Text: Acts 12:1-11

Title: Prison Break

Introduction:  I have seen prison breaks on all kinds of television shows.  I have seen prison breaks on Gunsmoke, Rifleman, Bonanza, Have Gun Will Travel, Batman, Matlock, Canon.  There was even a reality show in 2005 called “Prison Break.”  But there are no greater stories about a prison break than that or those in the Bible.  The purpose is not simply to revisit a prison break in the Bible, but see the significance of this prison break in the Bible, and what significance this prison could serve for us here today. 

I.                   God’s Plan (1-5a)

·        God has a purpose for all of our lives.  We must look at situations in our lives praying “What is God up to now?”

·        Herod the Great (grandfather) tried to kill the Baby Jesus; Herod Antipas (uncle) had John the Baptist killed; Herod the King (Agrippa I) had James, the brother of John killed.

·        Herod’s purpose for the persecution was political. (3ff)

·        God’s plan/purpose – His gospel, his glory and our good.

II.                God’s People (5b)

·        Did not call a business meeting

·        Did not get together a mob to break Peter out of jail.

·        The church was praying…corporately; prayer meeting is important; God loves to hear from his children.  (illustration: sometimes I call my boys in any given part of the house to just talk to them and hear them talk back to me). 

·        There are just some things I don’t do for my boys unless they ask, in fact, if I don’t know about it, I can’t do anything about it. In fact, I stand ready (illustr: when they played Upward Basketball, and they fell to their knees because someone tripped them, they did not know that all they had to do was just give me a signal, and I would come running…that’s the way God is…just give Him the signal)

·        Praying without ceasing (ektenes) means fervently and earnestly continuing in prayer.  The idea is intense prayer, prayer that captivates and focuses a person’s concentration.  The root meaning of the word is “to stretch out.”  The picture is that the church was stretched out, prostrate before God, earnestly and fervently crying out to God for God’s sovereign deliverance for Peter. 

III.             God’s Power (6-11)

·        Peter was guarded by 16 different soldiers.  They knew the Christians had some power.

·        (7) Peter was shook by the angel/chains fell off.

·        God’s power was evidenced even by Peter’s obedience (8-9)

·        Walked through an iron gate (10)

·        Miracle: God’s miraculous deliverance involved only what Peter could not do for himself (11)

Conclusion: Whatever has you bound, God can bring you out of it.  There were different prison breaks…but there was one that effected all of us…after Jesus hung on a tree, death arrested him and the grave held him captive…but there was a prison break that Sunday morning!

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