Atos 12

Atos 12

Chart from Jensen's Survey of the NT - used by permission THE EXPANDING WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT-EMPOWERED CHURCH Acts 12:1 Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. KJV Acts 12:1 Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. When did the events in Acts 12 occur? Circa A.D. 44. (This is only an approximation -- see several Timelines at beginning of commentary on Acts 11). laid hands on some. Acts 4:30; 9:31; Luke 22:53 to mistreat them Matthew 10:17,18; 24:9; John 15:20; 16:2 PERSECUTION OF THE CHURCH PART TWO If Acts 8:1-4 was "part 1" of the persecution, Acts 12 describes "part 2." Set the context - Notice that Luke is switching from events centered in Antioch to events which occurred in Jerusalem. This chapter breaks into 4 sections (from POSB Borrow The Preacher's outline & sermon Bible : New Testament... Acts 12:1-4 First Political Attack Against the Church Acts 12:5-17 God's Pattern for Deliverance Acts 12:18-23 God’s sovereign wrath, His vindication of the church Acts 12:24-25 The church’s triumphant march Here is Warren Wiersbe's outline for Acts 12 which he entitles "WAKE UP TO A MIRACLE!" God Sees Our Trials (Acts 12:1–4) God Hears Our Prayers (Acts 12:5–17) Peter sleeping (Acts 12:5–6). Peter obeying (Acts 12:7–11) Peter knocking (Acts 12:12–16) Peter declaring (Acts 12:17). God Deals with Our Enemies (Acts 12:18–25) (Bible Exposition Commentary) As the POSB says "God always delivers His people either through or from the trials of this life, including persecution and martyrdom. This passage gives a picture of God’s pattern for deliverance through persecution." (Borrow The Preacher's outline & sermon Bible : New Testament page 182) Steven Ger writes that "Around the time that the church in Antioch was first initiating its charitable collection in preparation for the coming famine, the Jerusalem church was once again pummeled by persecution. Some nine years after Saul's initial persecution of the church in A.D. 35, opposition now came not from its previous source, the religious hierarchy, but rather from a new source, the recently appointed Jewish king, Herod Agrippa I." (Acts-Twenty-First Century Commentary) Stanley Toussaint points out that "The purpose of this section of Acts is to confirm Israel’s rejection of the Messiah. Luke has skillfully woven this theme throughout the entire book and it can be seen up to this point in Acts 4:1–30 (esp. Acts 4:29); Acts 5:17–40; 6:11–8:3; 9:1–2, 29. This animosity of Israel set the stage for the first missionary journey. Artfully, Luke contrasted the love of the church at Antioch for the saints at Jerusalem (end of Acts 11:29, 30) with the cold-hearted enmity of Herod and the Jews for the church." (SEE Bible Knowledge Commentary). John Stott writes that in Acts 12 we see that "the destructive power of Herod and the saving power of God are contrasted. Indeed, throughout church history the pendulum has swung between expansion and opposition, growth and shrinkage, advance and retreat, although with the assurance that even the powers of death and hell will never prevail against Christ’s church, since it is built securely on the rock." (borrow The message of Acts : the Spirit, the church & the world page 206) Longnecker suggests that "Luke seems to have wanted to close his portrayals of the Christian mission within the Jewish world (2:42–12:24) with two vignettes having to do with God’s continued activity on behalf of the Jerusalem church.” (BORROW Expositor’s Bible Commentary) Now about that time - When did the events in Acts 12 occur? Circa A.D. 43-44 because we know that was the date of Herod's death. (see also several Timelines at beginning of commentary on Acts 11). Why would persecution occur at this time? Acts 11 gives us the answer - Acts 11:21 says "And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord." Acts 11:24 says "And considerable numbers were brought to the Lord." Acts 11:26 says that "for an entire year they (Barnabas and Saul) met with the church and taught considerable numbers; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch." So why did persecution occur about that time? The Church was growing in numbers and growing in grace and Christ-likeness (2 Pe 3:18+), for it was being discipled (cf 2 Ti 2:2+)! When the Lord's work prospers, you can be sure that the Adversary, the Devil, is prowling nearby and will not stand still but will attack viciously. This happened to the Church in Jerusalem and the same principle is true today -- the Adversary will attack churches as well as individuals who are taking ground for the Lord. Beware! Be aware! (Read 1 Peter 5:8-9+). "Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong." (1 Cor 16:13 - note every verb in red is a present imperative - calling for continual attitude/action, only possible as one is yielded to and empowered by the Holy Spirit!) Stott comments on about that time - Luke is deliberately vague, and scholars dispute the exact order of the events he chronicles in Acts 10 to 12 (Stott - borrow The message of Acts : the Spirit, the church & the world page 206) While Luke does not go into detail, it is clearly implied that there had been a growing animosity and rift between the orthodox Jews and the Jewish Christians, which is only natural as the orthodox Jews served the Old Covenant and the disciples of Jesus the New Covenant. As Hebrews 8:13+ says "When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear." Although Herod's Temple was still intact, the day was fast approaching when it would be demolished by the Romans (AD 70). The orthodox Jews could not understand the evangelistic fervor of the Jewish converts to Christianity and would have been especially incensed now these Jewish Christians were actually allowing Gentiles into the Church without first becoming proselytes of Judaism (note)! As Messianic believer Steven Ger quipped that "The church's new cocktail of mixed Jews and Gentiles was not going down smoothly in Jerusalem, and the city was both shaken and stirred." (Ibid) This was simply unheard of and pushed the orthodox Jews to their fleshly limit. And so it was in this cauldron of rising animosity between the Old and the New, that Herod sought to curry favor with the Law-keeping, Temple-sacrificing Jews in Jerusalem. Indeed, Herod was the "Devil's point man" in Jerusalem! A T Robertson proposes that "Barnabas and Saul came down from Antioch to Jerusalem after the persecution by Herod at the end of 44 or the beginning of A D 45." We know that their arrival was during this time because Acts 12:25 says "Barnabas and Saul returned (TO ANTIOCH) from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark." See Excellent Map of the Kingdom of Herod, aka King Agrippa I Herod the king = Herod Agrippa I, king over Palestine at this time was the grandson of the Herod the Great who ruled at the time of the birth of Jesus and was the cruel king who sought to kill the infant Jesus by slaughtering all the male babies "two years old and under" at Bethlehem (Mt 2:1,16+). Herod Agrippa I was the only Herod to have royalty bestowed upon him and to govern all of Palestine since the death of his grandfather, Herod the Great. So we see, "like grandfather like son!" This Herod was the nephew of Herod Antipas, aka "Herod the Tetrarch," who had John the Baptist killed (Mt. 14:1-14).Herod Agrippa I was the father of Herod Agrippa II, who later tried Paul (Acts 25:13-26:32+), so once again we see, like father, like son, like grandson! This is not not a generational "curse" but a generational evil! Wikipedia - Herod Agrippa I - (11 BC – 44 AD), was a King of Judea from 41 to 44 AD. He was the last ruler with the royal title reigning over Judea and the father of Herod Agrippa II, the last King from the Herodian dynasty. The grandson of Herod the Great and son of Aristobulus IV and Berenice,[1] He is the king named Herod in the Acts of the Apostles 12:1 (Acts 12:1): "Herod (Agrippa)" (Ἡρώδης Ἀγρίππας). Agrippa's territory comprised most of modern Israel, including Judea, Galilee, Batanaea and Perea. From Galilee his territory extended east to Trachonitis. Bob