Category: DHL Lectures

Before I get started I want to thank all of the lecturers for their teachings this year. A lot of work goes into preparing these presentations, and I hope you’re in agreement with me that we’ve been abundantly blessed by their efforts and insights. I especially want to acknowledge Laurel for doing such an amazing job of fitting 2,000 years of church history in two 30-minute lectures – simply wonderful. Every lecturer has “upped their game” this year, and we are all the better for it. I wish you all a restful Summer break – you’ve earned it!

 

Well, here we are. Can you believe we’re at the end of another year of Bible study? I’m going to spend the first part of the lecture on chapter 28 and then attempt, with the remaining time, to summarize the key points of the book of Acts. We pick up our story from last week – Paul and 275 other people on what once was a ship are holding on to what’s left of the ship and are in the water headed for the island of Malta. A Roman centurion is assisting Paul and the others to escape from a plan by the soldiers on the ship to kill the prisoners before they could swim away and escape. Chapter 27 concludes that, just as Paul had prophesied, all of the passengers would get to land safely.  Interestingly, this area where it is believed they came ashore is known today as Saint Paul’s Bay.

 

Malta is in the Mediterranean Sea – it is just south of Italy. As the crow flies, it is over 400 miles to Rome – Paul’s ultimate destination. The chapter begins with the confirmation that the centurion-led group has successfully escaped from the soldiers on the ship. They met up with the local people, and the people treated them kindly – building a fire to help them keep warm from the cold and rain.

 

We then get another glimpse into the character of Paul. They’ve just been through a huge ordeal with the shipwreck, but where do we find him? He’s out collecting wood for the fire. He could have just sat there and expect others to do the menial work or be served, but he humbled himself and chipped in to help keep the fire going. Paul was a “doer” – he didn’t sit around and wait for others to take action. There’s a saying that churches are full of willing people – some are willing to work, and others are willing to let them.

 

What does he get for his humble and good work ethic? A viper latching onto his hand. How many of you saw any of the Indiana Jones movies? I’m right there with Indiana Jones on this one – I hate snakes. But just like everything else in the Bible where something strikes fear in us, we need to turn to God and see He’s bigger than what we’re afraid of – AND – He can use it as a way to teach us more about His protective love for us.

 

Jesus said in Mark 16:17-18, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” Some sectors of the church today believe these signs Jesus is speaking of were only for the early church – they were to be used to provide substance to the message of the Gospel. Whether or not you support this position, we need to be mindful that if we’re seeking such signs – are we doing them to draw attention to God or to ourselves.

If you can believe this, there are estimated to be 125 churches today in the UNITED STATES that use poisonous snakes during church services. Just 3 months ago a pastor in Kentucky died after being bitten by a rattlesnake during a weekend church service. After being bitten, he refused medical treatment – as did his wife when the ambulance arrived when it got out he had been bitten. It is not for us to test God to prove his power – we need to remember what Jesus said to Satan after he tempted Jesus the second time – Jesus, quoting Deuteronomy 6:16, “It is written, You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” One final comment on this notion of snake handling – Paul did not deliberately pick up the viper that bit him – it is possible that this was another piece of evidence that Paul’s thorn in the flesh was poor eyesight – he just didn’t see the viper on the sticks he was picking up.

The reaction from the islanders is pretty weird – since he was bitten, he must have been a murderer, so this is the goddess of justice in action (known today as Kharma). You wouldn’t believe how many people questioned Vickie’s and my walk with God during her prolonged illness. We’re far from perfect, but the concept of bad things happening in life occurring solely because we’ve done something wrong is a lie from the bowels of hell to those of us who are in Christ Jesus. This isn’t to say that there aren’t consequences to sinful behavior, but the notion that God is punishing us because of our sin is legalistic garbage. Jesus took the punishment for our sin – past, present, and future. God does not punish those who call on His Son’s name.

Paul didn’t buy their accusations either. He was so close with God in his relationship with Him – he was so certain of the depth and power of God’s love for him, it allowed him to simply shake off the viper into the fire. There’s not even a hint of fear or concern from Paul in this story. I can assure you there would be if I had a viper hanging from my hand. I’d be screaming and yelling making an absolute fool of myself – probably making for a potential viral video on “You Tube” if it were caught on film.

How could Paul act so calmly in this situation? He had been depositing the truths of God’s unending love, His promises of protection and provision, and His unparalleled goodness into his heart and mind for years. He had transformed his mind by truly abiding in Christ. Paul was so at peace with the oneness he had with Jesus that it’s as if the viper didn’t latch onto Paul’s hand, but it latched onto Jesus’ hand. Do you want that kind of oneness with God? I do. I believe that each one of us who call Jesus as our Savior have the potential to achieve just such a closeness with Jesus. He didn’t die just to save us from our sin, He rose so we could have new life with Him.

We see the fickleness of human nature as the same islanders who were calling Paul a murderer are now, after seeing the viper’s bite had no impact on him, are calling him a god. We see no evidence of Paul accepting or receiving this kind of praise, but he would go on to demonstrate the power of the true and living God by healing the father of the chief official of the island and then others on the island who were sick.

After three months in Malta, Paul and his team catch a ship from Alexandria with the figurehead of Castor and Pollux – twin sons of Zeus, the gods of navigation. They work their way through Syracuse, Rhegium, and then to Puteoli – about 125 miles from Rome. Some of the brothers in Rome heard of Paul’s coming and went as far as 33 and even 43 miles to meet with him and join him on his way to his destination.

Paul arrives in Rome and, though a prisoner, he was allowed to live in his own rented house – with guards changed every 6 hours – and allowed to receive visitors. Notably, in Philippians 4:22, Paul said to the Philippian believers, “All God’s people here send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household.” How did those in Caesar’s household get saved? By being chained to Paul – no doubt by him sharing the gospel to all who were assigned to him.

Paul then requests to meet with the local Jewish leaders. He begins with statements that should sound familiar, “My brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. They examined me and wanted to release me, because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death.” Do you see the similarities here first with Jesus and then with Stephen? No sin has been committed – no disrespect to the customs – yet they’re arrested. Even when arrested, the examination of the terms of the arrest reveals no guilt – he is falsely accused.

Let me ask you something, do you think you’re guilty of something in the eyes of God? I think we all need a regular refresher on this issue. Let’s take a look at a couple of verses. Ephesians 1:7 says, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” The italics on “In Him” are from me for the purpose of emphasizing the next verse which is Ephesians 1:4, “For he chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.” What are these verses telling us? When we confess Jesus as our Savior and Lord – by His grace, we are in Him. We have been redeemed by His shed blood on the cross, and our sins – all of our sins – past, present, and future – are completely and totally forgiven. As a result, we are holy and blameless in God’s sight. We are NOT GUILTY!

As if that were not enough, 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us once we are in Him – or in Christ – we become a new creation – we have a new identity. That identity is holy and blameless in God’s eyes. Paul exhorted us in Philippians 2:12 that we’re to work out our salvation in fear and trembling. This doesn’t mean our works get us our salvation – that’s by His grace. We’re to work out – meaning exercise, train, or discipline our new identity soberly and thoughtfully under the loving guidance of God. This is important folks – as we do this, we are going to make mistakes – even sin – from time to time. Does this change our status before God? NO!! If you think you’re guilty in God’s eyes, that’s the enemy falsely accusing you – like we just heard from Paul and we saw in Jesus and Stephen. As we work out our salvation, we are doing this from a position of strength in forgiveness as opposed to the lies of the weakness in condemnation. Don’t listen to the enemy – listen to God, and He says you are holy and blameless in His sight – now and forever. Amen?

Interestingly, the Jews in Rome don’t have a beef with Paul – they’ve heard about the challenges to the sect – the Gospel, but they haven’t heard about his prominent role in the spreading of the Gospel. A few days later, a greater number of people would come to visit Paul, and he would give an accounting of the Kingdom of God, the Law of Moses, and the prophets – all in attempt to persuade them about Jesus. In verse 24, we see a telling statement, “Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe.”

The same is true today – some believe, some don’t. We need to clearly understand our role in the salvation process for those to whom we witness. 1 Corinthians 3:7 tells us, “So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” Our “job” in spreading the Gospel is to communicate the truth of who Jesus is and what He’s done for our lives. It is NOT our job to bring them to salvation. That is God’s job – that’s what Paul means in this verse – we’re to plant the seed of the Gospel by telling them about Jesus, and we water the seed by telling them about what He’s done for us in our lives and loving them. But that’s where our responsibility stops. It is God who gives the increase. Once we’ve done our job, it is up to the person to whom we’re witnessing to choose salvation – under the influence of the Holy Spirit – He’ll give the increase. It is said that it’s pretty hard for the Lord to guide a man if he hasn’t made up his mind which way he wants to go. Hopefully, that should take some pressure off of us in our witnessing efforts.

Paul would touch the nerves of those who didn’t believe and cause them to leave after he said in verses 25-28, ²⁵ “The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your ancestors when he said through Isaiah the prophet: ²⁶ “‘Go to this people and say, “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.”²⁷ For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ ²⁸ “Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”

In verses 26-27, Paul is quoting Isaiah – pointing out their calloused hearts are nothing new in Jewish history. That’s a tough message to send. Do you think he said this in anger or judgment? I don’t believe so. Paul made it clear in the 9^th chapter of Romans how he felt about his fellow Jews, “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. ³ For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, ⁴ the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. ⁵ Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.”

I’m convinced the tough message Paul sent to those unbelieving Jews in verses 25-28 was done in love. Sometimes we have to deliver tough messages to those we love – but we’re always to do it in love – not with a legalistic and condemning spirit. This is what true Christian friendship is – telling the truth, but telling it in love and compassion.

The chapter ends telling us Paul would stay in Rome for 2 years preaching the Gospel. As for the remainder of Paul’s story, while in Rome, he would write the letters to the Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. According to Halley’s Bible Handbook, it is generally accepted that Paul was acquitted in about A.D. 61 or 62 – probably by Nero – whom it is believed Paul made an impassioned presentation of the Gospel. In the book of Romans, he mentioned his plans to go to Spain, so it is possible that he made a fourth missionary journey to Spain, Greece, and Asia Minor in about A.D. 63 to 67 during which he would have written the letters to Timothy and Titus. He was then arrested again, taken back to Rome by Nero – whom after rejecting Paul’s presentation of the Gospel became one of the most evil men in history and a terrible persecutor of Christians. He would order the beheading of Paul around A.D. 67.

With the time I have left, I want to do a quick summary of what we’ve covered in the book of Acts. Let’s begin with a few of the key verses.

Key Verses:

•       Jesus said in 1:8: But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

•       Peter said in 4:12: Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

•       Jesus said in 10:15: What God has cleansed you must not call common

•       Paul said in 20:24: But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Next, let’s mention the key players:

Key Players:

•       Holy Spirit

•       Peter

•       Stephen

•       Paul

•       Barnabas/John Mark/Silas/Luke

•       Gentiles

•       Persecutors

Finally, let’s briefly cover the key issues:

Key Issues:

•       Power of the Holy Spirit

•       Testimonies of Israel’s true history and conversions

•       Miracles

•       Grace vs. Legalism

•       Persecution

•       Fulfilled promises

So we have the key verses, the key players, and the key issues. They’re all critical components of the success of the early church. However, the foundation to which all of these rest is Jesus Christ – the Son of God and co-equal member of the triune Godhead. The same is true today – whatever is going on in your life – be it good or bad, sickness or health, wealth or poverty – God is at the center of everything in your life. For those times when things are going well, be thankful and draw closer to God. For the heartbreaking times, the notion that God is in control can be a hard pill to swallow when you’re in pain, and you’re not seeing relief or deliverance. You may be asking where is God in this mess? I can assure you He is there – He is looking for you to turn to Him in your pain and suffering – your weakness. Your weakness is valuable to Him – it’s nothing to be ashamed of. It is the doorway to letting Him into your heart, mind, body, and soul and commence taking you to a new level in your relationship with Him – letting Him show you what your true identity is – in Him.

This leads me to my conclusion. Have you ever been reading a verse – especially one you’ve read several times and then suddenly one day – it’s like the Lord flashes a big spotlight on it saying, “Pay attention to this Word – I said it especially for you.” These are what as known as inheritance verses. For those of us who have confessed our faith in Jesus Christ, we become adopted children of His, therefore, we become heirs of incredible blessings. We have a great inheritance – Colossians 3:24 tells us, “knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” Part of that inheritance is the promises of Scripture – meant for each of us who are heirs.

I want to share one of my inheritance verses with you – actually it’s a segment of a verse. Most of you know the story – Jesus has been crucified and has been resurrected. Two believers are on the road to Emmaus, and they’re bummed out about the fact that Jesus has been killed – they don’t yet know He has risen and is alive. Who should show up on the road with them? None other than Jesus Himself. He asks them ‘What’s up?’, but they don’t recognize Him. They respond to Him as if He has no idea what’s going on and proceed to tell their version of what they think is going on. When they’re done with their story, Jesus tells them His story – beginning with Moses and the Prophets. How I would have loved to hear that sermon!

 

We pick up the story in Luke 24:28, “Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.” And here’s the segment of the verse that the Lord shed His Shekinah glory on for me, “He indicated that He would have gone farther”. I went, ‘Whoa’. The Lord wants to go farther with me!

 

What are you saying, Dan? What do you mean? Here’s the thing – Jesus is telling me – He’s telling you, “I’m so happy that you received my gift of salvation. I love you so much, and I’m so proud of you. You are precious to me, but I want to go farther with you. I want to take you on a journey – to places you’ve never known before – places you’ve never imagined.”

 

What do you think is implied in this statement that He would have gone farther? Not only is He telling us He wants us to go farther, but also He is telling us He is going to be there with us as we go further – He’s not going to leave us alone! This verse was very helpful to me as my family was going through the long trial we just experienced. It brought hope and purpose to what was going on. Prior to entering the trial, the Lord put on our hearts that we didn’t want to be part-time Christians – living only part of our lives for Jesus – not fully committed to Christ. We prayed for this, and boy did He hear that prayer! And here’s why – we became in alignment with what this inheritance verse says – in essence, this prayer was telling God we wanted to go farther with Him. When He heard that request, He said, “Awesome! We’re in agreement with each other – I want to go farther with you. Now let’s get going!”

 

So you may be thinking that’s great for you, Dan, but what does this have to with me? Hang in there – I’m just about done. How many of you remember being in school, and it is the last day of school before vacation starts? It’s the end of the day – you’re mind is already checking out and thinking of all the fun you’re going to have. Suddenly, the teacher says those dreaded words, “I have an assignment for you during the break.” What??? Are you kidding me? Do you not understand the meaning of ‘vacation’? I hated those!!!

 

Well, now being in the role of a teacher, it’s payback time. I’ve heard many of you say you’re ready for a break – ready for a vacation. Many of you are taking breaks or vacations this Summer – that’s great, I hope you have a great time. Now, here’s your two-fold assignment – it is totally voluntary. First, that you don’t take a break or vacation from Jesus. That isn’t a vacation, it’s a recipe for backsliding. The second phase of the assignment is that you take a break or vacation with Jesus. Here’s one thing about the assignment I never got from a teacher – I’m willing to help you with your second assignment.

 

Getting back to the concept of inheritance verses – verses that God has given you that are personal promises of His love, care, protection, provision, deliverance, or character – I’m asking that you spend some time on these verses this Summer. ‘Dan, what do you mean?’ I’m asking you to pick out a verse or verses that have special meaning to you – verses that the Lord has put on your heart that are important. I want you to write it out and just read it several times a day – think about it, meditate on it – ask the Lord, “What are You telling me about Yourself?” or “What are You telling me about what You think of me?” I’m not asking you that you memorize the verse. Although, I believe if you truly spend enough time on the verse, you’ll find yourself memorizing it naturally. God will sear it into your heart and mind.

 

Now some of you may not have any verses like this – You haven’t heard the Lord say to you, “This promise is for you because I love you – I can’t lie – I keep my promises.” That’s ok – no big deal. This is where I’m offering my assistance. On each of the tables is a stapled list of verses – one for every day we have off until we meet again in the fall. It’s totally ok if the verse for that day doesn’t strike you – it’s completely up to God to decide what verses are meant for you from Him. I’m just offering verses to you that are related to His promises and His character.

