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6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains. Other soldiers were guarding the door of the jail. 7 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord stood there, and a light shined in the cell. The angel struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Hurry! Get up!” the angel said. And the chains fell off Peter’s hands. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And Peter did. Then the angel said, “Put on your coat and follow me.” 9 So Peter followed him out, but he did not know if what the angel was doing was real; he thought he might be seeing a vision. 10 They went past the first and second guards and came to the iron gate that separated them from the city. The gate opened by itself for them, and they went through it. When they had walked down one street, the angel suddenly left him. 11 Then Peter realized what had happened. He thought, “Now I know that the Lord really sent his angel to me. He rescued me from Herod and from all the things the people thought would happen.” ~ Acts 12:6-11
Today, we continue our study of Acts 12 where the first century believers in Christ were struggling to adapt to the culture of God. We come to know God's culture through His Word, the Bible. The foundation for God's culture remains the same in every era. The Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Word of the Father, embodied in living human flesh, God's culture. In fact, the Apostle John begins his gospel with: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." What God started at the beginning of creation He continues in and through the Lord Jesus. By the awesome power of God’s Word, all creation sprang into existence. His Word began time and space as we know it. So closely linked was God with His Creative Word, that His Word is actually God the Son. Everything makes sense in reference to God's Word.
In v.6 of today's passage we read, "The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains. Other soldiers were guarding the door of the jail."
Peter had been kept in jail while his brothers and sisters in Christ prayed constantly for him. We do not know how long he was in jail, be it a day or more than a week, the time had arrived when Peter was to be put on trial. But this was a different night, for God had other plans for Peter. Nothing will ever happen to us apart from the plans that God has for us. This, of course, is impacted by whether we walk with Him or not. We have been known to give the evil one a foothold in our lives, inviting him to wreak havoc in our lives without even knowing it.
The fact that Peter slept reveals a lot about the growth of his faith in the Lord. One would think sleep would not have come easily at such a time like that for Peter, but he was fast asleep between the two soldiers. The impossibility of the miracle which was about to come about was highlighted by the fact that Peter was chained between two soldiers even. If Peter were able to free himself from one chain, there would still be a second to deal with.
To add to this there were other soldiers guarding the door of the jail. Even if Peter were to free himself from his chains and then overcome two guards who were bound by their lives to not allow him to escape, there were still two more guards who would hear everything and be ready to overcome him in a moment. The utter impossibility of Peter gaining his freedom through natural means was perfectly evident by noting the description of his situation. This man who once asked the Lord Jesus if He cared since they were in a storm and He was sleeping found himself at ease while in prison. Peter had tested the faithfulness of God and he discovered the Lord is a sure bet for us all. This is why Peter slept like a baby that night. We do well to remember the next time we find ourselves in a trial like this. God is always preparing us for what is yet to come.
In v.7-9 of today's passage we read, "7 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord stood there, and a light shined in the cell. The angel struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Hurry! Get up!” the angel said. And the chains fell off Peter’s hands. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And Peter did. Then the angel said, “Put on your coat and follow me.” 9 So Peter followed him out, but he did not know if what the angel was doing was real; he thought he might be seeing a vision."
Just when it looked its bleakest an angel of the Lord came into Peter’s cell. When the angel appeared, the area lit up. It was then that the angel woke Peter up from his sleep with a strike of his hand. After the angel commanded Peter to get up, his chains fell off. Miraculously, the sound and the motion of the chains went undetected by the guards, as did the shining of the light and the stirring of Peter.
Some suggest that there is a natural explanation for these events. It is highly unlikely that all four guards fell asleep. And, God has been known to intervene before with angels appearing and disappearing. God Himself died and was buried. But, He was seen by 500 at one time. Such accounts do not require faith because the evidence was there. Thomas said, "I will never believe He rose from the dead until I touch His nail prints." He said this after seeing the Lord Jesus heal how many people? And, after raising three people from the dead. Then the Lord appeared to Thomas and Thomas concluded after touching His nail prints, "My Lord and my God."
This story is unreal because there were guards right there, and yet they do not perceive what was happening. They were somehow not allowed to see reality in that supernatural moment. This type of blindness had happened before in 2 Kings 6 where the army of Aram was unable to see. The whole scene was so unreal that Peter wondered if he were having a vision. Obviously, it was hard for his mind to grasp such a thing. Such is the case when the Lord is welcomed to intervene in our lives. Such experiences only increase the authority with which we speak the truth to others.
In v.10-11 of today's passage we read, "10 They went past the first and second guards and came to the iron gate that separated them from the city. The gate opened by itself for them, and they went through it. When they had walked down one street, the angel suddenly left him. 11 Then Peter realized what had happened. He thought, 'Now I know that the Lord really sent his angel to me. He rescued me from Herod and from all the things the people thought would happen.'"
Peter was led out from being chained between two soldiers, He was also led out right past two more guards after that. Amazingly, Peter went out past the prison gate without even being noticed. Luke’s description of the prison gate would have been something any one could have gone to look at and verify if Luke's words matched the actual state of things providing sure validation that what he wrote was reliable.
Then, the gate opened to them by itself. As this gate would be locked and bolted, being the final obstacle intended to keep prisoners from escaping, this was nothing other than a divinely orchestrated miracle. Its opening was something that could not be attributed to mere chance. Not only would it have required the proper keys to open, but the timing of its opening by itself also is a validation of the miraculous nature of the event.
