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And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”—Acts 5:27–32
Introduction
Many people remember the comment that Arkansas governor Bill Clinton made when asked why he should replace President George H.W. Bush as commander-in-chief. He summarized it in three words: “The economy, stupid.”
You probably are wondering if this is going to be a political sermon. It is not. And you will see why when we come to application. Why quote Bill Clinton? I want to get right to the point with an economy of words like Bill Clinton did. My hope is that this series so far has created a vacuum in which you are asking yourselves: “OK, I understand the concept of 25 church plants, 25 unengaged peoples, and building a permanent facility for the South Campus. My question is what does this vision mean for my daily life? What are you asking me to do beyond giving financially?"
I am glad you asked. I don’t need three words like Bill Clinton, and I don’t need to call anybody stupid. I just need one word: discipleship. What are you asking me to do? Make disciples. That is what our cities need and that is what Jesus commissioned each of us to do.
If you have been raised in the church, you have probably heard of the Great Commission. You could probably quote it. But quoting it and doing it are very different things. Francis Chan has a much-needed word for us here. He recently spoke about how not to make disciples (Francis Chan, Verge)
When I was a kid, we played a game called “Simon Says.” Simon says, “Pat your head.” You did it because Simon says. In the church, we play a different game. It is a little weird. We play “Jesus Says,” but we do it differently. It turns out that if Jesus says something you don’t actually have to do it, you just memorize it and study it.
If I tell my daughter, “Hey Rach, go clean your room,” she doesn’t come back to me two hours later and say, “Hey, I memorized what you said—‘Rach, go clean your room.’ I can even say it in Greek.” Later my friends and I are going to come over and we are going to have a study on what it looks like to clean my room.”
So I have one question for you: Who? If you are a disciple of Christ, then I shouldn’t have to ask you, “Are you discipling?” but “Who are you discipling?” It is great that you can quote chapter and verse, but can you cite name and number and address?
Making disciples will involve a deep investment into the lives of others and will include teaching—“teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:20). As Pastor John said three weeks ago, the Great Commission is a direct link to the passage that started this whole vision called “Fill These Cities.” We now come back full circle to where we began.
Our passage: Acts 5:27–32
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
Outline
Main Point: Here is the main burden of this passage in four words: “we must obey God.” What does that mean for our daily lives? No matter what comes our way, we must obey God’s command to speak the name of Jesus as witnesses.
Here is what we will do. I will briefly walk through the details of this passage in the 1st century context and then we will seek to apply it in our context.
1. Silencing: The Strategy of the Opposition (Acts 5:27–28)
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.”
I admit that I enjoy the exasperation of the Jewish leaders in this text. They are throwing every earthly/political threat and conjuring up every ounce of earthly/political authority they have at the disciples. I imagine a fight in which they are emptying their kitchen cabinets throwing everything but the kitchen sink. And they would throw that if they could. They are exasperated and annoyed that the disciples did not obey their “charge” back in chapter four.
“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.” So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
They don’t want the teaching about Jesus “to spread further among the people.” They view Christianity as a disease and they want to quarantine it to keep it from spreading. It gives us a unique window into what Christianity is as we see it through the eyes of the opposition. They saw that Christianity is an “airborne” disease. The disease spreads by speaking the name of Jesus. The only way to keep it from spreading is to keep Christians from speaking Christ. So that informed their strategy: keep them from speaking. Silence! They were right about everything except the disease part. This teaching gives eternal life—it doesn’t bring sickness and death. It heals sickness and defeats death. It is the cure—not the disease. It is the cure and they have a commission. So they must speak.
2. Speaking: The Strategy of the Church (Acts 5:29–32)
But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
A. The Clear Choice: God or Man (v. 29)
The Jewish leaders must have had that Groundhog Day, déjà-vu-like feeling like they had just heard that response. That is exactly how they responded back in Acts 4 to the original “charge.”
But Peter and John answered them, “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.”—Acts 4:19–20
The disciples ask a powerful question: You judge which one you think should win: “Thus says the LORD” or “Thus says you.” For us the answer is clear: “We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). They are witnesses—they cannot deny that which has defined them and become their very identity.
