Well, if you would, turn in your Bibles to Acts 12. Acts 12. We're going to be looking at verses 1 to 24. It's basically the whole chapter. Acts 12, verses 1 to 24. And I just want to highlight one thing for you before the reading. It's something that when it was shared with me, it kind of served as a paradigm shift for reading the book of Acts. And it's in Acts 1, verse 1. where Luke tells Theophilus that in his gospel, in the gospel of Luke, he wrote about those things which Jesus began to do and to teach. So what does that mean that he's writing about in the book of Acts, other than those things that Jesus Christ continued to do and to teach? So most ultimately, the book of Acts It's not primarily the book of the Acts of the Apostles, but it's the book of the Acts of the Ascended Christ. And so behind every event, behind every word in the book of Acts, we should see the Lord of history, the Lord Jesus Christ. And so with that in mind, let us hear the word of the Lord. And this word is truth. And so give it your full attention. Acts chapter 12. The first 24 verses. 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. 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. And 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, 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 and 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 prison. And he said, Tell these things to James and to the brothers. And 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 sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. And 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. God bless the reading of his word. Well, if you were here for the Sunday school hour, we heard a lot about mysteries. But today, this morning, we're going to talk about perhaps the opposite of mysteries. We're going to talk about patterns. Before you all check out on me and think that that sounds way too boring to discuss this morning, stay with me for a little bit. I wanna give you just a simple definition of what a pattern is. Pattern simply is a regular or repeated way in which somebody does something or a way in which something occurs. And because patterns are regular and repeated, they're noticeable. Because they're regular and repeated, they're noticeable. And in our passage today, in Acts chapter 12, we're going to see a pattern. And it's a pattern that I want to call, I want you to remember, as the 3D pattern. And hence the title of this sermon, Acts 12 in 3D. And the 3D pattern that we're going to see in our text is a pattern of death, deliverance, and destiny. And we'll see death when we come to our text in verses 1 to 6. And then in verses 7 to 17, we'll see deliverance. And then in verses 18 to 24, we'll see destiny. And one other thing I just want you to be mindful of about patterns in Scripture, about biblical patterns, as though they're regular and repeated, don't mistake them for being cyclical. They don't just merely repeat. But God's works, His working through patterns, you should think of more as a spiral. As the pattern repeats, it's constantly moving toward an end. And so it's in this aspect of moving toward an end and being regular and repeated that God's people in the midst of a world that seems rather chaotic and disordered can find comfort and peace and hope. Because every time we see the pattern, we're reminded of God's work and we're reminded where things are going. So kind of in this season of thankfulness, today from our text, we can be thankful for the 3D pattern. And more importantly, we should be thankful for the Lord and to the Lord of the pattern. Now, before we actually do get into our text and see this pattern, I want you to back up with me. And you don't have to turn there, but we're going to think back to the Exodus event. And we're going to highlight this pattern in Exodus event and so we're going to see the Old Testament roots of this pattern and I'm going to highlight certain things that we're going to actually see pop back up in our text and it's these connections that we're going to see between the 3d pattern in Exodus is going to show us that this pattern that we're going to speak about is not something it's not a pattern we're imposing on Acts chapter 12 but it's the pattern that arises from Acts chapter 12. And because it arises from it, it's a pattern that the Lord wants us to notice and take refuge in from this text. And so if you'll just think back with me, we're gonna be here for a few minutes. Like I said, you don't have to turn there, but think back with me to the Exodus event. And I wanna highlight something for you, a couple of things first about Pharaoh. And Old Testament scholars and archeologists have found ancient Egyptian texts that speak about Pharaoh and his power over his enemies. They describe him with expressions such as Pharaoh had a strong hand, that when Pharaoh stretched forth his hand, he destroyed his enemies. So the stretching forth of the hand of Pharaoh was symbolic of Pharaoh's destructive power. And then the other thing to note about Pharaoh is he was seen as divine. pharaoh thought of himself and his people thought of him as a god and not as a man and so in exodus chapter one