and in His name, Amen. This is God's Holy Word, the twelfth chapter of Acts. About that time, Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James, the brother of John, with a 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. So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. Now 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 were guarding the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a 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. He did not know 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 am 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 in 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 is his angel. But Peter continued knocking. And when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. 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. Then he departed and went to another place. 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 centuries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from 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, and 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. But the word of God increased and multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark. Amen, thus saith the Lord. Well, as you might be able to sense from the reading of it, Acts 12 has a sense of closure to it as it transitions from the ministry of Peter in Jerusalem and Judea to the ministry of Paul the Apostle to the whole world. And the reason these two men practically make up Luke's entire history of the New Testament church is not simply because they were Luke's heroes, but because they were the two men whom the Lord used to spearhead the foundation and the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ. First through Peter in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, in a Gentile home even, and then through Paul going out from a Gentile church in Antioch to the rest of the world. In fact, when we consider what we have learned about Peter, that he was the one chosen by the Lord to be the Lord's spokesman in Jerusalem, that he was one of the ones chosen to authenticate the spread of the gospel unto the Samaritans, and that he was the one chosen to bring the gospel to the Gentiles first in the house of Cornelius, it gives a whole new insight to Christ's words in Matthew 16 when he said, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, and I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." And after all the encouraging advances of the gospel in the church up to this point, with the conversion of thousands, the ministry to the poor and deacons and deacons being established in Acts chapter 6, the spread of the gospel to the Samaritans in chapter 8, and now to the Gentiles in chapter 10, and reiterated in chapter 11, and most significantly the conversion of Saul of Tarsus in chapter 9, which even halted the persecution that the church faced, the narrative of chapter 12 is a serious setback. It gives us the death of one apostle and the imprisonment of another. It's as if the pendulum of providence has swung from favor to disfavor, from victory to defeat, from freedom to opposition, As Herod strikes not just at the low-lying fruit of Christian disciples, but at the very pillars which seem to uphold the church itself. First at James, and then at Peter. But as we'll soon see, as you heard even from the close of this chapter, and as we will move next time to chapter 13, the power struggle in this chapter. As we trace that, as we'll see, the church, the church's God, is the God of providence. And this dip into suffering was both in order that the enemy might fall before the church, and also that the church's apparent defeat might result in a telling testimony to her glorious advancement, making way for the missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul. And so as we trace this power struggle in the chapter between the church's enemy and the church's God, I want to walk through it this morning in four points as we And then we'll take up a few quick applications. First of all, it begins with Herod's plan. Secondly, Herod's defeat. Thirdly, Herod's death. And then the chapter ends, fourthly, with God's move forward after all. If you look at verses one to five, the Herod referred to here was Herod Agrippa I. That means he was the grandson of the Herod who attempted to kill Christ in his infancy. And he was the nephew of the Herod, at whose command the Baptist was beheaded. And so really we have in one sense this inherited enmity against Jesus and his followers that finally surfaces in Herod Agrippa. His plan was either to win or stay in the Jews' favor, and so Luke says he laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. That, as I said, that low-lying fruit of Christians and disciples. But let me just say in passing, it's interesting to note Luke's reference. It's the first time he's used this reference in this way. He refers to those who belonged to the church. For all the resistance of a lot of Christians who feel that they need a proof text for church membership, it's extremely difficult to read the book of Acts, much less the epistles, without being hit in the face with the reality that the Christians of the New Testament never knew a day without church membership. Once a person came to faith, they were baptized into the church's membership, and then they continued all their days in the church's fellowship. Now if we look at verse 25, glance down there quickly, at the end of the chapter, sort of a transition note between the events of this chapter and the events of chapter 13. Look at verse 25, you can see that the events of chapter 