Before we consider God's word, let us unite again in prayer. O dear Lord and loving Father, we rejoice we're in thy house on the Lord's day. And we pray that we might know thy blessing, that O Lord, Thou will come and draw near to each one. I pray Lord, Thou will grant unto me the health, power of the Holy Spirit of God. Lord, I might be unable to preach the word. And as always, preaching the word, I'll always preach Christ. Dare me to lift him up and speak well. of his finished work at Calvary. So Lord, come and abide with us now. In the Saviour's precious name we pray. Amen. Continuing our study in the life of Peter, the subject this morning is a holy boldness. We read these verses of chapter 4 of Acts and we certainly see the boldness of Peter as he addressed the enemies of Christ, those who hated the Lord and those who could not stand the truth that Christ had been raised from the dead. It didn't matter to Peter He was going to preach Christ anyway with indeed a holy boldness. For the healing of the lame man, that man who lay at the gate, beautiful, every day, begging. That man had been healed and may it hold. And it caused quite a stir among the people of Jerusalem. And Peter and John then seized the opportunity to tell the people, the rulers, the elders, the Sadducees and others about the one who wrought the miracle. and caused the lame man to be able to stand up and jump for joy that he had been healed. He told them about the person. The person. They're told that when the rulers saw the lame man walk, they marveled. They marveled, verse 12. And Peter made it clear that the God of our fathers had glorified his son through the healing of the lame man. In other words, Peter was telling those gathered there that Christ was the one who had healed this man. Notice also, not only did he tell them about the person But he spoke to them and preached about the power. A man who was unable to walk from the day he was born, was able now to walk. Peter said that through placing his faith, that is the lame man, placing his faith in Christ, as we read in the verse, 16 His name hath made this man strong putting his faith in the name of Christ hath made this man strong from weakness to strength from being helpless to being active look there at the verse 7 There we read in the verse 7, And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power or by what name have ye done this? And Peter fell with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people and elders of Israel, and he went on to tell them. The Lord Jesus did it all. for this dear helpless man. So we notice the person and the power and the perfection. We know that whatever the Savior does, whatever the Savior did during his public ministry, he always did it well. He always did it well. It was always perfect. Whatever Christ did, there was nothing lacking to anything the Lord did. Peter tells his audience that Christ hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. That's how Peter described what the Lord had done for this lame man. He has given him perfect soundness. Think of it. You consider those words. It tells us that this lame man was not partially healed. No. He was perfectly healed. Perfect soundness was in his body. This reminds us that when the Lord saves a soul it is a perfect and complete work. Paul says, and ye are complete in him which is the head of all principality and power. Colossians 2 and 10. Ye are complete in him. No, not sealed today and then being in danger of being lost tomorrow, not at all. It is a perfect salvation, it is a complete salvation, complete in Christ, complete in me, the work of mine. may take dear Lord the place of thine thy blood hath pardoned both for me and I am now complete in thee now we see how the bold preaching of Peter stirred up the devils crowd always does, doesn't it? and here we see first of all the conversions On the day of Pentecost, Peter anointed with the Holy Ghost stood up and preached to the people there in Jerusalem. What was the result? About 3,000 souls were saved that day. 3,000 souls. Now a number of days later, The principal preacher, namely Peter, declared God's word in the temple. And the result, praise the Lord, the result was the same. As we see there in verse 4, Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed. And the number of the men was about five thousand. We may ask, what did Peter preach that brought about such a result? Well we know, first of all he preached the word. He preached the word and from the moment he opened his mouth to preach, there in verse 12, Peter spoke or referred to Christ about 12 times. About 12 times. So his message was about Christ. He focused the attention of the people on God's Son. That's the way of course it ought always to be. Ought always to be. Just as Paul said, we preach Christ crucified. That was Paul's message. Wherever he was, wherever he went in his missionary journey, the message was the same. We preach Christ. There's no other message. Listen, there's no other message. worth giving to pure lost sinners. No other message. But notice also, much of his message, that is the message of Peter that day, was from the Old Testament. The Old Testament. Modernistic ministers today, of course ignore the Old Testament. Ah, it's out of date. They never make much reference to the Old Testament. But Peter didn't believe that. He didn't believe that, for as he preached Christ, he preached Him as He's revealed in the Old Testament. Look there, verse 21. Chapter 4, verse 21. So when? they had further threatened them they let them go finding nothing how they might punish them because of the people for all men glorified God that which was done sorry I should have went to chapter 3 chapter 3 verse 21 when The heaven must receive until the time of restitution of all things which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. Verse 22, For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up. A prophet of course was Christ. a prophet the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren like unto me him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you and so here is Peter and he preached Christ as he revealed in the Old Testament and Moses there spoke about Christ and referred to him as the prophet who would come to save. And if he