you'll remember that if you will, Pharaoh stretches forth his hand to destroy his enemies who he saw as the Israelites. He was fearful of them. And so what did he do? He stretches forth his hand and he brings death upon the people of God. He commands the slaughter of multitudes of male babies of God's people. And then what else does he do? He sets watchmen or taskmasters over God's people and brings them deeper and deeper into oppression and bondage. And so the house of Egypt, which at one point was a house of refuge for God's people in the time of Joseph and Jacob, has now become a house of bondage and death. And so we see the first part of our 3D pattern in the Exodus event, we see death bondage. But then after death and bondage come deliverance. And then on the eve of Israel's deliverance in Exodus chapter 12, the Lord institutes the Passover. He institutes the Passover. So their deliverance occurred at the time of the Passover. And what's the Lord command them? When Exodus chapter 12 verse 11, the Lord says, eat it quickly, be in haste, be quick and dress yourselves, dress yourselves and put on your sandals for their deliverance was at hand. And then in Exodus 12 verse 31, we read that in the darkness of the night, in the darkness, in the house of bondage, in the prison of Egypt, God's people were commanded to rise and to go out from the darkness, to go out from the house of bondage. And then in Exodus 13 verse 21, we read about how they were let out. We read that the angel of the Lord came to them. And he was as a pillar of fire by night. He came to them as a light in the night. And so what happened? Into the darkness, into the house of bondage, into the prison that was the land of Egypt shone a light. And the angel of the Lord led his people out. And then as they go out, they're continuing on. And where do they come to? They come to the Red Sea. And it appears for a moment that their deliverance may be ruined. Pharaoh's going to catch them and destroy them. But what happens to the sea? It opens. The sea opens and God's people go through. They cross through on dry land. And so we see death and deliverance And then we also see destiny in the Exodus event. In Exodus chapter 14, verses 26 to 31, after God's people go through the dry land, God commands Moses to turn and to stretch forth his hand, and he causes the waves of the sea to crash in on Pharaoh. So we see Pharaoh struck down by the waters. And this flood of the waters overcoming Pharaoh, if you think about 2 Peter chapter three, what did the floodwaters of judgment symbolize, thinking back to Noah? Well, they symbolize the final judgment to come. They point forward to the flood that's gonna come of fire. And so the way in which Pharaoh was judged by the floodwaters crashing down on him, the way he was struck down anticipates the final judgment of all of God's enemies. And then what happened to God's people? So we see the destiny of those who would exalt themselves against Christ, judgment and being struck down, but then God's people continue on. By the power of His Word, they continue to grow and to develop and eventually to inherit the promised land. And so it is. So you see the 3D pattern in the Exodus event, the movement from death to deliverance to destiny. And then behind it all, you see the Lord of the pattern. For in Exodus 9, verse 16, we read that the Lord, it's He who raised Pharaoh up. So the only reason that Pharaoh was able to do anything that he did was because the Lord had raised him up and allowed him to do so. And then in Exodus 3 and in Exodus 7, we read that ultimately it wasn't the hand of Moses stretching forth that brought God's people out, but the Lord says, I will stretch out my hand. I will stretch forth my mighty hand and bring my people out. And so it was he who struck down Pharaoh. It was he who brought his people across. Now come with me to our text. In Acts 12, verses 1 through 6, We read that, about that time, Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. And it could be translated, and some translations will say that Herod stretched forth his hand. Herod stretched forth his hand, and what did he do? 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. But because it was the time of the Passover, he couldn't kill Peter right away, but he kept him in prison. He kept him in bondage and set watchmen over Peter. And so what do we see? We see Herod as the new Pharaoh bringing death and bondage and oppression on the people of God. Herod is the new Pharaoh, and Israel has become the new Egypt. And so we see the first part of the pattern in Acts 12, 1-6, that death is being brought on the people of God, death and bondage. But from death and bondage, we see deliverance. We remember the Lord of the pattern continues to bring about the pattern, and we see deliverance in verses 7-17. 