12 happen between the time described at the end of chapter 11. That is, between the time that Barnabas and Saul left Antioch to go to Jerusalem with the relief money and the time that they got there and returned home to Antioch. Because in chapter 13 they're back in Antioch. At the end of chapter 11 they've left Antioch to go to Jerusalem. So that's the time frame and that's the time then referred to by Luke in verse 1 when he says, about that time, which again makes another interesting observation. About that time Herod laid violent hands on some who belong to the church. It's Luke's way of using the greatest possible contrast to set the stage for the events of this chapter. So that in chapter 11, while the Gentile church was at work sending relief to support the Jerusalem church, Herod is at work in the Jerusalem church trying to destroy it. And the first thing he did, of course, was kill James, the brother of John. And to kill him with the sword probably meant to behead him. Now why James? Well, James was one of the pillars of the church, which means Herod's intent was obviously not to wound the church, that low-lying fruit, but in fact to dismantle the church. Rising up to take James, and then we might say rising up again to take Peter. And so he kills James. This was James, we're told, the brother of John, one of the sons of Zebedee, one of the three of Christ's inner circle of disciples alongside Peter. And he also chose James because in the Lord's providence, this was the fulfillment of Christ's words to James and John in Mark 10 verse 39, that they would one day drink the cup that Christ would drink and one day be baptized with the baptism with which Christ was baptized. For James, that cup and that baptism meant death at the hands of Herod. For John, that cup and that baptism meant exile on the land of Patmos. We're told that seeing how much it pleased the Jews that James had been killed, Herod wasted no time and laid hands on Peter. But then we're also told providentially it was the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread leading to the Passover, of course, as a part of the Passover celebration. And since it was the beginning of the seven days of Unleavened Bread, we're told that Peter, or excuse me, Herod put him in prison with the intention to bring him out for trial and public execution after the festival. Because, of course, it was unlawful to hold trials and mete out sentences during the feast. Now normally, a prisoner would be chained to one soldier. That's enough. But since it was Peter, Herod's not taking any chances on his escape, and he delivered, we're told, he delivered him over to four squads of soldiers. That meant four relays of four soldiers on a four-hour shift. Two chained to him at a time, and two to guard the prison door. Well, Herod has done his worst. He's killed James, and if it wasn't for the feast, he would have already killed Peter as well. But either way, Peter is under the heaviest guard that he could be under, and as soon as the feast is over, he is going to be executed. It's a hopeless situation. However, in what appears to be a passing comment, but is in reality the testimony to victory's march forward. Verse 5 says, So Peter was kept in prison. but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. Herod's done all he can do, and now the church is doing all it can do. Herod stands on the one side with the power of a throne, the might of an army, the security of a cell, chains, and four Roman soldiers, and the support of the Jewish masses. And the church stands, or rather kneels, on the other side with earnest prayers to God. in the name of the exalted Lord Jesus Christ. You look at verse 6, we learn that Peter was kept in prison for the entire week of unleavened bread. And verse 6 picks up on the night before his execution. What some of us would know in God's providential dealings as the eleventh hour. And Luke reminds us that Peter is chained to two soldiers. And there were two more guarding the door. Escape was impossible. This was obviously, clearly, Peter's last night on earth. But don't miss the fact that he tells us that Peter was sound asleep. It's the peaceful sleep of a clear conscience. It's the peaceful sleep of knowing that after man kills the body, there's nothing more he can do to harm us. It's the peaceful sleep of knowing that for Christ's people, death is not the end, but the throughway to glory. And it's also the peaceful sleep of a man ready to do what he foolishly thought he was ready to do by his own strength years before. To die for Christ's sake. Now the story of Peter's deliverance really needs no comment this morning. It's obvious as it unfolds. And as Peter finally realized, the bottom line is in verse 11. The Lord thwarted the Jews and Herod's intentions against the church by sending an angel to walk Peter straight out of prison. And what was it? What was it that prompted Peter's deliverance while James was lying dead in a tomb? Well, of course, we can say it was the Lord's providence. But Luke wants us to see that it was the result of the church's prayers. Because he already told us in verse 5 that Peter was kept in prison but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. It was Luke's way of telling us right away before he even detailed the story of Peter's deliverance. It was Luke's way of telling us that Herod didn't stand a chance in the face of a praying church. It reminds us of the famous quote attributed to Mary, Queen of Scots. I fear the prayers of John Knox more than all the assembled armies of Europe. That's my fear. After his release, Luke says Peter went