing that 24 hours ago got themarrested.
(07:45):
Now the high priest doesn't evenask why.
He doesn't say which one of theguards fell asleep and was
slacking, who let him out, whobroke him up?
He does not care, he is justfrustrated.
He brings them back in and hesays we gave you strict orders
to never again teach this man'sname and instead, instead, you
(08:06):
have filled all of Jerusalemwith your teaching about him.
And I love this last partbecause it's personal with your
teaching about him.
And I love this last partbecause it's personal and you
want to make us responsible forhis death.
So I'm not just mad about thismessage of Jesus, I'm mad that,
like you're telling people itwas my fault, it was our fault.
The scene is full ofconfrontation and think about
(08:27):
the tension because thedisciples, they're not protected
by status or privilege.
They're defying the mostpowerful religious and political
body in Jerusalem, the same onethat opposed, condemned and
ultimately killed Jesus.
That's the group they're goingup against.
Now let's understand this isn'ta disagreement over doctrine.
(08:51):
It's a direct confrontationwith the powers that be.
To declare that Jesus is Lordwasn't a private conviction.
It wasn't something that theyheld within themselves.
It was a public declaration andit challenged the structures of
power because it redefinedauthority and it actually
exposed the fragility of controlthat the Sadducees thought that
(09:14):
they held.
This was the moment of truth andPeter speaks boldly.
He says we must obey God ratherthan any human authority, the
God of our ancestors.
Right, they're Jewish,sadducees, pharisees, peter,
we're Jewish.
The God of our ancestors raisedJesus from the dead.
And Peter throws in this littlebit after you killed him by
(09:37):
hanging on the cross.
Now, I love this because westart to see Peter own his
personality.
Peter, who we read in Lukealways putting his foot in his
mouth or saying the wrong thingat the wrong time, has finally
hit his stride a little bit.
He didn't lose the sass, he'skeeping it.
He says I sense that you'rebothered by that, but you did
(09:59):
kill him and I'm going to bebold and I'm going to say it.
I love that.
He doubled down on what theywere most offended by.
He wasn't softening the message, it wasn't diplomatic, there
was no hesitation.
There was no hesitation.
And yet, while Peter namestheir guilt, he still proclaims
Jesus is risen and exalted anddeclares that forgiveness would
(10:20):
even be available for them.
He says yes, you did kill them.
Sorry that upsets you to hearthat, but factually speaking
that happened.
And yet Jesus still loves you,grace still covers you.
Forgiveness can be extended toyou.
Now what's going on here is thatthe Sanhedrin claimed divine
authority.
To obey them, in the eyes ofmany, was to obey God himself
(10:45):
Kind of think of, maybe,catholicism in modern day time.
To obey the pope and thebishops, the church leadership
at hand hand, is tantamount toobeying God.
That's what the Sanhedrin was.
That's how they felt aboutthemselves.
So to disagree with theSanhedrin isn't to affect
disagree with God.
So when Peter says I'mdisagreeing with you, but not
(11:05):
God, he's saying you are not God.
I know you all think you are,but you are not.
And obedience to God comesfirst.
We're going to do what Godwants us to do, not what you
want us to do.
He goes on.
He says we are witnesses of thethings, of these things, and so
is the Holy Spirit who is givenby God to those who obey him.
(11:30):
Peter is relatively illiterate.
As we understand it, he's afisherman, so he's not offering
a legal defense.
He doesn't know how to argue inthis type of court, so inside
he just tells the story.
It's his testimony he says Isaw what happened.
We all saw what happened, weexperienced it.
(11:52):
And in doing so, thisuneducated man redefines power.
In the room, the courtroom isfilled with people who have
different robes.
They all stand for somethingdifferent, like depending on who
you were in the court.
You got a different robe soeveryone knew visually right
when you walked in you'restanding If you were the big dog
(12:12):
or one of the little dogs.
There were all these laws andrules they had to follow,
institutional weight.
But the true authority Petershows doesn't come from position
.
It comes from truth, from therisen Jesus, From the Holy
Spirit who testifies alongsideof them.
(12:35):
Their authority was firsthand,not just repeating things that
they had heard.
They weren't doing that.
They had seen Jesus himself hadeaten with Jesus after he died
and rose again, after he diedand rose again.
This wasn't tradition, thiswasn't abstract theology.
(12:57):
This was what they experienced.
It was eyewitness.