 

Finally, you don’t have to use these verses – I encourage you to seek them out for yourself. No pressure – just pick out one verse – maybe you need to spend more than one day on a verse – that’s totally cool. God loves you where you are, but He wants to go further with you – he wants to take you on an incredible journey that He’s designed specifically for you. You don’t have to be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God – especially since He’s going to be with you every step of the way. The only way you’re going to know what journey He has for you is if you spend time with Him – getting to know Him through His Word and finding out how much He loves you and how excited He is that you’re choosing to spend time with Him – even take a vacation with Him. I promise where He’s going to take you is going to be amazing.

 

Let’s pray.

 

 

 

        We left off last week with the conclusion of Paul’s final visit to the church he started in Ephesus. It was a tearful goodbye. The text in our reading today begins with, “After we had torn ourselves away from them” – Luke, the author of Acts, makes it clear this missionary team was very attached to the church at Ephesus. A missionary’s job is difficult on so many fronts, but one of the tougher tasks is arriving at the point that the Lord has indicated that the work is done in that area, and it’s time to move on. Deep friendships – some even stronger than family relationships – get established, and the thought of not being with these people any longer is very difficult.

The verse at the end of chapter 20 says they were grieved at Paul’s comments that he would not see them again. In reality, they did – they would see him in the next life – a life free of the persecutions and trials, and eternally secure and in joy by being in the Lord’s presence forever. There are so many things that we can praise God about as followers of Christ, but towards the top of my list is that all of us in here are one day going to be reunited together with other cherished members of this study and other fellow believers who have already gone home to glory. We rightfully grieve when loved ones go home to the Lord, but with Jesus as our Savior and His promise of eternal salvation, we never really have to say ‘goodbye’ to our fellow followers of Christ – we faithfully can say, “see you soon”. God is so good. Amen?

Verses 1-3 describe the course of the team’s journey as they headed towards their ultimate destination – Jerusalem – to present the financial gifts they had collected in the Gentile churches in Greece and Asia Minor. This was a substantial offering that had taken a year to collect from the Gentile churches. This was a symbol of the grace of God softening the dissension between the Jewish believers and Gentile believers.

Paul would describe this effort in Romans 15:25-27: Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord’s people there. For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord’s people in Jerusalem. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings.”

In Paul’s view, the material offering they had been collecting was an exchange for the spiritual offering the converted Jewish church leaders had given to the Gentiles for the sending out of the gospel.

Looking at the map, they visit several ports in the Mediterranean Sea including Cos, Rhodes, Patera, and they land in Tyre – in the area now known as southern Lebanon.

While at Tyre for a week, they searched out for the disciples there. Interestingly, the church at Tyre was possibly started out of the earlier persecutions of the Jerusalem church that were often led by who? Paul – formerly Saul of Tarsus. The fact that these believers, through the Spirit, were urging Paul not to go to Jerusalem indicates what the power of God’s love can do to heal relationships. If Paul was indeed a participant in the persecutions that led to these people fleeing to Tyre, it would be very easy for them to think, “Sure dude – go onto Jerusalem – I’m sure you’ll have no problems there.” ‘What goes around comes around, right?’

That’s not God’s way – He is a God of forgiveness and restoration. People who are truly following Christ and seeking to model after Him by walking with Him in the Spirit prove this through their fruit – material evidence of God abiding in them. The fruit here is the passion these people are displaying to protect Him by encouraging him not to go onto Jerusalem for they feared for his life. If there were bad feelings from these people in Tyre about Paul and his persecuting days, God dug them out with the blood of His Son and replaced those feelings with agape love. May God do the same in each of us for those feelings of bitterness, resentment, and unforgiveness – dig out these hell-found emotions at their root and replace them with the filling of the Holy Spirit and the sufficiency of God’s love.

So as they are getting ready to leave, we see the entire body of Christ – including wives and children – going out to the beach, kneeling and praying for the team. This is a great display of corporate prayer and support for the brethren. I think it is especially impressive that they get the children involved in the prayers. It’s never too early to get our children and our grandchildren into the habits of praying for others in the church.

In verses 7 and 8 they head back out to sea going down the coast to Ptolemais and then to Caesarea where they would stay with Philip the evangelist who was “one of the seven”. We need to go back to the 6^th chapter of Acts to remember the seven deacons who were chosen by the apostles to handle the servicing of the daily needs of the church so as to allow time for the apostles to minister the Word to the people. God clearly rewarded Philip with his devotion to his service as he would grow into an evangelist in the teaching and conversion of the eunuch in Chapter 8.

Remember that Philip was an associate of Stephen’s, but do we remember who was present at Stephen’s stoning? None other than Paul, so this meeting was likely an interesting one.

We’re then reintroduced to Agabus the prophet – we first learned of him in chapter 11 when he predicted there would be a famine over the entire Roman world – which did come to pass. Agabus would deliver the second warning from the Lord about Paul going to Jerusalem – this time with a visual presentation by taking Paul’s belt, tying it around his arms and feet and proclaiming, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.” Luke would say that he along with the others then begged him not to go up to Jerusalem.

There are people who have taken the position that since Paul ultimately did go to Jerusalem, he was being disobedient to the Lord’s will.  It is important to understand that the promptings of the Holy Spirit were not direct orders to not go to Jerusalem – this was the interpretation of the people who were relaying what they thought He was telling them. In fact, these promptings were warnings from the Lord to Paul that should he decide to go to Jerusalem, he should expect it’s not going to be a day at Disneyland.

To further help understand the framework of this issue with the Lord and Paul, we need to go back to what the Lord said to Ananias who was protesting having to heal the eyes of the freshly converted Saul of Tarsus in chapter 9:15-16: “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” Scripture tells us no other apostle was subject to the volume of persecutions than Paul.

In 2 Corinthians 11:23b-27, Paul gives an accounting of his persecutions, “I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.  I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.”

Anyone who says the Christian life is a piece of cake or is preaching the ridiculous doctrine of prosperity need only read and meditate on this passage to recognize that truly following Christ is costly. Yes, we have amazing rewards in heaven waiting for us, and we can have joy while we’re here on Earth serving Jesus. But we are at war, my friends, and war isn’t pretty. It isn’t prosperous. Freedom comes with a cost, and Jesus paid the highest price for our freedom. As confessed followers of His, we’re charged to carry the torch of truth of the freedom Christ offers to others. People carry torches because it’s dark – we live in a dark and ever-darkening world, the enemy knows his days are about up, so he is upping his attacks on the saints.

I’m not trying to be a downer, my friends – I’m just telling you what’s really going on in this world today. Yet, we need not fear. Let’s remember the core truth that John tells us in verse four of the fourth chapter of his first epistle, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” We’re going to get beat up and bruised the closer we walk with the Lord, but let me remind you that the enemy is no match for the Lord – let me repeat myself… the enemy is no match for the Lord. Repeat after me, “the enemy is no match for the Lord.” He is a created being, and he is subject to his Creator. The war is won, and we are on the winning side. For those of us who might be in a battle right now – take comfort, the Lord is the victor, and He will deliver every one of us.

While I’m sure Paul appreciated the loving concerns of his brothers and sisters in Christ, he responded to their warnings with, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” He would later more succinctly sum up his commitment to the Lord in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Was Paul going to Jerusalem against God’s will? I don’t think so. The Lord is showing His graciousness to Paul in letting Him know what’s going to happen when he gets there. He would also reward Paul for his courage and faithfulness as He would continue to open doors to preach the gospel.

The final words of these people who loved Paul should ring a bell, “The Lord’s will be done.” Weren’t these basically the same words Jesus uttered in the Garden of Gesthemane? Jesus knew what was coming, and His ‘not My will but Your will be done’ statement is where each of us need to arrive. It is the ultimate statement of trust in the Father’s goodness, wisdom, and, most importantly, love for us. He knows what’s best for us, and the sooner we surrender our wills and allow Him to be the pilot – not the co-pilot – of our lives, the better off we’ll be.

One final thought on this topic – when it comes to our own sense of understanding God’s will and plan for our lives, we need to ask ourselves are we prepared to remain resolute regardless of the input from our well-meaning Christian brothers and sisters who might challenge our convictions. We recently made a difficult decision that we felt was the Lord’s will, and we had a good peace about it (always a good sign you’re in alignment with the Lord). There are those who would think we are nuts, and, although that may be true in an overall perspective, we have remained resolute that it was the right call.

Conversely, when we hear of the plans of another that sound “outside the box” or don’t make sense, are we more prepared to challenge their position based on our own understanding or do we simply just root them on and tell them to go for it? We need to remember the exhortation in Proverbs 3:5 that we are to Trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding.

So Paul and the team go to Jerusalem and are warmly greeted by the brothers and sisters. We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that the narration continues to include “we” and “us”. Luke, Silas, and Timothy have not abandoned Paul – they are truly his companions. We should all be so fortunate as to have such great friends in the Lord who are willing to walk with us wherever the Lord is taking us – no judgments or criticisms – just people who will love you and not leave your side no matter what. I pray that every person in this room will have at least one or more of such a friend like this – they are gifts from heaven.

The team meets with James – the half-brother of Jesus – gives him the offering and reports all the things God has been doing with the Gentiles. The Jerusalem church rightly responded to this news not by praising Paul and his companions, but praising God. We need to be careful of this – when the Lord blesses the efforts of those who are working for Him, we need to deflect 100% of the compliments and praises that are offered to us and give glory to the One who gives us the gifts and talents to perform the efforts that He’s blessed. Pastor Chuck Smith said that he was taught three specific things not to touch in his ministry: the money, the women, and the glory.

The enemy was not at all amused at the progress of the church through Paul and his team, so he was at work through the legalistic Jewish Christians and inciting them to spread lies about Paul’s teaching both the Jews and the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to their customs. These are basically the same claims that were made against Jesus and Stephen. You would think the devil could come up with some new material, but since the accusations ultimately led to the deaths of both Jesus and Steven, why not stick with what works?

The concern for the accusations against Paul by the leaders of the Jerusalem church was strictly for the Jews that Paul was teaching. The doctrine for the Gentiles was not in question as they did not have the Mosaic history overshadowing them. Verse 20 tells us these Jewish believers were “zealous for the law”. The Greek translation for the word zealous includes descriptives as “jealous” and “desire and move with envy”. These guys could not get out of the bondage of the law – they could not grasp the freedom that comes with grace. God would ultimately have to send a special letter to the Jews – the epistle to the Hebrews. Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse used to say, “The book of Hebrews was written to the Hebrews to tell them to stop being Hebrews!”

Warren Wiersbe points out that Paul did warn the Gentiles in Galatians 4 not to get involved in the old Jewish religion, but he nowhere told the Jews that is was wrong for them to practice their customs, so long as they did not trust in ceremony or make their customs a test of fellowship. The accusations against Paul are truly sad when you think of the lengths he went to in order to appease the Jews. He had Timothy circumcised in Acts 16, he took a Jewish vow in Acts 18, and it was his custom to not offend the Jews in any way by deliberately violating their customs or the law of Moses.

So the Jerusalem leadership seeks to appease these legalism-obsessed Jewish Christians by asking Paul to publicly demonstrate that he is a nice Jewish boy and join with four men who are wrapping up a Nazarite vow. This vow involved men letting their hair grow long, drinking no wine, eating no grapes or raisins, not touching anything dead, and devoting themselves for a period of time to singular dedication to God. At the end of the vow, they would go into the temple, spend seven days worshiping God, cut off their hair, burn it, and give offerings and sacrifices to God. This was all part of a purification process following a time of separation – this is described in more detail in the 6^th chapter of Numbers.

Because this vow would take time away from work and the sacrifices were costly, people wanting to partake in the vow would seek sponsors to cover the cost. Therefore, the leaders asked Paul to take some of the money he brought from his trip to pay for the other four guys as well as himself.  I’m certain Paul did not join in on the sin offering, as He knew that was satisfied by Christ. However, there is nothing necessarily wrong with the other offerings such as the peace offering or grain offering. What’s really remarkable in this story is Paul agreed to it. He knows it’s no longer necessary, but his heart was so passionate that his Jewish brethren come to faith in Jesus, he would try to be all things to all people in order that he might win some.

The leadership’s plan with Paul acting like a Jew to settle the unrest at the mention of his name – well, it didn’t work. In the temple there was an outer court, or area, that anyone – Jew or Gentile – could enter. However, there was an inner court that was strictly for Jews – there was even a sign that read “Any Gentile entering in will be put to death.” Gentiles were forbidden from entering. Paul had come to Jerusalem with some Ephesian Gentile believers including Trophimus, so the mob mentality just assumed Paul had brought him into the area of the temple that was forbidden. There’s no evidence he did what they were claiming.

The same misinformed mob mentality that made that mob choose Barabbas over Jesus to be spared causes them to attack Paul with the intent to kill him. The commander of the Roman troops gets wind of this and takes his men and step in to rescue Paul.

When Paul spoke to the commander, the commander asked him if he was the Egyptian who started a revolt with some 4,000 terrorists in the wilderness. In the year A.D. 54, an Egyptian, whose name meant “dagger-bearer”, led men to the wilderness to launch a revolt against Rome. Given Paul’s ability to speak fluent Greek, the commander was concerned Paul was this guy. Who else would cause such an uproar among the people?

Amazingly, Paul asked if he could speak to the people who were trying to do him in. He’s granted the permission, motions to the people to gather round, they all become silent, and he says……   This is what is known as a teaser. You’ll have to wait to hear what he says next week with Jim Swaney who I’m sure will do a great job.

As I always do at the end of these lectures, I try to take something from the reading or emphasize a theme that helps make that topic or message applicable to our lives. In going through this chapter, I began to think of the Apostle Paul. I know of no other individual in Scripture who underwent a greater transformation than Paul. He went from being a zealous persecutor of the church to a zealous proclaimer of salvation by grace through the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul changed like no other, and that is what I want to discuss with you in the last few minutes – the concept of change.

One pastor once wisely said, “If you’re going to believe in Jesus, you better be ready for change.” This makes perfect sense. Imagine you’re in a burning building and you’re trapped. Out of nowhere you see a brave firefighter heading your way to rescue you. He is, in effect, your savior at that moment. Let me ask you something, do you want him to stay there with you while the building keeps burning, or do you want him to lead you to safety? You want to get out, right?

This should also be the case for us spiritually. When we come to faith in Christ, we should have come to a point where we knew we were helpless, there was no way out of our own ‘burning buildings’ – our sin – and we needed someone to rescue us. Do we want Him to just say, “I’m here – I’m your Savior” and then just stay in stuck in a pile of burning embers? Of course not. Sadly, I believe a lot of Christians have done just that – I know have in parts of my life. We’re super pumped on that Savior part of the deal – knowing we can be at peace with God and get to go to heaven. But have you really let Him save you from all of what you need saving and healing from? Some of these things that we carry around with us are very subtle, but they are so destructive and keep us from knowing the true liberty we have in Christ and maximizing the potential of our relationship with Him.

Maybe it’s a critical attitude? Maybe there’s unforgiveness? Or could it be a fear or anxiety over something or someone? Maybe it’s a secret sin? No matter what it is, please understand two things about it:

1.    God already knows about it – there’s nothing secret with God. Psalm 69:5 reminds us, “You, God, know my folly; my guilt is not hidden from you.” Scripture also tells us He knows the number of hairs on our head – God is completely aware – even more aware than we are – of what is hurting us.

2.    Secondly, He wants to heal you from this. What was the first thing Jesus told the disciples to tell the people when he sent them out proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is near? “Heal the sick.” He wants to dig out this issue in your life that makes you sick – like digging out a dead or decaying root from the dirt of your life and replace that hole with new soil and new seed – a God-seed that will help grow in you a new and pure root of new life.

For some of us, this thing or these things that hold us down are very familiar to us, and the thought of living life free of this issue, well, that is terrifying. We must realize that this is the enemy talking – ‘you can’t let this go – this is who you are’; ‘you can’t forgive that person, don’t you remember what he/she did to you?’

