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The Book of Acts Like You_ve Never Seen Before – The Beginning of the Early Church · truthunedited

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  Speaker 1: Imagine witnessing the moment when God's power literally split history
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  Speaker 1: in two. The Book of Acts is the missing link
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  Speaker 1: between jesus resurrection and the church you attend today. This
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  Speaker 1: isn't just ancient history, it's the divine DNA of Christianity itself.
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  Speaker 1: Watch as cowardly disciples become fearless apostles, as dead languages
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  Speaker 1: come alive on Pentecost, and as prison doors swing open
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  Speaker 1: by angelic hands. Acts reveals the Holy Spirit's master plan.
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  Speaker 1: One man's conversion on a dusty road changes everything from
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  Speaker 1: Jerusalem's upper room to Rome's imperial throne. This book proves
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  Speaker 1: that when God moves, empires tremble. Every page pulses with
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  Speaker 1: supernatural power that's still available today. Are you ready to
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  Speaker 1: discover the unstoppable force that built the church? The same
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  Speaker 1: spirit that raised Jesus is calling your name. After Jesus
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  Speaker 1: had suffered and died on the cross, something incredible happened.
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  Speaker 1: He came back to life, and for forty amazing days
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  Speaker 1: he appeared to his disciples. The writer of Acts, Chapter
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  Speaker 1: one tells us that Jesus showed himself alive to them,
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  Speaker 1: with many convincing proofs. He came to them many times
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  Speaker 1: during those forty days, always talking about the Kingdom of God.
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  Speaker 1: During one of these meetings, Jesus gathered his disciples together
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  Speaker 1: for their final conversation before something extraordinary happened. Jesus looked
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  Speaker 1: at each of his followers and gave them a command
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  Speaker 1: that must have seemed strange. In Acts one four five,
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  Speaker 1: Jesus told them something that would require great faith. Do
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  Speaker 1: not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised,
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  Speaker 1: which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized
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  Speaker 1: with water, but in a few days you will be
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  Speaker 1: baptized with the Holy Spirit. The disciples probably didn't fully
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  Speaker 1: understand what he meant. What was this gift from the Father.
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  Speaker 1: The disciples were curious about what this meant for the future.
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  Speaker 1: They had been through so much with Jesus, watching him
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  Speaker 1: heal the sick, feed thousands of people, and even raise
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  Speaker 1: the dead. They had seen him crucified and then rise again.
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  Speaker 1: Now they wondered if this was the time when Jesus
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  Speaker 1: would restore the kingdom to Israel. So they asked him
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  Speaker 1: directly in Acts one six, Lord, are you at this
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  Speaker 1: time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? It was
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  Speaker 1: an honest question from people who had been waiting for
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  Speaker 1: their messiah to set up his earthly kingdom. But Jesus
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  Speaker 1: had something much bigger in mind. Jesus answered them with
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  Speaker 1: words that would echo through history. In Acts one seven
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  Speaker 1: to eight, he said, it is not for you to
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  Speaker 1: know the times or dates the Father has set by
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  Speaker 1: his own authority. But you will receive power when the
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my
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  Speaker 1: witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judaea and Samaria, and
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  Speaker 1: to the ends of the earth. These words contained a
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  Speaker 1: promise and a mission. The promise was power, not political power,
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  Speaker 1: but supernatural power from God himself. The mission was to
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  Speaker 1: be witnesses to tell everyone what they had seen and
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  Speaker 1: heard about Jesus. The scope was breathtaking, starting in Jerusalem,
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  Speaker 1: then spreading to Judea, then to Samaria, and finally to
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  Speaker 1: the ends of the earth. Then something happened that no
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  Speaker 1: one was prepared for. Right there, as they stood together
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  Speaker 1: on the Mount of Olives, Jesus began to rise up
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  Speaker 1: into the sky. The disciples watched in amazement as their
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  Speaker 1: teacher was lifted up before their very eyes. A cloud
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  Speaker 1: came and hid him from their sight. And he was gone.
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  Speaker 1: Can you imagine what the disciples were feeling. They stood
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  Speaker 1: there looking up at the sky, probably wondering if they
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  Speaker 1: would ever see Jesus again. Suddenly, two men dressed in
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  Speaker 1: bright white clothes appeared beside them. These were angels sent
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  Speaker 1: with a message from God. These heavenly messengers spoke to
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  Speaker 1: the disciples in Acts One eleven, Men of Galilee, why
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  Speaker 1: do you stand here looking into the sky. This same
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  Speaker 1: Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will
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  Speaker 1: come back in the same way you have seen him
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  Speaker 1: go into heaven. The angels were telling them that Jesus
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  Speaker 1: would return some day, coming back through the clouds, just
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  Speaker 1: like he had left. The Disciples walked back to Jerusalem
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  Speaker 1: from the Mount of Olives, their hearts full of wonder
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  Speaker 1: and expectation. The distance wasn't far. Acts tells us it
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  Speaker 1: was a Sabbath day's walk, about three quarters of a mile,
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  Speaker 1: but their minds must have been racing with everything they
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  Speaker 1: had just experienced. When they reached the city, they went
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  Speaker 1: to the upper room where they had been stayed, saying,
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  Speaker 1: this was probably the same room where they had celebrated
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  Speaker 1: the last supper with Jesus. And where he had appeared
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  Speaker 1: to them after his resurrection. It had become their meeting
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  Speaker 1: place for this new movement that Jesus had started. Acts
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  Speaker 1: one thirteen to fourteen gives us a list of who
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  Speaker 1: was there. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the
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  Speaker 1: room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James,
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  Speaker 1: and Andrew, Philip and Thomas Bartholomew and Matthew James, son
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  Speaker 1: of Alpheus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas, son of James.
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  Speaker 1: They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the
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  Speaker 1: women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
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  Speaker 1: This group included the eleven remaining apostles, plus some women
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  Speaker 1: who had followed Jesus, including his own mother Mary. Even
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  Speaker 1: jesus brothers who hadn't believed in him during his ministry
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  Speaker 1: were now part of this praying community. The total number
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  Speaker 1: of people gathering regularly was about one hundred and twenty.
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  Speaker 1: They spent their time in constant prayer, just as Jesus
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  Speaker 1: had instructed them to do. They were waiting for the
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  Speaker 1: promise of the Father, but they didn't wait passively. They
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  Speaker 1: prayed together, encouraging each other and preparing their hearts for
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  Speaker 1: whatever God was going to do next. During this time
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  Speaker 1: of waiting and praying, Peter stood up among the believers.
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  Speaker 1: He was clearly becoming the leader of this group, which
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  Speaker 1: was remarkable considering that just a few weeks earlier he
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  Speaker 1: had denied even knowing Jesus, but Jesus had restored Peter
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  Speaker 1: and given him a special responsibility. Peter had something important
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  Speaker 1: to address. There were twelve apostles originally, but now there
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  Speaker 1: were only eleven. Judas Iscariot, who had betrayed Jesus, was
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  Speaker 1: no longer with them. Peter felt strongly that they needed
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  Speaker 1: to replace Judas to bring the number back to twelve.
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  Speaker 1: In Acts one twenty one to twenty two, Peter ex
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  Speaker 1: explained to the group what kind of person they needed
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  Speaker 1: to choose. Therefore, it is necessary to choose one of
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  Speaker 1: the men who have been with us the whole time
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  Speaker 1: the Lord Jesus was living among us, beginning from John's
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  Speaker 1: baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us.
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  Speaker 1: For one of these must become a witness with us
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  Speaker 1: of his resurrection. The requirements were very specific. This person
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  Speaker 1: had to be someone who had been with them from
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  Speaker 1: the very beginning of jesus ministry. He had to have
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  Speaker 1: witnessed jesus entire ministry, his death, and his resurrection. Most importantly,
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  Speaker 1: he had to be able to testify about seeing Jesus
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  Speaker 1: alive after he rose from the dead. The group suggested
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  Speaker 1: two men who met these qualifications, Joseph, who was called Barsabas,
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  Speaker 1: and Matthias. Both of these men had been faithful followers
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  Speaker 1: of Jesus throughout his ministry. They had seen the miracles,
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  Speaker 1: heard the teachings, witness the crucifixion, and seen Jesus after
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  Speaker 1: he rose from the dead. But they could only choose
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  Speaker 1: one person, so they did what Jesus had taught them
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  Speaker 1: to do. They prayed and asked God to guide their decision.
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  Speaker 1: Acts one twenty four twenty six shows us their prayer.
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  Speaker 1: Then they prayed, Lord, you know every one's heart. Show
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  Speaker 1: us which of these two you have chosen to take
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  Speaker 1: over this Apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where
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  Speaker 1: he belongs. Then they cast lots, and the lot fell
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  Speaker 1: to Matthias, so he was added to the eleven Apostles.
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  Speaker 1: When the lot fell to Matthias, they accepted this as
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  Speaker 1: God's choice and Matthias became the twelfth Apostle. Fifty days
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  Speaker 1: had passed since Jesus rose from the dead. The Disciples
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  Speaker 1: had been waiting in Jerusalem, just as Jesus had commanded them,
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  Speaker 1: spending their time in prayer and worship. The city was
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  Speaker 1: crowded because it was the time of Pentecost, one of
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  Speaker 1: the most import taught Jewish festivals of the year. People
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  Speaker 1: had come from all over the Roman Empire to celebrate
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  Speaker 1: this harvest festival. Pentecost was also called the Feast of
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  Speaker 1: Weeks because it came seven weeks after Passover. Jewish families
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  Speaker 1: would travel hundreds of miles to be in Jerusalem for
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  Speaker 1: this special time. The city was bustling with visitors speaking
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  Speaker 1: different languages and representing many different cultures. On this particular morning,
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  Speaker 1: the disciples were all together in one place. They might
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  Speaker 1: have been in that same upper room where they had
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  Speaker 1: been meeting, or perhaps they were in one of the
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  Speaker 1: temple courtyards. Wherever they were, they were together, probably praying
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  Speaker 1: and worshiping as they had been doing for the past
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  Speaker 1: ten days. Suddenly, without any warning, something extraordinary happened. Acts
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  Speaker 1: two two four describes the incredible scene. Suddenly, a sound
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  Speaker 1: like the blowing of a violent wind, came from heaven
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  Speaker 1: and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They
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  Speaker 1: saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated
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  Speaker 1: and came to rest on each of them. All of
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  Speaker 1: them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to
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  Speaker 1: speak in other tongues as the spirit enabled them. First
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  Speaker 1: came the sound like a rushing, mighty wind. The sound
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  Speaker 1: was so loud and distinctive that people throughout that part
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  Speaker 1: of the city could hear it. Then came the sight.
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  Speaker 1: What looked like tongues of fire appeared and separated, with
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  Speaker 1: one tongue coming to rest on each person who was there.
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  Speaker 1: These weren't flames that burned or hurt anyone. They were
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  Speaker 1: supernatural flames, visible signs of God's presence and power. But
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  Speaker 1: the most amazing thing was what happened next. Every single
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  Speaker 1: person in that room was filled with the Holy Spirit
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  Speaker 1: and began to speak in languages they had never learned.
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  Speaker 1: These weren't unknown mystical languages, they were real languages spoken
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  Speaker 1: by people who lived in different parts of the world.
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  Speaker 1: The noise was so incredible that it drew a crowd
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  Speaker 1: from all over Jerusalem. People came running to see what
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  Speaker 1: was happening, and when they arrived, they couldn't believe their ears.
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  Speaker 1: These Galileean fishermen and ordinary people were speaking perfectly in
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  Speaker 1: languages from every corner of the Roman Empire. Acts two
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  Speaker 1: five to six tells us about the crowd. Now, there
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  Speaker 1: were staying in Jerusalem, god fearing Jews from every nation
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  Speaker 1: under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came
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  Speaker 1: together in bewilderment because each one heard their own language
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  Speaker 1: being spoken. The crowd that gathered represented an amazing diversity
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  Speaker 1: of cultures and languages. There were people from Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Judaea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Libya, Rome, Crete,
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  Speaker 1: and Arabia. Each person in that crowd heard the disciples
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  Speaker 1: speaking in their own native language about the wonderful works
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  Speaker 1: of God. Some people were amazed and asked each other
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  Speaker 1: what does this mean. They recognized that something supernatural was happening,
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  Speaker 1: but they couldn't explain it. Others, however, weren't ready to
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  Speaker 1: accept that this was a miracle from God. Acts two
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  Speaker 1: thirteen tells us Some, however, made fun of them. And
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  Speaker 1: said they have had too much wine. But it was
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  Speaker 1: only nine o'clock in the morning. Even the mockers knew
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  Speaker 1: that people don't get drunk that early in the day,
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  Speaker 1: especially during a religious festival. When Peter heard people saying
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  Speaker 1: that the disciples were drunk, he knew he had to
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  Speaker 1: speak up. This was the moment Jesus had prepared them for. Peter,
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  Speaker 1: who had once been so afraid of a servant girl
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  Speaker 1: that he denied knowing Jesus, now stood up boldly before
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  Speaker 1: thousands of people from all over the world. The transformation
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  Speaker 1: in Peter was remarkable. Just fifty days earlier, he had
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  Speaker 1: been hiding in fear. Now he was filled with the
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit and ready to proclaim the truth about Jesus
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  Speaker 1: to anyone who would listen. Acts two fourteen to sixteen
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  Speaker 1: records Peter's opening words. Then Peter stood up with the eleven,
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  Speaker 1: raised his voice and addressed the crowd, fellow Jews and
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  Speaker 1: all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain
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  Speaker 1: this to you. Listen carefully to what I say. These
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  Speaker 1: people are not drunk as you suppose. It's only nine
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  Speaker 1: in the morning. No, this is what was spoken by
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  Speaker 1: the prophet Joel. Peter immediately addressed the ridiculous accusation that
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  Speaker 1: they were drunk. He pointed out the obvious it was
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  Speaker 1: only nine in the morning. Then he did something brilliant.
