In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (a gathering of about a hundred and twenty) and said,In these days, Peter stood up in the middle of the disciples (and the number of names was about one hundred twenty), and said,And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)And in these days Peter stood up in the midst of the brethren, and said (and there was a multitude of persons gathered together, about a hundred and twenty),
3 sermons cite this verse
… We won't go over the verses we've already seen. We already know Acts 1.15 tells us there was 120 people, and Luke tells us that. He's showing us the number. Acts 2, verse 41, he says now there are 3,000 people who believed in Christ on that day. Acts 4, verse 4, which we read about just a second ago, Luke's intentional to show us now it's 5,000. Acts 6, verse 1, number of disciples is increasing. Acts 6, verse 7, the number of disciples continues to increase. Acts chapter 9, verse 31 says, the number in the church continued to grow. Now I want you to turn to Acts chapter 11. We read Acts chapter 9, verse 31. Look at Acts chapter 11. Look at verse 21. And maybe every time you see the word number in the scripture here, let me encourage you to circle it. I just want you to see how Luke was very detailed and very intentional about showing us the quantitative growth of the church. …
… some buy-in. But when you take that third step and you get to committed lifelong learners and followers, the group gets really, really small. For example, in Acts chapter 1 verse 15, all it says is that after Jesus had left this life on earth, ascended into heaven, there's only 120 people that are left. Now thousands of people had followed him during his life here, but only 120 people that are actually doing what he told him to do, committed lifelong learners and followers. Now, that's the picture in the New Testament. Let's take a step back. Let me ask you a question. Where do you think the largest number of people in the church, particularly in the western world, fall into when it comes to these categories? I'm guessing the first two. that I can say with pretty good confidence that the majority, the multitudes, even who might call themselves Christians, when it comes to this word disciples, would probably be classified as either casual listeners who, okay, I can go along with this Jesus in a church thing, or probably even more so, particularly in our culture here in the southeast, convince listeners. …
6. Yea, how did it work even in the posterity of Abraham; in God’s chosen people! Were not these also, down to Moses, to David, to Malachi, to Herod the Great, a faithless and stubborn generation, a “sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity,” continually forsaking the Lord, and “provoking the Holy One of Israel?” And yet we have no reason to believe that these were worse than the nations that surrounded them, who were universally swallowed up in all manner of wickedness, as well as in damnable idolatries; not having the God of heaven “in all their thoughts,” but working all uncleanness with greediness. 7. In the fulness of time, when iniquity of every kind, when ungodliness and unrighteousness, had spread over all nations, and covered the earth as a flood, it pleased God to lift up a standard against it by “bringing his first-begotten into the world.” Now, then, one would expect “the mystery of godliness” would totally prevail over “the mystery of iniquity;” that the Son of God would be “a light to lighten the Gentiles,” as well as “salvation to his people Israel.” All Israel, one would think, yea, and all the earth, will soon be filled with the glory of the Lord. Nay: “The mystery of iniquity” prevailed still, well-nigh over the face of the earth. How exceeding small was the number of those whose souls were healed by the Son of God himself! “When Peter stood up in the midst of them, the number of names was about a hundred and twenty.” (Acts 1:15.) And even these were but imperfectly healed; the chief of them being a little before so weak in faith that, though they did not, like Peter, forswear their Master, yet “they all forsook him and fled:” A plain proof that the sanctifying “Spirit was not” then “given, because Jesus was not glorified.” …