ACTS 5
Acts
5:38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if
this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:Acts 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
https://youtu.be/e3_HgRrIVis Acts 5
https://ccoutreach87.files.wordpress.com/2017/03/3-16-17-acts-5.zip
ON VIDEO-
.Mark Scott
. Carolyn Vaughn
.Sandusky- Innocent?
.Church as community
.Some sold all
.Solomon’s porch
.Why Deacons?
.Why lie?
.CNN special- on Jesus- yeah- ‘fake news’
.Gift of miracles break forth- again
.Stop preaching Jesus!
.No way!
.Angels on assignment
.2nd Mile? [I think]
.Trump tweet
.Nixon- Watergate
.Media
.4ht estate
. ‘Judges can do no wrong’!
.Really?
.They once ruled Black people are ‘less than’ White people
NEW [past links-
verses below. I also added a note at the end of the entire post- about Trump]
Just a few notes-
I’ll add my commentary on this chapter below.
By this time in the early Christian movement- we have seen
how Peter and the apostles have already been warned not to preach anymore in
the name of Jesus.
And Peter continues to practice ‘civil disobedience’ and
obeys God- rather than men.
The council throws Peter into jail- and the angel of the
Lord sets him free-
Acts
5:17 Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is
the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation,Acts 5:18 And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
Acts 5:19 But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said,
He is told to go ‘preach the words of this life’.
Acts 5:20
Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
And sure enough- Peter goes back to the temple and preaches
Christ-
Acts 5:25
Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are
standing in the temple, and teaching the people.
When the religious leaders get word- they go and bring
Peter- gently- before their court-
Acts 5:26
Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for
they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
Peter once again preaches strongly ‘Jesus has been ordained
of God- he is the Messiah- and you killed him’-
Acts
5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
Yes- Peter’s pattern is rough.
But in previous experiences- the people ask ‘what shall we
do’?
This time they want to kill him-
Acts
5:33 When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay
them.
Why the difference now?
They also say ‘are you trying to hold us accountable for
this man’s Blood’-
Acts 5:28
Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name?
and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring
this man's blood upon us.
The Sadducees were the ruling sect at this time- the high
priest was a Sadducee-
Acts 5:17
Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the
sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation,
Despite the miracles and wonders still being done in the
name of Jesus- they are now worried about the actual injustice itself- done in
the criminal proceeding- that executed Christ.
We must remember that from the simple standpoint of the law-
there was corruption and criminality in the execution of Christ on the Cross.
We read in the gospels how they had false witnesses- and
even Pilate himself said Jesus was an innocent man-
59 Now the
chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against
Jesus, to put him to death;
60 But
found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the
last came two false witnesses,
Matt. 26
Now- imagine the pressure on those who were a part of this.
The Sadducees are actually worried about this preacher- this
simple fisherman- going around in the power of the Spirt- healing the sick- raising
the dead [later on in Acts] and then telling everyone ‘you killed an innocent
man’.
Yes- we as believers understand why this happened- he died for
us.
But from the religious leaders standpoint- they are thinking
‘yeah- we killed an innocent man- unjustly- and we hoped it would fade from the
scene- but if Peter keeps bringing it up- we too might be held accountable’.
I think that might be why these ‘hearers’ wanted to kill
Peter.
As the chapter closes- Gamaliel- a respected teacher of the
law- and having a famous student under him by the name of Saul- stands up and
saves the lives of Peter and his men.
The Pharisees did believe in the supernatural elements of
God.
The Sadducees did not.
And in the midst of this whole debate- they are not too
willing to side with the Sadducees- in the attack against this new sect-
Especially being this ‘new sect’ seems to be operating in
all of these supernatural gifts- which the Pharisees themselves believe in.
So yes- just like in our day- there are bias’s involved.
So Gamaliel tells the council ‘wait- before we do something
to these men that we might later regret- remember- there have been other movements-
and followers of those men.
Yet- they came to nothing in the end’-
Acts
5:34 Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a
doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put
the apostles forth a little space;Acts 5:35 And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men.
Acts 5:36 For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.
Acts 5:37 After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.
‘Therefore- if we simply leave this new movement alone- if
it’s not of God- it too will fail.
But if it is of God- well we don’t want to find ourselves
fighting against God- do we’?
Acts
5:38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if
this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:Acts 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
Wise advice indeed.
At the end of the chapter- they beat them- and let them go-
Acts 5:40
And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them,
they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them
go.
And the apostles praise God that they were found ‘worthy to
suffer shame for his name’-
Acts
5:41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they
were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
Ok- Those are some of the high points I hit on in today’s
video.
