Your mission should you accept, is rescue Peter from prison. There are 16 guards, and two chained to him.
Herod had James beheaded. Peter was arrested and waiting until the Feast of Unleavened Bread to be killed.
"During that same time King Herod began to mistreat some who belonged to the church. He ordered James, the brother of John, to be killed by the sword. Herod saw that some of the people liked this, so he decided to arrest Peter, too." (This happened during the time of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.) Acts 12:1-3 NCV
The believers in Jesus prayed for help.
"After Herod arrested Peter, he put him in jail and handed him over to be guarded by sixteen soldiers. Herod planned to bring Peter before the people for trial after the Passover Feast. So Peter was kept in jail, but the church prayed earnestly to God for him." Acts 12:5-6 NCV
"The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains. Other soldiers were guarding the door of the jail. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord stood there, and a light shined in the cell. The angel struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Hurry! Get up!” the angel said. And the chains fell off Peter’s hands. Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And Peter did. Then the angel said, “Put on your coat and follow me.” So Peter followed him out, but he did not know if what the angel was doing was real; he thought he might be seeing a vision. They went past the first and second guards and came to the iron gate that separated them from the city. The gate opened by itself for them, and they went through it. When they had walked down one street, the angel suddenly left him. Acts 12:7-10 NCV
Peter rubbed his eyes, and woke into reality.
"Then Peter realized what had happened. He thought, “Now I know that the Lord really sent his angel to me. He rescued me from Herod and from all the things the people thought would happen.” Acts 12:11 NCV
Peter quickly went to the mother of Mark's home. Rhoda didn't let him in.
"When he considered this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark. Many people were gathered there, praying. Peter knocked on the outside door, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so happy she forgot to open the door. Instead, she ran inside and told the group, “Peter is at the door!” Acts 12:12-14 NCV
Everyone inside thought she was crazy; and thought it was Peter's ghost.
"They said to her, “You are crazy!” But she kept on saying it was true, so they said, “It must be Peter’s angel.” Acts 12:15 NCV
Once inside, Peter revealed his angel story, and left quickly to hide somewhere else.
"Peter continued to knock, and when they opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. Peter made a sign with his hand to tell them to be quiet. He explained how the Lord led him out of the jail, and he said, “Tell James and the other believers what happened.” Then he left to go to another place. Acts 12:16-17 NCV
Someone is in deep trouble now.
"The next day the soldiers were very upset and wondered what had happened to Peter. Herod looked everywhere for him but could not find him. So he questioned the guards and ordered that they be killed. Acts 12:18-19 New Century Version
Conclusion: Because of the prayer of the believers, God sent his angelic marines to rescue Peter.
WHY DON'T YOU FORGIVE?
"Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”
“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!" Matthew 18:21-22 NLT
“Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. Matthew 18:23-25 NLT
“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all. Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. Matthew 18:26-27 NLT
“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.
“His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full." Matthew 18:28-30 NLT
“When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you? Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. Matthew 18:31-34 NLT
“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.” Matthew 18:35 NLT
