Chapters 11:19–12:25
The Two Great Resources of the Church
With the door opened for the gospel to go out to the world and a great harvest of souls being saved, it only follows that these new converts would need to be cared for. In the next couple of chapters, the Spirit of God sets before us incidents that illustrate this care. The two great resources God has provided for this work are: the Word of God and prayer (Luke 10:38–11:13; Acts 20:30). These are prominent in these chapters.
In the latter half of chapter 11, we see the spiritual gifts which God has given to the Church using the Word to establish the saints in the faith (Eph. 4:11-12). Evangelists are seen preaching the Word and gathering souls in (vss. 19-21); a pastor/shepherd is seen exhorting the new converts in practical matters of Christian living (vss. 22-24); teachers are seen building up the saints in the truth (vss. 25-26); and prophets are found warning and comforting the saints in the trials of life (vss. 27-30).
Then, in chapter 12, the saints are seen casting themselves on the Lord in prayer in regard to the persecution of Herod. Their prayers are answered by the hand of God intervening providentially on their behalf in delivering Peter from prison (vss. 5-19) and putting down Herod (vss. 20-25).
The Ministry of the Word
Chapter 11:19 picks up the thread from chapter 8:1, regarding “the persecution that arose about Stephen.” Chapter 8:4 tells us that the persecuted saints “went everywhere preaching the Word;” here in chapter 11, Luke focuses on the ones who went to “Phenice and Cyprus and Antioch.” At first, they preached the Word “to Jews only” (vs. 19). But the Hellenists who had been saved from “Cyprus and Cyrene” didn’t stop at preaching to Jews—they preached to the “Greeks also” (vs. 20). These were Gentiles! The hand of the Lord was with these evangelists, and “a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord” (vs. 21). We are not told the names of those who were engaged in this work of evangelism; they are purposely withheld to show us that God uses humble instruments (1 Cor. 3:5).
When news of these things “reached the ears of the assembly which was in Jerusalem,” they sent out Barnabas to report on this new work of the Spirit (vs. 22). Being a believing Hellenist who was familiar with Gentiles, having grown up among them on Cyprus (Acts 4:36), he was well-suited for the mission. He went to Antioch to see whether it was a real work of God, and if so, to be a help to them. Luke says: “Having arrived and seeing the grace of God, rejoiced” and “exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord” (vs. 23). Being a pastor/shepherd, Barnabas’ concern for these new converts was that they would, first and foremost, have a personal life of communion with the Lord, for it is the believer’s spiritual lifeline (John 15:4). Luke tells us that the work continued to expand while Barnabas was there, and many more people were “added unto the Lord” (vs. 24).
New converts, however, need more than guidance and counsel in matters of practical Christian living; they need to be grounded in the truth. This requires sound teaching. Barnabas was “a good man, and “full of the Holy Ghost” (vs. 24), but personal godliness and a sterling character do not make one a teacher. Realizing this, and knowing his own limitations, Barnabas “went away to Tarsus to seek out Saul. And having found him, he brought him to Antioch” (vs. 25). Saul was a teacher who was well able to meet this need (1 Tim. 2:7; 2 Tim. 1:11). For “a whole year they assembled themselves with the church [assembly], and taught much people” (vs. 26). These two servants worked together to establish the saints, and there was much blessing as a result. The fact that it went on for “a whole year” shows that this work takes time; it is not done overnight.
Under the sound of the Christ-centered and Christ-exalting ministry of Barnabas and Saul, the saints grew spiritually and were first called “Christians” in Antioch (vs. 26b). The word means, “Christ’s ones.” It was originally used in derision by people of the world. Christ was impressed upon the hearts of these dear saints, and as a result, His character came out in their walk and ways (2 Cor. 3:18). The people of the world would see it and mockingly call them “Christians.” Christians, on the other hand, see it as an honour to bear Christ’s name in derision and to suffer His reproach (Acts 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16).
