Acts, Chapter 10

It's been a few days since I have written here, but such are the needs of family and friends. It is my prayer that everyone had a great holiday weekend spent in thankfulness to the One that provides everything we need. It is appropriate that we are in chapter 10 of Acts just after Thanksgiving, as we begin with a man that was very thankful for what he was given. Cornelius was a rarity in that he was a Roman Centurion who was also a devout follower of God. Because he was thankful for what God had provided he gave back praying in thankfulness and by giving to the poor. Because of this God chose him for a special type of blessing, and we will see today that he was used in a special way to further the message to the Gentiles.

In today's lesson it is important to know he was a centurion because they weren't exactly liked by the Jews. Many people in Israel viewed the Romans as occupiers and oppressors, so this story of his visit with Peter is an example of God's love and His power to change things. Today we have a lesson in God's mercy and the fact that He sent Christ to die for ALL mankind, and not just the Jews. At the time the Jews couldn't even associate with the Gentiles, but God told Peter dramatically that those old ways had passed away.

"27Talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. 28He said to them: "You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean. 29So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection." – Acts 10:27-29

The beauty here is the breaking down of barriers that we unfortunately still put up today. Here Peter sees Cornelius not as a Gentile, but a fellow human being. Even today, in 2007 there are still some people that categorize others based on their race, religion, or creed and not by the fact they are simply another human being. This leads to exclusivity and divisiveness that is counterproductive to the gospel. When we stop seeing people for these insignificant things, we can begin to truly let the Holy Spirit work, as happens in the next few verses:

"34Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. 36You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him." – Acts 10:34-38

Notice how Peter does not say, "God accepts men from just the Jews who fear Him and do what is right." He plainly states that every nation is accepted under God. It is a breaking down of barriers that were so critical in that day because the Jews did not widely accept that the Gentiles could find God's favor unless they became Jews themselves. The true power lies in the Holy Spirit, and that is a gift that can be given to everyone.

"44While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. 46For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God." – Acts 10:44-46.

The beauty of God's grace is amazing, and here we see that his Spirit is meant for all peoples, not just the Jews. Once again God triumphs over the ideas of man, as Peter's view of the Gentiles is totally changed. Not only that, but the Gentile converts receiving the Holy Spirit meant that the message was further sent to people who otherwise would not receive it. This is a lesson in overcoming divisiveness between people that we can still apply today.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. Why was important for Cornelius as a Gentile to have Peter visit him?
   
2. Why would Peter need to have his mind changed to dramatically even though he already knew Christ's message?
   
3. How important was it for the Holy Spirit to come over these Gentile believers?

Acts, Chapter 9

Without the ninth chapter of Acts we probably wouldn't have a New Testament. Why is that you ask? Well, it is because we are fully introduced to the character that is Paul, who is Saul at this point. Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus may be second only to the crucifixion in terms of importance to the New Testament. Without it, there would be 14 fewer books in the New Testament, which is more than half of the 27 total. As I have been saying all week, Paul was the greatest evangelist the world has ever known. The effect he has had on the world not only came through in the first century, but it has echoed throughout time since. He has literally influenced billions of people throughout the past 2,000 years, and all of this game from one of the church's most virulent haters.

1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" – Acts 9:1-4

Why would God chose to do this? Couldn't he have found someone who was more willing from the group of people that were already following Christ? Sure, God could have done it that way, but as He often does, He chose someone to make a point. The point in choosing Paul was to show his grace. Much as I used the extreme example of Hitler and how it was possible for even him to gain salvation a few weeks back to make a point, God chose Paul to show that anyone can be used to further His kingdom. At the time there was no one more against the church than Paul, yet Christ accomplished two things with his conversion. First he eliminated the church's greatest enemy of the time, and second he created the greatest champion for the Gentiles.

15But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." 17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, -- Acts 9:15-18

At the time Christianity was largely a movement among the Jews. Later on we will see a bit of a conflict between Peter and Paul as to whether the Message was meant for the Gentiles or not. We see here though, through Ananias, that the message was indeed for the Gentiles, meaning everyone. Paul was selected as the one that would deliver that message. This show the amazing power to change that God has. Paul literally became a different person because God basically grabbed him by the neck and showed him what He wanted. From my own personal experience, sometimes that is what it takes for God to get our attention.

