DAY SEVENTY-TWO:
Growth and Persecution
Yesterday we saw what happened on the Day of Pentecost, ten days after Jesus ascended into heaven. He told His disciples to remain in Jerusalem until they received the promised Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit showed up in power, lighting upon each person there like tongues of fire. Then He enabled them to speak in languages they hadn't learned. A crowd gathered and Peter preached. About 3,000 people believed and were baptized that day.
Once again Peter proclaimed boldly that Jesus Christ, whom they had put to death just a few weeks ago, had healed this man. He appealed to the crowd, "Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus..." (3:19-20)
Peter didn't get to finish the sermon or witness its results first-hand. The Temple Guards, the same men who arrested Jesus, took Peter and John into custody. By that time it was late in the day so they spent the night in jail. But the sermon had the same powerful effect as on the Day of Pentecost. Some 5,000 believed and were added to the church!
The next morning Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin, the same court that found Jesus guilty of blasphemy and sentenced Him to death. Annas, Caiaphas and the whole crew were there. They questioned them: "By what power or by what name did you do this?" Their hearts haven't changed with Jesus' resurrection from the dead. To them this great miracle of the lame man's healing was beside the point. If they did it in Jesus' name, Peter and John were as dangerous as Jesus Himself.
The Holy Spirit was with Peter and John, and Peter responded, "Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (4:8-12) Wow! Right between the eyes! Peter wasn't afraid of these men who put Jesus to death. He spoke truth to power and he didn't care if they liked it or not.
The Sanhedrin was stunned. These were ignorant fishermen from Galilee, yet they spoke with such power and authority! What could they say to rebut Peter's words? The formerly lame man stood right beside Peter and John. The council ordered Peter and John to be taken outside while they discussed the matter. "What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name." Like Lazarus, whom Jesus raised back to life after he'd been in the tomb four days, this now-walking lame man was healed in front of a large crowd. And as with Lazarus, this healing did not change the hearts of the Jewish leaders. But they had to tread lightly. The Lord gave these first Christians favor with everyone. Further, Pilate was undoubtedly resentful of the way the Jewish leaders had played him in Christ's crucifixion and might not accommodate them this time. So they resolved to warn Peter and John not to speak of Jesus ever again. With that warning came the threat of worse things to come if they don't obey.
Peter and John answered, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard." They wouldn't back down. Jesus commanded them to be His witnesses and no human authority could belay that order. The Sanhedrin then released them and they went back to the community of believers. There they prayed for boldness to continue to witness despite the threats they'd received. It's a beautiful prayer and I encourage you to read it closely. Even though it was the Jewish and Roman rulers who put Jesus to death, it was all in accord with God's perfect plan for the redemption of humanity. "And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus." Luke wrote that the place where they gathered was "shaken." This is the word used of great windstorms. Just as He came in power on the Day of Pentecost, so the Holy Spirit showed up once again in an unmistakable way.
The earliest church had an amazing unity. There were no Presbyterian, Methodists, Baptists or Catholics. It made no difference whether one was rich or poor. All were one in Christ. Those who had property would sell it and give the proceeds to the apostles, who in turn used these resources to feed the poor and to care for widows and orphans. Yes, this was a form of communism, but it was far removed from what Marx, Lenin and Mao would later impose upon much of the world. The early Christians lived out the ideal of "from each according to his ability to each according to his need" because they loved God and they loved one another. No one was required to divest their property. It was all voluntary, at the prompting of the Holy Spirit. What a beautiful expression of the Body of Christ!
Over a thousand years later a scholar by the name of Thomas Aquinas (after whom the Catholic high school in Louisville is named) came Rome. The Pope received him warmly and gave him a personal tour of the Vatican and its riches. The Pope turned to Thomas and said, "You see that the church no longer has to say 'silver and gold have I none.'" Aquinas replied, "Neither can she any longer say 'rise up and walk'" As the church grew rich in the things of this world it lost its power and ultimately its testimony for Christ. This is the struggle we face today. First and foremost, our problem is how we handle the wealth God has entrusted to us. The earliest church received lots of money, but it never saw that money as a source of security or power. They used these financial resources to care for peoples' needs and to carry the Gospel around the world. Individual Christians who had means came to realize that their wealth was not really theirs but God's. He promised to take care of us, and that's where our security lies. Those who had little also understood that all they had was God's. They too gave sacrificially. I read this article last week and commend it to you. It helped me to understand the important role that this kind of generosity played in the growth of the church: Resurrection Economics: What the early church teaches us about generosity.
Another reason we don't have the power of the early church is that we don't have their rock-solid faith in Jesus. In 1991 the Task Force on Church Membership Growth issued its report to the General Assembly. This paragraph was right on target: "It is apparent that there exists a significant measure of uncertainty among the clergy, leaders, and members of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) regarding the essential place of Jesus of Nazareth in God's purpose to save humankind. In the face of this relativism, the claims of Jesus Christ become muted not only to the world at large but to members of the church who are unsure whether they have any right to recommend their particular faith experiences to other persons. In the name of toleration, witness often falls silent and membership growth suffers." A lot more than membership growth suffers. Our nurture of the next generation of believers suffers as well. If we're fuzzy about who Jesus is and what He did to save us, then we have very little to offer this needy world.
The early church relied on the Holy Spirit. At some point we figured out that we can go through the motions, that we can worship and witness whether or not the Holy Spirit shows up. We can offer part of ourselves as a sacrifice to appease our consciences, while God asks for all we are and all we have.
This got awfully heavy. Let's lighten up a bit with this kids' song about today's lesson:
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