Adrian Rogers - Holy Boldness
Would you find the Book of Acts? Turn to chapter four. And as you're finding it, may I ask you a question? Are you a bold Christian? Or, perhaps are you a cowardly Christian? May I put it this way: if you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? Do your neighbors know that you're a Christian? A little boy had a mongrel dog and a man asked him, said, "Son, what kind of dog is that"? "Oh," he said, "He is a police dog". The man said, "Well, he doesn't look like a police dog". The little boy said, "Well, he's in the secret service".
I think we have a lot of Christians today who are cowardly Christians. They are saved, but somehow they are in the secret service. There's the curse of cowardly Christians. They don't want to be seen in the office with a Bible on their desk. They don't want to be seen in the cafeteria bowing their head and thanking God for their food. They don't want to meet, witness, the saving love of Jesus Christ when there's an opportunity, afraid that someone may, dislike them or criticize them, or whatever. Now, they're saved, but they are cowardly Christians. Well, we're going to look at some verses today, chapter four verse 13. And I want you to notice the word boldness that is used in all three of these verses that I'm going to read.
"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled: and took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus". Now go to verse 29, "And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word". That's the second use of the word boldness in this chapter. Now go down to verse 31, "And we, when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and spake the Word of God with boldness".
Three times in this chapter, he uses the word boldness. One time it's associated with God the Son, the other time with God the Father, the third time with God the Holy Spirit. Boldness, boldness, boldness. Are you a bold believer? Or, are you a cowardly Christian? Do you want to be a bold believer? What is boldness in the first place? Well, it, it's not arrogance. It's not the ability to put your finger in somebody's face and to tell them off. Ah, boldness is not being rude or crude. Some people think that they are bold and they're just arrogant, and they have bad manners and sometimes bad breath to go with it. That's not boldness. Those people turn more people off than bring people to the Lord Jesus. We're to be gentle, apt to teach and in nothing give offense.
Don't think that if you go around, getting in people's face that you're necessarily bold. Ah, what, boldness is not arrogance, and, and boldness is not presumption, where you just, do things to show how much courage that you have. This is not boldness. What is boldness? Boldness is having the courage to stand for the Lord Jesus Christ in the face of opposition. What is the basis of our boldness? It's, it's linked to the holy Trinity, and we're going to see that right now. And I want to tell you how to be a bold Christian, and I want to give a testimony of what I am saying today is not something that I have learned out of a book. It is something that I have found from the book, the Word of God, and something that I have experienced in my life and continue to experience as I preach and witness and testify. Here is the basis of my boldness.
Number one, and here are three principles. Here are three things. Number one: keep company with God the Son. Now we're gonna talk in a moment about God the Father and God the Spirit. But first of all, keep company with God the Son. Now look in verse 13, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled: and took knowledge of them," what? "That they had been with Jesus". They were keeping company with the Son of God. You cannot walk in his presence and be a coward, you just can't do it.
Now Jesus is alive and well on planet earth. They said, "How did this man get healed"? They said, "Don't blame it on us. Blame it on Jesus. Give him the glory. By him, by his name, by his presence this man was healed". "They marveled and took knowledge of them". They said, "They're unlearned. They're ignorant. They haven't been to seminary. They haven't been to college". Yes, but they have been with Jesus. That's the basis of boldness. You keep company: keep company with God the Son. You see, Jesus didn't come to get you out of trouble, mister: he came to get into trouble with you, and he will be with you.
Now here's the second basis of boldness. Not only have, company, keep company with God the Son, but number two: have confidence in God the Father. Now, they told them not to preach anymore, but now notice in verse 24, "And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God," he's talking now about God the Father, "With one accord, and said, 'Lord, thou art God, which has made the heaven and the earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: who, by the mouth of thy servant, David, hath said, has said, 'why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things'? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child, Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together, to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. Now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants,'" here it is again, "'that with all boldness they may speak thy word'". They said, "Don't speak any more". They said, "Oh, God, just give us more power to do exactly what they told us that we could not do".
Now, they not only were keeping company with the Son of God, God the Son, but they were having confidence in God the Father. Do you know, you have to get things in perspective? If you don't get things in perspective, you're going to get spooked. Ha, the devil's going to have you on the run. But when you have things in perspective, when you see God, who he is really is. The man who can kneel before God can stand before anyone else. One fear, a holy fear of God, removes all other fears. You see, they, they, they saw God. Look, look at this now. Here's the confidence they had. They had confidence in God as the Creator of all things.