They were there and, as you canimagine, the tension in the
room finally blows up.
The box is too full, the topcomes off, the Sanhedrin is
furious.
They're not just mad Now,they're ready to kill.
24 hours ago, even an hour ago,we were happy warning you and
putting you in jail if youpromised to stop, and now we are
(13:20):
going to kill you.
When a surprising voice emerges,gamaliel, a respected Pharisee
and teacher of the law, standsup.
He's not a follower of Jesus,but he speaks with wisdom and he
reminds the council of pastuprisings.
He says no, no, no, hold on,hold on, hold on, hold on.
(13:42):
This has happened before.
We've seen this before.
Someone comes around, somereligious leader, he attracts a
following, the guy dies and theneventually, the movement
disperses.
He brings up a couple veryspecific examples.
You remember this guy.
You remember this guy, and hispoint is Jesus is probably just
another guy.
We don't have to do anything.
(14:03):
We don't have to do all of thisextra work.
We are wasting our time rightnow.
Just give it time and theseguys will also disperse.
But he throws out.
Unless this is a movement byGod, he's appealing to reason.
Now, however, let's be open here.
If they don't disperse, this isa God thing, and if it's a God
(14:25):
thing, we could be standing inthe way of a God thing.
And so he says my advice is toleave these men alone.
Let them go.
If they are planning and doingthings merely on their own, it
will soon be overthrown, but ifit is from God, you will not be
able to overthrow them, and youmay even find yourself fighting
against God In 2025, thepolitical, cultural climate that
(14:55):
we live in.
Let us not miss this moment here, when there was a divine
intervention through an unlikelyvessel.
God uses a voice from withinthe system not to overturn it.
Right, he doesn't overturn it,but he restrains it.
(15:17):
Gamaliel's presence reminds usthat God can speak through those
we least expect insiders,within resistant or even
restrictive systems.
We often assume that help mustcome from our allies, but this
(15:37):
moment reminds us that God canwork through anyone in any
system, and again I like topoint this out.
So Gamaliel was actually we'regoing to find out later Paul's
rabbi.
This is the man who trainedPaul, and so what's interesting
is that Gamaliel he's like, hey,just let God sort this out.
(16:00):
But we're going to find outover the next couple of weeks
when Kyle talks that Saul atthis time does not take that
advice at all.
He is not going to let God sortanything out, saul has it.
So it's very interesting thatyou have this great, well-known
rabbi training up Saul and Saulsays you know, you're smart, but
I'm a little bit smarter.
(16:20):
I'm going to do things a littlebit differently.
We see that the apostles leftthe high council and they
rejoiced that God had countedthem worthy to suffer disgrace
in the name of Jesus, as theywere severely beaten before they
leave.
The apostles walk away fromtheir flogging, not with relief
that they're still alive, notwith like caution like we better
tighten it up, guys, or worseis going to happen.
(16:41):
But they do so with joy, andnot because the pain was light,
but because they saw theirsuffering and their pain as a
mark of honor.
You see, they saw that it wasworthy to suffer for the name of
Jesus and in an honor, shameculture of the first century
public flogging.
It wasn't just painful, I mean,it hurt, but it was degrading.
(17:04):
Yet the apostles, the disciples, they interpret it, reinterpret
it differently.
Disgrace is now dignity,suffering is solidarity.
They don't want to feelabandoned by God, but they feel
aligned with Him.
Nt Wright puts it this way inSimply Christian, you become
(17:27):
like what you worship.
When you gaze in awe,admiration and wonder at
something or someone, you beginto take on something of the
character of the object of yourworship.
And that's what's happeninghere.
These men and women have beenshaped by their worship of the
(17:48):
crucified and risen Jesus, andnow they suffer for him and they
consider that a privilege, notpunishment.
And then, as if to drive thepoint home, luke adds one more
line.
He says and every day, in thetemple and from house to house,
they continue to teach andpreach this message Jesus is the
(18:12):
Messiah.
And, despite what you mightthink, the movement doesn't
pause, it just continues toexpand.
They return to the publicsquare, they keep showing up in
homes, and this isn'tstubbornness, this is clarity, a
spirit-filled clarity.
They know what their mission isand they know what they've got
to do.
Suffering will not slow themdown.
(18:35):
Suffering will only sharpentheir focus.
Suffering will not slow themdown.
Suffering will only sharpentheir focus.
Suffering was expected, anexpected part of their
discipleship.
It was normalized.