Does that sound like God? Does that sound like something coming from the same lips of the One who was pinned to a cross taking on our sin and then saying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”? If we are willing to spend the time to dig into the Bible and discover the character of God as it is displayed in the OT and through Jesus, we are going to find a God Who loves us beyond our comprehension and through and beyond our circumstances. This kind of love has an unending supply of compassion and has a burning desire to restore and regenerate every fabric of our lives – to forgive us, to heal us, and to wipe out the fears and anxieties in our lives. The essence of our relationship with God is the hope He offers to each of us – to each of you – to become what He originally designed us to be – to be living in the Garden of Eden – 100% at peace and in constant loving fellowship with Him. This is the path of our salvation.

Getting back to Paul, let’s reflect on his conversion on the road to Damascus. It began with a sudden light from heaven that flashed around him. That’s the beginning of salvation – we’re walking around in the darkness of our sin and the grace of God like lightning bursts through the darkness – the truth breaks through the darkness of the lies we were believing.

Paul drops to his knees and hears Jesus saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” In effect, when we arrive at the moment that we envision Jesus on the cross dying for us – in essence our sin had persecuted him – had put him on the cross – things are never the same again. We begin to see who we are – before a perfect and holy God – completely helpless and in need of rescue. We then realize He has risen, is alive, and offers new life – He not only offers the truth of salvation, but He is our salvation. Psalm 13:5 states, “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.”

Paul would never be the same again. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t believe anyone in Scripture underwent a greater transformation in the Bible than Paul. Interestingly, some of the things that made him so useful to the enemy’s purposes, became even more effective for the Kingdom of God. His zeal and passion are what drove him as a fire-breathing Pharisee to the early church. Under the influence and the guidance of the fire of the Holy Spirit, that same zeal and passion were now directed at proclaiming the truth.

We learned in today’s reading about Paul’s zeal and passion in his desire to go to Jerusalem. But we also saw in him the new found presence of grace – in his willingness to be obedient to the leadership of the Jerusalem church and participate in the final activities of a Nazarite vow.

Paul was willing to change because He saw something better – He saw the love of God. He allowed God’s love to infiltrate him, to forgive him, to transform his understanding of the Scriptures, and to empower him to love others.

Do you see something better with God? Maybe the more pressing question is do you want to see something better with God? Do you want to see the hope He offers? Realizing hope doesn’t happen without change. Are you afraid of the change He wants to make in your life? There’s a saying that everybody is in favor of progress – it’s the change they don’t like. The apostle John tells us in his epistle that perfect love casts out all fear. Paul himself said love conquers all. Change can be scary, but it is not scary at all if you truly believe that the One who is going to lead you through that change has died on a cross for you, is never going to leave you, and is going to give you Himself by His Holy Spirit dwelling in you the power to deliver the truth, give you the peace, and drive out the fear of making a change that is going to give you new life.

Each day we wake up with an expectancy and hope that the sun is going to rise and warm the day. Since God is the Creator of this process, shouldn’t we also live with the same expectancy and hope for Him to put on full display His promised love for us? Remember, God can’t lie. My friends, there is an amazing liberty and freedom and abiding love when you let the Lord Jesus Christ take hold of those things that the father of lies has led you to believe you can’t live without or God isn’t going to deliver you from. I challenge you to take a step of faith and listen to what God exhorted Joshua in the 9^th verse of his book, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

This is change we can believe in. Look what it did for Paul. Imagine what change God can do for you, if you allow Him to do it. Do you want to? I know He does. If you do, just ask Him. He won’t let you down.

 

Acts – Lesson 16

Click on the above link for the PowerPoint presentation that goes with the text. When you see (CLICK), advance the slide.

We find ourselves here in Chapter 16 early in the Apostle Paul’s second missionary journey. We learned last week that there was unfortunate friction in the relationship between the dynamic duo – Paul and Barnabas. This was over Barnabas’ nephew, John Mark, who had left the two during the first missionary journey. Barnabas wanted John Mark to join them, but Paul didn’t trust he would stick it out. The disagreement could not be resolved, so Paul enlisted Silas and headed out on the second missionary journey first going through Syria and Cilicia. (CLICK)

The map behind me represents the geography of Paul’s missionary journeys. The second one is marked with a purple line – beginning in Jerusalem and you can see it heading north through Syria past Antioch and following the coastline into Cilicia. Chapter 16 finds them arriving first in Derbe which was probably a welcome break point for Paul as it was one of the few places Paul had a peaceful ministry.

From Derbe they go to Lystra. Now Lystra was not as kind to Paul as Derbe. During his first journey there – approximately 5 years earlier while Paul was establishing the church there, he was stoned and carried off out of town and thought to be dead. Apparently he got better. He must have been encouraged, though, as the church he started was still in existence. We’re then introduced to a key figure in the New Testament – Timothy. Let’s take a moment to find out what we know about Timothy. (CLICK)

·      We learn in 2 Timothy 1:5 that his mother and grandmother prepared the way for his decision to come to Christ – they were the first in the family to come to Christ – this probably happened during Paul’s first journey.

·      His mother is Jewish and his father is a Greek

·      He probably witnessed Paul’s sufferings as a boy or a young man during Paul’s first visit – this is indicated in 2 Timothy 3:10-11

·      Philippians 2:19-23 tells us he was someone Paul looked upon as a son. He often called him his son in the faith.

·      Verse 2 of today’s reading states that the believers in Lystra and Iconium – a neighboring city just north of Lystra – spoke highly of him

 

First with John Mark and now with Timothy, we learn something about Paul’s heart – he wanted to invest in young believers to grow them up in the Lord – so that they’ll carry on as he’s carried off. I personally believe this is a critical responsibility of the elder believers in the church. Our flesh tells us we want to do the work or maybe we get a little protective of our ministry fearing some young hotshot may actually be more gifted than we are to do what we’re doing. It takes a real maturity in the church leadership to focus on growing the next generation of leaders.

 Verse 3 then tells us that he has Timothy circumcised which is interesting since we learned just last week that the church leadership issued a decree mandating circumcision was not required as an act of obedience and condition of salvation post-confession of Christ.  As I mentioned last week, this is a critical point in the early church – not necessarily the act of circumcision – it’s the issue of being saved by grace through faith. The church leaders are acknowledging the burdens of the law and are attempting to make things simple for the new believers.

The topic of circumcision has always been a sensitive issue – especially for the men. When first instituted by God and Abraham back in Genesis – it was a symbolic act of obedience demonstrating the forsaking of one’s flesh for entering into a covenant with God. With the arrival of Jesus, the accountability of our hearts came into focus. You recall adultery went from only being a sin with the physical act in the Old Testament to it becoming a sin if it just entered your mind in the New Testament. Jesus, as God, recognized that certain obedience had become ritualistic and producing no change in the peoples’ heart towards the Lord.

Therefore, through the Spirit, the church leaders acknowledged what the emphasis of a believer should be – a change of the heart. Paul provided the following verses that clearly redefined what circumcision was really about. (CLICK)

 

Romans 2:29: and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.

 

Galatians 5:6: For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

 

Colossians 2:11: In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self-ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ,

 

So after hearing all this, what gives with Timothy being circumcised? Kind of sounds contradictory, doesn’t it? As always, Scripture explains Scripture, so let’s look at what Paul says in (CLICK):

 

1 Corinthians 9:19-22: ¹⁹ Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. ²⁰ To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. ²¹ To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. ²² To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.

We remember that Timothy’s mother was a Jew, so Paul knew there would be Jewish believers still stuck on the issue of circumcision as a required action of a male Jew. Paul had a choice to make – dig his heals in and cram new non-essential doctrine down the throats of people who are already contentious by nature, or he could have Timothy circumcised to prevent him from being a stumbling block to the bigger issue – to bring people to faith in Christ. He wanted to keep the peace, to open the door for the Prince of Peace. So Paul didn’t see this as a big deal.

Some of you might recall the same issue came up about Titus, but Paul did dig his heals in on circumcising him. What was the difference? Titus was a Gentile – there would be no stumbling of the Gentiles with the subject of circumcision.

The bigger issue on this topic has to do with priority. We need to pick our battles. Sadly, church bodies have split over non-essential doctrine such as whether or not there is going to be a Rapture or, if there is going to be one, when is it going to happen – before, in the middle, or at the end of the seven year tribulation. We need to check our own hearts when there is disagreement over doctrine – if it’s a matter of principal or conviction, then you stand your ground. On other things where Scripture isn’t specific, we need to back off and demonstrate the grace we’ve been given. We need to keep our eyes on the prize – that is Jesus and His desire to save all.

Paul, Silas, and Timothy proceed out to the towns delivering the message of freedom from the ritualistic law requirements. Interestingly, as this message is delivered, the church is growing. This is what happens when the Holy Spirit is guiding the way – not a bunch of man-made programs. (CLICK) Paul exhorted the Galatians in chapter 3:3, “O foolish Galatians! Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?” A real challenge for church leaders is to forgo the temptation to pursue the fleshly mind and hire specialists who claim full-proof methods of generating membership growth or improving fundraising. Scripture is very clear – it is God who grows the church. (CLICK)

Getting back to the map, we see the desires of Paul to go north into Asia – places like Galatia, Bithynia, and Mysia – but the Spirit prevented them from going to these regions. It is interesting to think how world history may have been changed had Paul and his team gone north to Asia as opposed to westward into Europe. We need to thank God for this leading and Paul’s obedience as the Gospel pushed into Europe it ultimately landed in North America. Verse 8 indicates they passed by Mysia and went to Troas.

A fair question to ask is, ‘What was meant by the Holy Spirit keeping or preventing them from going a certain direction?’ Did they see something like this on the way? (CLICK)  What is more likely is Paul became very sick. Paul was a very stubborn person – most of the time, this was a good thing as he pressed in when most would back off. However, when God needs to deal with hard-headed people like Paul and me, He’s not above taking extreme measures to accomplish His plan – even severe sickness. This doesn’t mean all illness is from God, but it is a method He’s not above using.

The argument that the method the Holy Spirit used to prevent Paul from going north being an illness is supported in the next two verses. (CLICK)

 

Acts 16:9-10: “⁹ During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” ¹⁰ After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

 

There are many commentators who suggest that Luke, the author of Acts, was the man seen in Paul’s vision. Notably, Luke was a doctor, and verse 10 is where we see a change in the narration of the story – we see for the first time personal pronouns such as “we” and “us”. It appears that Luke was called to come to the aid of Paul, and he would become another of Paul’s traveling companions. So Luke joins, Paul, Silas, and Timothy and head to Macedonia in Europe. (CLICK) Back to the map – they set sail and pass by Samothrace and arrive in Philippi. It appears it only took them 2 days to get to Philippi – this is very fast in those times.

Some might use this as an example that if you follow God’s direction, things will go easy and fast. It’s great when this happens and buoys are emotions. However, it is not Scriptural that being in God’s will means things are going to go perfectly well. Our faith really isn’t much until it is tested, so if things are always going easy, that doesn’t say much about our faith. It has been wisely said that we should be more desirous to be in God’s will in the middle of a raging storm than be out of God’s will with things going easy. When we focus on the promises of Scripture, not the back and forth of our emotions, we can find the peace that passes understanding amidst the most difficult of times. That is Scriptural.

So Paul and his band of holy men are now in Philippi – a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. It was also the place where Brutus defeated Marc Antony. In verse 13 we learn that the team went to go look for a place of prayer by the river– or a synagogue – but they didn’t find one. In these times, whenever a community had 10 Jewish men or more, a synagogue could be established. Therefore, it appears that since the team didn’t find one, the Jewish male population in Philippi is comparatively small. Even though there wasn’t a building for them to find God-seeking people, we’ll learn we can find God-seeking people outside of a building – even a church.

The team sits down and begins to talk to the women who gathered there. This is an important point as women, during this period of history, were given little or no value by the men. Jesus was a revolutionary on so many fronts, but one of the more significant ones was His open acceptance and appreciation for women. Clearly, Paul and the team followed Jesus’ lead and saw all people – men AND women – as important to the Kingdom of God. One particular woman is noted – Lydia – she was a dealer in purple cloth – she was a businesswoman. The Scripture also tells us she was a worshiper of God. Please note what it says in verse 14b (CLICK), “The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.” Again, it’s not some slick program, majestic sermon, or academic teaching series that brought Lydia to faith – the Lord did. I think it’s also worth noting what she was doing prior to coming to faith – she was worshipping. It’s unclear what God she was worshipping, but a worshipful heart is often a precursor to a willingness to accept the truth of who God is.

So Lydia along with other members of her household come to faith, and they all get baptized. She then convinces Paul and the team to come stay at her house. The last four words of verse 15 are “And she persuaded us”. The Greek word for persuaded is parabiazomai (pr. parabeadsomi), and when you read further descriptions you find words/phrases like “force contrary to nature”, “compel”, and “constrain”. My guess is Lydia was a very successful businesswoman as she clearly does not take “no” for an answer – she really put the screws to Paul. Whatever reservations Paul and his men might have had in staying in her house were no match for Lydia’s “persuasion”.

In verse 16, the team is going to a synagogue and they run across a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. Let me ask you something, do you think it was an accident or a happenstance of fate that this woman came across the paths of Paul and his brothers? Of course not – we need to pay attention to the nuances of the stories presented in the Bible. There is typically a main point to each of the stories, but what makes the Bible so rich is even the sub-points of the stories carry significant meaning. How many times in your lives has something or someone seemingly randomly come across your path that God ended up doing something special with you, the other individual, or both? Scripture even mentions someone you might meet might even be an angel in disguise. This is why we need to pay attention, folks. God is always looking for opportunities for us to bless others and for others to bless us.

We also learn that because of this woman’s evil spirit-driven ability as a fortune-teller, she’s making her owners a lot of money. In those days, people had a strange reverence for the insane. This possessed lady was such a person – but she was declaring the truth of Paul and his crew. For days, she keeps shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” It’s interesting that this demon-possessed woman is proclaiming the truth. This is a reminder that Satan and his minions are no strangers to Scripture – that’s why Bible studies such as this are so important in our ongoing spiritual battles. The devil will twist and turn around God’s word, so if we’re not grounded in it, we can become deceived and believe the twists and turns.

So we learn Paul is annoyed by her shoutings of the truth and finally calls upon the name of Jesus Christ (a critical point whenever we’re going to confront the enemy – ALWAYS begin by invoking where your power is coming from – Jesus) and commands the spirit to come out of her. Now why would Paul try to shut up someone who is proclaiming the truth? He doesn’t want Satan running his advertising campaign. Is that what churches are doing today? Many are hiring outside professionals to promote church growth and fundraising programs, but they may have no relationship with God whatsoever – their sole motivation is to make money. The message of the Gospel presented by true followers of Christ is more powerful than any fancy program that can be cooked up. You would be stunned to learn how much of the hard-earned tithings go to pay for these consultants. I personally believe God will abundantly bless those churches that sincerely and relentlessly preach the Gospel, teach the Word, and worship Him. He doesn’t need any help from these alleged promotion experts.

Now the guys who own this lady have just seen their source of income be exercised and eliminated, and they’re none-too-happy.  They seize Paul and Silas and drag them before the authorities. Note the lies that are made about them. They first call them Jews – not true – their Christians. They next claim that their teachings are “throwing our city into an uproar” – there’s no evidence of this in what we read. It is true that when people come to Christ, things are going to change – the problem is that for those who don’t come to Christ, they’re not comfortable with this change. What you end up with is one of the great lies of the non-believer that exists to this very day. They claim the damage of the “intolerance” of followers of Christ is causing great problems and division in society. Christianity does proclaim that there is only one way to God, but EVERYONE is invited and EVERYONE has been given the mechanism to get to God through Christ crucified. That’s not intolerance – that is acceptance by grace. Their arguments of intolerance are a joke as the real intolerance is their unwillingness to allow for others to believe in something other than what they believe in.