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  Speaker 1: He connected what was happening to the Hebrew script that
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  Speaker 1: all these Jewish visitors would know well. Peter quoted from
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  Speaker 1: the prophet Joel, who had written hundreds of years earlier
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  Speaker 1: about a time when God would pour out his spirit
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  Speaker 1: on all people. This wasn't just a random miracle, Peter explained,
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  Speaker 1: this was the fulfillment of ancient prophecy. But Peter didn't
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  Speaker 1: stop with explaining what was happening. He moved on to
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  Speaker 1: talk about the person who had made it all possible,
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  Speaker 1: Jesus of Nazareth. Peter told the crowd that Jesus was
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  Speaker 1: a man approved by God through miracles, wonders, and signs.
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  Speaker 1: Then Peter said something that must have been difficult for
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  Speaker 1: his listeners to hear. In Acts two twenty three twenty four,
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  Speaker 1: he declared, this man was handed over to you by
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  Speaker 1: God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge, and you, with the help
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  Speaker 1: of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him
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  Speaker 1: to the cross. But God raised him from the dead
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  Speaker 1: free him from the agony of death because it was
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  Speaker 1: impossible for death to keep its hold on him. Peter
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  Speaker 1: was telling this crowd of Jewish people that they had
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  Speaker 1: crucified their own Messiah, but he also explained that this
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  Speaker 1: was part of God's plan all along. The most important
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  Speaker 1: part of Peter's message was that death couldn't hold Jesus.
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  Speaker 1: God had raised him from the dead, just as the
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  Speaker 1: scriptures had predicted. Then Peter delivered the punchline of his sermon.
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  Speaker 1: In Acts two thirty six. He boldly proclaimed, therefore, let
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  Speaker 1: all Israel be assured of this. God has made this Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah. The impact of
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  Speaker 1: Peter's words was immediate and powerful. Acts two thirty seven
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  Speaker 1: tells us when the people heard this, they were cut
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  Speaker 1: to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, brothers,
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  Speaker 1: what shall we do? These people suddenly rized what they
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  Speaker 1: had done. They had rejected and killed the very person
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  Speaker 1: God had sent to save them. Their hearts were pierced
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  Speaker 1: with conviction, and they desperately wanted to know how they
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  Speaker 1: could make things right with God. Peter's answer was simple
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  Speaker 1: and direct. Acts two thirty eight thirty nine records his response.
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  Speaker 1: Peter replied, repent and be baptized, every one of you
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  Speaker 1: in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of
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  Speaker 1: your sins, and you will receive the gift of the
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children,
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  Speaker 1: and for all who are far off, for all whom
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  Speaker 1: the Lord our God will call. The response was absolutely incredible.
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  Speaker 1: Three thousand people believe Peter's message that day and were baptized.
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  Speaker 1: Acts two forty one tells us those who accepted his
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  Speaker 1: message were baptized and about three thousand were added to
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  Speaker 1: their number that day. Think about that number, three thousand
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  Speaker 1: people in one day. The church grew from one hundred
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  Speaker 1: and twenty believers to over three thousand. Life in the
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  Speaker 1: early Church settled into a rhythm of teaching, fellowship, and worship.
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  Speaker 1: The new believers were eager to learn everything they could
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  Speaker 1: about Jesus, and the apostles were faithful to teach them.
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  Speaker 1: Every day, people would gather in the temple courts to
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  Speaker 1: hear the apostles speak about Jesus and to pray together.
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  Speaker 1: One afternoon, Peter and John were going to the temple
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  Speaker 1: for the three o'clock prayer time. This was one of
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  Speaker 1: the regular prayer times that devout Jews observed every day.
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  Speaker 1: Even though they now followed Jesus, the apostles still participated
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  Speaker 1: in the traditional Jewish worship practices. As they approached the temple,
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  Speaker 1: they had to pass through one of the gates. The
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  Speaker 1: gate they were using was called the Beautiful Gate, and
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  Speaker 1: it was probably made of bronze and decorated with gold
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  Speaker 1: and silver. Acts three two to three describes what they encountered. Now.
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  Speaker 1: A man who was lame from birth was being carried
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  Speaker 1: to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put
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  Speaker 1: every day to beg from those going into the temple courts.
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  Speaker 1: When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he
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  Speaker 1: asked them for money. This man had been lame from
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  Speaker 1: the day he was born. He had never walked, never run,
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  Speaker 1: never even stood on his own feet. Every day, his
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  Speaker 1: friends or family members would carry him to this gate
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  Speaker 1: and set him down so he could beg for money
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  Speaker 1: from people going into the temple to worship. This was
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  Speaker 1: his life, day after day, sitting in the same spot,
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  Speaker 1: asking for a few coins from people who were more
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  Speaker 1: fortunate than he was. He was a familiar figure at
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  Speaker 1: the temple gate, part of the landscape that people had
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  Speaker 1: grown accustomed to seeing. When the man saw Peter and
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  Speaker 1: John approaching, he did what he always did. He asked
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  Speaker 1: them for money. Probably didn't expect much. Most people would
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  Speaker 1: either ignore him completely or drop a small coin into
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  Speaker 1: his hands without really looking at him. But Peter and
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  Speaker 1: John didn't ignore him. They stopped and looked directly at him.
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  Speaker 1: Peter said something that must have gotten the man's attention.
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  Speaker 1: Look at us. The man looked up, probably thinking these
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  Speaker 1: might be generous men. What happened next changed everything. Acts
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  Speaker 1: three six seven records Peter's words and the miraculous result.
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  Speaker 1: Then Peter said, silver or gold I do not have.
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  Speaker 1: But what I do have I give you in the
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  Speaker 1: name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth walk taking him by
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  Speaker 1: the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the
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  Speaker 1: man's feet and ankles became strong. Peter was honest. He
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  Speaker 1: didn't have money to give, but he had something infinitely
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  Speaker 1: more valuable than silver or gold. He had the power
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  Speaker 1: of Jesus name and the authority to use it. When
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  Speaker 1: Peter spoke those words and took the man by the hand,
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  Speaker 1: gods power flowed through Peter and into the man's broken body.
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  Speaker 1: The healing was instant and complete. The man's feet and ankles,
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  Speaker 1: which had never been strong enough to support his weight,
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  Speaker 1: suddenly became perfectly normal. Muscles that had never worked began
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  Speaker 1: to function. But the man didn't just stand up quietly.
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  Speaker 1: Acts three eight nine tells us about his joyful response.
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  Speaker 1: He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then
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  Speaker 1: he went with them into the temple courts, walking and
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  Speaker 1: jumping and praising God. When all the people saw him
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  Speaker 1: walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same
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  Speaker 1: man who used to sit begging at the temple gate,
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  Speaker 1: called beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement
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  Speaker 1: at what had happened to him. Peter looked at the
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  Speaker 1: crowd that had gathered around them and saw hundreds of
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  Speaker 1: faces filled with wonder and confusion. These people had just
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  Speaker 1: witnessed something in possible. A man who had been lame
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  Speaker 1: from birth was now walking and jumping and praising God.
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  Speaker 1: Peter knew this was another opportunity to tell people about Jesus.
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  Speaker 1: In Acts three twelve thirteen, Peter addressed the crowd, fellow Israelites,
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  Speaker 1: why does this surprise you. Why do you stare at
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  Speaker 1: us as if by our own power or godliness we
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac
• 21:27
  Speaker 1: and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant, Jesus.
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: Peter immediately directed their attention away from himself and toward Jesus.
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: The power that had healed this man came from Jesus,
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: not from Peter or John. They were just ordinary men
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: who had been given authority to use Jesus name. But
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: then Peter said something that must have been very difficult
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: for his listeners to hear. He reminded them of what
• 21:55
  Speaker 1: they had done to Jesus just a few weeks earlier.
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: He told them that they had denied the Holy and
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: Righteous One and had asked for a murderer to be
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: released instead. They had killed the author of life, but
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: God had raised him from the dead. But Peter didn't
• 22:13
  Speaker 1: just condemn the crowd for what they had done. He
• 22:16
  Speaker 1: also offered them hope. In Acts three nineteen to twenty,
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: he gave them a gracious invitation repent then and turn
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: to God, so that your sins may be wiped out,
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: that he may send the messiah who has been appointed
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: for you, even Jesus. While Peter was still speaking to
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: the crowd, some unwelcome visitors arrived. The temple guards came
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: with the captain of the Temple Guard and some sadducees.
• 22:48
  Speaker 1: These religious leaders were not happy about what was happening
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: in the temple courts. Acts four three tells us what
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: they did. They seized Peter and John, and because it
• 22:59
  Speaker 1: was evening, they put them in jail until the next day.
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: So Peter and John were arrested and thrown into prison.
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: The same religious leaders who had orchestrated Jesus's crucifixion were
• 23:12
  Speaker 1: now trying to silence his followers. They thought they could
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: stop the spread of this message by intimidating and imprisoning
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: the apostles, but it was already too late. Acts four
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: four tells us the result. But many who heard the
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: message believed, so the number of men who believed grew
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: to about five thousand. The next morning, the religious leaders
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: gathered for an official hearing. This was the same group
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: that had condemned Jesus. They brought Peter and John before
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: them and demanded to know by what authority they had
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: performed this miracle. Acts four ten twelve records Peter's bold response, Then,
• 23:53
  Speaker 1: know this, you and all the people of Israel. It
• 23:57
  Speaker 1: is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead, that
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: this man stands before you healed. Jesus is the stone
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone. Salvation is
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: found in no one else, for there is no other
• 24:15
  Speaker 1: name under Heaven given to mankind by which we must
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: be saved. Peter didn't back down or try to avoid controversy.
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: He looked these powerful men in the eye and told
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: them exactly what they didn't want to hear, that Jesus,
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: whom they had crucified, was alive and was the only
• 24:34
  Speaker 1: source of salvation for humanity. After discussing what to do
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: among themselves, the leaders called Peter and John back and
• 24:42
  Speaker 1: commanded them not to speak or teach at all in
• 24:45
  Speaker 1: the name of Jesus. But Peter and John's response showed
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: how completely they had been transformed. Acts four nineteen twenty
• 24:54
  Speaker 1: records their answer. But Peter and John replied, which is
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: right in God's eyes to listen to you or to him.
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: You be the judges. As for us, we cannot help
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: speaking about what we have seen and heard. After Peter
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: and John were released from prison, they returned to the
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: other believers and reported everything that had happened. The whole
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: church prayed together, asking God for boldness to continue speaking
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: his word despite the threats from the religious leaders. During
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: this time, the early Church was experiencing incredible unity and generosity.
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: The believers shared everything they had with each other, making
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: sure that no one in their community lacked anything they needed.
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: People who owned houses or land would sell them and
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: bring the money to the apostles to distribute to those
• 25:50
  Speaker 1: who were in need. This wasn't required or forced. It
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: was a spontaneous expression of love and concern for one another.
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: The believers genuinely cared about each other's welfare and were
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: willing to sacrifice their own possessions to help their brothers
• 26:07
  Speaker 1: and sisters in Christ. However, not everyone who participated in
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: this sharing was motivated by pure love and generosity. A
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: married couple named Anonius and Saphira decided to sell a
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: piece of property, but they had a plan that would
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: allow them to appear generous while keeping some of the
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: money for themselves. Acts five point one two tells us
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: about their deception. Now, a man named Anonius, together with
• 26:37
  Speaker 1: his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property with
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: his wife's full knowledge. He kept back part of the
• 26:44
  Speaker 1: money for himself, but brought the rest and put it
• 26:47
  Speaker 1: at the apostles feet. There would have been nothing wrong
• 26:50
  Speaker 1: with Anonius and Saphira keeping some of the money from
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: the sale. The problem was that they pretended to give
• 26:57
  Speaker 1: the full amount while secretly holding back part of it.
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: They wanted to receive the praise and recognition that came
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: with being generous, but they also wanted to keep some
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: money for themselves. This was more than just a lie
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: to the apostles. It was a lie to God himself.
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: The Holy Spirit had revealed to Peter what Anonius and
• 27:19
  Speaker 1: Sapphira had done, and he confronted Anonius directly about his deceptions.
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: Five three four records Peter's confrontation. Then, Peter said, Anonius,
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: how is it that Satan has so filled your heart
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have
• 27:40
  Speaker 1: kept for yourself some of the money you received for
• 27:43
  Speaker 1: the land. Didn't it belong to you before it was sold,
• 27:46
  Speaker 1: And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal?
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: What made you think of doing such a thing. You
• 27:53
  Speaker 1: have not lied just to human beings, but to God.
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: What happened next was swift and shocking. Acts five five
• 28:03
  Speaker 1: two six tells us when Anonius heard this, he fell
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: down and died, and great fear seized all who heard
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: what had happened. Then some young men came forward, wrapped
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: About three hours later, Sir Fhira came looking for her husband,
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: not knowing what had happened to him. This gave her
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: an opportunity to tell the truth about their gift, but
• 28:29
  Speaker 1: instead she chose to repeat the same lie that Anonius
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: had told. Acts five eight to ten describes the confrontation
• 28:38
  Speaker 1: with Sirphira. Peter asked her, tell me, is this the
• 28:43
  Speaker 1: price you and Anonius got for the land? Yes? She said,
• 28:48
  Speaker 1: that is the price. Peter said to her, how could
• 28:52
  Speaker 1: you conspire to test the spirit of the Lord? Listen,
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: the feet of the men who buried your husband are
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: at the door, and they will carry you out. Also
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: at that moment, she fell down at his feet and died.
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: The same young men who had buried Anonius came in
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: and found Saphia dead. They carried her out and buried
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: her beside her husband. In the span of a few hours,
• 29:16
  Speaker 1: this couple had gone from being members of the church
• 29:19
  Speaker 1: to being examples of God's judgment. When Sinax five eleven
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: tells us, great fear seized the whole church and all
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: who heard about these events. This wasn't the kind of
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: fear that makes people run away. It was the kind
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: of reverent fear that comes from recognizing God's holiness and power.
• 29:40
  Speaker 1: As the church continued to grow rapidly, new challenges began
• 29:44
  Speaker 1: to emerge. The believers were committed to taking care of
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: each other's needs, and this included making sure that widows
• 29:52
  Speaker 1: in their community received daily food distributions. In that culture,
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: widows often had no other source of income or support. However,
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: the church in Jerusalem included people from different cultural backgrounds.
