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Until we are caught up out of here at the rapture and so things that have progressed from acts the end of the book of Acts are still progressing today as the church continues to grow and and influence People around the world drawing people to saving faith in Jesus Christ So father as we come into this section Lord, we pray for the anointing of your spirit. We pray for the understanding that That he can give to us and Lord. We know that to win the last days and we're in difficult days and We know that it's just by your spirit and the strength that you give us through your word Your grace and your mercy that we stand we also affirm as as we'll get to that point in Acts 17 with Paul that in you we live and move and have our being and

apart from you as Jesus said we can do nothing so father fill us tonight with the understanding that draws us closer to you and Makes us strong in these last days. We pray in Jesus name. Amen Okay, last time we were in the first two chapters and we saw the the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit The answered promise that not only Jesus mentioned, but the the Old Testament prophets had mentioned Isaiah mentioned it a lot the outpouring of the Spirit of God God would give his spirit To men and and put a new heart in men that There would be a new life that comes to men Paul quotes or Peter quotes from Joel and Acts chapter 2 as he as he gives the Affirmation that this is that that the the prophets had spoken of especially Joel

That the people are seeing and 3,000 souls were added to the church that day and so now this is The the first church is Jewish Up through chapter 9. The first the first segment of the church is Completely Jewish. There are a few proselytes that Were Jewish proselytes that become a part of the church but until Acts chapters 9 and 10 the church is Jewish and so as They've been born again now filled with the Spirit of God. They still are maintaining their Jewish custom Every day three times a day. They would go up to the temple to pray so far. They have not been ostracized

To the fullest extent that they will be because of their faith in in Yeshua as Messiah they will eventually be put out of the of the the temple and eventually Kept from buying and all in the marketplace But right now they're still going up to the temple three times a day to worship and to pray And so in chapter 3 now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour the hour of prayer three times A day, this is the ninth hour. This would be three o'clock in the afternoon And a man who had been lame from his mother's mother's womb was being carried along whom they used to set down every day At the gate of the temple, which is called beautiful

In order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple something. I want you to notice about that Well, and let's read down just a little bit further Well, it's a that's at the beautiful gate. We've already covered that the beautiful gate is the Eastern Gate the great magnificent Eastern Gate The main entrance to the temple mount area It's the Eastern Gate through which Jesus according to the prophets Messiah when he comes and places his foot on the top of the Mount of Olives and it splits in two And a water will come forth from the temple mount and flow down through this valley That's caused from the the separation of the Mount of Olives

part of it will flow to the Mediterranean part of it will flow down to the Dead Sea and make the Dead Sea alive and Jesus himself then will come down and enter in to The temple area the temple mount through this great Eastern Gate. Now if you go to Israel today, the Eastern Gate is blocked shut and there is a Cemetery a Muslim cemetery in front of the East Gate Again, this this wall was built in about this 600 So it's the newer city It's built directly on top of the old wall The or under the old the old city is underneath and there are a couple places in The old city where you can actually go clear down and see the bedrock Ground where Jesus would have walked Jesus and the disciples at that time and and it's a good 10 feet probably

Covered over because of all the years of you know Erosion and debris and all that stuff building up over the centuries But this wall the that was walled in the old city was Overseen by the Turks through the Ottoman Empire until World War one and So they knew the prophecies concerning the coming of Messiah that he would come through that East Gates so they blocked the gate shut and Put the cemetery in front of it knowing Jewish ritual That says that to touch a dead body is to desecrate yourself And to become unclean to be able to go into the temple area and to worship according to the laws of Moses And so they figure they have a double whammy to keep the Messiah out

By blocking the gate shut and putting a cemetery there so he wouldn't cross that it's like, you know some superstitious black cat I'm not crossing that but this is the Messiah. This is the Son of God So it's going to be no problem for him to blast the gate open and go through it This is the main gate It was a main gate of entry and exit at the time of Christ at the time that this is written And I want you to notice that this lame man who had been lame from birth and we'll see down a few verses that that's been some 40 years had every day been taken there and Set down at that gate now One of the things to remember is that Jesus would have passed by him day after day after day The whole time he was there in Jerusalem and didn't heal him So

You know there Does everyone get healed here? No should everyone get healed here? No That's things that are appointed God's purposes Now he's going to be healed in a different way at a different time But Jesus could have healed him at the time that he was here did not For reasons that were known to the Lord until we see it revealed to us here in Acts chapter 3 Those of us that are suffering different maladies Same thing God can God could God has a timetable and eventually as we're with the Lord We will experience the fullness of the healing Our bodies will eventually be fully redeemed before the Lord and we'll put off this mortality put on immortality And so will we ever be with the Lord?

