Arm Wrestling – Acts 12

The shortest verse in this chapter highlights the theme of the chapter:

Verse 2 says, “And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.”

Now, if you stop and think about that statement, it is really quite astounding;

Not in its content, but in its brevity.

This man James was one of the three inner-most disciples of the Lord Jesus;

Peter and the two brothers, James and John, were closer to Christ than any of the others.

They were the ones invited to see Jesus’ transfiguration.

They were the only disciples given the opportunity to witness the raising of Jairus’ daughter.

They had a private interviews and private instruction from the Saviour.

They were the three who were invited into the heart of Gethsemane on the night of His arrest, and thus they were invited into the very heart of Christ.

There can be little doubt that James was as powerful a servant of the Lord as Peter and John,

I don’t think that Herod would have killed him if he had not been a great servant of God.

But in addition to the fact that we have no record of his service after Jesus’ resurrection,

The only thing that we hear about his life and death is this exceedingly terse and simple statement:

“And Herod killed James the brother of John with the sword.”

But the point is this:

We may be studying the book CALLED “The Acts of the Apostles,”

But this isn’t about the Apostles, so much as it is of the LORD.

Apostles come and go; sinners come and go; churches comes and go; but the Lord is eternal.

The plans and works of men come and go, but the decrees and the works of God are eternal.

If any man is a disciple and servant of the Lord, it is by the grace of the Lord.

In fact, if anyone is a Christian and a child of God, it is by God’s grace.

It is in God’s dear Son that we have “redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

When the twenty-four elders cast their crowns before the throne of Jehovah, it will be because every victory that they ever had was accomplished through the strength and will of God.

Now, having pointed to James, the brother of John, and his relationship to the Lord –

After saying that he highlights the theme of this chapter and book – James is not my subject.

I want us to think about Herod Agrippa.

Notice that verse one says that “about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.”

If you’ll remember, a couple of weeks ago I preached about the “hand of the Lord.”

“Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.

And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.”

In that message I said that the “hand of the Lord” is a metaphor for the purpose and the power of God.

What we see in this chapter is the hand of man struggling against the hand of the Lord.

We have an arm wrestling contest between a human king and the King of kings.

And wise men know that the mere king will have his arm snapped in two.

Let’s consider Herod as the POTENTATE, the PROSELYTE, the PERSECUTOR and the PRETENDER.

Herod Agrippa was the King, the earthly monarch, the HUMAN POTENTATE of Judea.

Agrippa was a member of one of the most bizarre and wicked families that we can find in Bible history.

His grandfather was Herod the Great, who slew all the babies in Bethlehem in an effort to kill the Messiah.

Immediately we see that this family was in the hand of Satan,

And the wicked one tried to turn it withersoever he could.

This man’s uncle was Herod the Tetrarch, Herod Antipas, who murdered John the Baptist,

And he was the brother of Herodias who called for the head of John the Baptist.

This family already knew the taste of Christian blood.

But that was only the beginning.

Herod Agrippa and Herodias were children of Aristobulus, who was murdered – by their grandfather.

Agrippa was then exiled to Rome, because his grandfather, the King, couldn’t trust him.

When grandad died, his kingdom was divided between his remaining sons. Agrippa’s uncles: Archelaus, Philip, and Herod Antipas.

Over time, through political intrigue, the land once ruled by Herod the Great was reunited under Herod Agrippa.

While in Rome he became the personal friend of the very wicked Caligula, who became Emperor after the death of Tiberius.

Caligula reward his friend by giving him rule over Judea and some of the surrounding regions.

And when Claudius Caesar succeeded Caligula, Agrippa was further rewarded and made King.

So there was homicide, family homicide, attempted deicide, incest and dozens of other despicable sins in this family of Herod.

I hope that you don’t think that I gave you that bit of history to either impress you or to bore you.

I shared it for a couple of reasons:

First, I want you to see the horrible nature of this family before I get to my next point.

And because verse 1 helps to prove the accuracy and historicity of the Bible.

Herod the Great was king of Syria and Judea, and when he died his kingdom was divided.

There were no more kings until Agrippa reunited his grandfather’s realm.

But Agrippa was king only from 41 AD to 44 AD.

He was succeeded by his son Agrippa II, the man before whom Paul was tried later in the Book of Acts.

So the point is, just as verse 1 says, Agrippa was king, but when he and later his son died there were no more kings in the history of Judea.

When the Bible speaks about secular history, it is accurate and can, without a doubt, be trusted.