• 30:08
  Speaker 1: There were Hebrew speaking Jews who had grown up in Palestine,
• 30:12
  Speaker 1: and there were Greek speaking Jews who had come from
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: other parts of the Roman Empire. As the daily food
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: distribution was being organized, a problem developed. Acts six 's
• 30:23
  Speaker 1: one describes the complaint that arose in those days when
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: the number of disciples was increasing, The Hellenistic Jews among
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: them complained against the Hybraic Jews because their widows were
• 30:36
  Speaker 1: being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. The Greek
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: speaking Jews felt that their widows were being neglected while
• 30:44
  Speaker 1: the Hebrew speaking widows were receiving better care. This wasn't
• 30:49
  Speaker 1: necessarily intentional discrimination, but it was causing division and hurt
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: feelings within the church community. The twelve Apostles gathered together
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: to discuss the situation and came up with a wise solution.
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: They called all the believers together for a meeting and
• 31:06
  Speaker 1: addressed the problem directly and honestly. Acts six two four
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: records what the apostle said. So the twelve gathered all
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: the disciples together and said, it would not be right
• 31:19
  Speaker 1: for us to neglect the ministry of the Word of
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters,
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: choose seven men from among you who are known to
• 31:29
  Speaker 1: be full of the spirit and wisdom. We will turn
• 31:32
  Speaker 1: this responsibility over to them and will give our attention
• 31:35
  Speaker 1: to prayer and the ministry of the Word. The Apostles
• 31:40
  Speaker 1: weren't saying that serving food was unimportant. They were recognizing
• 31:44
  Speaker 1: that different people have different gifts and callings, and that
• 31:48
  Speaker 1: the church works best when people focus on what God
• 31:51
  Speaker 1: has equipped them to do. This proposal pleased the whole
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: group of believers. They could see that it was a
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: good solution that would allow the apostles to focus on
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: preaching and teaching, while ensuring that the practical needs of
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: the church were met by qualified leaders. Acts six five.
• 32:12
  Speaker 1: Harty six tells us who the believers chose. This proposal
• 32:16
  Speaker 1: pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full
• 32:20
  Speaker 1: of faith and of the Holy Spirit, also Philip Precorus
• 32:23
  Speaker 1: nicanor Timon Parmenas, and Nicholas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and
• 32:32
  Speaker 1: placed their hands on them. Stephen is mentioned first and
• 32:36
  Speaker 1: described as a man full of faith and of the
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. He would soon become very prominent in the
• 32:42
  Speaker 1: church's ministry. Philip is also mentioned by name and would
• 32:46
  Speaker 1: later become known as Philip the Evangelist. The church presented
• 32:51
  Speaker 1: these seven men to the apostles, who prayed over them
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: and laid their hands on them. This laying on of
• 32:58
  Speaker 1: hands was a way of officially commissioning them for their
• 33:02
  Speaker 1: new responsibility and asking God to bless their ministry. The
• 33:07
  Speaker 1: result of this decision was exactly what the apostles had
• 33:11
  Speaker 1: hoped for. Acts six seven tells us, so the word
• 33:17
  Speaker 1: of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly,
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
• 33:28
  Speaker 1: When the church was organized properly, with different people focusing
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: on their particular gifts and callings, the I ministry became
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: more effective. The apostles could concentrate on preaching and teaching,
• 33:42
  Speaker 1: which led to more people hearing the gospel and believing
• 33:45
  Speaker 1: in Jesus. Among the seven deacons, Stephen quickly emerged as
• 33:50
  Speaker 1: more than just an administrator. Acts six eight tells us
• 33:56
  Speaker 1: now Stephen, a man full of God's grace and power,
• 34:00
  Speaker 1: formed great wonders and signs among the people. Stephen wasn't
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: content to just distribute food to widows. He was also
• 34:07
  Speaker 1: gifted as an evangelist and miracle worker. God used him
• 34:11
  Speaker 1: to perform great wonders and signs, just as he had
• 34:15
  Speaker 1: done through the apostles. This showed that the Holy Spirit's
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: power wasn't limited to the twelve Apostles. God could work
• 34:23
  Speaker 1: through any believer who was filled with faith and the
• 34:26
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. Stephen's powerful ministry was drawing attention from all
• 34:31
  Speaker 1: the wrong people. Some men from different synagogue started arguing
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: with him, but they couldn't match his wisdom or the
• 34:38
  Speaker 1: spirit by which he spoke. These men were getting frustrated
• 34:42
  Speaker 1: because they couldn't win against Stephen's arguments about Jesus. So
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: they did what people often do when they can't win fairly.
• 34:50
  Speaker 1: They cheated. They secretly convinced some men to lie about Stephen.
• 34:55
  Speaker 1: These false witnesses came forward and said terrible things that
• 34:59
  Speaker 1: weren't true who They claimed that Stephen spoke against Moses
• 35:03
  Speaker 1: and against God himself. This stirred up the people, the
• 35:07
  Speaker 1: elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: and brought him before the Sanhedrin, the same religious court
• 35:15
  Speaker 1: that had condemned Jesus. But something amazing happened when every
• 35:20
  Speaker 1: one looked at Stephen. Acts six fifteen tells us all
• 35:23
  Speaker 1: who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen,
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: and they saw that his face was like the face
• 35:29
  Speaker 1: of an angel. The High priest asked Stephen if these
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: charges were true. Instead of defending himself, Stephen did something unexpected.
• 35:39
  Speaker 1: He began to tell the story of God's people, starting
• 35:43
  Speaker 1: from the very beginning. Stephen started with Abraham in Acts
• 35:47
  Speaker 1: seven two four. Brothers and fathers listened to me. The
• 35:50
  Speaker 1: God of Glory appeared to our father Abraham while he
• 35:53
  Speaker 1: was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haron. Leave
• 35:57
  Speaker 1: your country and your people, God said, and go to
• 36:00
  Speaker 1: the land I will show you. So he left the
• 36:03
  Speaker 1: land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haron. Stephen went
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: through the stories of Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses. Then
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: Stephen got to the point that really stung. In Acts
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: seven fifty one to fifty three, he looked directly at
• 36:18
  Speaker 1: his accusers and said, you stiff necked people, your hearts
• 36:22
  Speaker 1: and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors.
• 36:27
  Speaker 1: You always resist the Holy Spirit. Was there ever a
• 36:30
  Speaker 1: prophet Your ancestors did not persecute. They even killed those
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: who predicted the coming of the Righteous One, And now
• 36:37
  Speaker 1: you have betrayed and murdered him. The religious leaders were furious.
• 36:42
  Speaker 1: Acts seven fifty four says when the members of the
• 36:46
  Speaker 1: Sanhedrin heard this. They were furious and gnashed their teeth
• 36:50
  Speaker 1: at him. But Stephen wasn't looking at them any more.
• 36:53
  Speaker 1: He was looking up to heaven. Acts seven fifty five
• 36:57
  Speaker 1: fifty six describes what Stephen saw. But Stephen, full of
• 37:00
  Speaker 1: the Holy spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: of God. Look, he said, I see heaven open, and
• 37:10
  Speaker 1: the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: They covered their ears, yelled at the top of their voices,
• 37:17
  Speaker 1: and all rushed at Stephen. They dragged him out of
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: the city and began to stone him. The witnesses laid
• 37:23
  Speaker 1: their goats at the feet of a young man named Saul.
• 37:27
  Speaker 1: As the stones were flying through the air, Stephen prayed.
• 37:30
  Speaker 1: Acts seven fifty nine sixty records his final words. While
• 37:34
  Speaker 1: they were stoning him. Stephen prayed, Lord, Jesus, receive my spirit.
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: Then he fell on his knees and cried out, Lord,
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: do not hold this sin against them. When he had
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: said this, he fell asleep. Stephen died just like his
• 37:51
  Speaker 1: master had died. Forgiving his enemies and committing his spirit
• 37:56
  Speaker 1: to God. He became the first Christian martyr, A young
• 38:00
  Speaker 1: man named Saul, had watched Stephen die, and he approved
• 38:04
  Speaker 1: of it completely. Acts eight on one tells Us and
• 38:07
  Speaker 1: Saul approved of their killing him. This wasn't just some
• 38:10
  Speaker 1: one who stood by and watched. Saul was actively supporting
• 38:15
  Speaker 1: Stephen's murder. Stephen's death was like a signal that open
• 38:19
  Speaker 1: season had been declared on the followers of Jesus. On
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: that very day, a great persecution broke out against the
• 38:26
  Speaker 1: Church in Jerusalem. Acts eight one describes what happened on
• 38:31
  Speaker 1: that day. A great persecution broke out against the Church
• 38:34
  Speaker 1: in Jerusalem, and all except the Apostles were scattered throughout
• 38:38
  Speaker 1: Judea and Samaria. Saul became like a wild animal, hunting
• 38:42
  Speaker 1: down Christians. Acts eight point three describes his campaign. But
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house,
• 38:52
  Speaker 1: he dragged off both men and women and put them
• 38:54
  Speaker 1: in prison. Saul wasn't content to just wait for Christians
• 38:59
  Speaker 1: to come to him. He actively hunted them down. He
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: would go from house to house searching for anyone who
• 39:06
  Speaker 1: followed Jesus. When he found them, he would drag them out,
• 39:10
  Speaker 1: men and women alike, and throw them into prison. Saul
• 39:14
  Speaker 1: thought he was doing God a favor by destroying what
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: he saw as a dangerous cult. Families were torn apart.
• 39:22
  Speaker 1: People lost their homes, their jobs, their security. Believers who
• 39:27
  Speaker 1: had been living peacefully in Jerusalem suddenly found themselves running
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: for their lives. They grabbed whatever they could carry and
• 39:34
  Speaker 1: fled to other parts of Judea and Samaria. But here's
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: what's amazing. This persecution that was meant to destroy the
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: church actually caused it to spread. The believers didn't just
• 39:47
  Speaker 1: run away and hide wherever they went. They took the
• 39:51
  Speaker 1: message of Jesus with them. What Satan meant for evil,
• 39:55
  Speaker 1: God was using for good. The scattering of the believers
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: was actually the fulfillment of what Jesus had commanded in
• 40:02
  Speaker 1: Acts one eight. The believers had been comfortable staying in Jerusalem,
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: but now persecution was forcing them to take the Gospel
• 40:11
  Speaker 1: to new places. Saul thought he was winning the war
• 40:14
  Speaker 1: against Christianity. Every day he arrested more believers, every day,
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: more families fled the city. But Saul had no idea
• 40:24
  Speaker 1: that God was watching. He had no idea that his
• 40:27
  Speaker 1: very actions were helping to spread the Gospel faster than
• 40:31
  Speaker 1: it had ever spread before. Among those who were scattered
• 40:34
  Speaker 1: from Jerusalem was Philip, one of the seven Deacons. Philip
• 40:39
  Speaker 1: went down to a city in Samaria and began preaching
• 40:42
  Speaker 1: about Christ. This was significant because Jews and Samaritans had
• 40:46
  Speaker 1: hated each other for hundreds of years. Acts eight five
• 40:50
  Speaker 1: to six tells us what happened. Philip went down to
• 40:53
  Speaker 1: a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. When
• 40:57
  Speaker 1: the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed,
• 41:00
  Speaker 1: they all paid close attention to what he said. The
• 41:03
  Speaker 1: Samaritans were amazed by what they saw and heard. Philip
• 41:08
  Speaker 1: wasn't just preaching, He was also performing miracles. Acts eight
• 41:13
  Speaker 1: seven eight describes the scene, for with shrieks, impure spirits
• 41:17
  Speaker 1: came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city.
• 41:24
  Speaker 1: But there was one man in the city who wasn't
• 41:26
  Speaker 1: happy about Philip's success. His name was Simon, and he
• 41:30
  Speaker 1: was a sorcerer who had been amazing people with his
• 41:33
  Speaker 1: magic tricks for years. Acts eight nineteen eleven tells us
• 41:36
  Speaker 1: about him. Now, for some time, a man named Simon
• 41:40
  Speaker 1: had practiced sorcery in the city, and amazed all the
• 41:43
  Speaker 1: people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great,
• 41:47
  Speaker 1: and all the people, both high and low, gave him
• 41:50
  Speaker 1: their attention. Simon had been the star of the show
• 41:54
  Speaker 1: in Samaria, but now Philip had come to town, and suddenly
• 41:58
  Speaker 1: no one was paying attention to Simon any more. Simon
• 42:02
  Speaker 1: quickly realized that what Philip was doing was completely different
• 42:06
  Speaker 1: from his magic tricks. This was real power from God.
• 42:11
  Speaker 1: So Simon did something surprising. Acts eight thirteen tells us
• 42:16
  Speaker 1: Simon himself believed and was baptized, and he followed Philip everywhere,
• 42:21
  Speaker 1: astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw. When
• 42:25
  Speaker 1: the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the
• 42:29
  Speaker 1: word of God, they sent Peter and John to see
• 42:32
  Speaker 1: what was happening. When Peter and John arrived, they prayed
• 42:36
  Speaker 1: for the new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. Acts
• 42:39
  Speaker 1: eight seventeen says then Peter and John placed their hands
• 42:43
  Speaker 1: on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. But then
• 42:47
  Speaker 1: Simon showed that his heart still wasn't right. When he
• 42:51
  Speaker 1: saw that the Holy Spirit was given through the laying
• 42:53
  Speaker 1: on of hands, he offered Peter and John money Acts
• 42:58
  Speaker 1: eight nineteen records his words, give me also this ability,
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: so that every one on whom I lay my hands
• 43:06
  Speaker 1: may receive the Holy Spirit. Peter's response was sharp and direct.