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 he followed him." So remember, this is the time of the Passover. Peter's deliverance occurs at the time of the Passover, and we see that into the darkness, into the house of bondage, into the prison cell, shone a light. And who is it that leads Peter out of the cell, out of the house of bondage? It's an angel of the Lord. And what does he say to him? Well, just what God said to the Israelites. Rise quickly. Dress yourself. and put on your sandals." You see, Peter's exodus is at hand. And then Peter's let out. He's let out of the prison. And as he's going out, he passes two guard posts. And where does he come? To an iron gate. And so just as it seems as Israel's deliverance was ruined as they come to the Red Sea, Peter's deliverance appears to be ruined as they come to this iron gate. But what happens to the gate? It opens of its own accord. And in the Greek, it opened automatae. It opened automatically. And so, kids, you can Kind of, you know what Peter experienced, right? Every time you go to the grocery store or somewhere with your parents and you're walking up to the door and it opens automatically before you, you get a taste of what Peter felt like as he approaches this iron gate. And just like the Red Sea, it is opened before him. And Peter goes through and he passes through to the other side. And in case there's any doubt that this is Peter's exodus, that we're to be seeing this pattern, I want to read for you Exodus chapter 18. Exodus 18 verse 10. This is Jethro speaking, Moses' father-in-law, speaking right after the exodus has occurred. Exodus 18 verse 10, Jethro said, Blessed be the Lord who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh and has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now, what does Peter say in verse 11 right after his deliverance? 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. Very similar words to Jethro's. Peter, as he comes to, he makes all these connections and realized that his exodus just occurred. That just as God had delivered His people from exodus, so He has repeated the pattern and delivered Peter. from the new Pharaoh, from the new Egypt, which was Herod, and, unfortunately, the Jewish people. They're substituted for Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the illusion. But Peter's deliverance doesn't stop there. It doesn't stop there. In verses 13, 12 to 17, I should say, Peter's deliverance continues on. And it's interesting to note what Peter then happens. He's been delivered and we read about some post-deliverance appearances, if you will. He appears to disciples. And how do they respond? How do they respond? Well, we just read it. They respond in shock, in astonishment. They respond with joy and gladness. And yet they also are slow to believe. It's as if they want to believe anything other than the fact that their prayers had been answered. They'll accept any explanation except that it's actually Peter, except that it's actually the answer to their prayers, that Peter himself, according to the pattern, had been delivered. But then what's Peter do? What's Peter do in verse 17? But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, He then tells them about this great deliverance that the Lord had accomplished. And then what does He do after that? He gives them a commission to go and tell James and to tell the others about this great deliverance. And then He departs and He goes to another place. And so, like the exodus, we see the continuation of the pattern. We see death that moves to deliverance, and then we see destiny. Destiny. Skip down with me to verses 21-22. Verses 21-22. On an appointed day, Herod put on his royal robes and he took a 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. And it's interesting, Josephus, the Jewish historian, he records this very account. And the way he describes Herod is he had this robe on, and it was lined, it was woven with silver. And so you can just picture Herod standing up in all his pomp before the people, shining in the light. And he begins to give an oration to them, and the people scream, the voice of a God and not of a man." They were claiming that Herod was divine, and Herod loved it. For he thought of himself in the same way. He thought of himself just as Pharaoh did. as a God and not as a man. And then in verses 23 and 24, 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 so we see death to deliverance to destiny. We see the ones who would exalt themselves against the Christ struck down. And yet God's people, by the power of His Word, continue on. They continue on. And just like in Exodus then, we see the completion of the pattern from death to deliverance to destiny. But also, just like in Exodus, we're not to only see the pattern, but we're to be reminded of the Lord of the pattern. And that's why I wanted to highlight to you at the start Acts 1. because behind every word is the sovereign work of the hand of Christ, just as in the Exodus, it was ultimately the hand of the Lord who delivered His people. And so it is here, the hand of Christ. And so we know that Herod was only raised up because Christ raised him up to glorify Himself, to judge Herod, as he had Pharaoh. Herod could have had no power except it had been given him by Christ from above. I want to show you one other place where I think we see the hand of Christ at work in our passage. Look at verses four and five. And when he, that is Herod, had seized him, he put him, Peter, 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 