In Acts chapter 4, Peter and
John, having healed a lame man, have caused a bit of a stir amongst
the Sadducees in the temple and the priests who take them and
capture them and seek to prevent them preaching in the name of
Jesus Christ. But knowing that the man has
indeed been healed by them, and that the people have seen it,
they find themselves in a position where they're not sure what to
do with them. And they say in verse 16, what should we do to
these men? For that indeed a notable miracle
have been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem,
and we cannot deny it. But that it spread no fervor
among the people, let us straightly threaten them that they speak
henceforth to no man in this name. And they called them and
commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of
Jesus. But Peter and John answered and
said unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to
hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot
but speak the things which we have seen and heard. So when
they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing
how they might punish them because of the people. For all men glorified
God for that which was done. For the man was above forty years
old on whom this miracle of healing was shown. Despite the message
of salvation which the disciples preached concerning Jesus Christ,
and how He was crucified, how He bore the sins of His people,
how He took those sins away, how He rose again victorious
over sin, death and hell on the third day, and how He lives and
reigns on high as the glorified Son of God that He is. He lives
and reigns to preach His Gospel and bring salvation. Despite
this wondrous message in fulfilment of all the prophecies of the
Old Testament, The Jews of old, the priests, the Sadducees, were
filled with hatred. They did not want to hear of
this man, Jesus Christ. They did not want to hear the
message of the disciples. They did not want to hear the
Gospel they preached. They felt it brought division.
They felt it undermined their own position in religion. They
hadn't recognised Christ at His coming for whom He was. And they were filled with indignation
and rage against these men preaching this message, which undermined
what they declared in their religion. A message of grace, a message
of salvation by grace, by the sovereignty of God, rather than
works. and the keeping of law by the
will of man. They were filled with indignation
and they sought to silence them. But they couldn't. And the response
of the disciples when challenged was that they couldn't be silent.
They couldn't keep quiet. Peter and John answered and said
unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken
unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak
the things which we have seen and heard. We cannot but speak
the things which we have seen and heard. What could they not
speak? What had they seen? What had
they heard? Of what could they not speak?
Of whom could they not speak? Of Christ. They'd seen Jesus
Christ. They'd heard His voice. They'd
heard His message. They'd seen Him crucified. They'd seen Him risen again.
They'd seen the mighty power of God through His own Son. They'd heard the message Christ
declared concerning the gospel, concerning who he was. Concerning
why he had come. Concerning what he would do.
Concerning the death he would die in Jerusalem. Concerning
what that death would bring to pass. Concerning the salvation
he would bring in for his people. They'd heard his message. They'd
seen him. They'd seen the Son of God manifest
in the flesh. And they could not but speak. The things which they had seen
and heard. The things which they had seen
and heard concerning Jesus Christ. They'd seen Him. They'd heard
Him. They'd seen the Gospel worked
out and performed before their very eyes. They'd heard the Gospel
from the lips of Jesus Christ. They'd heard the Spirit make
known His truth unto them. We cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard concerning Jesus Christ. Of whom could they not speak?
