From His Heart

Speaker 1

The effective Christian life requires courage. Do you have it? Here's Pastor Jeff Shreve.

Speaker 2

Hey. We're living in a time where people desperately need to stand up, stand up for Jesus. As soldiers of the cross, it's time that we speak the truth plainly and boldly.

It's time that we tell our neighbors and our friends and our loved ones who don't know Christ. If you die in the state you're in right now, you're going to go to hell forever and ever and ever. I'm not trying to be mean; I'm trying because I don't want you to go to hell. I want you to trust Christ and come to heaven with me.

People need to hear the truth. Real love, real from his heart.

Speaker 1

The motto for the French Foreign Legion says, "If I falter, push me on. If I stumble, pick me up. If I retreat, shoot me."

Hey. As Pastor Jeff Sreve will remind us today, from his heart, there is no retreat in the Lord's army. And there is no room for cowardice either. The message we are about to hear today is entitled "The Courage of a Good Soldier, Part 2." It is from Pastor Jeff's seven-lesson series, "Soldiers of the Cross."

In this lesson today, he'll continue sharing three insights about the courage of a good soldier. Insights that will promote greater courage in your heart and empower you to want to influence others for Christ in spite of opposition.

If you have one handy, now open your Bible to the book of Acts, chapter four, and get ready for a blessing. Let's find out about the courage of a good soldier.

Speaker 2

Now I want you to notice some insights in Acts chapter four about a courageous soldier in the Lord's army. Three insights.

Number one, courageous soldiers know that boldness has consequences. These guys got arrested. Well, why were they arrested? Because it says in verse two that they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And so they arrested him and they put him in jail until they could come the next day before the Sanhedrin. Listen. Why did they do that? Because they were preaching the truth. And you mark it down. The world will always be disturbed by the truth, whether it's the world of godless government or whether it's the world of self-righteous Judaism. As these men represented self-righteous Judaism, they're so far from what God wanted. The world will always be disturbed by the truth and the world will always try to intimidate the truth. Always try to intimidate the truth.

Now people are hearing Peter's sermon and they're responding, says verse four. But many of those who heard the message believed. And the number of the men came to be about 5,000. Wow. It's growing. And people are believing. And the religious leaders are getting very nervous because we thought we got rid of this Jesus guy when we crucified him, but now they're preaching in his name. And now people are responding. It says in verse five. And it came about on the next day that their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem. And Annas, the high priest, was there, and it says, and when they placed them in the center, they began to inquire, by what power or in what name have you done this?

So here is Peter and here is John against 71 of the elders of the people. The high court in Jerusalem, all the muckety mucks with the chief priest presiding, the same usual suspects and the same rotten people who tried their savior, the Lord Jesus. And they're trying to intimidate them. And here's the thing. Peter writes in 1 Peter, chapter 3, do not fear their intimidation and do not be troubled. They weren't afraid. They weren't intimidated. They knew that courageous soldiers, bold witnesses for Christ, there are going to be consequences. Okay, that's just part of the deal.

Second insight. Courageous soldiers stand up for Jesus. And when they had placed them in the center, they began to inquire, by what power or in what name have you done this? Oh, the name. You want to know the name? Let me tell you the name. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, stop right there. Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit. See, a courageous soldier. They trust the Lord for timely provision. Jesus had told those guys, when they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit.

Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit and he gives a response to them that has authority and power and conviction. See, a courageous soldier is gonna speak with authority, with power and with conviction. Why? Cause he's not speaking from himself. He's not speaking just what comes out of his mind. He's not speaking the word of the preacher. He's speaking the word of God. Then Peter, verse 8, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, rulers, people, if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ, The Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by this name, this man stands here before you in good health whom you crucified.

I mean, he's calling them out. They're preaching Jesus and the resurrection. And these guys knew about the resurrection from the soldiers. And he tells them God raised him from the dead by this name. This man stands here before you. They speak the truth with authority and with power and with conviction. And I love this. They make things crystal clear. Crystal clear. Watch verse 11. He, this Jesus, the Nazarene, he is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the very cornerstone.