And when the Bible speaks about science, even though it is not a scientific text book, it speaks accurately.

When you find things in the Bible that are contradicted by modern science or some history book,

You can be sure that the Bible is true.

Either those statements of men are lies or someone has simply misunderstood the details.

Paul says, “Let God be true but every man a liar,”

In the sense that we should always consider God to be true, even if every man on earth was a liar.

Herod Agrippa I, was the Roman ruler of Judea even before he was king.

But for a very brief period of time, he WAS the King.

Secondly, you need to know that he was a PROSELYTE.

In Acts 26 when Paul was on trial before the Roman governor and Agrippa II,

“Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad.

But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.

For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner.

King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.

Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.”

Notice that Paul asked and then answered, “King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I Know that thou believest.”

The reason that Paul felt that Agrippa somehow believed the prophets, was because his father, the Herod of Acts 12, had become a proselyte to the Jewish faith.

Herod the Great was an Edomite, an Idumean, not a Israelite or a Jew.

He was a son of Esau, not of Jacob.

But when Agrippa came to rule over Judah, he became a Jewish proselyte.

Of course, no man can briefly look at another person and boldly say that he knows what lies inside his heart.

For example, you can’t walk into my life and determine whether or not I am an hireling or a true pastor.

Hopefully, after a few months of close scrutiny you’d begin to see my heart, but it takes time.

And likewise, I can’t tell you whether or not Agrippa’s conversion to Judaism was real and not just a political ploy to gain the favor of his constituents.

On the other hand we do have some clues.

That he persecuted the Lord’s church might suggest that he had become a Jew,

But that isn’t absolute proof of anything except that he was a pawn of Satan,

Because the Greeks, Romans and even the barbarians hated and persecuted the saints of God.

But then there were the events in Tyre.

When the Phoenicians started shouting that Herod was speaking with the voice of God,

His head began to swell, his heart was filled with pride, and his ears relished the praise.

“And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.”

From what I read in the Bible no good Jew would have heard that kind of praise without trying to set the record straight.

This was idolatry, pure and simple, and the Jews had learned to hate idolatry.

I’m not convinced that Herod Agrippa was a very good Jew, certainly not a Pharisee.

And then there is something else.

I know that we are not supposed to judge man by his parents or by his children.

But many times, we can learn things about the individual by looking at his family.

In Acts 26 when Paul was talking to the son of this king Agrippa, there was a woman present as well.

Paul said, “King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.

Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.

And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them.”

This woman Bernice was living with Agrippa as his wife.

She had been married twice and both her husbands had died.

But the thing that you need to know is that she was the eldest daughter of Agrippa I,

Bernice was the sister of the man with whom she was now living.

They were living in incest.

If this is the kind of proselyte that that family was, then it was abominable.

To be converted from one religion to another means absolutely nothing.

To become a Roman Catholic after being a Methodist or a Baptist, means nothing.

To become a Baptist after growing up as a Catholic means nothing.

The only conversion that is important is a conversion to Christ; a new birth.

Have YOU been born again?

The third thing about Agrippa was his PERSECUTION.

“Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.

And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.

And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also.”

Here we begin to see the arm-wrestling match between Herod and Jehovah.

The church in Jerusalem had seen persecution before.

Satan stirred up one of his vassals, a man named Saul, originally from Tarsus.

With the permission and encouragement of the Sanhedrin and the High Priest,

“Saul made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison” and death,

Saul consented unto Stephen’s execution, and appears to have been in charge of it.

After he had done considerable damage to the Lord’s church in Jerusalem,

He set his sights on the saints of God in other cities.

But the Lord had other plans and sovereignly interrupted that persecution by saving the chief persecutor.

That first persecution which arose about Stephen was carried out primarily by Satanic-controlled religion.

After some time of respite, the churches of Christ began once again to feel the wrath of Satan.

But this time the nature of the persecution was different: it came from the political side of society.

Sure Agrippa claimed to be a Jew, but he was a politician and not a priest.

Notice those words: “And because he saw it pleased the Jews.”

That he ordered the arrest of Peter, came not because of ideological differences with the Apostle.

It was motivated by votes; by an effort to please his constituency.

Is there anything lower and more despicable than this?

Back in Acts 5, after most of the apostles were arrested for the first time,

“Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space; And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men. For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.

After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed. And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:

But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.

And to him they agreed” – at least temporarily.

Notice that Agrippa had decided to challenge God to a fight – to a wrestling match.