Of what could they not speak? Of Christ. That might seem obvious. That might seem obvious. But
to many, who preach, who speak in the name of Jesus Christ,
apparently it is not obvious. For there are many who claim
to be followers of Christ, there are many who claim to be followers
of God, there are many who claim to worship God, and who stand
before the people as God's servants, as those whom God has sent, as
those whom God has chosen, as those whom God has called, as
those who will lead others unto God. There are many who claim
to be God's servants. who when they speak and when
they preach, say very little concerning Jesus Christ. They
have much to say, they have much to preach, they have much to
teach. They have many words. But very little is really about
Christ. These Jews before whom Peter
and John stood, were those who stood before the people as the
priests and the scribes, the Sadducees, the Pharisees in the
temple. They were there as God's servants. They were there as those who
were to open up the oracles of God, the scriptures, the Bible
as they had it, and declare the truth unto the people. They claimed
to be leading the people unto God. Yet when Christ came, who
was the fulfillment of their scriptures, the promised Messiah,
they didn't recognize him. They had not been seeking, looking
for, and seeing Christ. They claimed to, but when Christ
himself came, they didn't own him for who he was. They didn't
recognise him. They rejected him. Their message,
which they preached under the people, was another message,
another gospel, another way of salvation. They received the
scriptures and they found in the scriptures the law and they
set before the people the rites and the rituals of the law. They were very... careful to
offer up the sacrifices which the law prescribed at the right
time in the right manner. They were very careful to live
in the way that the law demanded. They were very careful to order
their lives perfectly according to the commands of the law. Yet
they never saw in the law what the law was a picture of. They
never saw what those commands regarded. They never saw what
the sacrifices were a picture of. That all these things in
the law and the prophets were pictures and pointers to the
coming Messiah, to Jesus Christ. They never saw that there was
one sacrifice to come, once and for all, which when offered,
would bring all of their sacrificing of bullocks and birds and all
living things, would bring all of their sacrificing to an end. Those sacrifices were a picture. Christ was the fulfillment. They
never saw that the righteousness demanded by the law of them,
morally speaking, in how they lived, in what they should and
should not do, was a righteousness which they could not bring to
pass. Was a righteousness which they
were entirely lacking, but a righteousness which was brought in by Christ
through His death upon the cross. They never saw that they could
not keep the law as God had demanded. And that the reason the law was
given was to show to man that he could not live like this,
that he was full of sin, that he was full of want, and that
he needed righteousness, but he could not obtain to it. But that Christ in his coming
through his sacrifice would bring that righteousness. they never
learnt the continual reminded message of the law and their
rituals that the reason they offered up sacrifices was because
they were sinners because they couldn't keep the law inwardly
and outwardly as they should do because they didn't have the
righteousness demanded by that law and that was why they had
sacrifices because the blood of sacrifices would in figure
wash them clean from their sin But all these things pointed
them to Christ. Yet they didn't see Christ. They didn't understand that Christ
was the fulfilment of all of these laws, all of these sacrifices. And when he came, and when he
stood before them, and when he preached in Jerusalem, they raged
against Christ. They took him, they delivered
him up to the Romans, and they had him crucified. which is why
Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, in verse 8, says unto them, Ye
rulers of the people and elders of Israel, if we this day be
examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what
means he is made whole, be it known unto you all, and to all
the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth
this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which
was set at naught of you builders, which is become the head of the
corner. Neither is there salvation in
any other, for there is none other name under heaven given
among men whereby we must be saved. They tell these Jews that
the man that they crucified, Jesus Christ, is the very God,
the very Saviour who delivered this impotent, this lame man
from his condition. It's His name which saved that
man. It's His name which saves sinners
from their sins. It's His name which brings salvation. And yet they crucified Him. They didn't see Him. They didn't
recognize Him. And they certainly didn't preach
Him. They were preachers to the people.
They had the Scriptures. They were Bible-based. They were
the messengers of God, they claim. Yet their preaching was not of
Christ. They didn't see Christ in the
Scriptures. They hadn't seen Him and they
hadn't heard His voice. They couldn't preach Him because
they hadn't seen Him and they hadn't heard Him. But Peter and
John could not but preach Christ because they had seen him and
they had heard him. And therein lies the difference. Therein lies the difference. For we cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard. We have seen Christ, we have
heard Christ, and we preach Christ. Yet these who claimed to stand
before God, before the people, hadn't seen Christ, for whom
He was, they saw but a man. They hadn't heard Christ, they
heard the words, but they never heard them inwardly, they never
heard the truth, they never understood. They hadn't seen, they hadn't
heard, so they didn't preach. And the same people that were
then, are the same people that are now. Many there are in the
churches, many there are that take the name of Christ or God's
name and say that we are a Christian church, who preach and teach,
but they don't preach and teach Christ. They will preach the
law, they will preach morals, they will preach how you should
live, they will preach evangelism, they will preach this, that and
the other, but they don't preach Christ. Listen to their messages,
where is Christ? And the reason they don't preach
Him is because they haven't seen Him and they haven't heard Him.