But just just to note that that that Jesus passed this man by the whole time In during his ministry while he was in Jerusalem Now when Peter and John when he saw Peter and John verse 3 about to go into the temple He began asking to receive alms But Peter along with John fixed his gaze on him and said look at us now Peter's motivated moved by the Holy Spirit He he will begin to speak filled with the Holy Spirit in just a minute, but he fixes his gaze on him now Again this is something that the Spirit has brought to his attention as they're coming in and He says he says this is you know This is the time Peter said I do not possess silver or gold verse 6 But what I do have I give to you in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene walk and

Seizing him by the right hand. He raised him up and immediately his feet and ankles were strengthened And so probably as the guys sitting there or laying there had his hand out for alms It's probably his right hand Peter just that says come on and and get up in the name of Jesus And with a leap verse 8 he stood upright and began to walk and he entered the temple with with them walking and Leaping and praising God and there's that old chorus that we used to sing to that And every time I read this I think I say I went walking and leaping and praising God it's so neat to learn those courses from the scripture because you just read you memorizing the word and But it just in it. It's a happy thing to sing anyhow

But he went walking and leaping and he was praising God and This you can again go back to the Old Testament Isaiah chapter 35 verse 6 This is an identifier a messianic identifier. It would identify the kingdom of God This is the kingdom of God is among you and these things are happening So again another identifier another miracle to identify the fact that the kingdom of God had come Among men and all the people saw him walking and praising God verse 10 And they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit in the beautiful gate of the temple to beg alms and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him, so now

Notice this the miracle itself brings wonder and amazement. There's no transformation yet. There's no salvation yet There's no. Oh, we want to be saved as a result of the miracle. There's just wonder and amazement Miracles are grand. It's awesome to see God work in amazing ways We've heard some pretty cool testimonies this week of how God's provided financially in several areas

I sent one of those through the the prayer list on the internet where An individual had been in financial need and a gentleman comes up to her as she's leaving a bookstore in Wichita And says I really feel impressed to give you this hands are a sack with a book in it It's a Christian book of some kind. She takes it to the car They don't know each other and he goes off she gets in the car and opens it up and there's $1,200 in cash in there You know tremendous Evidences of the moving and the power of God But no transformation as a result of that wonder and amazement they're ready They're primed as a result of that for the Word of God for what comes next and while he was

Clinging to Peter verse 11 and John holding on to both of them all the people ran together To them at the so-called portico of Solomon or Solomon's porch It's an area if you see And you may have a picture of it in the back of your Bible if you have a Bible with with maps and pictures and There's a colonnade area off to the south of the temple area. There's stairs that go up to it It's just south of the temple if they built a temple today on the north end of the temple Mount There would be room from the the south edge of the temple to the mosque of Omar the Dome of the Rock for Solomon's colonnade Still to be in there. It won't be it won't be there. They will not rebuild that

For the the temple the tribulation temple the temple that the Antichrist is going to seed himself in There will be a wall that will be built according to Revelation and Ezekiel both that will separate the the the holy from the profane the the place the court of the priests from the Gentiles the court of the Gentile But originally with with Solomon's temple. There was a colonnade a place of meeting with big columns And and this is where they are. This is the area Where they have gone from the gate beautiful into this particular area it was an area where Jesus taught a lot. It was an area where he was confronted by The Jewish leaders at one time they looked for stones to stone him there any and he moved out from between them

So it was a very a very rich active area an area rich in activity But When Peter saw this verse 12, he replied to the people men of Israel Why are you amazed at this or why do you gaze at us as if by our own power or piety? We had made him walk And I and I really I love that about Peter because I mean he could have had I mean, you know He could have had him a TV ministry there. He could have been Sending out prayer cloths anointed by Peter who you know raised the lame man at the gate and for 1995 you two can have one of these and it'll be blessed, you know from Jerusalem and and pray upon the people But Peter humbly says why are you looking at us? This wasn't from us. This wasn't anything we had to do with

or you know I'd be walking down to the pool of Siloam and he or the pool of Bethsaida and healing everybody that's there the pool of Bethesda but But it was something that the Spirit of God did and Peter affirms that the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob verse 13 The God of our fathers has glorified his servant Jesus the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate when he had decided to release him and so Peter again brings the Conviction back onto the people that are hearing this The area the the Spirit of God brings that conviction of sin you disowned the holy And righteous one and asked for a murderer to be granted to you be but put to death the Prince of life the one whom God raised from the dead a fact to which we are