• 43:11
  Speaker 1: Acx eight twenty to twenty three shows his rebuke. Peter answered,
• 43:15
  Speaker 1: may your money perish with you because you thought you
• 43:18
  Speaker 1: could buy the gift of God with money. You have
• 43:21
  Speaker 1: no part or share in this ministry because your heart
• 43:24
  Speaker 1: is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and
• 43:28
  Speaker 1: pray to the Lord. After the successful ministry in Samaria,
• 43:33
  Speaker 1: Philip might have expected to stay there and continue the work,
• 43:36
  Speaker 1: but God had other plans. An angel of the Lord
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: spoke to Philip with very specific instructions. Acts eight twenty
• 43:44
  Speaker 1: six records the angel's message. Now, an angel of the
• 43:48
  Speaker 1: Lord said to Philip, go south to the road, the
• 43:52
  Speaker 1: desert road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This
• 43:58
  Speaker 1: must have seemed like a strip command. Philip was having
• 44:02
  Speaker 1: great success in Samaria, but God wanted him to go
• 44:05
  Speaker 1: to a desert road. But Philip obeyed Immediately, he got
• 44:09
  Speaker 1: up and went to the desert road that led from
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: Jerusalem to Gaza. When he arrived, he saw a chariot
• 44:16
  Speaker 1: traveling along the road and in it was an important
• 44:20
  Speaker 1: man from Ethiopia. Acts eight twenty seven to twenty eight
• 44:25
  Speaker 1: describes this man. So he started out, and on his
• 44:29
  Speaker 1: way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in
• 44:34
  Speaker 1: charge of all the treasury of the Candace, which means
• 44:37
  Speaker 1: Queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem
• 44:41
  Speaker 1: to worship, and on his way home, was sitting in
• 44:44
  Speaker 1: his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the Prophet. This
• 44:48
  Speaker 1: Ethiopian was a very important person. He was in charge
• 44:52
  Speaker 1: of all the money for the Queen of Ethiopia. He
• 44:55
  Speaker 1: had traveled hundreds of miles to Jerusalem to worship God,
• 45:00
  Speaker 1: which showed that he was a serious seeker of truth.
• 45:04
  Speaker 1: The Spirit told Philip to go near the chariot. As
• 45:08
  Speaker 1: Philip got closer, he could hear the man reading out
• 45:11
  Speaker 1: loud from Isaiah. Philip ran up beside the chariot and
• 45:16
  Speaker 1: called out a question that would change this man's life forever.
• 45:20
  Speaker 1: Acts eight thirty records Philip's question. Then Philip ran up
• 45:25
  Speaker 1: to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the Prophet.
• 45:29
  Speaker 1: Do you understand what you are reading? Philip asked. The
• 45:33
  Speaker 1: Ethiopian's answer showed his humble heart. Acts eight thirty one
• 45:37
  Speaker 1: tells us his response. How can I, he said, unless
• 45:40
  Speaker 1: someone explains it to me. So he invited Philip to
• 45:43
  Speaker 1: come up and sit with him. The Ethiopian was reading
• 45:46
  Speaker 1: from Isaiah fifty three, one of the most powerful prophecies
• 45:50
  Speaker 1: about the Messiah. The Ethiopian asked Philip a crucial question.
• 45:55
  Speaker 1: Acts eight thirty four records his words. The eunuch asked, Philip,
• 46:00
  Speaker 1: tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about himself
• 46:05
  Speaker 1: or someone else. Acts eight thirty five tells us what
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: Philip did. Then Philip began with that very passage of
• 46:13
  Speaker 1: scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. Philip
• 46:18
  Speaker 1: showed the Ethiopian how this prophecy was talking about Jesus.
• 46:21
  Speaker 1: As they traveled along the road, Philip explained everything. The
• 46:26
  Speaker 1: Ethiopian's heart was opened to understand the truth about Jesus.
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: He believed the message and wanted to be baptized immediately.
• 46:34
  Speaker 1: Acts eight thirty six to thirty seven shows us what
• 46:37
  Speaker 1: happened next. As they traveled along the road, they came
• 46:41
  Speaker 1: to some water, and the eunuch said, look, here is water.
• 46:46
  Speaker 1: What can stand in the way of my being baptized.
• 46:49
  Speaker 1: Philip said, if you believe with all your heart, you
• 46:52
  Speaker 1: may The eunuch answered, I believe that Jesus Christ is
• 46:56
  Speaker 1: the son of God. They stopped the chariot and both
• 47:00
  Speaker 1: Philip and the Ethiopian went down into the water. Philip
• 47:04
  Speaker 1: baptized him right there on the spot. Acts eight thirty
• 47:08
  Speaker 1: nine describes what happened immediately after. When they came up
• 47:12
  Speaker 1: out of the water. The spirit of the Lord suddenly
• 47:14
  Speaker 1: took Philip away, and the Eunuch did not see him again,
• 47:18
  Speaker 1: but went on his way rejoicing. Meanwhile, Saul was still
• 47:22
  Speaker 1: breathing threats and murder against the followers of Jesus. His
• 47:26
  Speaker 1: persecution campaign in Jerusalem wasn't enough for him. He wanted
• 47:30
  Speaker 1: to hunt down Christians wherever they had fled. Acts nine
• 47:34
  Speaker 1: one two tells us what Saul did. Meanwhile, Saul was
• 47:38
  Speaker 1: still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He
• 47:42
  Speaker 1: went to the high priest and asked him for letters
• 47:45
  Speaker 1: to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found
• 47:49
  Speaker 1: any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women,
• 47:53
  Speaker 1: he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. Saul got
• 47:57
  Speaker 1: the official letters he needed and set out out for
• 48:00
  Speaker 1: Damascus with a group of men. Damascus was about one
• 48:04
  Speaker 1: hundred and fifty miles from Jerusalem, so this was a
• 48:07
  Speaker 1: serious journey. As they approached Damascus, something happened that no
• 48:12
  Speaker 1: one expected. Acts nine three four describes the moment that
• 48:17
  Speaker 1: changed everything. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly
• 48:21
  Speaker 1: a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: the ground and heard a voice say to him, Saul, Saul,
• 48:28
  Speaker 1: why do you persecute me? Saul was confused. Acts nine
• 48:33
  Speaker 1: five records his response, who are you, lord, Saul asked.
• 48:37
  Speaker 1: The answer changed Saul's entire worldview. Acs nine five six continues,
• 48:43
  Speaker 1: I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting, he replied. Now
• 48:47
  Speaker 1: get up and go into the city, and you will
• 48:49
  Speaker 1: be told what you must do. Jesus himself was speaking
• 48:53
  Speaker 1: to Saul. The man Saul thought was dead was very
• 48:57
  Speaker 1: much alive. When Saul got up from the ground, he
• 49:00
  Speaker 1: discovered something terrifying. Ax nine etis nine describes his condition.
• 49:06
  Speaker 1: Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened
• 49:09
  Speaker 1: his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him
• 49:12
  Speaker 1: by the hand into Damascus. For three days, he was blind,
• 49:16
  Speaker 1: and did not eat or drink anything. Meanwhile, in Damascus
• 49:21
  Speaker 1: there was a believer named Anonius. The Lord spoke to
• 49:24
  Speaker 1: him in a vision. Acts nine eleven to twelve records
• 49:28
  Speaker 1: God's instructions, go to the house of Judas on Straight
• 49:32
  Speaker 1: Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul,
• 49:35
  Speaker 1: for he is praying in a vision he has seen
• 49:39
  Speaker 1: a man named Anonius come and place his hands on
• 49:42
  Speaker 1: him to restore his sight. Anonius was shocked by this request.
• 49:48
  Speaker 1: Acts Nina thirteen to fourteen shows his concern. Lord Anonius answered,
• 49:54
  Speaker 1: I have heard many reports about this man and all
• 49:57
  Speaker 1: the harm he has done to your holy people in
• 49:59
  Speaker 1: Jeru Eusalem, and he has come here with authority from
• 50:02
  Speaker 1: the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.
• 50:07
  Speaker 1: But God had a bigger plan. Acts nine fifteen sixteen
• 50:11
  Speaker 1: reveals God's purpose. But the Lord said to Anonius, go,
• 50:15
  Speaker 1: this man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name
• 50:19
  Speaker 1: to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people
• 50:22
  Speaker 1: of Israel. I will show him how much he must
• 50:26
  Speaker 1: suffer for my name. Anonius obeyed God's command. Acts nine
• 50:31
  Speaker 1: seventeen eighteen describes what happened then Anonius went to the
• 50:35
  Speaker 1: house and entered it, placing his hands on Saul, he said, brother, Saul,
• 50:40
  Speaker 1: the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road
• 50:43
  Speaker 1: as you came here, has sent me so that you
• 50:46
  Speaker 1: may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Immediately,
• 50:52
  Speaker 1: something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could
• 50:56
  Speaker 1: see again. He got up and was baptized. Acts nine,
• 51:00
  Speaker 1: and he tells us what Saul did immediately after his conversion.
• 51:03
  Speaker 1: At once he began to preach in the synagogues that
• 51:07
  Speaker 1: Jesus is the Son of God. The hunter had become
• 51:10
  Speaker 1: the hunted. The persecutor had become the preacher. While Saul
• 51:15
  Speaker 1: was starting his new life as a believer in Damascus,
• 51:19
  Speaker 1: Peter was traveling around, encouraging the churches that had been
• 51:23
  Speaker 1: scattered by the persecution. Peter came to visit the believers
• 51:27
  Speaker 1: who lived in Lydda, a town about twenty five miles
• 51:30
  Speaker 1: northwest of Jerusalem. Acts nine thirty two to thirty three
• 51:35
  Speaker 1: introduces us to a man named Eneus. As Peter traveled
• 51:39
  Speaker 1: about the country, he went to visit the Lord's people
• 51:42
  Speaker 1: who lived in Lydda. There he found a man named
• 51:45
  Speaker 1: Eneus who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years.
• 51:50
  Speaker 1: Eneus had been lying in bed, unable to move for
• 51:54
  Speaker 1: eight long years. But when Peter saw Eneus, he saw
• 51:58
  Speaker 1: an opportunity for God to show his power. Acts nine
• 52:03
  Speaker 1: thirty four records Peter's words. Peter said to him, Aeneas,
• 52:08
  Speaker 1: Jesus Christ heals you, get up and roll up your mat. Immediately,
• 52:14
  Speaker 1: Eneas got up, just like that, eight years of paralysis
• 52:19
  Speaker 1: was over. Ax nine thirty five tells us all those
• 52:22
  Speaker 1: who lived in Lydda and Charon saw him and turned
• 52:25
  Speaker 1: to the Lord. When people saw this miracle, they couldn't
• 52:28
  Speaker 1: deny that God was at work. From Lydda, Peter went
• 52:32
  Speaker 1: to Joppa, a port city on the Mediterranean coast. The
• 52:36
  Speaker 1: believers there had sent for him because something tragic had happened.
• 52:40
  Speaker 1: A beloved woman in their community had died. Acts nine
• 52:44
  Speaker 1: thirty six to thirty seven tells us about this woman.
• 52:48
  Speaker 1: In Joppa, there was a disciple named Tabitha in Greek,
• 52:51
  Speaker 1: her name is Dorcas. She was always doing good and
• 52:54
  Speaker 1: helping the poor. About that time she became sick and died,
• 52:58
  Speaker 1: and her body was washed and play in an upstairs room.
• 53:01
  Speaker 1: When Peter arrived, he was taken to the upstairs room
• 53:04
  Speaker 1: where Tabitha's body was lying. Acts nine thirty nine describes
• 53:09
  Speaker 1: what he found. Peter went with them, and when he arrived,
• 53:14
  Speaker 1: he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows
• 53:17
  Speaker 1: stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and
• 53:21
  Speaker 1: other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still
• 53:24
  Speaker 1: with them. Peter asked everyone to leave the room. Then
• 53:28
  Speaker 1: he did something that showed his faith in God's power.
• 53:31
  Speaker 1: Acts nine forty forty one tells us what happened. Peter
• 53:35
  Speaker 1: sent them all out of the room. Then he got
• 53:37
  Speaker 1: down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman,
• 53:41
  Speaker 1: he said, Tabitha, get up. She opened her eyes, and
• 53:45
  Speaker 1: seeing Peter, she sat up. He took her by the
• 53:48
  Speaker 1: hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called
• 53:51
  Speaker 1: for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to
• 53:55
  Speaker 1: them alive. Tabitha was alive. Peter had prayed and God
• 54:00
  Speaker 1: had raised her from the dead. Acts nine forty two
• 54:04
  Speaker 1: describes the impact of this miracle. This became known all
• 54:09
  Speaker 1: over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. In
• 54:12
  Speaker 1: the coastal city of caesarea lived a Roman centurion named Cornelius.
• 54:17
  Speaker 1: Acts ten one to two describes him at Caesarea. There
• 54:21
  Speaker 1: was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was
• 54:25
  Speaker 1: known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family
• 54:28
  Speaker 1: were devout and God fearing. He gave generously to those
• 54:32
  Speaker 1: in need and prayed to God regularly. One afternoon, Cornelius
• 54:38
  Speaker 1: had a vision that would change his life. Acts ten
• 54:41
  Speaker 1: three to four describes what happened one day, at about
• 54:44
  Speaker 1: three in the afternoon, he had a vision. He distinctly
• 54:47
  Speaker 1: saw an Angel of God, who came to him and
• 54:50
  Speaker 1: said Cornelius. Cornelius stared at him in fear. What is it, Lord?
• 54:55
  Speaker 1: He asked. Acts ten four to six records the angels
• 54:59
  Speaker 1: were birds. The angel answered, your prayers and gifts to
• 55:03
  Speaker 1: the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.
• 55:07
  Speaker 1: Now send men to Jopper to bring back a man
• 55:10
  Speaker 1: named Simon, who is called Peter. He is staying with
• 55:13
  Speaker 1: Simon the Tanner, whose house is by the sea. Cornelius
• 55:17
  Speaker 1: immediately sent two of his servants and a devout soldier
• 55:21
  Speaker 1: to find Peter in Jopper. The next day, while Cornelius's
• 55:25
  Speaker 1: messengers were traveling toward Jopper, Peter was on the roof
• 55:29
  Speaker 1: of Simon's house praying. Peter fell into a trance and
• 55:34
  Speaker 1: had a vision. Acts ten eleven thirteen describes Peter's vision.