So naturally, since Paul was one of the leaders of the Sanhedrin, he immediately changed the minds of that august body and brought them over to the side of Christ right? No. In fact he had the opposite effect on them. As we see in the following verses, he returned to Jerusalem and began to preach the gospel passionately. He baffled the disciples there, and managed to enrage the Jews to the point they wanted to kill him. We then see Paul's first daring escape with his life on the line. This is an important lesson to keep in mind when you are feeling like God cannot change you and use you for His gain. If God can completely change someone like Paul, imagine what He can do for someone who is more willing.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How is God's mercy evident in Paul's conversion?
   
2. Why did Paul need to be appointed as the envoy for the Gentiles even though he himself was a Jew?
   
3. Why would the Sanhedrin turn on him so quickly?

Acts, Chapter 8

Acts chapter 8 is a great illustration of how even with Christ in your heart and with the Holy Spirit working miracles there can still be adversity. We ended yesterday's chapter with the stoning of Stephen, and we also had our first mention of Saul, who would later be named Paul and become the greatest evangelist in history. Once again we see Saul at the beginning of chapter 8, and he viciously tried to fight back against the growing church by persecuting anyone and everyone he found worshiping Christ. It is amazing to see how diametrically opposite Paul was before his conversion. We will see more of this later, but at this time the furthest thing from his mind was spreading the word of Christ. Only the true power of God could change a man so drastically, as at this time Saul was ruthless and spared no mercy on anyone in the church.

Out of this persecution came hope, however. We see over the rest of this chapter that, even as things start to look really dark for the first time since Christ's crucifixion, there is still a light. God still accomplishes many great things through the Holy Spirit as the apostles were literally on the run from Saul. This is not attributed to anything the apostles did, as they were merely following orders. It is the Holy Spirit that accomplished these things, as God even used Saul's persecution as a way to scatter the message to where it was needed.

4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ
there. 6When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many paralytics and cripples were healed. – Acts 8:4-7

Imagine being on the run from someone that was asking you to change your very core beliefs or you would be killed. What would your response be? Surely your first instinct would not be to continue spreading those beliefs and converting more people to your cause because it would draw you further out into the open. Of course, these men were operating under a higher authority and therefore knew what they had to do. Instead of hiding from the persecution they took the message on the road with them. They stayed mobile and converted many more to Christ. This proves that even when Saul was persecuting the church God used it for good.

18When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money 19and said, "Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit." 20Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin." – Acts 8:18-23

The apostles were doing many wonderful things in this chapter. We see Philip converting the Ethiopian eunuch and the message being spread to the Samaritans. Here, however, we are given an important lesson from Peter concerning the Holy Spirit. For those that are willing to accept it, the Holy Spirit is a blessing. It is one of the very small ways we as humans can have the power of God. We must be willing, however, to submit to its direction and not our own. Simon wanted this gift desperately and thought he could buy it, but as we see it cannot be bought. This is another important lesson in the way that we cannot earn God in our lives. We must submit to Him and welcome Him in His own way. Nothing that we can do for ourselves will earn His favor. The power of the Holy Spirit is also something that we cannot earn or distribute at our will, because the power of God is not for us to decide.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How does Saul's persecution of the church set him up for his dramatic conversion?
   
2. How important were the miracles performed by the apostles to spreading the gospel?
   
3. Why don't we see as many miracles today?
   

 

Acts, Chapter 7

Can you imagine making a case for Christ with your life hanging in the balance? That is what was asked of Stephen. When we left him last week in chapter 6 he was facing the leadership of the day because of the message he had been spreading. Stephen had accomplished great things, but was now being asked to answer to them in the court of man. He does nothing less than make the case for Christ throughout Biblical history and how those with the true message of God had been rejected before him.

9"Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him 10and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt; so he made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace." – Acts 7:9-10

This is the first instance Stephen mentions of the one that God has chosen to carry out His message being rejected by those around him. Joseph was thrown out by his brothers, but God put him in a unique position in not only to help them later on, but to lead them to a better life later on. What Stephen is trying to do is show that God can triumph over the will of man to advance His plan even when all hope seems lost. How else do you explain a young Jewish boy sold into slavery by his brothers becoming a high official in the court of Egypt? Another important message Stephen was trying to say here was one of forgiveness. Joseph easily could have turned his back on his brothers when they came for help, but instead he welcomed them with open arms. We all reject Christ in our own way when we sin, but He welcomes us back with open arms just like Joseph did.