Look in verse 24, "And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, 'Lord, thou art God which made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is'". This is God, who scooped out the oceans, who heaped up the mountains, huh, who dotted the universe with stars, billions and billions and billions of stars, out over the velvety blackness of space, and they're saying, "God, you made it all. Why, why should we tremble when you are our Father? Why should we be intimidated when a God, who can do such things, is on our side"? He spoke and universes drip from his fingers. What a mighty God we serve. What a mighty God we serve. You see, they had confidence in God as the Creator of all things: and so, it follows as night follows day, they saw God as the controller of all things.
Now, listen, you've got to get your prospective right. Look a, at, beginning in verse 25. They speak of God the Father, "Who, by the mouth of thy servant, David, has said, 'why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord'". Boy, can you see that as they stand on their big, on two big feet, stick out their big chest, and shake their puny fist in the face of Almighty God? They stand up, "'together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child, Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the gentiles, and the people of Israel were gathered together,'" now watch this, "'for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done'".
Ha, I love it. Ha. God is the Creator of all things, and he's the controller of all things. Do you think dark Gethsemane and bloody Calvary was a mistake? Do you think things got out of hand? Do you think God's walking up and down in heaven, saying, "Oh, no, oh, no, what am I gonna do now, what am I gonna do now"? Do you think the Holy Spirit ever meets in emergency, session to say, "Oh, my, look now what has happened? Look, they've crucified the Son of God". Oh, no. Not a blade of grass moves without his permission. "To do whatsoever thy counsel has before determined to do". Look up here and let me tell you something, friend. God has never lost control. And God never says, "Oops". God is in control.
Now that ought to give you courage. And know that he is the Creator of all things. He is the quo, controller of all things. And, therefore, he is the conqueror of all things. Peter here is quoting Psalm two, huh, and he says, "The, the kings of the earth set themselves against the Lord and his Christ, his anointed". But Psalm two goes on to say, "Yet have I set my king upon the holy hill of, of Zion".
I want to give you good news. We win. We win. Jesus Christ is going to be enthroned in Jerusalem. Sin can't win. Faith can't fail. Ah, things are not right in this world right now because, as I've told you before, things are out of place. The church is the bride, and the bride belongs with the groom, and we will at the rapture. Ah, Jesus is the king, and the king belongs on the throne: he will be when he comes again. Satan is the criminal and he belongs in the dungeon: and he will be when Jesus comes again. "Yet have I set my king upon the holy hill of Zion". You know sometimes you look at the ebb and flow of things and you get the idea, "Well, everything is gone wrong. Maybe God has failed. Maybe the Bible is not true". No! No! Sin can't win. Faith cannot fail. Now what is your problem? Think about it today. You got it in your mind? Now double it. Make it twice as bad. Now double what you've doubled.
And now I want to ask you a question: is that big to God? Is that big to God? Of course not. What is the basis of boldness? You must keep company with God the Son. You must have confidence in God the Father. When these people were terrified, they took their eyes off of man and put their eyes on God. The Bible says, "The fear of man brings a snare". Take your eyes off your problems. Focus your eyes upon Almighty God, who is the Creator of all things, who is the controller of all things, who is the conqueror of all things. That's the basis of your boldness. Now here's the third thing. Here's the third thing, if you would be bold today.
Number one, keep company with God the Son. Number two, have confidence in God the Father. He is over all. He cannot fail. He must prevail. Have faith in God. Number three: receive courage from God the spirit. Receive courage from God the spirit. Now begin reading again in verse 29, where we left off, "'and now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word. By stretching forth thy hand to heal: and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child, Jesus'. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the Word of God with boldness".
The first time we mentioned God the Son, the second time we mentioned God the Father, now we're mentioning God the spirit. And boldness is in the triune God. When we keep company with God the Son, when we have confidence in God the Father, then we receive courage from God the spirit. God the Holy Spirit will give us the courage that we need to live for him. Now notice what, what the apostle said, "Lord, look at their threatenings". Look if you will in verse 29, "Behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word".
