The Plot Thickens

You can watch the service and message here.

Last week, Pastor Mark told us that Jesus arrived in Bethany and was met by Martha. There was sorrow, grief, and weeping and when Jesus went to the tomb where Lazarus lay, He wept too. There’s some talk about Jesus; second guessing. If He can open the eyes of a blind man, surely, He could have saved Lazarus. As Jesus stands in front of the stone closing the tomb where Lazarus was, He tells them to remove the stone. Martha protests by saying Lazarus would stink since it has been four days. When the stone is removed, Jesus commands Lazarus to come forth and he did. As one of Jesus’ greatest miracles ever unfolded before their very eyes, “Many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus had done.” This morning, we’ll see the Pharisees formulate a plan to stop Jesus.

Grab your Bible and look at John 11:47-57.

Everyone knows you need to meet together to hatch out a plan. “Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs.” The major players of the day get together to formulate a plan. The chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council. The members of this council make up what is known as the Sanhedrin. Although we have seen allusions to this body in John, this is the first time they are mentioned by name. These are the ruling leaders in Jerusalem and we’ve seen them before. In general, the Sanhedrin was made up of seventy leading priests of the day who were mostly Sadducees. Also in the group were the rabbinic scribes who were mostly Pharisees. The ruling high priest of the year made member 71. In general, this body exercised authority over the religious life of the Jews. They were under the jurisdiction of the Roman authorities and we’ll see that played out more as we move on. The Sanhedrin play a huge role in Acts. They had the decision-making power to affect change that should be for the good of the Jewish people.

A council is called together to discuss a matter of great importance. In the opening verse for today’s message, I am drawn to the phrase, “What are we doing?” It is better translated, “What should we do?” or “What are we to do?”  Your version may have it translated that way. We have a council meeting made up of the leading religious figures of the day and they get together to discuss this cataclysmic event that has everyone talking. You would think that having one of their people die and subsequently raised from the dead would be big news and bring great joy to the people. Verse 47 has the council already meeting together and this is the first thing that is said. “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs.” Of the 71 members of the council, we know of only one man that seems open to hearing about the true Jesus. We saw him first back in Chapter 3 and his name is Nicodemus. Later we’ll be introduced to Joseph of Arimathea (Jo. 19:38) and Gamaliel (Acts 5) who also looked favorably on Jesus. Jesus is performing many signs. Back in Jo. 2:11 we saw the beginning of His many signs when He turned water into wine. You would think the Sanhedrin would be happy about this. People are turning to Jesus and following the way. This is the way of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This is the way spoken of in the Old Testament. These signs are pointing to the truth of who Jesus really is: the long-awaited Messiah which the Sanhedrin were supposed to be looking forward to.

The reason for their concern is found in the chilling reason they admit with their own mouths: “If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” This is a power struggle. Jesus has arrived on the scene and has upset the status quo. He is doing things the Sanhedrin say He should not do. He is saying things the Sanhedrin say He cannot say. The Sanhedrin cannot counter what Jesus says so they do what people do when they have no regard for truth: they seek to censor. Back in the day, we learned how to handle disagreements. We could disagree and maintain a respectful and courteous demeanor. We knew how to listen. We were willing to hear differing viewpoints and come to a well thought out, educated conclusions based on fact. What we are experiencing today is an attack on the very fabric of God’s design for humanity. Whether it’s global warming, animal rights, green energy, abortion, or plastic straws, divisions have been created – either real or perceived – because of a position someone takes. Why do these divisions exist? It is the source of everything that is contrary to God and truth. It is the root of every single sin and that is pride. Pride says my way is better. My way is right. My truth is what matters.

The real reason the Sanhedrin are so concerned about Jesus is they don’t want to see people follow Him because it would mean less power for them. Remember, these are the religious experts of the day. The reason they are so strongly opposed to Jesus is He did not come as they expected the Messiah to come. Even though He spoke as One who is in intimate fellowship with God and even claimed to be God, they could not see past their own misguided view of truth. The Sanhedrin reasoned if they let Jesus continue on this path unchecked, they would lose everything they had: position, power, prestige, and authority. This council was not as much a religious authority as they were a political authority. You’ve seen this same thing in today’s political arena. Elected officials that are supposed to represent the will of the people often ignore those that elected them. They’re unwilling to go against others even if it’s the will of the people. What’s funny is that in our system, if elected officials don’t do the will of the people, they’re supposed to be voted out.

