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R.C.H. Lenski · Citado em PreceptAustin
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Lenski concludes - Peter says this to men like Annas and Caiaphas here in the midst of their Sadducean following. The whole Sanhedrin had tried to hush up the resurrection of Jesus, Mt. 28:11-15. Here it faced them with even stronger evidence than that which the Roman guard brought from the tomb. No dead Jesus could work a miracle such as this; the risen and glorified Jesus alone could do that. So Jesus had healed when he was alive; lo, so he had healed now after this Sanhedrin had crucified him! Why did Caiaphas and those Sadducees not leap up and denounce Peter in blazing wrath? Did the truth thrown into their faces, hurled at their consciences with such unexpected power dumbfound them for the moment? (The Interpretation of The Acts of the Apostles) TALKING ABOUT JESUS - As you read through the book of Acts, you discover that the apostles spoke about Christ at every opportunity. It was as natural for them to talk about Jesus as it is for us to talk about a day at work or a vacation at the shore. Why? Because they had personal experience with him. That's the most fundamental truth about witnesses—they communicate what they have seen and heard. If Christ is real to us, if he's important to us, if he's first in our hearts and minds, we will be like those first-century believers. We won't be able to keep from talking about him. Does your conversation ever feature matter-of-fact references to what God means to you or what he is doing in your life? Jesus said it best: "Whatever is in your heart determines what you say" (Luke 6:45NLT). (Life Application Bible Commentary – Acts) Acts Of Kindness Read: Acts 4:1-13 By the name of Jesus . . . , whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. —Acts 4:10 I was traveling with some men when we spotted a family stranded alongside the road. My friends immediately pulled over to help. They got the car running, talked with the father and mother of the family, and gave them some money for gasoline. When the mother thanked them over and over, they replied, “We’re glad to help out, and we do it in Jesus’ name.” As we drove away, I thought how natural it was for these friends to help people in need and acknowledge the Lord as the source of their generosity. Peter and John exhibited that same joyful generosity when they healed a lame man who was begging outside the temple in Jerusalem (Acts 3:1-10). This led to their arrest and appearance before the authorities who asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” Peter replied, “If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man . . . let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole” (Acts 4:7-10). Kindness is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22) and a powerful context in which to genuinely speak to others about the Lord. Lord, help me to love with both words and deeds, To reach out to others and meet their needs; Lord, burden my heart for those lost in sin, With mercy and love that flows from within. —Fitzhugh One act of kindness may teach more about the love of God than many sermons. I like the way Pastor Alan Carr summed up the Name Jesus in his sermon What Makes Jesus So Special? - He Is Exalted In His Name. We are told that He has been given “a name that is above every name”. What is that Name? The Greeks knew Him as Kurios Iesous Christos. The Hebrews called Him Yeshua Ha-Mashiach! The redeemed saints of God just know Him as Jesus! At the mention of that precious Name: • Lives are altered. • Fevered brows become cool. • Blinded eyes open. • Deaf ears unstop. • Sin’s bars open and the shackles of spiritual bondage fall away. • Night turns to day. • Defeat is swallowed up in victory. • Hope replaced despair. • Dead men live. • The lost are found. • Devils tremble. • Sinners are broken. • Saints shout. • Angels bow. More has been done through the agency and power of that Name than of all the names of all other people combined. There really is just something about that Name! • The name Jesus is the sweetest Name ever to fall upon human ears! • That Name is a cause for celebration in Heaven. • That Name strikes fear into the hearts of the inhabitants of Hell. • That Name changed my life, opened my eyes and saved my soul! Like the songwriter said: There's a name above all others, Wonderful to hear, bringing hope and cheer. It's the lovely name of Jesus, Evermore the same, what a lovely name. What a lovely name, the name of Jesus. Reaching higher far, than the brightest star. Sweeter than the songs they sing in heaven. Let the world proclaim, what a lovely name. Another songwriter said: There's Something About That Name (an oldie but a goodie) Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, There's just something about that name. Master, Savior, Jesus, Like the fragrance after the rain. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Let all heaven and earth proclaim, Kings and kingdoms will all pass away But there's something about that name. Listen to Jesus, You're the sweetest Name of all Pastor Carr adds that "there must be something very special about this Name (Iesous - Jesus) I feel that it is special because: A. It Is A Name Picked By The Father - The name Jesus was not given to our Lord by Mary and Joseph. It was a name handpicked by God, Mt. 1:21. This alone makes it a name that stands out as special. A name that is worthy of further investigation. B. It Is A Name That Points Back To The Father - The name Jesus means, "Jehovah Is Salvation." This precious, sweet name reveals a side of Jesus that many fail to grasp. While God is a God of wrath and judgment, He is purely and wholly love, 1John 4:8; 16. God is love and everything He does is an outgrowth and an expression of His love. Therefore, when the Father sent Jesus to come into the world, He was