Praying For One another

                       Sunday School Lesson                                       

Lesson: Acts 4:23-31

                                                                                              
Golden Text: “And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31).
INTRODUCTION.  Throughout the Bible, we are commanded to pray.  While many of us spend a lot of time praying about our own needs, we are also urged to pray for one another, especially in times of crisis.  During His ministry, Jesus prepared His followers to face hostility and opposition.  In this week’s lesson we find that persecution had begun.  Up to this point, there had been no floggings or long imprisonments.  However, two apostles had been arrested and ordered to stop speaking in Jesus’ name.  So where do we turn in times of trial and hardship?  Our lesson teaches us to turn to the Lord and to our fellow saints.
II. BACKGROUND FOR THE LESSON.  On the Day of Pentecost and for many days after, “the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved” (see Acts 2:47).  But as the church grew, there was also increased opposition to the gospel.  During this time, God used Peter and John to heal a lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the temple (see Acts 3:1-11).  After this miracle, a crowd of people gathered to see what it was all about.  This gave Peter another opportunity to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, reminding his hearers that the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ had been prophesied (see Acts 3:13-18).  But he also told them that they still needed to repent of their sins (see Acts 3:19) in order to be forgiven (see I John 1:9).  The religious leaders were upset by all of this, and they brought Peter and John before the Sanhedrin Council to question them about what they were teaching (see Acts 4:1-7).  Filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter boldly told them that salvation was only through the Lord Jesus Christ (see Acts 4:12).  Since the religious leaders could not deny that a real miracle had taken place (see Acts 4:16), they threatened Peter and John and let them go (see Acts 4:13-22).  This is where our lesson begins.
III. PERSECUTION EXPERIENCED (Acts 4:23).  Our first verse says “And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.”  After the religious leaders released Peter and John, “they went to their own company.”  In other words they went and found their friends or fellow believers.  They had a spiritual home and family to go to.  This shows that the concept of the Christian community was present in the early church. After Peter and John rejoined their fellow believers, they “reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.”  These two apostles told their fellow believers everything that the religious leaders, identified here as “the chief priests and elders” had said to them.
IV. PRAYER OFFERED (Acts 4:24-30)
A. Freedom to pray (Acts 4:24).  This verse says “And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is.”  The phrase “And when they heard that” refers to the report that Peter and John shared with their fellow believers regarding what happened before the religious leaders.  When the believers heard the report “they lifted up their voice to God with one accord.”   In other words, they began to pray.  The fact that they did so “with one accord” means that they prayed with a united voice. Here, they prayed together for the same things.  First, they said “Lord, thou art God.”  This statement demonstrated that these believers had a proper understanding of the Lord.  They acknowledged Jehovah as the true God.  Next in their prayer they described God as He “which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is.”  This statement confirms the absolute authority of God, declaring Him to be the Creator of all things.  Likewise, our prayers, both public and private should include a declaration of our belief in God as the Creator who deserves our unrivaled devotion.
B. The futility of those who opposed Christ (Acts 4:25-26). 
1. (vs. 25).  Still praising God in their prayer, the believers continued to pray saying “Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?”  The noun “Who” refers to God.  It was the Lord speaking “by the mouth of thy (His) servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?”  In other words, the believers were saying to God, “you spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor King David, your servant, saying ‘Why do the heathen rage against the Lord, and the foolish nations plan their little plots against Almighty God?” (The Living Bible).  The fact that God spoke through His servant David confirms that David was also a prophet (see Acts 2:29-31).  Like all prophets, the Lord spoke through them by His Spirit normally by inspiration.  The New Testament confirms this when it says “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (see II Timothy 3:16).  In addition, II Peter 1:21 says “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”  The question David is said to have asked in this prophecy that was quoted by these believers (see Psalms 2:1) was “Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?”  In the context of David’s prophecy “the heathen” describes the Gentile nations who attempted to rise up against the God of Israel, but also pointed toward the future opposition to God’s anointed One, the Messiah.  In the context of our lesson passage, “the heathen” was most likely a reference to the Romans who actually carried out the crucifixion of Christ.  Their “rage” was against God and Jesus Christ.  David also asked why do “the people imagine vain things?”  The phrase “the people” was a common way of referring to Israel.  Here, in the believer’s prayer, Israel is seen as joining forces with the Gentiles, the Romans in particular, to oppose the Messiah.  However, in colluding with the Gentiles or heathens, they “imagine vain things” meaning they devise futile plans in their efforts to halt God’s plans.  The people’s plans to stop God’s plans were futile because there was no chance of succeeding.  Note:  It’s clear that this prayer poured from the hearts of those who had been nurtured in the Scriptures.  Like these believers, we should pray biblically, in accordance with the Word God has given.  It pleases God when we pray using His own words from the Scriptures.  Prayer and the Scriptures go hand in hand.