My old commentary on this chapter will cover the rest
[Below]
I encourage you to read thru the book of Acts- as well as
the other studies I’m currently doing.
And mediate on the Word of God.
Try and enter into the context of the time- see how there
were real dynamics going on- things that people today also deal with.
There were many things at play- that caused people to not
want to admit that Jesus was alive- and his disciples were going around proving
it by the miraculous signs that were being done.
Do we too have ulterior motives for why we- in our day- also
look for reasons to deny the message of Christ?
Are all atheists sincere in their unbelief?
Or are there other reasons why the deniers of Jesus-
actually deny him?
Is it because they also do want to give an account for their
actions? [sins]
Yes- for the Sadducees- if this Jesus was really alive- then
indeed- Peter was ‘bringing upon them the Blood of this innocent man’-
In more ways than one.
PAST LINKS [verses below]
Here are my past teachings that relate to today’s video
‘Acts 5’.
News link [stuff I mentioned about local politics]
(739) ACTS
5 – As the word spreads rapidly, all the surrounding towns bring the sick and
vexed to lie in the streets. Even the possibility of Peters shadow passing over
them for healing is hoped for. Notice the charismatic reality of this early
church. I do realize the many reasoning’s that intelligent people use to
explain the miracles as limited to the Apostolic period, but for the most part
we see a supernatural church in Acts as well as thru out the epistles and well
into the first few centuries of Christianity. The 20th century story
of Pentecostalism and the awakenings just prior, seem to show the reality of a
supernatural church existing alongside a theological one! There is much proof
to the orthodoxy and giftings of the church all thru out scripture and church
history. Peters shadow healed people, how can we explain this away? [p.s.
Phillip, who is not an Apostle, will also perform miracles. Just thru this in
for those who teach the Apostles were the only miracle workers!] Now, the
immediate response of the high priest and religious leaders was ‘if we don’t do
something about this, their movement will gain momentum’. They imprison Peter
and the Apostles. An angel appears and frees them and tells them ‘go back to
the temple and speak the words of this life’. When the authorities realize what
has happened they once again warn them about using Jesus name in their
ministry. They even say ‘do you intend to bring this mans blood upon us’. Basically
Peter says ‘yes’. Peter has been ‘putting it in their face’ ever since
Pentecost. He has blamed BOTH the nation of Israel and her leadership for the
death of Christ. He does not worry about offending them! During this time some
priests become believers. The majority of them do not. Why? What has happened
is common among movements. When an initial movement starts up, there is always
the question of ‘is it from God or not’? A few years back the church went thru
a renewal movement. Some referred to it as ‘the Toronto blessing’ ‘the laughing revival’ and
other names. You had those who were 100 % against it and those 100 % for it.
Who was right? Well, to a degree both of them! The point is there were some
things that were needing rebuke, but to throw it all out was wrong. The
defenders appealed to Jonathan Edwards’s writings and how during the first
great awakening he experienced many of the same manifestations as the Toronto movement. Edwards
left quite a bit of room for God being present in the religious emotions of the
people. The critics were offended that the revival guys were appealing to
Edwards and they would appeal to other stuff Edwards wrote in concern over the
religious affections. You also had the same manifestations a century later
under the second great awakening. The revivals in Kentucky had laughter and ‘strange barking’
and other weird stuff. The point is you always have a response to a religious
movement. Once the battle lines are drawn, it is very hard to switch sides. In
this chapter we see Gamaliel, a very respected Pharisee, stand up for the
Apostles and say ‘lets give them some room, others before them rose up and
gained a following, they all passed on. If this work is of God you can’t stop
it, if it’s of men it will fail’. There was some breaking thru to the religious
mind that was taking place in the elite religious thinkers of the day. After
all, Peter has been quoting Psalms and Joel in ways that were confounding the
religious thinkers. Don’t forget, Peter is an uneducated fisherman. Jesus
deposited some stuff in his men that was way beyond the basic understanding of
the day. Some ‘thinkers’ and intellectuals were humble enough to listen, most
were not!
[parts]
SUNDAY- 2-19-17
Fatima [2nd mile]
https://youtu.be/YcfnxpqOOo4 Fatima [2nd mile]
NOTE- I’m not sure if I will keep doing a daily journal type
post. As of today I hit most of the spots I wanted to catch on video. I hope to
do at least one more post walking over the G.W. bridge. But I did journal every
day for one week- and I’ll see how it goes from here.
ON VIDEO-
.Herodians
.2nd mile
.Sin unto death
I went to the Mass at Our Lady of Fatima- The church I went
to as a kid.
Turned the camera on right at the end- then walked down
Kennedy Blvd. - a walk I did many times as a kid.