They talked about it in theirchurch gatherings.
This is what's going to happen.
Embrace it Now.
For many of us today, let'scontrast that right.
Suffering tends to indicatewe're doing something wrong,
something to avoid.
If we don't have that voice inour own heads saying that like,
(18:58):
hey, I'm in this bad seasonbecause of something I did,
somebody else will gladly tellyou that.
Well, if you just would have,or if you didn't.
This is why we dot, dot dot.
But for them it wasconfirmation.
They were walking in the pathof Jesus.
And perhaps, if you findyourself in a season of pain,
(19:19):
suffering, difficulty, challenge, perhaps stop asking yourself
what am I doing wrong?
And consider maybe you are onthe path following Jesus.
Their joy wasn't circumstantial.
It didn't depend on theircomfort, their freedom, it
didn't depend on public approval.
It came from knowing that theywere part of God's story.
(19:42):
And so what does this mean forsome of us today?
I mean, what is the core truth?
Let's go back to that question.
What do we do in real life whenobeying Jesus costs us
something?
Well, obedience to God mattersmore than the approval of people
, and it often leads to bothresistance and renewal.
(20:03):
Okay, both are going to happen,resistance and renewal.
The early church didn't grow byavoiding conflict.
It grew because people chosecostly obedience.
Their faith wasn't hidden, itwas public, spirit-empowered and
, maybe most importantly, it wasresilient.
(20:23):
God never, ever removes theirsuffering, but he's always
present in it, and through theirobedience, the gospel advanced.
The gospel advanced.
This isn't just their story,this is our story.
(20:43):
I mean, like them, you and I,followers of Jesus here today,
we're called to live out ourfaith openly.
It's not supposed to be aprivate thing.
It's supposed to be an openthing.
Like them, you will facepressures to stay quiet.
That's fine If that's what youbelieve.
Just don't talk to me about it.
Like them, we have the HolySpirit, and not just to comfort
(21:03):
us, not to just give us warm,fuzzy feelings for 30 minutes on
a Sunday morning, but toempower us as we go through the
pain and suffering and thechallenges and difficulties
throughout the week.
And like them, throughout theweek.
And like them, you and I arepart of Jesus's ongoing mission.
(21:24):
Make no mistake about it.
You are called to participate.
Jesus said whoever wants to bemy disciple must deny themselves
and take up their cross dailyand follow me.
And he warned that if the worldhates you, keep in mind it
hated me first, but he promises,blessed are those who are
persecuted, for theirs is thekingdom of heaven.
(21:45):
This isn't exceptional, this isexpected.
It's discipleship, and I wonderwhat might obedience in the
real life look like for you?
What might it cost you?
Maybe at work it's speaking up,speaking the truth, showing
integrity, even when it comes ata high cost for you.
(22:08):
Perhaps it's in yourrelationships and you have to
set boundaries, you have to livedifferently.
And it's not out of pride butit's out of surrender, of where
God is calling you to, at schoolor in your neighborhood.
It's identifying with Jesus,even if perhaps it isolates you
some.
And in suffering, it's aboutchoosing to keep showing up in
(22:31):
faith and not in fear.
Obedience may not earn anapplause, but it will never be
wasted.
Obedience may not earn you theapplause, but it will never be
wasted.
The gospel moves forward througheveryday faithfulness and
spirit-empowered courage.
And what if we?
(22:52):
If Madison Church is yourchurch, so if you're a member
here, you're a regular here,you're one of our leaders.
What if we became known for aculture known for choosing
obedience over comfort?
What if, in solidarity, we cameand we agreed that pain and
suffering doesn't always meanwe're doing something wrong,
that resistance doesn't meanwe're off track.
(23:14):
What might God do through acommunity that listens to his
voice, even when it's hard?
The apostles didn't just endureresistance, they rejoiced in it
.
And that message didn't justsurvive, it multiplied.
The story that we're walkingthrough, this series activated,
(23:35):
isn't about superheroes of faith.
These are ordinary peoplefilled with the Spirit, who
choose obedience over approval.
Again and again, and again, andhere's what we're left with.
Today, that same Jesus is alive, that same spirit is available
(23:58):
and that same mission continuesthrough us today.
Now you don't have to befearless to follow Jesus, but
you do have to be willing.
You don't have to sufferexactly like they did, but there
are going to be moments thatare costly, and you won't always
be applauded.
But you will always be seen,known and strengthened by the
(24:19):
God who calls you.