• 55:39
  Speaker 1: He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet
• 55:42
  Speaker 1: being let down to earth by its four corners. It
• 55:45
  Speaker 1: contained all kinds of four footed animals, as well as
• 55:49
  Speaker 1: reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, get up, Peter,
• 55:53
  Speaker 1: kill and eat. Peter was shocked by this command. Acts
• 55:58
  Speaker 1: ten fourteen shows his response, surely not, Lord Peter replied,
• 56:03
  Speaker 1: I have never eaten anything impure or unclean. But the
• 56:07
  Speaker 1: voice spoke again. Acts ten fifteen records the voice's words.
• 56:11
  Speaker 1: The voice spoke to him a second time, do not
• 56:14
  Speaker 1: call anything impure that God has made clean. This happened
• 56:20
  Speaker 1: three times. Just then the men from Cornelius arrived at
• 56:25
  Speaker 1: the house and asked for Peter. The spirit told Peter
• 56:30
  Speaker 1: to go with them. The next day, Peter traveled to
• 56:34
  Speaker 1: Seesaria with the three men and some believers from Jopper.
• 56:38
  Speaker 1: When they arrived, they found that Cornelius had invited his
• 56:41
  Speaker 1: relatives and close friends to hear what Peter had to say.
• 56:45
  Speaker 1: Peter realized that God was doing something completely new. Acts
• 56:49
  Speaker 1: ten thirty four thirty five records his revelation. Then Peter
• 56:55
  Speaker 1: began to speak. I now realize how true it is
• 56:58
  Speaker 1: that God does not show favoritism, but accepts from every
• 57:02
  Speaker 1: nation the one who fears Him and does what is right.
• 57:06
  Speaker 1: Peter then preached the Gospel to this gathering of gentiles.
• 57:10
  Speaker 1: While Peter was still speaking, something amazing happened. Acts ten
• 57:14
  Speaker 1: forty four to forty six describes the scene. While Peter
• 57:19
  Speaker 1: was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on
• 57:22
  Speaker 1: all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had
• 57:26
  Speaker 1: come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the
• 57:30
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit had been poured out even on gentiles, for
• 57:33
  Speaker 1: they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. God
• 57:38
  Speaker 1: was showing everyone that the Gospel was for all people,
• 57:41
  Speaker 1: not just Jews. Peter immediately baptized Cornelius and his household.
• 57:47
  Speaker 1: King Herod Agrippa had been watching the growth of the
• 57:51
  Speaker 1: church with growing concern. Around this time, Herod decided to
• 57:56
  Speaker 1: take action against some of the church leaders to please
• 57:59
  Speaker 1: the Jewish leaders who hated the followers of Jesus. Acts
• 58:05
  Speaker 1: twelve one two tells us what he did. It was
• 58:09
  Speaker 1: about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged
• 58:13
  Speaker 1: to the Church, intending to persecute them. He had James,
• 58:17
  Speaker 1: the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
• 58:20
  Speaker 1: When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish leaders,
• 58:23
  Speaker 1: he decided to arrest Peter Two. Acts twelve and three
• 58:28
  Speaker 1: to four describes what happened. When he saw that this
• 58:32
  Speaker 1: met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter. Also,
• 58:36
  Speaker 1: this happened during the festival of unleavened Bread. After arresting him,
• 58:41
  Speaker 1: he put him in prison, handing him over to be
• 58:43
  Speaker 1: guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. But while
• 58:47
  Speaker 1: Peter was in prison, something powerful was happening. Acts twelve
• 58:52
  Speaker 1: five tells us so Peter was kept in prison, but
• 58:56
  Speaker 1: the church was earnestly praying to God for him. The
• 58:59
  Speaker 1: night before Herod was going to bring Peter to trial,
• 59:02
  Speaker 1: something miraculous happened. Acts twelve six seven describes the scene
• 59:08
  Speaker 1: the night before Herod was to bring him to trial.
• 59:11
  Speaker 1: Peter was sleeping between two soldiers bound with two chains,
• 59:15
  Speaker 1: and sentries stood guard at the entrance. Suddenly, an angel
• 59:19
  Speaker 1: of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell.
• 59:22
  Speaker 1: Acts twelve SEVENU eight continues, He struck Peter on the
• 59:26
  Speaker 1: side and woke him up. Quick, get up, he said,
• 59:29
  Speaker 1: and the chains fell off Peter's wrists. Then the angel
• 59:33
  Speaker 1: said to him, put on your clothes and sandals, and
• 59:37
  Speaker 1: Peter did so. Wrap your cloak around you, and follow me,
• 59:41
  Speaker 1: the angel told him. They walked past all the guards
• 59:44
  Speaker 1: and came to the iron gate that led to the city.
• 59:47
  Speaker 1: Acts twelve ten describes what happened. They passed the first
• 59:52
  Speaker 1: and second guards and came to the iron gate leading
• 59:55
  Speaker 1: to the city. It opened for them by itself, and
• 59:58
  Speaker 1: they went through it. When they had walked the length
• 1:00:01
  Speaker 1: of one street, the angel left him. Peter made his
• 1:00:05
  Speaker 1: way to the house where many believers were gathered praying
• 1:00:09
  Speaker 1: for him. When he knocked on the door, a servant
• 1:00:12
  Speaker 1: girl named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter's voice,
• 1:00:17
  Speaker 1: she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening the
• 1:00:20
  Speaker 1: door and told every one Peter was there. The believers
• 1:00:24
  Speaker 1: inside couldn't believe it. Acts twelve fifteen shows their response,
• 1:00:29
  Speaker 1: You're out of your mind. They told her they were
• 1:00:31
  Speaker 1: praying for Peter's release, but when God answered their prayer,
• 1:00:35
  Speaker 1: they could hardly believe it. The next morning, there was
• 1:00:39
  Speaker 1: great confusion among the soldiers. Herod was furious that Peter
• 1:00:43
  Speaker 1: had escaped and had the guards executed. But God wasn't
• 1:00:46
  Speaker 1: finished with Herod. The king had been accepting worship from people,
• 1:00:51
  Speaker 1: allowing them to treat him like a god. Acts twelve
• 1:00:54
  Speaker 1: twenty one twenty two describes a particular occasion on the
• 1:00:59
  Speaker 1: appoint Today, Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his
• 1:01:04
  Speaker 1: throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted,
• 1:01:08
  Speaker 1: this is the voice of a God, not of a man.
• 1:01:13
  Speaker 1: Herod loved the praise and didn't give glory to God.
• 1:01:17
  Speaker 1: His punishment was swift and terrible. Acts twelve twenty three
• 1:01:21
  Speaker 1: tells us what happened immediately. Because Herod did not give
• 1:01:25
  Speaker 1: praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down,
• 1:01:29
  Speaker 1: and he was eaten by worms and died. Acts twelve
• 1:01:32
  Speaker 1: twenty four gives us the final word. But the Word
• 1:01:35
  Speaker 1: of God continued to spread and flourish. Herod was dead,
• 1:01:40
  Speaker 1: but the Gospel was very much alive in the church
• 1:01:43
  Speaker 1: at Antioch. Something special was happening. This wasn't Jerusalem. This
• 1:01:48
  Speaker 1: was a different kind of church filled with people from
• 1:01:51
  Speaker 1: many backgrounds. The believers there had been scattered by persecution,
• 1:01:57
  Speaker 1: but they had built something beautiful together. The church in
• 1:02:00
  Speaker 1: Antioch had amazing leaders. Acts thirteen one tells us who
• 1:02:05
  Speaker 1: they were now In the church at Antioch. There were
• 1:02:08
  Speaker 1: prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Syrene, Mannion,
• 1:02:14
  Speaker 1: who had been brought up with Herod the Tetrarch, and Saul.
• 1:02:18
  Speaker 1: These weren't just ordinary men. They were gifted leaders from
• 1:02:22
  Speaker 1: different places and backgrounds. Barnabas was the encourager who had
• 1:02:26
  Speaker 1: first welcomed Saul when everyone else was afraid of him. Simeon,
• 1:02:31
  Speaker 1: called Niger, was probably from Africa. Lucius came from Syren.
• 1:02:35
  Speaker 1: Manayan had grown up with Herod the Tetrarch, which meant
• 1:02:38
  Speaker 1: he came from a wealthy, powerful family. And then there
• 1:02:42
  Speaker 1: was Saul, the former persecutor who had become a passionate preacher.
• 1:02:47
  Speaker 1: These men were gathered together seeking God about the future
• 1:02:50
  Speaker 1: of the church. They weren't just having a casual meeting.
• 1:02:54
  Speaker 1: They were fasting and worshiping, which showed how serious they
• 1:02:57
  Speaker 1: were about hearing from God. Acts thirteen two describes what
• 1:03:03
  Speaker 1: happened during this time, while they were worshiping the Lord
• 1:03:07
  Speaker 1: and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set apart for me,
• 1:03:11
  Speaker 1: Barnabas and Saul, for the work to which I have
• 1:03:14
  Speaker 1: called them. The Holy Spirit spoke, This wasn't a human
• 1:03:18
  Speaker 1: decision or a committee vote. God himself was directing the
• 1:03:22
  Speaker 1: church to send out Barnabas and Saul for a special mission.
• 1:03:26
  Speaker 1: The Spirit had been preparing these two men for something
• 1:03:29
  Speaker 1: bigger than just ministering in Antioch. The church leaders didn't
• 1:03:34
  Speaker 1: hesitate to obey. Acts thirteen three tells us what they did.
• 1:03:38
  Speaker 1: So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their
• 1:03:41
  Speaker 1: hands on them and sent them off. The laying on
• 1:03:44
  Speaker 1: of hands was their way of blessing Barnabas and Saul
• 1:03:48
  Speaker 1: and officially commissioning them for this new work. This was
• 1:03:52
  Speaker 1: a huge moment in church history. For the first time,
• 1:03:56
  Speaker 1: the Church was deliberately sending out missionaries to take the
• 1:03:59
  Speaker 1: Gospel to new places. It wasn't happening by accident or
• 1:04:03
  Speaker 1: because of persecution. It was happening because God had a
• 1:04:07
  Speaker 1: plan to reach the world. Barnabas and Saul, along with
• 1:04:12
  Speaker 1: John Mark as their helper, set sail from Seleucia and
• 1:04:16
  Speaker 1: headed for the island of Cyprus. This wasn't a random choice.
• 1:04:21
  Speaker 1: Barnabas was from Cyprus, so he knew the people and
• 1:04:24
  Speaker 1: the culture there. It made sense to start their missionary
• 1:04:27
  Speaker 1: work in a place where they had connections. They arrived
• 1:04:31
  Speaker 1: at Salamis and immediately began preaching in the Jewish synagogues.
• 1:04:36
  Speaker 1: Acts thirteen five tells us when they arrived at Salamis,
• 1:04:40
  Speaker 1: they proclaimed the Word of God in the Jewish synagogues.
• 1:04:44
  Speaker 1: John was with them as their helper. After preaching throughout
• 1:04:48
  Speaker 1: the island, they came to Paphos, the capital city on
• 1:04:52
  Speaker 1: the western coast. This was where the Roman governor lived,
• 1:04:56
  Speaker 1: and it was here that they would face their first
• 1:04:59
  Speaker 1: major conference. Acts thirteen six to seven describes what they
• 1:05:04
  Speaker 1: found in Paphos. They traveled through the whole island until
• 1:05:09
  Speaker 1: they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer
• 1:05:13
  Speaker 1: and false prophet named bar Jesus, who was an attendant
• 1:05:17
  Speaker 1: of the Proconsul Sergius Paulus. The Proconsul, an intelligent man,
• 1:05:22
  Speaker 1: sent for Barnabas and saul because he wanted to hear
• 1:05:25
  Speaker 1: the word of God. Sergius Paulus was the Roman governor
• 1:05:29
  Speaker 1: of Cyprus, and he was genuinely interested in spiritual things.
• 1:05:34
  Speaker 1: When he heard that these Jewish teachers were in town,
• 1:05:38
  Speaker 1: he invited them to come and speak to him. This
• 1:05:41
  Speaker 1: was exactly the kind of opportunity that missionaries dream about.
• 1:05:45
  Speaker 1: But there was a problem. Bar Jesus, also called Elimas,
• 1:05:50
  Speaker 1: was a Jewish sorcerer who had the governor's ear. When
• 1:05:53
  Speaker 1: he heard that Barnabas and Saul were going to speak
• 1:05:56
  Speaker 1: to Sergius Palas, he knew this could threaten his position.
• 1:06:01
  Speaker 1: Acts thirteen eight tells us what Elimus did. But Elimus,
• 1:06:06
  Speaker 1: the sorcerer, for that is what his name means, opposed
• 1:06:09
  Speaker 1: them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.
• 1:06:12
  Speaker 1: Elimus wasn't going to let these missionaries ruin his good thing.
• 1:06:17
  Speaker 1: This was when something important happened. Saul stepped forward and
• 1:06:21
  Speaker 1: took charge. From this point on, he would be known
• 1:06:25
  Speaker 1: by his Roman name Paul. Acts thirteen ninety eleven describes
• 1:06:31
  Speaker 1: Paul's confrontation with Elemus. Then Saul, who was also called Paul,
• 1:06:36
  Speaker 1: filled with the Holy spirit, looked straight at Elemus and said,
• 1:06:40
  Speaker 1: you are a child of the devil and an enemy
• 1:06:43
  Speaker 1: of everything that is right. You are full of all
• 1:06:46
  Speaker 1: kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting
• 1:06:51
  Speaker 1: the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of
• 1:06:54
  Speaker 1: the Lord is against you. You are going to be
• 1:06:56
  Speaker 1: blind for a time, not even able to see the
• 1:06:59
  Speaker 1: light of the sun. Immediately, mist and darkness came over him,
• 1:07:04
  Speaker 1: and he groped about, seeking some one to lead him
• 1:07:07
  Speaker 1: by the hand. Paul didn't hold back. He called Elimas
• 1:07:11
  Speaker 1: exactly what he was, a child of the devil who
• 1:07:15
  Speaker 1: was opposing God's work. And then Paul pronounced a judgment
• 1:07:19
  Speaker 1: that came directly from God. Elimas would be blind for
• 1:07:23
  Speaker 1: a time, just as Paul himself had been blind on
• 1:07:26
  Speaker 1: the road to Damascus. The effect on Sergius Paulus was
• 1:07:30
  Speaker 1: immediate and powerful. Acts thirteen twelve tells us his response.