It is interesting to note that before Barnabas arrived in Antioch, the Spirit withheld Luke from calling these believers an assembly per se. They are viewed merely as a group of newly saved Christians. It was not until after there was practical fellowship with the assembly in Jerusalem (through the coming of Barnabas) that they are called an “assembly” (vs. 26). This occurs a number of times in the book. The Spirit of God is teaching us that when a new assembly is established, it should be done in fellowship with those already so gathered; thereby “the unity of the Spirit” is maintained (Eph. 4:3). If the brethren were not careful here, they could very well have ended up with a Jewish church in Jerusalem and a Gentile church in Antioch which were independent of one another, and any practical expression of the “one body” would be imperilled before that truth had been revealed!
Luke passes on to give us another manifestation of the Spirit—the gift of prophecy. This is illustrated in the ministry of “Agabus” (vs. 28). Before speaking of Agabus’ prophecy, Luke reports that “prophets” went regularly “from Jerusalem to Antioch” to minister to the saints there (vs. 27). This shows that happy conditions existed between these two assemblies.
As long as the saints are on earth, they will have trials and tribulations and sorrows (John 16:33). The Lord knows this fully and has provided a prophetic ministry that would help them through those difficulties. This ministry has to do with “edification and exhortation and comfort [encouragement]” (1 Cor. 14:3). In those early days, it was not only telling forth God’s mind for the moment, but it was also foretelling events that were to come to pass. We have the exercise of both of these in Agabus.
Agabus stood up in the midst of the saints in Antioch and “signified by the Spirit” that there was going to be a “great dearth [famine] throughout all the world” (vs. 28). This meant that a time of suffering was coming for all. It seems that “the brethren which dwelt in Judea” would be hit the hardest (Rom. 15:26). We might wonder why God would allow a trouble like this to touch His people, but we must not think that the Lord’s people are exempt from the trials of life. God had a plan in it; He was going to use the situation to bind the Jewish saints in Jerusalem and the Gentile saints in Antioch together in love. Agabus’ ministry touched the hearts of the disciples in Antioch and they took up a collection and sent it to “the elders” at Jerusalem by the hands of Barnabas and Saul (vss. 29-30). This gift proved to those in Judea that the work in these Gentiles was genuine. It demonstrated their love for the Jewish saints in a very practical way. Needless to say, the gift overwhelmed the Jewish believers with a sense of gratefulness for their Gentile brethren and caused them to give thanks to God for them (2 Cor. 9:11-12). Thus, they were bound together in the “love” and “fellowship” of the Spirit (Rom. 15:30; Phil. 2:1).
To summarize the work of the Spirit thus far, there were assemblies “throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria” (Acts 9:31), and now there was one at “Antioch” in Syria (Acts 11). The assembly at Antioch marks a significant step forward in the progress of the gospel, for it was the first assembly that had both believing Jews and believing Gentiles in it, dwelling in happy unity. This demonstrated in assembly life the truth of “the middle wall of partition” being “broken down” in the one body of Christ (Eph. 2:14; 3:6).
The Power of United Prayer
Chap. 12—In this chapter, Luke gives us a couple of illustrations that demonstrate the power of united prayer—the second great resource of the saints.
The persecution against the Church grew to a new height by the hand of Herod. Having the objective of expanding his kingdom, he tried in every way possible to win the favour of the Jews. He would outwardly observe their Law, honour their feasts, respect their customs, etc. When he learned of their hatred for the Church, he “stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the Church,” and “killed James the brother of John with the sword,” and “because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also” (vss. 1-3). Peter was placed in prison over the feast days with the intention of dealing with him after the Passover concluded (vs. 4). This was the third time Peter was put in prison. It threw the Church on its knees. “Prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto God for him” (vs. 5). It was their great refuge.
“Four quaternions of soldiers,” which is 16 men (vs. 4), guarded Peter with “two chains” (vs. 6). There were prison guards (“keepers”) there as well. Why all the security? It was probably because they had heard rumors of his previous escape (Acts 5:19) and this time they were going to make good and sure that he didn’t get out. But all this human arrangement was no match for one angel of the Lord. He came and shone a light in the prison and awoke Peter and brought him out. He was fast asleep, so much so, that the angel had to smite him on the side to wake him up! How could he sleep so soundly when he knew that the next day, he was going to face his judgment before the Jews and likely be executed as James was? It must have been because of his deep trust in the word the Lord said to him in John 21:18-19: “When thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldst not. This spake He, signifying by what death he should glorify God.” Since Peter was not old yet, he knew that this was not his time to die. When awakened, he was told by the angel to follow him, and they went out past the first and second wards, through the iron gate onto the street of the city. The experience was so amazing that for a moment he thought it was a dream.
