Commentary on Acts 5:33-42

By Bob Myhan

³³ When they heard this, they were furious and plotted to kill them.

More than likely, what made the council furious was the fact that the apostles were not “quaking in their sandals” after being “taken to task” by the council. Not only had Peter and John ignored the council’s command but either they had not conveyed the command to the others or all twelve were in blatant disobedience.

Whereas Peter had once been the unofficial spokesman for the group they now speak as one. The clear implication of the apostles’ statement in verse 29 is that the council does not speak for God. Not only so but the apostles clearly considered the council to be in opposition to God for they claimed God had undone the crime of the council. Again, the council had just recently dealt with Jesus for publicly flaunting their authority; now there were twelve who were doing so. The only “solution” that occurred to them was that which they had decided on before – kill the upstarts.

³⁴ Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. ³⁵ And he said to them: "Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men.

Paul had been “brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel” (Acts 22:3). Whether as a result of this man’s instruction or in spite of it, Paul had developed a deep seated hatred for the Way of Christ – such that he “persecuted this Way to death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.” (Acts 22:4)

While many have praised Gamaliel for his “sage” advice, it seems to this writer that he was not a man of conviction. If he gave this same advice to Paul, it was hardly followed by the then future apostle.

³⁶ For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. ³⁷ After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. ³⁸ And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; ³⁹  but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it--lest you even be found to fight against God."

Gamaliel bases his advice on anecdotal evidence, at best. He refers to two cases where the death of a leader resulted in the death of the leader’s cause. Perhaps this was all the evidence available to Gamaliel at the time but history has proven him wrong. Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism and Mormonism have all endured for centuries (or one-and-half centuries, in the case of Mormonism). They were all “of men” and have not “come to nothing.”

Zechariah had said, "Strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.” (Zech. 13:7) Jesus said this prophecy was about to be fulfilled on the night of His arrest. (Matt. 26:31) But He also implied that they would regroup after His resurrection. (Matt. 26:32) Of course, the last half of Gamaliel’s statement was true. Jesus Himself had said as much.

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. (Matt. 16:13-18)

⁴⁰ And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

This action hardly shows objectivity and fairness on the part of the council members. It should be remembered that, a few days earlier, they could not deny that a miracle had been done by Peter and John. (4:15-16) This was conclusive proof that the apostles were led by the Spirit of God, as they had claimed. (5:32)

The council seemed to think this beating would deter the apostles from further preaching out of fear that the next incident would be punished by death.

⁴¹ So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.

This beating—and the accompanying attitude of the apostles—provides us with an occasion to discuss one definition of a Christian. Let us consider the third passage wherein the name is used.

If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. (1 Peter 4:14-16)

From this passage we may conclude that a Christian is one who is not ashamed. In other passages we learn a Christian is not ashamed to suffer. Suffering has been an unavoidable fact of life almost from the beginning; it is all about us. Some suffering is the result of our foolish, sinful living. But some suffering is the indirect consequence of desiring “to live godly in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim. 3:12)

Further, a Christian is not ashamed “of the Lord or of the Lord’s words.” (Mark 8:38) He is not ashamed of the gospel. (Romans 1:16) Nor is he ashamed to be in a minority. (John 6:66-69) He is not ashamed to give a defense of his hope when asked. (1 Peter 3:13-16) Lastly, he is not ashamed to glorify God in body and spirit (1 Cor. 6:20), in bearing fruit (John 15:8), in ministering (1 Peter 4:11) and in everything that he does. (1 Cor. 10:31)

⁴² And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

In spite of the directive issued by the council with the implied threat of death, the twelve continued to obey God and disobey the council. Like so many who preceded them and so many who would follow, “they did not love their lives to the death.” (Rev. 12:11)

(To be continued)

Benevolence and Relief (Part 10)

By Bob Myhan

Many of the churches of the apostolic age were plagued with Judaizing teachers—pseudo-Christians who were try to make of the Lord’s body nothing more than another Jewish sect. While the epistle to the Hebrews was written to stave off further apostasy of Jewish Christians who were going back to the Law of Moses and the support of the Levitical priesthood, Galatians was written to bring to a halt the acceptance of a perverted gospel—an amalgamation of the Old Testament and New Testament. The Judaizers were teaching that Gentile males could not be saved unless they committed themselves and their wives to the keeping of the Law of Moses, including physical circumcision.

In chapter four Paul uses an incident from the lives of Abraham and Sarah as an allegory.

²¹ Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law?

With this introductory statement, he implicitly affirms that Genesis was indeed a part of the law, something more and more members of the Lord’s body are now denying.

²² For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman.

This was a historic fact. It is not the case that the incident itself was merely allegorical.

²³ But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, ²⁴ which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar-- ²⁵ for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children-- ²⁶ but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all. ²⁷ For it is written: "Rejoice, O barren, You who do not bear! Break forth and shout, You who are not in labor! For the desolate has many more children Than she who has a husband."

Paul uses the two sons of Abraham, who had different mothers, to illustrate the difference between natural children and children of promise. Hagar and Ishmael represent, respectively, the covenant given at Mount Sinai and the physical descendants of Abraham. In contrast, Sarah and Isaac represent the New Covenant and Abraham’s spiritual descendants—the true heirs of the promise, In addition they represent the distinction between “Jerusalem that now is” and “the Jerusalem above.” The former was “in bondage with her children” but the latter was “free, which is the mother of us all.” In fulfillment of Isaiah 54:1, Sarah’s children had come to outnumber those of Hagar.

²⁸ Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. ²⁹ But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now. ³⁰ Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? "Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman." ³¹ So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free. (Gal. 4:21-31)

Christians, both Jew and Gentile, were the children of promise, as was Isaac. The unconverted Jews, on the other hand, were natural children. And, just as Ishmael had persecuted Isaac, those who were merely “born according to the flesh” were persecuting those “born according to the Spirit.” When Ishmael persecuted Isaac, Sarah implored Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael away. Although Abraham did not want to do this, God told him to obey his wife in this matter. Even so, in the first century the spiritual sons of Abraham were to “cast out the bondwoman and her son.”

This action would not involve the church treasury. Nor would any other action authorized in the epistle of Paul to the Galatians.

(To be continued)