The Caldwell Commentaries Podcast

A very, very interesting lesson!  This is the first recorded serious intrusion of "Sin from Within" the Church!  Learn why this lesson is really "the tale of two men, Barnabas and Ananias"?

What did the married couple of this account do to cause both their lives to be taken by God Himself?  Were they saved (true believers) or unsaved?  How do Ananias and Sapphira compare with Adam and Eve?

Peter's word to Ananias of Acts 5:4a repudiate those who claim the Early Church was practicing communism (no private property; an enforcement of communal property)!  Find out how!

In this important lesson on Acts 4:23-33, we learn, by example, how a Spirit-filled Church responds to persecution!  In the previous lesson, we had an example of how Spirit-filled individual Christians respond to opponents of the Gospel.  Now, we are given the example on how the entire body of believers corporately should respond to the persecution of those in the Body of Christ, which is a threat on all of them.

What is our response to the pressures being increasingly brought on Christians in our world (and nation) today?  Do we magnify the power of the Lord in our responses or do we magnify the enemy?  Are we filled with anxiety and fear and anger and resentment?  If so, we are magnifying evil men way out of proportion to the power and authority and sovereignty of our Almighty God!

While Peter (accompanied by John and the healed lame man) was still in the midst of his powerful second sermon (Acts 3:12-26), he was interrupted by the sudden appearance of "the priests . . . the captain of the Temple [guard] . . . and the Sadducees" (4:1).  They came to arrest both Peter and John (likely also the former lame man).  These enemies of Christ were not only furious that His followers were preaching His resurrection, but doing so in broad daylight in the Temple!  Interestingly, in Acts, it is primarily the Sadducees who take the lead in persecuting the Church.  This is because their erroneous theology taught there is no resurrection of the dead!

In this lesson (Acts 4:1-22), we not only discuss the interruption of Peter's sermon (the arrest), but the interrogation he and John faced the next morning before the Sanhedrin Council, the inspiration of Peter's remarkable speech in answer to that interrogation, the immense impression his speech made on the Council, and then their intention to silence them with threats to never speak or teach in the name of Jesus again!

The response of the two Apostles to the threat of those in authority over them to never preach of Jesus was fantastic!!  They would obey the Higher Authority, God!  Anti-Christian governments and powerful institutions are increasingly trying to stop the spread of the Gospel message of Christ Jesus - we need to follow the example of Peter and John!

The healed lame man (see Lesson 9) was not only immediately very public about his over-flowing joy, but also about his praise to God and his thankfulness to the men the Lord used to perform his miracle.  Those men were Peter and John.  The Apostolic sign-miracle was divinely orchestrated to draw a large, very willing-to-listen crowd to whom Peter than had an opportunity to preach "The Second Church Sermon.  The theme of the first sermon was that God made Jesus Who Israel had crucified both Lord and Christ (2:36).  The theme of this second sermon was the God wanted to bless the people through His Son Jesus by turning them from your iniquities (3:26).

In just seven verses, Peter again yielded his new sword (the Word of God), under the leading of the Spirit, to exalt the name of Jesus.  He referred to Jesus as "the Holy One," "the Just," "the Prince of life," "Christ," and a Prophet of the Lord like unto Moses.  The sermon was Christ-centered, Scriptural, highly theological, bold yet compassionately confrontational, and applicational.  Peter's sermon was only seven verses long because it was interrupted by the sudden appearance of the priests with the captain of the Temple guard and the Sadducees.  They came collectively to arrest both Peter and John (and maybe even the former lame man with them).

This lesson is on Acts 3:1-11, Peter's healing (with John) of a lame man (who had never walked) at the Beautiful Gate, begging for alms.  To his plea, Peter spoke the famous words, "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee.  In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk" - and the man who had never stood on his own legs before, much less know how to walk, immediately leaped up, walked, went into the Temple walking, leaping, and praising God!  Isn't it wonderful the former lame man knew to whom the praise belonged?  He did not kiss the hand of Peter; nor did he even praise Peter.  His praise went to the Lord, Who the man knew and understood had done the healing through His servants! 

"The power was Christ's, but the hand was Peter's" (Thomas Walker).  This was the Lord continuing His work on earth through His Church by His Spirit.  This was an Apostolic miracle.  This miracle confirmed the great sermon he had just preached (his first, and the first of the Church Age).  Remember - the miracle confirmed the message, and it was the message that produced the fruit!