The Conversion of Cornelius

8 THE CONVERSION OF CORNELIUS (Acts 9:32-11:18)
Racism. Tribalism. Sexism. Cultural snobbery. Various types of discrimination have a great hold on the church and great power to destroy the unity of the body of Christ. This was as true of the early church as it is today.
Through the conversion of Cornelius, God demonstrated irrevocably that he does not make distinctions in his kingdom. Therefore we have no right to make distinctions either. The fact that we do not practice complete equality as members of the church of Christ is a blasphemy against God. Unfortunately, the early church did not hear clearly and live forever by God’s message that he does not show favoritism.
The miracles portrayed Peter as an authentic apostle of Jesus Christ, who performed “the signs of a true apostle.” Similar miracles had endorsed the prophetic ministry of Elijah and Elisha. Four factors support this suggestion. First, both miracles followed the example of Jesus. Second, both miracles were performed by the power of Jesus. Third, both miracles were signs of the salvation of Jesus. Peter uses the same word, “Get up,” that God used when he raised Jesus from the dead. Fourth, both miracles caused everyone to turn to the Lord.
Read Acts 10:9-23. It is difficult for us to grasp the impassable gulf which yawned in those days between the Jews on the one hand and the Gentiles including even the “God-fearers”) on the other. Not that the Old Testament itself supported such a divine. Psalmists and prophets foretold the day when God’s Messiah would inherit the nations, the Lord’s servant would be their light, all nations would “flow” to the Lord’s house, and God would pour out his Spirit on all humankind. The tragedy was that Israel twisted the doctrine of election into one of favoritism, became filled with racial pride and hatred, and developed traditions which kept them apart. No orthodox Jew would ever enter the home of a Gentile, even a God-fearer, or invite such into his home (see v. 28).
It is interesting that Luke ended the story of Aeneas and Tabitha with the information that “Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon” (9:43). For, since tanners worked with dead animals, in order to convert their skins into leather, they were regarded as ceremonially unclean. This may have been the first sign of Peter’s openness to Gentiles.
Summary: Luke has now recounted the conversions of Saul and Cornelius. The differences between these two men were considerable. In race Saul was a Jew, Cornelius a Gentile; in culture Saul was a scholar, Cornelius a soldier; in religion Saul was a bigot, Cornelius a seeker. Yet both were converted by the gracious initiative of God; both received forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Spirit; and both were baptized and welcomed into the Christian family on equal terms. This fact is a signal testimony to the power and impartiality of the gospel of Christ, which is still “the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile” (Romans 1:16).
Open
When have you felt separated from people because of cultural or racial differences?
Study
1. Read Acts 9:32-43. How was the power of God demonstrated in this passage?
2. What were the results of the demonstration of this power?
3. Read Acts 10:1-9. What evidence was there in the character of Cornelius that the Holy Spirit was working in him (v. 2)?
4. What do you learn about the character of God from his response to Cornelius through the angel (vv. 3-6)?
5. How did God prepare Peter for Cornelius?
6. What would the command in verse 15 have meant to Peter?
7. Read Acts 10:24-48. What evidence is there that Cornelius expected God to work (vv. 24-26)?
8. What would have been the consequence if Peter or Cornelius had not obeyed God?
9. What is the message that God has for Cornelius (vv. 33-43)?
10. Read Acts 11:1-18. Throughout this passage we see Peter learning about God’s desire for him to take the gospel to the Gentiles. Trace the process of Peter’s understanding.
11. Look at this passage carefully. In what ways do you see unity growing within the church?
Apply
How are you affected as you see the timing and plan of God in people’s lives? How have you experienced this in your own life? How do you see unity between people from different cultures and races lived out in your church?
PrayAsk God to reveal to you bigotry in your own life and ways that you separate yourself from others because of cultural or racial differences. Ask him to change you and forgive you.