35"This is the same Moses whom they had rejected with the words, 'Who made you ruler and judge?' He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36He led them out of Egypt and did wonders and miraculous signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea^[g] and for forty years in the desert. 37"This is that Moses who told the Israelites, 'God will send you a prophet like me from your own people.' – Acts 7:35-37

One time might have been a fluke, but we also see here that Moses was rejected by the Israelites as well. Stephen uses Moses here because of the high regard that he carried in Jewish culture. In the next few verses he also shows how Moses was rejected yet again because of the impatience and lack of faith the Israelites showed during the exodus. Here they had been delivered from Egypt by a sheer miracle of God, but they grew impatient and rebelled against God not long after. It is here that Stephen rebukes them for persecuting the prophets and calls them out for the role they had in killing Christ.

51"You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him— 53you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it." – Acts 7:51-53

These are strong words, but Stephen had the courage to say them because they were true. It had to be difficult standing there knowing these words would likely cost him his life, but it was not his life to give since he had already given it to Christ. Once we are filled with the Holy Spirit we cannot resist its pull. These men needed to be called out because of the responsibility given to them as rulers and keepers of the law, so Stephen called them out. It cost him his life, but as the first martyr, his sacrifice was not in vain. He stayed strong until the end and surely made an impression on one young man that was in the crowd that day. That was a young man named Saul, who would later become the greatest evangelist that has ever lived.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How does the Old Testament story of Abraham, Joseph, and the promise relate to Christ?
   
2. Why would using Moses as an example speak to these men?
   
3. What effect did Stephen's stoning have on Paul?
   

Acts, Chapter 6

Chapter 6 of Acts is short, but it is still very important as it shows another major step in the growth of the early church. As we have seen from past chapters, The church had begun the practice of sharing wealth, possessions and resources. As a result of this the church was growing so large that some people were beginning to be overlooked in the daily distribution of stuff. To this point the Twelve were still sharing and preaching the Word of God and handling on the administrative tasks of managing this material for thousands of believers. Naturally, they were overwhelmed and needed subordinate leadership to step in and help out.

2So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, "It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word." – Acts 6:2-4

This is where the heart of the servant comes in, as we see the men that were called not to the glory of spreading the gospel, but of simply maintaining the church. My home church in Indianapolis has often pointed out that 80% of the church work is done by 20% of the congregation. The apostles were far less than 20% of the congregation at this time, so you can only imagine the burdens they were under. We see in the verses following this charge the effect Stephen and his new management posse had on the early church. This freed up the Apostle to go and continue to teach, leading many more to Christ.

So what can we take from this example? Quite simply it is a call to serve, and it shows us there are ways we can serve the cause without becoming ministers. Think about your home church. How many people serve humbly in the background? There are some wonderful guys at my church that I play on the softball team with. On Sunday mornings only one or two of us play an obvious role, but almost every person serves the church in some way. We have two financial experts who help manage the church finances. We have another guy who runs the lighting upstairs. Another person runs the PowerPoint presentation each week. We have worships leaders, builders, and small group leaders up and down our roster. No one serves an overly extravagant role, but each role is important in service to the church itself.

"8Now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. 9Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. These men began to argue with Stephen, 10but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke." – Acts 6:8-10

This is window dressing for what we will see in chapter seven, but Stephen serves as an example to all of here. He was singled out by the leaders of the day to bear the brunt of their wraith, but he stood strong in the face of their opposition. Verse ten shows though that for all the wisdom and leadership they were supposed to exhibit they were no match for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was with Stephen as he stood before them, giving him strength at a time when he needed it most. He never stopped speaking about the love of Christ even though he was being accosted for it. We can only hope to have this amount of faith when facing oppression. Much like Peter and the rest of the Apostles in the previous chapter Stephen refused to back down in the face of opposition. He was emboldened by the Holy Spirit like we are promised to draw our strength from. As we will see in the future, this faith and strength will cost him his life.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. How are you being called to serve, referencing earlier lessons discussed here?
   
2. Is serving in a Stephen type role more important than serving in an Apostolic role?
   
3. What proof is there that Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit while facing the Synagogue of the Freedmen?

Acts, Chapter 5

The power of God cannot be stopped by the acts of mankind. That is the theme today in Acts 5. While I expect those that follow along to read the whole chapter, I will be concentrating primarily on the second half today. It is not that the first half of this chapter is not important. It is that I feel a more important message can be derived from the second half of the chapter, as a major turning point in the church is reached beyond verse 12.

As we saw yesterday, the early church had just begun to face its first challenge. It had already grown by leaps and bounds, causing the Sanhedrin to take notice and begin to fear for their own power over the people. Today we see that the church began to face that persecution in earnest through beatings, jail, and reprimands. In the face of this Peter and the rest of the apostles continued to share the good news unashamed of what they were doing. As a result miracles were being performed by the Holy Spirit and many more came to the faith.