The word servant here is the, Greek word that means bondslave. Are you a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ? I try to make it a habit every day to lift my hands in surrender to the Lord. To say to the Lord, "I am your servant". Not really just simply a servant, this word means a slave, a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ. Boldness is not for rebels. You will never have boldness, true boldness, until you can say, "Now, Lord, grant to your bondservant, to your slave, boldness". Now, when you do that, the Holy Spirit of God will give you courage. You know, if there's any unconfessed sin in your life, any unsurrendered area, you're not going to have boldness.
The Bible says, "The wicked flee when no man pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion". "The wicked flee when no man pursues". He, he's always wondering, "You know, do they know this? Have they heard that? Will I be discovered here"? Whatever. Oh, but when you can wake up and say, "There's nothing between my soul and the Savior. Lord, I am your servant. I am your slave. Jesus is with me. God the Father is above me. Holy Spirit of God, you're within me. Grant boldness to declare your word". Now what did they want courage for? They wanted courage to express God's word. Ah, look again in verse 29, "With all boldness that they may speak thy word".
I think the curse of the 21st century is cowardly Christians who are not expressing the Word of God. These apostles did not ask for safety. They asked for courage. They asked for the ability to do more what got them in trouble in the first place. By the way, I want not only courage for the man and woman in the pew. We need more pastors with courage. Now, I don't hold myself up as the paragon of excellence in that area: but I'm, I'm truly convinced there's not a whole lot wrong in America that could not be radically, dramatically, and swiftly put back in place if all across America we had a generation of preachers who would open the Word of God, filled with the Spirit of God, and preach the Christ of God without fear or intimidation or worrying about being politically correct.
Preach the Word of God. They wanted courage to express God's word. They wanted courage to extend God's hand. "Lord, give us courage. By stretching forth thine hand to heal: and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child, Jesus". "O, God, let your miracle-working power flow through our hands". Well, you say, "I, I thought Jesus did it". Yes, he dis, does. Look in chapter five verse 12, "By the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders done among the people". Ah, and the word by actually means through. Jesus Christ is doing it through us. Anything that you're doing that can be explained apart from Jesus is not worth anything.
Now, what did they want? They wanted courage to express God's word. They wanted courage, to extend God's hand. They wanted courage to exalt God's Son. Look again in verse 30, "By stretching forth," ah, "Thine hand to heal: and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child, Jesus". The name means the authority of Jesus.
Friend I want to tell you something. You know, they, I go to a, a public occasion somewhere and they call on me to pray. Well, friend, if they don't want me to pray in the name of Jesus, then they ought not to ask me because that's the way I pray. It would be a form of religious persecution and bigotry to tell me I ought not to pray the way I pray. I don't expect a Jew to pray in the name of Jesus. I wouldn't have respect in a Jew who prayed in the name of Jesus, if he didn't believe in Jesus. I'd have more respect for him if he prayed the way he normally prays. I would have no respect for a muslim who prayed any differently in public than he prays in private. I want him to pray the way he prays. I want a Jew to pray the way he prays. I want a Christian to pray the way he prays.
And all they do, they prate about pluralism. They don't mean pluralism. What they mean is syncretism. Just dumb it all down till it means nothing to everybody, and then we'll let you mumble a little mumbo-jumbo. No. Don't be ashamed of Jesus. Don't be afraid to lift up the name of Jesus. Holy Spirit of God, give us courage to express your word, to extend your hand, to exalt your son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, not everybody will believe in Jesus. And I would not force Jesus on anyone. But I don't want anyone telling me I cannot express the Lord Jesus, I cannot exalt the Lord Jesus.
Now what happened? When these people were filled with boldness, "And when they had prayed," ah, "The place was shaken where they were assembled together: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of, of bold, the Word of God with boldness". Now look in verse 33, "And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all". And there were multitudes who were swept into the kingdom of heaven.
Now as I bring this message to a close, let me tell you something. If we will begin to keep company with the Son of God, if we will have confidence in God the Father, and if we will receive courage from God the spirit that we might speak the Word of God with boldness. Brothers and sisters, listen to me. It is time in this church, in this day and in this age, we get out of the boat with both feet and go for God. Are you with me? Say amen. All right. You may be a little afraid. You may feel a little intimidated. But remember I'm not talking about arrogance. I'm not talking about brashness. I'm talking about courage to express God's word, to extend God's hand, to exalt God's Son.