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Living (and Dying) For Christ

Published May 19, 2015 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Acts, martyr, persecution, Stephen

The early church in Jerusalem was growing in leaps and bounds. The apostles were preaching their message of the risen Christ and that same Christ was working through those same apostles to heal the sick. The Holy Spirit was working through the members of the church and more and more converts were joining their quickly swelling ranks.

Peter, John and the other apostles had been arrested a couple of times and told to tone down their preaching. They did the opposite. What else could they do? They had been specifically told by God, through an angel, to preach and preach some more.

It was getting difficult for the religious leaders of Jerusalem to ignore this new religious movement. The last time the apostles were arrested, a member of the Sanhedrin gave the ruling council this piece of advice:

“And so my advice is, leave these men alone. If what they teach and do is merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. But if it is of God, you will not be able to stop them, lest you find yourselves fighting even against God.” (Acts 5:38, 39 TLB)

The Sanhedrin thought this was good advice and, after beating the apostles, let them go.

They left the Council chamber rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer dishonor for his name. And every day, in the Temple and in their home Bible classes, they continued to teach and preach that Jesus is the Messiah. (Acts 5:41, 42 TLB)

It didn’t take long, however, before the first internal controversy arose involving, of all things, a bunch of widows.

The good, Acts 6:1 – 8

The church was growing like crazy.

But with the believers multiplying rapidly, there were rumblings of discontent. (Acts 6:1 TLB)

That phrase, “with the believers multiplying,” gives us an idea of how quickly this new congregation was growing. In the Greek, “multiplying” is a present participle, meaning “continuous growth.” This new church was welcoming new members continuously. In present-day America where over-all church attendance is dwindling, it seems incredible that this kind of growth was possible. But we know it did happen, and the more members a church has, the more problems it has.

Those who spoke only Greek complained that their widows were being discriminated against, that they were not being given as much food in the daily distribution as the widows who spoke Hebrew. (Acts 6:1b TLB)

Things haven’t changed much in 2,000 years. People are still complaining, in church and out, that others are getting more than they are. In this case, two groups of widows, a Greek group and a Hebrew group, butted heads. The Greek-speaking widows didn’t feel as though they were getting “their fair share” of the free food. Was this a legitimate complaint? The cynic in me says it wasn’t. Everybody wants “free stuff.” The problem, however, was not the distribution of food to widows. The problem was that the complaining threatened the unity of the church. Something had to be done to preserve that unity. The apostles came up with a plan:

“Now look around among yourselves, dear brothers, and select seven men, wise and full of the Holy Spirit, who are well thought of by everyone; and we will put them in charge of this business. Then we can spend our time in prayer, preaching, and teaching.” (Acts 6:3, 4 TLB)

Here we have the first deacon board being established. Why seven men? Some think that it was because Jerusalem had been divided up into seven districts and that there were seven smaller, satellite congregations meeting in large homes or buildings, therefore seven deacons would have represented these districts. Others think that the simplest reason is the best reason: In Jewish numerology, “seven” symbolized completeness. It was a sacred number.

The qualifications for deacons were as follows: First, they had to be men. In point of fact, there were female deacons later on in the life of the church. Second, these men had to be believers who were part of the church. No outsiders were to have a part in the government of the church. Third, they had to be men with a good reputation in the community. Fourth, they had to be spiritual men, that is, they had to be “full of the Holy Spirit.” This was the normal, not unusual, expectation of the church. And lastly, deacons needed to be men of wisdom. This “wisdom” was both a native wisdom (they needed to know how to get the job done) as well as the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.

The congregation, pleased at the decisions made by the church leadership, chose seven men. All seven had Greek names, which seems to indicate that they were chosen in deference to the Greek speaking widows who had instigated the controversy. The seven deacons were ordained, that is, they were set apart and the apostles laid their hands on each of them as a sign of their association with them in the work of the Lord.

As a result of this quick action taken by the apostles, the result was obvious:

God’s message was preached in ever-widening circles, and the number of disciples increased vastly in Jerusalem; and many of the Jewish priests were converted too. (Acts 6:7 TLB)

This was an obvious result because the apostles could now devote their entire time and attention to the preaching of the Word, and it is the Word that yields results. The “waiting on tables” part of the ministry was now taken care of by the deacons.

The bad, Acts 6:9 – 15

One of the newly chosen deacons, Stephen, now takes center stage. His name means “crown,” which is appropriate since he would become the first to wear the martyr’s crown. As an aside, Stephen’s martyrdom provides the historical link between Peter and Paul because it is at Stephen’s stoning that Paul, or Saul, is first mentioned.

