Teaching Text

ACTS 4:18-31

Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old. On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: ‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed one.’ Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

Sermon Recap

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our series through the Book of Acts, The Fifth Act, with a powerful message from Acts 4:18–31 on how the Early Church responded to resistance with unified prayer. In this passage, we see Peter and John boldly proclaiming the name of Jesus in the face of commands, threats, and pressure to conform.  Today, we are also called to respond to resistance by choosing faithfulness over fear, and pressing in with prayer instead of retreating.

Pastor Jon reminded us that resistance to the Gospel is not a sign of failure but an inevitable part of following Jesus. Drawing from both Scripture and cultural commentary, he traced how Western Culture has shifted from a positive world where Christianity was favored, to a neutral world where it was tolerated, to our current negative world, where Christian belief is often seen as harmful or regressive. The Early Church prayed through Psalm 2 in the face of persecution they were facing, rightly identifying the nations rage against God’s anointed. We continue to experience this today, because the sovereignty of God innately challenges the ideas of self-rule and self-defined identity. However, Jesus said His followers would be hated as He was, warning us that resistance is part of the call to life with Him. 

Pastor Jon challenged us to see prayer as our first resort, not our last, and develop an instinct of prayer in the face of resistance. As soon as they were released, Peter and John returned to their community, and together they raised their voices to God in Prayer. Rather than rushing to protest or self-protection, the Church is called to protest before God, lifting up leaders in prayer, remembering God's sovereign power, and trusting in His providential timing. The believer’s prayer in Acts 4 reflects a high view of God, the Creator of heaven and earth, actively working in history. When we trust God is truly sovereign, we can resist the urge to grasp for control. Instead, we can become people of redemptive influence who ask for boldness to proclaim His Word and for Him to stretch out His hand with healing and miracles, not vengeance. 

God answered their prayer with power when the place where they were meeting was shaken and they were filled with the Holy Spirit to speak the Word of God boldly. Pastor Jon encouraged us that if we’re facing resistance in our own lives, we need the Spirit’s help to respond in love, courage, and forgiveness. The Church is at its best not when it seeks control, but when it responds to suffering with faith and love. Throughout history, we have seen that persecution doesn’t destroy the Church, but refines it as it grows. As we encounter resistance today, we’re invited to invite God in, seek His Spirit, and respond with the same boldness and grace that marked the Church in Acts.