Now, the job of a preacher and the job of any witness is not primarily to be clever, although there's nothing wrong with being clever. I mean, it's nice to be clever, but the job is to be clear. And Peter was like that. And I love that. Just very clear and very straightforward and doesn't pull any punches. And you might not like what he has to say, but you're not confused by what he has to say.

Well, it says in verse 13. Now, as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were marveling and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. The 70 plus 1, the Sanhedrin, all these muckety mucks. And you got two guys, uneducated and untrained. Uneducated agramatos, which means they're unlearned, unlettered, they are illiterate, that's what that word means. And untrained idiotes, from which we get the word idiot, they're idiotes. They're ignorant. These guys don't know anything. They had never. Where is their diploma? Where's their sheepskin? Who are they? These guys are fishermen. They're Galilean fishermen.

And they have confidence, they have boldness to speak plainly, and they recognize them as having been with Jesus because they talked just like Jesus did. Jesus spoke with authority, and these guys are speaking with authority. And they're just, wow. And then they see the guy that had been lame from birth. All of a sudden he's walking and leaping and praising God. He's exhibit A. And they're like, they had nothing to do, say, courageous soldiers. Authority, power and conviction. They make things crystal clear.

So it says in verse 15. And when they had ordered them to go outside, out of the council, they began to confer with one another, saying, what shall we do with these men? For the fact that a trustworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. Oh, we so want to deny it. But we can't deny it because they've already seen it, and everyone knows that it's true. Why would you want to deny it? Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. Many believed when he did that. But the religious elite, they got together to plan out Jesus' death. We can't let him go on like this. If we let him go on like this, everyone's going to believe. And we can't have that because we'll lose our place. You mark it down. Religion is all about turf. That's what religious people care about. Their turf, their area.

We want to deny it, but we can't deny it. Verse 17. But in order that it may not spread any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to any man in this name. And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or to teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said, whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge. For we cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard. They make things crystal clear. They obey God above all. You tell us Jewish supreme court not to speak anymore in the name of Jesus. We can't do that. We can't do that. We cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard.

Our Lord, the God who created the heavens and the earth, he has commissioned us to be his witnesses. You shall be my witnesses. Acts 1:8. Both in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria and even to the remotest parts of the earth. Well, we can't do what you say because we have to do what he says. We obey God above all else. Many know the name John Bunyan. John Bunyan was a Puritan preacher and a pastor of the 1600s in England. He was arrested in 1661 for the terrible, horrible crime of preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. He spent 12 years in prison, and he could have been released at any time if he would just agree and just sign off that he would not preach anymore in the name of Jesus. And he said this. I will stay in prison till the moss grows on my eyelids rather than disobey God.

You know, they told John MacArthur at Grace Community Church in California, Governor Newsom of California, you can't meet anymore because of COVID and you're gonna become a super spreader. And so no more meetings. Churches can't meet. Black Lives Matter can have their protests. That's okay, but churches can't meet. And John MacArthur and the elders of the church said, forget that. We're gonna meet. Cause Hebrews chapter 10 from God says, do not forsake the assembling of yourselves together, as is the habit. But they just said, we're not gonna do that. And so California and Governor Newsom came upon them, and they started to find them and they started to put the screws to them. And they told the police, go in there and break it up. And the police said, no, we like Pastor John and the church. We're not gonna do that. They're a friend to the police. And so they wouldn't come in there. And so they just kept worshiping.

There are a lot of other churches that complied real quick, oh, we don't wanna do anything because we're supposed to be good Christians, and the Bible says that we're not supposed to. And that's our authority telling us to do that. Well, the authority in Acts chapter four told Peter and John, don't preach anymore in the name of Jesus. And they said, whether it's right in the sight of God to obey you or to obey God, you be the judge. We cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard. John MacArthur. And they just kept on worshiping, and the church just kept on growing. And when the case was finally settled just a few months ago, the state of California had to pay Grace Community Church $400,000. We obey God above all.