It seems that Stephen’s gifts put him more in line with the apostles than with the other six deacons who “waited on tables.” Because of Stephen’s effective preaching and the signs that accompanied his ministry, he caught the attention of some other religious types who wanted to argue with him and who eventually accused him of two things: (1) That he was always speaking against the Temple, and (2) that he was changing the law of Moses. These charges served to label Stephen a blasphemer. Of course none of the charges were true, but he was still made to answer them. It may well be that it was his name, a Greek name and not a Jewish name, that caused Stephen to be treated far more harshly than the other apostles were when they were taken into custody.

At this point everyone in the Council chamber saw Stephen’s face become as radiant as an angel’s! (Acts 6:15 TLB)

This is a remarkable sentence. The radiance of Stephen’s face was glowing with God’s glory and presence. This wasn’t the first time God’s glory shined through one of His people:

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. (Exodus 34:29, 30 NIV)

The ugly, Acts 7:51 – 60

Beginning with Acts 7:2, Stephen give a lengthy reply to the High Priest’s question:

“Are these accusations true?” (TLB)

In fact, Stephen’s answer is a sermon; the longest sermon recorded in Acts. It’s as long as all three of Paul’s put together. This long sermon paints a very bad picture of the Jews. Like Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, there is a lot of history in Stephen’s sermon, the climax of which comes at verse 51:

“You stiff-necked heathen! Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? But your fathers did, and so do you! ” (TLB)

Needless to say, the religious leaders were not at all impressed with Stephen. They were enraged. Where did Stephen’s courage come from? The Holy Spirit certainly, but of all the religious leaders listening to this deacon, none was free except Stephen. Robert Frost was right when he wrote:

Freedom lies in being bold.

As Stephen boldly bore down with the truth, the members of the council became disorderly. The Word of God as proclaimed by this Christian convicted these men to such an extent that they interrupted his defense/sermon intent on stoning him to death. Sometimes the objective truth of God’s Word has that effect on people; it drives them to distraction, or in this case, drove these religious leaders to violence.

The Sanhedrin, in their anger and in their disgust with Stephen, became the lawbreakers! They had no authority to sentence this deacon to death, let alone pick up the stones and to carry out a death sentence themselves.

In the midst of this melee, Stephen stood completely at ease, sustained by the risen Lord at God’s right hand.

But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily upward into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and Jesus the Messiah standing beside God, at his right hand!” (Acts 7:55, 56 TLB)

With that sentence, Stephen guaranteed his death; it was as though he poured gasoline on an open fire. These highly educated men of religion, in a fury and frenzy, dragged Stephen out of town and proceeded to stone him to death. Like Jesus, as Stephen faced certain death, he simply prayed:

And as the murderous stones came hurtling at him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And he fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” and with that, he died. (Acts 7:59, 60 TLB)

One of the witnesses of this travesty of justice was a man who will become very prominent in Acts and in the history of the early church:

The official witnesses—the executioners—took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Paul. (Acts 7:58 TLB)

Evangelist Leonard Ravenhill helps put things in perspective. Stephen was in no way the victim. He was the victor.

Everyone recognizes that Stephen was Spirit-filled when he was performing wonders. Yet, he was just as Spirit-filled when he was being stoned to death.

We who enjoy freedom to preach and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in America don’t encounter a lot of persecution. Although that is starting to change, with the IRS and various government agencies abusing their power and authority by targeting Christians and Christian groups or charities for unnecessary audits and “soft persecution,” none of us has been stoned. Yet. But this event changed the early church forever – for the better. It lit the spark that caused these early Christians to get out of Jerusalem and into the unreached Gentile world.

Stephen was dead, but the story was far from over.

Paul was in complete agreement with the killing of Stephen. And a great wave of persecution of the believers began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem, and everyone except the apostles fled into Judea and Samaria. (Acts 8:1 TLB)

Out of tragedy came a golden opportunity for the Gospel to advance into the rest of the world. And the Lord was working on a man who would soon become the greatest evangelist and preacher the church ever knew.

5 P’s

Published May 12, 2015 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: 5 P's, Acts, persecution, power, Preaching, purging, purity

It’s good to get along with people – with as many people as you can. Nobody sets out to become the object ridicule, scorn or mockery. Most of us try to avoid confrontation and seek the approval, tacit or otherwise, of people. The idea of being singled out for special treatment – think persecution – gives us pause. It is something to be avoided. The apostle Paul believed this to be true and made it part of his teachings:

Don’t quarrel with anyone. Be at peace with everyone, just as much as possible. (Romans 12:18 TLB)

However, sometimes the Christian just can’t “be at peace” with some people. An unfortunate and overriding idea throughout the New Testament is that from time to time Christians may expect persecution, but that experience should be considered a blessing.

