The apostles answered with clear conviction that their first duty was to God rather than man. They proceeded to testify that the Man whom the leaders had crucified by the Romans had been raised up, and God had exalted Him to His right hand—again, a position of honor and rulership. The council knew the scriptures that we have gone through and knew exactly what the apostles meant.
The apostles kept piling on, adding that Jesus was also Prince and Savior (meaning Deliverer), and that He could give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. We, who are called by God, see repentance and forgiveness as wonderful things, but for the council, this declaration was highly offensive. You’ll notice in verse 33 that the council members were furious and made plans to kill the apostles.
They understood that only God could give forgiveness. You might remember that when Jesus healed the paralytic and told him his sins were forgiven, the people nearby said that He blasphemed (Matthew 9:3). So, when the apostles bring up forgiveness of sins, the leaders were ready to blow their tops because they simply could not accept Who Jesus was. It would cost them too much to accept Jesus as the Christ and accept His message. The mental adjustments needed were too great. The council members were profoundly threatened by this upstart movement that they could not control and which they had already decided could not possibly be correct.
The apostles continued to pour salt into the wounds by saying they were His witnesses to these things. Yet it is interesting to consider just how visible Christ’s ascension on the 40th day may have been. Remember the geography we went through. The ascension was from somewhere on the Mount of Olives, which was elevated.
The apostles also said the Holy Spirit was a witness. Again, the council members knew that the outpouring of the Spirit was prophesied, and they had undoubtedly heard of the events on Pentecost. But the apostles might as well have slapped them in the face when they said the Holy Spirit was given to those who obey God. The apostles were saying that they had received the Spirit because they were obedient to God, and the council members had missed out on this promise because of their rebellion. They had missed out on this gift that was given to some as a result of the Messiah, the Anointed One, ascending.