And if you're here today, orwatching or listening online and
you're not sure where you standwith Jesus, this isn't just a
story about boldness.
It's a story about love.
Let's not forget that thedisciples aren't risking their
(24:39):
lives for a cause.
They're responding to the risenChrist, who gave up his life
for them.
Before Jesus asked them to obeyhim, he offered himself Before
he sent them off into the world.
He rescued them from sin anddeath.
(25:00):
And that same invitation isopen to us.
It's open to you, not to earnyour way in, but to trust in the
one who gave everything tobring you in.
So, wherever you are today, ifyou're curious, cautious or
(25:20):
ready, that door is open.
And the invitation for all ofus is not just believe in Jesus
but to follow him, to not justadmire the apostles and a story,
but to imitate their obediencein our everyday, regular lives.
To not just look back at Actsbut to step into it as the story
(25:41):
continues today.
This is our moment.
Now.
May we be a people who obeyeven when it's hard, who rejoice
even when it costs us, and whonever stop proclaiming that
Jesus is Lord in the public eye,in the private sphere and
everything in between.
Welcome to our Madison Church online audience.
I'm Stephen Fieth, lead pastor,glad you're joining us and want
to invite you to join us inperson soon.
As a matter of fact, if youjoin us in the next two weeks,
you'll get to hear from aspecial guest speaker, kyle, who
will be continuing andconcluding our series Activated
in Acts, and so it's going to bea really good time.
I want to invite you all, ofcourse, to that as well.
(00:22):
To begin today, let me ask youwith a question what do you do
personally when obedience withGod puts you at odds, as it so
often does, with the peoplearound you and maybe, more
specifically, those closest toyou, the people that you really
like?
I mean, what do you do whendoing the right thing will
(00:44):
actually cost you something,something like your comfort, a
close relationship, maybe anaspect of your future that
you're going to have to let goof, something that you really
counted on, worked toward,invested in, and you have to let
that go?
I know many of you pretty well,I think, and I know that for
(01:08):
many of you, myself included, wewant to follow Jesus.
Well, I mean, we're trying.
We don't always get it right,we don't always do it well, but
the heart is there.
And let's be honest that as wefollow Jesus, the path isn't
always easy.
I would go as far as to saymany of you recognize that the
path following Jesus is oftendifficult, hard and challenging.
(01:32):
That's the tension we live intoday.
I can do what God wants, butthat's probably going to take me
down a rougher, a moredifficult terrain than if I
don't do what God wants and I dowhat I want to do.
It'll probably be a smootherroad, at least for now, and
that's the tension that theearly church also faced.
Jesus' resurrection andascension happens and his
(01:55):
followers don't scatter, theydon't shrink back, they waited,
just like he commanded them to.
And then the Holy Spirit cameand suddenly this small and
uncertain group became a boldand spirit-led movement.
Now, as we've been going throughActs, we've seen that at first
(02:17):
there's this movement ofChristians that is growing and
there's an external threat thePharisees, sadducees, the
Sanhedrin.
It's external, the threat is onthe outside.
But then we talked about lastweek how now the threats and the
pressures are starting to notjust come from the outside but
also from the inside.
And today, as we get to Acts 5,and we're going to start
(02:37):
reading out of verse 12, if youwant to follow along.
We're going to see that theexternal threats escalate.
And I got to be honest with you.
If this is your first Sundaywith us or you're popping in,
you haven't been here in acouple weeks, you haven't been
following.
This will be all brand newstuff to you and that's great.
I'm happy for you.
But if you've been with us thelast few weeks, this feels like
(02:58):
the third time I've had to givean almost exact sermon as the
week before.
I mean, the pattern goes likethis the disciples go out, they
preach Jesus, people get pissedoff, they get arrested, they get
yelled at and they're released,and that's exactly what happens
in today's story.
So let's read out of verse 12,and I'm going to skip 13 and go
(03:21):
to 14.
It says the apostles wereperforming many miraculous signs
and wonders among the people,and all the believers were
meeting regularly at the templein an area known as Solomon's
colonnade.
Yet more and more peoplebelieved and were brought to the
Lord, crowds of both men andwomen.
(03:42):
Now don't forget that, likeweeks prior, months prior, these
were the same people who, whenJesus is crucified, go into
hiding, shut the shades, turnthe lights off, lock the doors,
don't go outside, because theywill find us, they will torture
us and they will kill us, justlike they did to Jesus.
