“Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.”  At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people. When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles. But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there.” 

“So they went back and reported, “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to. Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them.”

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The understanding of the disciples was that those who followed Jesus would be specifically empowered to act as witnesses to the death and resurrection of Jesus, taking this message to the ends of the earth. This power would be gifted to the church through the Holy Spirit. The early church bore witness to Jesus not by mere words but with the power of the Spirit on public display.

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms ... so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:10-11). Any gift of power a believer has received is from God and for His glory; we are mere stewards of these gifts. The jealousy we see in the Sanhedrin develops because of a misunderstanding of the power displayed within the early church.

Up until this point in time, the high priest and all his associates had garnered a lot of power; though not rightfully theirs, they clearly understood it as a right of their position. Increasingly in book of Acts, people were going to the apostles and the church to be taught and healed. Jealousy is the anger and the resentment that develops when someone has something and you don't. It comes from a lack of love for others and from a lack of faith that it is God who actually decides through whom and when He will work. When the religious leaders saw God’s power at work within the church, they got angry at the power they “possessed” and desired to claw it back from them.

When the church arrived at Solomon’s Colonnade for worship, the apostles were quickly arrested by the temple guards. The leaders of the early church were placed in the public or common jail, where all those who broke the law were placed. God’s power is once again on display, as an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and led the apostles out. The apostles are freed and told to continue their public witness as they normally would have come morning.

At daybreak, the Sanhedrin – the religious rulers of Israel – would have filed into their meeting quarters to sternly determine what to do with these Galilean rabble-rousers. This was serious business. We are told that the full assembly of the elders of Israel is called together, so be assured that anyone of importance within first century religious life in Jerusalem was there. As the Sanhedrin begins their assembly, they send for the apostles, only to receive word that they no longer have the apostles as prisoners.

A Humourous Scene Imagine the scene as the captain of the guard tried to explain to the chief priest where the apostles were. Imagine the other members of the Sanhedrin, those not “associates” of the high priest, questioning the competency of the high priest. Imagine the embarrassment of the chief priest and his associates – only a part of the full Sanhedrin – as they realized that their call for a meeting of the Sanhedrin might all go for naught. One question remained: where were the apostles?

They quickly received a report the apostles were back preaching within Solomon’s Colonnade as they always did. They were preaching publically, showing a complete disregard for the authority and power of the Sanhedrin’s religious position. Why on earth the apostles didn’t just cool it with the whole “flaunting Jesus in the face of the Sanhedrin” thing? The apostles were simply remaining obedient. Very clearly, we can see the early church firmly taking their marching orders, not from the traditional religious leaders of Israel, but from God Himself – be that though an angel or the voice of the Holy Spirit within the church.

The last sentence of our passage this morning presents us with two final insights: the guards persuaded the apostles to come before the Sanhedrin, rather than forcibly hauling them from Solomon’s Colonnade because there was a real fear of how the crowds might react. the apostles did not resist the guards. The apostles were taking their cues from both the life and the teachings of Jesus Christ.

“I tell you, do not resist an evil person “I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also … If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles … I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:39,41,44) Given an opportunity to resist an “evil person”, the apostles instead decided to go quietly, in the way and manner of Christ. Their departure was accompanied by much prayer from the gathered church for them and for those who were persecuting the apostles.

Over the last few years, I’ve noticed a growing arrogant rebelliousness in the church directed at the “rest of the world”, incited by perceived injustices against the church. I’ve also noticed encouragements from church leaders to resist, to stand up, to fight against our oppressors. Ought we maintain our beliefs? Absolutely, 100 %. Ought we seek to influence the political sphere of our culture? Of course. Ought we speak up and speak out against injustice? Certainly, however the way in which we do so is of incredible importance.

I believe what we see in many sectors of the church is a jealousy based on a lack of love and a lack of faith. It’s a jealousy over a loss of political, cultural, or power of influence. The arrogant rebelliousness we see is founded on a misunderstanding of power. Any power we have as the church is gifted to us by God and the Spirit of God gifts this power to His church as He sees fit.

Was the early church powerful politically, socially or influentially in the Roman dominated world of their day? Did the Holy Spirit incredibly empower the early church for service and witness in a context of political weakness, social marginalization and lack of grand influence? Is the power of the Spirit present in the early church, present in His people today, even in our climate of waning social and political influence? Who or what can remove this power from the church? Do you long to see lives powerfully and radically changed through the presence of the people of God in the world?  

Rather than seeking to become the biggest, bravest, loudest or most influential voice in the arena, let us follow Christ’s model for greatness in his kingdom – “instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves (Luke 22:26). The power present in the kingdom of God is something very different than the political, cultural, or power of influence so desired in our world. Let us then love more fully, exercise faith more completely and obey more frequently, so that we may see the power of God’s Spirit producing the fruit of the kingdom within and through us.