Today’s passage: Acts 14:19-28

Helpful thoughts:

• Paul did not die, but he must have been close.  They were able to drag his body of the city.
  • A miracle seems to have taken place.  He went from looking dead, to getting up and walking right back into the city, to being ready to travel the next day to preach some more!
• Paul and Barnabas went back through these cities on the way to their home base in Antioch.  They risked the same treatment all over again to ensure local churches were established, seeing elders appointed in each one. (The words bishop, elder and pastor all speak of the same office in the New Testament)
• The church at Antioch had an incredibly important role in the ministry of Paul and Barnabas (And those who had traveled with them).
  • These men needed to receive ministry and rest!
  • The church probably benefited just as much, if not more, from being able to hear these stories and to serve their missionaries.

Questions to consider:

1. If you had just been stoned and dragged out of the city, where direction do you think you would walk after you got up?  What if you knew your mission was of grave importance and your ability to rise up was a miracle from God?  Will God’s servants die before God is done with them here?
2. When we see elders/pastors being appointed in each church in the New Testament, it’s always in the plural (Never just an elder, always elders).  What benefits do you see to having more than one elder/pastor in every church?
3. In what ways can we as a local church encourage our people to go preach the gospel to the nations?  How can we as a church be an encouragement to the missionaries we support?

Today’s passage: Acts 14:1-18

Helpful thoughts:

• Stoning was a Jewish form of execution.  When stoning was threatened against Paul or other Christians, it is pretty clear who was behind the threats.
• Miracles are shown again to not be the deciding factor in bringing people to faith.  When the people of Lystra saw a miracle, they attributed it to the gods of their choice.  Things got worse, not better.
• To run into this frenzied crowd to stop them from worshiping false gods was dangerous.  In one city, Paul and Barnabas left at the threat of violence.  In another, they ran straight in.
  • The difference seems to be the opportunity for ministry.  In Iconium, they had been able to preach the gospel.  In Lystra, the people had not yet heard.

Questions to consider:

1. What method did the unbelieving Jews employ against the Paul and Barnabas in Iconium?  Did they have a legitimate argument for their beliefs or was it something else?  If we were to see persecution from others today, should we expect it always to be a direct attack at the gospel message?  What issues could be used to poison the minds of people against Christians today?
2. What pattern are we starting to see in the cities Paul and Barnabas visit?  What do Paul and Barnabas want to make sure they accomplish in each place?  What happens in each place once the message is shared?
3. How did Paul and Barnabas respond when the people started worshiping them?  What did they want more than anything else for the people in Lystra (And everywhere else)?

Today’s passage: Acts 13:42-52

Helpful thoughts:

• The Jews at Antioch were motivated by envy.  Their joy was not in pointing people to God, but in gathering a crowd of followers for themselves.
• Those who were persuaded to “continue in the grace of God” were Jews and proselytes who had truly been saved by faith in the coming Messiah, who now upon learning of the Messiah who had come continued in the grace of God.  Had they rejected Jesus, they would have shown their faith was not in any savior at all…only in keeping the rules (Legalism).
  • This is the underlying theme of the book of Hebrews.
• Paul quoted the Old Testament in order to rebuke these Jewish men.
  • Read Isaiah 49:1-7 to get the context.
  • The “preserved of Israel” were to take the gospel to the nations.  Paul and Barnabas were doing just that.  In quoting this passage, these others Jews who rejected the gospel were being told who they were as well  (Not the preserved!).
    • When Jews would leave Gentile cities in those days, they shook the dust off their feet to show their contempt for the heathen people.  Paul and Barnabas were shaking the dust off their feet toward the unbelieving Jews.

Questions to consider:

1. Who put their faith in Christ (“Believed”) on this occasion at Antioch? (Verse 48)  Why should this give us confidence to share the gospel with others?  In what way are we guaranteed success?
2. What did Paul and Barnabas signify by shaking the dust off their feet?  Who are God’s people?  Who are the heathen?  (Be careful, the answer is not Jews or Gentiles…Our blood does not save us!)
3. In the midst of opposition and being chased out of town, what emotion did these disciples feel? (Verse 52)  How can this encourage us today to obey the Lord in making disciples?