sending a message to humanity. It was a message that said, "I have not forgotten, nor forsaken you. I love you and I give you my Son who will reveal me to you." (Ill. John 14:9) C. It Is A Name That Paint's God's Portrait - The name Jesus at once reveals the Son's mission, (Ill. Luke 19:10), and the Father's heart, (Ill. 2 Pet. 3:9). God isn't in the damning business. He is in the saving business! He wants no one to go to Hell. In fact, He tells us that hell was not made for the lost, it was made for the devil and his angels, Matt. 25:41. When the Father chose the name Jesus as the one His Son would bear during the time of His humiliation, He was telling every creature in His universe in one word that His goal was the redemption and salvation of mankind. This is what He wanted and this is what He accomplished through the Name of Jesus! (The Name Above Every Name) Acts 4:11 "He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS, but WHICH BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone. KJV Acts 4:11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Lenski - This One is the stone, the one considered as nothing by you, the ones building, the one become corner head. He is the STONE Ps 118:22,23; Isa 28:16; Mt 21:42-45; Mark 12:10-12; Luke 20:16-18; 1 Peter 2:6-8 REJECTED by you Acts 7:52; 20:26,27; Pr 28:1; Isa 58:1,2; Ezek 2:6,7; 3:7-11,18,19; 33:7-9; 2 Cor 3:12; 4:1 BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone Zechariah 3:9; 4:6,7; Eph 2:20-22 Acts 4 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries JESUS IS THE STONE THE CORNERSTONE Before His crucifixion Jesus had taught His disciples But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. 13 “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. 14 “So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; 15 for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute. (Lk 21:12-15). Watch what Peter does now -- He has just answered their question by what power or name the miracle had occurred. Answer? Jesus Christ the Nazarene. But he does not stop there. Filled with the Spirit, Peter is guided by the Spirit to quote from Ps 118 to substantiate his previous answer. This is a passage Peter had heard Jesus use to describe the religious leaders and one which they clearly had recognized was describing themselves! So this was probably not the first time at least some of the members of the Sanhedrin had heard theses words! Note that whereas Jesus had warned them that the prophecy would be fulfilled, Peter now declares it has been fulfilled! Ouch! And both parts had been fulfilled -- not just what they had done, but what God had done! Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’? (QUOTE FROM Ps 118:22,23) 43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. 44 “And he who falls on this Stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.” 45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. 46 When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people, because they considered Him to be a prophet. (Mt 21:42-46) He is - Better "this One" clearly implying "this One" named Jesus. This very One is the Stone. He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS - What incredible irony! Peter (the "rock") now begins to speak about the Stone in the Sanhedrin meeting hall known as the "Hall of Hewn Stone!" These men would soon find themselves "hewn" by the Sword of the Spirit wielded by Peter and in eternity "hewn" by the Stone breaking them when It fell on them! Woe! Peter (whose own name means "stone") is quoting a prophecy from Ps 118:22 (I couldn't resist adding Ps 118:23) which reads "The stone which the builders rejected (Lxx = apodokimazo) Has become the chief corner stone. This is the LORD’S doing; It is marvelous in our eyes." Don't miss that Peter adds by you to the quote in order to drive home the point that the ones who rejected the Stone were the very one's listening to his message, the very ones who had convicted Christ of a "crime" and facilitated His crucifixion! The are the builders, the religious leaders, the members of the Sanhedrin, who had sought to convict Peter but who were now themselves being convicted of the "highest treason" possible, treason against the Most High God! As explained below, Peter did not use the Septuagint's verb apodokimazo for rejected (see Ps 118:22 above), but choose another verb which describes not only their act of rejection of their own Messiah but also exposes their heart motives, for this verb also means they despised and disdained Jesus! What Peter is saying to his Sanhedrin audience is that they treated Jesus as if He was of no account! Amazing example of total depravity! Their hearts were so hard as stone to the Stone that could have saved them! Their eyes were so blind that they could not see the Light of the world (Jn 8:12) standing directly before their eyes! Was rejected (view with contempt) (1848)(exoutheneo from ek = an intensifies + outhenéo = bring to naught) is a strong verb which means to despise someone based on the perception he is worthless or of no value! It means to treat contemptuously as if one was completely worthless and despicable. Exoutheneo is the very word used to describe Herod and his soldiers treating Jesus with contempt! (Lk 23:11). BDAG says the verb means "(1) to show by one’s attitude or manner of treatment that an entity has no merit or worth. (2) to have no use for something as being beneath one’s consideration (reject disdainfully)… (3) to regard another as of no significance and therefore worthy of maltreatment, treat with contempt." A T Robertson on the builders - The experts, the architects, had rejected Jesus for their building (Psalm 118:22) as Jesus himself had pointed out (Matthew 21:42; Luke 21:17). This very Rejected Stone God had made the Head of the corner (either the highest corner stone right under the roof or the corner stone under the