I demand that you love each other, for you get enough hate from the world! But then, it hated me before it hated you. (John 15:17, 18 TLB)

When you are reviled and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers—wonderful! Be happy about it! Be very glad! for a tremendous reward awaits you up in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted too. (Matthew 5:11, 12 TLB)

If that weren’t bad enough, later on Peter got into the persecution bandwagon and wrote that Christians ought to rejoice – be happy, mind you – when they are persecuted on account of their faith.

Dear friends, don’t be bewildered or surprised when you go through the fiery trials ahead, for this is no strange, unusual thing that is going to happen to you. Instead, be really glad—because these trials will make you partners with Christ in his suffering, and afterwards you will have the wonderful joy of sharing his glory in that coming day when it will be displayed. (1 Peter 4:12, 13 TLB)

Now, lest you think that Christians should run around actively looking to be persecuted, that’s not the idea at all. Hopefully times of persecution will be few and far between. But, if you as a Christian face some kind of persecution because of your belief in Jesus Christ, then that’s actually a good thing because it means that your life, in some way, resembles that of Jesus Christ’s. If the world persecuted Him, and the world persecutes you, then you must be doing something right.

Power and preaching, Acts 3:1 – 21

But Peter said, “We don’t have any money for you! But I’ll give you something else! I command you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk! ”

Then Peter took the lame man by the hand and pulled him to his feet. And as he did, the man’s feet and ankle bones were healed and strengthened so that he came up with a leap, stood there a moment and began walking! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them. (Acts 3:6 – 8 TLB)

This incident reminds of an earlier verse in Acts:

A deep sense of awe was on them all, and the apostles did many miracles. (Acts 2:43 TLB)

No wonder people in Jerusalem, and especially members of the fledgling church there, were in “awe.” Miracles of the type in Acts 3 don’t happen every day! That’s why they’re called “miracles.” The circumstances surrounding this miracle were really the intersection of two habits. One was the habit of Peter and John visiting the temple; the other was the habit of the lame man being carried to the temple to beg. It’s interesting (and fortunate for the lame beggar!) that even after the formation of the new church the disciples continued to attend services at the temple. This tells us that in spite of their faith in Jesus Christ, they continued to faithfully observe the obligations of their Jewish faith. Josephus tells us that even during the siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD the priests continued this religious tradition of going twice a day to the temple, in the morning and in the evening, to pray and offer their sacrifices on the altar.

This miracle was completely unexpected. God frequently does the unexpected to get the attention of people. Jim Cymbala notes:

People pay attention when they see that God actually changes persons and sets them free. When someone is healed or released from a life-controlling bondage, everyone takes notice.

He’s right about that, of course. This lame man got far more than he bargained for this day! He was gloriously healed “in the name of Jesus Christ.” That interesting phrase is used to this day and a lot of people, even those who use it when they pray, don’t know what it means. A name stands for all that the person is. So the name of Christ would include all the power and authority of Christ. When Peter, then, exercised the healing power “in the name of Christ,” he was, as it were, standing in place of Christ, representing Him and His authority and power. The man was healed, completely and instantaneously. His faith responded to Peter’s words and the grip of his hand. This is a powerful illustration of what happens to the helpless sinner, who is a spiritual cripple unable to help himself. When he responds in faith and obedience, as this lame man did, he finds new life and power to stand and walk upright in the way of righteousness.

There were three consequences of this remarkable miracle. First, the lame man was filled with joy. This is understandable; you’d be filled with joy to if all of a sudden your bones straightened out and for the first time you could stand up and walk like everybody else! Second, God received praise. The man stopped his begging and accompanied Peter and John into the temple. This suggests that he knew this miracle came from the power of God. Third, the people that witnessed this miracle were amazed and testified about what they had seen.

Not wanting to waste a golden opportunity, just like he did on the Day of Pentecost, Peter took advantage of what happened to preach a sermon. He took a current event and used it as an object lesson to exalt the name of Jesus. The people were doubtlessly impressed with these two apostles, but Peter put them in their place, rebuking them for not understanding how the healing happened. It wasn’t Peter or John who did it, it was Jesus, the one they killed.

Almost as remarkable as the healing of the lame man was the astounding spiritual transformation of Peter. Here was the cowardly man who, just weeks earlier, denied that he even knew Jesus, standing up in front of people proclaiming Him to be the Messiah.

Purity and purging, Acts 5:1 – 11

The opening verses Acts 5 record the sad story of a husband and wife, members of the church in Jerusalem. These very early days of the church were heady indeed. The church grew in leaps and bounds, propelled by the power of the Holy Spirit and the unrestrained preaching of the Word of God. This new “movement” attracted all kinds of people, including, in the case of this couple, liars.