I talked about some of the verses that the Priest shared-
and elaborated a bit on ‘the 2nd mile’.
I always liked that scripture- and compared it to the law
versus grace.
I also mentioned the passage from Corinthians about the body
being the temple of the Holy Spirit. All stuff I taught before- but felt it was
good to mention them again [past teaching- verses below]
PAST TEACHING [Stuff I taught before that relates- verses
below]
. The Jews had various responses to
the empires that ruled over them during various times.
Alexander the Great instituted
Hellenization- a sort of cultural compromise over the people he conquered.
They could keep their
religious/cultural roots- but would be subservient to Alexander and Greek rule.
Some Jewish people rejected any
compromise- we call them the Essenes- they moved out of town- so to speak, and
lived in what we refer to as the Qumran community.
This was a few centuries before
the time of Christ- and this was where the Dead Seas Scrolls were found in the
20th century.
A Bedouin boy was looking for his
goats- threw a rock in a cave right off the Dead Sea- and that’s how we found
the scrolls.
The scrolls might have been
hidden there by the Essenes-
Now- when my friends asked me
about them- I told them that it’s been a while since I read up on any of this-
but to the best of my memory the thing that made them significant was the fact
that they were very old manuscripts- from the bible- and they backed up what we
had had all along.
I did read up this week- and
basically had it right.
The earliest Hebrew manuscripts
of the Old Testament we had previously dated back to around 900- 1000 A.D.
These manuscripts went back about
1000 years earlier- and they contained portions from almost every book of the
Old testament- and some complete books.
The only book missing was Esther.
So- this was indeed a very
significant find for scholars.
But the Scrolls also contain some
of the writings from the Essenes themselves- things we never had before- so
this too was significant.
There were Jews at the time of
the first century who tried to ‘get along’ with Rome- and with the person in
charge of their region [one of the sons of Herod the Great at the time of
Christ].
These are referred to as
Herodian’s in the bible.
Some wanted a revolution to rid
Rome from Jerusalem- these were the Zealots [one of Jesus disciples was in this
group].
Some thought if they returned to
a legalistic obeisance of the law- that this would bring in a deliverer- like
the stories we read about in the Old testament- these were the Pharisees.
And some took more of a political
compromise- these were the Sadducees.
Eventually a war with Rome would
be fought [By the way- Josephus- the famous 1st century historian- fought on
the side of the Jews in the war- and after Jerusalem was sacked in A.D. 70- he
went to Rome and wrote his great works- thinking he would make a case for the
Jewish people with the Romans. This is why we have his works today- which are
very valuable to scholars].
NOTE- In time I’ll try and cover
how we ‘got our bibles’ [called the Canon- meaning Rule/ Measurement].
Frankly- there is a lot of
confusion in the general public about conspiracies [like the Catholic Church
had some type of plot to keep certain books out].
Or stories about how the Church
taught Mary Magdalene was a prostitute so they could discredit her.
Actually- we read in the gospels
that Jesus cast out ‘spirits’ from a woman who was probably living this type of
life-
And Jesus had a ministry to the
down and out- it is indeed possible that Mary was one of these women-
And if true- it would not demean
her in any way-
That’s how this tradition more
than likely developed- But- we don’t know for sure.
So a few years back the Church
officially said ‘we don’t know’.
Ok- Plot?
[parts]
VERSES-
Acts 5:1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife,
sold a possession,
Acts 5:2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being
privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.
Acts 5:3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine
heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
Acts 5:4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it
was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in
thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
Acts 5:5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up
the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
Acts 5:6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him
out, and buried him.
Acts 5:7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his
wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
Acts 5:8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the
land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
Acts 5:9 Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed
together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have
buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
Acts 5:10 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded
up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her
forth, buried her by her husband.
Acts 5:11 And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as
many as heard these things.
Acts 5:12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and
wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in
Solomon's porch.
Acts 5:13 And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but
the people magnified them.
Acts 5:14 And believers were the more added to the Lord,
multitudes both of men and women.)
Acts 5:15 Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the
streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of
Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.
Acts 5:16 There came also a multitude out of the cities round
about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with
unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
Acts 5:17 Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were
with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with
indignation,
Acts 5:18 And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in
the common prison.
Acts 5:19 But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison
doors, and brought them forth, and said,
Acts 5:20 Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the
words of this life.
Acts 5:21 And when they heard that, they entered into the temple
early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were
with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children
of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
Acts 5:22 But when the officers came, and found them not in the
prison, they returned and told,
Acts 5:23 Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety,
and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we
found no man within.
Acts 5:24 Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple
and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this
would grow.