Well, the Sanhedrin didn't like to hear that. But what could they do? They couldn't do anything. What were they on trial for? We healed a lame man, and we're speaking in the name of Jesus. And it says. And when they had threatened them further, verse 21, they let them go, finding no basis on which they might punish them on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened. For the man was more than 40 years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed, says in verse 23, what happened next? Discovery number three. Courageous soldiers lift their voices to the Lord.

They were released from their arrest, it says in verse 23. And when they had been released, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord. They had a prayer meeting and said, O Lord, it is you who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. Hey, you want to know something about prayer? This is a great prayer. You can learn from great prayers in the Bible. So this is a great prayer. And a great prayer starts with praise. They praise God. They don't come out and say, hey, let's all get together. Oh, God, we're in trouble. They're threatening us. What's gonna happen? This is not supposed to happen. We're getting persecuted. Oh, God, you're gonna have to intervene. No, they start off by praising God.

Lord, we appeal to you. You're the God who created heaven and earth. You're the God who is over everything. Caiaphas and Annas and all those religious leaders are about as big as a pimple on a flea comp. Start your prayers always with praise. And one of the things you'll find when you read in the Bible about prayers so much of the time, prayers are started by mentioning that God is the creator of heaven and earth, because that sets prayer in the right context. I'm praying to the God who is over it all. He sits as king at the flood. He sits as king forever. So start with praise.

And then remember what the Lord has said in your prayers. Pray back the word of God to him says in verse 25, who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said, and he quotes from Psalm 2. Why did the Gentiles rage? And the peoples devised futile things? The kings of the earth took their stand, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his Christ. For truly in this city they were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel. Whatever your hand and your purpose predestined to occur, they're quoting Scripture back to God.

See, sometimes we don't know what to pray. I'm not sure how to pray, and I don't know what to pray. Pray the word. God loves the word. Pray it back to him. Say, Lord, this is what you said. This is what you promised. I'm claiming what you have said. And then ask in faith for boldness and divine power. Boldness and divine power. I love this prayer. Cause here is the ask. And now, Lord, verse 29. Take note of their threats. They were being threatened. And grant that your bondservants, your doulosses, may speak your word with all confidence, with all boldness, while you extend your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of your Holy servant.

And you pray for boldness that we could do what? Speak your word boldly, with confidence. That word, with confidence. That word means frankness, bluntness, assurance. See, you're going to be clear. You're going to tell people this is the way it is. Confidence. I have assurance that what I'm saying is not coming from me. It's coming from the Lord. That's why I've told you before, if people get mad at what I say, take it up with God. I didn't write the book. I just preached the book. My job is to deliver the mail. Do you ever get mad at the mailman when you get a letter that you don't like? Well, how dare you, Mailman. Give it. I didn't write it. I delivered it. Take it up with the guy that wrote it.

Hey, you have a problem? Take it up with God. I didn't write the book. I'm just delivering the book. And I want to be faithful to deliver the book. Take note of their threats and grant that your bondservants may speak your word with all confidence. And when you pray that kind of prayer, and God, that your hand would be outstretched to do miracles, to authenticate the message, that's what the miracles were for. They authenticated the message. Adrian Rogers wrote a little book one time. It was called Believe in Miracles But Trust in Jesus. It's not about the miracles. The miracles are just a way to get you to hear the message, to put your faith and trust in.

And so they prayed that prayer, and they received an immediate answer. Boom. And when they had prayed verse 31, the place where they had gathered together was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. Hey, this is a prayer God longs to answer. And if you say, I don't have much courage, I don't have much boldness, I always waffle when somebody asks me in 1st Peter 3:15. Always being ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you to give an account of the hope that is in you. Yet with gentleness and reverence, pray what they pray. God, help me to speak your word with all confidence, with boldness. And the Lord says, if that's what you want, because that's definitely what I want. If that's what you want, I will do that for you.