It may seem obvious, that they should speak of Jesus Christ. But there are many who take Christ's
name who don't speak of Jesus Christ. There are many who preach,
but they don't preach Christ. They claim to follow Him. They
are builders. Like these Jews who are builders,
they're building. They claim to build for God. They claim to be building the
church. They claim to be building a house
for God's worship. They claim to build. Yet the
builders set him at nought. This is the stone which was set
at nought of you builders, which has become the head of the corner.
These Jews were supposed to be building God's house, and the
very stone who was the foundation stone of the house of God, they
set him at nought, they slew him. And today we have those
in the churches who claim to be building the church. build
in the church of Christ, further in the cause of God, and they
set the true Christ at naught. They put in his place an idol
that they call Jesus, who is not the Jesus of the Scriptures. They claim to build, yet there's
nothing built. They build nothing, for they
haven't seen him, and they haven't heard him, and they cannot preach
him whom they have not seen, and of whom they have not heard.
They will preach this and that. They will make their claims.
They will argue for this and contend for that. They will fight
for this issue and that issue. They will be zealous for this
and zealous for that. They're very sincere. They're
very devout. They're very zealous, but they
don't preach Christ. And if they did preach Christ,
they'd face the same opposition that Peter and John faced. They'd face the same response
from their fellow so-called builders that Peter and John faced. They'd
be told to be quiet. You can preach in our churches. You can come in our pulpit. You're
very, very welcome. Just don't preach that. You can
preach about this, you can preach about that, you can preach this
thing and that thing, but don't preach that message. Don't preach
your message of Christ, and his salvation, and his grace, and
the sovereignty of God. Don't preach that. These builders
claimed to be God's servants. They claimed to be his mouthpieces
to men. They thought they were. These
Jews, these Sadducees, these priests thought that they were
God's mouthpieces. They thought they stood before
men as the ambassadors, the mediators of God. They were the priests. They were there to lead the people
unto God. They claimed authority in the
church, yet they didn't build. When the chief cornerstone of
the church came before them, they set him at naught. All their
building brought division. They didn't build. All they did
was destroy. When the reality of which they
had but the form came amongst them, they destroyed, they crucified
him. They said they were building
God's house and yet they put him to death. They didn't bring
life. They brought death. They didn't
bring peace. They brought war, enmity, division. They didn't build. They didn't
preach Christ. They had all the words but none
of the life. There are many today like that.
They come into the churches. They have all the words. They
can even say things from the gospel in word and appear true. But ultimately they don't preach
Christ because they've not seen him and they've not heard him. And in due course they bring
their issues. They bring their ideas. They
bring their things that they think the church needs to be
doing. The things that they think the
church needs to be following. The things that they think the
church needs to be building. Their issues. And they bring
their division. They don't preach Christ. They
don't preach grace. They don't preach salvation.
They don't preach the death of Christ, the blood of Christ.
It's always something else that's more important. It's always something
else brought in alongside that becomes the important issue.
There's always something else that divides the true believer
from everyone else. God says that it's my choice,
my election. God chooses who are saved and
who are, and He covers them by the blood of Christ, and He washes
them in the blood of Christ. He saves His people. He chooses
who are His people. He brings the sound of the gospel
to their ears. He quickens them, He saves them,
He delivers them. But these builders say the true
people will do this, and will do that, and will follow this,
and will follow that. So they influenced the church
at Galatia later on. Those from Jerusalem influenced
the people at Galatia and said it's not enough to have Christ
alone, you need to be doing this, you need to keep Moses' law,
you need to do these works. It's not enough to just believe
in the redemptive work of Christ. You should believe in this thing
and that thing. Your practice should be like
this and like that. And if you Dispute that and argue
that and don't follow what we require. You show your evidence
that you can't be true. It's not enough to believe in
Christ alone. Keep the law of Moses also. Do
this also. Work this way also. And whilst
they claim to preach Christ and ultimately Christ is set aside. It's the also which matters to
them. It's the following in this thing
and that thing that's the main thing. It's never Christ and. Christ cannot be mixed. Christ
cannot be added to. It's either Christ or that. It's either Christ or the law.