was rejected, those who rejected him would be lost. As well as the word, he preached the word. We notice here the wicket. Well, of course it was only a matter of time. Whenever Peter preached the word, When Peter preached Christ it was only a matter of time before those who hated the gospel and indeed hated Christ made themselves known. Look at the opening three verses. And as they spake unto the people. the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them being grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead and they laid hands on them and put them in hold until the next day for it was now even time as they spoke As they spoke, as they preached Christ, the godless crowd came and laid hands on them. As they spoke, they came upon them. What was their message? To Peter and John, silence! Don't hear any more! They laid hands on them. and put them in prison. They couldn't bear to hear about Christ just as they couldn't bear to hear Christ himself. What was their cry then? Crucify! Crucify! In other words, silence him. He is to be silenced and the ungodly today have not changed. Their attitude is the same. Stand up for the crime rights of King Jesus and proclaim the truth. The enemies of the gospel will seek to silence you. Take a stand against sodomy. As we know all about it today, Take your stand against the things that God hates and calls an abomination. Stand against that and the godless are ready to arrest you. As well as the godless, you see the gathering We see here that Satan mustered as it were his forces against Peter and John because of their preaching. We have noted there in the opening verse that they had hands on them. Who were they? The priest, captain of the temple, the Sadducees. And you look there at verse 6. And Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest were gathered together at Jerusalem. Oh they all came together. They all came together. the silence, the preaching of the word. Of course, we know nothing has changed. The ungodly today will come together, forget about their own personal differences, You see it in the political realm. They'll all come together to stand against, to speak against the man who will stand up for truth and righteousness and declare what the Bible teaches. Look there in Luke chapter 22. Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders which were come to him, Be ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves, When I was daily with you in the temple, you stretched forth no hands against me, but this is your hour. And the power of darkness. The power of darkness. The Lord referred to the power of darkness. That's the satanic power. And where there is opposition to the truth of God's word, it's the power of darkness that is behind it. Paul said in Ephesians 6, For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spirits of wickedness in high places. the power of darkness and wherever there is an attempt to silence a preacher of the gospel you know it's the power of darkness behind it as well as the godless and the gathering we see the grieved verse 2 being grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead imagine they were grieved the preaching of Christ grieved them the preaching of the resurrection grieved them and were grieved means to vex through and through. It also means to be indignant. In other words, they hated the preaching of the word. The message Peter preached inflamed them with great anger. They were grieved. Do we know? Satan is grieved each time Christ is preached in all his fullness. Satan is grieved when a living Christ is preached, a resurrected Christ is preached. And all the more reason then, all the more reason we should preach him whenever the opportunity presents itself. We preach Christ anyway. So you have the word of the wicked, you have the wonder. Such was the opposition to the preaching of Christ that the rulers laid hands on them and put them in hold until the next day. So they locked up Peter and John as they sought to silence them. Yes, they may have shut up John and Peter, the preachers of the word, but we praise the Lord. We praise the Lord. that the enemies of the truth could not stop the working of the Spirit of God. The verse 4 tells us, Howbeit many of them which heard the word, Peter and John were preaching, they were preaching the word. Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed, and the number of the men was about 5,000 through the preaching of the word and the preaching of Christ. This would surely encourage us that no matter how great the opposition to the preaching of the word and the greater opposition of the power of darkness We keep preaching because the spirit of God will work anyway. In spite of the enemies, the spirit of God will work. As well as the conversions, we notice then the challenge. Having been released, Peter and John were then challenged. about what had taken place in the life of the layman. Verse 7, And when they had sent them in the midst, they asked, By what power or by what name have ye done this? Referring to the layman who was able now to walk. By what power, by what name? How have you done this? They challenged them. What I see here, first of all, is their acknowledgement. I find it very interesting what they said to Peter and John about the Lear Man. They wanted to know by what power and by what name have ye done this? And so they recognized that there was some power at work in the healing of this man. They recognized that. What did Peter and John preach on to them? The word. There's the power. In Christ, there's the name. And when a notorious sinner gets healed and his life is transformed and is acknowledged. Look at the change in that man. By what power was wrought to change such a man and change him in such a way? What power was used? The power whose divine power. Peter preached the word, there's the power. He preached Christ, there's the power. What did Paul say? For I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God. onto salvation to everyone that believe us. Why would any preacher be ashamed of preaching the gospel of Christ when it is the power of God? It is the power of God. What do we hold in our hands today? What do we hold today? The power of God, here it is. This book is the power of God and changes lives, transforms