The Conversion of Saul

7 THE CONVERSION OF SAUL (Acts 9:1-31)
In the two thousand years since his death and resurrection, millions have turned to Jesus. Lives have been transformed. Directions changed. But no conversion is more dramatic then that of Saul of Tarsus. His is the most famous in church history. This is the young man who approved of Stephen’s brutal death and then set out to single-handedly destroy the church. He went from house to house to drag men and women off to prison because of their faith in Jesus. Then Saul met Jesus.
Yes, Saul’s conversion was dramatic. He became the apostle to the Gentiles, and we today continue to reap the benefits of his life. However, though it will probably not be on a Damascus Road, we too must experience a personal encounter with Jesus Christ in order to be converted. We too must turn to him in faith and repentance and receive a call to serve Christ and his church.
Luke has already mentioned Saul three times in Acts, each time as a bitter opponent of Christ and his church. He had not changed. He was still in the same mental condition of hatred and hostility. Some of the language that Luke uses to describe Saul in his reconversion state seems deliberately to portray him as “a wild and ferocious beast.”
If we ask what caused Saul’s conversion, only one answer is possible. What stands out from the narrative is the sovereign grace of God through Jesus Christ. Saul did not “decide for Christ,” as we might say. On the contrary, he was persecuting Christ. It was rather Christ who decided for him and intervened in his life.
To ascribe Saul’s conversion to God’s initiative can easily be misunderstood, however; the sovereign grace which captured Saul was neither sudden (in the sense that there had been no previous preparation) nor compulsive (in the sense that he needed to make no response). This was not the first time Jesus Christ had spoken to him. According to Paul’s own words, Jesus said to him, “It is hard for you to kick against the goads” (Acts 26:14), a Greek proverb describing the useless resistance of an oxen who is being broken in.
Sovereign grace is gradual grace and gentle grace. Gradually and without violence, Jesus pricked Saul’s mind and conscience. Then he revealed himself to him in a way as to enable him to make a free response. Divine grace does not trample human personality, but rather it enables human beings to be truly human. It is sin that imprisons. It is grace that liberates.
Summary: Thus the story of Saul’s conversion in Acts 9 begins with him leaving Jerusalem with an official mandate from the high priest to arrest fugitive Christians, and ends with him leaving Jerusalem as a persecuted Christian himself. Witness to Christ involves suffering for Christ. It is not an accident that the Greek word for witness (martyrs) came to be associated with martyrdom.
Open
It is good to reflect on the work of God in our lives. What was it like when you became a follower of Jesus?
Study
1. Read Acts 9:1-19. Describe Saul according to verses 1 and 2.
2. Describe Saul’s experience on the Damascus road.
3. If you were Saul, what do you think it would be like to meet Jesus in this way?
4. In what ways does Saul’s conversion demonstrate the marvelous grace of God?
5. What immediate evidence of transformation do you see in Saul after his encounter with Jesus?
6. William Barclay calls Ananias “one of the forgotten heroes of the Christian church” (The Acts of the Apostles in The Daily Study Bible [St. Andrew Press, 1953], p. 74). What is the significance of Ananias’s ministry to Saul?
7. Read Acts 9:19-31. Just as in Damascus, the believers in Jerusalem were afraid of Saul. What does Barnabas teach us about relating to new Christians?
8. By Paul’s own testimony later in the book of Acts (26:16), on the Damascus road Jesus appointed him “as a servant and as a witness” and as the apostle to the Gentiles. How does Paul live out his responsibility to the world in this passage of Scripture?
9. What connection do you see between Saul’s conversion and the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoying a time of peace?
Apply
How did your conversion compare or contrast with Saul’s? How are you continuing to experience the grace of God in your life? How do you need to be more like Ananias and Barnabas in your church or Christian community? How do you expect to see God working in the lives of those around you who are not Christians?
PrayIn silence, reflect on the miracle of your relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Thank him.