The political leaders say, “Didn’t we make ourselves clear?” Peter says, “Didn’t we make ourselves clear?”
But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.”—Acts 5:29
These disciples would rather die than disobey. I love their eager intentionality to speak the name of Jesus. They will take any opportunity. They are charged with defiantly teaching about Jesus and they use it as an opportunity to defiantly teach about Jesus!
B. The Eager Choice: Speak the Name
They focus on three factors about Jesus: (1) Jesus defeated death, (2) Jesus was raised to the highest place to rule, (3) repentance and forgiveness are the right responses, (4) there is a dual witness—us and the Holy Spirit whom God gives to those who obey Him.
First, Jesus defeated death: “The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree” (Acts 5:30).
They threaten the disciples with death, but they are not afraid of what Jesus has already defeated.
Second, God has already exalted Jesus at this right hand: “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior” (Acts 5:31a). We are lifting up his name with our words because God has already lifted him up to the highest place as the Lord of all.
Third, they highlight what the right response should be: repentance (not resistance) and forgiveness of sins (not multiplying sins): “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31).
Fourth, there is a dual witness: the disciples (physical eyewitnesses—human witness) and the Holy Spirit (the divine witness). The Holy Spirit has only been given to those who obey God (unlike the religious leaders).
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.—Acts 5:32
This “witness” theme takes us back to Jesus’ commission right before he ascended to heaven (Acts 1:1–11). They have their commission from the King. He has conquered the grave. He is risen and ascended to reign. The King who has all authority in heaven and earth has given his charge and commission to be his witnesses. No one can trump the authority of this kingly commission. He spells it out clearly for them:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”—Acts 1:8
Jesus, the King of the universe, is calling his disciples to a cosmic witness stand and charging them to testify. The Cosmic Judge and King has called us to the witness stand to speak. We won’t stop just because you tell us to sit down and shut up. This is his cosmic courtroom not your kangaroo court. Consider the contrast.
Jewish leaders: “Do not keep speaking; be silent.”
Jesus: “Keep speaking and do not be silent.”
Listen to how clearly Jesus states this commission for Paul later in Acts 18.
And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people.” And he stayed a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
What other name would they speak? Remember Acts 4:12? “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.” If the church can’t preach the name of Jesus, then we have no other name to speak.
Look at how Acts 5 ends. The Jewish leaders are ready to respond to the apostles the same way they responded to Jesus—condemn them to death. But a Pharisee among them (Gamaliel) offers a wise warning. He proposes a cause and effect test. If God is truly behind what is happening, it can’t be stopped. If this is the work of man, it will come to nothing.
So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice, and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.
They intensified the charge not to speak in the name of Jesus again by beating them. But the disciples rejoiced. They were delighted just to be named with him—identified with him.
3. Spreading: What Happens When Speaking Wins over Silencing
What happens when speaking wins over silencing? Answer: Spreading.
“We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.”—Acts 5:28
What did they fill Jerusalem with? Teaching. Teaching about what? This name—Jesus. Notice the result in Acts. When you fill a place with teaching about Jesus it is because it is filled with disciples of Jesus.
And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.—Acts 6:7
But the word of God increased and multiplied.—Acts 12:24
And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region.—Acts 13:49
So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.—Acts 16:5
So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.—Acts 19:20
Application
1. Don’t just memorize it or study God’s word; do it—speak Jesus and make disciples
God says, speak the name of Jesus as witnesses of Jesus. Jesus says, “make disciples.” So you should be able to give an account for that. What are the names of disciples you have made because you spoke the name of Jesus as a witness and the Holy Spirit moved in their life to make them a follower of Jesus? If you are a disciple of Christ, then I shouldn’t have to ask you, “Are you discipling?”—but “Who are you discipling?” It is great that you can quote chapter and verse, but can you cite name and number and address?
a. How do I speak the name of Jesus today? Gospel intentionality and fluency.
