Speak To The People
“But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.” (Acts 5:19-20)
What are the “words of this life” that they were instructed to speak to the people?
“…they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” (Acts 4:2)
The “words of this life” – the gospel – is our resurrection from death through Jesus. Paul speaks of it as if it has already occurred…
“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world …deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that IN THE COMING AGES he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:1-8)
Speaking of something to happen in the future as if it has already occurred is a literary way of proclaiming the certainty of a promise from God. Obviously we are not at this time resurrected from death, because we all have to die first. And we are not now raised up and seated beside Christ Jesus in the heavenly realms…but it is so certain that Paul speaks of it as if it has already occurred and declares that it is this new covenant promise of our resurrection from death that we are to be ministering to people…
“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life…For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive…so will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable…it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.” (2 Corinthians 3:6; 1 Corinthians 15:22-46)
What are the “words of this life” that they were instructed to speak to the people?
“…they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” (Acts 4:2)
The “words of this life” – the gospel – is our resurrection from death through Jesus. Paul speaks of it as if it has already occurred…
“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world …deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that IN THE COMING AGES he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:1-8)
Speaking of something to happen in the future as if it has already occurred is a literary way of proclaiming the certainty of a promise from God. Obviously we are not at this time resurrected from death, because we all have to die first. And we are not now raised up and seated beside Christ Jesus in the heavenly realms…but it is so certain that Paul speaks of it as if it has already occurred and declares that it is this new covenant promise of our resurrection from death that we are to be ministering to people…
“He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life…For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive…so will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable…it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.” (2 Corinthians 3:6; 1 Corinthians 15:22-46)