Acts chapter 12, and I'm going to read just verses one through four as we begin. It says, about that time, Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James, the brother of John, with the sword. And when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of unleavened bread. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. Let's pray. God, we don't want to be ignorant of your wise and sovereign plan that includes the suffering of your people. It's hard sometimes for us to reconcile that. So God, help us today to think carefully about the cost that comes with following Jesus. And God, for us, that cost is often so, well, maybe, I don't want to say it's low, it's not low. The price we pay for following Jesus doesn't really usually look like James and Peter. And so, God, we don't want to, in our, comfort which we take as a great gift from you and our safety and security which are just sweet kindnesses of your providence God help us not to be ignorant of the ways in which people our brothers and sisters even today around this world are suffering on account of Christ and God at the same time Jesus warned of kings and governors who would attack your people and he warned of brothers and sisters and mothers and children that would attack your people. And so God, as much as we may not face the threat of governments, we all know the pain of strained relationships on account of Christ. And so God, as we look in this word which you give us today, truth that would nourish our hearts, that would give us great faith in you and great courage to face. whatever we face. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. So what are you going to do when you are attacked for your faith? Think about three categories that you may be attacked in. These are just kind of classic categories. The world, the flesh, and the devil. Or think about attacks from within, attacks from without, and attacks from another realm. You're gonna face all three of those to some degree. The spiritual realm is dead set on destroying your hope, on undermining your faith, on troubling your mind, and on shriveling your heart. You must put on, as we sang in one of our songs, the whole armor of God. That you can stand against the fiery arrows of the devil. Along with that, your own flesh, your passions and desires, will pull you towards the fleeting pleasures of sin. So may the Lord lead us out of temptation as we pray. And may the Spirit of God put to death the deeds of the body. Those two categories, the devil and the flesh, are serious. worthy of a lot of attention and time and sermons. But this is not a sermon about the attacks from the flesh or the devil. Our passage today is focused on attacks from the world. Attacks from forces outside of you, but not necessarily in the spiritual realm. Not entirely, maybe. What are you going to do when you are attacked by the world for your faith in Jesus Christ? when forces from without attack you. So in Acts 12, it's governmental authorities. So King Herod, we'll talk about who he is in a minute. That's a really remote circumstance from you and I. Whatever you feel about the United States government, like you have no rational fear that they're going to attack you for your faith today. It's still worth thinking through though, how governments may attack Christians. But there are, that's not the only source in the world. There's not the only attackers maybe we would say from without. So there could be a general tone or flow in society that can grow anti-Christian. So sometimes you might experience being marginalized for your ways of living or for your Convictions, that could really affect how you do your job, how you engage with your neighbors and your community and politics and economics and all those areas of life. So those are real forces that attack you from without. My guess though is that the primary way which you and I will experience attacks for your faith from the world is personal. That is people. family members, friends, neighbors, who in some way disapprove of your faith. They insult you or argue with you or alienate you or disown you. There is some sort of attack from without on your Christianity. My question is, what are you going to do about it? Okay, so we'll take this situation in Acts 12. It's pretty remote from us and apply the principles where we probably most likely experience it. So back in Acts chapter 12 verse 1 we meet King Herod Now this is Herod Agrippa I. We'll meet Herod Agrippa II later on in the Book of Acts. So remember Herod, though it was one man, Herod the Great, who was the ruler, the Roman sort of under-ruler in the area of Israel at the birth of Jesus. That would have been Herod the Great. Remember Herod the Great was the one that sent his soldiers to Bethlehem to kill the babies because he didn't want another king in Jesus. But that Herod, his sons are split up and they're different rulers over different parts of Israel. They also take on the name Herod. And then here is actually his grandson who also takes on the name Herod. So if you just see Herod in the Bible, you can get really confused really fast. I spent maybe too much time in dictionaries this week trying to hash out all the Herods. But this is Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great. And he takes up the family business of opposition to God's people, deciding to cause harm to the church. We aren't told why. But he kills James. This is James, the brother of