These are days, friends, in which we've been so many times told to be obedient and to do as we are told and keep safe. And yet every time we open the newspapers or look at the news, we see people just totally disregarding, disobeying those wise sentiments. And how many have died because of disobedience. And that brought some thoughts again, even into my mind over these last few weeks. I've been doing some recordings for some other churches, and it's just amazing how things grip your heart and mind that you hadn't thought about for a long time. And this particular passage is one of those. messages that I've never, ever preached other than once before. And I hope it will be an encouragement and a blessing to us today. I want to read in Acts chapter 5, please. Acts chapter 5. This is an amazing chapter. In Acts chapter 5, we see the situation, that wonderful spiritual atmosphere there was in the church. and what a blessing it was to so many. But then we discover that Ananias and Sapphira, sadly, they told lies to the Holy Spirit, not just to Peter and the apostles or disciples, but they told lies and were taken out. God sent the Holy Spirit and, by death, took them out of that situation, even in the midst of such a wonderful spiritual atmosphere. And then in verses 11 through 16, and right down to 28, indeed, we see the spectacular attendance there was on that church, even after this incident with Ananias and Sapphira. We read in verse 14, and believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes, both men and women. What an amazing thought. You see, here was a wonderful atmosphere in the church. The Spirit of God was at work and things were happening. The attendance was growing and people were getting saved. God was working in a remarkable way. But then we come down to verse 29 in that same chapter. And in fact, in verse 27, first of all, and when they had brought them They set them before the council, and the high priests asked them, saying, did not we straightly command you that you should not teach in the name, that is, the name of Jesus? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us, that is, Jesus' blood upon us. And they forbade them to preach in Jesus' name again. They said it wasn't to be done. And I just love Peter's answer in verse 29. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than men. We ought to obey God rather than men. And Peter was making it clear that The expedience of obedience was God's way, and it was their desire. And the background to this amazing attack on the apostles for preaching Christ brought about that amazing word from Peter. Peter had been preaching. God had been blessing and convicting. And the religious leaders of the day, they were pricked to the very heart, to the very core. And of course, God's Word can wonderfully do that. And they commanded Peter and the other apostles to shut up. And Peter says, we must, we should obey God rather than men. You see, dear friends, if I'm a Christian and know nothing of accomplishment and joy in my life for the Lord, it's most likely because I haven't been obeying what God has been saying to me in his word. And that can happen even to a preacher like me and has done. and challenged by the Spirit of God. Many a time I've been brought to my knees and prayed forgiveness for disobedience and come to a place where we recognize that I'm not saved because I obey. I obey because I'm saved. I want to do what God wants me to do. Martin Luther said, we are not saved by faith and works. We are saved by a faith that works. Don't always agree with Martin Luther. But I mightn't have disagreed with him much if I hadn't been here on the earth at the same time. He was such an amazing man, a clever man. But I love that phrase. We are not saved by faith and works. We are saved by a faith that works. Jesus himself said, why? Call ye me, Lord, Lord, if you do not the things that I say. Oh, dear friends, if we're going to heaven, I want to tell you it's because we trust and obey. For there's no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey. You see, there's a reason for obedience and Peter's in the middle of a situation that he's going to emphasize this. And we have been hearing this emphasized these days during this pandemic again and again and again. And Peter's reason comes clearly and plainly to us. And the reason, one of the reasons for obedience, dear friends, is because our God is a saving God. Our God is one who has given his Son, as I've said already to the children this morning, and placed him on a cross and allowed wicked men to take his life's blood from him. and allow him to be put in a grave as dead, but then to bring him in a resurrection from that grave and bring him back to heaven. What a wonderful blessing. Is it any wonder Peter reminds us, we should obey God rather than men. Why? Because he is our saving Lord. And secondly, because he is our sovereign God. He is the one that we ought to obey. Peter says we ought to obey God. That little word ought comes from, in the Greek text, from the word owe. We owe it to God. Why should we obey God? Because we owe it to him. Drops of grief can ne'er repay the debt of love I owe. It's the basest of ingredients to fail to obey God. If we love him, John reminds us in 14, 15, if we love him, keep his commandments. If you love me, said Jesus, keep my commandments. See, God doesn't want us