Philip the Evangelist

6 PHILIP THE EVANGELIST (Acts 8:1-40)
In his continued warfare against the church the devil finally overreached himself. His attack had the opposite effect to what he intended. Instead of smothering the gospel, persecution succeeded only in spreading it.
Beginning the day of Stephen’s death, persecution broke out with the ferocity of a sudden storm. Saul, who approved of Stephen’s stoning, now began to destroy the church. This great persecution led to great dispersion: all except the apostles were scattered. The scattering of the Christians was followed by the scattering of the good seed of the gospel. For those who scattered preached the word wherever they went.
So we see in the midst of persecution wonderful things have happened. The Holy Spirit has revealed himself in mighty and miraculous ways. He has caused men and women to come to Jesus and the church to grow. We have seen him severely discipline a couple who lied to God and pretended to be something that they were not. We have witnessed men full of the Spirit both preaching Christ and dying for him. Now we are going to look at his work in Philip, who was filled with the Spirit and called by the Spirit away from “where the action was” to share the good news about Jesus with one individual ? an Ethiopian.
The hostility between Jews and Samaritans had lasted a thousand years. It began with the monarchy in the tenth century B.C. when ten tribes defected, making Samaria their capital, and only two tribes remained loyal to Jerusalem. It became steadily worse when Samaria was captured by Assyria in 722 B.C. Thousands of its inhabitants were deported, and the country was repopulated by foreigners. In the sixth century B.C., when the Jews returned to their land, they refused the help of the Samaritans in the rebuilding of the temple. Not till the fourth century B.C., however, did the Samaritan schism harden, with the building of their rival temple on Mount Gerizim and their rejection of all Old Testament Scripture except the Pentateuch. The Samaritans were despised by the Jews.
Summary: The gospel had been welcomed by the Samaritans, but would the Samaritans be welcomed by the Jews? Or would there be separate factions of Jewish Christians and Samaritan Christians in the church of Jesus Christ? The idea may seem unthinkable in theory; in practice it might well have happened. Is it not reasonable to suggest (in view of this historical background) that, in order to avoid just such a disaster, God deliberately withheld the Spirit from these Samaritan converts? The delay was only temporary, however, until the apostles had come down to investigate, had endorsed Philip’s bold policy of Samaritan evangelism, had prayed for the converts, had laid hands on them as a sign to the whole church as well as to the Samaritan converts themselves, that they were bona fide Christians, to be incorporated into the redeemed community on precisely the same terms as Jewish converts.
The people Philip shared the good news with were different in race, rank and religion. The Samaritans were of mixed race, half-Jewish and half-Gentile, and Asiatic, while the Ethiopian was a black African, though probably a Jew by birth. As for rank, the Samaritans were presumably ordinary citizens, whereas the Ethiopian was a distinguished public servant in the employment of the Crown. Religious differences included the fact that the Samaritans reversed Moses but rejected the prophets, while the Ethiopian was returning from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and was reading one of the very prophets the Samaritans rejected. Yet despite their differences in racial origin, social class and religion, Philip presented them both with the same good news of Jesus.
Open
Do you see yourself as an evangelist? Explain.
Study
1. Read Acts 8:1-25. In this chapter the command to be witnesses is Judea and Samaria (see Acts 1:8) is fulfilled. What are the causes and extent of the spread of the gospel?
2. How is it significant that Philip, a Jew, went to Samaria (v. 5)?
3. How was Simon the Sorcerer’s life affected by the gospel (vv. 9-13)?
4. What did Peter teach Simon about following Jesus (vv. 18-24)?
5. Why do you think it was important for the church in Jerusalem to send Peter and John to minister to the new believers in Samaria?
6. Read Acts 8:26-40. What were the factors involved in the Ethiopian eunuch’s becoming a Christian?
7. What would it have been like for Philip to leave a place where so many exciting things were happening to go down a desert road?
8. What role did Scripture play in the eunuch’s conversion?
9. Ethiopia was the extreme boundary of the habitable world in the hot south. How was Philip’s ministry to the eunuch the beginning of the witness “to the ends of the earth”?
10. People refer to different kinds of evangelism, such as door-to-door, friendship, mass and tract evangelism. What different kinds of evangelism do you observe throughout this whole passage?
11. What principles of evangelism do you see in this passage?
Apply
How are you encouraged by what you are learning about the Holy Spirit? What have you learned from this passage that might help you become a more effective witness? How has your view of God’s work in the world grown as a result of studying this passage?
Pray
Ask God to give you a joyful confidence in the truth, power and relevance of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

一匹驴子的密码

一匹驴子的密码
耶稣荣耀进城 ? 路加福音19：28-40
(28) 耶稣说完了这话，就在前面走，上耶路撒冷去。
(29) 将近伯法其和伯大尼，在一座山名叫橄榄山那里，就打发两个门徒，说：
(30) 「你们往对面村子里去，进去的时候，必看见一匹驴驹拴在那里，是从来没有人骑过的，可以解开牵来。
(31) 若有人问为什麽解他，你们就说：『主要用他。』」
(32) 打发的人去了，所遇见的正如耶稣所说的。
(33) 他们解驴驹的时候，主人问他们说：「解驴驹做什麽？」
(34) 他们说：「主要用他。」
(35) 他们牵到耶稣那里，把自己的衣服搭在上面，扶著耶稣骑上。
(36) 走的时候，众人把衣服铺在路上。
(37) 将近耶路撒冷，正下橄榄山的时候，众门徒因所见过的一切异能，都欢乐起来，大声赞美神，
(38) 说：奉主名来的王是应当称颂的！在天上有和平；在至高之处有荣光。
(39) 众人中有几个法利赛人对耶稣说：「夫子，责备你的门徒吧！」
(40) 耶稣说：「我告诉你们，若是他们闭口不说，这些石头必要呼叫起来。」


棕枝主日是纪念当日耶稣进入耶路撒冷，这是他在世上的最后的进入。他骑在一匹驴驹上。这是满有记号的，他的信息是什么呢？
1． 耶稣来成为和平 - 看哪，你的王来到你这里，是温柔的，又骑著驴，就是骑著驴驹子。（马太福音21：5）。他不像古代的皇帝是骑着战马，耶稣却是骑着一匹驯良的驴子。此表明他的身份及他所要完成的事工。
2． 耶稣来赐给和平 - 藉著我们的主耶稣基督得与神相和。（罗马书5：1）。我们过去因者罪与上帝为敌。但耶稣以他的死亡，激发我们与上帝和好。
3． 耶稣来宣讲和平 - 并且来传和平的福音给你们远处的人，也给那近处的人。因为我们两下藉著他被一个圣灵所感，得以进到父面前。（以弗所书2：17-18）。耶稣渴望他的子民彼此和睦。我们要竭力保守耶稣所赐的和平。他最后为门徒的祷告是盼望他们能够合一。
4． 总结-
a. 十架本是一个残暴的记号。但在两千年以前透过在加略山的一个十字架，就成了和平 ? 与上帝和别人有和平。
b. 让在今日所派出的棕枝十架常常提醒我们，耶稣是和平的主。让我们常常记得他的身份，他为我们所完成的一切。
c. 让他提醒我们要如何对待别人：愿上帝的平安常与你们同在，也与你同在。让我们互相行平安礼。