But it's never both. Whatever they claim, whatever
they say, whatever they preach, it's either Christ or their novelty. But it's never both. It's either
the gospel alone, grace alone, or it's not grace. You add to
grace, you add works to grace in any way, shape or form. Any
kind of works, any demand to do this or believe this in addition. And you've undermined it. They
claim to build. Yet all they did was destroy.
And all they did when the true preachers of the gospel came
into their midst was try to silence them. Don't speak. They called them and commanded
them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. Now what are we going to teach
or preach if we don't preach in the name of Jesus? They weren't
being kind to them in releasing them, in sparing their lives,
or in releasing them back into society. With that, they were
taking away the very cause they had to live. Oh, go and do whatever
you want. Go and preach whatever you want.
Go and say whatever you want. Just don't preach in the name
of Jesus. Just don't preach that. And in
reality, that was to take their lives away from them. to take
the only thing that really mattered away and their response to such
a command is, is it right to obey God and to preach Christ? Or is it right to obey you? You
judge. For we cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard. We cannot but speak. They were compelled to. Despite
the charge, despite the opposition, despite knowing that these men
who arrested them, and who would beat them, and who would try
to silence them, had the power and ability to put them to death. Despite that kind of opposition,
their response to them is, we cannot but speak. We cannot but
speak the things which we have seen and heard. We cannot but
preach Christ. Do what you like to us. We cannot but preach Christ.
Beat us, lock us up, trample us underfoot, take away all that
we have, take away our health, take away our lives. We cannot
but speak the things we have seen and heard. We cannot but
preach Christ despite the opposition. Now why were they so compelled? Because what they saw, what they
heard, what they knew couldn't be kept hidden away within. They couldn't be silent. They
couldn't be. This was their life. Christ was
their all. He was their life. He was their
all in all. To keep him hidden is for them
to die. For them to live, as Paul says,
is Christ. For me to live is Christ and
to die is gain. Put us to death and we'll be
with Christ forever. But while we have breath in this
world, for us to live is Christ. And while we have breath, we
will preach his name. We can't do anything else. To
live is Christ and to die is going. You cannot silence us. And oh world today, religion
today, will you hear that? You cannot silence the gospel. You can make any threat you like
against it. You can threaten the children
of God, God's preachers, with anything. If they're of God,
they cannot be silent. Now if they're not of God, like
these Jews, like these false builders, they will have their
religion, they will prosper in their religion without preaching
Christ truly. They'll mention his name, they'll
mention this, they'll mention that, but they won't preach him
because they've not heard him, they've not seen him, he's not
their life, they're not compelled to. But those who know Christ,
those who've been born again of God, Those who have new life
within, which is of God, which is the life of Christ himself
within. Those who've been born again
of the Spirit, either live Christ, and speak Christ, and preach
Christ, or they die. Silence them. take their life
away, take their breath away, take their speech away, take
their gospel away, and they will live and reign with Christ the
other side of the grave. But whilst they are in this world,
whilst they are in time, their very life is Christ. Once they were dead. Once like
you, O sinner, they were blind. Once, like you old builders in
the church, they were dead and buried. They knew nothing. They
had the form of religion, they had the words, they might have
heard this and that, but they knew nothing. They didn't have
Christ. They hadn't seen him, they hadn't
heard him. and when charged to be silent
maybe they could be because it was words and they valued what
they thought was their life so when they were threatened they
would fear but there came a time when they heard the gospel when
they heard the voice of Jesus Christ in the gospel coming unto
them and causing them to come forth from the grave and they
came forth and they lived and from that moment forth they cannot
be silent O child of God, you cannot be
silent. The life within will bubble forth. It has to be. We cannot but speak. The things which we have seen
and heard, we're compelled to. Because what they saw, what we've
seen, what they knew, what we know, cannot be kept within. The life has to spring forth. The light has to shine forth. It cannot be contained. It cannot
be hidden under a bushel. The light shined in the darkness. We cannot but speak the things
we have seen and heard despite their threatenance, despite what
these people who captured them and who took them had already
done to Jesus Christ himself. Despite what they had seen these
people do unto their Lord and Saviour, they saw these Jews
take Christ himself and beat him. and nail him to a cross
and slay him. They saw the mob chant out, crucify
him, crucify him. They saw the brutal death they
brought upon their Lord and Saviour. And they knew that these very
same people would do the same to them if they could. If God
allowed them, they'd do the same. That's who they stood before.