What happened to Ananias and Sapphira reminds of what Peter himself would write later:

For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin first among God’s own children. And if even we who are Christians must be judged, what terrible fate awaits those who have never believed in the Lord? (1 Peter 4:17 TLB)

The church was growing and was influential, and Satan wouldn’t have any of that! In chapter 4 he tried by means of some outward persecution to stifle the Word of God. We are told that the authorities came and, even while Peter was still preaching, arrested him and tossed him and John into jail. It was a futile attempt; these men were guilty of nothing. Satan’s attempt to stop the Gospel by attacking the church from without failed. Now he would attack from within.

But there was a man named Ananias (with his wife Sapphira) who sold some property and brought only part of the money, claiming it was the full price. (His wife had agreed to this deception.)But Peter said, “Ananias, Satan has filled your heart. When you claimed this was the full price, you were lying to the Holy Spirit. The property was yours to sell or not, as you wished. And after selling it, it was yours to decide how much to give. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us, but to God.” (Acts 5:1 – 4 TLB)

This couple had lied and they both paid the ultimate price. Their lives were taken. God intervened in this situation to preserve the purity of the words and work of this church by purging out some of the weak members of the group. Subtraction is better than addition, sometimes. If this divine judgment seems a bit harsh, keep in mind that Ananias and Sapphira lied to the whole church. If they could do that, God knew what else they were capable of doing. Dishonesty among believers can lead to all kinds of trouble, not the least of which is a ruined testimony in the community. This God would not allow. One Bible scholar wrote:

The offense of Ananias and Sapphira showed contempt for God, vanity and ambition in the offenders, and utter disregard of the corruption which they were bringing into the church. They thought more of the display made at the Apostle’s feet than of the offense before God’s eyes.

Indeed. Still, it’s hard to understand how there could have been such hypocrites in the Early Church so soon after the coming of the Holy Spirit, and it’s is hard to comprehend why selfish, insincere people would join a church today, only to cause trouble and division.

Nothing will kill the power of a church’s testimony faster than a church filled with sinning Christians. There is no substitute for personal purity. But that kind of purity is expensive.

The Lord’s intervention apparently had the desired effect:

Terror gripped the entire church and all others who heard what had happened. (Acts 5:11 TLB)

This is an important verse because it’s the very first time the group of believers in Jerusalem was referred to as a “church.” The use of this word by the Christians implied that they, not the Jews, were the “true people of God.”

As a result of this purging three things happened. First, the purity of the church remained intact. Second, godly fear and reverence came upon all the members. They realized it was a serious thing (if not dangerous!) to be a follower of Christ. Lastly, a new power was experienced by the church. Signs and wonders filled the assembly.

Persecution, Acts 5:17-24

The High Priest and his relatives and friends among the Sadducees reacted with violent jealousy and arrested the apostles, and put them in the public jail. (Acts 5:17, 18 TLB)

The Saducess were behind this. The preaching of the resurrection, something this Jewish religious sect steadfastly denied, angered them and the apostles were unceremonially cast into jail. God, however, had other plans:

But an angel of the Lord came at night, opened the gates of the jail and brought them out. Then he told them, “Go over to the Temple and preach about this Life!” (Acts 5:19, 20 TLB)

Thomas Watson made this keen observation:

The angel fetched Peter out of prison, but it was prayer that fetched the angel.

An astute observation. It’s the prayers of the faithful that move the hand of God. In this case, the Lord set His preachers free and commanded them to back to doing the very thing that got them arrested in the first place!

This whole incident must have really aggravated those Saducees. They didn’t believe in the resurrection, and that’s all these Christians were talking about, and they didn’t believe in angels, and here an angel set the preachers free! God does indeed have a sense of humor.

Just like the night before, they were arrested again and imprisoned. The leaders of the nation began to accuse the apostles. Apparently all twelve of them were tried together, and had it not been for the timely intervention of Gamaliel, these Christian preachers would have been killed.

It was Peter who made the famous statement:

“We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29b TLB)

God had specifically told the apostles to do exactly what the church and political leaders told them not to do. And this brings us back to what Paul wrote:

Don’t quarrel with anyone. Be at peace with everyone, just as much as possible. (Romans 12:18 TLB)

Peter, John, and the rest of the members of the early church had a moral obligation to obey God. Certainly God through the angel had ordered the preaching to resume, but our Lord issued His Great Commission and it is still in force two millennia later. All of Christ’s followers are to do what the apostles and members of the early church did: preach the Gospel, share their faith with the lost, and make converts.

So, yes it is good to get along with people. But it’s better to get along with God. It’s certainly safer in the long run.

That is why we can say without any doubt or fear, “The Lord is my Helper, and I am not afraid of anything that mere man can do to me.” (Hebrews 13:6 TLB)

Life in the Early Church

Published April 28, 2015 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Acts, early christians, Early Church, Holy Spirit

Considering how the church was born and what God intended the church to become, it’s remarkable so many Christians either ignore it altogether, having no relationship with it or those who actually attend church just don’t take it seriously enough. The church was born on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit supernaturally filled 120 waiting believers.

