Acts 4:1-12
And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.
5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you 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 is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
There is great comfort in the promise of God through the prophet Isaiah,
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” – Isaiah 55:10-11
God’s word has been powerful from the beginning. When God said, “Let there be light.” There was light. And God saw that the light was good (Genesis 1:3-4). Jesus displayed this same power when he healed the lame man, stilled the storm at sea, or spoke peace to the disciples. And now it continues through the ministry of Peter and the Apostles. It was in Jesus’ name that the man was healed.
So it should not surprise us when we read that even in the face of strong resistance and the vociferous opposition of the high priest and the Sadducees, some people believed the word. And the church grew to 5000 souls. Peter and the others were preaching and teaching about Jesus’ death and resurrection. This is the message of forgiveness and salvation. This is the message of the cross and the empty tomb.
Martin Luther wrote in his famous hymn, A Mighty Fortress, that one little word can defeat the devil. So whenever we experience opposition to the truth of God’s word, we must recall the truth of the Bible, the Good News of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection. God has promised that through faith in Jesus we are justified, forgiven, holy and blameless.
This is the word those early Christians believed. It is the word we believe and for which we give glory to God and praise to his name.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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