Peter’s defence

“Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them.” This was the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise: “For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say” (Luke 12:12). Summarizing Peter’s defense, it goes as follows: (a) You (the leaders) are not rejoicing that this man has been healed. (b) This man had been sitting at the gate for many years, but you were unable to heal him. (c) This man was healed by the name of Jesus of Nazareth. (d) You crucified this Jesus Christ (the members of the Sanhedrin had handed Jesus over to the Gentiles just a few weeks earlier. A memory that remains vivid). (e) God raised this Jesus from the dead. “He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief cornerstone.” Peter strengthens his defense by quoting Psalm 118:22. (a) The Jews were well familiar with this psalm. (b) The foolish builders refer to the Jewish leaders. (c) The stone they rejected is Jesus Christ. (d) God has made Jesus Christ the cornerstone of salvation. “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among mankind by which we must be saved.” (1) For the Jews, there could be no more bold statement than this. Moreover, it is Peter, who had denied Jesus just weeks before, making this proclamation. (2) To whom did Peter make this declaration? It was to the orthodox Jews of that time who were present. He declared to them that salvation comes not through Judaism, but solely through Jesus Christ. This is consistent with Jesus’ own declaration: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). (3) Throughout the Acts of the Apostles, the apostles made this declaration to the following groups: (a) idol worshipers, (b) sorcerers (diviners), (c) Greek philosophers, (d) gods and goddesses of the Greek and Roman, (e) Jews. (4) If Peter’s declaration were not true, then the message of the Bible would be farcical. The apostles faced persecution and martyrdom for this belief. If Jesus had merely offered another way to salvation, then His death on the cross would be farcical. All people, both Jews and Gentiles are saved through Jesus Christ.