思想与讨论：
a. 在你的看法，为何世上有那么多的纷争，在我们的社会，甚至在我们的家中？请说明你的答案。
b. 请阅读路加福音19：28-40。你认为那时的人民以为有什么事情？耶稣认为的事情是什么呢？为何耶稣要去耶路撒冷？最后他有什么事情发生？他是否有带来和平？是一个怎样的和平？这告诉我们耶稣用什么方法带来和平？

Stephen the Martyr

5 STEPHEN THE MARTYR (Acts 6:8 ��� 7:60)
Stephen was the first. Many have followed in his steps to martyrdom ��� those who live and speak truth that is intolerable on this planet of evil. Stephen was described as full of the Spirit and wisdom, full of grace and power. When enemies of the message of Jesus could not stand up against this Spirit and wisdom, they stoned him to death. Stephen was a gift to the church but could not be tolerated by her enemies.
Stephen���s greatest gift to the church was not the mere fact that he was her first martyr, but also his vital role in promoting the mission and the life of the church.
The accusations against Stephen were extremely serious. Nothing was more sacred to the Jews and nothing more precious, than their temple and their law. The temple was their ���holy place,��� the sanctuary of God���s presence, and the law was ���holy scripture,��� the revelation of God���s mind and will. Therefore, since the temple was God���s house and the law was God���s word, to speak against either was to speak against God or, in other words, to blaspheme.
Stephen needed to defend himself against them in such a way as to develop a defense for his radical gospel. What he did was not just to rehearse the key features of the Old Testament story, with which the Sanhedrin were as familiar as he, but to do so in such a way as to draw lessons from it which they had never learned or even noticed. His concern was to demonstrate that his position, far from being ���blasphemous��� because disrespectful to God���s Word, actually honored it. For Old Testament Scripture itself confirmed his teaching about the temple and the law, especially by predicting the Messiah, whereas by rejecting him it was they who disregarded the law, not he. Stephen���s mind had evidently soaked up the Old Testament, for his speech is like a patchwork of allusions to it.
Several psalms bear witness to Israel���s love for the temple. This was right. But many drew a false conclusion. They conceived of God as so completely identified with the temple that its existence guaranteed his protection of them, while its destruction would mean that he had abandoned them. Long before them, however, as Stephen pointed out, the great figures of the Old Testament never imagined that God was imprisoned in a building.
The God of Israel is a pilgrim God, who is not restricted to any one place. If he has any home on earth, it is with his people that he lives. He has pledged himself by a solemn covenant to be their God. Therefore, according to his covenant promise, wherever they are, there he is also.
Summary: What interests many people most about Stephen are that he was the first Christian martyr. Luke���s main concern lies elsewhere, however. He emphasizes the vital role Stephen played in the development of the worldwide Christian mission through both his teaching and his death.
Stephen���s martyrdom supplemented the influence of his teaching. Not only did it deeply impress Saul of Tarsus and contribute to his conversion, which led to his becoming the apostle to the Gentiles, but it was also the start of ���a great persecution��� which led to the scattering of the disciples ���throughout Judea and Samaria��� (8:1).
The church was shocked, even stunned by the martyrdom of Stephen and by the violent opposition which followed. But, with the benefit of hindsight, we can see how God���s providence used Stephen���s testimony in word and deed, through life and death, to promote the church���s mission.
There are several parallels between the death of Jesus and the death of Stephen. In both cases false witnesses were produced and the charge was one of blasphemy. In both cases the execution was accompanied by two prayers, as each prayed for the forgiveness of his executioners and for the reception of his spirit as he died. Thus did the disciple ��� whether consciously or unconsciously ��� reflect his Master. The only difference was that Jesus addressed his prayers to the Father, while Stephen addressed them to Jesus, calling him ���Lord��� and putting him on a level with God.
Open
How do you respond to the possibility of dying because you are a follower of Jesus?
Study
1. Read Acts 6:8-15. What do you learn about Stephen?
2. What were the accusations made against Stephen (6:13-14)?
3. Read Acts 7:1-53. When asked if the charges were true, Stephen responded with a sermon. List the people mentioned and the part they play in the history he is retelling (briefly).
4. What was God���s promise to Abraham, and how did he fulfill this promise (7:5, 17, 30, 36)?
5. How does Stephen communicate his respect for Moses (7:20, 22, 30-38)?
6. How did the people respond to Moses in the wilderness (7:39-43)?
7. What is the significance of the words ���Take off your sandals; the place where you are standing is holy ground��� (7:33), and ���The Most High does not live in houses made by men��� (7:48)?
8. How did Stephen���s sermon speak to the accusations against him?
9. How are Stephen���s accusers guilty of that which they accused him (7:51-53)?
10. Read Acts 7:54-60. What do you discover about Stephen���s character in this section?
11. How did Stephen promote the mission and life of the church?
Apply
When have you experienced being ���on holy ground���? In what ways are you, like the Israelites in the wilderness, tempted to turn your heart back toward Egypt? How would you like the way in which you follow Jesus to be influenced by Stephen���s example?
PrayAsk the Holy Spirit to keep you steadfast, having always in mind his will and mission for the world and the church.