straight to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, who wrote the second gospel. Now the fact that Peter went there shows that it was likely the number one meeting place for the Jerusalem church because Mary's house was quite large. She had an outer court and a gateway. Very large house. It was probably the house with a large upper room in which Jesus ate the Passover with his disciples. It was likely also probably the house where the 12 disciples And the 120, in fact, stayed after the ascension when they waited for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 2. And it made sense that he would go there first because Peter knew that that's where the church was gathered, that's where the church was praying. Now the story of his arrival, as F.F. Bruce said, is full of quiet humor. He knocks at the gate. only to be recognized by Rhoda, but then left there, because she's so excited to go back and tell everyone else that he's alive and standing at the gate. Besides the fact that they've been praying all night for God to intervene and save his life, they think she's crazy. And when she keeps insisting that it really is Peter, then they think it must be his angel. Meanwhile, of course, Peter is still standing at the gate, trying to get in. When they finally accept the fact that the Lord had answered their prayers and that Peter was really at the gate, he comes in and he stays long enough to tell them that the Lord had delivered him out of prison. And we're told he basically gives them a single message, that they are to tell these things to James and to the brothers, that is to James and to the other apostles. Which is interesting, Because as we'll soon see in Acts 15, James, the Lord's brother, had become the recognized leader of the church in Jerusalem. He speaks up first there. That also explains, if we go back to chapter 9, it explains why Peter felt so comfortable leaving, in chapter 9 verse 32, leaving Jerusalem to do itinerant ministry, which took him to Lydda, to Joppa, to Caesarea. After this, we're simply told that Peter goes into hiding. He's gone for probably one to two years. And we do not see Peter again until the general assembly of chapter 15. And then, of course, Peter disappears from the pages of the narrative, and Paul takes center stage. Look at verse 19. What happens next? Luke ends his story, this narrative, again transitioning to chapter 13. Luke ends the story by circling back to Herod to tell us how the Lord avenged his apostle's death by the death of Herod. Herod went down to Caesarea after Peter's escape, and while he was there, he presided over a large gathering of people from Tyre and Sidon, and he gave a speech. We're not told how, but obviously we're told they had offended him somehow, and having offended him, he had cut off their food supply. They depended upon Herod to send food to them, and so they were greatly suffering. Apparently, in some way or another, they bribed Blastus, Herod's chamberlain, who somehow helped them make peace with Herod. So the reconciliation seems to have been accomplished, the relationship seems to have been restored, and now Herod comes to give his speech. So this is a public gathering, and this is the public opportunity, if you will, for the people of Tyre and Sidon to recognize him, and to recognize the reconciliation that has been accomplished. And so they want to publicly thank him for his kindness, and of course, they chose to do so by flattery, which no self-centered man can deny. So that when he comes out in his robe of silver, and it's quite interesting, Luke says very little about it, but if you read the history detailed by Josephus, he gives a lot of detail about this robe of silver, real silver weaved into the robe, saying that it shined in the sun overwhelmingly as he came out and appeared before the people. The people then called out the voice of a God and not a man. It's as if to say, until now we regarded you as a mere mortal, but now, We see and confess you to be a God. And immediately, Luke says, 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. Again, Josephus says the pain in his belly was so great that they immediately ushered him into his palace where he stayed and died miserably and terribly five days later. But notice what has just happened here. The angel that was sent to Peter with deliverance was then sent to Herod with judgment. The chapter was really a power struggle. It was Herod versus God, and the trophy goes to God. Because the gates of hell itself cannot prevail against the church that God, by His glorified Christ, and through His Spirit and His apostles, is building in this world. The church cannot be overwhelmed and come against and be destroyed. Satan cannot prevail over it. And to see this laid out so clearly, ever briefly, by Luke, look at the last two verses, or just the last verse, verse 24. As a testimony to that reality, Luke simply says, but the word of God increased and multiplied. It's Luke's characteristic way, which you've recognized by now, And you'll see it again, it's his characteristic way of describing the increasing progress of the Kingdom of Christ. The Word of God continued to increase and multiply. It's a complete reversal of the Church's situation, wasn't it? At the beginning of the chapter, Herod's on the warpath, arresting and persecuting the Church's leaders, and at the end, he is struck down by God and dies. The chapter opens with James dead, Peter in prison, and Herod in triumph. The chapter closes with Herod dead, Peter free, and the word of God in triumph. The gospel has won. The gospel will always win against the world and our