"17Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. 20"Go, stand in the temple courts," he said, "and tell the people the full message of this new life." – Acts 5:17-20

God 1, The Sadducees 0. This is just further proof that the ways of God cannot be stopped in the face of man. Apostles weren't even in jail 24 hours before the angel of the Lord freed them. What even better is that they were not told to run and hide, but to appear in the very temple court the next day to preach the gospel. They were told to boldly return to the place they were thrown out of and continue to do what they were arrested for in the first place.

27Having brought the apostles, they made them appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28"We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name," he said. "Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood." 29Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey God rather than men! 30The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead—whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. 32We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him." – Acts 5:27-32

No truer words have been spoken than, "We must obey God rather than men." What conviction this men had. Remember, during much of Jesus' public ministry they were timid men. Many of them fled when Jesus was facing His crucifixion and didn't know what to do. Peter himself had denied Jesus three times, and now he was standing defiantly in front of many of the same people who had condemned Him to death. This is the kind of faith that we must exercise.

"34But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35Then he addressed them: "Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God." – Acts 5:34-39

I would say that now, 2000 years later, Gamaliel has his proof. Other than the brief mention of Theudas and Judas I had never heard of them or their revolts, but Jesus and His followers have certainly persisted and grown stronger right up to the present day. Even the most virulent skeptic cannot deny this. Surely His message would have failed long ago if based on human origin, much like other human messages that have become footnotes to history.

TODAY'S QUESTIONS:

1. What is your take on the first part of the chapter about holding back from God?
   
2. How dramatic was the change in Peter?
   
3. How does God continue to prove that His message is from Him?
   

Acts, Chapter 4

Have you ever met people in your life that just don't seem to be connected with reality in any way? That is what we see today a bit in Acts Chapter 4. In chapter 3 we see that Peter used the power of the Holy Spirit to heal a crippled beggar in front of the temple. This is a great miracle, one that can only be wrought by God. I think we can all agree that if someone were to do this today we would all be impressed. Even the most skeptical wouldn't take the route that the Sadducees took toward this miracle. Did they praise God as the crippled man did? Did they honor God in his greatness and mercy? No, they chose to call Peter and John before the Sanhedrin and put them in jail.

"8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! 9If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, 10then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed." – Acts 4:8-10

It would be one thing if Peter were claiming credit himself for this miracle. Peter instead deflected the glory to Christ, in Whom this miracle occurred. It is important to know the role that history and the selfish nature of man played in this pseudo-trial. The Sanhedrin did not want the glory deflected on to Christ because then it would make individual people responsible for their own atonement. Christ's sacrifice placed all the power of not only the Holy Spirit, but the ability to choose salvation for themselves. No longer would the Sanhedrin need to live in the temple and offer sacrifices for the atonement of the people. Basically, if the Christ story were true they would be out of jobs and stripped of the power they held. Instead of accepting Christ's sacrifice for themselves they instead chose to persecute the alleged myth of His resurrection. As we saw in verse four the story of the healing had already converted another 5,000 people, so the Sanhedrin felt they must do something about it.

"16"What are we going to do with these men?" they asked. "Everybody living in Jerusalem knows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny it. 17But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn these men to speak no longer to anyone in this name." 18Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus." – Acts 4:16-18

As usual though, men's plans to stop the spread of the gospel were no match for God's plans. I just love how Peter and John never once considered following this mandate. The Sanhedrin acknowledged that a miracle had been performed, and they had no idea how to punish Peter and John because they were being loved by the people for what was being done. A similar incident occurred in John 9 when Jesus healed a blind man and the Sanhedrin questioned him. The blind man didn't care how it happened, it just praised God that he could see. So, of course, the Pharisees insulted and mocked him. Here the Sanhedrin were at a loss as to how they could punish someone for this miracle.

"29Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." – Acts 4:29-30

We see here that Peter and John respond to the mandate that they not speak in the name of Jesus by speaking in the name of Jesus. Once again people were filled with the Holy Spirit as a result of this and God triumphed over the efforts of misguided men to stomp out the early church. This is really the first early challenge to the authority of the early church after the successes of the day of Pentecost and the first anointing of the Holy Spirit. The early church passed it easily and even grow out of it, setting the stage for further persecution because the rulers of the day saw that it was not a fad that was going to die out.

TODAY's QUESTIONS:

1. How does the detached reality of the Sanhedrin show itself today?
   
2. How would you stand in proclaiming your faith if told not to?
   
3. Why is it important that the Holy Spirit came over the early church a second time if it was already there?