Witnesses and so Peter and John affirming that they have witnessed the resurrected Christ At the time according to the different appearances in the Gospels and according to some statements of Paul makes and in First Corinthians and all Jesus appeared several times over the 40 days after the resurrection before the ascension at Pentecost And was seen by upwards of 500 people most of whom were still alive at this particular time of the Of the writing the beginning stages of the book of Acts So it's a fact. He said that that we attest to we were witnesses of it Excuse me and verse 16 and on the basis of faith in his name it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and

Know and the faith which comes through him has given him this perfect health in The presence of you all now It is the name of Jesus. He says which has strengthened this man One of the things that We can kind of get into in Christianity today is superstitious Christianity

And We can do things and we use things That we can seemingly deify in our worship of the Lord and even phrases that we say or Moods that are set, you know ambience and stuff. That's set. We can be superstitious in trying to Duplicate or initiate a work of the Spirit of God As part of the things that the emerging church is going into again with with mantras and with idols and there there's Relics, they're little candles and things that you're supposed to get And and this is in a lot of a whole lot of the churches Around the world this emerging movement. Now. There's a lot of the

Lot of different authors and all are saying the emerging movement is come and gone. It's just been a puff and gone But there's still a lot of this superstition. That's around whether you're a part of the emerging movement or not but these things where you you have these little relics and you pray and you focus on those and and You focus on those and and supposedly you come into touch with God through this kind of prayer or You know and The name of Jesus has been one of those unfortunately That there are people using it like a credit card or like a you know a a Go past go card something that if I just say in the name of Jesus if I just use that phrase Because Peter used it and he says here, you know, it's it's the name of Jesus

Verse 16. It's the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man that you see now the name is The authority the authority that's been given by Jesus to us as believers Matthew 28 All authority in heaven and earth has been given unto me. Jesus said as he's ready to Depart from his disciples last chapter Matthew's Gospel. Therefore I'm sending you go into all the world authorities been given unto me all authority in heaven and earth has been given unto me therefore Go into all the world and make disciples Baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit Teaching them Discipling them making disciples teaching them the things that you know, the authority of God's been given to him He's giving us that authority

We do what we do by the authority of Jesus We pray for one another we pray for healings for one another when a healing happens. It's not from us It's because God has given us the authority to pray that way and and if he's choosing to heal at this particular time It's by his authority It's not because we prayed a certain way or we said certain words or we use the phrase in the name of Jesus Peter's affirming and he'll say it again as he's confronted by the religious leaders here in just a few verses as He said to the people it's not us. Don't look at us. It's the power of God. It's the name of Jesus

It's the authority of Jesus. Jesus has prompted us. We've been obedient to the Spirit and this man has been healed By the name of Jesus which strengthened this man whom you see and know and the faith which comes through him has given him his this perfect health in the presence of you all and Now brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance just as your rulers did also But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets that his Christ would suffer He has thus Fulfilled so Peter's now taking as their attention. He's taking them through a course in how to be saved This healing was through the power of God through the name of Jesus and now you all

Handed this Jesus over but it was by the foreordained plan of God that he be handed over the the You guys acted in ignorance, but God had said beforehand through the prophets that these things were going to happen. Therefore verse 19 repent and return so that your Sins may be wiped away in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus the Christ appointed to you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time." Now, I want to take you through this a little bit slower, because this is a mouthful that Peter spits out. And this is Peter. This is foot-in-mouth, uneducated fisherman Peter

who is really bringing things out as far as the times and the seasons and what's necessary to be saved. And what's going to happen as a result. Now remember, Peter is speaking in context to Jews. This is Peter speaking to the Jews. So he says, "...repent and return..." Okay, repent we know. Turn around. Turn around from what you did as far as handing Jesus over.

As far as condemning Him. As far as calling for His death. "...and return..." To what? To who? Return to God. When they rejected Him, when they handed Him over, when they, verse 14, "...you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, you turned away from God." You turned away from God's offering of life through the Messiah.

You turned away from that. So repent and return. Come back. Come back to God. Come back through the One that He sent to die for you. "...so that..." verse 19, "...your sins may be wiped away for a couple of reasons, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." Now, the Jews understood times of refreshing as the former rains and the latter rains

that came upon the land. And God uses that spiritually, prophetically in the Old Testament. The former rains and the latter rains. The former rains came in the spring. The latter rains came in the fall. Early winter. Right before the heaviness of winter. And they refreshed the land. They refreshed the dry times of the land. So Peter's calling about a time of refreshing,

it will refer to the times of the latter rains. The former rains were up. The Old Testament, everything given by God through the patriarchs and through the prophets up to the time of Christ. Latter rains are that that's coming since Christ, His ascension, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit begins the time of the latter rains. This times of refreshing. The time of refreshing before the Great Tribulation

and finally the coming of Jesus and the establishing of the Millennial Kingdom. So, receive the refreshing. Though in order that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. To believers then as well as to now, to the Jews then who would believe after Peter's message as well as now, the times of refreshing are when we put our faith in Christ and He gives us the refreshing, the water of the Holy Spirit.