enemy. But again, the question remains, what stood at the heart of this complete 180 to bring it all about? in Mary's house, earnestly praying to God. That's what brought Peter out of prison. That's what put Herod in the ground. That's what ushered in the glory of Christ. That's what rushed upon the pride of Herod. That's what advanced the kingdom of God. That's what halted the kingdom of Satan, against all the world's weapons. That was the church's only weapon. Prayer. Prayer to God, in the name of the exalted and ascended Lord Jesus Christ. As we think about the particulars of this chapter, this narrative, we can walk away with several very quick and brief lessons this morning. First of all, what a glorious example we are given of the role that God's angels play in the church caring for the people of God. There's no teaching in Scripture that each of us has a particular guardian angel, but it's clear that the Lord uses His mighty host in amazing ways to make sure His people are safe and to thwart the enemy's malicious intentions against us. Hebrews 1.14 says, God's angels are all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation. In Psalm 91.11, not just true of Christ, but true of His church, We are told that God commands his angels concerning us to guard us in all our ways. Of course, the angels aren't always active in a visible way as they were so often in scripture, but they're no less at work on our behalf. Some were told in Hebrews 13, entertained angels unawares. They were so at work in the church. But it's just another testimony to the many blessings that we have received as a result of the incarnation. Because think about what we are. We might say with Psalm 8, what is man? that you are mindful of Him, the Son of Man, that you care for Him, given our sinfulness and our sinful condition, given what we are in ourselves, not only made lower than the angels, but fallen and defiled and sinful. If Christ wasn't enthroned in our humanity, the angels wouldn't have anything to do with us. We'd be worthy of judgment and condemnation and being cast out. But because Christ has exalted our humanity to the throne of God, and because His eternal glory now shines eternally through that humanity, We are precious in the eyes of God's angels. They rejoice to do us good. All the angels rejoice over one sinner that repents, Christ says. Because by the sovereign choice of God himself, we are the heirs of salvation. We are the co-heirs of God's glory with Jesus Christ himself. What a wonderful testament to God's care for his church through his mighty angelic host. Secondly, it's obviously a testimony to the believing power of prayer. The church prayed, and God answered. The church was faced with insurmountable difficulties and impassable obstacles, and still they prayed. They didn't quit. They didn't give up. They didn't pray all week long, and then the night before his execution, say, well, that was useless. That was hopeless. We might as well go to bed. They prayed, even then praying. through His last few hours on earth. They knew the impossible was possible with God. They believed that however tied their hands were, God's hands weren't tied. They believe that God sits in the heavens, as Psalm 115 says, which we sang together, and He does all He pleases. It's convicting to us, isn't it? Because our faith is so often so weak that we don't pray because we figure if our hands are tied, so is God's. If we see no way out, then surely God can't either. And so we don't pray. But it also convicts us, because as James 4 reminds us, we don't have because we don't ask. We go without because we don't pray. So here is a provoking reminder of what Christ said to Jairus in the face of insurmountable impossibilities. Remember the servants came and said, don't bother the master any longer, your daughter is now dead. She was sick unto death, now she's dead. Don't bother him anymore. What did Jesus tell Jairus? Do not fear. Only believe. It's a reminder too. We need to be reminded of what Jesus said in John 16. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. In fact, 1 John 5, remember, says we know that we have what we ask of him when we ask according to his will. Praying therefore the promises of God which he has revealed to us. Praying the will of God which he has made known in his word. We can be assured of his answer. Thirdly this morning, when we look at this chapter, it's a reminder of the mysterious nature of God's providence. When we see that James was killed and Peter was delivered. Surely the church was praying for James as well. But in the Lord's infinite wisdom, James was taken off the field to glory while Peter was returned to the field of battle. And this fact is repeated every day in our lives, isn't it? God protects one from harm while permitting another to suffer. He delivers one from the hand of the enemy while giving up another into those hands. He answers one prayer with a yes and another prayer with a seeming no. It's a reminder that the church lives by faith. The church lives by faith in the wisdom of God who knows best what each of us needs, and who knows best when a no will bring Him the most glory and us the best good. That's why it's interesting if you read Hebrews 11 there at the end, as you well know that last section, of many who have died in faith. It's interesting in Hebrews 11 to read that by faith some, says the author, escaped the sword. But then he says a couple of verses later, by faith others were killed by the sword. By the same faith. By the same faith in the same God. The same faith which is pleasing to the Lord, says verse 6 of Hebrews 