And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in languages they didn’t know, for the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. (Acts 2:4 TLB)

Pentecost was an event prophesied in Leviticus 23. It was one of several feast days for Israel, divinely planned and appointed. The first feast day was Passover, which celebrated a new beginning for the people of Israel. This feast was a type, a foreshadow, of Christ our passover sacrifice for us:

Christ, God’s Lamb, has been slain for us. (1 Corinthians 5:7b TLB)

The second feast was the feast of Unleavened Bread. It lasted an entire week and foreshadowed the separated life of the believer; a life lived for God, apart from the world. The feast of Firstfruits was the third feast, and it typified the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Fifty days after this feast came Pentecost, also known as the Feast of Weeks. Similarly, fifty days after the resurrection of our Lord the events of Acts 2 occurred.

The church was born by the power of a Person: the Holy Spirit. The so-called “Pentecostal power” is really just the unfettered working of the Holy Spirit in anybody’s life, anytime. When the Holy Spirit fell on those 120 believers, He baptized them into the Body of Christ, literally uniting them as a unit with the risen Head of the Church, Jesus Christ. This is an experience every believer has at his conversion. At conversion, each believer is baptized by the Spirit into the Body of Christ. On the Day of Pentecost, each believer was also filled with the Holy Spirit individually. This “infilling” is something that all believers may experience repeatedly.

It may be said the Pentecost began the “age of the Spirit.”

Acts 2:42 – 47

They joined with the other believers in regular attendance at the apostles’ teaching sessions and at the Communion services and prayer meetings.

A deep sense of awe was on them all, and the apostles did many miracles.

And all the believers met together constantly and shared everything with each other, selling their possessions and dividing with those in need. They worshiped together regularly at the Temple each day, met in small groups in homes for Communion, and shared their meals with great joy and thankfulness, praising God. The whole city was favorable to them, and each day God added to them all who were being saved.

This handful of verses gives us the dynamics of a healthy church. The word “church” doesn’t appear in Acts until chapter 5, but the initially small community of believers formed at Pentecost was the first Christian church. In all, four things characterized it:

The teaching of the apostles. These men were eyewitnesses; they walked with Jesus and listened to His teachings for three years. The teachings or sermons of the apostles were probably teachings or sermons that Jesus gave. They probably talked about their Lord’s life and ministry. This was something Jesus wanted them to do:

“Therefore go and make disciples in all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and then teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you; and be sure of this—that I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:19, 20 TLB)

Fellowship. The first congregation fellowshipped together, often. They gathered together to share their spiritual blessings and their material blessings.

Communion. The early believers gathered together to hear the apostle’s teaching, to fellowship with each other, and also to have communion. They “broke bread.” We know from Jewish tradition that this group of believers also ate meals together.

Prayer and praise. There were two other things the believers in Jerusalem did whenever they met together, which was often. God and the Lord Jesus were central to their meetings. All the other activities they engaged in revolved around prayer and praise.

This is a church that was healthy. They cared for and about each other as individuals but also as a whole. No doubt they fellowshipped with each other out in the community, but they never neglected meeting together as a congregation that had somethings in common. They held a common experience, a common belief, and a common goal.

The results of this kind of healthy fellowship are obvious:

The people were in awe. That is, the members of the group – the church – worshipped and fellowshipped with reverence for God and the things of God. Apparently this sense of “awe” was bolstered by the signs and wonders performed by the apostle.

They shared what they had with each other. Contrary to what some socialist Christians may think, sharing of possessions had little to do with a regular or customary practice within the early church but had a very practical purpose. During this time – Pentecost – Jerusalem was full of travelers and visitors who were miles away from home, and very often they needed daily necessities. Fact is, after chapter 5, we have no record of this kind “sharing in common” taking place.

Good reputation in town. At least very on in the church age, the congregation in Jerusalem enjoyed a very good reputation among the people. Mind you, this didn’t last too long, but for now, this first congregation was in a very good place.

Growth. Lastly, this church grew. The Lord was moving in Jerusalem, people were getting converted and joining the church.

The church of Jesus Christ is now some 2000 years past this Day of Pentecost. We don’t need another Pentecost; the same Holy Spirit that was at work in this first church is at work in the church today. The overriding needs of the Church today are for its members to be steadfastly dedicated to the teaching of Jesus as revealed in the Bible, committed to fellowshipping together, breaking bread together, and praising God together.

Acts 4:23 – 31

As soon as they were freed, Peter and John found the other disciples and told them what the Council had said. Then all the believers united in this prayer… (Acts 4:23, 24 TLB)

Well, as I mentioned earlier, the early church enjoyed a good reputation in Jerusalem but those feelings of good will didn’t last very long. The first persecution of the apostles took place, which wasn’t too surprising. Jesus did warn His followers to expect it. However, what happened following that persecution was a little unexpected. Instead of hunkering down and going underground, the believers all got together for a prayer meeting! Prayer is always the best way to meet any kind of opposition.