Sadly typical, the crowd, or sheep mentality join in on the attacks, and Paul and Silas were ordered to be stripped and beaten with rods. After the floggings, they’re thrown into prison – into the inner cell – and the jailer fastens their feet in the stocks. What happens next, in my opinion, is only possible with people who have Christ indwelling in them. It’s midnight and what are Paul and Silas doing? Lamenting over their unfair treatment? Crying in agony over the pain? Watching Leno? No, they’re praying and singing hymns. It’s possible they were drawing on these verses: (CLICK) Job 35:10 says, But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, Who gives songs in the night.” (CLICK) Psalm 42:8 states, “The Lord will command His loving-kindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me— a prayer to the God of my life.” (CLICK) Charles Spurgeon said, “Songs in the night come only from God; they are not in the power of men.”

These beatings were clearly persecutions, but they were also tests. Tests and trials will tell us where our faith is – God doesn’t allow them for the purpose to make us feel guilty or ashamed of our responses if they lack faith – that’s what the devil tries to make of them. Their true purpose is they’re allowed to remind us how much more we need God to strengthen us and prepare us for the works He has in mind for us. Jesus said in Mark 4:17, “When trouble or persecution comes because of the word…” The key word is “When” – it’s not a matter of “if”, it is “when” trouble and persecution comes because of our faith in the Word. Troubles and persecution are a fact of life for the diligent follower of Jesus Christ. Our responses to them reveal where we are in our faith.

The other prisoners are probably not crazy about having to hear these guys sing at midnight, but what a witness – verse 25 tells us they were listening to them. Apparently, so was God, because a violent earthquake hits, and it shakes the foundations of the prison. Moreover, the doors to the prisons and the prisoners’ chains came loose all at once. This scene is a cool metaphor for coming to faith in Jesus. Prior to our salvation, we were prisoners and slaves in chains to our sin – separated from God by the bars of our disobedience and non-belief. The moment we express our faith in Jesus through prayer and worship, an earthquake hits our lives – shakes our foundations – the Holy Spirit enters us and our chains are broken and we’re set free from the prison of unforgiven sin. We then spend the rest of our days on earth building up our faith in Christ and gradually and more deeply understanding and applying what it means to be truly free in Christ and delivered from the chains we were wearing and prisons we were living in.

The penalty for Roman soldiers when they would lose a prisoner they were accountable to was death. When this jailer woke up and realized what had happened, he figured all the prisoners had left and, therefore, went to go spare himself what was likely to be a more painful death by his superiors and just kill himself. The fact that Paul indicated to him that he and Silas had not left is something I can accept given they had Christ in them – they had a purpose for staying. What is stunning in Paul’s statement, “We are all here”, is that ALL of the prisoners stayed. This is extraordinary as you would think they would try to escape the moment the doors were opened and the chains loosed. They didn’t – they ALL stayed. I think it’s a fair assumption that the other prisoners realized something more powerful than they ever experienced just happened, and they needed to understand the cause of this. We also need to realize the heart of Paul and Silas here – they’re prepared to go to jail to reach people.

The jailer calls for the lights to come up, sees all the prisoners are still there, and then falls before Paul and Silas and asks the question every human being should ask himself/herself during his/her lifetime, (CLICK) “What must I do to be saved.” What’s that response today? Join a church, join a growth/community group, pay your tithes? I know I’m repeating myself through these lectures, but look at the simplicity of their response, (CLICK) “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.” No works are required – just believe and you will be saved. That’s all? Yes, that’s all – it’s that simple.

Some parts of the church have taken the last words of this verse – you and your household – that when we come to faith in Christ, all the members of our household are thereby saved. Salvation is for the purpose of relationship with each person – each person gets healed by God – not through a relative. So why would Paul and Silas include the words “and your household”. Personally, I believe this was a prophetic moment – the Spirit was telling them that upon the jailer’s household hearing the Gospel, they would each believe as well. Verse 32 confirms they did preach the Gospel to the jailer’s household and they would all be baptized. We see immediate fruit in the jailer’s conversion – he stays up all night washing Paul’s and Silas’ wounds from their floggings and then feeds them. A real testimony to coming to Christ is the desire to serve other believers.

Interestingly, the next morning, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order to “Release those men” – meaning Paul and Silas. So what must have happened is after the jailer had washed their wounds and fed them, they must have gone back to the jail. Paul and Silas had compassion on the jailer knowing what his penalty would be if they weren’t there. The fact that the jailer is still being addressed instead of getting executed implies, in my mind, the rest of the prisoners stayed as well.

The jailer communicates the message from the officers that Paul and Silas are free to go and to go in peace. What happens next is one of the reasons I love the Bible, and I love Paul. We see his humanness when instead of just being happy he can leave and take off, he wants to needle the officers with the fact that he and Silas were unjustly thrown into prison because they were Roman citizens. Being citizens, they were entitled to certain procedures of law, and that clearly didn’t happen this time. He tells the jailer that if the officers want them to leave, then they can come escort them out. I love it.

The best part is that is exactly what happened. The magistrates themselves come to appease them and escort them out and tell them to leave the city. Can’t you just see the smirks on Paul’s and Silas’ faces as they’re being led out. I can also see the smirk on God’s face as this is happening. God must take joy when especially those who initially didn’t treat His people justly end up doing just that. The chapter ends with Paul and Silas going to Lydia’s house and encouraging them – no doubt in what just happened.

As I prayed and thought about how to conclude this lesson, the word “prison” came to my mind. I mentioned earlier about the metaphorical scene where Paul and Silas are in jail, they’re praying and singing to God, an earthquake shakes the foundations of the prison, and the doors to their cells are opened and their chains come off – all of this being symbolic of coming to Christ.

What saddens me is I believe the majority of Christians, myself included, have not embraced the fullness of God’s provision of freedom from our former state of imprisonment. We allow the enemy to remind us to the point of non-belief that we are not truly forgiven, that we are not really heirs of the immense protective and privileged benefits of being adopted sons and daughters of God, and, most importantly, that God’s love for us is not sufficient. He accomplishes this through doubt, fear, confusion, anger, bitterness, resentment, lack of contentment, and countless other methods – none of which, when we step back and reflect on the character of God as outlined in the Scriptures – appropriately apply to God. They apply to the devil.

As I think about a jail, I picture the image of a prison door whose access is only available by a key. In this image, the person who holds the key to the jail – the one who opens the door to either put the person in jail or let him/her out – is a “key” figure. The other key figure is the one who has the authority to give the holder of the key the orders to put someone into prison, or let him/her out. Let’s take a look at a couple of verses – both of which are direct quotes from the Lord Jesus Christ. (CLICK) The first one is from Matthew 16:9, “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” If Jesus is saying He can give the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, what does that mean? He is in possession of the keys – He can’t give something that He doesn’t have. Jesus made this statement immediately following Peter’s confession that Jesus was the Christ – the Messiah – the Savior. Jesus, as our Savior, holds the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, and He gives them to those who call upon Him as the Christ.

(CLICK) The second verse from the Lord is in Revelation 1:18, “I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.” Here, Jesus is announcing to the apostle John who He is and that He holds the keys to Hades and Death – the ultimate prison.

So we see in these verses that Jesus holds the keys to both the Kingdom of Heaven and to Hades and Death. That’s one of the roles of the key people when thinking of a prison. Jesus confirms that He is also the One in authority when He says in Matthew 28:18: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

Due to the sin of our original parents – Adam and Eve – each of us was born with a sinful nature – separated from God – in effect, we were born in prison. The only way out of that prison is to go to the One who has the authority to let us out and has the keys to open the door. That One is Jesus. He makes it as simple and clear as He can about the freedom from the prison of our unforgiven sin we receive when we confess Him as Lord in John 8:36 (CLICK), “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”

The fact that most of us are still walking around at times in our lives as if we’re still in prison points, initially, to a lack of belief or understanding of the deepest truths of the power of the Savior’s blood that was shed on the cross for the forgiveness of sins – past, present, and future and His absolute sufficiency to provide everything we’ll ever need because of His passionate love for us. We find ourselves allowing the devil to rob us from the fullness of our freedom from prison and trying to throw us back into prison. We need to remember two things when he does this: (CLICK) 1) he doesn’t have the authority to put us in prison; and, 2) the door is open (remember Jesus has the keys), so if we find ourselves feeling as if we’re still in prison despite our salvation, then we have put ourselves back into prison because we haven’t truly taken to heart the truth of our freedom in Christ.

Jesus was so intent to get us out of our prisons that He gave up His life to make it happen. That’s how He earned the keys. We need to dwell on the fact that His nail-pierced hand is extended out to us to guide us out of our prisons and to experience complete deliverance from our now broken bondage and experience a new and abundant life led by the Spirit. The same hands that opened the door and leads us out are the ones He promises will never let us go.

The gift of free will is the point. We made a great choice when we chose to accept the gift of salvation. However, our choices don’t stop there – now we must make the choice to get out of our prison. That decision is just about as important as the one we made when we chose Christ. That decision resulted in permanent forgiveness and the promise of eternal peace with God. That’s what I call a pretty good result. Imagine what the result will be if you reach out and grab onto Jesus’ hand and let Him lead you out of your prison. That’s where the promise of abundant life is – that is the hope we all have – but it is our choice to grab His outstretched hand.  

I want to challenge each of you to examine and reflect on just one burden you carry – whether it is painful memories of a tough childhood, unforgiveness from those who have hurt you, anger from betrayal – anything that causes you pain.  As you think of this thing, ask Jesus to join you at the time this happened and then ask Him for help – for healing, for the power to forgive, or for Him to just take it from you once and for all. Jesus is a God of restoration, and He wants to restore you and heal you from EVERY hurt and pain you’ve ever experienced. If you let Him do this, I promise you you’ll find yourself delivered from whatever prison you’re still struggling with, and your life will never be the same again. That is the hope of the Gospel, my friends.

I’ll conclude with this wonderful verse from Paul in (CLICK) Romans 15:13: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus has the keys and the authority to release you from every prison – He is your hope. Let’s give Him thanks.

 

Acts – Lesson 15

Click on the above link for the slides and advance them forward when you see the word (CLICK) as you go through the lecture.

If each of us were to look back on our lives, we almost certainly can think of key or landmark moments. Things such as the birth of a sibling, a first boyfriend/girlfriend, getting a driver’s license, a high school/college graduation, getting married, a first job, or having a child – just to name a few examples. There also those things that isn’t so pleasant – a parent passing, parents getting a divorce, a brother/sister dying, a marriage dissolving, losing a job, or a child dying. In either case, when we reflect on any of these events, we conclude that as a result of this landmark moment, life is never going to be the same again.

It is my opinion the events in chapter 15 of Acts is a landmark moment in the life of the church. We’re still early in the church’s history – maybe only 20 years since Pentecost. That may seem like a long time to us, but we need to remember that the spreading out of the church lacked any technology – expansion of the church was by foot and by word of mouth. We’ve seen the church body begin with converted Jews but then over the most recent 10 years or so, the church is growing through the addition of the Gentiles as well.

Because I’m a visual person, I’m going to try to demonstrate the significance of what is going on in this chapter up on the screen. (CLICK) Beginning with the Jews as the first component of the church body, their history and focus was rooted deeply in following the Mosaic Law. In order to get to God, they must obey the law and bring sacrifices to Him to cover their sin. Therefore, their focus is in this direction.

(CLICK) Next, we have the Gentiles – their focus is either on idol worship, which can take on almost an endless number of forms, or they didn’t really believe in anything other than satisfying their fleshly desires.

So you have the Jews going in one direction and the Gentiles going in a completely different direction – I’ve noted this by the direction of the arrows in each circle, and they are now, somehow, supposed to come together and function as a united group. We also can’t lose sight of the fact of the enmity, or animosity, that Jews and Gentiles had for each other leading up to this point in history. The Gentiles were “unclean”, so the Jews avoided them at all costs. Needless to say, the Gentiles took this assessment a little personally, so here you have God ordaining a new church body that is going to change the world with these two very different and adversarial groups. Only God could cook up such a formula.

So what is the recipe for this formula of bringing them together? Or should I ask, “Who” is the formula? (CLICK) Jesus. There is a serious reconciliation that needs to be effected given the two factions, and God knows this. So what does God do when He wants to get something done? Come to man for advice? Form a committee? No, He starts with Himself in the person of His only begotten Son.

What do we do when we have a big challenge before us? Go to a friend, family member, or pastor? Research the Internet? Read a book? Seek Oprah or Dr. Phil? We need to take a step back and consider the truth that God allowed or permitted the challenge before us. I know a lot of people have a hard time with the concept that God brings difficulties into our lives, but that’s just bad doctrine. All you have to do is look at the cross and then consider if God were willing to send His Son to such a horrendous and horrible death to effect something good, why wouldn’t He purpose some discomfort in our lives? The toehold we need to remember when considering that God could be behind our challenges is that everything He introduces into our lives is rooted with a loving purpose to turn us towards Him and to shape us into the image of Jesus. In His wonderful heart and desire for what is best for us, He’s willing to introduce a little short-term pain for some major eternal gain.

Whether or not the challenge we’re facing is from God or not, why would we not go to Him first every time? First, He already knew this was going to happen before we did, so He’s not surprised by what’s going on. Secondly, He allowed it to happen. Thirdly, He’s more than big enough and willing and able to guide us through to the other side.  My point is God is willing to take the lead – He should – it’s His plan. The question is whether or not we’re willing to submit to Him and trust Him to lead us. Thankfully, we’re going to see these early church leaders did just that.

So getting back to the diagram, I have Jesus in the middle along with the word “grace”. His plan is to reconcile these two factions of the church and bring unity to it which is absolutely critical for the church to proceed and grow. (CLICK) Ephesians 2:14-16 speaks to Jesus’ role in the reconciling of the Jews and the Gentiles, “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both [Jew & Gentile] one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.”

Therefore, we see the respective belief direction arrows of the Jews and Gentiles that were once pointed in different directions, are now both pointing to Jesus – demonstrating He is the point of reconciliation and unity. How many marriages and relationships could have been, can be, or will be saved if they will just submit to the truth that God is a god of reconciliation, restoration, and redemption, and He accomplishes this through His Son Jesus when we follow His lead? He’s doing it here in the early church, and He doesn’t change. That means He can do the same for us today.

The other word in the middle circle below Jesus is “grace”. (CLICK) Behind me is a picture of a motorcycle and a sidecar. Above the motorcycle are the words, “The Gospel” and above the sidecar is the word “Grace”. This is an admittedly crude representation of my point that the key message of the early church – and it still needs to be for today’s church is – the central message of the Gospel that Jesus was the only begotten of the Father and co-member of the triune Godhead, became human and was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, willingly died on a cross as a sacrifice for our sins, and was resurrected. For those who come to belief in this statement of truth, their sins are forgiven, they will be saved and live with God in peace for eternity. That’s the motorcycle – that’s the power of the message.

What the early church is grappling with is the sidecar of grace. Again, please forgive any offense to reduce the importance of grace by representing it as a sidecar, but it is the most basic example my pea-brain could come up with. The basis of my choosing this image as a representative of grace is that those who ride in the sidecar don’t need to do anything but enjoy and appreciate the power and direction of the “Gospel Motorcycle”. They just need to trust that the power of the motorcycle is enough to get them where they need to go. Notably, though, the Gospel and grace are inseparable – they go together.

For the Jew, this concept of grace was an earthquake in their belief system. Following the Law and bringing sacrifices to God – acts of works – efforts on their part to get to God – were now being replaced by God doing all the work – obedience wasn’t the issue – it was now about faith and belief in God and the sacrifice for their sins from God. We see in the first few verses Jewish believers unable to deal with this revolutionary change and trying to “add” to the Gospel message and disconnect the grace sidecar by telling people they still needed to be circumcised to be saved.

For the Gentiles, they didn’t have all the works-based obedience to the Law history to deal with, but they no less were being confronted with the reality of their sin nature, the resulting disconnection with God, and, therefore, the need for a Savior to get reconnected to God. The Jews at least understood the general concept of sin and its consequences with their animal sacrifices. Living ignorant of the concept of God, sin, and the need for forgiveness is something I can relate to. I must confess that until I became a Christian, I never used the word forgiveness – much less dwelled on the need for it. When the truth of our sinful nature hits home, it’s a heavy hit – the enemy heaps all the guilt and shame of the reality of sin on us that he can. That’s why the concept of grace is so critical. God knew our need for a Savior before we did and, once again, He took action to create a mechanism for us to unload the burden of sin and receive forgiveness. Just as the Jews were finding out, the Gentiles were discovering this mechanism of forgiveness – this gift of grace – unmerited favor – was 100% due to God taking action. There was nothing they had to do – but believe. The necessity of the Gospel message and grace as its partner is the foundation to which we now can begin going through today’s lesson.