The water that comes bubbling up out of us as John said in John 4 concerning the woman at the well. When John gives his little parenthetical expository message concerning this water that would bubble up out of you, the water of life, John parenthetically says Jesus was referring to the Holy Spirit which was not yet poured out. So this is a refreshing that would come to the Jews as they would believe that Jesus indeed was their Messiah. "...whom heaven must receive..." Well, ok, let's see.

Back up. "...times of refreshing..." Then verse 20. "...and that He may send Jesus the Christ appointed for you whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time." What were the Jews waiting for at that time? The Jews were praying for the restoration of the kingdom.

They were praying for the overthrow of Roman tyranny and the restoration of the kingdom to Israel as it was during the time of David. That was the promise. That's what they were waiting for. God made a promise to David that a descendant of His, He was going to put upon His throne and He would reign forever. Of His reign there would be no end. Now we know that that's speaking of Messiah.

And they believed that as well. This King was going to come and He was going to reign forever and ever. And that's what they're waiting for. That's what they were anticipating at this time God doing. Remember, go back to chapter 1. Jesus is ready to ascend. And He takes them to the Mount of Olives down in verse 6 of chapter 1. So when they'd come together, they were asking Him, saying,

Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel? That's what they were waiting for. That's what they were wanting. It's not for you to know. He said the times as far as the Kronos and the Kairos, the times and the seasons or the times and the epochs, it's not for you to know. But wait in Jerusalem for the power that's to be given to you. You'll receive power from on high.

So Peter's answering that question for them now. There is a need, and he's showing that need for Israel to receive their Messiah. To recognize and receive their Messiah. Hold your finger here. Go with me to Romans chapter 11. Romans. We'll get to Romans before long. We've been through Romans in depth. We'll be going through it in an overview, so we'll be flying through it

compared to how we went through it before. Romans 9, 10, and 11 are Paul's discourse on the salvation of Israel. How Israel will be saved. Literal Israel. Literal Jews. Verse 25, Romans chapter 11, For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, that you will not be wise in your own estimation. Now in Romans, Paul's writing to the church at Rome

which is primarily Gentile. And he's talking to them in chapters 9, 10, and 11 about the fact that the Gentiles have been grafted in to Israel. Been grafted into the olive tree. God has not thrown away Israel. He made a covenant promise to Israel. He's going to fulfill the promises of His covenant. If He cast Israel aside, then He's not a God of His Word. Because He promised literal Israel,

literal promises, a literal king, a Jewish king, that they would have the literal land that He promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which they have never fully had. Now they want Him to give up what they call the West Bank. The West Bank has been only called the West Bank less than two decades. It's always been Israel. The West Bank right now has Jericho and Bethlehem.

Bethel. Those are Israel. You read the Old Testament. That's part of Israel. It's not part of the West Bank. It's not Arab territory. It's part of Israel. They have never had the covenant promised land that God promised to Abraham. That's still future. You cut that vine out. You cut the olive tree away and God is a faithless God. He's not a God of His promise.

But God promises and He's going to fulfill. And so that's what Paul's saying here. Verse 25, I don't want you to be ignorant or uninformed of this mystery, so that you will not be wise in your own estimation that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in, and so all Israel will be saved. Just as it is written, the Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.

This is My covenant with them when I take away their sins. So all Israel will eventually be saved. They'll come to Christ in the Tribulation period. Once the Antichrist seats himself on the throne in the temple, the blinders will fall off. As Jesus said in Matthew 24, they'll realize they've been duped. They'll remember Daniel's prophecy. They'll realize that Jesus indeed is the Messiah

and they will flee from Israel to the place prepared in the wilderness, probably Petra, to be protected by God for three and a half years until the end of the Tribulation period. And then all Israel will be saved. This is what Peter's referring to. You talk about going from ignorant fishermen to tremendous apologists with great eschatological view. I mean, here's a guy who's totally uneducated now.