Today’s passage: Acts 13:13-41

Helpful thoughts:

• John Mark’s departure, so early in this journey, would become a source of contention later on between Paul and Barnabas.
• Paul quotes Psalm 2:7, Isaiah 55:3, Psalm 16:10 and Habakkuk 1:5.
• Those who rejected Jesus in Jerusalem did so in accordance with the scriptures and were guilty of rejecting God.
  • God is sovereign and all-knowing.  Man is responsible for our sinful choices.

Questions to consider:

1. Who was Paul sharing this message with?  What did he share with them?  How did he share the gospel?
2. What was the climax of Paul’s telling of the Bible’s narrative?  How should this shape how we read the Old Testament as well?
3. How did Paul conclude his address?  What were the listeners required to do with what they had just heard?

Today’s passage: Acts 13:1-12

Helpful thoughts:

• Chapter 13 begins a new section in the Book of Acts.  The gospel is now going toward the ends of the earth.  The narrative will follow Paul’s ministry more closely from this point on.
• John, their assistant (Verse 5), is John Mark.  He is the writer of the Gospel of Mark.  John Mark at different times served alongside Paul, Barnabas, and the Apostle Peter.
• Bar-Jesus’ name means “Son of Jesus.”  Paul calls him instead, a son of the devil.
  • Jesus Christ obviously didn’t have any biological sons.  But, there were many men with this name at that time.
  • Bar-Jesus and Elymas are the same man.
• Bar-Jesus, as a false prophet, did not cease speaking the name of God.  Instead, he “did not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord.”
  • Satan is a liar and deceiver.  Some of his best deceptions are those labeled as “Christian.”
  • “Satan’s greatest weapon is man’s ignorance of God’s Word.” – A.W. Tozer

Questions to consider:

1. What was different about this moment of the Holy Spirit speaking to these leaders and what we might see from someone writing a book about God talking to them today?  How many people were present and involved in hearing this instruction?  What was the point of God’s message?  Was it to reassure their felt worth and value or to accomplish His will?
2. What truly astonished the proconsul?  Not what do we assume astonished him…what does this passage tell us truly astonished him (Verse 12)?
3. How important is the truth we find in 2 Timothy 3:16-17?  When we might be tempted to hope for a special revelation from God, what do we want Him to tell us?  What has He already given us through the completed, authoritative Word of God?  If we want something more than what God calls “complete” or to be equipped for more than “everything,” what are we revealing about our view of Scripture?
4. What was most important about these men, that they heard this call or that they were ready and willing to obey it?

Today’s passage: Acts 12:20-25

Helpful thoughts:

• Herod did not have to believe in God to be held accountable for not giving Him the glory He deserves. (Romans 1:18-25)
• Josephus the historian gives account of Herod wearing a robe made of silver on this occasion and then enduring terrible pain for five days before he died.
• In the midst of political upheaval, Paul, Barnabas and the church kept focused on the task at hand.  They weren’t ignorant of what was going on around them, but they weren’t ruled by it either.

Questions to consider:

1. How should the Christians in 44 A.D. have viewed King Herod?  To whom was he responsible ultimately (Just the Caesar or Someone higher)?  How can this help us to think correctly about politicians and politics in our day and in this country?  What do presidents and governors need more than our vote?  How do our responses and criticisms help or hurt the cause to which Christ has called us?
2. How can Herod’s responsibility before God also bring us peace in the midst of political or governmental uncertainty and turmoil?  Who is in control? (Proverbs 21:1)  Regardless of who is in office, who is God defending? (Romans 8:31-39)
3. What ministry would God have us fulfill right now?  How can we keep the main thing the main thing? (Matthew 28:18-20)

Today’s passage: Acts 12:1-19

Helpful thoughts:

• This “Herod” was Herod Agrippa I.  He didn’t have a great relationship with Rome which would have given him a greater reason to seek favor with the Jewish leaders over which he reigned.  Persecuting the Christians was proving effective.
• Peter was detained by a rotation of sixteen soldiers.  Four would guard him at a time, where two would be chained to Peter and two would guard the door.
• Jews believed that each person had a guardian angel who could take on their physical form.  This isn’t in the Bible, it was simply a traditionally held belief.
• The James who died in verse 2 was the Apostle John’s brother (The disciple from the Gospels).  The James who needed to hear the news of Peter’s escape from prison was the leader/pastor of the church in Jerusalem who was Jesus’ half-brother.  He is the James who wrote the book of James in the New Testament.