It is of note that when Peter was set free, he was not told by the angel to go and speak in the temple to all the people, as in chapter 5:20. The reason was that the offer to have the Messiah and His kingdom (as promised in the writings of the Prophets) had been postponed to another day far in the future, and this because the nation had formally rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. Hence, it was all over for the nation at that time, and no more testimony to that end was being rendered to it. The only hope for Jews now was in heeding the gospel call and coming to Christ for salvation; this would make them part of the Church. But for Israel, their national hopes were now over, as far as present blessing is concerned.
Vss. 12-17—The incident at “the house of Mary” regarding the all-night prayer meeting, teaches us that God does not answer the saints’ prayer requests according to the sincerity of their faith, but according to the goodness of His heart. Being a larger house with a courtyard, many saints had gathered there to pray for Peter’s deliverance. But when the Lord granted them their request, and the evidence of it was standing at the gate of the courtyard, they didn’t believe it! When Rhoda told the brethren that Peter was at the gate, they said that she was “mad” (vs. 15). This shows that there was unbelief in their hearts, even though they were praying contrarywise. When Rhoda insisted that it was so, they then imagined that Herod had gone ahead and killed Peter, and that it was his “angel” (his disembodied spirit – Matt. 18:10) that she had heard. When they opened the door, they were “astonished” to find Peter standing there! (vs. 16) Faith would have expected him to be delivered, but they were surprised when it happened!
After Peter rehearsed the story of his miraculous escape, he told them to inform “James” and “the brethren” (vs. 17). He then passed on to “another place”—presumably to another gathering place in the city, for there were many such places. Mary’s house was large, but surely not large enough to hold the whole church in Jerusalem, which numbered in excess of 5000 people (Acts 4:4; 6:7; 9:31). The sad part about the whole account is that the soldiers, who were faultless, were put to death (vss. 18-19).
The account of the death of Herod is appended to the chapter (vss. 20-23). We might wonder why a piece of secular history would be included in this history of the Church, since it has nothing to do with the spread of the gospel. But it is inserted here to show us that God is mindful of His people passing through persecution, and caring for them as He does (1 Peter 5:6-11), He works behind the scenes (providentially) to deliver them from their persecutors when He sees fit. In this case, He removed Herod in the most decided way. In making a speech before the people, Herod blasphemously accepted the praise of men, as though he was God. Being an affront to God as it was, “the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost” (vs. 23). Many have had their bodies eaten by worms after they have died, but this man was eaten alive by worms! Josephus says that it was a slow and extremely painful death which took five days!
The events in this chapter strengthened the saints’ faith and encouraged them to pray more fervently (James 5:16). Not only were their prayers answered, in having Peter delivered from prison, but Herod himself—the Church’s great persecutor at the time—had been cut off in the most signal way! Note: there is no mention here that the saints prayed for his judgment. This is because imprecatory prayers are not in keeping with the spirit of Christianity. We pray for the blessing, not the judgment, of our persecutors (Luke 6:27-29). Thus, Christians pray for those in government that they would be favourable toward Christianity and allow believers to lead a godly life unmolested by opposers (1 Tim. 2:2). In the Great Tribulation, the Jewish remnant will call for judgment on their enemies, and it will be right for them to utter such imprecatory prayers, because the kingdom of the Messiah will be established by judgment (Isa. 26:9).
Consequent upon these positive and encouraging things ordered by the providence of God, the disciples waxed bold in their witness for the Lord, and the result was “the Word of God grew and multiplied” (vs. 24). In those days, nothing could hinder the progress of the Christian testimony. It was an exciting time to live.
Barnabas and Saul returned to Antioch after having delivered the monetary gift to the brethren in Jerusalem, bringing John Mark with them (vs. 25). This acts as a sequel to the missionary journeys of Paul in the next chapters, for Antioch would be the starting point of those journeys.