11. By faith some were delivered. By faith some were given up. You see, God's providence is mysterious. But it's never inexplicable. Because it's always governed by His infinite wisdom, His covenant love, His saving grace. And that's where our comfort lies when we pray. Not in getting our own prayer answered every time the way we want. Not in being sure that God's going to do exactly what I pray for because I prayed. Rather, our hope lies in knowing and rejoicing that our God is in the heavens and He does as He pleases. Not only for His glory, but for His people's good. And He has commanded that we pray and make our requests known to Him, and thereafter be at peace, because He will take care of the matter. Fourthly, here's a reminder of what Christ said in John 16 as well, that in this world you will have tribulation. The church is a light in the midst of darkness. It's the truth in the midst of world of lies. We are Christ followers amidst those who follow the prince of the power of the air. So despite all the blessings and mercies that we enjoy, especially in this beautiful and wonderful country in which we live, we need to remember that the church will ever be a pebble in the world's shoe. We will ever be an unwelcome presence that will always rub the world the wrong way. It's a reminder that this is not our home. It's a reminder that our home is in glory. Our home is where Christ is. So it's also a reminder to prepare for suffering so that as 1 Peter 4.12 says, we won't be surprised when it comes. We have a lot to be thankful for when we compare our small sufferings to the great sufferings of those of whom we read in the scriptures and of many even now. We have a lot to be thankful for and nothing to complain about. But we are very blessed with many, many mercies. So let us give thanks, but let us prepare as well to be reminded in sweet and tender ways, that this world is not our home, and that the love, the prince of the power of the air will never be in agreement with the church of the Lord Jesus Christ here on this earth. And finally this morning, I leave you with the most obvious lesson of the passage. Peter was in trouble, and the church gathered to pray. The advance of the gospel of Jesus Christ by one of his foremost apostles was in danger. and the church gathered to pray. Jesus' own disciple, one of the three we might say, was facing execution by Herod, and the church gathered to pray. What does this teach us, beloved? That Christ's church is to be a praying church. Prayer is the church's response to trouble. It's the church's response to suffering. It's the church's response to persecution. to oppression, to affliction, to trial. Of course, it's the church's means to many other things, like praise, and thanksgiving, and worship, and petition. But the lesson here, in this chapter, is that when the church is in need, the church needs to gather for prayer. And I bring this to our attention because as a church, we don't do this well. I'm sure we do it well individually, which is great. but no ministry has struggled so much for survival in this church as the weekly prayer meeting. I thank God for those who do come, because God knows how many of the church's blessings and the blessings of each of its members, your blessings in fact, are due to our weekly intercessory prayer meeting. But as I read this chapter, I can't help but wonder what more that prayer meeting could have accomplished. What more we could have done? What blessings did we forfeit because we didn't pray for them? What trials did we have to endure because we neglected to pray for God's deliverance? What disunity and poor communion did we suffer because of our neglect to pray together? What wounds from the enemy have we suffered unnecessarily because we wouldn't pray together? God knows, I don't. I can't presume or assume to know. But this I do know, and you know as well. Christ's church is called to be a praying church, and according to God's own word, blessings come to those who pray. Blessings are forfeited by those who don't. And maybe part of the problem is that we can't think of prayer without it being a duty. We can't think of it Without thinking of it, it's just another thing on our overwhelming list of things to do. But that just means we have forgotten what a high privilege prayer is. We have forgotten what a tremendous means and powerful means of grace prayer is. We need to remember that our spirit thrives on prayer. It is oxygen to the Christian soul. We need to remember that we fellowship with our great high priest by prayer. The kingdom of God advances by prayer. The will of God is accomplished by prayer. The glory of Christ is gained by prayer. The kingdom of darkness is decimated by prayer. Heaven kisses earth by prayer. You see, brothers and sisters, that's why. That's why prayer is such a burden. That's why prayer is so hard. And there is such resistance from our flesh to prayer, privately, as families, and corporately. Not because prayer is a burden in itself, because that's impossible with the means of grace that God has appointed for His Church's good. But because prayer is our flesh's greatest enemy. Prayer is the greatest impasse standing in the way of the kingdom of darkness. So I encourage you this morning as a church, I encourage you to put the prayer meeting on your family calendar and commit to be a praying church. Not only will it encourage your session, but God says it will open the floodgates of heaven and it will bring blessings down upon His needy church. May the Lord call us to prayer. May we be a praying church who will be sure to have a hearing and answering God.