Questions to consider:

1. What do you think the believers at Mary’s house were probably praying if they didn’t believe Peter was actually at the front door?  If God wants to give us more than we ask, is He limited by our prayers? (Ephesians 3:20)
2. Peter would eventually die a martyr’s death.  His death would greatly honor the Lord.  Why didn’t Peter die on this occasion? (Psalm 139:16, Philippians 1:19-26)
3. With Heaven and perfect fellowship with God ahead of us, why does God still have us here in this world?  (If you are here, it’s because God has a purpose for you!)  What would He have you to do today?  How can you live for Christ in obedience to God’s Word today?

Today’s passage: Acts 11:19-30

Helpful thoughts:

• This passage details how word traveled to the believers who had left Jerusalem before Cornelius’ household believed.
  • They hadn’t received the “memo” to preach to the Gentiles as well.  The encouraging Barnabas (And man from Cyprus according to 4:36) was recruited to spread the word.
• “Christians” was not a term of endearment.  This is what the people of Antioch called the church.  Of course for those who know the glories of our Lord and Savior, it is an honor to be named with Him!
  • That the people came up with a name for the church tells us the growing impact the church was having on the community.
• This is the first time we see elders in any of the churches.  They were the leaders in each local church who were in the place of leadership the Apostles and Prophets would have held.
  • The elders were always mentioned in the plural throughout the New Testament.  There were always elders…never just an elder.

Questions to consider:

1. What condition may Saul have been in when Barnabas found him in his hometown according to his own testimony in Philippians 3:8?  If you were Barnabas, where would you have gone to find him?
2. What was the purpose for Agabus’ prophecy in verse 28?  Was he just proving that he was a prophet?  What was the Lord’s intended fruit of revealing this truth to the church outside of Jerusalem?  What would have been true if Agabus’ prophecy didn’t prove true?
3. If elders were already in place by this time, what can we learn about the place of Apostles and Prophets even in the early church?  Did they replicate themselves?  Was there an endless supply in every local church?  What should we expect to see in the leadership of local churches today?

Today’s passage: Acts 11:1-18

Helpful thoughts:

• When others heard of this new realm of ministry opportunity, they found fault and brought accusations.
  • Their unbelief was met with the same testimony and sign as Peter saw with his own eyes.
• The Gentiles were not cleansed when the Jews started to feel comfortable with the idea.  God brought the cleansing, then He graciously gave the believing Jews awareness of what was already true.
  • Who are we that we could withstand God?
• God has granted to the Gentiles repentance to life!
  • My guess is most of the readers of this devotional are benefactors of this truth.

Questions to consider:

1. Who all was included in the “all your household” of verse 14? (See 10:44)  Would infants have been included in that number? Who were the people who were baptized?
2. In what way did the sign of tongues prove useful in this instance?  Did they need to occur once again or were the reports from eye-witnesses sufficient?  As we read this account, how are we still benefiting from the same eye-witnesses today?
3. What habits, comforts, cultural norms might we hold dear that could interfere with our ability to be involved in God’s work?  None of us want to withstand God…how can we stand with Him in our day?

Today’s passage: Acts 10:1-48

Helpful thoughts:

• The way Cornelius is introduced teaches us that he had given up his pagan idolatry and feared God.  However, he had not become a proselyte Jew.  Cornelius was still an uncircumcised Gentile.
• Peter understood that his vision from God was not just about food.  God had called the Gentile people clean (Verse 28).  The Church is an in-gathering of Jew and Gentile alike, cleansed by the blood of the Lamb!
• The Jewish Christians hadn’t believed the Gentiles would be welcomed straight into the family of God, not without first becoming proselyte Jews.  These tongues confirmed their unbelief in this matter was in error. (1 Corinthians 14:22)

Questions to consider:

1. What message did Peter preach to them?  What did they need to hear and know to believe?
2. If someone were to mistakenly use Peter’s words in Acts 2:38 to teach baptism is necessary to earn salvation, how would this passage correct that?  On the other extreme, does this passage teach baptism as optional for new believers?  What will new Christians do in humble obedience to their Lord’s command?
3. How does this passage fit into the promise of Acts 1:8?  Why is it so important that Peter was the Apostle whom God chose to use on this occasion and not Paul?  In what way do the events of this passage change the trajectory of the rest of the book…and the world?