Praying for Peter (Acts 12:1-19)
This sermon was preached on 15/7/2012
Difficulties may come on a church from different sources. The closing verses of Acts 11 reveal that the church in Jerusalem was affected by a famine which was very severe, so severe that help was sent to it from the church in Antioch. During that time Herod decided that the Jerusalem church was a problem and he chose to persecute it. It is likely that the apostle James was publicly executed by him. This Herod was a nephew of the Herod who killed John the Baptist, but we can see that the same hatred of Christ’s church was found throughout the family.
Regarding the execution of James, Eusebius the early church historian mentions an interesting tradition: ‘And concerning this James, Clement, in the seventh book of his Hypotyposes, relates a story which is worthy of mention; telling it as he received it from those who had lived before him. He says that the one who led James to the judgment-seat, when he saw him bearing his testimony, was moved, and confessed that he was himself also a Christian. They were both therefore, he says, led away together; and on the way he begged James to forgive him. And he, after considering a little, said, Peace be with you, and kissed him. And thus they were both beheaded at the same time.’
The character of James – five details
We are not told why James was singled out for this fate. He is an apostle that we don’t know very much about apart from the fact that he was a brother of the apostle John. James was one of the first disciples of Jesus and he was the first of the apostles to be martyred for his faith. What is striking is how little Luke says about James’ last moments. We have no record of what he said, nor are we told where it took place. Nevertheless I want us to think about him briefly.
The first detail to note about James is that he was one of the favoured three who Jesus delighted to have with him. Several times in the Gospels we have incidents described in which Jesus showed special favour to Peter, James and John, such as in the home of Jairus, or on the Mount of Transfiguration, or in the Garden of Gethsemane. So James had the privilege of intimate communion with Jesus.
A second detail worth noting is the nickname that Jesus gave to James and John when he called them ‘the sons of thunder’ (Mark 3:17). I suspect they were given this name because they were ready to explode at any moment. One example of this is seen in Luke 9:54 which details that James and John wanted to call down fire from heaven on a Samaritan village that had refused to help Jesus and his disciples. Jesus rebuked them and told them that they did not realise the spirit they were expressing. Clearly the Saviour had a lot of work to do in John, but grace prevailed and he became a changed man. This is very encouraging for those of us who have similar faults.
A third detail that concerns James and John was their confidence. On one occasion, perhaps instigated by their mother, they asked Jesus if they could have the next two important places in his kingdom (Mark 10:35-37). ‘Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized...”’ We are not told what the two brothers thought of that prediction, but here is James discovering that what Jesus said would happen did take place. James was drinking out of that cup. But I am sure by that time he no longer lived by his self-confidence, but instead depended entirely on Jesus himself.
The fourth detail I would mention is James’ consecration. About fourteen years have passed since the ascension of Jesus. James had seen Jesus leave the earth and go to heaven and since then James had been devoted to his Master. His brother John would live a lot longer, for another five decades perhaps. But what matters is not the length of service, but the depth. James must have been regarded as devoted in order to be singled out by Herod as the one to be got rid of. Day after day, for fourteen years, James had served his Master.
The fifth detail to mention is James’ crown. I wonder did the apostle John think of his brother James when Jesus said to the church in Sardis in Revelation 2:10: ‘Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.’ Almost fifty years previously, James had received his crown, and he wears it still, and will do so forever.
The reaction to James’ death by the public encouraged Herod to continue his policy of eradicating the Christian church. Perhaps the Jews believed that the famine was an expression of divine judgement for tolerating the Christians. Whether they did or not, they were pleased to see a political attack on the leaders of the church. Herod, too, saw it as a way to remain popular, and in that regard politicians of all eras are the same. He decided to arrest Peter, although he must have had some concern about the strength of the church because he arranged for extra guards to be on duty to ensure that Peter was not rescued. Little did Herod realise where true power was located, but the Christians knew.
The calmness of Peter
What strikes me about the description of Peter in his cell is his calmness. There are two reasons why he should not have been calm. One is that he would probably be executed the next day and the other is that he received a visit from an angel. Why was Peter calm? I would suggest he was in such a state because he expected that the prediction of his death by Jesus was about to be fulfilled. Jesus had told Peter that the day would come when he would be put to death (John 21) and it is reasonable to assume that Peter would have imagined that now was the time of fulfilment. It is amazing the degree of calmness that comes from a focus that knows that Jesus is in control.
Then there is the rescue of Peter by the angel. We should note first that no political power can do anything against Christ’s church unless he allows it. To Herod’s eyes, Peter and James seemed equal prey. In heaven’s eyes, Herod would not be able to do anything against Peter. We should remember this reality at all times.
