Boldness to Speak

My thought is not that we would disconnect from this book. A lot of people disconnect from this book, and there are many ways to disconnect. They basically say this, well, this is for the apostles, and since I'm not an apostle, none of this matters to me.

So they disconnect from it. Some people say, well, this is just the early church. This is way back 2,000 years ago.

We're living in different times. We hear a lot of that on the college campus. Homosexuality is not wrong.

It's for back then, but now, it's a different time. You need to understand that you... Here's what they say to me. Old life.

Old life. Here are kids. But I want to let you know here that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

This word doesn't change. So, the early church that we see in the book of Acts is the church that we ought to be in. All times have changed.

Word of God is not changing. Well, if you were here two weeks ago, you'll remember that we spent some time talking about the beginning of persecution that came to the early church. It starts in chapter 4, in verse number 1, down through verse number 3. It says, they begin to lay their hands on them and put them in hold, verse 3, unto the next day.

So, persecution is beginning in the early church. And the early church is facing some difficulty. It's a good message for today because some of our friends are facing persecution.

But I will assure you, I want you to know this. I do not believe in any way that we're waiting for persecution. If you wait until they come to that church door and knock it down and say, we're taking your Bibles, we're taking your liberty, and you're going to prison, you've waited way too long.

Persecution is available for everybody. The child of God will come slowly at us. So are you.

The peacemakers. Blessed are you. The immersional.

Blessed are you. You are poor in the spirit. And we say, well, that's all it is.

You don't have to wait for a blessing. Just go out and preach the gospel. Persecution is available.

Assault. Assault. I quoted this.

I said, you've been bit on, filed, many things. You've never been physically assaulted. Well, last week.

Things are getting more intense. Last week. Popper hit a robot.

No, he didn't hit back. He did not hit back. As a matter of fact, he said, hey, try this one now.

So persecution. Here in Acts chapter 4, the persecution begins. And it's not.

Let me emphasize this. And I'm going to speak boldly today. Because the message is somewhat bold.

But the persecution does not come because they're fellowshipping. Acts chapter 2, because they're in prayer. Acts chapter 2, because they're praising God.

Or even selling their goods and parting them to people who have need. You know, the authorities said, if you want to do your thing over there in the corner of Israel or in Jerusalem, just do your thing. We won't bother you.

You can do your fellowship and your prayer and your breaking of bread and all that stuff. No persecution. But it's simply because of verse number one of Acts 4. And as they spake unto the people.

The people are the lost. The priest and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them. Here's why they were upset.

Being grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they laid hands on them and put them in hold until the next day. And you're going to see this over and over in the book of Acts.

If you people would just stop speaking out publicly in Jesus' name, we'll let you go. Just be quiet. The other church said, no.

We're going to see Jesus. He cannot but speak the things that he has seen in us. We're not going to be quiet.

Well, then you're going to face trouble. We'll bring it on. Maybe.

We're going to see. It went from being in hold to being threatened, being beaten, to being in prison. And then finally we get to Acts 7. Awesome.

So, I've often said this. Church life, you shouldn't be persecuted here. If you stay in the church and stay in this, your church life, fellowship, prayer, breaking the bread, bearing our good, won't make it.

Or maybe someday in a wicked society, they'll come pounding on our doors and saying, Get out of here. You're all going to prison. But day to day, this is what's happening out there.

The world is persecuted. The church is persecuted. The world even changes its culture.

Pharisees and leaders who are unconverted are persecuting them. So, they're teaching. They're teaching the word of God in the public arena.

They're actually in the temple, in the public arena, as people come in and out of the temple. They're preaching and teaching the word of God. And that's one of the reasons, just to be blunt, we love body life.

We love body life. I love body life. I love Sundays.

I love fellowship. I love getting together. I like the idea of brotherly love and sharing with one another and singing together and praying together like we did this morning.

It's a wonderful thing. But 99 times out of 100, you're not going to be persecuted. You're going to stay inside the body.

But Christianity moves outside of the body. Your Christianity ought to have an expression within the body and an expression outside of the body. And once you get outside the body, that's where you're going to face persecution.

And I know we like comfort. We like ease. We don't like to be shamed.

We don't like to be persecuted. So for me to try to encourage you in that is like trying to get you to get a root canal. I mean, it's going to be good for you, that root canal, but I realize it's not an easy message.