Satanic Counterattack

4 SATANIC COUNTERATTACK (Acts 4:32 ��� 6:7)

Throughout the world today, thousands are suffering and dying for Jesus. During the twentieth century, more Christians have been killed; either directly for their faith or in situations where being a Christian has played a role in violent confrontations, than in all the other centuries combined. Where there is life and growth, Satan will attack.

As soon as the Spirit came upon the church (Acts 3), Satan launched a ferocious counterattack. While it is true that his first and crudest tactic is physical violence, crushing the church by persecution, his second is even more cunning: moral corruption and compromise. This form of attack makes sense because Christ is exalted by the integrity of his church. The early church was not exempt. The first example in Scripture of the attempt to insinuate evil into the interior life of the church is the story of Ananias and Sapphira.

Calvin wrote in The Acts of the Apostles (vol. 1, p. 130):

We must have hearts that are harder than iron if we are not moved by the reading of this narrative. In those days the believers gave abundantly of what was their own; we in our day are content not just jealously to retain what we possess, but callously to rob others. ��� They sold their own possessions in those days; in our day it is the lust to purchase that reigns supreme. At that time love made each man���s own possessions common property for those in need; in our day such is the inhumanity of many, that they begrudge to the poor a common dwelling upon earth, the common use of water, air and sky.

There are at least three valuable lessons for us to learn. First, the gravity of their sin. Peter stressed this by repeating that their lie was not directed primarily against him, but against the Holy Spirit, that is, against God. And God hates hypocrisy.

Second, the importance, even sacredness, of the human conscience. This seems to be what John meant by ���walking in the light.��� It is to live a transparent life before God. In East African it is said that we are ���to live in a house without ceiling or walls,��� that is, to permit nothing to come between us and either God or other people.

Third, the incident teaches the necessity of church discipline. The church has tended to oscillate in this area between extreme severity and extreme laxity. It is a good general rule that private sins should be dealt with privately and public sins and only public sins, publicly. Churches are also wise if they follow the successive stages taught by Jesus. Usually the offender will be brought to repentance before the final stage of excommunication.

The devil���s next attack was the cleverest of the three. Having failed to overcome the church by either persecution or corruption, he now tried distraction. If he could preoccupy the apostles with social administration, which though essential was not their calling, they would neglect their God-given responsibilities to pray and to preach, and so leave the church without any defense against false doctrine.

Summary: The devil exists and is utterly unscrupulous. Something else about him is that he is peculiarly lacking in imagination. Over the years he has changed neither his strategy, nor his tactics, nor his weapons; he is still in the same old rut. So a study of his campaign against the early church should alert us to his probable strategy today. If we are taken by surprise, we shall have no excuse.

Luke is concerned, however, not only to expose the devil���s malice, but also to show how he was overcome. First, the hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira was not allowed to spread, for God���s judgment fell on them, and the church grew by leaps and bounds (5:12-16). Second, when the Sanhedrin again resorted to violence, they were restrained from killing the apostles by the cautious counsel of Gamaliel (5:17-42). Third, when the widows��� dispute threatened to occupy all the time and energies of the apostles, the social work was delegated to others, the apostles returned their priority tasks, and the church again began to multiply (6:1-7).

Open

How do you respond to the idea that Satan is attacking the church today?

1. Read Acts 4:32 ��� 5:11. In Acts 4:31 we see that the prayer of the believers was answered and they were freshly filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. What evidence do you see of this filling of the Spirit in verses 32-36?

2. What could your church or fellowship group learn from this example?

3. Now look closely at the story of Ananias and Sapphira. Why do you think their offenses were so grave?

4. Luke clearly intends us to understand that the death of Ananias and Sapphira was a work of divine judgment. How do you respond to the severity of God���s judgment?