This is quite the shift fromwhere they were a few months ago
(04:05):
.
They are now performing signsand wonders in full view of the
public.
We are not behind closed doorsanymore.
They've taken up space atSolomon's Colonnade as a section
of the temple courts in whichJesus himself used to preach and
teach.
This grassroots movement isstarting to gain traction, and
(04:28):
they're doing it in the veryplace that Jesus had been not
just opposed but eventuallycondemned, and the impact that
they're having is unmistakable.
People from all over, just asthey did with Jesus, as we're
following Jesus through theGospel of Luke, we see people
from all over, just as they didwith Jesus, as we're following
Jesus through the gospel of Luke, we see people from all over
hear about Jesus and they'rebringing the sick to him to be
(04:50):
healed.
And now the same exact thing ishappening with the apostles
they're laying them on mats,bringing them, hoping that even
Peter's shadow passes over them.
Now this is interesting for youtheology, biblical study nerds.
Luke is very intentionalbetween the gospel of Luke and
(05:10):
the book of Acts, showing thatwhat the apostles are doing is
something that Jesus did, plusmaybe a little extra.
It goes back to this idea thatLuke talks about, where Jesus
says it's better that I go sothat the Holy Spirit can come
and you will do greater thingsthan these.
So what Luke is trying to pointout for those of us paying
(05:30):
attention is that people wouldcome to Jesus.
And what did they try to do?
Touch the cloak on the ground.
Right, they're trying to touchthe cloak so that they could
experience healing.
If you could touch the cloak,you would be healed.
And in this case Luke isshowing they don't even got to
touch Peter.
Actually, if they fall into hisshadow, they will be healed.
And so Luke's trying to pointthat out, that Jesus kept his
(05:53):
word that they will go on andthey will do greater things.
That same power that flowedthrough Jesus is now flowing
through his followers, and it'sconfirmed to all that Jesus's
work did not end.
It did not die on the cross.
It really had just begun.
In this moment, deeply public,it was undeniably powerful and
(06:17):
inherently dangerous, but it wasmagnetic.
People saw something real andthose people wanted in.
Well, most people wanted in.
Some didn't.
The religious leaders, andespecially the Sadducees, are
filled with jealousy.
They're filled with jealousy.
The apostles' growing influencethreatens their control, and
(06:40):
they respond with a publicshowing of force.
The apostles are arrested andthey're thrown into jail, but
during the night, an angel ofthe Lord comes, opens up the
door, leads them out and says goback, keep preaching, which is
exactly what they do Now.
You can imagine the Sadduceesthe next day going into work,
you know, going into the templeor the court, wherever they're
(07:02):
getting ready to do their thing.
They're getting ready tointerrogate the prisoners Peter
James, john, you guys got toknock it off, stop doing this.
And as they're getting ready tobring the prisoners in, they
find out that the prisonersaren't there.
And as they go to investigate,they find that the guards are
still standing there.
They're like yep, nope,nobody's come in, nobody's come
(07:22):
out, we got it.
And they go beyond that andthey look at the jail cell and
it's empty, but it's stilllocked from the day before.
Their confusion, though,doesn't last very long, because
they know exactly where to look.
They say where did we arrestthem yesterday?
Let's go back there.
And of course, that's wherethey are doing the exact same
thing that 24 hours ago got themarrested.
(07:45):
Now the high priest doesn't evenask why.
He doesn't say which one of theguards fell asleep and was
slacking, who let him out, whobroke him up?
He does not care, he is justfrustrated.
He brings them back in and hesays we gave you strict orders
to never again teach this man'sname and instead, instead, you
(08:06):
have filled all of Jerusalemwith your teaching about him.
And I love this last partbecause it's personal with your
teaching about him.
And I love this last partbecause it's personal and you
want to make us responsible forhis death.
So I'm not just mad about thismessage of Jesus, I'm mad that,
like you're telling people itwas my fault, it was our fault.
The scene is full ofconfrontation and think about
(08:27):
the tension because thedisciples, they're not protected
by status or privilege.
They're defying the mostpowerful religious and political
body in Jerusalem, the same onethat opposed, condemned and
ultimately killed Jesus.
That's the group they're goingup against.
Now let's understand this isn'ta disagreement over doctrine.
(08:51):
It's a direct confrontationwith the powers that be.
To declare that Jesus is Lordwasn't a private conviction.
