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| These Men Had Been With Jesus (Acts 4:13-14) | |||||
 Printer Friendly Version - opens in separate window The whole world is living on Mars Hill! Open your newspapers and you find they no longer disseminate simple news with the occasional opinion column. Opinion writers reign supreme. I suppose with 24 hour news that's what sells newspapers these days. Watch the television or listen to the radio news and experts on this, that and everything else are queuing up to tell us what they think about the current situation. And as if opinions enough cannot be found, viewers and listeners are encouraged to write/text/e-mail and otherwise get in touch with their own views ("Andy from Manchester rang to tell us..."). Pundits and aficionados talk long into the night (if you care to stay up, tune in and listen to them) disagreeing on everything from the bank rate to the latest political doctrine, from the latest diet, style or celebrity gossip to the vexed question of how a secular society should deal with accommodating differing religious/philosophical views still prevalent at the beginning of the 21st Century.Mars Hill is the Areopagus in Athens, from areos, the Greek name for the God of war, and pagos, from the Greek for rock. The Areopagus was the rock of Ares and, "All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas" (Acts 17:21). What a picture of today's society; at war with itself talking about the latest theories and opinions but having no fixed purpose or idea about what might be done about it. Contrast this with the events surrounding our text. Peter and John had been used by God in healing a cripple in the temple courts (Acts 3:1-10). Understandably, a crowd gathered; "all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon's Colonnade" (3:11). Peter preached the gospel. It sounds so innocuous doesn't it? A crowd gathered and Peter preached the gospel. However, it was revolutionary. "The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead" (4:1-2) One of the great debating points between Jesus and the apostles and the priests, Pharisees and Sadducees was the question of resurrection. Was there one and, if so, what form would it take? (see Luke 7 and 1 Corinthians 15). When Peter and John were called before the council (vv 5-7) Peter preached the gospel (vv 8-12). Now the council were astonished. These were unschooled men yet had immense courage (and it has to be said clarity) in proclaiming their gospel and the clincher was that, "since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say" (v14). "They [also] took note that these men had been with Jesus" (v13) While the world was on Mars Hill debating when the Messiah might come, what the resurrection was, what to do about the Romans, straining at gnats and swallowing camels, "these men had been with Jesus". And what a difference that one fact made! With them there was no equivocation, the message was clear, their conviction sound and the proof stood before the council in healed and changed lives. I will say it again; the whole world is living on Mars Hill! Where do you plan to spend your time this week? |
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