It appears that he ordered the arrest of some of the leaders of the Jerusalem church, one of which must have been James, the brother of John.

Then he ordered his beheading.

Was this because James was the current pastor of the church?

Was it because through him the Lord was doing a mighty work?

Were there miracles being performed?

Where there more souls leaving the apostate Jewish synagogues and coming to Christ?

Was the ministry of James reaching right into the household of the king?

There be a lot of unspoken similarity with the ministry and death of John the Baptist?

Could James have been pointing out the wretched godlessness of the family of Agrippa?

There might have been personal hatred between Agrippa and James which brought about this murder.

Whatever the reason, when James was killed with the sword the leadership of the Jews was delighted,

And with fresh blood on his hands, Herod Agrippa reached out to take Peter as well.

It’s hard to arm-wrestle the Lord, but it gets even more difficult with blood on one’s hands.

So Peter, guarded by four quaternions of soldiers was being kept for a public execution.

It appears that the king had been told about Peter’s earlier escape from prison, so there were sixteen guards assigned to watch him, rotating through four six-hour shifts.

But what are prison doors and Roman soldiers against the power and strength of Jehovah?

Even though Peter was chained between two armed guards with two more outside his cell,

An angel of God walked in and flooded the cell with heavenly light.

He hit or kicked Peter on the side to wake him up and the chains fell off his wrists.

The cell-doors swung open and so did several more, until the Apostle was walking through the streets of Jerusalem headed for John Mark’s house.

Is anything too hard for the Lord?

Does Satan have any strength against the King of kings.

Is there anything that man has made that can slow the angel of God?

“Got any rivers you think are uncrossable? Got any mountains you can’t tunnel through?

God specializes in things thought impossible; He does the things others can’t do.”

Has Satan brought the Agrippa of temptation against you?

“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

Has the Lord commissioned you to crawl through the eye of a needle?

“Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

Don’t limit God in your mind; don’t limit the Lord in your faith.

We “can do all thing through Christ which strengtheneth us.”

Look at that pitiful church praying for the deliverance of the Apostle.

I can forgive Rhoda for not letting Peter into the house, because I picture her as a confused little girl.

But when she said that he was at the front door and they said that she was crazy, it makes me crazy.

They were praying for his release but they didn’t believe that it could happen let alone that it had happened.

Those people ought to be reproved, rebuked and exhorted.

But I fear that our faith may be weaker and worse than theirs.

In order for me to condemn them, I’d have to condemn myself first.

What is it that you need the Lord to do?

Is it to open a prison cell; deliver an apostle; deliver a soul?

Well then ask Him and then if it requires a miracle, step aside and let the Lord work.

But if it’s something that simply needs His power through you, then ready that heart of yours and get to work.

Never stop praying for that unsaved loved one, and never stop testifying to him of the grace of God.

Never stop believing that the Lord can stop Agrippa, or jump start Saul.

Agrippa was a persecutor, but he wasn’t one for very long.

And lastly, he was a PRETENDER to the throne of God.

When the people of Tyre and Sidon started shouting: “It is the voice of a god, and not of a man,”

I can’t tell you if they meant it or if they were being facetious or just flattering.

But it’s really not important.

What matters is that Agrippa foolishly accepted it.

“And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.”

You don’t suppose that this was the same angel who released Peter from prison do you?

I often chastize myself for my frequent repetitions.

But then I make myself feel better by remembering that the Bible constantly repeats itself.

Wasn’t Agrippa’s problem the same one that was laid at the feet of our first mother?

“And ye shall be as gods.”

And isn’t this a part of the theme of modern society: “Ye are gods.”

Isn’t this the philosophy of Oprah and thousands of new age, last days gurus?

Isn’t this what motivates so many entertainers, sports figures, scientists, judges and politicians?

This is the real problem with our world today; not terrorists or environmental disasters.

As Agrippa wrestled with God, claiming to be deity, the Lord broke his arm and then eventually his back.

“The angel of the Lord smoke him, because he gave not God the glory.

BUT the word of God grew and multiplied.”

What is the point to my message his morning?

Give God the glory.

Admit and confess that you are a sinner worthy of eternal hell fire.

Humble yourself before the King of kings and give up your independency and self-sufficiency.

Give up most especially your self-righteousness.

What Agrippa needed was not a change of religions, but to repent of sin before God and to put his love and trust in Jesus Christ.

Do we have any Agrippas here this morning?

Come kneel before the cross of Christ.