It wasn't something that theyheld within themselves.
It was a public declaration andit challenged the structures of
power because it redefinedauthority and it actually
exposed the fragility of controlthat the Sadducees thought that
(09:14):
they held.
This was the moment of truth andPeter speaks boldly.
He says we must obey God ratherthan any human authority, the
God of our ancestors.
Right, they're Jewish,sadducees, pharisees, peter,
we're Jewish.
The God of our ancestors raisedJesus from the dead.
And Peter throws in this littlebit after you killed him by
(09:37):
hanging on the cross.
Now, I love this because westart to see Peter own his
personality.
Peter, who we read in Lukealways putting his foot in his
mouth or saying the wrong thingat the wrong time, has finally
hit his stride a little bit.
He didn't lose the sass, he'skeeping it.
He says I sense that you'rebothered by that, but you did
(09:59):
kill him and I'm going to bebold and I'm going to say it.
I love that.
He doubled down on what theywere most offended by.
He wasn't softening the message, it wasn't diplomatic, there
was no hesitation.
There was no hesitation.
And yet, while Peter namestheir guilt, he still proclaims
Jesus is risen and exalted anddeclares that forgiveness would
(10:20):
even be available for them.
He says yes, you did kill them.
Sorry that upsets you to hearthat, but factually speaking
that happened.
And yet Jesus still loves you,grace still covers you.
Forgiveness can be extended toyou.
Now what's going on here is thatthe Sanhedrin claimed divine
authority.
To obey them, in the eyes ofmany, was to obey God himself
(10:45):
Kind of think of, maybe,catholicism in modern day time.
To obey the pope and thebishops, the church leadership
at hand hand, is tantamount toobeying God.
That's what the Sanhedrin was.
That's how they felt aboutthemselves.
So to disagree with theSanhedrin isn't to affect
disagree with God.
So when Peter says I'mdisagreeing with you, but not
(11:05):
God, he's saying you are not God.
I know you all think you are,but you are not.
And obedience to God comesfirst.
We're going to do what Godwants us to do, not what you
want us to do.
He goes on.
He says we are witnesses of thethings, of these things, and so
is the Holy Spirit who is givenby God to those who obey him.
(11:30):
Peter is relatively illiterate.
As we understand it, he's afisherman, so he's not offering
a legal defense.
He doesn't know how to argue inthis type of court, so inside
he just tells the story.
It's his testimony he says Isaw what happened.
We all saw what happened, weexperienced it.
(11:52):
And in doing so, thisuneducated man redefines power.
In the room, the courtroom isfilled with people who have
different robes.
They all stand for somethingdifferent, like depending on who
you were in the court.
You got a different robe soeveryone knew visually right
when you walked in you'restanding If you were the big dog
(12:12):
or one of the little dogs.
There were all these laws andrules they had to follow,
institutional weight.
But the true authority Petershows doesn't come from position
.
It comes from truth, from therisen Jesus, From the Holy
Spirit who testifies alongsideof them.
(12:35):
Their authority was firsthand,not just repeating things that
they had heard.
They weren't doing that.
They had seen Jesus himself hadeaten with Jesus after he died
and rose again, after he diedand rose again.
This wasn't tradition, thiswasn't abstract theology.
(12:57):
This was what they experienced.
It was eyewitness.
They were there and, as you canimagine, the tension in the
room finally blows up.
The box is too full, the topcomes off, the Sanhedrin is
furious.
They're not just mad Now,they're ready to kill.
24 hours ago, even an hour ago,we were happy warning you and
putting you in jail if youpromised to stop, and now we are
(13:20):
going to kill you.
When a surprising voice emerges,gamaliel, a respected Pharisee
and teacher of the law, standsup.
He's not a follower of Jesus,but he speaks with wisdom and he
reminds the council of pastuprisings.
He says no, no, no, hold on,hold on, hold on, hold on.
(13:42):
This has happened before.
We've seen this before.
Someone comes around, somereligious leader, he attracts a
following, the guy dies and theneventually, the movement
disperses.
He brings up a couple veryspecific examples.
You remember this guy.
You remember this guy, and hispoint is Jesus is probably just
another guy.
We don't have to do anything.
(14:03):
We don't have to do all of thisextra work.
We are wasting our time rightnow.
Just give it time and theseguys will also disperse.
But he throws out.
Unless this is a movement byGod, he's appealing to reason.
Now, however, let's be open here.