John, one of the three disciple, three kind of inner circle of disciples. The one was on the Mount of Transfiguration with Jesus. As far as we can tell from the Book of Acts, James, like all the other apostles, was preaching in Jerusalem, was doing miracles, was looked to as a leader. the church and Herod cut him down. And when he did that, we've learned in Acts that there's already an opposition to the Christian church by the Jewish authorities. And remember, Herod's a Roman authority, but when he kills James, he gets some political capital from the Jews. So why not get more? There's 12 apostles after all. So Peter is the next, he's arrested. Now we read in verse three that Herod's bloodthirst is unquenched. because it was the days of unleavened bread, which would have been part of the Passover feast. So this is the same time of year that Jesus was crucified. And if you want a fun little side project to do with this passage, think of all the parallels between Acts 12 and the death and resurrection of Jesus. There's all sorts of cool little parallels between Luke's account of both. But there's a delay here in Acts 12 because it's the Feast of Unleavened Bread. You know, we just can't go killing people in cold blood during a holy feast. Let's put it off for a few days. So Peter is arrested and put in a cell, it says, with four groups of soldiers, or squads, four squads of soldiers, which would have been four soldiers each. So that would have been enough for each watch of the night, 16 soldiers. that they're to watch Peter. And maybe Herod was aware of what had already happened way back when we read it in Acts chapter five, where Peter was arrested and then freed by an angel. So Herod's like, well, I'm not gonna let that happen. I've got Roman soldiers stronger than angels, right? Why do you think it is though, that Herod decides to attack James and Peter? My thought is that Herod deals in power. This is all he knows. So it's that old principle of killing snakes. You gotta cut off a head to kill the whole body. So attack the leaders and the people will disperse. You know why that doesn't work with Christianity? Because the head of the church is dead and risen. You can't cut off the head of the church. You can kill James, you can arrest Peter, but they're not the guys in charge of this whole movement. Jesus is. So we'll look at the death of James and the arrest of Peter as grievous, but it in no way slows down the glorious triumph of Jesus. When we get to the end of the chapter, we'll see that the word and the message of the gospel continues to triumph. Okay, back to the story, James is dead, Peter is in jail. What are Peter and the other Christians going to do? And what would you do if you were in that circumstance? If your pastor got arrested, was scheduled to be put to death after the holiday weekend, what would you do? Now, just pulling back a little, it might be helpful to have the right perspective before you take action. in the sense of knowing your enemy. And I'm not saying that like in a strategic sense, that if we just know what our enemies are going to do, we can sort of anticipate their actions, but rather knowing your enemy for right perspective. People attack Christians because they hate the Christ. People hate Jesus's kingdom, they hate his authority, they hate his word, and therefore they hate his bride. That's how it works. Jesus told us this many times. So when you face attacks, whether big or small, in your perspective, remember the real issue isn't some king versus you, or some family member versus you, or society versus you. It's always the world versus Jesus. That's really what's at issue. So brothers and sisters, the great need of your attackers and of you is not that your attackers would just come to peace with you. The deep desire of your heart should not be simply a restored relationship with somebody, but rather that that person would come to peace with Jesus. And you know what happens when people come to peace with Jesus? Peace flows out of them to all sorts of other relationships. This is why as Jesus anticipated our attacks that we would endure, said in multiple places, this is just from Luke 6, But in Luke 6, 27, Jesus said, I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. So when you are attacked for your faith in Jesus, what are you going to do? There's an answer, pray. And what does the church do in Acts chapter 12? Let's pick it up in verse five. So Peter, was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. Prayer. What are you going to do when you're attacked? Pray. Plead with God for help, for courage, for endurance, for wise words, for freedom, for release, for restoration. Pray for those who persecute you. Now, I wonder, we're kind of a little ways in here, have you started to think in your mind of some people, maybe situations, where you feel under attack for your faith? Some of you, way back in the introduction, had a list of people that you knew who to think of. Some of you maybe have to work a little harder, maybe by God's good providence, some of you really aren't facing much attack at all. And that's a gift, okay? That doesn't mean you're somehow in the wrong. It's a gift from the Lord. Some of you, though, have fresh wounds. from biting words. Some of you, when you think about opponents and attackers of your faith, there's sorrow because it's been a long estrangement from people you dearly love. Maybe you have grown children