Verse 42 of chapter 5 is a very basic part of
building a local New Testament church. “And daily in the
temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and
preach Jesus Christ.” This verse has been the backbone
of Fundamental Baptist Church and its ministries since
our beginning in 1981. The members of Fundamental
Baptist Church–young and old alike–are daily
witnessing to men, women, boys, and girls throughout
Ventura and surrounding areas. There are very few houses
in our area that have not, in some way, been reached by
these ministries. We praise God for the many great
Christians who, because of a burning desire to see the
lost brought to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ,
are working within the framework of our ministries here.
In chapter 4 we see how the nation of Israel
responded to the invitation given by Peter. Many of the
common people believed and were saved, but the rulers
had the apostles arrested! The Sadducees, of course, did
not believe in the resurrection and were unhappy about
Peter’s message that Christ had been raised from the
dead. The Pharisees hated Jesus because He had indicted
them (Matthew 23) with so many sins. The persecution
that Christ promised the apostles in John 15:18–16:4
was now taking place.
There are many lessons that can be learned from
chapter 4: (1) People who resist the Spirit of God are
inviting their own judgment; (2) The dedicated Christian
need never fear the wrath of men. God has a perfect
plan, and His name will be glorified through us if we
are faithful; and (3) The Christian’s first loyalty is
to the Lord. Men have willingly given up their lives
that you and I might be free to serve the Lord. Let us
not take these privileges for granted and neglect or
abuse them.
Satan is still attacking the believers in
chapter 5, and as he does, he is using a dual program–
deception from within and persecution from without.
Today, Satan is operating in much the same way. There is
much criticism of the church from without, and from
within we have those who are only professing Christians.
They have really never received Christ as Saviour, and
are causing turmoil. Satan is a liar and a murderer, and
in chapter 5 we see him operating in both spheres.
Today, he comes as a serpent or a lion to deceive and
devour. We must be on our guard lest he destroy the work
of the Lord.