Ok – so here in Chapter 15, the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas has drawn to a close and, as I just mentioned, there are some Pharisee-type Jewish converts not only unwilling to give up part of the Mosaic system, but they’re trying to put their legalistic trips on others. It’s as if they’re seeking to make Christianity a subset of Judaism as opposed to recognizing Christianity is totally new. Paul and Barnabas step in to resist, and, as the NIV version offers, enter into a sharp dispute and debate. This is an understatement. The Greek translation for dispute includes descriptive terms like insurrection and standing uproar. This was nothing short of a theological donnybrook, and, thank God wise and courageous men such as Paul and Barnabas recognized the evil intentions of these dudes and fought them. We need more and more wisdom and courage in the church today as it is under more assault than ever by the enemy to water down or demonize the goodness of the Gospel message. The issue wasn’t so much that of circumcision – it was this – must anything other than belief in Jesus be a requirement to be saved?

The product of this attack on the Gospel prompted Paul, Barnabas, and some of the men that were proposing circumcision be added to the Gospel to go to Jerusalem to meet with the apostles and elders. So when arriving in Jerusalem, Paul and Barnabas give an accounting of the grace of God that they witnessed and all the Gentiles who came to faith during their first missionary journey. Then the Pharasaical Jewish converts proclaimed, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

J. Vernon McGee rightly states, “whenever you add something to the Gospel, you no longer have a gospel, but you have a religion.” The only approach you can make to Jesus is by faith. If you attempt to add anything to it, you are taking the position His sacrifice on the cross wasn’t sufficient to get to God. He said on the cross, “It is finished” and what He meant was His work on the cross for people to be forgiven and have access to the Father was finished – there was nothing more required. Anyone proposing such a thing might as well just slap Jesus in the face – that’s the way I would feel if I were Jesus knowing all I did to make something possible was now being minimized as insufficient. Anyone telling you anything other than the simple message of the Gospel and grace, they are messengers of Satan.

So beginning in verse 6 we learn of “The Jerusalem Council”. This is a group of men consisting of the apostles and elders. They are meeting to consider this proposition regarding circumcision. After much dispute, Peter becomes the first one to speak, and I’m going to highlight the key points in his statement as outlined in verses 7-9. (CLICK)

·      He acknowledges that God chose him to preach the gospel to the Gentiles

·      He acknowledges that only God knows the heart of a person – including the Gentiles – and by giving them the Holy Spirit, they were accounted as believers

·      He acknowledges that God doesn’t discriminate between Jew and Gentile, and it is God that purifies the heart by faith.

These are remarkable statements from Peter because this is clear evidence that the once prideful man has become a submitted follower of Christ. Look at these statements – Who is getting all the credit for what is going on? God. But he doesn’t stop here – what he says next in verse 10 is a stunning confession of the truth of the history of the Jews. (CLICK) “Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear.”

This is incredible. The Jewish people are steeped in their pride of tradition and what God did for them through Moses. They remembered all the good things that happened, but they conveniently left out all the evil they committed – especially against the prophets. Yes, God did amazing things for them, but they demonstrated constantly they could not bear the weight of the Law. Peter’s statement was a revelation that the Law was not a path to God – it was a tool for them to recognize they couldn’t perfectly obey the perfect Law. Peter appropriately relates the image of trying to live under the Law as a yoke that no one is able to bear. This is a HUGE confession.

He then hammers home the conclusion to the confession in verse 11, (CLICK) “No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” Here you have the unifying statement – Jew and Gentile are brought together by the grace of the Lord Jesus. Peter gets it – it’s just about belief in Jesus and by that belief, we receive the grace of salvation. Nothing more. That’s the same message today, brothers and sisters. It’s so simple, yet so powerful. Its simplicity makes it easier for hardhearted and hardheaded knuckleheads like me to even get it.

The impact of Peter’s statement leaves the place silent – you can feel God saying at this very moment, “Be still and know that I am God.” Then Paul and Barnabas give an accounting of the miracles and wonders God had worked through them among the Gentiles during their journey. The evidence of the truth is being poured out – first through Peter’s statement and then via Paul and Barnabas’ exploits.

Now we have a new name in the leadership speaking up – James. This is not the brother of John – we learned in Chapter 12 he was martyred. Church tradition and most Bible scholars claim this James is the half-brother of Jesus as well as the author of the Epistle of James. It appears by this statement that he has assumed a significant leadership position. He commands the people to “listen to me.” He goes on to confirm Peter’s confession – but he says it in a unique way – that God was choosing a people for his name from the Gentiles. Not all Gentiles will be part of the Kingdom of God – all are invited, but not all will accept. Since we don’t know who will and won’t accept the gift of salvation, we are charged to preach the Gospel to everyone. God will take it from there.

James goes on to quote Amos 9:11-12. He’s speaking here of a restoration of the Davidic covenant – that David’s house will be raised again. There are segments of the church today that believe the Jews no longer have a place in the Kingdom of God – they blew it when they rejected Jesus as the Messiah. This prophecy in Amos is yet unfulfilled, so the idea that God is done with the Jews doesn’t hold up. During the Tribulation period, which will commence after the Rapture, there will be a 7-year period where God will once again deal with the Jews. 144,000 will believe, and they will absolutely be a part of the Kingdom of God into the Millennium and beyond. God made the covenant, so He is the only one that can break it – and there is nowhere in Scripture that says He did this – anyone claiming to remove the Jews from the Kingdom of God isn’t reading their Bible.

James, again making a statement of leadership – if not the leader of the church – states beginning in verse 19, (CLICK) “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.”

The first half of his statement confirms the nature of the Gospel message – keep it simple. However, the second half of his message kind of sounds like a contradiction to what he said in the first half of his statement. These sound like works – obedience to some law. What’s going on here?

James’ statement is addressing the two factions – Jews and Gentiles. Both factions have their own preconceived sense of worship as well as rights and wrongs. The wisdom of the Holy Spirit never loses sight of the core message of the Gospel, but in this solution by James, it is acknowledging, as a courtesy, certain things that should be avoided – for the purpose of not stumbling people who are truly seeking God. For the Jew, they were sensitive to the issues of eating food polluted by idols and eating the meat of strangled animals and blood.

The other restriction was a moral issue – fornication. Adultery was so common at this time in history and in this area, the conscience had been dulled. Adultery is a violation of the marriage covenant, and the beginning of the church was the beginning of the establishment of the bride of Christ – the church. Adultery is not just a physical betrayal but it is a spiritual betrayal. In other words, this restriction isn’t an addition to the Gospel – it is just good common sense.

The crux of these items James mentions is the issue of stumbling. (CLICK) Stumbling is doing anything that hinders a person seeking the true character and person of God. For example, say a Jew is considering coming to Christ but has long held the tradition of only eating kosher food. If we’re part of the process of bringing along this Jewish person to Jesus, but we tell them they don’t have to eat kosher to have a relationship with God, this may take their focus off of Jesus and start making them feel strange for not adhering to what has been ingrained in their hearts and minds for their entire lives. In other words, what’s the main goal? Bring them to Jesus as simply as possible. Let Him deal with the other stuff once they confess Him as their Savior.

It’s easy for us to want to deliver a broader message of freedom and liberty in Christ, but we need to keep in mind the backgrounds of the people we’re ministering to and tailor the message to their specific needs. That’s why it’s so much better to keep the message of the Gospel simple – we can stumble people, without even knowing we’re doing it, if we make it complicated or freaky. I can recall speaking to a neighbor about Jesus, and he was clearly getting interested. Then, one day, I brought in the Rapture and the Tribulation, and I lost him – he either freaked out or thought I was a nut. If I had just kept the discussion on Jesus, who knows how differently things would have went.  James had it right when he said to not make it too difficult for the Gentiles.

So the council decides to send some of their men along with Paul and Barnabas to the church in Antioch. It is interesting that one of the names of the men is Judas. I see this as God restoring the name of Judas. Also, Judas was called Barsabas which literally means “son of the Sabbath”. The son of the Sabbath was sent to the Gentile believers to tell them they were free to rest in the finished work of Christ. Also joining them was Silas.

With these men, they carried a letter that was to be read to the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. The letter lays out what James announced verbally relative to the issue of the core component in the Gospel message – grace. (CLICK) Using the verses beginning with 25 and going through to the end of the chapter, Jon Courson presents six ways we can see the hand of God guiding His people.

(CLICK) The first way is He guides us through church unanimity. Verse 25 begins with the words, “So we all agreed”. When the church is unified – especially in the area of doctrine – there is a strength and stability to the fellowship – it provides answers as well as wards off those seeking to introduce bad doctrine.

(CLICK) Secondly, God guides through gifted men and women in the body. Verses 25b-27 state, “and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— ²⁶ men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁷ Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing.” If you’re questioning what God is doing in your life, go to your pastor or elders and seek their wisdom and discernment. That’s part of what they’re there for.

(CLICK) Thirdly, God guides through the gifts of the Spirit. Verses 28 and 29 begin with the proper initial credit – “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit”. The wisdom in James’ statement is clearly from the Holy Spirit and His working through the leaders. We need to constantly seek the Holy Spirit for His giftings to help us maximize our service for the Kingdom of God.

(CLICK) Fourth – God guides through desires we may have personally. To support this point, Jon Courson references verse 34 which states Silas choosing not to return to the church in Jerusalem – because it seemed good that he stay in Antioch. What was weird, there is no verse 34 in the NIV. It goes from 33 to 35. Seems like a strange verse to leave out. In any event, God will put things on our heart as a source of enjoyment. I am so thankful to Carol for allowing me to stand up here and teach because I absolutely love it – preparing these lectures and offering them to you is one of the great blessings in my life. Sometimes people think when they become a Christian, God is going to send them to some strange place that they have no interest in going to. That’s not how God works – He wants us to enjoy serving Him, and He’s going to put us in places He knows fit with what our likes and dislikes are. This isn’t to say God may indeed send you someplace to serve Him, but He won’t do it until He’s developed in you a love and desire for the area to serve Him.

(CLICK) Fifth – God guides through concerns we feel internally. In verses 35-36, Paul and Barnabas are teaching and preaching in Antioch, and Paul tells Barnabas he wants to go check on the churches they started during their first journey. God will put on our hearts certain people we need to pray for or minister to. Sometimes I’ll be driving along and out of nowhere someone will pop into my mind, and I feel compelled to either call them and ask how they’re doing or just to pray for them. We need to honor those promptings by obeying through taking action. Prayer is always a good start, but a phone call, e-mail, or letter is a more personal display of concern.

(CLICK) Finally, God guides through interpersonal difficulty. The friction between Paul and Barnabas regarding John Mark is what is referenced here as the basis for this point. Clearly, this is not a comfortable option – getting into heated disagreements with a brother or sister is a real bummer. We want unity and peace, but sometimes that just isn’t the way things play out. This disagreement between Paul and Barnabas leads to the split of the spiritual dynamic duo. Paul will go off with Silas, and Barnabas will stick with his cousin, John Mark. Notably, towards the end of Paul’s life, he specifically asked for John Mark to be sent to him – demonstrating that even friction within the church family can be healed.

         As I reviewed this chapter to come up with a conclusion, the word that popped up was “unity”.  The chapter begins with a segment of the body seeking to introduce division – the opposite of unity – with the circumcision issue. Anything that seeks to break up the unity of the church must be seen as a purposeful attack from the enemy. Why?

         I love watching the Planet Earth and National Geographic specials about the world and nature. I’m especially fascinated with those episodes that focus on the predators’ (lions, tigers, and bears – oh my!) tactics as they seek prey from some type of herd. In every case, the narrator comments that as long as the herd sticks together, the predators are restricted from their ability to gain an advantage. It’s only when one of the herd gets separated from the rest that it becomes vulnerable to the predator. Sometimes, this happens due to the fact the wanderer is too young or too weak to keep up with the herd. However, the predators will sometimes use sophisticated strategies to split up the unity of the herd to make one or more of the members of the herd vulnerable to attack and possibly become an oversized lunchable.

         The spiritual parallel is very real – Satan is constantly seeking to cause disruption in the unity of the body of Christ. We must view him as a predator – remember his response to God in the book of Job when God asked him where he had come from? Satan responded, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” You can visualize this beast pacing back and forth looking for something to destroy. That is Satan, folks, and his prey is each of us.

         We saw in today’s reading that Paul, along with Barnabas, recognized the sinister motivation of these men pushing the circumcision issue on the people. Paul saw it for what it was and went on the attack to defend the unity of the Gospel and grace. (CLICK) Paul would go on in his epistles several times regarding the importance of unity. In Ephesians 4:3, he exhorts us to,  “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” The Greek word for “every” is further described as “labor” and “do diligently”. The point is to be constantly on guard to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. If we don’t remain on constant guard, Satan will bring in divisive forces and start splitting up the church and destroying the peace. Sadly, he has been effective – topics such as sex outside of marriage and gay marriage are now weaving their way into the church as being commonly accepted. Just these two topics alone have caused church splits and people walking away from the body.

The key word in this verse, other than unity, is peace. We saw in today’s reading that, by drawing on the Holy Spirit’s wisdom, a solution was determined to ward off this attack that not only kept the purity of the Gospel and grace intact but also offered concessions to bring peace to all parties. Nowadays, the church’s idea of keeping the peace is often to just roll over on its moral foundations and allow Scripturally defined sin to become acceptable behavior in fear of its reputation being soiled or, even worse, as a method to boast about and boost church growth. We need to rediscover what it means to keep the unity of peace in the church without sacrificing its core values.

(CLICK) Paul offers an outline of how to do this in Colossians 3:12-14. He begins with the reminder that we are God’s chosen people and holy. If we’re to consider how we respond to attacks on the church, we need to remember who we are. That helps us establish the foundation for which we defend ourselves. He goes on to tell us that virtues such as compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and forgiveness are the recipe ingredients to maintaining peace in the body of Christ. Finally, he reminds us that the greatest of all these virtues is love – it is love that binds all these virtues together and brings perfect unity.

Paul told us in the 13^th chapter of 1 Corinthians that love never fails. Love is what God is. Love is what sent Jesus to the cross. Love is the grace of God and the gift of salvation. Love overrides everything – if we love as God loves, we let go of our personal agendas and think of caring for others over our own cares. Love is what holds us together. It doesn’t mean we have to agree with each other on everything, but we need to agree on one thing. Or should I say the One. We saw in this chapter how two very different factions became a united church – capable of warding off the attacks of the enemy. How did they do it? They turned to Jesus and He made them one. May He do the same for us until He calls us home. Let’s pray.

We find in Chapter 11 three key transition points in the establishment of the early church. They are:

·      The realization by the Jewish Christians that Christ died for all – including the Gentiles

·      The final commandment of the Lord Jesus to the disciples before His ascension as outlined in Acts 1:8 was reaching its third and final frontier of preaching the Gospel

·      The grace of God arises to challenge the legalistic religious mentality

Our reading begins with Peter, who back in Chapter 10 came to the realization that Jesus’ sacrificial act on the cross to offer forgiveness of sins was not meant solely for the Jew, is called to Jerusalem to give an explanation for what just happened at the home of the Roman Centurion – Cornelius. The notion that God’s provision of forgiveness and a desire to have a relationship with the Gentiles was unthinkable. Somewhere along the way in the history of the Jews, all Gentiles – or non-Jews – became unclean, dirty, despicable, and grotesque – they were not even to be approached – they’re to be avoided at all costs.

Not surprisingly, they neglected an important verse in Isaiah 42:6: “I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles”. Judging by the capitalization of the pronouns “You” and “Your”, we see this verse is a special treat for us – a glimpse into communication within theTrinity. The Father is speaking to the Son and acknowledging His position – righteousness. Romans 3:10 reminds us that there is no one righteous – not one. Therefore, Jesus, the only begotten of the Father and co-member of the Triune Godhead, is the only One who can be called righteous.

