Deeper Reflection
TARGETED BY HEROD FOR HIS LEADERSHIP IN THE CHURCH, Peter was now incarcerated in maximum-security prison, on death row and awaiting execution (vv.1-5). On an earthly dimension, this was an insecure emperor seeking to curry the favour of his Jewish subjects (v.3a). But in the heavenly realms, this was warfare as the this-worldly tyrant sought to hinder the Gospel’s advance by striking at the church’s leader and servant of the most high God.While the carnal king wielded the power of the sword and the security of the prison, the church unleashed the power of prayer, her only and most effective weapon, drawing on her sole reliance on the King of Heaven.¹¹ The imperfect tense in the Greek text (v.5) indicates that the church did not simply pray once and move on, but prayed continually. Moreover, they prayed earnestly (ektenōs, v.5), the same adverb (though in slightly different form) as had been used by Luke to describe Jesus’ intense agony praying in Gethsemane (Lk 22:44).¹²God heard the cries of His church and answered, preserving His servant’s life.¹³ Miraculously delivered from Herod’s violent hands, Peter came to himself and found his way to the house where the church was gathered, praying late into the night (v.12)!With the advance of the Gospel (cf. Acts 11:19-21), spiritual pushback inevitably follows. As we engage in missions and gain ground discipling the nations, expect and brace for the evil one’s counterattack on our church and our leaders. Hunker down and unite in fervent, relentless prayer, utilising the most formidable weapon that Christ has conferred upon His Church to fend off the enemy’s attacks.

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¹¹ John R. W. Stott, The Message of Acts: The Spirit, the Church & the World, The Bible Speaks Today (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1994), 208-209. ¹² David J. Williams, Acts, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2011), 212. ¹³ Why Peter was delivered but not James is a mystery of the divine will, since prayer is always a matter of “not my will but yours be done” (Lk 22:42), but it would be wrong to deduce from verse 5 that prayer had been offered for Peter but not for James (Williams, 212-213; Marshall, 220).