you see, Herod had set his watchman, Herod had set his watchman over the apostle Peter. Now listen, if you would, to Isaiah 62 verses six and seven, Isaiah 62 verses six and seven. On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen all the day and all the night. They shall never be silent. You who put the Lord in remembrance, take no rest and give Him no rest until He establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth." I would submit that these watchmen We've got to understand these watchmen as the church in prayer, as believers in prayer who are giving no rest, commanded to give no rest to the Lord until He brings about His promised deliverance. So you'll notice in v. 4 that though Herod had set his watchmen, in v. 5, so Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church. Christ's watchmen. were giving no rest to the Lord until He brought about the pattern. They would not give rest to the Lord of the pattern until He brought about the promised deliverance. And then in verse 11, Peter attributes his salvation explicitly to the Lord. He recognizes it was not the angel who was the ultimate cause of his deliverance, but it was the Lord Himself who had delivered him. And then finally, what are we to make of this about Herod being eaten by worms? Herod being eaten by worms. Well, think about Mark 9, Mark 9, verses 44 and following, where speaking of hell, Christ says, it is a place where the worm never dies and the fire is never quenched. So just like the judgment of Pharaoh, reminded us of the flood, which points forward to the final judgment. So judgment by worms points forward. to ultimately being cast into the lake of fire and the eternal judgment as well. So we see that the Lord of the Pattern, in the way He had this recorded for us, is anticipating the final judgment of His people. And then so likewise, when we see that the Word of God grows and multiplies, we're to see the end. We're to see the new heavens and the new earth when God's promises and His works will be brought to completion. So these two instances, if you will, of this 3D pattern, back in Exodus when we saw the death, deliverance, and destiny of the people of God of old, and then in Acts chapter 12 when we see the death and deliverance and destiny of the early church, We should remember that these patterns, these instances of the 3D pattern are, we could say, merely lowercase p patterns. And that's because they're ultimately patterned after the capital P. They're patterned after the original pattern, the eternal pattern, which is the pattern of Christ himself. The death and the deliverance and the destiny of the Son of God. And it was this 3D pattern which was God's eternally determined pattern plan to bring about the redemption of His people and to glorify Himself. And so we see then in the fullness of time, the Son of God, the Lord of the pattern, came into history to fulfill the pattern. And He was put to death for the sins of His people. And then He lay in bondage to sin, or not to sin, but to death. He lay in bondage to death for three days in the tomb. And then in the darkness of that tomb, in the darkness of that house of bondage, the One who is the light shone forth, and He was raised, and He got up, and then He went out of the tomb, and then not the Red Sea, and not the Iron Gate, but the stone that was before the tomb, was opened and rolled back before Him. And then He left the tomb, and He went to His people, and He declared to them this great deliverance. And how did they respond? With astonishment, and with amazement, and with joy and gladness, and yet some were slow to believe. And then after He declared this great deliverance to them, what did He do? He gave them a commission, a great commission, to not go and tell only James and the brethren, but to go and tell the whole world about this deliverance. And then he departed from them, and he went to another place. And he didn't go to a place on earth, but he ascended to the heavenly throne. where He has now been given all authority in heaven and on earth. So you can see even in that, He was walking Peter through His own footsteps to His glory. And it's this Lord of the pattern, this Lord of history, the Lord Jesus Christ, who continues His work of redemptive history according to this 3D pattern. So where do you find yourself today in this pattern? Do you still remain dead in your sins? Or have you been delivered? And if you are still dead in your sins, it's only this Lord who can save you. And if you have been delivered from your sins, you're to rejoice, and you're to be thankful, and you're to put your hope in the end of the pattern. which is the new heavens and the new earth when Christ returns. So let us be thankful today for, yes, a God of mystery, but also a God of patterns. Let's pray. Lord, we do thank you for your great deliverance. We thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you that he bore our sins on the cross. And when He was raised, in Him we are raised as well. And we thank You for the hope that Your promises give us. We pray that we would view all of life through Your Word and press it on our hearts this day, we pray in Christ's name. Amen.