If they don't disperse, this isa God thing, and if it's a God
(14:25):
thing, we could be standing inthe way of a God thing.
And so he says my advice is toleave these men alone.
Let them go.
If they are planning and doingthings merely on their own, it
will soon be overthrown, but ifit is from God, you will not be
able to overthrow them, and youmay even find yourself fighting
against God In 2025, thepolitical, cultural climate that
(14:55):
we live in.
Let us not miss this moment here, when there was a divine
intervention through an unlikelyvessel.
God uses a voice from withinthe system not to overturn it.
Right, he doesn't overturn it,but he restrains it.
(15:17):
Gamaliel's presence reminds usthat God can speak through those
we least expect insiders,within resistant or even
restrictive systems.
We often assume that help mustcome from our allies, but this
(15:37):
moment reminds us that God canwork through anyone in any
system, and again I like topoint this out.
So Gamaliel was actually we'regoing to find out later Paul's
rabbi.
This is the man who trainedPaul, and so what's interesting
is that Gamaliel he's like, hey,just let God sort this out.
(16:00):
But we're going to find outover the next couple of weeks
when Kyle talks that Saul atthis time does not take that
advice at all.
He is not going to let God sortanything out, saul has it.
So it's very interesting thatyou have this great, well-known
rabbi training up Saul and Saulsays you know, you're smart, but
I'm a little bit smarter.
(16:20):
I'm going to do things a littlebit differently.
We see that the apostles leftthe high council and they
rejoiced that God had countedthem worthy to suffer disgrace
in the name of Jesus, as theywere severely beaten before they
leave.
The apostles walk away fromtheir flogging, not with relief
that they're still alive, notwith like caution like we better
tighten it up, guys, or worseis going to happen.
(16:41):
But they do so with joy, andnot because the pain was light,
but because they saw theirsuffering and their pain as a
mark of honor.
You see, they saw that it wasworthy to suffer for the name of
Jesus and in an honor, shameculture of the first century
public flogging.
It wasn't just painful, I mean,it hurt, but it was degrading.
(17:04):
Yet the apostles, the disciples, they interpret it, reinterpret
it differently.
Disgrace is now dignity,suffering is solidarity.
They don't want to feelabandoned by God, but they feel
aligned with Him.
Nt Wright puts it this way inSimply Christian, you become
(17:27):
like what you worship.
When you gaze in awe,admiration and wonder at
something or someone, you beginto take on something of the
character of the object of yourworship.
And that's what's happeninghere.
These men and women have beenshaped by their worship of the
(17:48):
crucified and risen Jesus, andnow they suffer for him and they
consider that a privilege, notpunishment.
And then, as if to drive thepoint home, luke adds one more
line.
He says and every day, in thetemple and from house to house,
they continue to teach andpreach this message Jesus is the
(18:12):
Messiah.
And, despite what you mightthink, the movement doesn't
pause, it just continues toexpand.
They return to the publicsquare, they keep showing up in
homes, and this isn'tstubbornness, this is clarity, a
spirit-filled clarity.
They know what their mission isand they know what they've got
to do.
Suffering will not slow themdown.
(18:35):
Suffering will only sharpentheir focus.
Suffering will not slow themdown.
Suffering will only sharpentheir focus.
Suffering was expected, anexpected part of their
discipleship.
It was normalized.
They talked about it in theirchurch gatherings.
This is what's going to happen.
Embrace it Now.
For many of us today, let'scontrast that right.
Suffering tends to indicatewe're doing something wrong,
something to avoid.
If we don't have that voice inour own heads saying that like,
(18:58):
hey, I'm in this bad seasonbecause of something I did,
somebody else will gladly tellyou that.
Well, if you just would have,or if you didn't.
This is why we dot, dot dot.
But for them it wasconfirmation.
They were walking in the pathof Jesus.
And perhaps, if you findyourself in a season of pain,
(19:19):
suffering, difficulty, challenge, perhaps stop asking yourself
what am I doing wrong?
And consider maybe you are onthe path following Jesus.
Their joy wasn't circumstantial.
It didn't depend on theircomfort, their freedom, it
didn't depend on public approval.
It came from knowing that theywere part of God's story.
(19:42):
And so what does this mean forsome of us today?
I mean, what is the core truth?
Let's go back to that question.
What do we do in real life whenobeying Jesus costs us
something?
Well, obedience to God mattersmore than the approval of people
, and it often leads to bothresistance and renewal.