Now today, when you stand, And when you meet opposition, are
those people that are opposed to you, that argue with you,
that contend with you, that speak hateful things unto you, O child
of God, are they likely to put you to death? Maybe, but maybe
not. Either way, the truth, the life,
the light cannot be hid. And these disciples stood before
the very same people who crucified their Lord and Savior. Be it
known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised
from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you
whole. That's who they stood before.
That's who they were standing up in boldness before to say
we cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard. They
go on. Being let go, they went to their
own company and reported to all that the chief priests and elders
had said what they had said unto them. And when they heard that,
they lifted up their voice to God with one accord and said,
Lord, thou art God, which has made heaven and earth and the
sea and all that in them is, who by the mouth of thy servant
David has said, why did the heathen reign? and the people imagined
vain things. The kings of the earth stood
up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and
against His Christ. 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,
for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before
to be done. And now, Lord, behold their threatenings,
and grant unto thy servants that with all boldness they may speak
thy word, by stretching forth thine hand to heal, and that
signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child
Jesus. Here they quote David. from Psalm
2. Why do the heathen rage? Why
do the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood
up. The rulers were gathered together against the Lord and
against His Christ. And here they are at the fulfilment
of that Psalm, that prophecy. Here they are amongst the people
led by Herod and Pontius Pilate who have literally recently taken
Christ and crucified Him. That's who they stand before,
the very murderers of their Lord and Saviour. And they heard their
threatenings. They heard the threatenings of
these very people against them, don't you preach Christ. We've put him to death, we'll
put you to death if you continue to preach what he preached. That's the threat. Christ came
preaching the gospel. He preached the very truth of
salvation by grace unto this people. And the leaders of the
people took him and crucified him. the disciples having seen
him and heard his voice go forth to preach the very same message
and the very same people take them and threaten them and say
what we did to him we will do to you if you are not quiet now
that's what they stood before that's what they contended with
that's the circumstance they could face certain death And
yet God gave them boldness in such a time, in such an hour,
in such a circumstance to stand before these so-called custodians
of the church, the builders, those who in Jerusalem led the
so-called church, the so-called temple, the so-called religion
of their day. These people who should have
been God's servants would be putting these men to death if
they continued to preach the gospel. That's what they faced,
and they said unto them, We cannot but speak the things we have
seen and heard. And here they are before God,
praying. Behold their threatenance. Grant
unto thy servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word. Well, they'd already been answered.
