A Testimony To The Lord’S Power
A TESTIMONY TO THE LORD’S POWER
ACTS 12:12-17
God hears and answers prayer in spite of the littleness of our faith!
The bewilderment of Peter was quickly dispelled as he came to himself (12:11) and took stock of his position (12:12: the same verb for his awareness is used again at 14:6). The address he sought out is evidently (as a fourth-century tradition confirms) the place where the Last Supper was held and the gift of the Spirit was awaited (1:13-14); and this was the scene of the church at prayer (12:5).
Some lifelike touches make this one of the most gripping narratives in the New Testament. Each subsequent action is true to experience; the recognition of his Galilean accent; the disbelief with which her announcement was greeted; the attempt at rationalization (“it can’t be Peter himself; it must be his guardian angel, impersonating his voice,” 12:15); and at length, as he kept on knocking, the decision to find out who it was by the simplest method—to open the gate! Then Peter came in, and with a characteristic gesture of the hand damped down the hubbub of excitement. (“If only you’ll be quiet, I’ll explain and tell you all about it.”) What followed was a thrilling testimony to the Lord’s grace and power—and an indirect rebuke to those who had met for specific prayer (12:5) and who wouldn’t believe that the answer they sought was to be found outside the door, waiting to come in. The epistle of James has something to say on this topic (1:6-8).
Peter then departed for “another place,” but no one knows exactly where. He is back in Jerusalem at chapter 15, but at that time James, the Lord’s brother, holds a commanding position in the church there. Perhaps he had filled the gap of leadership when Peter was in prison. Hence verse 17b.
Notes 12:12: John Mark is the author of the Gospel which bears his name and is the man of Colossians 4:10; Philemon 24; 2 Timothy 4:11; 1 Peter 5:13 as well as Acts 13:5. 12:15: the idea of a guardian angel is found in Matthew 18:10; Hebrews 1:14, and goes back to Genesis 48:16. 12:17: no mention of the other apostles. They had left Jerusalem, as is possibly implied in 11:30.