The Father then lovingly assures the Son that He will hold His hand and will keep Jesus – a sweet promise of protection from a Father to His Son. Who does Jesus need protection from? Sadly, we will find out it is us because it was our sin that directed Him to the cross. The Father then tells His Son that He will be given as a glorious example of the covenant to the people. What is this covenant and who are the people? The covenant is that of the one that was made to Abraham way back in Genesis. God, speaking to Abram in chapter 12:2-3, promised to him, “I will make you a great nation, I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Romans 4:16 reminds us that by our faith in the same God in Whom Abraham believed, we are partakers in the covenant, “Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.”

This is why it is so important we know the entire word of God. While Peter does not specifically quote this verse in Isaiah, it is there to defend what he has just witnessed. When we encounter situations in our lives that leave us wondering if something is of God or not, the complete Bible is the first place to go to and hold the issue up in the light of what the Scriptures say. Poor translations or abbreviated versions rob us of God’s ability to speak all of what He wants us to know about Him.

Verses 1-3 indicate Peter is being summoned by the Jerusalem-based Christian Jews to testify to the reality of the Gentiles receiving the Holy Spirit and his involvement. As we read through Peter’s accounting of the events, he almost sounds apologetic – like it wasn’t his fault. The fact is that what happened wasn’t his “fault” – it was the work of God. When we’re challenged by people when we share our faith, it is not us who are being challenged but Who is being challenged. We just recently heard what the Lord said to Paul on the road to Damascus – the persecutions Saul was instigating – Jesus asked him why he was persecuting Him! Think about that – the Lord takes our suffering on His behalf very personally – He identifies our suffering as though it is He that is suffering – and He does. Jesus suffers when we suffer – even today. He takes no joy in our pain.

When Jesus was tempted by Satan, the only weapon of defense He needed was His Word. When we respond to challenges against our faith, quoting God’s Word provides all we need – it is then up to the Holy Spirit and that person’s heart condition as to whether or not they will come into agreement with our defense. It takes the pressure off of us, doesn’t it? We put so much pressure on ourselves for so much of life – we carry burdens that really aren’t ours to carry if we know Christ. He can handle everything and more of our stuff – it’s our pride, need for control, and fear that blocks our faith and trust in Jesus’ worthiness to be Lord over all our lives. We so often think of negative connotations of the concept of “Lord“, but the reality of being fully submitted to the Lord means He is in charge of EVERYTHING – the good and the bad stuff. That should bring us peace – does it to you?

Do you recall some of the things your parents or grandparents taught you when you were children? I remember things like, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right!” How about “You need to eat everything on your plate because there are starving children in Africa”? One of my favorites was, “An education is one thing people can’t take from you”. How do we remember these quotes and exhortations? For me, it’s because they kept repeating them over and over again. Don’t we do that when we’re trying to make a point? We repeat it – to emphasize the importance that the message is sent.

Here in verses 4-17 we see a virtual identical recounting of what was revealed in Chapter 10. During the times when Dr. Luke originally penned Acts, it was written on a scroll. The largest scrolls were thirty-five feet in length – if they were longer than that, they would be too large to handle. Therefore, there was only so much room to write what was to be written. So the fact that this particular vision was repeated twice in the limited space on the scroll, we should pay close attention to the message – the Lord sees it as extremely important for us to understand. 

Since Carol covered this story in our last lesson, I’m not going to go over much of it other than one point. Peter has come a long way from his low point of denying Jesus three times. With the power of the Holy Spirit upon him, he has preached sermons that have led thousands to believe in Jesus as the Messiah, and he has healed people. We see in verses 7-9 an exchange between Jesus and Peter as a result of the vision he saw. It begins with Peter saying, “Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’ Peter recognized it was the voice of the Lord. Now – notice what Jesus says isn’t a suggestion or ‘why don’t you give this a shot, Peter?’ This was a direct order. Yet, we see in this recounting that Peter is still struggling with his flesh when he replies, ‘Surely not, Lord!

In the position of Lord, which means a person in ultimate authority, there is no denying or questioning a command to those who the Lord has authority over. Therefore, Peter’s response to Jesus’ order is rebellion. To be fair, Peter is relying on the Law that was given by God Himself. The dynamic here is incredible. Peter is being forced to reckon with the fact that not only is Jesus the same God who gave the law to which Peter so stridently followed, but also that Jesus is now introducing an upgrade to the law – the concept of grace. Moreover, he is learning more deeply the concept of Lordship – meaning he’s been purchased by Jesus – meaning he’s owned by Him – and, therefore meaning he is to be obedient in all things that are commanded by Jesus.

Now we see the Lord’s response, and what does He do? Condemn? Scold? Express disappointment? No – simply an explanation, “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’ God is demonstrating grace here as well – He could of reminded Peter how he failed Him by denying Him or could have thundered, “I am the Lord! How dare you say ‘no’ to Me?” He didn’t, did He? He simply explained the basis of His command, and He repeated it two more times to emphasize the importance of the message. This experience is confirming in Peter’s mind and heart the Lordship of Jesus in his life.

Learning to accept the concept of Lordship in the life of the Jerusalem church – not to mention today’s church – means having to accept change from interpretations of religion and tradition.  The church has 10% innovators, 80% maintainers, and 10% inhibitors.  The innovators are those who are naturally open to change and accept the principle that change is inevitable and requires adjustment.  The inhibitors are the ones loaded with rule books – legalists we’d call them.  The maintainers are open to change if it is explained (as Peter did in vs. 4), and if they are convinced that God is directing the change. 

 Going from inhibitor to maintainer to innovator is the process of coming to agreement with Jesus as Lord.  Peter completes his process when he acknowledges Jesus’ Lordship when he says, “Who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”  When the Holy Spirit achieves this goal, it is like an oil that loosens resistant hearts as it did here in Peter’s story.

Oh, how I pray I would live this acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty in my life all the time. I can come up with a quick list of those times when I knew I was doing something that I thought would keep God from accomplishing His purposes in my life. I’m sure the list is substantially longer – those times I wasn’t even aware my actions were getting in the way of God’s plan out of ignorance. That’s not meant to be an excuse. The fact of the matter is, though, it doesn’t really matter what I do or don’t do – if God wants to get something done, He’s going to get it done. Romans 2:11 reminds us He is no respecter of persons. Therefore, we need to think about how much easier life would be for all of us if we were to stop saying, or living, statements like Peter said, “Not so, Lord”. It’s the ultimate oxymoronic statement. The first transition point of chapter 11 is summed up in verse 18, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.” This is the wonderful news for us – we, as Gentiles, are now cleansed by the blood of Jesus. I believe that’s worth a Hallelujah, don’t you?

The second transition point speaks to stepping into the final frontier of Jesus’ commandment in Acts 1:8, “..you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” In chapters 2-10, the apostles in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria follow the commandment zealously. Here in chapter 11, we find them heading out towards the end of the earth. Verses 19-20 tell us, “¹⁹ Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. ²⁰ Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.”

The persecution verse 19 is speaking of started with the stoning of Stephen and has now picked up in intensity, and the believers are scattering abroad. I love to see how God works. Persecution is a weapon of Satan to knock down a movement of God, and the initial response by the believers achieves the enemy’s purposes – to get rid of these people professing the truth of God – that He loves us and wants all of us saved through faith in His Son, Jesus. But God, in His wisdom, uses the scattering of these believers just as a farmer takes his seeds for planting and spreads them in a bigger field. Therefore, the persecution’s intent is actually working in God’s favor to help spread the Gospel.

The map behind me provides you an idea of how far the people were scattered. We see Phoenicia in Israel on the Mediterranean coast. Cyprus was an island off the coast of present-day Syria. Antioch, located in Syria, was the third largest city in the Roman Empire, and it was dedicated to the Greek goddess, Daphne, who had been seduced by the Greek god, Apollo. Other than possibly Corinth, Antioch was one of the most immoral cities in all of the empire. The fact that Antioch would ultimately become the hub of the early church proves God’s concern for even the vilest of sinners. Not surprisingly, legalism is rearing its ugly head at this point – the gospel is only being preached to the Jews. However, we’re seeing others in Cypress and Cyrene – a city on the northern coast of Africa – coming to Antioch to preach the Gospel to the Greeks. God honored these efforts and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

The leaders in Jerusalem – having just accepted Peter’s accounting that salvation is not just available to the Jews – send Barnabas to Antioch to check out if what is going on there is consistent with what Peter experienced. We first learned of Barnabas in chapter 4 – his original name was Joseph, and he was a Levite from Cyprus. The apostles give him a new name, and it means “son of encouragement”. It appears all of us are going to be given new names in the Kingdom of God. Going back as far as Genesis, we saw Abram changed to Abraham and Jacob to Israel. In the New Testament, we saw Cephas become Peter and Saul become Paul. I wonder what my name will be? Hopefully none of the names I was called when I was a kid!

Barnabas is one of my favorite characters in the Scriptures. We learned in verse 24a that, “He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith.” He was also the one who stood up for Paul in chapter 9 to the apostles who were understandably questioning the legitimacy of his conversion in light of his reputation as a persecutor. Barnabas’ response to what was happening in Antioch is presented in verse 23, “When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.”

Remember, this is a Jew by birth, but he is not letting his past belief system become a point of judgment or criticism. He sees the goodness in God by His grace, and is glad! I need to remember this – as I see how differently people worship and follow the Lord – I need to put aside my comfort zone and simply rejoice in the grace of God and be glad. Barnabas doesn’t stop with just being glad – he encourages them to be true to the Lord with all their hearts. He’s not encouraging them to be true to the law – it’s to the Lord they need to be true.

Jon Courson makes an important point about Barnabas’ encouragement in his commentary. Referencing Romans 10:10a, “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified”, he acknowledges the importance that it is with our hearts, not our minds, that we be true to the Lord. I can fully relate to the importance of this point. When I first heard the gospel in my late 20s, it made a lot of sense to me intellectually – in my mind. However, my heart wasn’t in it, and my actions would go on to prove it. It wasn’t until I came to understand the sin-sickness in my heart at 35 that I truly became a Christian. When our faith becomes a matter of the heart, not just of the mind, the potential for a budding and intimate relationship with Christ becomes real.

With the church in Antioch growing rapidly, Barnabas recognized he needed help. He needed someone who could speak effectively to the Hellenists (Greek speaking Jews), Grecians, and pagans being added to the church. It’s now been seven to ten years since he last saw Saul of Tarsus, but he figured he would be the man for the job. Saul agreed to the assignment, and he and Barnabas spent the next year teaching a great number of people. We’re then told that the believers in Antioch were the first to be called “Christians”. Christian literally means “little Christ”. How cool is it when people call us Christians – that they see a little bit of Jesus in us. We should never take being called Christians lightly – it’s a title of honor because we bear the namesake of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Dr. David Otis Fuller has asked, “If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”

Ephesians 2:20 tells us that the church was, “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets.” Verses 27 and 28 indicate some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch, and one of them was Agabus. He, through the Spirit, predicted that there would be a severe famine across the entire Roman world. The test of a true prophet of God is to determine if what he/she is prophesying comes to fruition. If it doesn’t, then this “prophet” is a messenger of Satan. Agabus, though, is a real prophet as history tells us a great famine did indeed occur during Claudius Caesar (AD 41-54) when crops were poor for many years. Noted Jewish historian Josephus records that many people died during this time for a lack of money to buy what little food was available.

Warren Wiersbe makes an important point about prophecy, “The purpose of true prophecy is not to satisfy our curiosity about the future but to stir up our hearts to do the will of God.” The final two verses indicate that is exactly what the Antioch church did – they sent help. This is also an indication that the selling everything and sharing everything policy of the early days of the church was failing. It has been wisely said that, “we make a living by what we get. But we make a life by what we give.” The challenge each of us should meditate upon when considering where we are in our hearts in terms of service and giving is the phrase in verse 29, “as each one was able”. Other versions say, “every man according to his ability”. We need to regularly inspect our hearts and ask ourselves if are we giving to the Kingdom of God according to what we are able or to our ability?

I’ve mentioned the concept of legalism a couple of times in this lecture, and it is the basis of my final transition point of chapter 11 –the grace of God is arising as the key piece of evidence of a new believer in Christ. Adherence to the law was no longer the symbol of a person’s faith or relationship with God – that was based on behavior. The grace of God focuses solely on belief – not behavior. It’s always been like this – since Abraham. Romans 4:1-3 states, “What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? ² For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. ³ For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Do we see any behavior requirements in these verses? The fact of the matter is the law wasn’t even in place at the time of Abraham. It was his belief in God that made him righteous before God – not his behavior. Now don’t get me wrong, grace does not give us a license to go berserk. Romans 6:1-2a makes it clear, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? ² Certainly not!” But it is not our behavior that makes us right before God – it is our belief. Our behavior should be the natural fruit of our belief – not the source of our belief. The latter is what legalism is, and we see in today’s reading legalism has been at war with grace even since the early church.

Dr. Daniel Brown, in his incredible book, “Embracing Grace”, makes this statement, “Legalism majors in guilt and misguided sacrifice – urging its followers to evaluate their relationship with God on the basis of standards and scores for their performance, rather than the basis of love and faith. Legalism condemns people for their deeds-in-the-flesh, rather than celebrating God for His work-on-the-Cross. It points to our insufficiency, instead of God’s all-sufficiency.”

I want to spend the last moments of this lecture trying to present the truths of what Scripture says to those of you shackled by the lies of legalism.

Let’s begin with the truth that God is not mad at you. Isaiah 54:9-10 plainly states, “For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; For as I have sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you. ¹⁰ For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,” Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.” This assurance was made to the followers of Abraham, and we saw earlier, we are joint-heirs of the covenant God made to him. Do these verses sound like God is mad at you?

Secondly, because we have chosen to believe in Jesus, we have passed out of judgment. John 3:17-18a states, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. ¹⁸ “He who believes in Him is not condemned.”  Jesus goes on to say in John 5:24, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” What does this mean? The judgment and condemnation that is the fruit of the legalist is really sour grapes. All of that was nailed to the cross once and for all. Again – do you see behavior in these verses that make people right before God? No – it is belief.

Finally, we are saved from the wrath of God. Romans 5:9 points out, “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” The term “justified” in simpler terms means “not guilty”. Our belief in the shed blood of Christ on the cross declares us not guilty of our sin for the rest of our lives. As a result of this, we are spared from God’s wrath, which is reserved for those who are still in their sin.

Dr. Brown beautifully sums up the point of grace over legalism when he says, “God’s primary longing is not to denounce His people and condemn their sin. He wants to deliver His people and forgive sin. God’s overriding passion is to restore our lost relationship with Him.” If you believe the Father accomplished this through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, then you are the apple of His eye and the object of His desire and affection. He’s not mad at you, He doesn’t need to judge you, and you don’t have to be afraid of His wrath.

My friends, it’s just all about Jesus and His grace. It’s about what He did for you – not what you need to do for Him. The behavior the legalist is looking for will come in time as you open your heart and let the Holy Spirit assure you that the promises of His unending and unfailing love are real and meant for you to heal all the damage that has been done to you. Your actions will become acts of love – not acts of shame-based obedience as the legalist propounds. Let go of the lies you’ve been hearing all your lives – you’re not good enough or you need to do more to make God not be angry with you. The truth is your Divine Daddy wants you to jump into His lap and just let Him love on you. Let’s pray for that right now.

