Entertaining the Presence Part 3 (Acts 4)
Verse 8 In Mark 13:11 Jesus told His disciple that when you are arrested don’t worry about what to say, the Holy Spirit will give you the words. I love how it says, “when you are arrested” We see that here.
Verse 13 This verse should encourage all of us, anyone can do this.
• Peter and John’s courage and boldness was visible to all. Yet they were unschooled ordinary men.
• But they could also see, they had been with Jesus.
o We too can make this same claim, we are ordinary people, but we have the Holy Spirit.
Verse 14 The evidence speaks for itself. When Jesus does the act, it’s hard to argue with it.
• The lesson here is, trust the presence and work of Jesus through the Holy Spirit, don’t argue with them.
Verse 15-17 They know that a great miracle of God was done. But they don’t want to lose their religious power.
o We can’t fight back with human arguments and reason.
o We must trust and call on the Holy Spirit and presence of God.
Verse 20 This is why it is important to have a personal experience with Jesus and His mighty power.
o So, you have that personal testimony to hang on to, and testify to.
Verse 21-22 The leaders couldn’t punish them, because all the people were praising God and putting their trust in Jesus. The is a lesson for our day, trust the presence, and just share the Gospel with the people.
o Heal the sick, cleanse the leper, cast out demons, raise the dead.
o These are things that are both of the presence and invite more of the presence.
Verse 23-24 They responded in corporate prayer, and worship Him for being creator
• In the midst of persecution and trial, they see the sovereignty of God.
o I also believe this is essential to seeing greater measures of God’s presence in our day.
Verse 29 They corporately pray and ask for more of what got them in trouble.
• They got in trouble for preaching the Gospel, and they ask for more boldness to preach even more.
• They got in trouble for healing a crippled man, and they ask for God to do even more miracles and wonders.
Verse 31 Here it shakes the building, and fills them even more with the Holy Spirit.
What can we learn from this passage?
First, risk taking and boldness.
• The presence of God, the sustained presence we are after, is attracted to boldness and risk taking.
Second, the presence of God comes in midst of persecution when we don’t shrink back
Third, faith This is a sub-set of the first two.
Fourth, corporate prayer This is also the underpinning of the first three.
There is a big difference here. This one requires that we don’t simply remain in the presence for ourselves.
• In 1 Kings 8, But when the presence came, it didn’t require anything of them.
• This one in Acts 4 requires that we take the presence and leave the church.