building, Isaiah 28:16) as Jesus showed, as Peter here declares and repeats later (1 Peter 2:6-7+). (Word Pictures in the New Testament) Builders (3602)(oikodomos from oikos = dwelling + doma = building [of a house] from demo = to build) means literally to build, construct or erect a dwelling. In classical Greek it was used to describe the individual who constructs a building. In the Septuagint oikodomos refers to “builders” (of the Temple, 2 Ki 12:11, cf 2 Ki 22:6), masons (1 Chr 14:1), or restorer (Isa 58:12). Oikodomos - 8x in 8v in the Septuagint - 2 Ki. 12:11; 2 Ki. 22:6; 1 Chr. 14:1; 1 Chr. 22:15; 2 Chr. 34:11 (builders); Neh. 4:18 (builders - restoring Jerusalem's wall); Isa. 58:12; Ezek. 40:3 Note that while only Acts 4:11 uses oidodomos to translate "builders" in Psalm 118:22, the four other NT quotations of Psalm 118:22 use the participal form of the verb oikodomeo. Matthew 21:42 Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’? Mark 12:10 “Have you not even read this Scripture: ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; Luke 20:17+ But Jesus looked at them and said, “What then is this that is written: ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone’? 1 Peter 2:7+ This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve, “THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER stone,” But - A striking Term of contrast. What is Peter contrasting? The contrast could not be much more dramatic -- the Stone the religious leaders considered as worthless, by contrast is the very Stone that would be the foundation stone. Their rejection is contrasted with God's vindication and exaltation! John
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Lenski says that what Peter is saying is that "No second, no substitute, no alternate to Jesus exists." Salvation (deliverance, preservation))(4991)(soteria from soter = Savior in turn from sozo = save, rescue, deliver) (Click here or here for in depth discussion of the related terms soter and sozo) describes the physical rescue or deliverance from danger, destruction and peril (Acts 27:34, Heb 11:7). This Jews had been looking for deliverance by the Messiah, but they repeatedly failed to understand that their greatest need was for spiritual deliverance found only in Jesus. Salvation is a broader term in Greek than we often think of in English. Other concepts that are inherent in soteria include restoration to a state of safety, soundness, health and well being as well as deliverance from danger of destruction resulting in a state of preservation. One of my favorite uses of soteria is by Paul who describes the glorious Messianic deliverance at the end of this present evil age - "Do this (love Ro 13:10), knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.(Ro 13:11+). Are you a sleepy saint? Paul would say "Wake up!" redeem the short time left in this age! (Eph 5:16+). Other than Jn 4:22, it is surprising that the only Gospel writer to use soteria is Luke. Here are all his uses of soteria in his Gospel and in Acts - Lk. 1:69; Lk. 1:71; Lk. 1:77; Lk. 19:9; Acts 4:12; Acts 7:25; Acts 13:26; Acts 13:47; Acts 16:17; Acts 27:34. William Barclay (who himself may not have been saved! See fascinating article The Enigmatic William Barclay) writes that "In classical Greek soteria means 'deliverance' or 'preservation'. It can be used for a man's safe return to his own home or his own country after an absence and a journey. It can mean a 'guarantee of safety' or a 'security against danger'. In the papyri by far the commonest meaning of soteria is 'bodily health'. For instance, a member of the family writes home, 'Write me a letter about your soteria,' or, as we would say, 'Let me know how you are.' (New Testament Words) For (gar) - A term of explanation. What is Peter explaining to the Sanhedrin? This must have been a "tough pill for them to swallow!" IN CHRIST ALONE IS HOPE There is no other name under heaven - In other words there is no other name like this in the entire world. Not Confucius. Not Buddha. Not Mohammed. Every other name is absolutely excluded. This verse is "intolerant" of pretenders, regardless of their name or claim! Worship Him in spirit and truth: Play Robin Mark's Be Unto Your Name. No Other Name - Hillsong Related Resources: Inclusivism vs. exclusivism - what does the Bible say? Is Jesus the only way? What is the way of salvation? With all of the different religions, how can I know which one is correct? Is Jesus really the only way to Heaven? What did Jesus mean when He said “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6)? Just how narrow is the narrow gate? Why did God make salvation such a narrow path? Why is being a good person not enough to get you into heaven? That has been given among men - We again see God's magnificent grace, His unmerited favor. Peter emphasizes this is a gift given to sinful mankind, a gift given to a godless world that otherwise has no hope of eternal life. The verb has been given is in the perfect tense (and passive = "divine passive" = God the Great Giver) indicating that the Name has been given at a point in time and having been given it remains permanently the means of salvation. Indeed, it will remain throughout eternity!
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Lenski says it is "an absolute fact of necessity on which hangs eternal salvation or eternal destruction. Since salvation is possible only in connection with Jesus, all who desire to be saved must embrace His Name." Horton adds a note on the verb must - Must (Gk. dei) is an emphatic word indicating compelling necessity. If we do not find salvation through the name (Person) of Jesus, we shall never find it. Nowhere in the entire world is there another Savior—there never has been and never will be. (Acts: A Logion Press Commentary) Albert
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Lenski adds "All of this was too much. They were checkmated."