or even grandchildren that think you're a fool for following Jesus. Maybe some of you have parents or spouses who disapprove of your Christianity. Even if they don't tell you, you can tell by the way they interact with you or think about you. Maybe you have long lost friends who can't stand the stench of the cross in your life. Or maybe it's like a supervisor at work who picks on you because, you know, Christians have to turn the other cheek, right? Maybe in some ways you feel a pressure from a political system that's pushing you to call good evil and evil good. What are you going to do about it? And the answer is pray. Pray for the salvation of the person that's attacking you. Pray for the reforms of systems. Pray that God would grant peace in relationships. Pray that God would free you from injustice and that God would grant you release. And call on others to pray. Who prays in Acts chapter 12? I think it's reasonable to assume that Peter prayed when he was in prison. That's reasonable. That's not what we're told though. What we're told about in Acts chapter 12 is it was the church that was praying. And if you peek down to verse 12, you'll find that the disciples were gathered at Mary's home at night to pray. They even called a prayer meeting, probably multiple days long because Peter was arrested. So even if you're not experiencing some sort of overt attack for your faith, it is still your responsibility to pray for one another as we all experience attacks in different ways. Now, if you are experiencing attacks for your faith in Jesus right now, you need to share with a few other Christians and maybe even the whole church what is happening so that we can be in earnest prayer for you. Don't suffer attacks alone. We're supposed to be here for one another. So maybe you've been dressed down by a neighbor when you asked a neighbor if they'd like to read the Bible with you. They spat at you and they swore at you. Why not call a few friends from the church to your house and say, could you just come over and pray with me for my neighbor? Or maybe you're facing a meeting with a supervisor who openly mocks Christians. and you just really don't know what's coming in this meeting, why not let a few brothers in the church to know, hey, this meeting's coming up at this time and this place, and we'll just set reminders on our phone to pray for you when you're in that meeting? Or suppose you have an aunt, some other relative, that sneers at your faith. She's always dropping little insults and scoffing at you when you mention Jesus's name, and your phone rings, and it's that aunt. And you think, oh, great. Why not just silence the call and take enough time to send a text message to a few Sisters in the church say, hey, she's calling me right now, would you pray for me please? And then pick up the phone and call her back. Those are just examples, right? We can all pray for each other when we are attacked for our faith. As a matter of fact, prayer is the best thing that you can possibly do. Because you're talking to God, like we're asking God, we're trusting in God. God alone is able to change people's hearts and minds. God can silence mouths. God can protect you and deliver you. God can minister peace and comfort to you. God can even grant you supernatural resolve when you face harm on account of your faith. You know, don't forget about James in this passage. We won't, because I'm going to mention him a lot. His story here is really, really short. Do you think that James was abandoned by God? Again, I think this is just a safe assumption that he was praying when he faced the sword. Because prayer is the most powerful and the most essential ministry that any of us can have. And we can all do it. You don't have to talk good to talk to God. You just have to talk to God. So commit yourself to pray for one another when you're in attacks. And kids, this is a great thing that you can do. You can pray for people anytime you want. God's always listening. So kids, I'd encourage you, we have some calendars on the back coffee table that teach you about how Christians are suffering around the world for their faith. Maybe get one of those calendars and look through it and find some countries on a map that you can pray for people who have been attacked. Okay, for all of us, you can respond to this sermon in two ways today, and there's more sermon to come, but here's two you can just take away. First, you could commit yourself to pray for others in the church who are facing spiritual attacks from without. Whether you know the details or not, there are people in our church who are being attacked for their faith. Pray for them. And if someone asks you to pray, it gives you a little insight into what's going on. Like looking at verse five, pray earnestly. How did they pray for Peter? It was not simply like, hey, did you hear Peter got arrested? Oh yeah, I forgot to pray about that. No, this is earnest prayer for one another. The first thing you can do is commit yourself to pray. The second thing you can do, and this is maybe the harder thing, is to call on a few other people to pray with you. when you are attacked. Even if the attack seems small to you, it's not small to God. And it's not small to God's people. It's not small to your church. Call on someone to pray with you. You can always call on the elders of the church. That's why we're here. We meet regularly to pray for you. Because that's what God tells us