Acts 5:25 Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men
whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.
Acts 5:26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought
them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been
stoned.
Acts 5:27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the
council: and the high priest asked them,
Acts 5:28 Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should
not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your
doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us.
Acts 5:29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We
ought to obey God rather than men.
Acts 5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and
hanged on a tree.
Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince
and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also
the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
Acts 5:33 When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and
took counsel to slay them.
Acts 5:34 Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee,
named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people,
and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space;
Acts 5:35 And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to
yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men.
Acts 5:36 For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to
be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves:
who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to
nought.
Acts 5:37 After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of
the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all,
even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.
Acts 5:38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let
them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
Acts 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply
ye be found even to fight against God.
Acts 5:40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the
apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the
name of Jesus, and let them go.
Acts 5:41 And they departed from the presence of the council,
rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
Acts 5:42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased
not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and
he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of
me.
In the mean time, when there were gathered together an
innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he
began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy.
LATE NOTE-
I made the video-
post- the other day. As I type this- the news broke that there were indeed
trump associates [campaign folk] who were ‘tapped’. Now- to some this is a
surprise- even in the media [though they are now saying ‘But Obama did not do
it’!]. Why should it no be a surprise?
Because the media already ‘leaked’ this fact. How? The
reason General Flynn stepped down- was because the media reported on an actual
fact- that he had contact with the Russians- and they knew this because our
intelligence agencies leaked the fact that they had actual surveillance on it.
Which is simply the fact they did it- at least with Flynn. It’s also possible
that they actually 'surveilled’ Trump. Ok- if this is true [which today some
reports in the media say it is] then Trump was partiality right. I only get
into this issue to simply show how we are manipulated. For instance- if the
congressional committee now has actual evidence that Trump- an/or- his team
were ‘surveilled’ then that’s the opposite of what the media has been
reporting. When director Comey [FBI] says ‘I have not seen any evidence’ that’s
actually political speak- meaning- it might be there- but I personally have not
‘seen it’. Now- I actually do not care about it- but this is a classic example
of media manipulation. Months ago- the media told us themselves- that Trump
associates were picked up thru surveillance [Flynn]. Probably thru FISA
warrants on Russians. But the head of the committee looking at it [Nunes] said
today that some of what he has now seen seems to show that some of the
surveillance had nothing to do with Russia- and it ‘puzzles’ him. Why should it
'puzzle’ anyone to think that intelligence people [CIA- FBI] could ‘do wrong’?
Why should it puzzle anyone that judges could do ‘wrong things’? Why should
anyone that reads/watches the news be surprised that Trump associates were
possibly ‘wire tapped’? Because the media themselves broke the story- when they
reported the leaks from the intelligence agencies months ago- that told us
this.
The New York Times ran an article a few weeks ago that said
people who work for the intelligence agencies gathered- and purposefully leaked
information about this. Yes- the New York Times reported this.
The main story is this- if in fact former intelligence
people both gathered- and leaked information on American citizens- info they
obtained- even if it was ‘incidental’- that is a crime.
There are now questions about ‘incidental’- meaning- did
people basically target Trump and his campaign - because they had the power to
do so?
It’s possible that they did.
Do our intelligence people ever lie about this?
Yes- James Clapper lied to congress- in public about NSA
data collection.
Yes- he lied- to congress- under oath.
How do we know this?
Because he later admitted it.
Part of ‘intelligence’ involves the collecting of data-
secretly.
And part of those who collect it- lie.
Because that’s part of so called ‘intelligence’ [I’m
referring to our agencies].
We find corruption in all humans- whether they be
presidents- media- Republicans- Democrats- it’s in ‘their nature’.
I see the ‘spin’- I just heard Susan Rice say ‘to my
knowledge no ORDERS were ever given to do this’ [ break the law].
Of course- no ORDERS are ever given [officially]. In the end- there probably were indeed former
‘Obama’ people- working for the agencies- that did wrong- illegal stuff.
That’s what trump said at the start.
Politics is brutal- and to think that intelligence officials
would never lie about it-
Well just ask James Clapper- he was the ‘head’- and he lied-
to congress.
As I watch the evening news [3-22-17] The ‘new spin’ is ‘How
dare the chairman [Nunes] reveal this to Trump’- Huh?
Yes- the story is not ‘wow- we found out that Trump- and his
people were surveilled’.
No- the story is ‘Trump is in collusion with the republican
chairman of the committee- yes- because the chairman told Trump about the
surveillance that was collected on him- incidentally’.
The spin never stops.
Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts-
re-post them on other sites as well as the site you read them on- Thanks-
John.#
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