5. Which of these lessons strikes you as something we need to learn today?

6. Read Acts 5:12-41. What were the various responses to the ministry of the apostles?

7. What reasons do you find for the actions that the high priests took?

8. What do you learn from this passage about obeying human authority and obeying divine authority?

9. Describe the effect of persecution on the apostles (vv. 41-42).

10. Read Acts 6:1-7. What principles do you see about the way the church should function in relationship to problem-solving? In relationship to call to ministry?

11. The apostles delegated the social work in order to concentrate on their pastoral priority. What were the results of this action?

Apply

What can you learn from observing the effects of persecution on the church? How might you become a more effective member of your church or fellowship as a result of what you have studied in this passage?

Pray

Praise God for the faithfulness of the apostles in preaching the word and prayer. Thank God for the church that God has placed you in. Ask God to help you grow in becoming a member of his church, full of integrity and commitment.

The Outbreak of Persecution

3 THE OUTBREAK OF PERSECUTION (Acts 3:1 ��� 4:31)

Jesus has returned to heaven before the very eyes of the astounded disciples. Matthias has been chosen to replace Judas. The Holy Spirit has descended upon the earth with great power and in ways that cannot be explained away by the religious leaders. Thousands are coming to Jesus. The believers of Jesus are together in love, fellowship and meeting each other���s needs. Instead of the world rejoicing and embracing with open arms all the good things God is doing, resistance begins to build.

This resistance to the gospel of Jesus Christ continues today. The church needs to observe and learn from the early church how to remain faithful and active in the proclamation of truth, even though the cost is great ��� through the power of the Holy Spirit. Although the coming of the Spirit was a unique and unrepeatable historical event, all the people of God can now always and everywhere benefit from his ministry.

Peter seized the opportunity to preach. Just as the Pentecost event had been the text for his first sermon, so the cripple���s healing became the text for his second. Both were mighty acts of the exalted Christ. Both were signs which proclaimed him Lord and Savior. Both aroused the crowd���s amazement.

Summary: We observe that before the people came to any petition, they filled their minds with thoughts of the divine sovereignty. First, he is the God of creation, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them (v. 24). Second, he is the God of revelation, who spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David, and in Psalm 2 (already in the first century B.C. recognized as Messianic) had foretold the world���s opposition to his Christ, with nations raging, peoples plotting, kings standing and rulers assembling against the Lord���s Anointed (vv. 25-26). Third, he is the God of history, who had caused even his enemies (Herod and Pilate, Gentiles and Jews, united in a conspiracy against Jesus, v. 27) to do what his power and will had decided beforehand should happen (v. 28). This, then, was the early church���s understanding of God, the God of creation, revelation and history, whose characteristic actions are summarized by the three verbs made (v. 24), spoke (v. 25), and decided (v. 28).

Open

When have you been persecuted for living or proclaiming truth about Jesus?

Study

Read Acts 3:1-10. What triggered the opposition of the Jewish authorities was the healing of the cripple, together with Peter���s sermon which followed it. Luke began his second volume by telling his readers that he was going to record what Jesus continued ���to do and to teach��� through his apostles (1:1-2). He has also told us that ���many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles��� (2:43). Now he supplies a particular, dramatic example.

1. Describe, as if you were there looking on, what happened between Peter and John and the man who was crippled from birth.

2. How did the crippled man respond? How did all the people respond?

3. Read Acts 3:11-26. The most remarkable feature of Peter���s second sermon, as of his first, is its Christ-centeredness. He directed the crowd���s attention away from both the healed cripple and the apostles to the Christ. What vital points did Peter make in his sermon to the crowd?

4. Look at each of the titles Peter gives to Jesus. How does each of these speak to the uniqueness of Jesus?

5. Peter ends his sermon by challenging his hearers with the necessity of repentance. What blessings would follow if they repented (vv. 19-26)?

6. Read Acts 4:1-22. What do we learn about the attitude of the religious leaders toward Peter and John?

7. Peter has given a comprehensive testimony to Jesus as rejected by humanity but vindicated by God, as the fulfillment of all Old Testament prophecy, as demanding repentance and promising blessing, and as the author and giver of life, physically to the healed cripple and spiritually to those who believe. This aroused the indignation and antagonism of the authorities. Why do you think this proclamation of Jesus was disturbing to the religious leaders?

8. How would you explain the connection between the healed cripple and salvation (vv. 9-12)?

9. What evidence do you see of the power of the Holy Spirit throughout this section?

10. Read Acts 4:23-31. Describe the prayer in these verses. How is it different than you would expect it to be after all that Peter and John had been through?

11. List the three requests in verses 29-30. What is the significance of these requests?

12. Why were they able to respond to persecution in this way?

Apply

When have you seen resistance, subtle or overt, to the gospel of Christ? What truth from this passage equips you to face this resistance? Who is suffering persecution for the gospel that you could be praying for?