And Jesus tried to communicate that to his disciples throughout his entire ministry, and they kept rejecting and rejecting and rejecting and rejecting it. Finally, on the road to Emmaus, the Lord takes these two guys and says, You fools have so hard to believe all that the prophet has spoken. Ought not Christ to have suffered and to rise again? Come on, open your eyes.

We don't want that suffering. We don't want it. So that's been my message over the years to many people.

I love body life, but Christianity goes outside the body. Also. And it's the world, the darkness, the heat and the light.

So let's look here. And I went down last time through verse number 12. I want to read verse 13 down through verse 22, and we'll take another big chunk here.

Let's read this and we'll go back and consider it. Now, when they saw the boldness, verse 13, of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled and they took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus. And beholding the man which was healed standing with them.

By the way, he must have gone along with them for a while. They could say nothing against it. We're in Acts chapter four.

But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, saying, What shall we do to these men? For that indeed a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all of them that dwell in Jerusalem. And we cannot deny it. But that it spread no further among the people.

Let us straightly threaten them. Now they've gotten them in hold. Now it's getting to a threat.

Let us straightly threaten them that they speak henceforth to no man in this name. Now that's the threat. Don't speak anymore.

They didn't even say don't do another miracle. They said don't speak anymore in this name. Verse 18.

And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. Now we're going to face that in America here soon enough. We're getting very close to it.

They're not going to allow us to speak in the name of Jesus Christ. In the public arena. Already now there's a lot of pressure.

Some countries you can't speak on certain subjects. That's going to expand, expand until you can't speak this thing. This book is going to become hate speech.

Very short order. You cannot speak. Verse 19.

Praise God for some boldness. But Peter and John answered and said unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than to God, judge. What do you guys think? For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them because of the people. For all men glorified God for that which was done. For the man was above 40 years old on whom this miracle of healing was shown.

So this story here. The healing of a lame man. And then they're called in.

Put in hold. They might have stayed a whole night. Hold maybe in a building somewhere.

Doesn't seem to be the prison. And then they're threatened. Don't do this anymore.

Don't speak in the name of Jesus anymore. And they let you go. I tell you what.

You do it again, you're in trouble. So now Peter leaves. We'll probably pick up next week.

They go back to the church for the prayer meeting. I love this prayer meeting so much. Let's look at these verses this morning.

Let's pray. We'll talk about this passage. Heavenly Father, we submit ourselves to the authority of the word of God.

And Lord, may you change our life. Change our way we do things. Lord, that we can truly be a new testament church.

Lord, speak to our hearts. May this church hear what the spirit of God is saying to the church through the word of Jesus. Well, here in verse 13 and 14, there's some amazing comments that the world makes about Peter and John.

Now, when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, that means these are Galileans. They've not gone to our schools. They're not educated.

They're old fishermen. And yet they're speaking up with such authority and wisdom. We can't figure this out.

They should be intimidated by us educated people. They marveled and they took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus. Now, you think about that.

This is the way Jesus behaved himself. This is the way that Jesus walked. And we're seeing the life of Jesus in these two men.

And these two men must have spent time with that Jesus fellow. Now, that tells you how Jesus carried himself. He spake as one having authority and not as a scribe.

He spake boldly. And I'd like to talk a little bit about boldness. I think some of us have a wrong idea of what boldness is.

We read about boldness here in the Bible. But if you look up the word boldness, it has a number of different definitions. It means this.

The courage to speak. Confidence in what you believe in in the face of persecution. The absence of fear.

Daring to do something terrible or difficult. You ever seen someone, you know, they did something and you said, Wow, that person has boldness. Something very difficult, they just walk right into it and stand and speak or speak up.

So, the courage to speak. But I like this definition here. The confidence in what you believe in the face of persecution.

Peter and John had great confidence. I am convinced that Jesus is the Christ. And he commanded us to go and preach the gospel starting in Jerusalem.

And I'm going to obey God rather than men. This confidence is what boldness is. And so, Christ-likeness is boldness.

They said these people have been with Jesus. Look at how they're acting. They're acting with boldness.

So, when you think about what is Christ-likeness, one aspect of that ought to be boldness. Oh, to be like me, blessed Redeemer, the song says, but I don't think it mentions speaking up boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. Boy, I'm sure something like this is a boldness.