The Sanhedrin had the same fear today’s political leaders have: loss of position, power, prestige, and authority. What we fail to realize is the reason for this. It comes down to the responsibility of the church and those that make up the church. The church’s primary mission is found in Matt. 28:19-20 that commands us to, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” This is a two-step process. Baptize: this refers to presenting the Gospel message to people we come in contact with. Once people make the decision to accept the free gift of salvation, you teach them all that Jesus has commanded. This is where we have dropped the ball and this is one of the reasons society is where it is. The church is supposed to shape society, not the other way around. But when the people who profess a relationship with God through the door that is Jesus Christ look, act, and think no differently than the world, we have a big problem. Church leadership has a role to play in that, but at best, we have you with us about 5.5 hours in the week if you participate in Sunday School, corporate worship, CG on Monday and CG on Wednesday. There are 168 hours in the week. That’s just over 3% of your time. To put this in perspective, American spends an average of five hours 16 minutes on leisure activities including watching TV, exercising, and shopping – 21 % of our time. Included in that as an average of 11 minutes per day reading.

If the church would function as the church should, we would see the world around us change. We must make Jesus the focus and not the building. We must challenge people with the truth of Jesus and allow Him to be the force for change. We must carefully and intentionally move people from a salvation experience to an intentional daily walk with Christ. We do this in every other facet of life. We start with simple concepts and build on those. You cannot master complex concepts or tasks until you’ve mastered the fundamentals. We want to know the mysteries of God, but haven’t taken the time to know who Jesus is. We want to have some platform where people listen to us, but aren’t willing to take the time to listen to what God is telling us. The church needs to lead the way in helping people grow into who Christ wants them to be. Sometimes we can be like the Sanhedrin. We get jealous. That church has more people than we do. That youth group is stealing our kids. We lose sight of the big picture. the Sanhedrin were jealous and threatened by Jesus. Remember, they did not recognize Jesus as Messiah, didn’t acknowledge His teaching as from God, and thought Him to be at best a magician leading people astray, or at worst, the devil incarnate. In their zeal to maintain their position, they missed the Messiah.

As the Sanhedrin discussed this matter, Caiaphas the high priest says, “You know nothing at all, nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” Caiaphas served as high priest from A.D. 18-36. He reasoned that Jesus had to die if Israel was to remain in Rome’s favor. The Sanhedrin just concluded that if Jesus continued on and gained more favor, the Romans would take away their nation. How would that happen? How did the Roman Empire expand? By force. John provides some clarification by saying, “Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation.” Caiaphas was right, Jesus had to die for the nation and die for all. This is an example of God using what He will to accomplish His will. John is saying that Caiaphas’ words were not from him. He didn’t come up with them on his own, but had to be directed by the power of God to say what he said. What Caiaphas seems oblivious to is that his words foreshadow what is to come regarding Jesus. It is true that Jesus must die for an entire nation and to gather all the children of God. But not in the manner Caiaphas means. Caiaphas thinks Jesus has to die to maintain the status quo of power the Sanhedrin have and to preserve the nation in which they are ruling. John means something far more eternal in referencing Jesus’ death.

The last part of Caiaphas’s prophesy says, “and not the for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.” Not all of God’s children are in Jerusalem. They’re all over the earth. Remember the other sheep that are not in the sheepfold that Jesus spoke of in Jo. 10:16. Ps. 106:47 says, “Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the nations, to give thanks to Your holy name and glory in Your praise.” Is. 43:5-6 says, “Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!” And to the south, “Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth.” Jer. 23:3 says, “Then I Myself will gather the remnant of My flock out of al the countries where I have driven them and bring them back to their pasture, and they will be fruitful and multiply.” Jesus will gather His children together. “So from that day on they planned to kill Him.” We knew where this was going. How are they going to do this? What’s the plan? Matt. 26:4 says, “They plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him.”

Now what? The loose plan has been established. Secretly seize Jesus and then kill Him. The Sanhedrin’s power would be maintained, Caiaphas would continue on as high priest, and all would be as it had been with Jesus out of the picture. While the Sanhedrin work out the details of the plan, Jesus makes a decision. “Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk publicly among the Jews, but went away from there to the country near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He stayed with the disciples.” Ephraim is about 12 miles northeast of Jerusalem. Jesus retreats to Ephraim, out of the reach of the Sanhedrin, at least for a time. While Jesus and His disciples spend quiet time in Ephraim, “Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves.”  Things are getting busy in Jerusalem as people from all over the countryside will make the journey prior to Passover.

As Passover approached, John gives us a peek into the one tracked mind of the Pharisees and says, “So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?” Will Passover give them an opportunity to seize Jesus? Will He come at all? Not leaving anything to chance, “Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him.” This reminds me of what was happening at the height of the pandemic. Hotlines were set up in some areas that people could call an 800 number and report illegal gatherings. They get the word out to report any sightings of Jesus so they could continue with their diabolical plot to kill Jesus.