That first sentence is very telling. Here it is from the KJV:

And being let go, they went to their own company...

This is not only a statement of fact, but also of a basic Christian principle. When all outward restraints are gone, what kind of company do you seek?

The prayer which begins at verse 24 and concludes at verse 30 is the longest one Luke ever recorded. It is, in some ways, reminiscent of the prayers found in 2 Kings 19:15 – 19 or Isaiah 37:15 – 20. This great prayer is definitely worthy of not only study but of imitation.

First, notice how they recognized God: He was the God who is the absolute sovereign over His subjects. They used the unusual word despotes, not the more common kyrios. Despotes in English is “despot,” and is sort of a negative word but it does serve to describe their attitude about God: He is the absolute authority and has absolute authority over their lives. They also saw God as the creator; the One who created the universe. In that sense He is the absolute Sovereign.

Then they submitted themselves to the will or plan of God. As they prayed, they quoted from Psalm 2, applying it to Jesus and the Crucifixion. This more than affirms the divine inspiration of what David wrote. Who was responsible for the crucifixion? According to those who prayed this prayer, Herod, Pilate, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel all conspired to do our Lord in. But that human responsibility is mixed in with God’s predetermined plan.

They won’t stop at anything that you in your wise power will let them do. (Acts 4:28 TLB)

God’s plan may not always be sunshine and butterflies, but believers need to learn how to submit to it. The persecution the apostles experienced wasn’t pleasant, nor was it the last time they would be persecuted like this, but it was part of His plan.

And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and grant to your servants great boldness in their preaching, and send your healing power, and may miracles and wonders be done by the name of your holy servant Jesus. (Acts 4:29, 30 TLB)

These two verses represent the believer’s petitions – their prayer requests. What they don’t ask for is almost as interesting as what do ask for. Their petition is filled with a sense of praise and glory to God, but they for boldness in preaching the Word of God. In essence, following the persecution, the people were praying for the strength – the boldness – to carry on. Human nature would be to ease off the preaching for a while. But these people wanted God to help them to keep going. It’s not insignificant that what is missing from this prayer is a request for divine protection! These courageous Christians didn’t want protection, they wanted power.

It didn’t take long, but their prayer was answered:

After this prayer, the building where they were meeting shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and boldly preached God’s message. (Acts 4:31 TLB)

God’s answer to their request for boldness was another infilling (not baptism) of the Holy Spirit which was accompanied by the shaking of their meeting place. As happened during the Day of Pentecost, when they were filled again with the Spirit the went out boldly proclaiming the Word of God. Duncan Campbell’s observation is priceless:

The Kingdom of God is not going to be advanced by our churches becoming filled with men, but by men in our churches becoming filled with God.

Indeed. Life in the early church was marked by a healthy, vibrant, highly spiritual and therefore, functional congregation, vitally connected to each other and to the head of the church, Jesus Christ. The early Christians seemed to be more concerned with the mission God gave them than with their own comfort and safety. No wonder that early church walked in, not only the grace of God, but the power of God, as well.

STUDIES IN ACTS, Part 10

Published April 26, 2011 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: Acts, Bereans, Paul, Second Missionary Journey

The Most Noble of All, Acts 17:10—15

As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. (Acts 17:10a)

Jason found himself in a pickle. He had posted bail for Paul and Silas and got them out of jail in Thessalonica. Had Paul and Silas been found in Jason’s home, he would have forfeited the bail. So he did what he had to do: Jason and his friends sneaked Paul and Silas out of town and sent them in the direction of Berea.

So far, Paul’s second missionary journey was nothing like his first. Unlike the first trip, Paul’s second missionary journey began with an argument with his partner, Barnabas, which resulted Barnabas going his way and Paul going his. There was no supernatural leading here. Paul’s new team traveled literally hundreds of miles with no clear direction as to where they should go. And do you know what got them to set sail to their first port of call? A weird vision of a strange man from Macedonia, who, when they finally landed in Macedonia, was nowhere to be found! When Paul and his friends reached the first town of any population in the area, they couldn’t find a single synagogue anywhere to preach the Word from. Their early efforts produced no great revivals, unlike the first missionary journey did. And when the Spirit of God finally did move in Thessalonica, a girl was delivered from demonic possession, which resulted in Paul and Silas being tossed in the clink.

