But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.” [Acts 5:29 (NLT)]
Following Jesus’ resurrection, the Apostles met regularly at the Temple where they boldly preached and healed the sick. Alarmed at this turn of events, the high priest and his officials had the men put in jail. That night, an angel freed them and told the men to return to the Temple and speak to the people there.
Early the next day, the Apostles were teaching in the Temple courts once again. The seventy members of the high council met that morning for their trial but, when they sent for the Apostles, the guards found their locked cells empty. Upon learning the men were back preaching in the Temple, the Sanhedrin were furious. They ordered the men arrested again and brought before the council. Confronting these Christ followers, the council ordered them to end their evangelism once and for all. When Peter explained that they took their orders from God, not man, the Sanhedrin were furious at such defiance and decided to kill the Apostles. It was the cool head of Gamaliel who suggested the trouble-makers be put outside while the council discussed the matter further.
One of the most respected Pharisaic leaders of his time, Gamaliel reminded the Sanhedrin of two previous failed attempts at revolt against the Romans. The first was led by Theudas who claimed to be the promised messiah. Although he had about 400 followers, after his death, the movement died out. Later, around 6/7 AD, Judas of Galilee led a failed revolt against the Romans in protest of the taxation census. After he was killed, his followers, like those of Theudas, dispersed. Gamaliel argued that, if the Apostles were doing their preaching on their own power, their movement would soon fade away as did those of Theudas and Judas of Galilee. Without a leader, the strange sect would run out of steam and, in time, fail of its own accord.
On the other hand, if the Apostles were acting with God’s blessing, Gamaliel told the council there was nothing they could do to stop them. He cautioned them that, by killing the Christ followers, they could bring the wrath of God down upon themselves. The learned rabbi’s words persuaded the angry council to tolerate the new movement. Rather than kill the Apostles, they had them flogged and ordered the men never again to speak in the name of Jesus (an order they ignored). By urging their tolerance of this new (and what he believed to be a short-lived) sect, Gamaliel found a politically acceptable solution to the Council’s problem.
Although this well-respected and wise Jewish rabbi gets only two mentions in Scripture, Gamaliel played a prominent role in the development of the early church. While it’s unlikely he supported their teachings, he saved the Apostles’ lives by urging the Sanhedrin to tolerate their teaching. His attempt to find a political compromise that would avoid arousing Roman intervention also allowed the early church some 30 years to establish itself before wide-spread severe repression and persecution began in 64 AD. Gamaliel also was the rabbi who taught the Apostle Paul. It was the vast knowledge Paul learned at the rabbi’s feet that enabled him to explain the Hebrew scriptures and show how Jesus fulfilled the Law and Prophets. Moreover, as a student of the esteemed rabbi, Paul had the credentials to preach in synagogues wherever he went.
If Gamaliel was thinking the Christian movement would run its course and quietly fade away, he was mistaken. Despite being arrested, imprisoned, beaten, and lashed with leather whips, the Apostles were not to be silenced; they continued to preach the gospel message. Gamaliel was correct, however, in thinking that nothing was going to stop the will of God.
Devotions of the Heart 