Proverbs 28.1 says, The wicked flee when no man pursueth, but the righteous are bold as a lion. You think about a lion as it walks through the jungle. The lion has confidence.

The lion is not going and looking around and shrinking and wondering and hiding. The lion is walking through with ease and with comfort. He has a full assurance.

He's not afraid of anything. And he is bold as a lion. Other animals who are maybe afraid of the lion, they're always on the lookout.

Always afraid. The lion, running into their hole. Hiding.

A lion. A lion. They're out walking.

They're not afraid of anyone. The righteous are to be as bold as a lion. If you're always fleeing, the Scripture says, The wicked flee when no man pursueth.

Because they hear a little step somewhere and they're running for cover. But the righteous are bold as a lion. And Brother Eli mentioned it this morning.

You know that the righteous have sin in their life or they live in sin. Their tendency is to run into the hole. And to hide.

And when persecution gets more intense, and you know, down in Haiti, the righteous are bold. I trust that the young people and the adults there are being as bold as a lion. He can kill our body.

He can't kill our soul. So this is boldness. That confidence.

Confidence in eternal life. I remember the story of John R. Rice. He was a famous Baptist preacher.

Someone came into his office one day and pointed a gun at him and said, I will kill you. John R. Rice looked at him and said, You can't threaten me with heaven. That's boldness.

You can't threaten me with heaven. You're going to shoot me. I don't care.

I'm going to go to heaven. What threat is that? So that confidence to know that I'm a child of God, I'm going to heaven, allows us to be or have some boldness in our testimony. I want to look at a couple of examples.

You don't have to turn there. I'll read a couple of examples of boldness here in the New Testament to give you a feel for what boldness is. In Mark chapter 15, it says this, And now when the evening was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, an honorable counselor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came in and went boldly unto Pilate and craved the body of Jesus.

Here is Jesus, considered by most a criminal, a false prophet, ridiculed and laughed at on the cross. The body is now taken down. It's in Pilate's control.

And here comes Joseph of Arimathea. He walks into the place where the body is, where the authorities are, and he says, I want the body. I want the body.

Yeah, I want that. Everyone else is fleeing and nobody wants to associate it with Jesus. Joseph says, I want the body.

That's, the Bible calls it, boldness. Standing up for the Lord, being confident in what you believe and what you speak. Here's another example of Jesus in John chapter 7. Just to give you an idea of some of the biblical examples of boldness.

Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he whom they seek to kill? But lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. It's amazing. Here these people are watching and they think, Isn't this the guy that they want to kill? And yet he is speaking boldly to them.

That's Jesus. And we pray for boldness. I don't care if they kill me.

I want you to know this. God so loved the world, he gave the world something for you. Speaking boldly in the face of opposition.

Speaking confidently in the face of threats. Let's go to the church. A couple of examples.

Philippians chapter 1, verse 20. Let me read to you this one. It says this.

According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed. By the way, the opposite of boldness is shame. I don't want to be ashamed of the Lord in any way.

I don't want to be in that little cage over here and not stand up for the truth and shrink back in my little cage of fear. That in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death. That's this attitude of, I don't care if I die or live.

I'm going to speak and stand for the truth. God forbid that I should be ashamed of Jesus. Here's another example.

One more I'll give you. There's many of them in the New Testament. Ephesians here, chapter number 6, talking about that armor.

At the end of the discourse on the armor, he says that for me that utterance may be given unto me that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel. That mouth being bold, for which I am an ambassador in bonds, that therein I may speak boldly as I ought to speak. And I think every Christian ought to speak boldly.

We ought to have confidence in what we believe. Thus saith the Lord. And here's the truth.

I believe I was speaking in love. Bold doesn't mean loud, ladies. You can speak boldly, you can speak quietly.

But speak with a quiet assurance. This is the truth, and I'm not backing down on it. So boldness.

And so you see this kind of boldness here in the face of great opposition. And I want to read this passage here, this verse is here in verse 29. Look down to Acts 4, verse 29.

They're in this prayer meeting, and they go to their church house, and they say, these people are threatening us that we cannot speak anymore. And here's the heart of the early church, and here's where God shakes the building. Verse 29 of Acts 4, And now, Lord, behold their threatenings, and grant unto thy servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word, by stretching forth thine hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.