Today’s chapter isn’t too long, so let’s take some time getting caught up where we are in our story.  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Ok – maybe not that far back in the story. We have seen Jesus give the theme of Acts in 1:8: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Then He was taken up to heaven.
        The church was inaugurated on the Day of Pentecost with the Disciples receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. These fearful, combative, and flawed men were now transformed into powerful witnesses and proclaimers of the truth that Jesus was the Messiah; that the people ordered Him to be crucified; but permanent forgiveness of sins was now available because Jesus was resurrected demonstrating God the Father’s acceptance of His sacrificial atoning act on their behalf.
        Peter gave a great sermon and the church was birthed with 3,000 new believers. The Lord kept adding to the church and a communal type of society was established where everyone was selling all they had and sharing the wealth. Peter and John encountered a lame man who was simply begging for food or money but ended up getting more than he begged for – a great example for us to think big in our petitions to God. Peter then gave another powerful sermon about Jesus being the fulfillment of the covenant He made with Abraham. The church had now grown to 5,000.
        Sadly, but not surprisingly, the power the apostles were demonstrating and the rapid growth in converts upset the legalistic Jewish leadership. These alleged representatives of God were doing anything but that.  Instead of being thrilled that people were turning to the Lord, they were more concerned about protecting their position in society. They tried to squelch the preaching of the resurrection and threw the disciples into jail for the night. Asking them where they got the power to heal the lame man, Peter – again filled with the Holy Spirit – delivered the truth that there is no other name under heaven, other than Jesus, by which one may be saved.

        The Jewish leaders tried to shut them up, but Peter and John said that wasn’t going to happen. In the face of this persecution, the people prayed for more boldness to preach the Gospel. We saw the communal effort expanding until a husband and wife tried to dupe the Holy Spirit by holding back some of their proceeds from their sold possessions. As we learned, this didn’t turn out too well for them and was a reminder that there is no such thing as secret sin – it always gets found out. People continued getting healed through the apostles and the Lord continued adding to the church.
        The Jewish leaders – in more and more fear of the good that was being done (that should tell us the condition of their hearts), threw the apostles back in jail where an angel of the Lord miraculously broke them out, and again they started preaching the resurrection. Arrested and put on trial before the Sanhedrin, the apostles once again told them they’re not going to keep quiet. We were then introduced to a man named Gamaliel (who we’ll later learn was the Apostle Paul’s mentor) who offered wise words to these knuckleheads. But before they would let the apostles go, they had them severely beaten. The apostles rejoiced in this as they would be worthy of suffering for Christ.
        So that gets us to where we are now. Our first revelation in today’s reading is that math is important to the Lord. Back in chapter 2 he was adding to the church. In chapter 5 the math turns to subtraction with His dealing with Ananias and Sapphira. Now He is multiplying the church. Notice in each case Who is doing the arithmetic!

Now we learn of division – and this is not of God. God is a God of unity. There was an uprising in the communal efforts. There was a sect of the Jews who had adopted the secular Grecian ways, and this put them at odds with the conservative Jews. Part of the communal living was to take special care of the widows in the daily distribution of rations. These Greek-speaking Jews also known as Hellenists, protested that their widows were getting short-changed in the dolling out of rations.
        The issue was brought to the disciples, and we get a glimpse into what the Lord is doing in their hearts. They could have responded with a “not my problem” attitude. Rather, the disciples acknowledge they are the problem – they’re trying to do too much, and their stretched duties are creating potential toeholds for the enemy to get into the church. Therefore, we see the beginning of the recognition of defining roles and responsibilities within the body of Christ. The Twelve make the point they should not leave the Word of God to serve tables. I’m certain that this statement wasn’t about them thinking they were above such duties – they likely had already been doing this for some time. They had learned the lesson of humble service from Jesus in His washing of their feet.
        This statement was about their recognizing their specific gifts and responsibilities for the Body of Christ. They could continue to serve tables and that would be a humble and helpful act; however, it was not what was best for the Body of Christ. Their best value was establishing the truth that Jesus was the Messiah and demonstrating the power of the Holy Spirit. We need to remember this in our roles in the church. You may have heard of the “80/20” rule – 80% of the work that needs to be done is handled by only 20% of the people. This is not a healthy or sustainable scenario.
        The 20% are typically made up of either sincere hard working servants of the Lord who keep accepting additional responsibilities because no one else is offering to help; or, the other group of people are the control freaks who are certain they can do the work better than anyone else and don’t allow others to pitch in. In either case, burnout sets in and even bitterness rears its ugly head for the lack of help. A healthy church body encourages all members to recognize their God-given gifts, to facilitate and lead them to the activities that line up with their respective gifts, and then show grace to allow them to grow in their service. To further emphasize the importance of spreading the responsibilities across all the people, D.L. Moody used to say that it was “better to put ten men to work than to try to do the work of ten men.”
        Getting back to our story – the disciples established a deacon-like position and then spelled out the qualifications for these positions. The NIV only points out that these men should be full of the Spirit and wisdom. The NKJV offers one other qualification, and the order of the qualifications is interesting to me. First – according to the NKJV – they must be of good reputation. Our reputations matter – they are symbolic of our relationship with God. What kind of an example are we setting as God’s children when we’re out partying, using bad language, telling off-colored jokes, or anything else that could dishonor God? When we do this we run the risk of being stumbling blocks to people who are looking for a difference in us – in anyone. I don’t want to hear excuses like ‘Jesus hung out with sinners’ – yes He did, but He didn’t act like them. It takes courage not to follow the majority of the world in their fleshly indulgences – and most people come to respect that courage. Our reputations do indeed matter.
        Secondly, the man for this position must be filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom. You might think this should have been the first requirement, but think about what duties these men would be performing. Disreputable people can cause doubt and fear in those who are receiving the service – they don’t trust their motives – there must be an angle to why they’re doing what they’re doing. A lack of trust in the fairness of the treatment of the Hellenistic widows was what prompted this move in the first place. The requirement of being full of the Holy Spirit was to ensure there was a true commitment to service. Without the Holy Spirit, we run the risk of our motivation for service to become self-glorifying instead of God glorifying. The requirement for wisdom was a recognition that the assignment was going to require actions that satisfied both sides of the issue.

 

        Warren Wiersbe points out in his commentary that when a church faces a serious problem, this presents the leaders and the members with a number of opportunities. Problems give us the opportunity to examine our ministry and discover what changes need to be made. In times of success, it is easy for us to maintain the status quo, but this is dangerous. Henry Ward Beecher called success “a last-year’s nest from which the birds have flown.” The disciples, drawing on the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, came up with a good solution.

        The decision to establish these positions pleased the people. It’s notable that this decision not only benefited them to maintain focus on their roles, it empowered these seven men by demonstrating faith in them. It’s also notable to understand the importance of the men selected: Stephen, Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch. Again, who were the people doing the complaining? The Greek-speaking Hellenists. Look at these names  – they’re all Greek names – they’re Hellenists. This not just good wisdom, it is establishing a behavior that Paul stated in  Romans 12:10, “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another.”

        A quick note about the laying on of hands from the apostles to the seven men. Many churches do this when commissioning people for service; however, the order today is typically to first put their hands on the people and then pray for them. Notably, in this passage, the apostles first prayed and then laid hands on them. I’m not sure this order is all that significant; however, it always makes sense before we do anything to give the issue over to God to allow Him to confirm or stop what is being presented to Him.

        Verse 7 states, “Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.” Wiersbe calls this verse a “summary” verse that lets us know the story has reached an important juncture. In effect, we’re arriving at the climax of the ministry in Jerusalem with Stephen’s death because the persecution following his death will take the gospel to the Samaritans and ultimately to the Gentiles. It has been estimated that there were 8,000 Jewish priests attached to the temple ministry in Jerusalem, and a great many of them trusted Jesus Christ as Savior.

        There are two words for “crown” in the New Testament: diadema, which means “a royal crown” and gives us the English word diadem; the second word for crown is stephanos, the “victor’s crown”, which gives us the popular name Stephen. You can inherit a diadema, but the only way to get a stephanos is to earn it. Stephen is one of the most impressive people we’re going to learn about in Scripture apart from the apostles and prophets. He was a “full” man – full of faith, full of the Spirit and wisdom, and full of God’s grace and power. We’ll learn that he was a servant, a witness, a judge, and finally a martyr. He proves the Lord’s comments in Luke 16:10a, “He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much.” He started serving tables faithfully, and the Lord rewarded his faithfulness with presenting him a history-making evangelistic opportunity.

        Another interesting point about Stephen was during his time there was believed to be about 460 synagogues in Jerusalem – some of them were built by Jews from various countries for their own use. One of these synagogues – called the Synagogue of the Freedmen – included members from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. The city of Tarsus was located in Cilicia, so Saul – who would become the apostle Paul – could have been in this very group of men who began to argue with Stephen. Again, the Scriptures tell us that Stephen performed great wonders and signs among the people. So what was the response of these “godly” representatives of the synagogue? To challenge him. Why? Because he was challenging them with the truth of where true righteousness comes from – the blood of Jesus.

        These men were no match for Stephen’s Spirit-filled wisdom. We remember what Jesus said, in Luke 21:15, “for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.” We need to remember this when we get full of ourselves and become overconfident in what we think we know. God’s foolishness exceeds our greatest fleshly wisdom. A personal “red flag” for me is when I’m starting to think I’ve got things figured out according to my understanding of how things work. If I get in that place, the Lord is quick to remind me that His ways are not my ways and His thoughts are far greater than mine. Challenging or debating with God has got to be one of the greatest wastes of time a human being can spend. You can’t win.

 

       So these members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (ironic name, huh?) realized they’re getting nowhere matching wits with Stephen, so what did they do? Instead of humbly submitting to God’s wisdom, they convince some people to lay false accusations against Moses and God. Interesting that they place Moses – the symbol of the law – before God as to who Stephen is allegedly blaspheming. Convincing people that he was blaspheming was probably not difficult if these people heard Jesus speaking of the destruction of the temple (when He was actually referring to Himself).

        I love the irony of verse 12, “So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin.” The next verse tells us they bore false witness of Stephen – these “teachers of the law” apparently forgot the 9^th commandment in Exodus 20:16, “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” The absurdity of the behavior of the Jewish leaders is truly staggering when you see them in the face of the very law they claim to be representatives of and experts in following it. It’s truly a mockery of God’s Word, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise to us to see that Jesus saved His harshest attacks against these self-centered “leaders.”

        The Sanhedrin was the Jewish council of Pharisees and Saducees that was the presiding entity when dealing with interpretations of the law. Kind of like our Congress today – and every bit as inept and self-serving. Seems like the more things change, the more they stay the same. To be fair, I’m sure there were some decent men in the Sanhedrin, just as not all members of Congress are bad people. The sad fact is, though, people who get into power (by God’s grace I might add), get drunk with this power and lose sight of what their true roles should be – servants.

        The final verse of chapter 6 states, “All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.” Do you think any of these leaders at this moment of seeing Stephen’s face radiating an angelic glow recalled what Moses looked like after he was in the presence of God? Wiersbe suggests that it was as though God was saying, “This man is not against Moses, He is like Moses – he is My faithful servant!”

 

        The image of Stephen’s countenance is stunning to me. There are few things that push me from zero to 60 faster on my “anger meter” than being wrongfully accused. The Lord has had to do a major work on me when it comes to being accountable for my behavior, and I’m thankful to report I’ve made some progress in this area – some. Owning our mistakes is an important step in our personal growth – not just in our relationship with God – but in general with our relationships with our spouses, families, and friends.

        When I speak of this point, I’m referring to acknowledging mistakes, poor decisions, faults, etc. that I have committed. It’s no fun admitting to the things we’ve done wrong, but there’s a “math” to it that makes some sense – a cause and effect can be determined. However, when it comes to being called out for something you have not done – that is really tough to swallow – and I confess I don’t handle this well at all. I become angry and indignant – and adding to my confession that my face does radiate – not like an angel – more like a red-faced devil.

        So I look at how Stephen is handling this perversion of justice and wonder how he is not only keeping his cool, but also he’s glowing like an angel who is perfectly at peace.     How does he do this? We need to remember Stephen was a full man – full of faith, full of the Holy Spirit, wisdom, and God’s grace and power. Try to imagine a pitcher full of water. When a pitcher is full, no additional water can get into it – when something is full, nothing can be added to it. Stephen was so full of God, there was nothing that Satan or any of these Jewish leaders could add to him. No amount of lies and false accusations could penetrate the complete satiation Stephen had of God.

        I want that – to be so full of God as to not allow the relentless attacks of the enemy to change my countenance, attitude, behavior, and most importantly – focus on my role as a servant of God. Stephen must have known God had put him in this situation and, regardless of the outcome, he was to say what God wanted him to say as a faithful servant. He could be at peace because he had God’s peace – the Holy Spirit – filling him, guiding him, enabling him, protecting him, and, most importantly, loving him. 1 John 4:18 tells us that perfect love casts out all fear. God’s love for us is perfect because He is perfect.

 

        The concept of full and perfect is the same – they both indicate that there is a completeness – there’s nothing more needed. We remember Jesus’ response to Paul’s petitions for relief from the thorn in his side – Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for you.” What was the Lord telling Paul? If Paul had Jesus’ grace, he would need nothing else. Everything else is just a distraction from the truth that God provides EVERYTHING we need.

        This is a hard concept for most of us to grasp – especially in today’s times. We’re barraged every day with reminders of what we don’t have, and because we don’t have this or that, our lives are somehow not fulfilled. This is a huge issue for all of us because when we recognize that God is not only able to provide all we need but also He is willing to provide it, we can begin to arrive at a place of peace and contentment. Can you imagine being in such a place? What does that look like to you? You’re so sure of God’s complete fulfilling love that no matter what the circumstances are, the presence of God in us in the person of the Holy Spirit gives us a fortress against those distractions and a freedom to serve God and His purposes. That’s where we should all be asking God to lead us – to be completely filled and fulfilled with the Holy Spirit.

        The world is not getting better loved ones – the forces of darkness are getting more aggressive as they must be realizing their time is drawing to a close with the Second Coming of the Lord. By God’s grace, He will grant you all you need by granting you Himself – the Light of the world. Bask in the glow of His presence, and who knows, you may end up with a face like the one that describes Stephen in this chapter. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, so I believe what, or should I say Who, filled Stephen is absolutely available to fill us today. Let’s ask God right now to fill us with Himself.

 

“Holy Father, we thank you for Your Word. We thank you for Your Son. We thank you for Your Spirit. We thank you for the example of Your servant, Stephen, who demonstrated Your power in the face of life-threatening circumstances. We humble ourselves before Your throne of grace and ask that You fill us with Your Spirit and teach us that His presence in us provides us all we need to withstand the enemy’s efforts to lie, cheat, steal, and destroy the very peace Jesus purchased for us at the cross. Build our faith and constantly remind us of the promises of Scriptures that ensure You are ready, willing, and able to grant such a request to those who truly seek You. Fill us with You, Lord. Keep filling us so that we won’t entertain the temptations that You’re not enough. We trust that Your grace IS sufficient for each of us. We thank you, Father, that You are the God who offers such abundance, and we thank You in faith that You will grant this to each of us. We praise You, God. We love you, God. We thank you, God. In Jesus name, Amen.”

As a reminder, we saw in Chapter 1 the risen Lord offering a promise to the disciples in Acts 1:8: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” This was appropriately our memory verse last week as it is the theme verse for the entire Book of Acts.

To give you some perspective on where we are in time at the beginning of Chapter 2, it has been 50 days since Jesus’ resurrection. The reason we know this is verse 1 tells us, Acts 2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. The Day of Pentecost was one of seven feasts that were designated by the Lord and for the Lord.Leviticus 23:1-2 tells us, “And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.”

The Hebrew translation for “feasts” means “appointed times”. In Kevin Howard’s and Marvin Rosenthal’s excellent book, “The Feasts of the Lord”, they comment, “The idea is that the sequence and timing of each of these feasts have been carefully orchestrated by God Himself. Each is a part of a comprehensive whole. Collectively, they tell a story.” They go on to say, “These seven feasts typify the sequence, timing, and significance of the major events of the LORD’s redemptive career.” For those of you biblical numerology geeks like me, the number 7 should ring a bell – it is the number of perfection or completion. Therefore, the seven feasts provide us the complete story of Jesus’ ministry in His first and second coming.

The first feast is the Passover.  Leviticus 23:5 “On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the LORD’s Passover”. This feast marks the time when the Lord had proclaimed the 10th and final plague upon all inhabitants of the land of Egypt. However, for His chosen people of Israel, He offered an escape from this death sentence by telling them to sacrifice a pure and spotless lamb, take the blood of the lamb and sprinkle it on the wooden door posts of their homes, and then take and eat the sacrifice. If they believed God and obeyed, they would be spared.

