Alan Lewis
Elon, North Carolina
April 2025
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. 2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.
3 They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. 4 But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.
5 The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. 7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.
11 Jesus is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ 12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
Today, we want to talk about one of the most controversial statements of Scripture. We are going to talk about one of the most offensive statements of Scripture. We are going to talk about one of the most politically incorrect statements of Scripture.
It is the doctrine of the exclusivity of Christ. Do you have to believe in Jesus to go to heaven? What people who do not believe in Jesus? What about people who are members of other religions?
Will they go to heaven? Some non-Christians live better lives than some Christians. Today, we will find out what the Bible actually teaches on that topic. It is clear.
Let’s do a little review. Acts 2 describes the birth of the church. The church starts. When the church began, everything was going great. The church was on fire. People were filled with the Holy Spirit.
Some were speaking in tongues. Conversions were taking place. People were getting saved. They were getting baptized. Incredible miracles were taking place. Healings were taking place.
In Acts 3, Peter performs an incredible miracle. A lame man began to walk. He had never walked before and suddenly he gets up and starts walking. In fact, he began running and jumping and praising God.
It was not only a miracle. It was a sign. A message came out of this miracle. This man not only got healed; he got saved. He was praising God.
Peter was filled with the Spirit and preached an impromptu sermon and people responded. There were mass conversions after he finished speaking.
Luke says, “But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand” (Acts 4:4 NIV).
The Jewish leaders thought if they got rid of Rabbi Jesus, that would be the end of the movement. Now, two months later, there are five thousand more followers in the same city and probably much more.
Luke counts five thousand men (ἀνδρ0ς). That did not include the women and children. It might have been three times larger.
When we come to Acts 4, things change dramatically. Persecution begins. The first recorded persecution takes place. The church has been persecuted for two thousand years. All over the world, Christians are persecuted today.
Many are martyred but the first persecution of the church takes place in Acts 4. Persecution comes to the leaders of the church first. Two apostles are arrested and thrown in jail. In Acts 4, they are jailed. In Acts 5, they are beaten. In Acts 7, one leader is stoned to death. We have the first martyr in the church.
Surprising Facts about Persecution
This first persecution was surprising. It tells us two things about persecution.
1) Persecution can come from religious people
The first persecution of the church didn’t come from the state. It came from religious people. It came from organized religion. It came from the religious establishment.
It came from the leaders. It came from the priests. It came from the pastor. It came from the elders. It came from the deacons.
It came from people who ran the temple: the priests, the high priest, the scribes, which were the bible scholars of the day and the temple police.
Satan is always behind it but sometimes he uses religious people. Some of the worst persecution in the world comes from religious people. Now, all religion is not bad but false religion always persecutes true religion.
Some of the most intolerant people on the planet are religious. The people who killed Jesus were religious. Terrorists in the Middle East who commit mass murder are religious. They are very religious.
The first surprising thing about persecution is where it comes from. The second surprising thing is why it takes place in the first place.
2) Persecution can take place for doing good
Someone titled this section “Going to jail for doing good.”[1] Peter and John laid their hands on a crippled man and helped him walk. The religious leaders laid their hands on Peter and John and put them in jail.
Peter and John did a good deed. They helped someone. They healed a man who had never walked a day in his life. They changed the life of this poor, paralyzed beggar and someone called security. They said, “We can’t have this taking place.”
Instead of praising them for what they did, they punished them. They did a good deed and were arrested for it. They were persecuted for doing good. Not just persecuted but prosecuted.
If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer AS A CHRISTIAN, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. (I Peter 4:15-16 NIV)
Blessed are those who are persecuted BECAUSE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:10 NIV). Are we persecuted because of righteousness or because we are a Christian or just because we are annoying?
They went on trial, not for committing a crime but for doing a good deed. The same thing happened to Jesus.
God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. 39 “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross (Acts 10:38-39 NIV)
Jesus was anointed by God, filed with the Spirit, doing good and healing people, casting out demons, raising the dead and He will killed for it.
The Sanhedrin
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. 2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. 3 They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. (Acts 4:1-3 NIV)
Peter and John were arrested, thrown in jail and put on trial. They went before the Sanhedrin. It was their Supreme Court. It was the Jewish Supreme Court. It was the was the highest court of the land.
If you go to the Supreme Court today, you stand in front of nine justices. There were seventy members of the Jewish Supreme Court. We do not know if they were all present on that day, but many were there. They sat in a semicircle. They were all sitting. Peter and John stood and faced the high priest.
The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. (Acts 4:4-6 NIV)
Critics of the Bible call this a contradiction. They call it a historical error.Acts says Annas was the high priest. We know from history that Caiaphas was the high priest. Annas was deposed as high priest more than fifteen years earlier.
Caiaphas was the high priest, not Annas. Caiaphas was the high priest in the trial of Jesus. Even though that was the case, many still considered Annas as the real high priest and he was still very influential. We do the same thing today. Ex-presidents we still call president.
Most do not know this but in 1990, archeologists found the tomb of Caiaphas. He was the judge in the trial of Jesus two months earlier. His actual bones were discovered in 1990. It is called the Caiaphas Ossuary. We discovered the bones of a real bible character who lived two thousand years ago in Jerusalem.
The Pharisees & Sadducees
Most of the Sanhedrin was made up of Sadducees, although it had some Pharisees in it. The high priest was a Sadducee. They were two different sects of the Jews, like denominations, like Baptists and Methodists.
They were on opposite sides of the spectrum. The Pharisees were the party of the poor. The Sadducees were the party of the rich.
The Pharisees were in charge of the synagogue. The Sadducees were in charge of the Temple. They were the priests.
The Pharisees added to the Law. They added things to the Bible. It is called “the tradition of the elders.” We have people like them today who add to Scripture. The Pharisees added to the Law. The Sadducees took away from the law.