And when they had prayed, the place was shaken, where they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. Now, God, these people are threatening us with prison. They're threatening us with scourging.

They're threatening us with beatings. Lord, our prayer is not to deliver us from those things. That's interesting, isn't it? Lord, deliver us from all that.

No, their prayer is, give us boldness in the midst of this great affliction. You know, why don't God shake the building? Maybe we ought to have some more bold people who are willing to say, in the face of opposition, I'm going to speak the truth. Why? No, God is into that.

He's into boldness in the face of opposition. And I want to throw this out because I always have to keep knocking down the lies that some of you have received throughout your Christian life. There's a lot of lies.

The devil is lying. He's a father of it. But I want you to notice here in verse number 31, And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, and they were, what's the next word? All.

They were all, there was 120 of them at least, but they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. So it's a whole church thing. It's not just a few.

It's God wants to fill us all. That's why he says it. I'll pour out my spirit in that day, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy it.

And having a boldness about our life, all flesh he wants to pour out, not just apostles, not just people who are gifted, but that we can all speak the word of God with boldness. There's something interesting. He filled us with the Holy Ghost.

Why did he fill them with the Holy Ghost? Because I'm going to fill you with the Holy Ghost. So as they're praying, Lord, grant us boldness. Okay, you want boldness? Here comes the Holy Ghost, and I'm going to fill you with the Holy Ghost, and the Holy Ghost is going to give you the grace to speak boldly.

And so it's the Holy Ghost he gives them, and the Holy Ghost allows them to speak boldly. Some people say, I want to be filled with the Holy Ghost. Have you ever thought that maybe God's first reason to fill you with the Holy Ghost is to make you bold in your faith, bold in your speech? You say, I don't want to be bold in my speech.

I'll get in trouble. Well, maybe that's why we're not being filled with the Holy Ghost. God gave the fullness of the Holy Spirit as a tool for his word.

I'm going to give you boldness by filling you with the Holy Ghost, but I don't want to be bold. I don't want to speak for Jesus. I don't want to stand in the face of opposition and speak boldly.

Then I don't need to give you the Holy Ghost. Acts chapter 1. I've said this before, but I'll say it again here. In verse 8 it says, But you shall receive power, that's power, after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you, and you shall be witnesses.

And that word means a martyr. You shall go forth and witness of me and suffer for it. By the way, the whole book of Acts testifies of this.

And they begin to witness, and the sufferings come. And they say, Lord, we're going to have to suffer, it looks like, if we're going to keep witnessing. That's fine.

I've got the Holy Ghost for you. I'll fill you with the Holy Ghost. That's why I gave it to you, that you can be a witness and a martyr.

And they said, okay, fill him. And he filled him. His face was shaking.

Guess what they did? They went out and spoke boldly. So, this witness is supposed to bring suffering and persecution. But we need the grace of God to face it with honor and boldness.

So we need power. So you just stop and think about this. Here's the Lord.

He sees his church. And he says, listen, if they persecuted me, they'll persecute you. In John 15, if they hated me, they hated you.

So here you've got Peter, and he doesn't have the Holy Ghost on him. And he is shrinking before a little damsel girl when they're warming their hands at the fire before the cross. The Lord's saying, boy, this guy's not going to make it.

This guy needs some power. And John's probably the same boat. And all my disciples, they persecuted me and fled when things got tough.

They need some grace. Here's what we're going to do, fellas. You tarry in Jerusalem before you go out and preach because I know you're not going to make it.

You're going to get beat, jerked. No, you're going to give up. I've got news for you.

I've got some power for you. And that power is the Holy Spirit. You tarry in Jerusalem until you be endued with the power of the Lord.

I don't know what you think about. Here's where our disconnect is. What do you think about when you think about the day of Pentecost? The power on high coming down from the Lord.

What was it for? I don't know. Maybe you have New Year's. No, it's for making you bold in the face of suffering and opposition.

Because the Lord knows if you take that gospel into the ends of the earth, you're going to get a beating for it. You're going to get imprisoned. You're going to get reviled.

You're going to get all kinds of hatred and animosity coming towards you. So you need a lot of grace. I've got it ready for you.