individuals. No wonder Paul told Timothy, Timothy preach the word because it's the power of God unto salvation. As well as the acknowledgement there is the anointed. All who were gathered around Peter and John that day had no love for the word, and any hatred for Christ. And when challenged about what took place in the life of this lame man, Peter spoke verse 8, then Peter fell with the Holy Ghost said unto them, There's the anointing. Peter was filled with the Holy Ghost. Now remember this, all who were gathered around Peter and John that day, they were all hitters of Christ. They were all enemies of the truth. And yet, Peter preached with great boldness. Why? Because he was full of the Holy Ghost. Full of the Holy Ghost. So with great boldness Peter preached Christ. With great boldness Peter preached the Word. Why did he preach with such boldness? None daring to make him afraid. Why? Because he was full of the Holy Ghost. What does this tell us? Believer, it tells us that we need to be filled with the Holy Ghost. We do. We need to be filled with the Holy Ghost that we may be bold and fearless for the Lord. You're in a restaurant. You're sitting at a table, and the waiter or waitress brings your meal. Do you bow your head and give thanks for the meal? Are you embarrassed? You wouldn't like people to see you bowing your head and pray? I remember a few years ago, in town here. A big truck had stopped in one of the restaurants. And there the driver had got out of his cab and was kneeling on the roadside at the side of his truck. I reckon he must have been a Muslim. He wasn't ashamed to own his religion or his God. He didn't care who was driving by and who saw him. And when we are filled with the Holy Ghost, with power, we'll be bold. and fearless for the Lord. When Peter and John were threatened with regard to their preaching of Christ, instead of being intimidated and fearful, no, they were bold and declared the truth. And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all, nor teach in the name of Jesus. Go down to verse 29. And now, Lord, behold their threatenings, and grant unto thy servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word. Look at verse 31, And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. Filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word with boldness. Not ashamed, not afraid, not intimidated Let us then pray for the unfilling of the Holy Spirit that we also may be bold for the Lord. No matter where we are or what company we're in, let us not be afraid to speak up for Christ and speak for Him. He wasn't ashamed of us at Calvary. Let us never be ashamed of the Lord. I'm not ashamed to owe my Lord or to defend His cause. As well as the acknowledgement and the anointed, we see the appearance. That is, we see how the appearance of the layman is described. Verse 9, If we this day be examined of the good, done to the impotent man by what means he is made whole. That's how he's described. Made whole. Look at the end of the verse 10. God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. What a testimony. to what the Lord does and how he does it. Lame from the day he was born, made whole by the power of Christ. Wasn't partly healed, he was made whole and we see him standing there with Peter and John and we say My Jesus has done all things well. And we can say the same with regard to our own salvation. We know what we were before. God saved us. But then that day came. And the Lord lifted us out of the mire of our sin, washed us in His blood, cleansed us and made us whole. Made us whole. We are able to say the Lord by His grace and His blood has made me whole. No, there's no deficiency in anything that our dear Savior does. Especially in the work of salvation. You look at the Lord's public ministry. Guthrie, Mathieu, Mark, Luke, and John. And the people that the Lord heals. And all that Christ saved, He made them whole. He made them whole. He made the blind whole. They were able to see. He made the deaf whole. They were able to hear. He made the lame whole. They were able to walk. He made them whole. And we praise his name. The Lever. He has made you and I whole. He has made us whole. What a wonderful change my life has been brought since Jesus came into my heart. And finally and briefly, as well as the convergence and the challenge, we have the confession. Peter had been challenged as to how the lame man was healed. But Peter wasted no time in letting them know verse 10. Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, And by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him did this man stand here before you all. In other words, Peter made it clear that he, or John, had no part to play in the healing of this man. Christ did it all. And there in verse 10 he spoke about the master. He made it known unto all that the Lord Jesus had healed this lame man. You notice he told them about the rejected Christ. He was saying the person who made this lame man whole, you crucify him. You were among those who cried out, crucify, crucify. Yes, he is the one. They made this man whole. They rejected. They rejected him. Then he told them about not only the rejected Christ, but the raised Christ. He wanted them to know that the one they had crucified was not in the grave. He was alive. He was alive for God and raised him from the dead. And Peter quoted the words of the Psalmist. Psalm 118 verse 22. The stone that the builders rejected has now become the head of the corner. Peter was saying, you rejected him. But he's now the head of the corner and he's the one who healed us all. as well as the Master. You have the message. What was the message? Neither is there salvation than any other. Boy, don't you like that? Don't you like what Peter did? Neither is there salvation than any other, for there is none on their name. under heaven, given amongst men, whereby ye must be saved. Must be saved. And all those that Peter preached there that day, all the religious leaders, Peter was saying, your religion will not save you. You must be saved. That's a great message. That is a great message. May the Lord use the Lord's word today. And may we see that Christ, this power to change, transform the life of the worst of sinners. May the Lord bless His word to our hearts. Let's bow in prayer.