• 1:07:35
  Speaker 1: When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for
• 1:07:39
  Speaker 1: he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord. From Cyprus.
• 1:07:43
  Speaker 1: Paul and his companions sailed to the mainland and arrived
• 1:07:47
  Speaker 1: at Perga in Pamphylia, But something unexpected happened here. John
• 1:07:52
  Speaker 1: Mark decided to leave them and return to Jerusalem. Acts
• 1:07:56
  Speaker 1: thirteen thirteen simply states From Paphos, Paul and his companions
• 1:08:01
  Speaker 1: sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to
• 1:08:05
  Speaker 1: return to Jerusalem. We're not told exactly why John Mark left,
• 1:08:10
  Speaker 1: but it must have been disappointing for Paul and Barnabas.
• 1:08:13
  Speaker 1: Either way, Paul and Barnabas continued on without him. They
• 1:08:18
  Speaker 1: traveled inland to Pisidian Antioch, a different city from the
• 1:08:22
  Speaker 1: Antioch where they had been commissioned. This was a Roman
• 1:08:25
  Speaker 1: colony with a significant Jewish population, which made it perfect
• 1:08:30
  Speaker 1: for their ministry strategy. On the Sabbath day, Paul and
• 1:08:34
  Speaker 1: Barnabas went to the synagogue. Acts thirteen fourteen fifteen describes
• 1:08:38
  Speaker 1: what happened. From Perga. They went on to Pisidian Antioch.
• 1:08:43
  Speaker 1: On the Sabbath, they entered the synagogue and sat down.
• 1:08:46
  Speaker 1: After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the
• 1:08:49
  Speaker 1: leaders of the synagogue sent word to them saying, brothers,
• 1:08:53
  Speaker 1: if you have a word of exhortation for the people,
• 1:08:55
  Speaker 1: please speak. This was exactly what Paul had been hoping for.
• 1:09:00
  Speaker 1: Stood up and began to preach what would become his
• 1:09:02
  Speaker 1: most famous sermon. In the Book of Acts, Acts thirteen
• 1:09:07
  Speaker 1: sixteen to seventeen shows how Paul began standing up. Paul
• 1:09:12
  Speaker 1: motioned with his hand and said, fellow Israelites, and you
• 1:09:15
  Speaker 1: gentiles who worship God, listen to me. The God of
• 1:09:20
  Speaker 1: the people of Israel chose our ancestors. He made the
• 1:09:23
  Speaker 1: people prosper during their stay in Egypt. With mighty power,
• 1:09:27
  Speaker 1: he led them out of that country. Paul started with
• 1:09:31
  Speaker 1: Jewish history. He talked about how God had chosen the Israelites,
• 1:09:37
  Speaker 1: brought them out of Egypt, and given them the Promised Land.
• 1:09:40
  Speaker 1: He mentioned King Saul, King David, and God's promise to
• 1:09:44
  Speaker 1: bring a savior from David's line. Then Paul got to
• 1:09:48
  Speaker 1: the heart of his message, Jesus. Acts thirteen twenty three
• 1:09:52
  Speaker 1: records his words from this man's descendants, God has brought
• 1:09:57
  Speaker 1: to Israel the savior Jesus as he promised. Paul explained
• 1:10:01
  Speaker 1: how John the Baptist had prepared the way for Jesus
• 1:10:04
  Speaker 1: and how Jesus had been crucified by the leaders in Jerusalem.
• 1:10:10
  Speaker 1: But the most important part of Paul's message was what
• 1:10:13
  Speaker 1: came next. Acts thirteen thirty thirty one declares, but God
• 1:10:19
  Speaker 1: raised him from the dead, and for many days he
• 1:10:23
  Speaker 1: was seen by those who had traveled with him from
• 1:10:26
  Speaker 1: Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now His witnesses to our people.
• 1:10:31
  Speaker 1: The response was immediate and divided. Acts thirteen forty two
• 1:10:35
  Speaker 1: to forty three tells us As Paul and Barnabas were
• 1:10:38
  Speaker 1: leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further
• 1:10:42
  Speaker 1: about these things. On the next Sabbath. When the congregation
• 1:10:46
  Speaker 1: was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to
• 1:10:49
  Speaker 1: Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and
• 1:10:54
  Speaker 1: urged them to continue in the grace of God. Many
• 1:10:57
  Speaker 1: people wanted to hear more, but not everyone was happy.
• 1:11:00
  Speaker 1: The next Sabbath, almost the whole city came to hear
• 1:11:03
  Speaker 1: Paul preach. This made some of the Jewish leaders jealous
• 1:11:07
  Speaker 1: and angry. Paul and Barnabas responded boldly. Acts thirteen forty
• 1:11:13
  Speaker 1: six records there declaration. Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly,
• 1:11:19
  Speaker 1: we had to speak the word of God to you first.
• 1:11:22
  Speaker 1: Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy
• 1:11:25
  Speaker 1: of eternal life, we now turn to the gentiles. This
• 1:11:31
  Speaker 1: was a pivotal moment. Paul was officially turning from the
• 1:11:34
  Speaker 1: Jews to the Gentiles in this city. The Gentiles were thrilled.
• 1:11:40
  Speaker 1: Acts thirteen forty eight tells us when the Gentiles heard this,
• 1:11:44
  Speaker 1: they were glad and honored the word of the Lord,
• 1:11:47
  Speaker 1: and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. But
• 1:11:51
  Speaker 1: the Jewish leaders stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas
• 1:11:55
  Speaker 1: and expelled them from the region. After being forced out
• 1:11:58
  Speaker 1: of Posidian Antioch, Paul and Barnabas traveled southeast to Iconium,
• 1:12:03
  Speaker 1: another important city in the region. They weren't discouraged by
• 1:12:08
  Speaker 1: the persecution they had faced in Iconium, they followed the
• 1:12:12
  Speaker 1: same strategy. Acts fourteen one tells us what they did
• 1:12:17
  Speaker 1: at Iconium. Paul and Barnabas went as usual, into the
• 1:12:20
  Speaker 1: Jewish synagogue. There, they spoke so effectively that a great
• 1:12:25
  Speaker 1: number of Jews and Greeks believed. Their preaching was so
• 1:12:28
  Speaker 1: powerful and convincing that many people believed, both Jews and Greeks.
• 1:12:33
  Speaker 1: This was exactly what they had hoped for. The message
• 1:12:36
  Speaker 1: about Jesus was crossing cultural boundaries, bringing people together in faith.
• 1:12:41
  Speaker 1: But just like in Pisidian Antioch, not everyone was happy
• 1:12:45
  Speaker 1: about their success. Acts fourteen two describes the opposition, but
• 1:12:50
  Speaker 1: the Jews, who refused to believe, stirred up the other
• 1:12:53
  Speaker 1: Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. Despite the
• 1:12:59
  Speaker 1: growing opposition, Paul and Barnabas didn't run away immediately. They
• 1:13:03
  Speaker 1: stayed in Iconium for a considerable time, continuing to preach boldly.
• 1:13:09
  Speaker 1: Acts fourteen three explains why they were able to stay
• 1:13:14
  Speaker 1: so they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly for
• 1:13:18
  Speaker 1: the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by
• 1:13:22
  Speaker 1: enabling them to perform signs and wonders. God was backing
• 1:13:26
  Speaker 1: up their preaching with miraculous signs and wonders. People could
• 1:13:30
  Speaker 1: see that divine power was working through these men, But
• 1:13:35
  Speaker 1: the division in the city was growing deeper. Acts fourteen
• 1:13:40
  Speaker 1: four describes how the city split. The people of the
• 1:13:44
  Speaker 1: city were divided. Some sided with the Jews, others with
• 1:13:48
  Speaker 1: the Apostles. The whole community was taking sides. The tension
• 1:13:53
  Speaker 1: in Iconium continued to build until it reached a dangerous level.
• 1:13:58
  Speaker 1: Acts fourteen five so six tells us what finally happened.
• 1:14:03
  Speaker 1: There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews,
• 1:14:07
  Speaker 1: together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them,
• 1:14:12
  Speaker 1: but they found out about it and fled to the
• 1:14:15
  Speaker 1: Lycaonian cities of Listra and Derbe and to the surrounding country.
• 1:14:20
  Speaker 1: Paul and Barnabas learned about the plot just in time.
• 1:14:24
  Speaker 1: Their enemies had decided to stone them, but they had
• 1:14:27
  Speaker 1: advanced warning and were able to escape. In Listra, Paul
• 1:14:31
  Speaker 1: and Barnabas encountered a very different situation. Listra didn't have
• 1:14:36
  Speaker 1: a large Jewish population, so there was no synagogue where
• 1:14:40
  Speaker 1: they could start their ministry. They had to find other
• 1:14:43
  Speaker 1: ways to reach the people. One day, as Paul was
• 1:14:48
  Speaker 1: preaching in the city, he noticed a man who had
• 1:14:50
  Speaker 1: been lame from birth. Acts fourteen eight describes this man.
• 1:14:55
  Speaker 1: In Listra, there sat a man who was lame. He
• 1:14:58
  Speaker 1: had been that way from birth and had never walked.
• 1:15:01
  Speaker 1: As Paul looked at this man, something remarkable happened. Acts
• 1:15:05
  Speaker 1: fourteen nine ten tells us he listened to Paul as
• 1:15:08
  Speaker 1: he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that
• 1:15:12
  Speaker 1: he had faith to be healed, and called out, stand
• 1:15:15
  Speaker 1: up on your feet. At that, the man jumped up
• 1:15:18
  Speaker 1: and began to walk. The healing was instant and complete.
• 1:15:23
  Speaker 1: A man who had never walked in his entire life
• 1:15:26
  Speaker 1: was suddenly jumping around and walking normally. The crowd that
• 1:15:30
  Speaker 1: witnessed this miracle was amazed, but their reaction was not
• 1:15:33
  Speaker 1: what Paul and Barnabas expected. Acts fourteen eleven to twelve
• 1:15:39
  Speaker 1: describes what the people did. When the crowd saw what
• 1:15:43
  Speaker 1: Paul had done, they shouted in the Lychaeonian language, the
• 1:15:47
  Speaker 1: gods have come down to us in human form. Be
• 1:15:50
  Speaker 1: Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because
• 1:15:54
  Speaker 1: he was the chief speaker. The people of Listra thought
• 1:15:57
  Speaker 1: that Paul and Barnabas were Greek gods who had come
• 1:16:00
  Speaker 1: to earth in human form. When they saw Paul heal
• 1:16:04
  Speaker 1: the lame Man, they assumed this was exactly what was happening.
• 1:16:09
  Speaker 1: The priest of Zeus brought bulls and wreaths to offer
• 1:16:12
  Speaker 1: sacrifices to these gods. When Paul and Barnabas realized what
• 1:16:16
  Speaker 1: was happening, they were horrified. Acts fourteen fourteen fifteen describes
• 1:16:21
  Speaker 1: their reaction. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard
• 1:16:25
  Speaker 1: of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into
• 1:16:28
  Speaker 1: the crowd, shouting, friends, why are you doing this? We
• 1:16:32
  Speaker 1: too are only human like you. We are bringing you
• 1:16:35
  Speaker 1: good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things
• 1:16:39
  Speaker 1: to the Living God who made the heavens and the
• 1:16:41
  Speaker 1: earth and the sea and everything in them. Just when
• 1:16:45
  Speaker 1: it seemed like Paul and Barnabas had convinced the people
• 1:16:49
  Speaker 1: not to worship them, everything changed dramatically. Some Jews arrived
• 1:16:53
  Speaker 1: from Antioch and Iconium. Acts fourteen nineteen describes what happened next.
• 1:17:00
  Speaker 1: Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won
• 1:17:03
  Speaker 1: the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside
• 1:17:07
  Speaker 1: the city, thinking he was dead. The same crowd that
• 1:17:11
  Speaker 1: had wanted to worship Paul as a god now turned
• 1:17:14
  Speaker 1: on him and stoned him. They stoned Paul and dragged
• 1:17:18
  Speaker 1: his body outside the city, thinking they had killed him.
• 1:17:21
  Speaker 1: But something amazing happened. Acts fourteen twenty tells us but
• 1:17:27
  Speaker 1: after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up
• 1:17:30
  Speaker 1: and went back into the city. The next day he
• 1:17:33
  Speaker 1: and Barnabas left for Derby. Paul wasn't dead. God protected
• 1:17:37
  Speaker 1: his servant from death. Paul got up, went back into
• 1:17:41
  Speaker 1: the city, and the next day continued on to Darbey
• 1:17:44
  Speaker 1: with Barnabas. In Darbey, they had much more success. Acts
• 1:17:48
  Speaker 1: fourteen twenty one tells us they preached the gospel in
• 1:17:52
  Speaker 1: that city and won a large number of disciples. After
• 1:17:56
  Speaker 1: their successful ministry in Durbey, Paul and Barnabas faced an
• 1:18:00
  Speaker 1: important decision. They could continue traveling to new cities, or
• 1:18:04
  Speaker 1: they could go back and strengthen the churches they had
• 1:18:07
  Speaker 1: already started. They chose to retrace their steps. Acts fourteen
• 1:18:13
  Speaker 1: twenty one twenty two tells us what they decided. They
• 1:18:17
  Speaker 1: preached the gospel in that city and won a large
• 1:18:21
  Speaker 1: number of disciples. Then they returned to Listre, Iconium and Antioch,
• 1:18:26
  Speaker 1: strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to
• 1:18:30
  Speaker 1: the faith. We must go through many hardships to enter
• 1:18:34
  Speaker 1: the Kingdom of God. They said. This was incredibly brave.
• 1:18:39
  Speaker 1: Paul was returning to Listra, where he had been stoned
• 1:18:42
  Speaker 1: and left for dead. But they knew these new believers
• 1:18:46
  Speaker 1: needed encouragement and instruction. Paul and Barnabas weren't just interested
• 1:18:51
  Speaker 1: in making converts. They wanted to make disciples. They told
• 1:18:55
  Speaker 1: the new believers honestly that following Jesus wouldn't be easy,
• 1:19:00
  Speaker 1: But Paul and Barnabas did more than just encourage the believers,
• 1:19:05
  Speaker 1: They organized the churches. Acts fourteen twenty three describes what
• 1:19:09
  Speaker 1: they did. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in
• 1:19:14
  Speaker 1: each church, and with prayer and fasting, prayed and committed
• 1:19:19
  Speaker 1: them to the Lord in whom they had put their trust.