Pray

Praise the Lord Jesus for who he is and specifically for what is revealed about him in this passage. Ask the Holy Spirit to prepare you for and minister through you in persecution.

Receiving the Spirit

RECEIVING THE SPIRIT (Acts 2)

Without the Holy Spirit, Christian discipleship would be inconceivable, even impossible. There can be no life without the life-giver, no understanding without the Spirit of Truth, no fellowship without the unity of the Spirit, no Christ likeness of character apart from his fruit, and no effective witness without his power. As a body without breath is a corpse, so the church without the Spirit is dead. Luke is well aware of this and emphasizes the power of the Spirit throughout Acts, especially in Acts 2, which is all about the day of Pentecost, when the Spirit comes.

Discussion about the nature of speaking in tongues must not distract our attention from Luke���s understanding of its significance on the day of Pentecost. It symbolized a new unity in the Spirit transcending racial, national and linguistic barriers. Ever since the early church fathers, commentators have seen the blessing of Pentecost as a deliberate and dramatic reversal of the curse of Babel.

The best way to understand Pentecost is not through the Old Testament prediction, but through the New Testament fulfillment, not through Joel but through Jesus. As Peter summons the men of Israel to listen to him, his first words are of Jesus of Nazareth, and he goes on to tell the story of Jesus in six stages: his life and ministry, his death, his resurrection, his exaltation and his salvation.

Peter���s conclusion is that all Israel should be assured that this Jesus, whom they had repudiated and crucified, God had made both Lord and Christ. Not of course that Jesus became Lord and Christ only at the time of his ascension, for he was (and claimed to be) both throughout his public ministry. It is rather that now God exalted him to be in reality and power what he already was by right.

Summary: Our struggle is how to be faithful to this apostolic gospel while at the same time presenting it in a way which resonates with men and women today. What is immediately clear is that, like the apostles, we must focus on Jesus Christ. Peter���s beginning ���Listen to this: Jesus ������ must be our beginning too. But how? I have myself found it an aid to faithfulness to express the apostles��� message in the following framework: the gospel events, namely the death and resurrection of Jesus, the gospel witnesses, the Scriptures and the apostles, the gospel promises, the forgiveness of sin and the Spirit, and the gospel conditions, repentance with faith and baptism.

It is not enough to ���proclaim Jesus.��� For there are many different Jesus being presented today? According to the New Testament gospel, however, he is historical (he really lived, died, rose and ascended in the arena of history), theological (his life, death, resurrection and ascension all have saving significance) and contemporary (he lives and reigns to restore salvation on those who respond to him). Thus the apostles told the same story of Jesus at three levels ��� as historical event (witnessed by their own eyes), as having theological significance (interpreted by the Scriptures), and as contemporary message (confronting men and women with the necessity of decision). We have the same responsibility today to tell the story of Jesus as fact, doctrine and gospel.

Open

What difference do you think it would make if the Holy Spirit were withdrawn from your life and your Christian community?

Study

Read Acts 2:1-13. Pentecost brought to the apostles what they needed for their special role. Christ had appointed them to be his primary and authoritative witnesses and had promised them the reminding and teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Pentecost was the inauguration of the new era of the Spirit. Although his coming was a unique and unrepeatable historical event, all the people of God can now always and everywhere benefit from his ministry.

1. Describe in detail, as if you were a reporter covering an important story, what happened on the day of Pentecost.

2. What were the different reactions to these events?

3. When Luke spoke of the international nature of the crowd which collected, he was speaking from his own horizon ��� the Greco-Roman world situated around the Mediterranean basin, every nation in which there were Jews. This was the international, multilingual crowd which gathered around the 120 believers. Why do you think Luke emphasizes this fact?

4. Read Acts 2:14-41. What do you observe about Peter as he addresses the crowd?

5. How does Peter explain these amazing events that have taken place at Pentecost?

6. On what basis does Peter announce that God has made this Jesus both Lord and Christ (vv. 29-36)?

7. How did the people respond to Peter���s clear proclamation of the truth about Jesus and the truth about themselves (vv. 37-41)?

8. Based on the information given in this passage, how would you summarize the message of Jesus?

9. Read Acts 2:42-47. What are the spiritual and practical results of the outpouring of the Spirit?

Apply

How do you respond to the work and power of the Holy Spirit as you see it in this chapter? When have you seen and experienced the work of the Spirit in your life and Christian community? What do you need to do in order to more effectively proclaim the truth about Jesus to those who may not know him as the Lord and Christ?

Pray

Praise God for the work and power of his Holy Spirit. Ask him to teach you to understand and rely on his ministry.