So Paul and Silas, in addition to being missionaries, were now jailbirds and bail-jumpers! This was a very inauspicious way to work on the mission field. It’s a good thing that our two missionaries did not let their circumstances dictate their level of faith! In spite of this awful start to the famous second missionary journey, our two intrepid missionaries did not grumble or complain, nor did they blame God or assume they had made some terrible mistake. Paul and Silas remind us of those two other warriors for Jehovah, Jonathan and his armor-bearer. Facing the mighty Philistine forces all by themselves, they were confronted with a choice: to fight or hide. Surely the exchange between the two must have gone down in history as one of the greatest statements of faith ever recorded:

Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps the LORD will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few.” “Do all that you have in mind,” his armor-bearer said. “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.” (1 Samuel 14:6, 7)

That’s what faith looks like sometimes: a definite maybe; a “you never know, we could be right and maybe God will come through and help us out.” Sometimes you can sit around praying for leading all day when the best for you to do is stand up and do something for the Lord. One thing is certain, if you heart is right and your motives are pure and your desire is to glorify God, just get up and do it! If you are wrong, the Lord will direct you and straighten you out. It’s easier to steer a moving ship than one that is still. Paul and Silas were moving, and whether or not it was clear to them at the time, they were definitely being led of the Lord.

The LORD makes firm the steps of those who delight in him. (Psalm 37:23)

1. On to Berea, verse 10b—12

On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.

Instead of going to a major city, Paul and Silas travelled some forty miles to an out-of-the-way town called Berea. Paul is true to his calling; upon arriving at Berea, he sought out and found a synagogue from which to preach and the Gospel.

What a difference between the people of Berea and those of Thessalonica! Here is how Luke describes the two:

[T]hey rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. (the Jews is Thessalonica, 17:5)

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. (The Berean Jews, 17:11)

After their terrible experiences in Thessalonica, Paul and Silas were blessed to run into people of honor and integrity. What set apart the noble Bereans from the people of Thessalonica was their approach to the Scriptures. The Bereans tested the truthfulness of Paul’s preaching against the standard of Scripture, whereas the Thessalonians judged Paul’s words by political and cultural standards. Whenever Christians study the Word objectively rather than subjectively and are not influenced by the notions of others or by the culture around them, they are Bereans. For Bereans, the Word of God stands by itself. It is the first and last Word; it is the foundation of their faith and conduct; it is completely relevant and entirely precious. How the Church of Jesus Christ needs faithful Bereans today.

Of these wonderful people, Dr. Luke makes two main points:

They were noble. Luke shows how the Bereans were noble-minded by comparing their behavior to that of the Thessalonians. As far as Luke was concerned, just being open to the Word and not dismissing it out of hand is being “noble-minded.” The Berean Jews, however, were already predisposed to receiving the truth of God’s Word because they valued it as part of their Jewish faith. When they heard the Gospel, something inside of them knew what Paul was saying was just as much God’s Word as was their precious Old Testament. The more Paul preached, the more the Bereans poured over their Scriptures. It’s not that they were questioning what Paul was saying; the preaching of the Word caused them to honestly analyze and compare the Apostle’s words with the Word. They were eager to learn. Their eagerness was revealed; their hearts were opened to the Gospel.
They had genuine faith. Not all the Thessalonians were bad. Like the Jews in Thessalonica, the Jews in Berea had an excellent relationship with Gentiles and especially Gentile converts to Judaism. Many God-fearing Gentiles in both cities came to faith in Christ and, particularly in Berea, Gentile women were prominent in the Church. Luke gives us the impression that by the time Paul and Silas left Berea, the church they started there was strong and flourishing. Did Paul ever revisit Berea? We have no record that he did. Perhaps he didn’t have to.

The result of all this eager, honest study of Scripture day by day was that the faithful Bereans discovered all that Paul preached was truth, and they did the natural thing when people discover the Gospel is true:

Many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. (verse 12)

Interestingly, the Greek word for “prominent” means “wealthy, influential.” Once again, we see that the early Church was not made up of only the poor and sick and social outcasts. The Gospel certainly attracts all people. Thank God for “wealthy” and “influential” Christians! Without them, the work of Christ would take on a whole different dimension.

2. Here comes trouble, verse 13

But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up.

You can be sure that if you are a “producer” for the Kingdom of Heaven, you will face problems. In Berea, Paul’s problem took the form of those pesky Thessalonian Jews. Not content with causing problems for Paul in their city, these disreputable people took their beef with Paul to Berea.

Luke doesn’t say so, but we can assume that Paul and his team worked for, perhaps, a few months in Berea. The Greek word translated “agitating” indicates that the unbelieving Thessalonian Jews kept on causing problems among the population of Berea by misrepresenting the words and actions of the Christian missionaries until their goal had been achieved: the silencing of Paul.

Here we see what Jesus had promised years before:

Remember what I told you: ‘Servants are not greater than their master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.’ (John 15:20)

Jesus also gave this piece of advice to His followers:

When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. (Matthew 10:23a)

Some brave Bereans were about to step up and help Paul to do just that.