• 1:19:22
  Speaker 1: They didn't just leave these churches without leadership. They appointed elders,
• 1:19:27
  Speaker 1: mature believers who could shepherd the flock when the apostles
• 1:19:30
  Speaker 1: weren't there. From Atalia, they sailed back to Antioch in Syria,
• 1:19:35
  Speaker 1: where their missionary journey had begun. Acts fourteen twenty six
• 1:19:40
  Speaker 1: twenty seven describes their home coming. From Atalia, they sailed
• 1:19:44
  Speaker 1: back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the
• 1:19:47
  Speaker 1: grace of God for the work they had now completed.
• 1:19:51
  Speaker 1: On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported
• 1:19:55
  Speaker 1: all that God had done through them, and how He
• 1:19:57
  Speaker 1: had opened a door of faith to the gentile. What
• 1:20:01
  Speaker 1: a home coming that must have been. Paul and Barnabas
• 1:20:03
  Speaker 1: had so much to report, the miracles, the conversions, the persecutions,
• 1:20:09
  Speaker 1: the new churches that had been planted. Most importantly, they
• 1:20:13
  Speaker 1: reported that God had opened a door of faith to
• 1:20:16
  Speaker 1: the Gentiles. While Paul and Barnabas were enjoying their time
• 1:20:21
  Speaker 1: back in Antioch, some visitors arrived from Judea who would
• 1:20:25
  Speaker 1: create a major crisis in the Early Church. These were
• 1:20:29
  Speaker 1: teachers who claimed to speak with authority about what it
• 1:20:33
  Speaker 1: meant to follow Jesus. Acts fifteen one tells us what
• 1:20:37
  Speaker 1: these men were teaching. Certain people came down from Judea
• 1:20:42
  Speaker 1: to Antioch and were teaching the believers. Unless you are circumcised,
• 1:20:47
  Speaker 1: according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.
• 1:20:52
  Speaker 1: This was a bombshell that threatened to split the Early Church.
• 1:20:56
  Speaker 1: These teachers were saying that gentile converts to Christianity had
• 1:20:59
  Speaker 1: to become Jews first. They had to be circumcised and
• 1:21:03
  Speaker 1: follow the law of Moses before they could be considered
• 1:21:06
  Speaker 1: true Christians. Paul and Barnabas couldn't let this teaching go unchallenged.
• 1:21:12
  Speaker 1: Acts fifteen two describes what happened. This brought Paul and
• 1:21:16
  Speaker 1: Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul
• 1:21:20
  Speaker 1: and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to
• 1:21:23
  Speaker 1: go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders
• 1:21:26
  Speaker 1: about this question. When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were
• 1:21:31
  Speaker 1: welcomed by the church, the apostles and the elders, but
• 1:21:34
  Speaker 1: the Judaizers in Jerusalem weren't giving up. Acts fifteen five
• 1:21:39
  Speaker 1: tells us. Then some of the believers who belonged to
• 1:21:42
  Speaker 1: the party of the Pharisees stood up and said that
• 1:21:45
  Speaker 1: gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law
• 1:21:49
  Speaker 1: of Moses. The apostles and elders met to consider this question.
• 1:21:55
  Speaker 1: After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them. Acts
• 1:21:59
  Speaker 1: fifteen seven nine records his words, brothers, you know that
• 1:22:03
  Speaker 1: some time ago God made a choice among you that
• 1:22:06
  Speaker 1: the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of
• 1:22:08
  Speaker 1: the Gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed
• 1:22:13
  Speaker 1: that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them,
• 1:22:17
  Speaker 1: just as he did to us. He did not discriminate
• 1:22:20
  Speaker 1: between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.
• 1:22:24
  Speaker 1: Peter reminded everyone that God himself had already settled this
• 1:22:28
  Speaker 1: question when Cornelius and his household believed God gave them
• 1:22:32
  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit without requiring circumcision first. Then Peter said
• 1:22:37
  Speaker 1: something that must have shocked the Judaizers. Acts fifteen ten
• 1:22:42
  Speaker 1: eleven records his challenge, Now, then, why do you try
• 1:22:47
  Speaker 1: to test God by putting on the necks of gentiles
• 1:22:50
  Speaker 1: a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been
• 1:22:53
  Speaker 1: able to bear. No, we believe it is through the
• 1:22:57
  Speaker 1: grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just
• 1:22:59
  Speaker 1: as they are. After Peter spoke, the whole assembly listened
• 1:23:04
  Speaker 1: as Paul and Barnabas told about the miraculous signs and
• 1:23:07
  Speaker 1: wonders God had done among the gentiles. Finally, James, the
• 1:23:12
  Speaker 1: brother of Jesus and the leader of the Jerusalem Church,
• 1:23:16
  Speaker 1: stood up to give his opinion. He showed that the
• 1:23:18
  Speaker 1: inclusion of gentiles wasn't a new idea. It had been
• 1:23:22
  Speaker 1: prophesied in the Old Testament. After hearing from Peter, Paul, Barnabas,
• 1:23:27
  Speaker 1: and James, the Jerusalem Council was ready to make their decision.
• 1:23:32
  Speaker 1: This wasn't just about settling an argument. This was about
• 1:23:36
  Speaker 1: the future direction of Christianity. James delivered the council's verdict.
• 1:23:41
  Speaker 1: Acts fifteen, nineteen twenty one records his words, it is
• 1:23:45
  Speaker 1: my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult
• 1:23:48
  Speaker 1: for the gentiles who are turning to God. Instead, we
• 1:23:51
  Speaker 1: should write to them telling them to abstain from food
• 1:23:55
  Speaker 1: sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals,
• 1:24:00
  Speaker 1: and from sexual immorality. The decision was clear. Gentiles did
• 1:24:05
  Speaker 1: not have to be circumcised or keep the Law of
• 1:24:08
  Speaker 1: Moses to become Christians. This was a huge victory for
• 1:24:13
  Speaker 1: Paul and Barnabas and for the principle of salvation by
• 1:24:17
  Speaker 1: grace through faith. The council decided to send a letter
• 1:24:20
  Speaker 1: to the Gentile churches explaining their decision. They chose Judas,
• 1:24:26
  Speaker 1: Barsabas and Silas, two respected leaders, to accompany Paul and
• 1:24:31
  Speaker 1: Barnabas back to Antioch. When the delegation arrived in Antioch
• 1:24:35
  Speaker 1: and read the letter to the church, the response was
• 1:24:39
  Speaker 1: overwhelmingly positive. Acts fifteen thirty thirty one tells us. So
• 1:24:44
  Speaker 1: the men were sent off and went down to Antioch,
• 1:24:47
  Speaker 1: where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter.
• 1:24:51
  Speaker 1: The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message.
• 1:24:56
  Speaker 1: The Gentile Christians in Antioch were relieved and happy they
• 1:24:59
  Speaker 1: did not have to become Jews to follow Jesus. The
• 1:25:02
  Speaker 1: gospel really was for everyone regardless of their ethnic or
• 1:25:06
  Speaker 1: cultural background. But then something unexpected happened that would change
• 1:25:11
  Speaker 1: the course of Paul's ministry. Paul suggested to Barnabas that
• 1:25:16
  Speaker 1: they should revisit the churches they had planted on their
• 1:25:19
  Speaker 1: first missionary journey, but when Barnabas wanted to take John
• 1:25:23
  Speaker 1: Mark with them again, Paul disagreed. Acts fifteen thirty seven
• 1:25:27
  Speaker 1: thirty nine tells us Barnabas wanted to take John also
• 1:25:31
  Speaker 1: called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it
• 1:25:34
  Speaker 1: wise to take him because he had deserted them in
• 1:25:37
  Speaker 1: Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work.
• 1:25:40
  Speaker 1: They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company.
• 1:25:44
  Speaker 1: Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose
• 1:25:48
  Speaker 1: Silas and left commended by the believers to the grace
• 1:25:51
  Speaker 1: of the Lord. Paul and Barnabas had a sharp disagreement
• 1:25:55
  Speaker 1: and decided to go separate ways. Barnabas took John Mark
• 1:25:59
  Speaker 1: and went to Cyprus. Paul chose Silas and prepared for
• 1:26:03
  Speaker 1: his second missionary journey. The team that had accomplished so
• 1:26:07
  Speaker 1: much together was splitting up, but God would use both
• 1:26:11
  Speaker 1: teams to spread the Gospel even further, Paul decided to
• 1:26:15
  Speaker 1: visit the churches he had started before. When he reached
• 1:26:18
  Speaker 1: Durbey and Listre, he met a young believer named Timothy.
• 1:26:22
  Speaker 1: Act sixteen one to three tells us that Timothy was
• 1:26:26
  Speaker 1: well spoken of by believers in both cities, and his
• 1:26:29
  Speaker 1: mother was Jewish while his father was Greek. Paul wanted
• 1:26:33
  Speaker 1: Timothy to join him on his journey, so he had
• 1:26:37
  Speaker 1: him circumcised because of the Jews in those areas who
• 1:26:41
  Speaker 1: knew his father was Greek. As they traveled through the cities,
• 1:26:45
  Speaker 1: they shared the decisions made by the apostles and elders
• 1:26:48
  Speaker 1: in Jerusalem. Act sixteen four to five shows us that
• 1:26:52
  Speaker 1: the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number daily.
• 1:26:57
  Speaker 1: Paul and his team wanted to preach in Asia, but
• 1:27:01
  Speaker 1: Act sixteen six to seven reveals that the Holy Spirit
• 1:27:04
  Speaker 1: prevented them from doing so. They also tried to enter Bithynia,
• 1:27:09
  Speaker 1: but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them. That night,
• 1:27:13
  Speaker 1: Paul had a vision described in Acts sixteen nine to ten.
• 1:27:18
  Speaker 1: A man from Macedonia appeared to him and begged come
• 1:27:21
  Speaker 1: over to Macedonia and help us Paul immediately understood this
• 1:27:27
  Speaker 1: was God's call to bring the Gospel to Europe. They
• 1:27:30
  Speaker 1: sailed from Troas to Samothrace and then to Neapolis. In Philippi,
• 1:27:37
  Speaker 1: Paul looked for a place of prayer by the river
• 1:27:39
  Speaker 1: on the Sabbath day. Acts sixteen thirteen two fourteen introduces
• 1:27:44
  Speaker 1: us to Lydia, a seller of purple cloth from Thiatyra.
• 1:27:48
  Speaker 1: She was already a worshiper of God, and the Lord
• 1:27:51
  Speaker 1: opened her heart to listen to Paul's message. She and
• 1:27:55
  Speaker 1: her household were baptized, and she invited Paul and his
• 1:27:59
  Speaker 1: team to stay at her house. One day, a slave
• 1:28:03
  Speaker 1: girl with a spirit of divination kept following them and
• 1:28:06
  Speaker 1: shouting about their mission. After many days of this, Paul
• 1:28:10
  Speaker 1: became annoyed and commanded the spirit to leave her. Acts
• 1:28:15
  Speaker 1: sixteen nineteen to twenty one shows us that when her
• 1:28:18
  Speaker 1: owners saw their hope of prophet was gone, they dragged
• 1:28:22
  Speaker 1: Paul and Silas to the market place. They accused them
• 1:28:26
  Speaker 1: of disturbing the peace and teaching customs that Romans could
• 1:28:30
  Speaker 1: not accept. The crowd joined in attacking them, and the
• 1:28:34
  Speaker 1: magistrates ordered them to be beaten with rods and thrown
• 1:28:37
  Speaker 1: into prison. The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully,
• 1:28:41
  Speaker 1: so he put them in the inner prison and fastened
• 1:28:43
  Speaker 1: their feet in stocks. Acts sixteen twenty five twenty six
• 1:28:48
  Speaker 1: tells us that around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying
• 1:28:52
  Speaker 1: and singing hymns, when suddenly a violent earthquake shook the prison.
• 1:28:56
  Speaker 1: All the doors flew open, and everyone's chains came loose.
• 1:29:00
  Speaker 1: When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open,
• 1:29:03
  Speaker 1: he drew his sword to kill himself, thinking all the
• 1:29:06
  Speaker 1: prisoners had escaped, but Paul shouted, don't harm yourself, we
• 1:29:11
  Speaker 1: are all here. Acts sixteen twenty nine to thirty four
• 1:29:15
  Speaker 1: describes how the jailer called for lights, rushed in trembling,
• 1:29:18
  Speaker 1: and fell down before Paul and Silas. He brought them
• 1:29:22
  Speaker 1: out and asked what must I do to be saved.
• 1:29:25
  Speaker 1: They replied, believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will
• 1:29:29
  Speaker 1: be saved, you and your household. That very hour, he
• 1:29:33
  Speaker 1: washed their wounds and was baptized with his entire family.
• 1:29:37
  Speaker 1: Paul and Silas traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia before reaching Thessalonica,
• 1:29:43
  Speaker 1: where there was a Jewish synagogue. Acts seventeen two three
• 1:29:47
  Speaker 1: shows us that Paul reasoned with them from the scriptures
• 1:29:49
  Speaker 1: for three Sabbath days, explaining and proving that the Christ
• 1:29:54
  Speaker 1: had to suffer and rise from the dead. Some Jews
• 1:29:58
  Speaker 1: were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with many
• 1:30:02
  Speaker 1: god fearing Greeks and prominent women. But Acts seventeen five
• 1:30:07
  Speaker 1: to seven reveals that other Jews became jealous and gathered
• 1:30:10
  Speaker 1: some trouble makers from the market place. They formed a
• 1:30:13
  Speaker 1: mob and started a riot in the city, rushing to
• 1:30:17
  Speaker 1: Jason's house to look for Paul and Silas. When they
• 1:30:20
  Speaker 1: couldn't find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers
• 1:30:24
  Speaker 1: before the city officials, shouting, these men who have turned
• 1:30:28
  Speaker 1: the world upside down have come here too. The believers
• 1:30:32
  Speaker 1: sent Paul and Silas away to Berea during the night.