He's speaking about prophetic things for thousands of years in the future with expertise, tying it all together. Repent and return so your sins will be wiped away. Refreshingly, He's going to come to you. And that He may send Jesus to Christ appointed to you back in Acts 3. He may send Jesus the Christ appointed to you whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things

about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient times. There's a restoration that's going to come. And that's going to come at the end of the Tribulation period as the judgment of God finishes being poured out. Battle of Armageddon is stopped by the return of Christ. And then Jesus brings all the nations that people are still alive that didn't take the mark of the beast,

brings them to the valley of Jehoshaphat on the southern end of Jerusalem that runs all the way back up to the valley of Megiddo. And judges the nations, separates the sheep from the goats. The sheep get to come into the millennial kingdom for a thousand years. The goats are cast immediately alive into the lake of fire. And this is fulfilled, that restoration of all things.

So Peter's tying it together for them in about three seconds of speech. He's opening to them the plan of God, what God had planned for them through Christ. Then he quotes Moses, verse 22, from Deuteronomy 18. He says, And it will be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among all the people. And likewise, verse 24, all the prophets who have spoken

from Samuel and his successors on also announced these days. It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. For you, the Jews, first. God raised up His servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.

So that's Peter's proclamation as a result of healing this lame man. All of these Jews who are there still worshiping, they're there for prayer, brings them all together. He proclaims this message of the need for Jesus to come and die, the foreordained plan of God, to give you the restoration and the refreshing that you've been waiting for, that you might come to Him while Jesus is being held in heaven until the restoration of all things, till the things, the promises of God are complete and fulfilled. And then you will be blessed and be the blessing for all the earth.

So as they were speaking on into chapter 4 to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them. The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees. The Sadducees don't believe in the supernatural. So they are not the more spiritual, they're the more secular of the ruling Jews. They came up to them being greatly disturbed

because Peter and John were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. The Sadducees didn't believe in the resurrection. They were the ones, remember, that sent the guy to Jesus to say, well, a guy married a girl and then he died. And then according to Levirate law, his brother was to raise up seed, and so he married her and he died.

Then his brother married her and he died. And she had seven brothers all together. In the resurrection, whose wife will she be? Seeing they all were married to her. And they were saying that tongue in cheek because the Sadducees don't believe in the resurrection. So they're upset that these guys are teaching these things based on the resurrection. Greatly disturbed.

The people are proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And so they laid their hands on them and they put them in jail until the next day for it's already evening. But many of those who had heard the message believed. Now they saw the miracle and they were amazed. But they heard the message. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.

They heard the message and believed. And the number of men... And again, they mention this in the feeding of the 5,000. They say there were 5,000 men that were seated besides women and children. So probably 15,000 were fed at the feeding of the 5,000. Here there's 5,000. The number of men came to be about 5,000. If you go by the same figuring, 10,000 to 15,000 people were saved.

They believed. And the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there and Caiaphas and John and Alexander. Now you can check your notes, your footnotes, your commentaries, and we really don't know who John and Alexander were. Annas and Caiaphas were the high priests. Caiaphas was the high priest

according to Jewish law. Annas was the appointed high priest according to Rome. Some of your footnotes may say John possibly the son of Annas. That's possibly true, but we don't have any other resources here to go on. So that would be speculation. Luke saw fit to mention them for some reason that was probably more pertinent to Paul and his defense at that time

than for us to understand at this time. But they were all of high priestly descent. And when they placed them in the center, Peter and John, they began to inquire by what power or in what name, according to whose authority have you done this? When we serve arrest warrants, when the police department serves arrest warrants, you get an arrest warrant, you go to the door, and it's usually knock and kick because you know what you're going into.

You have the authority to do that. The authority comes from the arrest warrant that's been signed off by the county attorney or a judge that has affirmed that you have enough evidence to believe that this individual is in that house and that if you don't go in and get him quickly, he could either escape or he may have evidence that pertains to the case that you're working on and he could destroy it if you don't move in quickly and get him. So you can knock, you announce police open up, and then you can bust in that door based on that authority. You have authority to do that.

Now you can't just walk down the street as an officer of the law even and go kick in somebody's door because you don't have the authority to do that. You have the authority to be a police officer, but you don't have the authority to just go kick in any door. That's given to you by a higher authority. And so that's what these guys want to know. They begin to inquire by what power

in what name, what authority have you been doing this? And then Peter 8, filled with the Holy Spirit said to them, rulers and elders of the people. Now you remember when in John's gospel as well, Jesus tells his disciples that when he sends them out and it's for a time later, it's when he pairs them off and he sends them out to go, he tells them to go and you come into a city and they don't receive you to shake the dust off your feet. When you leave, it'll be worse for that city than Sodom and Gomorrah, worse for that city than one of the other cities of God that God destroyed.