(20:03):
Okay, both are going to happen,resistance and renewal.
The early church didn't grow byavoiding conflict.
It grew because people chosecostly obedience.
Their faith wasn't hidden, itwas public, spirit-empowered and
, maybe most importantly, it wasresilient.
(20:23):
God never, ever removes theirsuffering, but he's always
present in it, and through theirobedience, the gospel advanced.
The gospel advanced.
This isn't just their story,this is our story.
(20:43):
I mean, like them, you and I,followers of Jesus here today,
we're called to live out ourfaith openly.
It's not supposed to be aprivate thing.
It's supposed to be an openthing.
Like them, you will facepressures to stay quiet.
That's fine If that's what youbelieve.
Just don't talk to me about it.
Like them, we have the HolySpirit, and not just to comfort
(21:03):
us, not to just give us warm,fuzzy feelings for 30 minutes on
a Sunday morning, but toempower us as we go through the
pain and suffering and thechallenges and difficulties
throughout the week.
And like them, throughout theweek.
And like them, you and I arepart of Jesus's ongoing mission.
(21:24):
Make no mistake about it.
You are called to participate.
Jesus said whoever wants to bemy disciple must deny themselves
and take up their cross dailyand follow me.
And he warned that if the worldhates you, keep in mind it
hated me first, but he promises,blessed are those who are
persecuted, for theirs is thekingdom of heaven.
(21:45):
This isn't exceptional, this isexpected.
It's discipleship, and I wonderwhat might obedience in the
real life look like for you?
What might it cost you?
Maybe at work it's speaking up,speaking the truth, showing
integrity, even when it comes ata high cost for you.
(22:08):
Perhaps it's in yourrelationships and you have to
set boundaries, you have to livedifferently.
And it's not out of pride butit's out of surrender, of where
God is calling you to, at schoolor in your neighborhood.
It's identifying with Jesus,even if perhaps it isolates you
some.
And in suffering, it's aboutchoosing to keep showing up in
(22:31):
faith and not in fear.
Obedience may not earn anapplause, but it will never be
wasted.
Obedience may not earn you theapplause, but it will never be
wasted.
The gospel moves forward througheveryday faithfulness and
spirit-empowered courage.
And what if we?
(22:52):
If Madison Church is yourchurch, so if you're a member
here, you're a regular here,you're one of our leaders.
What if we became known for aculture known for choosing
obedience over comfort?
What if, in solidarity, we cameand we agreed that pain and
suffering doesn't always meanwe're doing something wrong,
that resistance doesn't meanwe're off track.
(23:14):
What might God do through acommunity that listens to his
voice, even when it's hard?
The apostles didn't just endureresistance, they rejoiced in it
.
And that message didn't justsurvive, it multiplied.
The story that we're walkingthrough, this series activated,
(23:35):
isn't about superheroes of faith.
These are ordinary peoplefilled with the Spirit, who
choose obedience over approval.
Again and again, and again, andhere's what we're left with.
Today, that same Jesus is alive, that same spirit is available
(23:58):
and that same mission continuesthrough us today.
Now you don't have to befearless to follow Jesus, but
you do have to be willing.
You don't have to sufferexactly like they did, but there
are going to be moments thatare costly, and you won't always
be applauded.
But you will always be seen,known and strengthened by the
(24:19):
God who calls you.
And if you're here today, orwatching or listening online and
you're not sure where you standwith Jesus, this isn't just a
story about boldness.
It's a story about love.
Let's not forget that thedisciples aren't risking their
(24:39):
lives for a cause.
They're responding to the risenChrist, who gave up his life
for them.
Before Jesus asked them to obeyhim, he offered himself Before
he sent them off into the world.
He rescued them from sin anddeath.
(25:00):
And that same invitation isopen to us.
It's open to you, not to earnyour way in, but to trust in the
one who gave everything tobring you in.
So, wherever you are today, ifyou're curious, cautious or
(25:20):
ready, that door is open.
And the invitation for all ofus is not just believe in Jesus
but to follow him, to not justadmire the apostles and a story,
but to imitate their obediencein our everyday, regular lives.
To not just look back at Actsbut to step into it as the story
(25:41):
continues today.
This is our moment.
Now.
May we be a people who obeyeven when it's hard, who rejoice
even when it costs us, and whonever stop proclaiming that
Jesus is Lord in the public eye,in the private sphere and
everything in between.
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