2. (vs. 26).  In this verse they continued to pray repeating the second verse of David’s prophecy from Psalms 2:2.  The believers said “The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.”  Again, this is part of David’s prophecy.  “The kings of the earth” is a future reference to Herod and Pontius Pilate who are mentioned in the next verse.  “The rulers” refer to the Jewish Sanhedrin Council, which was the chief legislative and judicial body during the first century in Israel.  It was made up of chief priests, scribes, and elders (see Matthew 26:59; Mark 14:53, 55; 15:1; John 11:47).  Some were Pharisees and some were Sadducees (see Acts 23:6-10).  It should be noted that the majority of the members of the Sanhedrin consented to Jesus’ death, but not all of them (see Matthew 27:57; Mark 15:43; John 7:50-51; 19:38-42).  These praying believers were using David’s prophecy rightly applying it to Christ.  They stated that both the “kings of the earth” and the “rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.” 
C.  The fulfillment of prophecy (Acts 4:27-28).
1. (vs. 27).  The prayer continued with “For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together.”  With the phrase “For of a truth” the believers were saying “indeed” or “that’s what’s happening today.”  For it was no secret that Jesus was God’s “holy child” or holy Son who God “hast anointed.”  The word “anointed” means God’s very own, set apart and commissioned for service.  Christians today are God’s anointed (see II Corinthians 1:21).  Here, however, the term “anointed” refers to the Messiah, Jesus Christ and it means “Christ.”  He was the One against whom “Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together.”  “Herod” was a family name of kings set in place over Judea by the Roman government.  This “Herod” was Herod Antipas, tetrarch or governor of Perea and Galilee (see Matthew 14:1; Mark 6:14; Luke 3:1).  “Pontius Pilate” was the Roman governor over Judea.  He was the typical politician who would do anything to maintain power.  Although he declared Jesus to be innocent three times (see John 18:38; 19:4, 6), he still had Him crucified in order to please the Jews (see John 19: 15-16).  The “Gentiles” refers to non-Jews, most likely other Romans who were involved in Jesus’ death.  The “people of Israel” was a reference to the Jews in general who were represented by their leaders.  This made the whole nation guilty of Christ’s death (see Matthew 27:24-25; Acts 2:36; 3:12-15).  These all conspired together against Jesus to kill Him. 
2. (vs. 28).  This verse is a continuation of the previous verse where the believers identified the persons who conspired together to kill Jesus.  In this verse they said to the Lord that these persons had come together “For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.”  In their prayer, these believers recognized God’s sovereign control over the opposition that Jesus faced.  Herod and the others mentioned in the previous verse thought they were in control of Jesus’ destiny.  But what they didn’t realize is that they did “whatsoever thy (God’s) hand and thy (God’s) counsel determined before to be done.”  In other words, the Jewish and Roman officials were really carrying out God’s plan for His Son to be crucified and offered as an atonement (see Isaiah chapter 53).  God, in His sovereign wisdom had determined beforehand that His Son would die.  However, those who took part in it would do so by their own choice.  In his Pentecostal sermon, Peter made the same point when he said “Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain” (see Acts 2:22-23).  Note:  One of the puzzling things about Scripture is that God ordains certain events to happen and also controls how those events will happen.  However, this does not mean that people who make evil choices are not held responsible for those choices.  Neither does it mean that God forces us to make those choices.  In His omniscience, God knows beforehand how people will react or perform in any given situation.  For example, the psalmist prophesied that Jesus would be betrayed by a “familiar friend” (see Psalms 41:9), but the name of the betrayer is not given.  Anyone of Jesus’ friends could have betrayed Him, but Judas was the one because his character fit someone who would betray the Master.  Judas was a thief, and therefore greedy and would do almost anything for money (see John 12:4-6).  It was his choice to betray Jesus, but in His foreknowledge, God knew it would be done and who would do it.   