Further, we should also observe that often divine rescues come late in the day. It is almost as if the Lord waits until his opponents have done all they can. Here is Peter, chained and guarded, unable to move far. Any observer would deduce that he was finished, apart from heavenly observers. They would know that their Master plans his rescues in such a way that exalts his timing and exposes the weakness of his enemies. This is what happened here, and as it was then, so it is the case now. No power on earth can prevent God from doing what he wishes.
Moreover, we can see that the angel did not do for Peter what he could do for himself. Peter was told to dress himself and to walk. This is a very important divine principle. The Lord will not do for us what we should do ourselves. I think we would like him to do everything in evangelism and in providing spiritual company. Yet if it is within our power to provide it, we must perform it in order to know the Lord’s blessing. Of course, the things we cannot do, the Lord will do for us, similar to how he took care of loosening the chains and opening the prison door.
Peter must have been in a very sound sleep because he thought that he was still seeing a vision. But when he came to himself outside the prison, he resolved to go to where he knew his fellow Christians were.
The cry of the church
Luke tells us that many were gathered in the home of John Mark and his mother Mary. They were gathered together in order to pray. It is important to note that there is no criticism of the group that suggests they were marked by unbelief when they heard he was at the door. Were they praying only for Peter’s release? They would also have realised he might die. After all, James had been put to death. So they also would have been praying that Peter would have divine grace in order to give a good confession before Herod the next day, even if he was executed. I suspect that their comment that the person at the door was Peter’s angel suggests that they thought he was already dead. If that is the case, here is an example of the Lord giving more than one can ask or imagine in answer to prayer.
If they did not expect Peter to be released, why did they gather to pray for him? The answer to that question is that they loved him. Brotherly love always shows itself in meeting the needs of one another. There was no point in having a meeting to pray over other aspects of Peter’s life, but there was a need to pray about his current circumstances. All they could do was pray for him, and because they loved him they did.
Of course, they had many reasons to love him. Some of them would have been brought into the kingdom through his preaching of the gospel. All of them would have grown in their knowledge of the faith through his teaching. A few of them may have been personally counselled by him. Therefore, they met to pray for him.
This was a prayer meeting with one specific object – Peter. Spurgeon says on this aspect: ‘God grant that our churches may often turn their regular prayer-meetings into gatherings with a special object, for then they will become more real. Why not pray for a certain missionary, or some chosen district, or class of persons, or order of agencies? We should do well to turn the grand artillery of supplication against some special point of the enemy’s walls.’
Why did they gather together to pray for him? Perhaps it was because they felt the need of one another’s company. Yet it is far more likely that they met together because they had experienced the reality that communal prayer is far more likely to be answered than individual prayer. Individual prayer has its necessary place, but not at the expense of communal prayer. One of the cleverest tricks of the devil is to convince Christians that they can do without communal prayer. They can still do many things outwardly, but they will have lost out on spiritual power.
We can also see that the believers gathered together without their leaders. It is likely that James and the others had sought a place of safety for as long as Herod was on the rampage. Yet the absence of leaders did not result in the church not knowing what to do. It is a sad church that is so dominated by its leaders that it cannot arrange for spiritual activities without them. This church in Jerusalem was alert enough in a spiritual sense to engage in the basics of Christian discipleship whether or not their leaders were present.
Another important detail is seen in the response of Rhoda. Luke tells us that the reason she forgot to open the door to Peter was her joy at hearing his voice. I wonder did Rhoda tell this to Luke when he was making his researches into what had taken place. However Luke knew about it, joy should be the response to answered prayer. There are many aspects of church life that should bring joy – listening to God’s Word, singing his praise, meeting his people, witnessing to the Saviour. But if we don’t have the joy that comes from answered prayer, we are missing a vital component of joy.
The consequences of answered prayer
Once they realised that Peter was there, he had the opportunity of outlining what had happened. He gave all the credit to Jesus (the Lord in verse 17), another reminder that the Book of Acts is about the activities of King Jesus. How their faith in Jesus would be strengthened as they listened to what had happened! But if they had not been together, they would have missed out and only received the details second hand.
There is one more detail to note in connection to answered prayer. When the Lord delivers us more than we asked or thought in prayer, it is completely inappropriate to assume that somehow we are now above danger. Peter did not conclude from his rescue that it would be appropriate to go and put himself in danger again. Instead he went to a safe location. We are not to spoil answered prayer by doing something wrong.
The outcome of this spiritual battle was that Herod for the moment retreated from the field. No doubt, he was very embarrassed at losing his prisoner. As expected, he killed the guards, even although they had done nothing wrong with regard to Peter. Herod did not realise that he was fighting God, and a short while later his folly was exposed publicly. The lesson of the chapter is, Don’t fight against God, instead join those who pray to him because they believe in Jesus.