You just tarry here. You just wait. I'm going to pour it out on you.

And when you get it, then you're going to go. As soon as you go, you're going to get your mercy. But you know what? I praise this.

I want you to stand up and say, bring it on. Where is the church? What is that? What's that again? Look. Oh, rejoice.

Oh, my. They rejoice. They're loving such.

I don't know what you think of when you think of the Holy Ghost coming down from the day of Pentecost. But I know God says, this is for you to endure great pain. And then the church is running from a Christian.

It makes no sense. That's where the disconnect takes place. What are we doing? Running from the very thing that God wants us to do and gives us all the fullness of the Spirit to accomplish.

We're heading in another direction. So the Holy Ghost is given primarily to the church to carry them through this great commission. To carry them through this great affliction.

So here is this Peter. Here the apostle, he shrinks from a damsel girl when he has not the power of the Holy Ghost. And now he's got the whole religious leadership standing before him and saying, listen, I'm threatening you.

If you speak any more in Jesus' name, we're going to scourge you and throw you in prison. And he says, well, what happened was, we got killed by the Holy Ghost. He said, I'm going slowly.

They're going to stop me. We need some more of those things. I'm going slowly.

Most people today are ashamed of me. And God never intended for us to be ashamed. If I was to be ashamed of him in that day, he'll be ashamed of you.

You know, we talk about all these things that we don't want to do. You know, this and this and this and these rules and regulations. But God forbid, some of us need to wake up to the reality that Jesus said, if you're ashamed of me and my words, in this sinful and adulterous generation, not in the church, out there in the world, if you can't proclaim my words to the lost world, I'll be ashamed of you when I come.

So, how many people are ashamed? How many people? How many are ashamed? Now, that's a serious matter. But you're not. That's pretty serious.

So, the Lord, as I told you in Matthew chapter 10, told those disciples, and they didn't even have... Well, he gives them a blessing back then. Sends you out to these cities in Israel, but they're going to persecute you from city to city. And he said, don't fear them.

Don't fear them. They might kill your body. I'll tell you what, you better fear God.

He's able to destroy your body and soul. That was spoken in the 12 disciples. I mean, Peter probably was there going, Fear of God.

You know, I believe this. I've been in the ministry for 30 years. I've seen people that come and go.

And I think a lot of people are discouraged. I would be discouraged. You're looking at this.

Just so disconnected. I just don't understand Christianity. And it's so discouraging I'm not growing.

And just like when Aaron was here, we had the tent meetings. He preached on the Holy Spirit. So many people responded.

And yet, do we know what we want the Holy Spirit for? You say, God, fill me. And God says, I will fill you if you'd be willing to take my word to this evil and adulterous generation. Well, I'm not willing to do that.

Well, then why do you want the fullness of the Spirit? If you want the fullness of the Spirit, then surrender to my will. And I think it's discouraging. Responding, Lord, I want to have the fullness of the Spirit.

And we walk away. Lord, I want another message. Lord, I want the fullness of the Spirit.

And here we walk away and we live in fear. It's like we're disconnected. So primarily, God gave the Spirit of God to help them with the grace to get through this great project of the Catholic Church.

And the sufferings. So if we would say, Lord, we're going to go out and take your word to the ends of the earth. And we're going to take a beating for it.

But God gives us the Spirit of the fullness of the Spirit to stand holding. The place might shake a little bit. There might be an earthquake.

But if you want the Holy Spirit to make you feel good, have joy in your heart, stay in your seat, it's probably not going to come. It's just beyond. I think the devil's soul in the Church of Pilate is evolving.

And people are discouraged. I just can't figure out this Christian thing. And they jump from church to church to church to church.

I just can't figure out. You're not connected. You're not connected to Christ.

You're not connected. You're disconnected from the acts of the apostles and the early church. Well, let's keep reading here.

This great boldness. Verse 14, And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. But when they had commanded them to go aside outside of the council, they conferred among themselves, saying, What shall we do to these men? For that indeed a notable miracle has been done by them.

It is manifest to all of them that dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. So miracles are accompanying. This is important.

They're accompanying the bold proclamation of the gospel. Miracles always followed the proclamation of the gospel. That's why in Mark chapter 16 it says, As they went forth and preached, the Lord worked with them, confirming the word with signs following.

