Acts 12:1-5 – But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.
GETTING STARTED:
- The first of the disciples is martyred at the start of chapter 12 – James, the brother of John, was beheaded by the sword. Interestingly – John will live longer than any other disciple.
- Serious persecution is facing the church and they will resort to their greatest weapon – they will pray. Prayer is not a last resort – it is our first response.
THE SITUATION AND THE CHURCH’S RESPONSE. Acts 12:1-5
- King Herod Agrippa – the nephew of Herod Antipas and the grandson of Herod the Great – had James executed. This pleased the Jewish leader so Herod decided to go after Peter.
- Peter was locked up during Passover and under the guard of four squads. Herod intended to try him and likely execute him after Passover.
- The Bible says that the church prayed very earnestly for him. James 5:16 says that the earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.
Lesson: Keep this response of prayer in mind as the story unfolds – just because they
are surprised by the answer doesn’t mean that they were not believing for God to
intervene. They don’t tell God how to answer – they just ask God to answer.
THE UNEXPECTED ANSWER – Acts 12:6-19
- Miraculously – God sends an angel to lead Peter out of this prison. It’s so surreal that Peter thinks it is a dream. But it is God at work.
- Once Peter realizes what God has done – he goes to where the church has gathered – the home of Mary the mother of John Mark. A servant girl named Rhoda answers the knock and is overjoyed and blown away – she forgets to let Peter in and the people don’t believe her. Eventually they come to see that God has done something above and beyond what they could ask or think. (Eph. 3:20)
- God had a bigger answer than they could comprehend.
REMINDER: NO ENTITY OF PERSON WILL STOP THE GOSPEL. Acts 12:20-25
- One of the themes that runs through Acts is the unhindered gospel. Nothing will stop the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Herod attempted to stop it by having James martyred and arresting Peter – but God still had plans for Peter.
- Now Herod’s arrogance will bring the judgment of God upon his life. The Gospel will go on – but Herod’s days came to an abrupt end. The one who tried to stop the Gospel was stopped – but the Gospel kept going.
Closing thought: Look at verse 24 – …The word of God continued to spread, and there
were many new believers. Your life is part of something bigger than you – God’s plan to
bring the Good News to the world. Let prayer be your first response and never a last
resort.