We need to be ordinary people doing ordinary things with gospel intentionality and gospel fluency. Gospel intentionality is the opposite of sharing the gospel accidentally or haphazardly. You know what accidentally means—you didn’t set out to go turkey hunting—you hit a turkey with your car. Intentionally going turkey hunting looks much different—the clothes, the turkey call—you are prepared and armed and ready. Hunting might seem like a bad metaphor because we are not trying to shoot anybody to kill them. Gospel bullets don’t kill anybody—they make the dead come alive. You are on the lookout for the wounded to make them whole.
Gospel intentionality means actively looking for opportunities to speak the name of Jesus. Gospel fluency means you speak the name of Jesus in a way that doesn’t feel forced or unnatural or out of place—like an uninvited guest. If he is really and truly Lord of all, it doesn’t have to seem forced at all. If he puts his finger on everything and says, “Mine,” then it should not be hard to point to the finger and show them how it belongs to him.
b. Witness as one who believes in the witness of the Holy Spirit.
As you witness to Jesus, trust that the Spirit is going to bear witness to Jesus in every sphere where he is spoken. At home, we sow the seed in hope. If you have children, they should come to mind as your disciples. At work, sow in hope and pray in faith: “Lord, give me this cubicle!” In the neighborhood, “Lord, give me my block.” Pray for specific people. Don’t do it on your own. Small groups especially are a powerful force for evangelism. You should be thinking of multiplication, not addition (1st generation, 2nd generation, 3rd generation).
c. Doesn’t our current cultural and political climate make it harder?
Yes and no. Yes, our culture wants to silence us. They are not yet trying to beat us into submission so much as shame us into submission and silence. Name-calling is very in vogue against Christians. Name another religious or social group that is the target of as much name-calling. The majority voice will want you to join them, but if you won’t, then next best is to make you a silent Christian. It is fine for you to believe what you want in the privacy of your own home, but don’t bring that into the public sphere where only facts belong. If you let people, they’ll try to convince you that Jesus is a fantasy or fairy tale and not a fixed, ultimate reality. Say less and claim less and hold it all with less confidence in those times and we can co-exist peacefully—as long as you don’t mind being marginalized and muzzled. The attempts at muzzling will increase. City governments are asking for pastor’s sermons.
The disciples rejoiced—can we? Do we expect to be treated better than Jesus? Don’t we believe what he says that if they persecuted me, then they will persecute me? Gamaliel teaches us something else about the Christian church. If God is with us, then who can stop us? Can anyone read the book of Acts and say, “We can’t make disciples unless the government is on our side?” They didn’t feel hopeless unless they had a Christian on the Sanhedrin council. They didn’t need the government on their side because Jesus has the government on his shoulders.
We see it throughout the history of the church. G.K. Chesterton surveys Christian history and says, “The church has gone to the dogs five times in its history and each time it was the dog that died.” The church’s opponents lie buried in historical dust. But the church is alive and well because Jesus is not buried—he is alive forevermore. So replace your fear with faith and replace your outrage with outreach. The opposition may be intense and look impressive and powerful—like storm waves surging and impressively pounding the rock only to love again and see that the rock remains unharmed and unmoved.
Be a church like the Early Church for whom, “Thus says the LORD” had greater weight than “thus says the majority” or “thus says the authorities.” Many will prefer what is cool to what is costly. Ten million assertions spokenly loudly on social media—with tons of likes on Facebook or retweets on Twitter—do not even come close to the truth of one lone person saying by the power of the Holy Spirit: “Jesus is Lord.” You can overcome because you have been given new life by the Spirit. A dead thing can only go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.
2. Strengthen the Core (the church as a family and community)
The Holy Spirit is given not just to the individual, but to the body.
And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.—Acts 2:44–47
We don’t want to be a crowd; we want to be a church. A local body of baptized believers who have covenanted together to be the blood-bought church of the living God here in these cities. Get baptized. Become members. Attend corporate worship, join a small group, find a place to serve (strengthen our core priorities).
Conclusion
Fill These Cities
We have three campuses strategically located. The Lord is filling these cities with people and we want to make them disciples. East Town (Downtown), Rice Creek Commons (North), Lakeville (South). May he add to our number daily those who are believing in the name of Jesus and being saved. As we give our dots and put them in the basket, I call you to prayerfully consider what it would look like to put yourself in the basket—not just give of your money, but of yourself.