Concerned over the rising popularity of Jesus and the message He carried, the Sanhedrin convened a special meeting to deal with what they viewed as a huge problem. If Jesus is not shut down, the Sanhedrin could lose all their power, something that causes them great concern. Unable to contain the growing popularity of Jesus, they decide the only thing to do is kill Him. As Chapter 11 comes to a close, we look forward to Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the chronological pace of this gospel picks up. There is still a long way to go and it keeps getting better and better.

The Green-Eyed Monster

Last week, Pastor Zane went over the characteristics of the early church. We saw some incredible signs and wonders being accomplished through the apostles. The people had such faith that they would carry the sick into the streets hoping that Peter’s shadow would pass over them which led to others bringing their sick and afflicted to the apostles so that they could be healed and people flocked to get closer. God was using the apostles to do incredible things, and He wants to use us to transform the world. This morning, we’ll see what happens when people in authority get jealous.

I encourage you to take the time and real our passage for today found in Acts 5:17-32.

We start with a very important word: but. Signs and wonders were taking place by the power of the Holy Spirit through the apostles. Sick people were healed; the afflicted were made unafflicted. The popularity of the apostles was growing and as people heard the message of the Gospel, they responded with decisions to follow Christ. The church was growing to the point that the number of people became multitudes, there were too many to count.

And then we see something that can plague any ministry leader. “The high priest rose up, along with all his associates (that is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with jealously.” And there it is. Jealousy is not always a bad thing. Divine jealousy is a single-minded pursuit of things that are holy. Ex. 20:5 speaks of God as a jealous God in the exclusivity of our worship. 2 Cor. 11:2 refers to jealousy in the exclusivity of the marriage relationship because you need that to make the marriage permanent. Not jealous because your spouse was talking to someone else or because they have a job. It’s jealousy over the importance of the marriage covenant. In modern English, jealousy is defined as a feeling or showing envy of someone or their achievements and advantages. In this context, jealousy is not good. In fact, I think I’ll paint with a broad brush and say that jealousy in ministry is rarely good. When we start looking at what others are doing for the Kingdom, or how many people they have, or how many salvations they experience, it can lead us to feel inadequate or somehow that we’re missing the mark. I’ve been there and it’s not a good place to visit. Your pastors regularly pray for other churches and pastors in our area. We must be Kingdom minded and not inwardly focused and that takes effort.

The high priest and all his associates were jealous of the apostles because of what was going on. They were filled with or consumed by jealousy. So, the high priest orders the apostles taken into custody and they were physically dragged to jail – again. Remember they were thrown in jail in 4:3. The next day, there was an inquisition as to what and why they were doing the things they were doing. Remember after the last encounter with the Council, they were, “commanded not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.” (Acts 4:18) Don’t forget the important conclusion from that story: the Sanhedrin that Pastor Mike spoke about: the Pharisees and the Sadducees found no fault in them and let them go – they didn’t do anything illegal, immoral, or unethical. We don’t know the exact time frame between that day and the day we’re talking about now, but it couldn’t be long. The Council was jealous of the success experienced by the apostles. Success is very difficult to define, especially in church. I’ve experienced this myself when I was seeking a job in ministry. Search committees wanted measurable means of success that they determined. The Sadducees were envious that people were responding in droves to the truth that the apostles were teaching and demonstrating in their lives and in the lives of countless individuals that responded to the message.

So, into jail they go with the intention of being tried the following day just like in Chapter 4. The Lord had something else in mind. The Spirit of God is moving mightily and things are happening that are inexplicable – they are by definition miracles: people healed, demons cast out, people selling stuff and giving to those in need. These miracles could only be attributed to the power of God. And He shows up again in the form of the angel of the Lord. The angel of the Lord, “Opened the gates of the prison, and taking them out he said, “Go, stand and speak to the people in the temple the whole message of this Life.” This isn’t just a great escape, this is miraculous! They were let out and were told something very specific: “Tell the whole message of life.” Keep doing what you’ve been doing; tell people about the resurrection, tell people about the transforming power of God, tell people how He dragged you from the miry clay, tell people how you’re a new creation, tell people how you’ve been redeemed, redeemed, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Don’t miss this! The apostles, “entered into the temple about daybreak and began to teach.” No prayer service, no consideration if they should do it again and risk being thrown in jail again – it’s already happened twice, they simply obeyed. The high priest sent his minions to get the apostles out of jail, but those guys find the apostles gone and the jail locked up tight as a drum with the guards in place totally unaware that the prisoners had been set free. The officers report back to the Council and tell them what they found inside the jail – nothing.