to do. So commit yourself to pray for others. And when you are attacked, call on others to pray for you. So we're only in verse five. Sermon's not even close to over yet. But the bulk of our text is recounting how God answers the prayer of the church. So pick it up in verse six. Now when Herod was about to bring him out, to kill him that is, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and centuries before the door were guarding the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, get up quickly. And the chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, dress yourself and put on your sandals. And he did so. And he said to him, wrap your cloak around you and follow me. And he went out and followed him. We did not think that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street and immediately the angel left him. When Peter came to himself, he said, now I'm sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting. When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. Recognizing Peter's voice, in her joy, she did not open the gate, but ran and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. They said to her, you are out of your mind. But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, it's his angel. But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. Don't you just love Rhoda's response? She's so excited, she forgets to open the door. This is the ways that you know that the New Testament is true, that's what people do, right? Okay, the dust settles though, there's all this controversy, we really believe it. Just like at the resurrection, remember the ladies saw Jesus, they came back and told the disciples, they said, you're crazy, you're out of your mind. But here we have Peter actually standing there free and present. And everybody's amazed. We ought to marvel when God does the miraculous and the unexpected. God doesn't have to. Sometimes in God's providence, the story ends like Peter's. And sometimes in God's providence, the story ends like James. Most of the time, it's somewhere in between those two. Nonetheless, you can trust that God's work will be good. often beyond what we can see and understand. Now, I think that the Book of Acts is written by Luke for the church to encourage them. And this story is here to encourage perseverance. Think about the Book of Acts is probably circulating in the Roman Empire, right about the time that Nero is ramping up his persecution of Christians. Christians are being arrested and thrown in prison. Churches all across the Roman Empire are praying. Not only that, we know from other New Testament letters that a lot of the Christians were dealing with just basic social alienation. They come to believe in Jesus and their friends and neighbors are not satisfied with this new way of living and so they get pushed to the margins of society. And not only that, The New Testament Christians were facing really personal attacks for their faith. In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul paints us a picture of what would you do, he kind of asks the question, is it okay to divorce if, say, a woman becomes a Christian and her husband leaves her for it? I don't think Paul's pulling that example out of nowhere. These are the real things that Christians faced in the first century. A woman becomes a Christian and her husband says, Then I'm gone, and he leaves. So wherever you find yourself sort of in that spectrum, we look to passages like Acts chapter 12 and find comfort. In our present sorrows, we know that God is faithful, whether we are miraculously delivered like Peter, or we face death like James, or something in between. And so when you're attacked for your faith by the world, what are you going to do? You're going to pray. And given the opportunity, it's okay to escape. Pick it back up in Acts chapter 12 verse 17. Peter's at the gate, everybody's amazed. Acts chapter 12 verse 17, but motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, tell these things to James and to the brothers. And then he departed and went to another place. Where did he go? Well, that's a secret, right? We don't know. If we said something, Terod would be after him. He says, get the message to James. Now, remember, this isn't the James that died. This is probably James, Jesus's brother, who became a leader in the Jerusalem church. We'll meet him again in chapter 15. But this is like a little detail that could be very helpful to you, that Peter departs. gets out of town for a few days. Matter of fact, by Acts chapter 15, Peter's back in Jerusalem, so we know he didn't even leave that long. But Christians will face all sorts of situations where we will ask whether or not it's right to avoid the attacks that we might experience for our faith in Jesus. In church history, there's been major debates about whether or not Christians were right to hide from government-sponsored persecution, or if the right thing to do was to be more public with your faith and get arrested and die. What we see here in Acts 12 is that Peter left town until things cooled off. That's an entirely valid option. It's going to take discernment for you to know when the right time to escape an attack is, when to avoid it, and when to face it head on. After all, we know of Peter that later on he is killed for his faith by Nero. It's what history teaches us. So you should probably think about the attacks that you experience and ask yourself, when's