to be serving him because we have to. God wants us to be serving him because we love him. and because we want to honor Him. The reason for obedience? Why, our God is a saving God. Our God is a sovereign God. And Peter was right. We should obey God rather than men. But then there's a requirement for obedience. You see, if I want to be a vibrant, victorious Christian, there are some requirements that I need to understand. You see, if I'm going to be the kind of Christian that this Bible teaches I should be, and God's heart and desire is that we ought to be then I must know, I must have intelligent obedience. I mean, I can't obey unless I know what it is God wants me to do. Acts 4.20, for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. They saw, they heard, they obeyed. We are not just running about, friends, doing things because it sounds good and looks good. We are to do what God wants us to do. We are not only to have intelligent obedience, but we are to have intentional obedience. You see, there ought to be a quiet time in every life, and this is something I fought with in the early years as a young Christian, finding time, for I was a baker in those days, and I used to come home from work about two o'clock in the afternoon, and I'd been in work from four o'clock in the morning, And I would find myself sitting down upstairs in the bedroom yonder and looking at that wall and reading the scriptures and then suddenly waking a couple hours later, I'd have fallen asleep. And that really disturbed me, it really annoyed me. But you see, I had to determine, dear friends, that I was going to give time to the Lord in every day of my life. I was going to report in for orders. Lord, what would you have me to do? You see, dear friends, I'm responsible for what I now know. That is what I've been taught of the Lord, what His Word has spoken to me, what His Spirit has laid me into. I am responsible for what I already know, but I'm also responsible for the knowable. That is what I should be getting to know day after day as I come in prayer, as I read the Word. And it's no excuse for me to say, well, I really don't know what God's will is. Well, you will find me, said the scriptures, if you seek me with all of your heart. Oh, what a challenge. I remember the first day that came to me, and I cried from my heart, Lord, inhabit my humanity. Lord, think through my mind. Lord, smile through my countenance. Lord, work through my hands. Love through my heart. Speak through my lips. Here I am, Lord. I report. I report for duty. My dad was a very strict kind of individual. He didn't really know a lot about political correctness. But when we were born in Milford, just outside Armagh, yonder, He had two very large plots in the field just in front of us. The people who run the farm, they rented this ground out and plots, and my father rented two plots. And of course, he had them all dug, and vegetables in them, potatoes in them, and all the rest of it. And as we grew up, he came to a point where he said, right, I'll be at work all day. You guys are off school. I want you to dig this. I want you to do that. I want you to... And so it went on. And so I decided, well, I'm sick and tired of this. And I'm too young to be doing this anyway. So I'll just not be present when he gives his orders. And he came home that night and he said, I noticed you haven't dug the piece of ground I give to you. I said, no, but I wasn't here. I didn't know what you wanted. Oh? Well, he says, I want you just to come out the back with me right now. And I could hear the cupboard door open, and I knew what was coming. He kept a little strap behind it. I told you, he didn't know a thing about political correctness. And I felt the weight of that strap and couldn't sit down for a week, I assure you. So in future, I did what I was told. You see, there needs to be not only intelligent obedience, but there needs to be intentional obedience. There needs also to be immediate obedience. Immediate obedience. You see, when the breath of the high priest was still hot in the air telling Peter not to preach, Peter was saying, listen, he is God. and we must obey God. He's the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he raised Jesus up from the dead. I mean the same moment he's being told, don't do it, he's doing it. That's what comes from an obedient servant. You see, the reason we seldom hear him speak, it dawned on me was that I wasn't obeying the last order. Beswift my soul to answer him. There needs to be intelligent obedience. There needs to be intentional obedience. There needs to be inflexible obedience. That means lives were in danger, and yet they would not be moved in their resolve to obey God. rather than men." What an amazing thought. We work, as you know, today in Romania quite a bit. And over these past terrible days, we have lost some of our best young men, young pastors, who died through this awful pandemic. Lost a lot of our best dear souls in Christ for many years. and these days were amazing. But they gave themselves to the Lord, wouldn't stop doing what they were doing, and they were inflexible in their obedience to the Lord. One of them wrote me this piece. Let me read it to you. You may remember Joseph Saint, great pastor of Romanian churches, The communist officials came and said they were closing the church, but if he would register, he could remain in his