The Sadducees were the liberals. They didn’t believe in angels or demons. They didn’t believe in the spirit world. They did not believe in the supernatural. They didn’t believe in the resurrection.
That is why these leaders did not like what the apostles said. They were in charge of the temple. The apostles were on the temple. They were on the temple grounds and were preaching about Jesus rising from the dead.
They couldn’t deny the resurrection. Peter and John refuted their belief system. If Jesus rose from the dead, which the Sadducees could not deny, then the Sadducees are wrong about the resurrection.
Peter’s Message
What does Peter say to the religious establishment of his day? What does he say to his critics? We could summarize it in four points.
1) It was a Spirit-filled message
Jesus predicted this would happen. Jesus said, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first” (John 15:18 NIV)
“When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say. (Luke 12:11-12 NIV)
Jesus predicted believers would be hated, arrested, stand before authorities and be interrogated. It happened to Him and He said it would happen to them.
The apostles answer all of these leaders early in the morning. What they say is spontaneous. It is impromptu. It wasn’t planned. The Holy Spirit gave them the words to say in that moment. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them (Acts 4:8 NIV)
2) It was a bold message
“Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 Jesus is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone (Acts 4:8-11 NIV)
Peter was filled with the Spirit. He was also filled with a little sarcasm. He was Jewish. He uses a little Jewish humor, as Tommy Nelson points out.[2]
I am going to paraphrase what Peter said. He basically said, “Are we tried today because of the horrible crime of making a lame man walk? God forgive me for doing this terrible thing. May I be cursed a thousand times for making lame men walk. May I die a thousand deaths for doing such an evil thing.”[3]
Peter was also filled with boldness. This was daring. It is what the Jews call “hutzpah.” Peter and John were brought before seventy of the top judges in the country. The Jewish Supreme Court makes an accusation against them. Peter and John turn the tables and accuse them of a crime. He accuses the judges while he is on trial.
Peter makes four basic points. One, he says, “I did not heal this man. Jesus did. Two, he says, “You crucified Jesus. You murdered your Messiah. Three, God raised him from the dead. Four, the OT predicted it would happen.
He calls the Messiah a stone. He said the builders saw this stone and threw it out. They did not want it. God picked it up and used it to make the cornerstone of a building. That was predicted in the OT.
3) It was a salvation message
Peter preaches salvation. He is an evangelist. Peter is in a serious situation. He is on trial for a crime. He is standing before seventy judges. He is standing before the Jewish Supreme Court, and he just uses it as an example to preach the gospel. He is not intimidated. He is just glad to have seventy people to preach to.
They ask him, “By what power or what name did YOU do this?” Peter says, “Thanks for asking. I was hoping you would ask that question.” Peter says it is by the name of Jesus, and we did not do it. He did it.
It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed….12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:10, 12 NIV)
Peter goes from talking about physical healing to talking about eternal salvation. In fact, the Greek word for “saved” (σώζω) is used for salvation and healing. It is a play on words.
Jesus said that he came to seek and save (σώζω) what was lost (Luke 19:10). John 3:17 NIV says, “God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (σώζω).
That word is also used for physical healing. Jesus said to a leper, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well (σώζω)” (Luke 19:17 NIV). A woman who touched Jesus’ garment and was instantly healed. Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well (σώζω); go in peace” (Luke 8:48 ESV). Peter says three things in Acts 4:12 about salvation.
One, we all need salvation. Peter says, “we must be saved.” Nothing offends people more than to tell them that they have to be saved. Everyone needs salvation, including these judges.
Two, salvation is in Jesus. The very name Jesus means salvation.
Three, salvation is only in Jesus. There is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved
4) It was an exclusive message
The Christian message is an exclusive message. That is unpopular today. That is one of the reasons that many do not become Christians. To say that Jesus is the only way sounds arrogant. It sounds intolerant. It sounds narrow minded.
That contradicts what many people say today. Today, we are taught pluralism. There are many ways to God. All roads lead to God. That is the gospel of Oprah.
Oprah Winfrey said, “One of the biggest mistakes people make is to believe that there’s only one way. Actually, there are many diverse paths leading to what you may call God.”
Whose right? The Bible or Oprah? Jesus or Oprah? Jesus said that. Was He right or wrong? Did Jesus speak the truth, or did he lie? If he lied, He is not the Savior. He would be a sinner like everyone else. The Bible clearly teaches one way of salvation. It is not just one verse.
Peter said it. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12 NIV).
That is a claim to deity. It is a claim that Jesus God. The OT says that only God is Savior. I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior (Isaiah 43:3 NIV). I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior (Isaiah 43:11 NIV).
Paul said it. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:5 NIV). There is one God and one mediator. Jesus is the only mediator. There are not ten mediators.
You say, “that is Peter and Paul.” Some people don’t like Paul. There are many critics of Paul today. Well, Jesus said the same thing.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14:6 NIV)
That is pretty clear. Jesus made three claims about himself on the night before He died, He said he was THE way to God. He did not say he was a way to God or one of many ways to God. He said that he was but THE way to God. You cannot have a relationship with God apart from Jesus.
He said He was the truth, not one of many truths. He did not say, “I have truth or point to the truth. He said, “I am, not just truth but THE truth.” He is not a guru. He is God.
Finally, He said He was THE LIFE. You can’t have eternal life any other way. You can’t even have physical life any other way. He is the Creator. All life comes from Him.
Is this unfair? No. God has a right to decide how people enter heaven. The problem is not that He has provided one way of salvation. We should just be glad that He provided any. God is not obligated to save anyone.
[1] C. Peter Wagner, Acts of the Holy Spirit, 98.
[2] https://dentonbible.org/sermon/peter-and-the-council/
