Signs, Healing, and the Cost of True Discipleship

The book of Acts takes center stage, calling readers to read and engage deeply with chapters and passages over multiple weeks. Acts 5 receives close attention, where many signs and wonders accompany the apostles’ witness and people bring the sick into the streets so that even Peter’s shadow might fall on them. The account frames healing not as a private blessing but as a public validation: miracles authenticate the gospel, point to the resurrected Christ, and draw people into the movement known as “the Way.” Scripture clusters miracles around decisive moments of doubt, deliverance, and revelation rather than offering them as a steady stream on demand.

The narrative also refuses spectacle without integrity. The story of Ananias and Sapphira exposes how greed and deception undermine the community and amount to lying to God. That scandal sits beside the apostles’ energetic witness and the jealousy of religious leaders, who move from anger to arrest and then to reluctant release. Gamaliel’s counsel warns that movements either fade if human-made or cannot be stopped if God is truly at work.

The sermon distinguishes justification from sanctification: justification declares forgiveness through Christ; sanctification describes the costly, ongoing work of being conformed to Jesus by the Spirit. Healing and signs serve God’s story, not personal fame; the earliest followers often faced suffering rather than easy comfort. The apostles accept flogging and persecution with rejoicing because their aim remains the spread of God’s kingdom, not accumulation of power. The closing charge urges full integrity, whole-hearted obedience, and willingness to pay the real cost of discipleship so that the Holy Spirit might work through lives for God’s glory rather than personal gain.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Miracles validate God's redemptive work Miracles function as public signs that authenticate the gospel and expose the reality of God breaking into history. Healing points attention away from human actors and toward the resurrected Christ whose power inaugurates God’s kingdom. Expect miracles to direct belief, not merely to gratify personal desires. [37:33]
• 2. Power flows to witness, not self The Holy Spirit’s power equips testimony and mission, not self-promotion or spectacle. Authority in Acts appears to confirm a message—miracles authenticate proclamation rather than elevate practitioners. Seek the Spirit for faithful witness, not status. [32:12]
• 3. Integrity matters more than spectacle Ananias and Sapphira reveal that community depends on truthfulness; deceit corrodes spiritual life and stands as rebellion against God. Authentic discipleship demands honesty about motives and offerings. Guard integrity even when signs and acclaim tempt compromise. [45:12]
• 4. Discipleship demands costly, not cheap, grace Justification opens entrance into God’s family; sanctification carries the cost of transformation into Christlikeness. The early followers endured flogging and martyrdom because their hope centered on God’s kingdom, not comfort or acclaim. Embrace a faith that pays the required price for deeper obedience. [48:20]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [27:14] - Acts series and reading plan
• [32:12] - Acts 5: power promised
• [33:02] - Crowds bring the sick
• [36:22] - Miracles then and now
• [37:33] - Purpose of healing clarified
• [41:16] - Growth and the apostles' shadow
• [45:12] - Ananias and Sapphira exposed
• [48:20] - Cheap grace versus costly grace
• [56:25] - Flogging, rejoicing, and the cost

Bible reading: Acts 5:12-16 (ESV)
Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico. None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also came together from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

Observation questions

1. What specific "signs and wonders" were happening in this passage, and what was the public's reaction to them?
2. What does the story of Ananias and Sapphira reveal about the importance God places on honesty within the community of believers? [45:12]
3. How did the religious leaders react to the apostles' powerful ministry, and what was Gamaliel's advice to them? [52:43]
4. What was the apostles' response to being flogged and persecuted by the religious authorities? [56:25]

Interpretation questions

1. The sermon distinguished between justification (being declared right with God) and sanctification (the process of being made more like Christ). [48:59] Why is it crucial to understand both, and what happens if someone only focuses on one?
2. The miracles in Acts are described as validating the gospel message, not just providing personal comfort. [37:33] How does this purpose for miracles change the way we might pray for or understand healing today?
3. Gamaliel argued that if a movement is from God, it cannot be stopped. [52:59] What are the characteristics of a movement that is truly from God versus one that is merely human in origin?
4. The apostles rejoiced after being flogged because they were counted worthy to suffer for Jesus. [56:25] How does suffering for the sake of the gospel actually serve to advance God's kingdom?

Application questions

1. Integrity is described as something that matters more than spectacle or spiritual power. [45:12] In what area of your life—finances, relationships, or secret thoughts—are you most tempted to compromise your integrity? What would full honesty look like in that area this week?
2. The Holy Spirit’s power is given for witness and mission, not for self-promotion. [32:12] When you experience God's power or blessing, what practical steps can you take to ensure the attention goes to Jesus and not to yourself?
3. Following Jesus involves a cost, not just a one-time prayer. [48:20] What is one specific, costly step of obedience you feel God is asking you to take right now that you have been avoiding?
4. The early church saw miracles that authenticated their message. [37:33] How can you cultivate a greater expectancy for God to move in power, while still trusting Him completely when His answer is different than what you hoped for?
5. The religious leaders were jealous of the apostles' influence. [50:35] When you see God powerfully at work in someone else's life or ministry, what is your first reaction? How can you combat jealousy and instead celebrate what God is doing?
6. The apostles' ultimate aim was the spread of God’s kingdom, not their own comfort. [56:25] What would it look like for you to reorient your life goals around the advancement of God's kingdom rather than your personal success or security?