church. And this is, of course, some years ago. And San said, if I register, will I be allowed to preach under the control of the state? No. you will no longer be able to preach and say that God is sovereign. After a time alone with God, he and his wife felt that they could not obey the register, but they must obey God. The communist official returned and answered and said, no, I won't register. Do you know what we can do to you if you haven't? We have the power of the state if you won't listen to us. You have power to take my life, said Sam. Your greatest weapon is killing me, but let me tell you what my greatest weapon is. My greatest weapon is dying. What? What said the official? He said, sir, if I die. I have preached thousands of sermons. I have made tapes. I've made written books. I've been in many pulpits. And wherever I am, my blood will speak from the ground and will call out to sinners, and they will be wonderfully saved. And you, the communist officials of this land, will be defeated." That communist official went back to his people, his superiors, and they said, leave song alone. He's crazy. And Joseph Song, of course, went on then to head up the Evangelical Romanian Society, beaming the gospel out all over the country. And today, you can meet even thousands that were saved through Joseph Song's ministry because he was inflexible in his obedience. We might well say today, dear friends, Because I've said to you, there's a reason for obedience and there's the requirement of obedience. And you're maybe sitting as I have sat and said, how do you do that? How do we get to a place where we are willing to obey the Lord? And I love this because in verse five, let me read it to you again. In chapter five, rather, let me read this to you again, verse 30. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a prince and a savior, for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. Now, please listen to this. And we are his witnesses of these things. And so is also, listen, the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that, listen, obey Him." Wow. When they heard that, they were cut to the heart and took counsel to slay Him. How can we do such a thing? Allow the Holy Spirit to enter and be born of God. And, oh friends, there's none can work in our lives and hearts and beings like the Spirit of the living God. You see, dear friends, the Spirit is our comforter. and he ministers to us. The hymn writer put it like this. Our blessed Redeemer, e'er he breathed his tender last farewell, a guide, a comforter bequeathed with us to dwell. Oh, beloved, the Holy Spirit exercises a wonderful and a powerful ministry in every true child of God. Let him allow him, even in these days of pandemic and all kinds of fears, allow him to work. You see, when lonely, he gives us a sense of the presence of Christ. When worried, he turns our thoughts to the person of Christ. When we are afraid, he shares with us the peace of Christ. When we are weak, he helps us draw strength from the power of Christ. When we are downcast, he reminds us of the prayers of Christ. When we are uncertain, he causes us to reflect on the purposes of Christ. When we are in doubt, he assures us of the provisions of Christ. When we are tossed and upset, he steadies us with the promises of Christ. The Spirit of God is our comforter and ministers to us. The Spirit of God is our conformer and molds us. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son. You see, the Spirit of God is our conformer and molds us. He can fashion us with all of the skill and care of the best potter in the world so that he might produce an instrument, a vessel for noble purposes used in the Lord's service. The Spirit of God is our comforter. He ministers to us. The Spirit of God is our conformer. He molds us. The Spirit of God is our controller. He masters us. Sin should no longer have dominion over me. Satan should no more have his say in my life, in my heart. The world should not demand my attention and appeal to me. And the flesh should not gain the upper hand. Why, friends, with God's Holy Spirit inside of me, I'm under new management. and He can use me and work through me. That's why Peter was saying, we must, we must obey God. No other way. when we walk with the Lord in the light of his word. What a glory! He shades on our way while we do his good will. He abides with us still and with all who will trust and obey. The Spirit of God is our comforter. He ministers to us. The Spirit of God is our conformer. He molds us. The Spirit of God is our controller. He masters us. And the Spirit of God is our challenger, friends. He motivates us. Paul throws down the gauntlet in 1 Corinthians 3, 17. If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy or set aside, for the temple is holy, which temple you are. That word defile carries with it the idea of impurity, carries with it the idea of uncleanness, carries with it, friends, the idea that we as vessels can get dirty. We can. and we grieve or quench the Spirit, we extinguish the fire of God in our souls, and we become like damp squibs. So He motivates us to present us, ourselves, unspoiled and ready for the Lord to do all that He wants to do with us, to minister to us, to mold us, to master us, to motivate us. Let me turn you for a moment or two to the book of Ephesians. Ephesians, I beg your pardon, Ephesians chapter 5. And it's Ephesians 5, and I can't find it now what I'm looking for. Ephesians 5 and verse 18, please. Ephesians 5, 18, I love this. Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit. Be not drunk with wine, Paul was writing to the church at Ephesus, wherein is excess, but be ye, Dr. Bullinger puts in his interpretation in the Greek text, but be you filled, be you continually being filled or being intoxicated with the Spirit. You see, Paul's writing here in verse 18, he says, your taste should be under the control of the Spirit. In verse 17, he's reminding them that their thoughts should be under the control of the Spirit. In verse 16, he's reminding them their time should be under the control of the Spirit. In verse 15, he's saying, your treading, your walk should be under the control of the Spirit. Verses 8 through 14, he makes this clear, that your testimony should be under the control of the Spirit. In verses 6 and 7, your throng, the people you keep company with, should be under the control of the Spirit. Verses 3 to 5, but your tongue should be under the control of the Spirit. And verses 1 and 2, your tenderness, your heart should be under the control of the Spirit. What an amazing, amazing thought. You see, dear friends, when we see where Peter's coming from, we're brought to that point where we feel surely we can but endeavor to follow the Lord in that manner. What an amazing thought. You see, there are reasons for obedience, and there are requirements for obedience. But let me remind you as I come to a conclusion, friends, there are rewards for obedience. Rewards. You see, if we were to read further down that chapter, and I won't take time to do it just now for my time's almost up, we would discover that there is spiritual power in the witness of those who obey God. spiritual power. You say, Pastor, I don't have that spiritual power in my life. I wonder, can I have to say the same? Do I have to say the same? Have I been obeying God? You see, God won't give spiritual power to those who are rebelling. I mean, you would not give the keys of that lovely new Mercedes to your son, however much you love him, knowing that when he gets that thing out on the road, he'll sink the boot. Maybe you don't know that phrase in St. Phil, but you wouldn't dare give your son or daughter, because you know what's going to happen. You see, it's then and only then when we obey the Lord that God can release spiritual power in these lives of ours to work through us. Don't worry if others say, well, I don't see that power working in you or in me. Let's keep working at it. Only one way I know of getting that power is obedience. See, the flowers of blessing grow only in the garden of obedience. Spiritual power and witness, if we obey. Supernatural joy in the life, if we obey. You say, Pastor, I don't have any joy in my Christianity. It's all an uphill struggle. It's just going from one disaster to another, one failure to another, one crisis to another, one family problem to another. I'm continually wed down and so often feel miserable and feel down. I know nothing of that joy in my life. In fact, life is full of boring, full of insipid, nothing. No victory, no joy, no blessing. Friends, being there, done that, got the t-shirt. But when we come to that place where we give ourselves to the Holy Spirit to work through us, we will discover witness power in our witness, we will discover joy in our life, and we will discover the third reward, salvation in the church. What a challenge. You say, I don't know. Well, then we need to learn. That's the first lesson I had. I needed to learn. What has God been telling me to do through reading again this book of Acts at this age in life? Obey God. And keep on obeying God in school, in university, in every walk of life. Any man lacks wisdom, let him ask of God. Any woman lacks wisdom, let them ask of God. Start by asking God. Yes, on your knees. Yes, open the book before you and let God speak. And, oh friends, I can assure you, and that has been the blessing that I've discovered these years since we began to work, especially in Romania, And you go there and you preach. And my dear friend has just opened a new church there. And they weren't sure how many would turn up. And when they opened the doors, the first service they had on the Sunday afternoon, over 500 appeared. And 40 of those were saved that very afternoon. And I've had the joy of being there and leading some of those dear souls to Christ and see them brought into the church and being taught the things of God and baptized within a few weeks, brought into membership in the church, and now they're out and about winning souls for the Lord. Some of them we have put through seminary, and some of them are now in pastoral work. Some of them are going into evangelistic work. And God is showing those young people there what He can do through obedience. The leaders of our land have been telling us, do it, keep saying. That's the way ahead. Sure, it's what God has been telling us all these years. Let's pray together. Lord, we thank you for your Word. We just love you when you come and speak through the Spirit of God. We ask you will help us to be obedient and obey God rather than men. And our Father, that we will yet see days of blessing, salvation, encouragement, and we will rejoice in the great goodness of God. This we pray in Jesus' name and for Jesus' sake.