3. On the run. Again. verses 14, 15

Winning any battle is more than just the ability to fight. Sometimes in order to win a battle, one needs to know when to leave. Some 400 years before the days of Paul, in August of 338 B.C., the Athenian orator and statesman Demosthenes was an infantryman at Chaeronea, where a decisive battle took place between the Athenians and the Macedonians. The Macedonians were victorious, and 3,000 Athenians died. Demosthenes fled from the battlefield and was subsequently censured because of his desertion. To anyone who later called him a coward, Demosthenes would respond, “The man who runs away may fight again.” This is exactly what we see happening in Berea:

The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast… (verse 14a)

Sometimes you have to stay and fight, other times a strategic withdrawal is the only solution. In order to save his life, some Berean believers secreted Paul out of town and sent him on his way “to the coast.” Actually, they didn’t really. They just looked like they were taking Paul “to the coast,” but in reality they were heading to Athens. This was a long trip, over 200 miles! These brave and faithful Bereans were committed to Christ, the Word, and to Paul’s safety. Once again, Paul was forced to leave a fledgling congregation for his own good. We may well imagine how much Paul would have liked to remain in Berea, where his preaching and teaching were yielding such tremendous results. For Paul, God had other plans.

For some reason, the Thessalonian thugs had a hate-on for Paul, but not the other Christian missionaries:

…Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. (verse 14b)

Thank God for faithful co-workers in the ministry! Paul was fortunate to have two men, one very young man, in whom he could entrust his ministry. We aren’t told how long Silas and Timothy worked in Berea; Luke was never overly concerned with providing details about “minor characters” in the story. What we do know was that Paul knew he would need his comrades in Athens:

Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible. (verse 15)

It appears that Timothy and Silas rejoined their friend Paul at Athens, and that he later sent Timothy back to Thessalonica:

So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens. We sent Timothy, who is our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we are destined for them. (1 Thessalonians 3:1—3)

That short paragraph is telling. The persecution that Paul had endured at the hands of those despicable unbelieving Thessalonians hadn’t diminished his love for the Christians he left behind in Thessalonica. The “we could stand it no longer” refers to his longing to see them again.

For we wanted to come to you—certainly I, Paul, did, again and again—but Satan blocked our way. (1 Thessalonians 2:18)

So while Paul never again went back to Berea, he had an ongoing special relationship with the Thessalonians. In some sense, both the churches of Corinth and Thessalonica took up a lot of Paul’s time and concern because to varying degrees, they were both troubled churches that needed demanded Paul’s attention.

In Athens, Paul quickly realized what a monumental task it was going to be, reaching the highly educated Athenians for Christ. Here again we see the ups and downs of the second missionary journey. From unwarranted persecution in Thessalonica to a fantastically successful stay in Berea to banging his head against a brick wall in Athens, working for the Lord is certainly never boring!

What do we learn from the incident with the Bereans?

In America, the Bible continues to be the highest selling book of all time, in any form. Electronic downloads of the Bible are now out-pacing downloads of any other book. And yet, the Bible has the dubious distinction of being the most neglected book of all time. Just owning a Bible or two proves nothing. If the desire to own the Book is not matched by the desire to know what’s in it, then don’t waste your money. Buy a tank of gas instead.

The Bible, as the Bereans knew full-well, is a book unlike any other book. It is powerful and it changes everything. During the reign of King Josiah of Judah, his high priest discovered the long-lost Book of the Law, which had been hidden in a dark corner of the Temple. Because this Book of the Law had been neglected and forgotten, the people of Judah fell into idol worship. However, once that precious Book of the Law was hauled out of its hiding place, dusted off, and read aloud, the course of Jewish history changed. Josiah read the Word to the people; the people saw the error of their ways and pledged obedience to the forgotten Covenant.

If you are a Christian and you are reading this, hopefully you are reading the Word daily, with your family, if you have one. Families that grow up around the Word of God are strong families. We should study the Word together, we should memorize it, and we should be obedient to it. God’s Word is as relevant today as the day it was written. In our churches, the Bible should be central, not only in our preaching and teaching, but in our worship as well.

Why is reading the Bible so important? It is because when we read the Word of God, we are communing with God; He hears us, we hear Him, and He honors our devotion to that Word. The Word tells us how we should live, how we should think, and what we should do in any given circumstance. If God’s will for you is a mystery, the problem is with you. You need to take your Bible off the shelf, crack it open, and start reading it. God will speak to you. Put Him to the test in this and be amazed.

God’s Word changes everything.

A plaque at modern-day Berea, Veria, courtesy of Dan and Cindy Bratton, missionaries with YWAM

(c) 2011 WitzEnd

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(c) 2011 WitzEnd

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