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Page 67
While Peter was speaking, the priests, and the captain of the Temple,
and the rulers, came upon them; for they were angry as they heard Peter
speak these words. They laid hold of Peter and John, and put them into
the guardroom for the night. But many of those who had heard Peter
speaking believed on Jesus, and sought the Lord; and the number of the
followers of Christ rose from three thousand to five thousand.
On the next day the rulers came together; and Annas and Caiphas, the
high priests, were there, and with them many of their friends. They
brought Peter and John, and set them before the company. The lame man
who had been healed was still by the side of the two apostles. The
rulers asked them:
"By what power, or through whom have you done this?"
Then Peter spoke boldly:
"Ye rulers of the people and elders, if you are asking us about the good
deed done to this man who was so helpless, how it was that he was made
well, I will tell you that by the name of Jesus of Nazareth whom you put
to death on the cross, whom God raised from the dead; even by him this
man stands here before you all strong and well. And there is no
salvation except through Jesus Christ, for there is no other name under
heaven given among men that can save us from our sins."
When these rulers saw how bold and strong were the words of Peter and
John, they wondered, especially as they knew that they were plain men,
not learned in books, and not used to speaking. They remembered that
they had seen these men among the followers of Jesus, and they felt that
in some way Jesus had given them his power. And as the man who had been
healed was standing beside them, they could say nothing to deny that a
wonderful work had been done.
The rulers sent Peter and John out of the council-room, while they
talked together. They said to each other:
"What shall we do to these men? We cannot deny that a wonderful work has
been done by them, for every one knows it. But we must stop this from
spreading any more among the people. Let us command them not to speak to
any man about the name of Jesus; and let us tell them, that if they do
speak, we will punish them."
So they called the two apostles into the room again, and said to them:
"We forbid you to speak about Jesus, and the power of his name, to any
man. If you do not stop talking about Jesus, we will lay hands on you,
and put you in prison, and will have you beaten."
But Peter and John answered the rulers: "Whether it is right to obey
you or to obey God, you can judge. As for ourselves we cannot keep
silent; we must speak of what we have seen and heard."
The rulers were afraid to do any harm to Peter and John, because they
knew that the people praised God for the good work that they had done;
and they would be angry to have harm come to them. For fear of the
people, they let them go. And being let go, they went to their own
friends, the company who met in the upper room, and there they gave
thanks to God for helping them to speak his word without fear.
THE STORY OF STEPHEN, THE FIRST MARTYR
In the New Testament, in the book of Acts, you will learn how the
members of the church in Jerusalem gave their money freely to help the
poor. This free giving led to trouble, as the church grew so fast; for
some of the widows who were poor were passed by, and their friends made
complaints to the apostles. The twelve apostles called the whole church
together, and said:
"It is not well that we should turn aside from preaching and teaching
the word of God to sit at tables and give out money. But, brethren,
choose from among yourselves seven good men; men who have the Spirit of
God and are wise, and we will give this work to them; so that we can
spend our time in prayer and in preaching the gospel."
This plan was pleasing to all the church, and they chose seven men to
take charge of the gifts of the people, and to see that they were sent
to those who were in need. The first man chosen was Stephen, a man full
of faith and of the Spirit of God; and with him was Philip and five
other good men. These seven men they brought before the apostles; and
the apostles laid their hands on their heads, setting them apart for
their work of caring for the poor.
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