Acts 5:27-32
Miraculously delivered from imprisonment, the Apostles chose the bold path of obedience. The angel of the Lord had given them a mandate to go and proclaim the truth of the gospel in the temple courts- a bold move considering their departure from prison was “unauthorized” at best. (vs 19-20)
While preaching in the temple courts they were detained once again by the captain of the temple guard. Interestingly it is indicated that they did not take them by force as the guards feared the masses. The tables had turned from just a few months earlier, when they had successfully created outcry against The Way during Passover (leading to the Crucifixion). In any case, The Apostles went with the officers, providing no resistance, and soon find themselves facing the religious court once again.
At issue for the Sanhedrin:
The Apostles had disobeyed a direct order to cease and desist. Of even greater concern was their fear that they (the Jewish leaders) were being blamed for the death of Christ. This seems a logical conclusion. What they failed to understand was that in the new Kingdom they had become irrelevant.
At issue for the Apostles:
Obedience to the call of God. Not only were they not intimidated by the Sanhedrin, they were seemingly dismissive of their concerns. It no longer mattered to them who was to blame for the death of Jesus. Jesus was alive! And their living Savior held the keys of life- and had commissioned them to be ambassadors of his new Kingdom.
This passage invites us all to consider the role of the religious or civil authorities in directing the pursuit of Kingdom business. For the early church, when there was a clash regarding the rule of law or obedience to Christ, there was no room for debate. Christ wins every time. Those not led by the Spirit would not have final say on the direction of the mission.
As we, the people of God, pursue the Kingdom objectives, what role civil disobedience? What role spiritual disobedience? This was certainly not the last time the Apostles would face off against opposition from “authorities”. However, Jewish opposition would become less organized as Jerusalem fell later in 70 AD. Most religious opposition would later come from internal pressure (i.e. Judaizers) or pagan religions (see Ephesus). Greatest opposition to the Kingdom in the early church would ultimately come from Rome.
To say that Jesus is Lord is to say that Caesar is not. We must question ourselves when there is no challenge from the church to the earthly powers that be. The early church refused to have the message of the Kingdom be co-opted by the authorities. They were going to be led by The Spirit. End of discussion!
The insistence of the Apostles to persist in their mission is understandable. There are a couple of apparent reasons they would not yield.
Jesus’ victory over death indicated that there was no longer any reason to fear the powers of this world. Even the threat of death is a hollow one for those convinced of resurrection!
Their witness to the victory of Christ was endorsed and further witnessed to, by the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. There is even an indication that the Sanhedrin would have also had a witness from the Spirit had they been living in obedience to God. (vs. 32)
We would do well to learn from the pattern established by the Apostles and boldly move forward in our mission. With the hope of resurrection and the abiding witness of the Spirit we can do no less.