The Lord had already answered their prayer. They'd already
been given boldness to stand and to preach. And here they
pray again, in their weakness, seeing what could come upon them,
they pray unto their God, strengthen us, lift us up, grant us boldness
that we may speak this word and use it mightily. They will kill
us for this message, but send it forth, Lord. Send it forth
in power. Stretch forth thine hand to heal,
that through the name of thy holy child Jesus, signs and wonders
might be performed, people might be saved. Send forth the gospel
in power, give us boldness to preach it, that people might
be saved. Behold their threatenings. They
saw what the kings of the earth had already done to Christ their
Lord. They killed Him, they slew Him,
they murdered Him. And what they did to Christ they
could do to them, they could do to us, they could do it to
us today. The world hates Christ and it
hates His gospel. And it hates any that speak in
His name. And yet these men could not but
speak. And if you've heard Christ, if
you've seen Christ, if you have the same life within as they
did, you cannot but speak, no matter what the world may say,
no matter what religion may say. Religion that preaches works,
that preaches the will and the works and the wisdom of man,
that says Christ is not enough, you must live like this, you
must do this, you must make the right decision, you must do the
right things. They'll put you to death. If
you speak of the grace of God which brings salvation. If you
declare that salvation is not a reward for our works. It's
not a reward for our right decision. Christ doesn't save those who
ask him to save. Christ doesn't save those who
simply make a decision. He brings them to nothing. He brings His people to nothing. He causes them to see their depravity. He chooses to save them. He does that which is necessary
to lead them and to draw them unto Him. And when they know
they are dead, when they know they're dying, when they know
they're sinking in the sea, when they know they're lost and they
deserve to be lost, when they know they have no hope, no strength,
no wisdom, nothing with which they can approve themselves before
God, when they know that they are drowning and they cannot
do anything else, they cry out to Him to save them and He comes
in mercy and plucks them out of the water. Because He put
them there. He put them there that they should
cry. He taught them what they are.
He taught them what they are as He taught you what you are.
As He brought you to an end of yourself. As He brought you to
see that all your religion can do nothing to save you. All your
works, all your keeping of the law is as filthy rags. As He
brought you to see that your decision for Jesus won't do. You need more than that. You
need God to choose you. As He brought you to see that
it's right, that salvation's in God's hands. That God is the
King. That God is the Lord. That God
is the Lord over all. That God chooses what He will
do. He created the heavens and the
earth. He sustains the heavens and the
earth. And He will save those whom He
has chosen. and He brought you to own that
as true. These who would have put Peter and John to death if
they could rejected that. They rejected Christ. They rejected
a sovereign Christ. They rejected the Son of God
as He is. They rejected salvation by grace. And they put Him to death and
would put them to death and would put us to death today if they
could. And yet that's the message, the
only message, the only name which saves. The only name. Neither is there salvation in
any other for there is none other name under heaven given among
men whereby we must be saved. You need Jesus Christ to come
unto you in his gospel and speak. You need to see what these men
saw. You need to hear what these men
heard. And if you don't, you will perish
with the builders which set him at nought. How does your heart
respond to Christ and his gospel? For all your religion, does it
set him at nought? Do you add to his blood and his
righteousness? Do you add to the gospel in such
a way that it nullifies the worth of his blood? Do you add something
of your own glory? Do you hope to be saved because
you were in the right place? Because you went to worship? Because you were there every
Sunday listening to the gospel? Because you read the scriptures?
Because you prayed? Because you did this? Because
you did that? Is that your hope? You pay lip
service to Christ and his blood and his death. But really you
hope that he will save you because you've done the right things
where others haven't. Is that where your hope is? Do
you set him at naught? Or is your hope, is your hope
in Jesus Christ alone? Have you heard him? Have you
seen him? Has the life which he has been
granted unto you? Could you stand with that life
where Peter and John stood with such enemies arrayed before them. Could you stand with them with
all boldness and preach the word of God? Could you stand with
them and speak concerning Jesus Christ? Has God in his gospel
taken away your fear? Has He given you such life that
you would say, I would rather die and be with Christ, which
is far better, than to live and keep my mouth shut? Because I
can't keep my mouth shut. He's my Saviour. He's done wonderful
things for me. He's done wonderful things for
me because I've known in His Gospel the great power of the
Gospel which delivered my hard heart and saved me, it melted
me, it turned me around, I was going another way and when he
came with his Gospel he turned me around. I was sinking in the
sea and he came in his gospel and he delivered me, he lifted
