"Why Opposition?" - a message from Acts 4

Hello friends,

Have you ever felt the persecution of people who are opposing Jesus?  Sometimes we take it personally, but the truth is, when we stand for Jesus we risk being persecuted, ridiculed, demeaned.  Yet, how can we remain silent when the world, and perhaps some misguided person in the church, oppose the things and ways of God.

Unbelievers, "christians", denominations, secular institutions all bear the same burden when they go against God's way - it is the burden of the guilty conscience.  So how are we, those seeking to please the Lord according to his Way, respond to the opposition?  Well, I trust and pray that this message will be a blessing to you.

Let me know what you think.  And check out the outline, below, as I think it will be helpful as you listen.

Thank you for sharing God's message to those who might need it.  - Kirk McCormick

“Why Opposition” – Part 2

Acts 4:13-35

Why does the world have such a strong reaction to or rejection when Jesus is mentioned?

Or why do they try to demean him by calling him just a prophet (Islam), or denying his eternal divinity (Mormonism, Jehovah Witnesses), or reducing his name to a swear word?

** We should remember…Jesus predicted the world’s response to US because we belong to Him.

John 15:18 - “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.”

John 15:20b – “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.”

John 16:33 – “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Key Verse #1: Acts 4:14

“But since they could see the man who had been healed

standing there with them, there was nothing they could say.”

“Nothing they could say”… so why did they speak?

Quote: “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and

remove all doubt.”

…well…the Sanhedrin left no doubt.

Key Verse #2 – Acts 4:20

“For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen

and heard.”

Point: The church is a counter-culture powerhouse that is sometimes called to civil disobedience…

…that we accomplish through gracious confrontation.

Socrates once said to the Greek authorities, “I shall obey God rather than you.”

Key Verse #3 – Acts 4:24

“When they heard this, they raised their voices together

in prayer to God.”

How to Overcome those who Oppose Jesus?

1.  Through the Support of the Body

"When they heard this, they raised their voices together..."

2. Through Prayer

“When they heard this, they raised their voices together

in prayer..."

3.  Seeking God’s Intervention

“Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”  (Acts 4:29-30)