3 They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
Right in the middle of a great move of God the preachers get arrested. Five thousand people come to faith as a result of their preaching. Today, that wouldn’t even make CNN. That is because this wouldn’t be news worthy. Only the negative and sinful make the news. But I digress. So why did the Lord allow Peter and John to be arrested? Couldn’t He have just struck down those coming to arrest them? Wouldn’t that have been a great miracle? “Mystery Deaths! Details at 11.” You see, God doesn’t just dole out miracles on a whim. Miracles only happen when He wants them to happen. We can’t force God’s hand to move. God is going to use even these negative circumstances of their arrest to His glory. That’s right! God uses even the hurtful things that others do to us as a means to an end. He does not want the negative things to happen to us. They are not part of His original design for creation. But He even uses the results of sin for His purposes. You see, the next day Peter and John get to share the Gospel with the religious leaders. What an opportunity! These two men have no formal education. In normal circumstances they would never have the opportunity to share with the most educated group of individuals in the land. Cultural and religious snobbery would have prevented it. And yet, the next day they are standing before this group and sharing the reality of the resurrection and what it means to their lives. The non-teachers teaching the teachers, and all because they get arrested. Could it be that they had to get arrested in order for these leaders to hear the truth? That the arrest was just a means to bring Him glory? I think this is exactly why they got arrested. God needed to be able to speak to these leaders as a group, and the arrest provided God with the opportunity. I am not sure exactly what Peter and John were thinking when they were arrested. I can imagine they thought they were the next people who would end up on a cross. That is what happened to people like them. Jesus had been arrested and killed. They are next. But they are bold in presenting the truth because the Spirit has worked in their hearts. Are you willing to be arrested if needed?
The Arnold Journey 