By the way, those miracles, if you look at those facts, were outside the church. They were outside with the people. They passed out devils.

They spoke in new tongues to unbelievers. They healed unbelievers. The man there, Elisha, that Paul laid his hands on him, healed him.

These healings were signs. Again believing. Again confirming.

You say, where are the signs today? Well, where are the people out preaching? Yet to come. That's where you experience those things. We were in the state where Brother David got knocked in the face.

Shortly after that, we had a woman laying on the ground having an epileptic seizure. So, the demonic world manifests itself when you go forth. And you need the tools to, as the Bible says, these signs shall follow.

They'll cast out devils. They'll lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. And all these things, they'll speak with new tongues.

If anybody feeds them poison, people come and hand you water. Here, have some water. If you drink it, it's got poison in it.

It shall not harm you. That means you're out and about. You're out in this world trying to win lost people and bring the gospel to the ends of the earth.

I'll give you all these signs. I'll equip you. I'll fill you with hope.

E.W. Tozier, I have a book, Past Power. And he said, I've always used a good, the natural illustration. But he said this, miracles always follow the plow.

In other words, you go out there in the field in the spring and you plow the ground first. You do the work. Get out there and do the hard work.

And then the miracle will follow. The planting and the life. But you've got to plow.

You've got to get out there and work. And these people are working. They're going out and preaching.

Daily in the temple and in every house, they cease not to preach and to teach Jesus Christ. I mean, if you're going there, if you and I are dropped back 2,000 years ago, let's go visit Jerusalem. Let's go down to the temple.

Well, I guarantee you, the apostles and the early church, they're in the temple preaching. We go in there and look at the first Peter. You know, it used to be in Latin America where a street preacher or a preacher who's in a public marketplace is common nowadays.

The disconnect. Verse 17, but that it spread no further among the people. Let us greatly threaten them that they speak.

Now, this is the importance of speaking. That they speak henceforth to no man in this name. The threat.

It was they were in hold. Now they're being threatened. The persecution is going up a notch.

But they're threatened not to speak. People have said this to me. We're still waiting for the persecution.

I say, no, you're not. Look at all the persecution. Watch this God.

Speak. Speak. Go speak to the lost.

Don't tell them what Jesus said about adultery, about homosexuality, about lying and stealing. Go speak to them. Warn the wicked of his wicked way.

Go. So they told them. Do not speak.

Verse 18, they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. Now, right here is where the devil is concerned. I know some religions that say you shouldn't say.

Be quiet. That was somebody else's responsibility. That is such a lie.

But they were told. We're threatening you not to stop doing your miracles. Not to stop fellowshipping with the brotherhood.

Not to stop your prayers. Not to stop sharing your goods. Not to stop praising God.

You can do all that if you want. All are lost. The devil wants to keep his captive.

And Jesus is the one who is supposed to follow. Matthew. Luke chapter 14.

It says this. And to deliver captives. Picture this.

We're an army. We're supposed to take on our military guard. We're to war.

Out there is another military. They have captives. We go and fight with them to deliver captives.

Out of their hands. I was going to use the children's hustle. But I won't.

I've never had to use the children's hustle before. But you get to it one day. I was going to go and find me a Roman army outfit.

But I think it costs too much money. So you'll just pretend. The only pieces.

Chapter 6. Helps with all the armor. Helmet. Salvation.

Got a breastplate. Faith. Girdabout.

Truth. Loins. Has something else on it.

The feet. The whole thing is. Defend.

Defend. Defend. This is a defense.

Now, here's the way Christianity is right now. They stand up there and they talk about this armor that they have. And it's a beautiful armor.

And, you know, if you meet a soldier. And I've been to places where they have these soldiers. And they always look so cute.

And nice. Look at that helmet. And look at that shield.

And look at the shoes. That's how a soldier dresses. So we can look at that person.

Oh, they're in their garb. Most Christians are that way. Let's go look at that.

He's so cute. He's so nice. Look at the arm.

And look at the helmet. Look at the thing they have on. He's nice.

It's not about clothing. It's Christianity. He's nice.

They're nice people. Tell you what. The soldier's fine.

He's fine with soldiers. Caleb. The soldier does what? Look at that sword.

He loves the sword. The sword is good for the guy. The sword is good for the guy.