“Now when the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them as to what would come of this.” They didn’t understand how those guys weren’t still locked up. As they’re scratching their heads, someone comes in and says, “The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!” The Sanhedrin are not the kind of people that take too kindly to having their orders ignored. Back to the temple the captain and his officers go to do over what they did yesterday. Remember the captain is second in line after the high priest and is responsible for what happens in and around the temple. If you want something done right, do it yourself, right? Something different happens from the previous day, the captain and officers brought them back to the Council, “without violence (for they were afraid of the people, that they might be stoned).” Normally, the punishment for disobedience would be stoning and the captain probably wanted to make that happen, but the apostles were so popular that if they were harmed, the captain and his officers feared retribution from the crowd. Remember the Council was filled with jealously over these men of God.

Here comes the stand-off. The stand-off includes one of the most often misquoted and misused phrases in Scripture. The apostles are brought before the Council again to be questioned by the high priest. The high priest reminds them, “We gave you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” Remember in Peter’s first and second sermons, he placed responsibility for the death of Jesus on those he is standing in front of. Of course, the Council is responsible for Jesus’ death just as we are in the sense that we needed atonement for our sin. The difference is the Council thought their religiosity would save them. Their message was not received by the people. The message of the apostles was received by many people and the Council sought to shut that down once and for all.

After the high priest’s accusation, Peter and the apostles respond by saying, “We must obey God rather than men.” I want to spend some time here to clear up this phrase. I have heard this used as justification for civil disobedience, for not submitting to a husband, for trying to dominate a wife, and for beating children. I’ve heard it used to justify witnessing for Christ on the job and not working. I heard it used as a legalistic proof text for anything and everything church related. What Peter says has nothing to do with any of that. If we are to take 2 Tim. 2:15 to heart, and we should, then we must understand what is happening in the context of the verse you’re looking at. I think we often get interpretation and application mixed up when studying scripture. Just to set the record straight, there are some things in Scripture you can read and understand the meaning in the context in which it was written. But there is great danger in carelessly handling the Word of God. It must be studied with the understanding of the human author, the intended audience, the time in history, the culture at the time, the language, and a host of other important aspects. Wait a minute, you’re thinking, that sounds a lot like work; I thought we’re supposed to sit back and enjoy so great a salvation! Let me put it in perspective. The average American spends just over 8 hours a day at work. That same guy spends almost 9 hours a day in personal care which includes sleeping, 2.5 hours a day in leisure pursuits, and just over an hour eating. The average American spends about 7.5 minutes a day in pursuit of religious activity. Hold on now, I’m not an average American, I am a Christian! How you spend your time reveals your priorities. When Jude says to, “Earnestly contend for the faith” in Jude 3, he means it. I cannot comprehend how people will work so hard at things of this world and casually pursue the things of eternity or perhaps even ignore them all together. If you find yourself without time to study God’s Word, to spend time with God, to pray, to fellowship with believers, to go to church, or to pursue God, you need to reevaluate your time.

“We must obey God rather than men.” Do you think God would tell us to, “Obey your leaders and submit to them,” (Heb. 13:17) yet not really mean it? Do think He would tell us, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God,” (Rom. 13:1) and not really mean every person? If you’re at work and your boss says you cannot witness on the job, consider what he is saying. Are you witnessing when you should be working? Do you have an attitude that you’re going to do whatever you want regardless of the authority? Do you think that God would have you sin no matter what you do? Obey God and sin against the authority. Obey the authority and sin against God. No win situation. If your boss really, really says you cannot mention God or Jesus at all, ever at work, find a different job. There are breaks that legally cannot restrict your conversation, but when your boss expects you to work, then be the very best worker you can be. Be a model employee. If you’re going to use the obey God card, you better know what God says and many, many times, people use that to justify their own desires.

Peter concludes his defense before the Council in vs. 30-32. He reiterates what he said the last time he was before these men. God had given these men the privilege and responsibility to carry the Gospel message to the people. The Council was attempting to stifle the message of hope the apostles carried to the people. What the apostles were doing was not illegal, but teaching about Christ did not line up with the goals of the Council. The message of hope carried people from the burden of religion to the freedom found in Christ.

I do not believe that God will put you in a situation where you must sin to honor Him. Believers absolutely should obey God, but it’s rarely an either-or situation. If you want to use the obedience card, you better play it consistently in every avenue of life. So, what happens next? What will become of the apostles? Will they be able to escape the clutches of the Sanhedrin? We’ll have to wait until next week to see what happens to these heroes of the faith.