God delivered on this promise – as He does on all His promises, so He institutes the first feast to be the Passover to commemorate this first great act of love, mercy, and grace to the nation of Israel. The Passover is symbolic of Jesus’ sacrificial death – taking upon Himself our past, present, and future sin. If we believe He is the only begotten Son of God, He did die for us, and was raised from the dead, then we are given eternal life – we are spared from having to fear death because of The Lamb of God’s blood that was shed on the cross.

The second feast was to occur the next day after the Passover – the feast of unleavened bread.  Leviticus 23:6-8: “And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it. But you shall offer an offering made by fire to the LORD for seven days. The seventh day shall be a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it.”

In the Bible, leaven symbolizes error or sin. It is the agent that causes fermentation. For all of us, when we die, our bodies will decay and ultimately return to dust (unless we choose to be cremated and speed the process up). This wouldn’t be the case for Jesus.  Psalm 16:10 reminds us, “For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.” The feast of unleavened bread proclaims Christ’s body – the Unleavened Bread of Life – would not experience the ravages of death while in the grave.

The third feast was known as the Feast of the Firstfruits. Leviticus 23:9-10: “And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest.” This feast actually was marked on the second day of the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread. So Passover occurs on the 14th day of the month of Nisan (part of the Jewish Lunar calendar – by our calendar this is either March or April), the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread was on the 15th day, and the Feast of the Firstfruits occurs on the 16th day.

The barley harvest – the first crop planted in the winter – is now, in the spring, beginning to ripen. The first sheaf (firstfruits) of the harvest is cut and, in a carefully prescribed and meticulous ceremony, presented to the Lord. The LORD’s acceptance of the firstfruits is an earnest or pledge, on His part of a full harvest. Therefore, the Feast of the Firstfruits is symbolic of the resurrection – the symbol of the Father accepting His Firsfruits’ offering – His Son.

Finally, we get to where we are now in our story – the Feast of Weeks – also known as the Shavuot in Hebrew. Leviticus 23:15-16b says, “And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath”. Seven sabbaths equals seven weeks – or 49 days. Then we’re told to count the 50th day as after the seventh sabbath. There’s that number seven again. It is to occur precisely 50 days after the Firstfruits – the resurrection of the Messiah. The Feast of Weeks is also known as Pentecost.

This feast was marked by bringing two loaves of bread – baked with fine flower and leaven. These loaves were symbolic of the Jews and Gentiles coming together to form the church. Interestingly, this bread is to be made with leaven – the symbol of sin. This signifies that the church would be made up of sinners saved by grace. The remaining three feasts area:

·      The Feast of Trumpets – (Rosh Hashanah)

·      The Day of Atonement – (Yom Kippur)

·      The Feast of Tabernacles – (Sukkot)

The first four feasts speak to the LORD’s first coming and are held in the Spring. Interestingly, the final three feasts speak to Jesus’ second coming, and they are observed in the Fall. Now it is very clear we don’t know when the Lord is going to return, but it is kind of fun to speculate that if Jesus’ first coming lined up in the Spring season with the first four feasts, then could it be that His second coming will line up with the Fall feasts? What time of year are we in??? Like I said – it’s fun to speculate.

Chapter 2 can be separated into two sections: 1) The Coming of the Holy Spirit; and, 2) Peter’s great and fruitful first evangelistic sermon. This is truly the beginning of the church – the commencement of the process of identifying the bride of Christ which is still going on today. It has been 50 days since the resurrection and 10 days since the ascension. What are the disciples doing? Waiting on the Lord. Acts 2:1 tells us, “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” This is the second time Luke mentions they are all with one accord and in one place. There’s no more mentioning of strife between them, no one asking who is going to be the greatest, and no separation of them. They are united in prayer, submission, and obedience. Very good things tend to happen when God’s people are united like this.

Acts 2:2-3 paints a mind boggling scene, “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.” The first thing that happened is they heard from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind. This isn’t a breeze in the trees – have any of you ever heard an accounting of what a tornado sounds like? A common description is as if there’s a large train roaring right at you. My guess this is more what it sounded like.

Next, they see something like divided tongues of fire. Now this isn’t really fire as these guys would have been pieces of toast! The order of the description is worth noting. The first thing that is noticed is audio – sound from heaven. What got my attention in the process of my becoming a Christian was first hearing the Word of God. It was only then that I could see God’s working. The disciples went from hearing from heaven to seeing something from heaven.

We then see a manifestation of the Holy Spirit in verse 4, “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” In the book of Genesis, we have Isaac who is a symbol of Christ, and his servant, who is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, goes out looking for a bride for Isaac. When the servant identifies Rebekah, the first thing he does is give her valuable gifts. So it goes for us when the Holy Spirit identifies us as a part of the bride of Christ – He gives us gifts of immeasurable value.

1 Corinthians 12:7-10 provides us a list of these gifts, “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same a Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.”

The issue of speaking in tongues is a controversial subject within the church today. There are those segments of the church who hold to the position that the miraculous gifts of the Spirit – miracles, healings, and speaking tongues was specifically reserved for Biblical times, and they were used for the purpose of establishing the authority of the apostles. Once the church reached a certain size and the apostles died, these gifts were no longer available. They hold to the position that the Spirit moves in different ways at different times. There is another segment of the church – typically led by the Pentecostal and Charismatic sectors that believe all the gifts of the Spirit are available today. They claim that if God is the same now as He was then, then why wouldn’t these gifts be available now?

I’m not going to go any farther on this topic as it is not the focus of this chapter. The gifts of the Spirit are awesome things, but they are to be used solely for the building of the Kingdom of God. Personally, from a self-examination of my walk with God, it isn’t whether or not I have whatever gifts that He has given to me out of His grace, it is what I’m doing with them that really matters. In other words, it is not the gifts of the Spirit I measure myself against, but the fruits of the Spirit that reveal where I am in my relationship with Christ.

Galatians 5:22-23a provides the list of the fruits of the Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” If you want to do a reality check of where you are in your relationship with God, honestly ask yourself – or more scary – ask a trusted friend – if you are walking each day with these at the forefront of your actions – not just on Sunday. This is not meant to be an exercise to build up condemnation in you if your not exhibiting these, but it is meant to be a reminder that this is how we can live if we allow ourselves to fully surrender to the truth of God’s love and grace and let the Holy Spirit guide our actions.

Because this is one of the feasts of the Lord which calls for Jews from all over to come to Jerusalem, there are many devout men from different countries – and they’re witnessing what is going on with the disciples. They’re freaking out because some of what the disciples are speaking are dialects native to the devout men’s homelands. They know these guys are simple Galileans, so how can they possibly be speaking in their native languages? This is the first of what we’re going to see time and time again of the demonstration of the power of God – signs and wonders – to further reveal the truth of the gospel that Jesus was the Christ – the Messiah.

Acts 2:13 says, “Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.” As we so often find with people who reject the truth of God, they can’t let it go – they have to become antagonistic. A common method of this antagonistic behavior is mocking – making fun of people who have faith in God. We saw it with the people who mocked Jesus on the cross, and now there are some knuckleheads who can’t accept the reality of what is going on with the disciples, so the mockers accuse them of being drunk.

Ephesians 5:18 states, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit”. Have you ever noticed that drunk people get more powerful? Maybe not more powerful, but more bold – more talkative. I believe if we would allow the Spirit to fill us completely, it will be easier for us to be more bold and powerful – and more talkative – reaching out to people who need to hear the truth of Who Jesus Christ is.  It certainly worked for Peter as we transition into the second half of this chapter.

In Acts 2:14 which says, “But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words.” Peter is being obedient to the command of Acts 1:8 which tells them of their mission to be witnesses unto Him first in Jerusalem. He then tells the crowd they’re not drunk – it is only 9:00 in the morning. Clearly, these guys didn’t go to the same college I did!

So step 1 of his sermon is he identifies his audience. We need to remember this when we’re looking to speak to people – we need to identify with them to help us understand how to proceed with our witness. The second step is to proclaim the truth of who they are – in this case, who they’re not. They’re not drunken Galileans in town crashing a feast of the Lord – they’re here to deliver a serious message.

He wisely uses the Word of God to defend what is going on – he quotes the prophet Scripture from the second chapter of Joel in Acts 2:16-21: ¹⁶ But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams.¹⁸ And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy. ¹⁹ I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. ²⁰ The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. ²¹ And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved.’

This puts to rest the mocker – Peter is proclaiming that what has just happened is a fulfillment of prophecy. In actuality, the complete fulfillment of this prophecy will not happen until the Great Tribulation – this was kind of a sneak preview of coming attractions.

Peter continues in Acts 2:22-24a: “²²Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— ²³Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; ²⁴whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death.” This is amazing preaching – in verse 22 Peter sums up the life of Jesus; in verse 23 he talks about the death of Jesus, and in verse 24 he spoke of the resurrection of Jesus. He presents the entire gospel in less than 30 seconds!

Verse 23 presents a bit of a challenge as it states that it was God’s foreknowledge that Jesus would be crucified, but He then says that the people have crucified Him. We see God’s sovereignty at work, yet he makes them accountable for their actions. Jon Courson says it well, “God is sovereign, yet man is responsible.” God knew everything we were going to do wrong before we did it, and He modified His original plan, which was void of sin, to factor in our behavior. We are accountable for our actions – even if God in His sovereignty already knew about it.

Peter then makes critical doctrinal statement in Acts 2:24b: because it was not possible that He should be held by it [the grave]. Romans 3:23 tells us that the wages of sin is death. Since Jesus never sinned, death could not hold Him.

Peter demonstrates the power of the Holy Spirit as he draws on Scriptures to present his message – this is always the best way because God’s Word has power. Acts 2:25-29: ²⁵ For David says concerning Him: ‘I foresaw the Lord always before my face, For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken. ²⁶ Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad; Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope. ²⁷ For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. ²⁸ You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of joy in Your presence.’ He’s quoting Psalm 16:8-11, but what is interesting about this passage is it is really Jesus talking to the Father about this very moment in history.

Peter goes on to remind us that David wasn’t just a king – he also was a prophet. In verse 30 he points out that David foretold that the Christ would come from the fruit of his body – Jesus would be a descendant of his.

A key point Peter makes in verse 32 is that not just he, but all the disciples had personally witnessed the resurrected Lord. This is significant because any story you tell gains great credibility when you can say you were a witness to the events of the story. Eye witnesses can be the cornerstone of making a case for or against something. For us, while we were not witnesses of the resurrected Christ, we are witnesses to the power of God through His Spirit in lives today. It’s not always in signs and wonders. It can be a restored marriage or a victory over an addiction. Proclaiming to be a witness to God’s power is one of the most effective weapons we have when sharing Christ with non-believers.

Peter then goes on to explain that the power that everyone just witnessed was the pouring out of the Holy Spirit.  He then goes in for the powerful concluding statement of his sermon in verse 36, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” The address is to all of Israel, he doesn’t sugar coat their accountability in the story, and then proclaims the truth that Jesus is the Messiah.

The sermon landed where all sermons should be focused – on the heart. The conviction of the truth of Peter’s sermon cut their hearts, and they ask what they should do. Peter tells them to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins – and they, too, will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. He then makes sure they hear this promise – the promise of the Holy Spirit is available to their children and anyone else whom the Lord will call. That same promise is available today.

We then are told that 3,000 souls were added to the church that day. That number might ring a bell. In Exodus 3:28 we’re told 3,000 people died the day the law was given. We again see the picture of new life – of life restored – with 3,000 lives now being saved. Isn’t that awesome?

Verse 42 gives us the framework for the church, “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” The church was never more dynamic than it was in the beginning, so it is reasonable for today’s churches to follow these simple four objectives:

1.    Continuing steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine – this is the constant teaching of the Word of God

2.    Fellowship – God’s people need to be together – regularly – not just on Sundays

3.    Breaking of bread – not only do God’s people need to be together, but they need to get to know each other – the breaking of bread in Biblical times was a serious gesture of intimacy between people.

4.    Being in prayer – we simply cannot pray enough

The common theme of these four objectives is communication – communication with God through His Word; communication with each other to share what God is doing in our lives; and communication with God through prayer. God wants to hear from us. The people did just these things, and the church exploded. Please note the clear statement in the last verse of this chapter that it was the Lord who added to the church – not a church program, not a killer worship service, not an awesome new facility – it was the Lord adding to the church out of His grace.

There were many different ways I could have summarized this chapter, but I feel compelled to go in a direction that may seem strange. I’m finding as I get older and read the Bible, I’m focusing a little less on the knowledge aspect of Scripture and spending more time on the “what this means to me” component. From this perspective, I want to consider Peter. It has been just 53 days since he suffered the most crushing moment in his life. This big strapping tough guy fisherman who had promised the Lord he would die for him gets confronted by a young girl who calls him out for being associated with Jesus. Three times he denies even knowing Jesus. One of the gospels tells us that Jesus is present when this happens and He looks at Peter when he denies him the third time. Remember, Jesus told him he would do exactly what he did.

I believe the Lord’s process of restoring Peter began with this look. I don’t believe it was a look of anger or shock but a look of “it’s ok, Peter, I knew this would happen, and I still love you.” Is there anyone in this room who hasn’t suffered a deep wound in their life? Maybe it’s something you did, or maybe it’s something that someone did to you. Either way, the wound was so deep it has crippled part of who you thought you were even to this day. If this is true, I feel terribly for you, but I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be that way. You can be free of the guilt, shame, anger, hurt, or whatever it is that you’ve been carrying around today.

How can I say such a thing? You may want to say to me, “Dan, you don’t know what I’ve done.” Or “You don’t know me, and you don’t know how much pain I’m in.” You’re right – I don’t know and don’t understand. What I’m saying is that it doesn’t matter. Look at Peter – he’s had this life shattering moment and just 53 days later, he is speaking in power the gospel – reaching out to thousands of people – I would guess not just a few knew of his failure. We’re looking at a totally transformed human being. How did he do it?

I see him accomplishing it in four steps:

1)   He would BELIEVE. He believed who Jesus was – he had spent the previous three years of his life day in and day out getting to know Jesus and witnessing His power and goodness. For us, that means we need to truly spend time in the Word of God getting to know Jesus. I promise you if you do this, your belief in Him will deepen.

2)   He would RECEIVE. He received the forgiveness that Jesus gave him. For many of us – including myself – this is a very hard step. The kind of forgiveness Jesus offers is complete – there’s no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. I recently heard a great comment about Jesus’ forgiveness – if He went to such an extent to forgive you and take away your sins, why on earth would He want to bring them back to remind you of them? Because it’s not God telling you that your forgiveness is bogus, it’s the devil. Peter fully received Jesus’ forgiveness.

3)   He would PROCEED. With the burden of guilt, shame, pain, and everything else Peter may have been carrying now gone, he was free to move forward. How many of us have been unable to truly move forward in our lives because of what we’re holding onto that Jesus already took care of? Allow yourself to imagine life without the bitterness, anger, and every other burden of the sins you have committed or were committed to you. It’s as if they were never there in the first place.  This isn’t easy because for many of us we have built our identities around our pain, so the thought of not being shackled by it opens up a door that seems totally foreign. I’m here to tell you it’s real.

4)   He would FEED. With the freedom to move forward, Peter’s devotion and appreciation for Jesus’ forgiveness and love compelled him to obey the Lord’s commandment to feed His sheep. Remember the Lord asking Peter if he loved Him, to feed His sheep? It was the least Peter could do – moreover, He wanted to please His Lord. I’ve found that when I take the focus off of me and think about whom I can minister to, I start to forget the junk that was holding me back in the first place. I believe that is one of the mysterious blessings of serving the Lord – He’s healing you while you’re working for Him healing others.

He would believe. He would receive. He would proceed. He would feed. My friends, Peter’s life was transformed when the Holy Spirit came upon him and cemented all the promises of his Lord into his heart, soul, and mind. He became free of his guilt and became a powerful servant for the Lord. I would like to end by asking the Holy Spirit to come upon each of you and cement the truths of the promises of God and free you of what holds you down. Let’s pray.

Acts – Lesson 2 – AM