And that soldier shrugs that sword. He's a beautiful soldier. And all of a sudden, he's no longer a cute little soldier in his garment armor.

Now, all of a sudden, he's going to get some fighting. He gets fighting. And the devil and the world are going to bring out their ammunition.

And we've got a war going on. So, most Christians are just like that soldier, and they never bring the sword out and say, Thus saith the Lord. Here's what God says.

Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not murder. Thou shalt not steal.

Your homosexuality is sin. God thinks it's abomination. Oh, okay.

We're going to fight. You brought the sword out. We like to look at you in your garb.

You're a cute little soldier. But once you bring the sword out and start wielding the sword, then you're in trouble. And that's the problem with the church today.

We're walking around with all of our cute Roman soldier stuff on and wielding no sword. The world says, You're fine. We're fine.

We'll keep our captives. We'll go to your churches. Everything will be fine.

But these guys, they brought the sword out and said, Thus saith the Lord. We're going to go out and preach Jesus and wield the sword. And they say, Put that sword up or you're going to prison.

You can do whatever you want, your fellowships and all that stuff, but put the sword up. Or we're not going to have you. So that's what's happening here is the world is starting to be threatened by Christian soldiers who are actually wielding a sword.

So you want to get in a fight? Wield your sword. Why do you fight? Say, I don't want to be threatened. I don't want to be a prisoner.

I don't want to be martyred. I don't want to be ashamed. Then keep your sword in your sheath and take the risk of standing before the Lord Jesus someday and Him saying, Now what do you do with your sword? He said, I don't know.

Then deal with the consequences. Amen? If you're ashamed of me and my words in this sinful and adulterous generation, you're not going to take my word to them. I'll be ashamed of you.

So Peter here is not ashamed. He stands up for the truth and speaks out. So the early church is bringing swords into the public arena.

They're wielding them. And I think we ought to follow that example. It's a good example.

Keep reading. Verse 19. But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God.

Okay, God is watching this thing now. Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than to God judge you. Now you believe in God, you Pharisees and you Sadducees and you religious leaders.

Let me ask you this. God told us to go and preach the gospel. You're telling us to not do it.

Now which one do you think is right in the sight of God? Should we listen to you or should we listen to Him? I don't think they ever answered. Verse 20. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

I believe these people understood the force of the commandment to go into all the world and preach the gospel. I don't think the church sees that today as an issue. We talk about commandments.

We talk about obeying this one and that one and the other one. But individually, I have a responsibility as a child of God to take the gospel to my community. To my state.

To my city. And preach the gospel. They had a very clear vision.

They were on that hill. I saw them go up. He just told them to go and all the world preach the gospel.

Carry it in Jerusalem until you get the power. And endure the affliction. But you go.

They heard Him say it. And I think they knew that if they didn't go, they were going to miss the whole point. What Jesus was doing.

So they said, okay, we're going to go. And if we face persecution, we're going to say, I'm sorry. That's what He told us.

So they understood. Do you understand that? Do you feel like someday you're going to stand before God and give an account for commandments like head covering, forgiveness, and honesty, and preaching the gospel. I'm sure many people in this room have heard God say, I didn't think that.

I mean, all these other commandments are for me, but I didn't think that in this world. So the devil is lying to us. He's lying to many.

Many different reasonings we have in our minds about why we shouldn't. A lot of it is just due to the fact that I don't want to have to suffer. I don't like suffering.

I don't like suffering. One of the worst things you can have to a human being that really affects us more than anything else is for someone to shame. Shame.

Right? Nobody likes to be shamed. So Jesus said, maybe. Maybe.

He might have had a little loyalty for us. He saved others. Himself.

He cannot save. Come down off that cross and save yourself. Nobody wants to look bad.

Nobody wants to look ugly. It's a shame. He says, Father.

If he did that to save us, don't you think we could bear a little shame? By the way, if you're going to follow him, if you're going to pick up a cross and follow him, that includes the shame that he's doing. Don't feel it's a wrong thing for people to shame you. Actually, Jesus did a lot of shame.

But I know inside of each one of us, shame is so dreadful. You know, parents shouldn't shame their children. Young people shouldn't shame them.

Ridicule them. But you know, for the cause of Christ, we ought to be willing to suffer shame. As a matter of fact, they went away.