me up, he showed me love, he showed me mercy, he showed me
great grace. I was blind, I couldn't see and
he came and he touched my eyes and I saw. I was deaf, I couldn't
hear and he spake in the gospel and I heard like I've never heard
before. I was lame, I couldn't stand
up, I had no strength. All that I knew I should do I
never did because I couldn't. and I wouldn't and yet he came
in the gospel and said stand arise and I stood and I walked
and I followed I know the power of his gospel because I've seen
him and I've heard him and it's changed me it's transformed me
that's what I preach that's what I know and I can't keep quiet
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. And the multitude of them that
believed were of one heart and of one soul. Neither said any
of them that all to the things which he possessed was his own,
but they had all things common, all that they knew. All that
they had was in the gospel. All they understood concerning
Christ and salvation was in the gospel and they all believed,
they all heard, they all knew the same gospel. None of them
came and said I've seen this as some little wisdom they had
that somebody else didn't. They brought what they saw and
the others heard and said that's true. Whenever the Lord showed
them something they brought it and shared it with their brethren
and they all rejoiced at the glory of God in the gospel and
said that's true what glorious things God has done for his people. None took things. None had their
pet doctrines, their little wisdom, their little ideas that they
could bring and rise up in the midst of the people as someone
greater. Oh look at him, what wisdom,
what insight, what knowledge he had. No, it was all common
because they'd all heard the same gospel. So it is with their
natural things, their natural money and wealth, but more so
spiritually. That's a picture of what they
had spiritually. They'd received everything they
had from the same Saviour. They were of one heart, His heart. And of one soul, His soul. And
of one mind, His mind. And all their riches were found
in Jesus Christ. They had all things common, they
were one. And with great power gave the
apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and great grace
was upon them all. With great power gave the apostles
witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and great grace
was upon them all. They'd experienced great grace
in salvation. and the resurrection of Jesus
had brought them to life. They rose when He rose. When they were born again, the
life which flooded in was because they, when He died and rose again,
had spiritually risen with Him. They knew the power of the resurrection
because the same power that brought forth Christ from the grave brought
them forth from the grave. then no wonder they could with
great power give witness to this resurrection because they knew
the power, the gospel had brought them to life. Because great grace
had come upon them. The Gospel has great power and
great grace. That is why so many thousands,
when they heard the Gospel preached by Peter and John, were saved.
We read in verse 4 of chapter 4, Howbeit many of them which
heard the word believed, and the number of the men was about
five thousand. 5,000 people heard Peter and John preach
this gospel and were saved because this gospel broke forth in power. It entered into the hearts of
dead sinners and made them live. They could not but speak because
these were saved by the mighty power of the gospel. When faced
with such speech, such preaching, such a message, no hard heart
could resist if God preached that message to the soul of the
hearer. When this gospel came forth by
these men, they could not but be quiet. because their message
was filled with such great power and such great grace. They had
witness within of the resurrection. They knew the life. That is why
they could not but speak it. It comes forth. It cannot be
contained. They lived. They lived. For them to live was Christ and
to die was gain. They lived. Have you heard this
message? Many hear with the outward ear
but never hear. Many read the scriptures and
see with the outward eye but never see. Many take what they've
heard with the outward ear and take what they've seen with the
natural eye and go forth and build. and stand before the people
of their age as those who are built in God's church. But they've
never seen and they've never heard. They don't know anything
of the great power and the great grace and they cannot bear witness
of the resurrection. But Peter and John had seen. They'd seen these men that took
them crucify their Lord and Saviour. They'd seen Jesus Christ in the
flesh. They'd seen God made man. They'd seen God manifest in the
flesh. They'd heard the voice of the
living God through the lips of Jesus Christ. They heard His
voice. They knew His life. they'd seen
and they heard. And when those came to them and
threatened them with death and said, if you don't be silent,
we can slay you like we slew your saviour, your lord, your
master, the one that you preach. We can slay you like we slayed
Christ. When they came before them and
threatened them, they were filled with boldness. all boldness and
they said unto them we cannot but speak the things which we
have seen and heard sinner We cannot but speak the things which
we have seen and heard. May God grant you some knowledge
of the great power and the great grace which brings salvation
through the name of Jesus Christ. For there is salvation in no
other. For there is none other name
under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. We cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard. Amen.