D.  The fear of opposition replaced with boldness (Acts 4:29-30).
1. (vs. 29).  In this verse, the believers continued their prayer saying “And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word.”  The phrase “Lord, behold their (those opposing the beleivers) threatening” is not a request for God to see that His people were being threatened.  Of course, we don’t have to advise the Lord of anything.  He already knows everything (see Isaiah 46:9-10; 48:3).  The Lord was well aware that these believers were being threatened.   They were not asking for relief from opposition because they knew it was part of God’s plan for their lives (see John 15:18-21).  Instead, they prayed that the Lord would “grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word.”  In other words, they prayed for “boldness” to speak the Word of God which was the very thing that had brought opposition in the first place (see Acts 4:1-3, 21).  No doubt Jesus’ followers were focused on the Great Commission He had given them: “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).  Therefore, they didn’t pray for a life of ease, instead they prayed for help so that they might carry out their task with boldness.  Note:  It’s not surprising that today it is politically incorrect to witness for Christ or to share the truth of God’s Word in most circumstances since there are so many religions.  But like the believers in the early church, we need to pray for courage, confidence and boldness when it comes to sharing the gospel message.  It may not appear that Christians suffer persecution in America today, but we do.  It’s just that the persecution today is much more subtle than what the early Christians in our lesson experienced.
2. (vs. 30).  In this verse, the believers asked God for what they thought would give them the boldness to speak of Christ.  They said it would be “By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.”  These believers were asking the Lord to validate their bold witness by granting them power “to heal” and to perform “signs and wonders.”  In case we may think that the believers were asking for something out of the ordinary, they were not.  This was a valid request to make in the first century because one of the purposes of “signs and wonders” or miracles, was to confirm the truth of the message of the apostles (see Mark 16:15-18).  Just as the miracle performed on the lame man had led to many people being saved (see Acts 4:4), for sure more demonstrations of God’s power could reach many other lost souls.  If God stretched forth His hand to empower the believers “to heal” and perform “signs and wonders,” they all declared that it would be “done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.”  No one could take credit for any miracles these followers of Christ performed because they could only be done in the name of Jesus.                
V. PETTITION GRANTED (Acts 4:31).  Our final verse says “And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.”  God answered their prayer immediately and in an amazing way.  We are told that after they finished praying “the place was shaken where they were assembled together.”     First, in answer to their prayers the Lord sent some kind of physical phenomenon where they were gathered, maybe an earthquake to show His presence.  However, this was probably only felt by those gathered together in that special place.  Second, in answer to their prayers “they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.”  This was another indication that God was moving among them.  This was a fresh filing of the Holy Ghost providing the power necessary for them to again speak boldly (see Acts 1:8) as they had done on the Day of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1-2, 4).  Finally in answer to their prayers, “they spake the word of God with boldness.”  It’s important to note that the infilling of the Holy Ghost was necessary for the believers to be bold enough to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Likewise, when we are given the opportunity to witness for Christ, let’s not neglect to pray that the Holy Spirit will provide the power we may need at that very moment.  Without God’s Spirit we can do nothing (see Zechariah 4:6)!  Note:  This was a historical event for sure, but it has some important lessons for us. It teaches us that opposition is not a roadblock, but an opportunity for us to trust God, to earnestly seek Him in prayer, and to boldly proclaim Christ in dependence upon the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
                                  
VI. Conclusion.  Too many Christians today find it too easy to do and say things that don’t please God.  We use vulgar language, call each other unthinkable names, mistreat one another and avoid sharing the gospel as much as possible.  This leads me to believe that we need to practice praying for each other as the early church did.  But how can we increase the practice of praying?  Well, we can attend our midweek prayer meetings and pray earnestly and diligently for each other.  Among other requests, we should certainly pray that all of us will speak boldly for the Lord.  We can also ask our Christian friends to share their prayer needs, and then remember those needs in our prayers.  One of our responsibilities as part of the Christian community is to pray for each other.  If we do it more often, who knows what changes God will cause in our behaviors.