And then he gives prophetically, Jesus says that when you're taken in before the courts and kings and all, don't worry about what you're going to say for it will be given to you at that time. Well, that didn't happen then when he sent them out by twos. They just got to go out and preach the gospel and see miracles. They got to lay hands on the sick and all that stuff.

But this is what he was referring to when they were brought in before these elders. Peter's filled with the Holy Spirit. Peter didn't have to, you know, spend time memorizing, okay, now, if I'm ever hauled into court, this is what I need to say. He was filled with the Holy Spirit. And he said to them, rulers and elders of the people, verse nine, if we are on trial today

for a benefit, one of the translations says, for a kindness done to a sick man as to how this man has been made well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name in the authority of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by this, name is italicized, I think in most translations, by this, by this authority, this man stands here before you in good health. He, Jesus, is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief cornerstone. Now, that's in 1 Corinthians chapter three, Paul talks about, we are, we are building as we are not only the house, first Peter, we're seeing that in our study of first Peter, we're the living stones being put together

as a temple for God in which God lives and through which he works, but we are also builders, 1 Corinthians chapter three, and we're building on a foundation that's been laid which is Jesus Christ and we are building either gold, silver and precious stones or wood, hay and stubble by the things that we do and the words that we say. Our everyday activities, our everyday words, we are somehow, as believers in Jesus Christ, building on the foundation of Christ, building on that stone that's been laid and some of it's just junk, some of it's just blow, we just kind of go through the day and we say things we shouldn't and we think things that we shouldn't and we do things that we shouldn't, that's wood, hay and stubble or we may do things,

but for the wrong reason, we do things so that people will notice us and say, oh, isn't he just wonderful? Isn't it just great that he's done that for me? That's wood, hay and stubble. But regardless, we're building, we're building on a stone. Now that's what the leaders of the Jews were to do as well. They were builders. The priests, the rabbis, The those in authority of the Sadducees and Pharisees, they were the builders.

They should be building on that stone as well. The coming of Messiah. And so he says, he's the stone, verse 11, which was rejected by you, religious elders, the builders, but which became the chief cornerstone. And there is salvation and no one else. And you ought to you ought to bracket verse 12 and mark it and underline it and start. But there is salvation in no one else and you could stop there and it would it would suffice.

Salvation doesn't come from anyone else. It doesn't come from Krishna or Buddha or Confucius. It doesn't come from any other source. There is salvation in no one else. Oprah says, well, we're all on the same path and however you get there is fine. I'm in a different place and I'll get there and you'll get there and we'll all get there. And it's just a wonderful path.

And whatever is, you know, however you might, you can believe Jesus is a path, but I can believe something else is a path. No, the Bible says there is salvation in no one else. Then he expounds on that for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we then you can circle the word must be saved. Which we have to it's not it's not well, you can take the name of Jesus if you want to or you can come another way if you want to know there's there's no salvation in anyone else.

There's no other name. That's been given under among men by which we must be saved. Jesus only. He said it. John chapter 14 here. Luke is affirming that writing this that this is what Peter said. There's no other name. That's it. He's it. Now that would take them aback because they these religious leaders, of course, didn't believe that at the time, but they can't deny the power.

And that's what they say. Verse 13. Now, as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. Why were they so confident and why were they so strong in their faith? Being uneducated according to the world's standards, they didn't have they didn't have their MDiv or their, you know, Doctorate of Divinity or Doctorate of Theology.

They didn't have their letters or their or their credentials that these guys did. But they had a confidence, a stronger confidence, they spoke with the bold authority like Jesus had that these other guys didn't. And then they realized that they had been with Jesus. They knew these guys had been with Jesus. That should be so with each of us as believers. We should be living our lives to the extent and and being in the word and built up daily and daily, letting the spirit of God refresh us, as he talked about back in chapter three, and refine us and bring us into the image of his son so that when we're around people, when we're in a room, we light it up.

Not because of the way we look or anything else, but because the countenance of Christ is upon us. We're not we're not gloomy and droopy and complaining and oh, woe is me and all of that. We come into a room, we may have our own hurts and our own pains and all, but we know the power of God and we're trusting in the power of God and we know we've been placed in that room to encourage those that are around us. It's a mission field, be it a doctor's office, waiting room, be it a school room, be it whatever, wherever we are.

It's a mission field and we should light it up because we have hope and we have a confidence in a living, risen, coming again Savior. We know the end. We know the future. We know our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life because we've received the Lamb of God into our own hearts. We of all men are more hopeful than anybody else in the world and we don't have to work that up.