And the place where they gathered was shaken. God says, that's right, God put an exclamation point on that. That's a good prayer. Amen. Here you go. Here you go. And they began to speak the word of God with great boldness. Courageous soldiers.

I'll close with this story. Many people who studied Church history know the name John Chrysostom. He wasn't called John Chrysostom until after his death. Chrysostom is kind of a nice moniker that was given to him posthumously. It means golden mouth. And it recognized that this guy John, this early church father John, who lived in the 300s and died in 407 AD was some kind of preacher. Well, he got in trouble with the Roman Emperor, as people do when they preach the truth. And he was preaching the truth. And so this Roman emperor named Archidaeus, he threatened banishment on John Chrysostom if he didn't stop preaching Christ.

And Chrysostom had a back and forth with the Emperor. And he said, this. You cannot banish me, for the world is my father's house. The emperor said, then I will slay you. And Chrysostom said, nay, you cannot slay me, for my life is hid with Christ in God. Then your treasures will be confiscated. That can't be. My treasures are all in heaven where no one can break in and steal. Then I will drive you from men and you will have no friends. You can't do that either. I have a friend in heaven who said, I will never leave you or forsake you. That is a man of courage. That is a man of boldness.

Now, I want to ask you, as you search your own heart, do you want to be that kind of a soldier? Hey. We're living in a time where people desperately need to stand up. Stand up for Jesus as soldiers of the cross. It's time that we speak the truth plainly and boldly. It's time that we tell our neighbors and our friends and our loved ones who don't know Christ. If you die in the state you're in right now, you're going to go to hell forever and ever and ever. I'm not trying to be mean. I'm trying to be helpful. Because I don't want you to go to hell. I want you to trust Christ and come to heaven with me. People need to hear the truth. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross. Who will stand up for Jesus?

Speaker 1

Perhaps you've been uncourageous in your stand for the Lord. Today would be a perfect time to surrender your entire will completely to Him and obey what you know He's calling you to be. If you've never asked Jesus to come into your heart and be the Lord and Savior of your life, this is the time for you to have that courage and do it. Today you can say, "God, here's my life. I turn from my sin and put my faith in You alone. I surrender it all and ask You to help me to be all that You've made me to be." If you'll do that from the most sincere part of your heart, God will come in, and you will be changed forever and for eternity.

We trust you'll go to fromisheart.org and click the "Why Jesus" link to find the helps that you need when you're getting started in your Christian life. Just go to fromisheart.org and click the "Why Jesus" link today.

You heard part two of the message, "The Courage of a Good Soldier." It's one of seven in Pastor Jeff's timely series, "Soldiers of the Cross," and in it, you'll learn just how much God wants you to be a good soldier. Pastor Jeff Shreve provides biblical encouragement to help you stand strong for Jesus with boldness and confidence. You can get the series on CDs, DVDs, USB flash drive, or digital download. The choice is yours.

Just make your gift of any amount to From His Heart this month, and we'll be happy to send it out to you. When we do send that out to you, we'll also send you the companion booklet, "The Lord's Army," both for your gift. When you call 866-40-BIBLE (866-40-BIBLE) or go online to fromhisheart.org, again with your gift today, we'll send you the series and the booklet.

Call 866-40-BIBLE or go to fromhisheart.org. Join Pastor Jeff next time when we'll again open up God's Word and share real truth, real love, and real hope. From His Heart.

Speaker 2

There is truth, There is hope that you always dream Love he can heal.

Speaker 1

From his heart is the listener supported Broadcast Ministry of Dr. Jeff Shreve speaking the truth in love to a lost and a hurting world.

Remember, no matter what, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.

Find out more at fromhisheart.org.