the right time to escape? And when's the right time to face it head on? When's the right time to stop taking calls from that nasty aunt? And when do you call her more often to try to soften her heart? When's the right time to file a complaint with HR about your supervisor and look for a new job? Or when's the right time to get a little closer to that person who's making your life miserable for the sake of reaching him with the gospel? Or what about a nasty neighbor who doesn't like you talking about Jesus? Should you just let it be? Avoid it? Or should you go knock on his door with a loaf of banana bread? You know, sometimes yes, and sometimes no. Sometimes this way's right, and sometimes this way's right. You can be faithful in both options. So we have to seek wise counsel, we have to make wise decisions, but Christians are not obligated to be martyrs. Sometimes that's unavoidable, sometimes that's the best course of action, and sometimes it's not. So whether you escape or not, You certainly pray and leave the results to God. So what are you going to do when you're attacked by the world for your faith in Jesus? Pray absolutely every time. Escape? Maybe. Just leave that as a maybe. But leaving the results to God always. God controls the outcomes and we know that God is working all things according to the wise purpose of his will. He's working all things for the praise of His glory, and He's working all things for the good of His people. We see that in this text, first with James. Go back to Acts chapter 12 verse 2. James gets half a sentence. Herod killed James, the brother of John, with a sword. Did God fail James? Not at all. Maybe James was remembering the words of Jesus. It says this multiple places. This is Luke 21, verse 16. Jesus said, you will be delivered up, even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. You will be hated by all for my name's sake, but not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance, you will gain your lives. The death of Christians results in the gain of life in the presence of God. It's no loss. Whatever loss you've had to experience for Jesus, it will hurt. It will be difficult. It will be grievous. You have to keep reminding yourself over and over and over. If I have Jesus, I've lost nothing and gained everything. Jesus says this will happen. Governments will persecute. Family members will turn you over. But not a hair of your head will perish. James could trust God with the results. And so could Peter. Did you notice in verse 6 what Peter was doing on the night before his planned execution? Like you just imagine, the way this is set up, it's sort of like, okay Peter, in the morning, Herod's gonna kill you. Now verse six. When Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers bound with two chains and centuries before the door regarding the prison. So you got hard prison floors, cold prison change. I'm just speculating here, but smelly prison soldiers and you've got death at dawn. And Peter is sleeping. I love Psalm chapter 4 verse 8 which says, In peace I will both lie down and sleep. For you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. Even in prison cells. I want that sort of trust in God. Peter's learned he might be freed, he might bleed, but his life is in the hands of God. And his eternal life is secured by the resurrection of his Savior. So he can sleep. Yeah, that might be a great thing to pray for somebody who's facing attacks for their faith, or if you're facing attacks, you probably know what this is like, that it can be hard to sleep. And maybe rightfully so, there's a lot of stress, there's a lot of difficulty, their thoughts keep running. Why don't we pray for one another that we could trust God to the extent that we can calmly go to sleep? God will show mercy. God will bring justice, whether in life or in death. So you don't need to be restless. You can leave the results to God. Now, in Peter's case, the results are the opposite of James. For Peter, it's poetic justice. Pick it up in verse 18 of Acts chapter 12. Now, when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down to Judea, to Caesarea, and spent time there. Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord. Having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king's country for food. On an appointed day, Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, the voice of a God and not of a man. Immediately, an angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give God the glory. And he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. So you can actually go find a historical account of this, the first century Jewish historian Josephus records this event of Herod dying in remarkable detail, right? It's just this whole scene where he's, it's like he's feeling bad for himself, so he runs off to the coast, to Caesarea, and there's this conflict with these northern city-states, Tyre and Sidon, and they somehow get a hearing with him. And then there's some sort of event, Josephus records it's like a athletic competition. And Herod puts on this really fancy outfit and he comes strutting out and gives his little talk. And like I don't, when I read this, and this is just me, this isn't like necessarily right here in the text. When I read this, it's just, it's like the people of Tyre and Sidon going, hey, we got to get some, you know, we got to get in with the king. And so let's, let's really boost this guy up because