Waiting for the Spirit

WAITING FOR THE SPIRIT (Acts 1)

Times. Dates. We want to know when Jesus will return. So did the apostles. In Acts 1 they were asking, ���Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?��� (v. 6).

Jesus told the disciples that they were not to know times or dates, but what they should know was that they would receive power so that, between the Spirit���s coming at Pentecost and the Son���s coming again, they could be his witnesses in ever-widening circles. In fact, the whole interim period between Pentecost and Jesus��� return is to be filled with the worldwide mission of the church in the power of the Spirit. Christ���s followers were both to announce what he had achieved at his first coming and to summon people to be his witnesses ���to the ends of the earth��� (1:8).

Christ���s vision and commission would give clear direction to the disciple���s prayers during their ten days of waiting for Pentecost. But before the Spirit could come, the Son must go. The themes of Acts 1 will encourage and instruct all who wait for Jesus.

The major event of the early chapters of the Acts took place on the day of Pentecost, when the now-exalted Lord Jesus performed the last work of his saving career (until his coming again) and ���poured��� out the Holy Spirit on his waiting people. His life, death, resurrection and ascension all culminated in the great gift, which the prophets had foretold and which would be recognized as the chief evidence that God���s kingdom had been inaugurated. For this conclusion of Christ���s work on earth was also a fresh beginning. Just as the Spirit came upon Jesus to equip him for his public ministry, so now the Spirit was to come upon his people to equip them for theirs.

Luke tells us that their prayers had two characteristics, which, Calvin comments, are ���two essentials for true prayer, namely that they preserved, and were of one mind��� (Acts of the Apostles, vol. 1 [1552, Oliver and Boyd, 1965], p. 38). There can be little doubt that the grounds of this unity and perseverance in prayer were the command and promise of Jesus. He had promised to send them the Spirit soon (1:4-5, 8). He had commanded them to wait for him to come and then to begin their witness. We learn, therefore, that God���s promises do not remove the need for prayer. On the contrary, it is only his promises which give us the warrant to pray and the confidence that he will hear and answer.

Summary: In a sense all the disciples of Jesus can claim that he has chosen us, revealed him to us, commissioned us as his witnesses, and both promised and given us his Spirit. Nevertheless, it is not to these general privileges that Luke is referring here, but to the special qualifications of an apostle ��� a personal appointment as an apostle by Jesus, an eyewitness experience of the historical Jesus, an authorizing and commissioning by Jesus to speak in his name, and the empowering Spirit of Jesus to inspire their teaching. It was primarily these uniquely qualified men through whom Jesus continued ���to do and to teach,��� and to whom Luke intends to introduce us in the Acts. The stage is now set for the day of Pentecost. The apostles have received Christ���s commission and seen his ascension. The apostolic team is complete again; ready to be his chosen witnesses. Only one thing is missing: the Spirit has not yet come. So we leave Luke���s first chapter of Acts with the 120 waiting in Jerusalem, persevering in prayer with one heart and mind, poised ready to fulfill Christ���s command just as soon as he has fulfilled his promise.

Open

What helps you to feel equipped to carry out Jesus��� ministry on earth?

Study

Read Acts 1:1-5. Luke���s first two verses are extremely significant. It is no exaggeration to say that they set Christianity apart from other religions that regard their founder as having completed his ministry during his lifetime. Luke says Jesus only began his. This is the kind of Jesus Christ we believe in: both the historical Jesus who lived and the contemporary Jesus who lives.

1. In what ways did Jesus prepare and equip his apostles to continue his ministry and life on earth?

2. What was the significance of the fact that Jesus showed himself to the apostles and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive?

3. How would the apostles��� ministry be affected by the fact that Jesus chose, commissioned and instructed them?

4. Read Acts 1:6-11. What evidence is there that the disciples did not understand the kingdom that Jesus set up?

5. The primary way that Jesus equipped the apostles was the promise of the Holy Spirit. What was going to be the result of the Holy Spirit coming on them?

6. What difference would the ascension of Jesus and the promise of his return make in the ministry of the apostles?

7. Read Acts 1:12-26. Why do you think prayer seemed to be the major activity that they engaged in after they returned?

8. What was Peter���s conclusion about Judas (vv. 15-20)?

9. What were the qualifications of the person who would replace Judas (vv. 21-26)?

10. Why were these qualifications important?

Apply

The records of these acts of the Holy Ghost have never reached completeness. This is the one book which has no proper close, because it waits for new chapters to be added so fast and so far as the people of God shall reinstate the blessed Spirit in his holy seat of control. How are you involved in being and praying for the witness of Jesus throughout the world, beginning with your own ���Jerusalem���? How have you seen the power of the Holy Spirit in the ministry of others and in your own life? How would you like to experience more of his power?

Pray

Praise God for the provision that he has made for you to be his witness. Ask him to empower you for that task.