They're going to get a beating here in the next chapter. And they went away. It says they rejoicing that they were willing to suffer.

What's the next word? In other words, they're booed. Booed. Probably a lot of laughing and ridicule.

They went away happy. And we've got to suffer the same way too. Well, let me read to you one more verse and then I'll finish.

1 Peter chapter 4. So this is the same Peter that ran away from that little damsel girl while he was warming his hands by the fire the night of Jesus' betrayal. Here's what Peter learned. 1 Peter chapter 4 about suffering.

Beloved, think it not strange. This is not a strange thing. Not unusual.

Concerning the fiery trial which has surprised some of you and so some strange thing happened unto you. But rejoice, present joy again, in so much as you are partakers of Christ's suffering. You get to do the same thing he did.

That when his glory shall be revealed. You've got to keep this in mind. When he comes in all his glory, you may be glad also with exceeding joy.

You know those who suffered shame and who suffer shame today when Jesus comes and appears? Those who suffered shame today. I took a beating. I took spitting.

I took cursing. I took shame. I took a beating.

When he comes in all his glory, I'm going to be the happiest. You're going to be the happiest. I will keep reading here.

Here's an amazing verse. If you be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are you. I think a lot of Christians are missing out on a lot of joy.

Happy are you again. I mean, if you go out there and they shame you and beat you, happy are you. Say, Lord, I want some joy in my life.

I'm so depressed. Is this the way Christianity ought to be? Well, why don't you take up the cross and experience some of this joy? Not only in this life, but in the life to come. If you be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are you.

For the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. You need to tell me this. If the reproach comes from Christ, say, for the spirit of glory, that Holy Spirit is, rests upon you.

I want to experience the rest upon you. On your part, or on their part, he is evil spoken of. Lord, they speak evil.

But, on your part, here's the hard way to keep this in your life. On your part, he is good. What is the glory of God? Tell me what the glory of God is.

The cross, right? Also, the cross is the glory of God. And so that humiliation, that suffering, that persecution, the spitting, the reviling, brought great glory to God. And you follow in Jesus' steps.

You go forth and suffer. Following him, you also receive glory. On your part, he is glorified.

You know, I can see the Lord. There's my son down there on that cross. That brings me glory.

He is laying his life down for the salvation of souls. I am glorified in him. The name Jesus is resurrected.

He sits at the right hand of God and receives his children. Look at my son and daughter down there. They're following in your steps, Jesus.

They are suffering for communicating my word. They are willing to not be ashamed of my words in this evil and adulterous generation. I am glorified in them.

Just as the Son of God brought the Father glory, so can we. Then the next verse says, But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an adulterer. Or as a busybody in other men's matters.

I've got to know everything that's going on. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed. Don't be ashamed, but let him glorify God on this behalf.

For the time has come that judgment must begin at the house of God. And if it first begin at us, what shall the envy of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? If God gave his Son just to save us, we are saved by the blood of Jesus. And then people reject that.

Oh my. What shall the envy of them that obey not the gospel of God? If you're here today and you're not obeying the gospel of God, even if he doesn't deliver you. What shall the envy of them that obey not the gospel of God? The Lord went to such extreme to save the souls of man, and you reject that.

What shall the envy of them that obey not the gospel of God? Verse 19, and I'll finish with this. Wherefore, let him that suffers according to the will of God, commit the keeping of their souls to him in well-doing as unto a faithful creation. So those people down in Haiti right now who are suffering according to the will of God.

They're unhealthy people. They commit their souls unto him. The Lord keeps his soul in service.

If they kill him, they're coming home. If they don't kill him, we're going to go back out and serve him. One way or another.

And I think the Lord is happy with that. He's committed his soul, and now it's taken care of. So this is New Testament Christianity, and I like it.

I wish I could live more of it. I don't want to excuse myself for a minute. Well, I don't have time.

I'm not going to get through all these things. The Lord is pouring his Spirit upon all of us. Every one of you, take heart.

Let's do that as we go forward. But you have to get over this idea that you're going to suffer. And I've brought my cage here.

Many of you are in the cage. Aren't you afraid? I'm afraid of people laughing at me. Because I speak about Jesus.

We need to get out of that cage. It's doing good. So let's encourage one another.