clearly Herod's pretty fickle. And so they're shouting that he's a voice of a God and not a man. And Herod's kind of there like, you know, directing the choir. And then he gets sick and dies. Now Josephus tells us that when all this was going on, Herod looked up and he saw an owl. And he took it as a bad omen. And by that afternoon, Herod was in bed sick. And five days later, he died. So Luke here, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, pulls back the curtain and says, it was the Lord that struck Herod dead. Maybe that reference to be eaten by worms is a description of the illness that killed Herod. So we see poetic justice and actually this whole scene carries forward an important theme in the scripture and in the book of Acts and that is God overthrows his enemies. Remember way back in Acts chapter five when Peter and John were first arrested and they're on trial before the Jewish religious leaders They're sent out of the room for a minute, and there's this old wise Pharisee named Gamaliel. And listen to what Gamaliel said, this is in Acts 5, 38. He said, in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone. For if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail. But if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God. Now, if you're using a translation other than the ESV, I use the ESV, there's lots of good translations, that last line will read like this. All the other major translations translate it differently. It'll read, you'll be fighting against God. And the book of Acts shows us really clearly what happens to God fighters. They lose and God wins. So anyone who attacks you on account of your faith in Jesus will lose. Sometimes in the manner of Herod. Like poetic justice. Now I hope that's not what you want for your enemies. I hope you're not praying that the Lord would strike them dead with diseases of worms. I understand sometimes that's how you really feel. I don't think that's in line with what Jesus is calling us to do. So you should pray that God would overcome your enemies, but don't forget, one of the ways that God overcomes his opponents in the book of Acts is through conversion. It's just sometimes he executes his wrath on people like Herod. And sometimes God fights against the God fighters and wins with his mercy. Remember Saul of Tarsus? One moment he's breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, and the next moment he's proving that Jesus is the Christ and strengthening the churches. So I hope when you pray for your enemies, that's what you pray for. Their conversion, their redemption, their peace with God and peace with you. So as you think about the people in your life that Is there a strained relationship or direct attacks? Maybe it's even an old religious system that you walked away from because it wasn't preaching the truth of the gospel and now you miss those people or maybe you're even ridiculed by those people. Whatever the case, pray that God would overcome his opponents through conversion. Pray though and leave the results to God. whatever those may be, you might be delivered from your attacks like Peter was from Herod, or you might be delivered from this sin-cursed world like James was, or probably more likely something in between. So what are you going to do when you're attacked by the world for your faith in Jesus? Pray and leave the results to God. You can trust God through life, through suffering, through triumph, through death. Because King Jesus is ruling this world through the hope of the gospel. God has established his kingdom of peace. He welcomes every citizen who repents with forgiveness. And he promises all of us a life that lasts forever beyond death. And God gives us a family, the church, where we hold each other up in prayer, So when one of us suffers, and it will happen, we come around for support. When someone grieves, we grieve. When someone rejoices, perhaps because an enemy has turned to Christ and is forgiven, we would rejoice. You're gonna face all sorts of enemies in this life. People who oppose you because they oppose Jesus. Pray and leave the results to God. Because God doesn't fail to accomplish His good purposes. How does Luke summarize this story? Acts 12, 24. But, in light of all this, James dying, Peter arresting, miracles, justice. But, in light of all of that, the Word of God increased and multiplied. The Kingdom of Jesus is marching on in triumph. Let's pray. God, I ask that you would spare us from tyrants like Harry. I pray that you would bring peace with the people in our lives who aren't Christians, that they would hear and listen to the good news of the gospel that we're sharing with them. I pray for my brothers and sisters who right now are experiencing attack for their faith, whether they think it's big or small, God, I pray that you would give them endurance, that you would fill their hearts with the comforts of the gospel, that they are loved and forgiven by you, that you would fill us all with the hope of the promise of the resurrection of life, that someday King Jesus will put an end to this sin-cursed world, right every wrong and bring every enemy to his justice and gather us all into his perfect peaceful presence. God set our hope on that day. And God, if you call us to be a people that need to endure great attacks, please give us the courage to face them and give us the unity as a church to support each other through them. We ask this in Jesus' name, amen.