It's a part of the faith that comes as we've established ourselves in Jesus Christ and it should be evident to others that we also have been with Jesus. Plus, having seen the man, verse 14, who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. But when they'd ordered them to leave, they moved them out of the room, the council began to confer with one another saying, what shall we do with these guys? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place to them as a parent to all who live in Jerusalem.

We can't deny that. But so that it will not spread any further among the people, let's warn these guys to speak no longer to any man in this name. And so they brought the guys back in, Peter and John back in. They commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge.

For we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard. And again, that needs to be us, especially in these last days. It's going to get tougher. If we're not taken out of here before long, we go through the elections and all coming into a new year. It's going to get tougher and tougher to live boldly and openly as Christians in this society without being accused of hate speaking, without being accused of badgering, without being accused of

being right wing religious sects. Because we believe this, that there's no other way you can be saved other than through Jesus Christ. And people need to come to that. See, that's not being politically correct. You're outing our fellow citizens who are Muslims and all of that stuff if you're saying yours is the only way. That's bigotry, according to the politically correct crowd.

And to do that could get us jailed or lose our 501c3s, our tax exempt statuses. I mean, you know, it's coming. If Jesus doesn't take us out before then, we don't know what's going to happen. We need to plan for that and be prepared for that and be ready to say this. Whether it's right in the sight of God to give heed to you on this earth to stop saying these things.

You be the judge for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard. I will not cease to preach the gospel cover to cover. I'm not going to stop. I'll preach Romans 1 that homosexuality is an abomination to God until I'm put in jail. And then I'll preach it in jail. I will preach, you know, that Jesus Christ is the only way there's life in no there's there's life in no one else.

There's no other name under heaven by which you must be saved other than Jesus Christ. Until I can no longer stand and speak. And you have we have to have that conviction in these last days because it's coming down to that. So they said do with us what you want much like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego said to Nebuchadnezzar. And they're standing in front of that open door in that furnace.

You know, hey, we're not going to fall down. We're not going to fall down and worship you. And so if we perish, we perish. Cast us alive in there, that's fine. But we're going to worship God and worship him alone. And we need to make that kind of a stand and commitment in our hearts because the time to do it outwardly is coming. So they threatened him again.

Verse 21, they threatened him further. Then they let them go, finding no basis on which to punish them on account of the people because they were all glorifying God for what happened. Again, the religious leaders were poll driven. The public opinion poll was, this was a miracle. And these guys were a part of it. And so we need to go along with the poll. Much like our society does.

Poll driven. Well, this has to be right because the polls say five out of six. So there's a ten point lead. My goodness, it's a poll driven thing. Well, most of the people don't like this. Well, that's too bad. We don't move according to polls. We move according to the truth of what God's word says. So they'd been threatened. They were released, finding no basis to punish them on account of the people

because they were all glorifying God for what had happened. Verse 22, for the man was more than 40 years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed. So it was well established that he'd been lame, had been a paralytic for at least 40 years because that's how old he was. And when they'd been released, they went to their own companions and they reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them.

And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God and with one accord said, O Lord, it is you who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. Now, that's a biblical thing to do. And it's something you'd read the prophets doing. But that's something we need to do in the light of the elections. And instead of fretting over, oh, what if so-and-so gets elected, we're doomed.

No, O Lord, it's you who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that's in them. You're in control. We affirm that. When you pray, when you're in a difficult situation, you can start with that. Pray that way. God, it's you, you know. Finances are bad, things are bad, bad health-wise, whatever. I can focus on that and fret about that or I can realize that God is the one who's over it all.

He made heaven and earth. He's a creator God. He's a sustainer God. I get life from Him. When my last breath ceases, I'll go to be with Him. So that's no big deal. If I die, if I perish, I perish for me to live as Christ, to die as Gain. And so they're reaffirming. Rather than going and saying, oh, it was me, they've threatened us within an inch of our lives.

What are we going to do? We can't keep saying this. We got to, you know, stay huddled in the room. No, hey, God, you're in control. Absolutely. Creator of heaven and earth, the sea and all that's in them, who by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David, your servant said, why did the Gentiles rage and the peoples devise futile things? The kings of the earth took their stands

and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ, much as they are today in our society. For truly in this city, there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your purpose predestined to occur. Same thing here. Ditto, ditto, ditto.

God has already made the way. He knows what's next. He's affirmed it. He's ordained it. It's His plan. It's His purposing to accomplish His tasks that He wants to accomplish. Verse 28, to do whatever your hand and your purpose predestined to occur. And now, Lord, take note of their threats and grant that your bondservants may speak your word with all confidence,

while you extend your hand to heal and signs and wonders take place through the name of your holy servant Jesus. I pray that we pray that for us today. Grant us boldness, Lord, in the signs of the times, the things that are going on now, not to cower in fear, not to wonder if they're going to take this freedom away or that freedom away, but God, that you would give us such a boldness, such a confidence that we would speak your word with this power and this confidence and that through us you extend your hand to heal and signs and wonders take place through the name of your holy servant Jesus. I think that is one thing that's going to be a benefit.

If things turn really, really sour governmentally, you're going to see the power of God manifested more fully through those who trust him that way than we have in this nation for a long, long time, if ever. So that's the upside of the downside. Don't fret about November 4th. Don't fret about the elections. Do your duty, go vote. Commit that to the hands of the Lord

and pray this, God, fill us with power that we might have confidence to proclaim your name, that we might have confidence to speak and then flow through us with the power of Christ, signs and wonders that we might have healings occur, that you might just use us mightily in the name of your holy servant Jesus. Verse 31, And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. They asked, God fulfilled it. God answered that.

That's what he wanted then. That's what he wants from his church today. He doesn't want a politically correct church that's out there getting along with everybody. He wants us to be ministering to the needs around us, but he wants to do it proclaiming with boldness who Jesus is, what Jesus wants, and that Jesus is coming again. And tie right into verse 32, forget the little header if you have a study Bible

and it says something, it's not changing thought, they're moving right along. And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul. Okay, now back up. Who's that? Well, that's a congregation of those that believe. Well, who's that? Well, that's the 3,000 plus in chapter two and the 5,000 plus 10,000, maybe 15,000 altogether of chapter three

or chapter four coming into chapter four. So that's all of those. That's what it's talking about, the congregation of those who believe. All of these thousands of people were of one heart and soul and not one of them claimed anything belonging to him was his own. But all things were common property to them. First thing that happened is they believed in their particular condition

was they were looking out for one another. And I pray, I really, really pray. Part of my prayer this week during our week of fasting and prayer from now until the election is that this happens with this fellowship and with the body of Christ. That as things really come down, we quit shooting at each other and condemning each other's theology and really get out there and have one concern.

That's to care for one another, to hold each other up, to make sure we're OK, make sure we're carrying each other through this and then together collectively moving out into the city, in the area around and seeking to help meet needs to take care of the people as things really come down. They were in one accord, one heart, one soul. All things were common property and verse 33, with great power, the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales and lay them at the apostles' feet and they would be distributed to each as any had need.

And now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles, which when translated means the son of encouragement, and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. And that was a pretty big deal because evidently he was very wealthy. He was from the island of Cyprus and evidently a very wealthy Levite. So he was a priest.

He was a priest who believed, one of the priests who believed and who was a follower of Christ. Many did after the resurrection of Jesus. And now many did coming in and more coming in as a result now of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and God using them because of their position and their power, their authority that they had, showing their humility and their willingness to take what they own and sell it and bring it in to help minister to the needs of others, opened up greater doors, greater opportunities for more ministry. I think we'll see that happen more depending on how long the Lord tarries.

So there's, you know, I'm still anxious for the Lord to come. I want Jesus to come at any time. Yesterday was not soon enough. But still, I'm anticipating God moving in these ways in the days ahead, the days that He tarries, you know, rather than looking at and anticipating, OK, so, you know, so the worst case scenario, the guy gets in and we start seeing the Constitution challenges as far as First Amendment, Second Amendment and all that stuff.

It's just a greater arena for the authority of God to be displayed in the hearts and the lives of the people of God. And we need to anticipate that. It's not about us. It's not about hanging on to our stuff. It's about Jesus Christ and Him crucified, proclaiming that and however the Lord needs to use us in these last days to do that, we need to be willing, we need to be ready

to surrender everything that we have to see that accomplished. So, Father, may we be again coming to that point where we're holding things with an open hand, not gripping onto things in these last days. You'll take care of us. You'll provide for our need. You told us that. But have this willingness and this desire for You to boldly use us that we might speak with confidence,

proclaim with confidence the Word of God, the resurrection of Jesus and His soon coming again. And use us mightily that the signs and wonders, the power of Your miracles might flow through us as we pray for people, Lord, that we might see people healed, that we might see marriages restored, relationships restored, that we might see Your handiwork in a greater way than we've ever seen it to this point as we anxiously await Your coming for You to catch us out. And we give You thanks, God, for all that You're doing. We give You thanks for Your preparation, that You've showed us these things in Your Word that all this might not catch us flat-footed or in the dark, but that we might be willing vessels, Your servants, excited and anxious and joyful

because we belong to You. And we give You praise in Jesus' name, Amen.