• 1:30:35
  Speaker 1: Acts seventeen eleven two to twelve tells us that the
• 1:30:38
  Speaker 1: Bereans were more noble than those in Thessalonica because they
• 1:30:42
  Speaker 1: received the message with great eagerness and examined the scriptures
• 1:30:46
  Speaker 1: every day to see if what Paul said was true.
• 1:30:50
  Speaker 1: Many of them believed, including prominent Greek women and men.
• 1:30:55
  Speaker 1: When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching
• 1:30:58
  Speaker 1: in Berea. They went there too and stirred up the crowds.
• 1:31:02
  Speaker 1: Acts seventeen fourteen two fifteen shows us that the believers
• 1:31:06
  Speaker 1: immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy
• 1:31:10
  Speaker 1: stayed in Berea. Those who escorted Paul brought him to
• 1:31:14
  Speaker 1: Athens and returned with instructions for Silas and Timothy to
• 1:31:18
  Speaker 1: join him as soon as possible. Athens Paul at the Areopagus.
• 1:31:24
  Speaker 1: While Paul waited for his companions in Athens, he was
• 1:31:27
  Speaker 1: greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols.
• 1:31:31
  Speaker 1: Acts seventeen seventeen to eighteen describes how he reasoned in
• 1:31:35
  Speaker 1: the synagogue with Jews and god fearing Greeks, and daily
• 1:31:40
  Speaker 1: in the market place with those who happened to be there.
• 1:31:43
  Speaker 1: Some philosophers began to debate with him, and some asked,
• 1:31:48
  Speaker 1: what is this babbler trying to say? They brought him
• 1:31:52
  Speaker 1: to the Areopagus and said, may we know what this
• 1:31:54
  Speaker 1: new teaching is that you are presenting. Acts seventeen twenty
• 1:31:59
  Speaker 1: two to twenty three shows us Paul's response, people of Athens,
• 1:32:04
  Speaker 1: I see that in every way you are very religious.
• 1:32:07
  Speaker 1: For as I walked around and look carefully at your
• 1:32:09
  Speaker 1: objects of worship, I even found an altar with this
• 1:32:12
  Speaker 1: inscription to an unknown God. So you are ignorant of
• 1:32:17
  Speaker 1: the very thing you worship, and this is what I
• 1:32:20
  Speaker 1: am going to proclaim to you. Paul explained that God
• 1:32:23
  Speaker 1: made the world and everything in it, and that he
• 1:32:26
  Speaker 1: is Lord of heaven and earth. Acts seventeen twenty six
• 1:32:30
  Speaker 1: to twenty eight reveals that from one man, God made
• 1:32:33
  Speaker 1: all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he determined
• 1:32:37
  Speaker 1: their times and boundaries so that they would seek Him.
• 1:32:40
  Speaker 1: For in Him we live and move and have our being.
• 1:32:44
  Speaker 1: Paul quoted from their own poets. Acts seventeen thirty thirty
• 1:32:48
  Speaker 1: one shows us that Paul declared God now commands all
• 1:32:51
  Speaker 1: people everywhere to repent, because he has set a day
• 1:32:55
  Speaker 1: when he will judge the world with justice by the
• 1:32:57
  Speaker 1: man he has appointed. When they heard about the resurrection
• 1:33:01
  Speaker 1: of the dead, some sneered, but others said they wanted
• 1:33:04
  Speaker 1: to hear him again. A few people believed, including Dionysius,
• 1:33:09
  Speaker 1: a member of the Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris.
• 1:33:14
  Speaker 1: After leaving Athens, Paul went to Corinth Acts eighteen two
• 1:33:19
  Speaker 1: three introduces us to Aquila and Priscilla, a Jewish couple
• 1:33:23
  Speaker 1: who had recently come from Italy because Emperor Claudius had
• 1:33:27
  Speaker 1: ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul stayed with them
• 1:33:31
  Speaker 1: because they were tent makers like him, and they worked together.
• 1:33:35
  Speaker 1: Every Sabbath, Paul reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade
• 1:33:39
  Speaker 1: Jews and Greeks. Acts eighteen five six tells us that
• 1:33:43
  Speaker 1: when Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself
• 1:33:47
  Speaker 1: exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was
• 1:33:52
  Speaker 1: the Christ. When they opposed him and said evil things,
• 1:33:55
  Speaker 1: he shook out his clothes and said, your blood be
• 1:33:58
  Speaker 1: on your own heads. I am innocent of it. From
• 1:34:01
  Speaker 1: now on I will go to the Gentiles. Paul left
• 1:34:06
  Speaker 1: the synagogue and went to the house of Titius Eustace,
• 1:34:09
  Speaker 1: a worshiper of God who lived next door. Acts eighteen
• 1:34:12
  Speaker 1: eight shows us the Crispus, the synagogue leader, believed in
• 1:34:15
  Speaker 1: the Lord, along with his entire household. Many Corinthians who
• 1:34:20
  Speaker 1: heard Paul believed and were baptized. One night, the Lord
• 1:34:24
  Speaker 1: spoke to Paul in a vision do not be afraid.
• 1:34:28
  Speaker 1: Keep on speaking, do not be silent, for I am
• 1:34:32
  Speaker 1: with you, and no one is going to attack and
• 1:34:34
  Speaker 1: harm you, because I have many people in this city.
• 1:34:38
  Speaker 1: Acts eighteen eleven reveals that Paul stayed for a year
• 1:34:41
  Speaker 1: and six months teaching them the word of God. When
• 1:34:45
  Speaker 1: Gallio was proconsul of Achiah, the Jews made a united
• 1:34:49
  Speaker 1: attack on Paul and brought him to court. Acts eighteen
• 1:34:53
  Speaker 1: fourteen sixteen shows us that before Paul could speak, Gallio
• 1:34:57
  Speaker 1: said to his accusers, if this were a matter of
• 1:35:00
  Speaker 1: wrongdoing or serious crime, I would listen to you, but
• 1:35:04
  Speaker 1: since it involves questions about words and names and your
• 1:35:07
  Speaker 1: own law, settle the matter yourselves. I will not be
• 1:35:11
  Speaker 1: a judge of such things. Then he dismissed them from
• 1:35:14
  Speaker 1: the court. Paul traveled through Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all
• 1:35:20
  Speaker 1: the disciples. When he arrived in Ephesus, he found some
• 1:35:24
  Speaker 1: disciples and asked them, did you receive the Holy Spirit
• 1:35:27
  Speaker 1: when you believed? Acts nineteen two to four records their reply, no,
• 1:35:32
  Speaker 1: we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.
• 1:35:35
  Speaker 1: Paul asked what baptism they had received, and they answered
• 1:35:39
  Speaker 1: John's baptism. Paul explained that John baptized with a baptism
• 1:35:43
  Speaker 1: of repentance, telling people to believe in the one coming
• 1:35:47
  Speaker 1: after him, that is in Jesus. Acts nineteen five seven
• 1:35:51
  Speaker 1: shows us that when they heard this, they were baptized
• 1:35:54
  Speaker 1: in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed
• 1:35:58
  Speaker 1: his hands on them, the Holy sp Spirit came on them,
• 1:36:01
  Speaker 1: and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about
• 1:36:05
  Speaker 1: twelve men in all. Paul entered the synagogue and spoke
• 1:36:08
  Speaker 1: boldly for three months, arguing persuasively about the Kingdom of God.
• 1:36:14
  Speaker 1: Acts nineteen nine to ten tells us that when some
• 1:36:17
  Speaker 1: became stubborn and refused to believe, Paul left them and
• 1:36:21
  Speaker 1: took the disciples with him. He had discussions daily in
• 1:36:25
  Speaker 1: the lecture hall of Tyrannus for two years, so that
• 1:36:29
  Speaker 1: all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province
• 1:36:31
  Speaker 1: of Asia heard the word of the Lord. God did
• 1:36:35
  Speaker 1: extraordinary miracles through Paul. Acts nineteen eleven to twelve reveals
• 1:36:41
  Speaker 1: that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were
• 1:36:45
  Speaker 1: taken to the sick and their illnesses were cured and
• 1:36:48
  Speaker 1: evil spirits left them. Some Jewish exorcists tried to invoke
• 1:36:53
  Speaker 1: the name of Jesus over those who were demon possessed,
• 1:36:56
  Speaker 1: but Acts nineteen fifteen sixteen shows us that the evil
• 1:37:01
  Speaker 1: spirit answered, Jesus, I know and Paul, I know about,
• 1:37:05
  Speaker 1: but who are you? The man with the evil spirit
• 1:37:09
  Speaker 1: jumped on them and overpowered them all. When this became
• 1:37:13
  Speaker 1: known to all Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they
• 1:37:17
  Speaker 1: were all seized with fear, and the name of the
• 1:37:20
  Speaker 1: Lord Jesus was held in high honor. Acts nineteen eighteen
• 1:37:25
  Speaker 1: twenty describes how many believers openly confessed their evil deeds
• 1:37:31
  Speaker 1: and brought their scrolls of magic to burn publicly. The
• 1:37:34
  Speaker 1: value of the scrolls was fifty thousand drachmas, and the
• 1:37:38
  Speaker 1: word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.
• 1:37:43
  Speaker 1: About that time there arose a great disturbance about the way.
• 1:37:48
  Speaker 1: Acts nineteen twenty four to twenty seven introduces us to Demetrius,
• 1:37:53
  Speaker 1: a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis. He gathered
• 1:37:57
  Speaker 1: craftsmen and said, you know, we receive a good, good
• 1:38:00
  Speaker 1: income from this business. And you see and hear how
• 1:38:03
  Speaker 1: this fellow Paul has convinced large numbers of people that
• 1:38:07
  Speaker 1: gods made by human hands are no gods at all.
• 1:38:11
  Speaker 1: There is danger not only that our trade will lose
• 1:38:14
  Speaker 1: its good name, but also that the temple of the
• 1:38:17
  Speaker 1: great goddess Artemis will be discredited. Acts nineteen twenty eight
• 1:38:22
  Speaker 1: thirty one shows us that when they heard this, they
• 1:38:26
  Speaker 1: were furious and began shouting, great is Artemis of the Ephesians.
• 1:38:31
  Speaker 1: The whole city was in an uproar, and people rushed
• 1:38:34
  Speaker 1: into the theater, dragging along Gius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions.
• 1:38:40
  Speaker 1: Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples
• 1:38:44
  Speaker 1: would not let him. Even some officials of the province
• 1:38:48
  Speaker 1: urged him not to venture into the theater. The city
• 1:38:51
  Speaker 1: clerk finally quieted the crowd and dismissed the assembly. Acts
• 1:38:55
  Speaker 1: nineteen thirty five tixty forty one records his words, fellow Ephesians,
• 1:39:01
  Speaker 1: doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus
• 1:39:04
  Speaker 1: is the guardian of the temple of the Great Artemis.
• 1:39:08
  Speaker 1: Since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down
• 1:39:11
  Speaker 1: and not do anything rash. If there are any other matters,
• 1:39:14
  Speaker 1: they must be settled in a legal assembly. When the
• 1:39:18
  Speaker 1: uproar ended, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them,
• 1:39:23
  Speaker 1: said goodbye and set out for Macedonia. Acts twenty two
• 1:39:27
  Speaker 1: three tells us that he traveled through that area, speaking
• 1:39:31
  Speaker 1: many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived
• 1:39:34
  Speaker 1: in Greece, where he stayed three months. Because some Jews
• 1:39:38
  Speaker 1: made a plot against him just as he was about
• 1:39:40
  Speaker 1: to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia.
• 1:39:45
  Speaker 1: Several men accompanied him, Sopotaire from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus
• 1:39:50
  Speaker 1: from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy Antichicus, and Trophemus from Asia.
• 1:39:57
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty five to six show that these men went
• 1:40:01
  Speaker 1: on ahead and waited for them at Troas. Paul sailed
• 1:40:05
  Speaker 1: from Philippi after the festival of unleavened Bread and five
• 1:40:09
  Speaker 1: days later joined the others at Troas, where they stayed
• 1:40:15
  Speaker 1: seven days. On the first day of the week, they
• 1:40:18
  Speaker 1: came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people,
• 1:40:21
  Speaker 1: and because he intended to leave the next day, kept
• 1:40:24
  Speaker 1: on talking until midnight. Acts twenty nine to ten describes
• 1:40:29
  Speaker 1: how a young man named Eutychus was sitting in a window,
• 1:40:32
  Speaker 1: and as Paul talked on and on, he was overcome
• 1:40:36
  Speaker 1: by sleep and fell to the ground from the third story.
• 1:40:40
  Speaker 1: He was picked up dead, but Paul went down, threw
• 1:40:43
  Speaker 1: himself on the young man and put his arms around him.
• 1:40:47
  Speaker 1: Don't be alarmed, he said, he's alive. Paul went back upstairs,
• 1:40:52
  Speaker 1: broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left.
• 1:40:57
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty twelve reveals that the people took the young
• 1:41:00
  Speaker 1: man home alive and were greatly comforted. Paul had decided
• 1:41:05
  Speaker 1: to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in Asia,
• 1:41:09
  Speaker 1: for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem if
• 1:41:11
  Speaker 1: possible by the day of Pentecost. Acts twenty sixteen seventeen
• 1:41:15
  Speaker 1: shows us that from my Letus he sent to Ephesus
• 1:41:19
  Speaker 1: for the elders of the church to come to him.
• 1:41:22
  Speaker 1: When the elders arrived, Paul said to them, you know
• 1:41:25
  Speaker 1: how I lived the whole time I was with you,
• 1:41:28
  Speaker 1: From the first day I came into Asia, I served
• 1:41:32
  Speaker 1: the Lord with great humility and with tears, and in
• 1:41:35
  Speaker 1: the midst of severe testing by the plots of my
• 1:41:38
  Speaker 1: Jewish opponents. Acts twenty twenty twenty one records his words,
• 1:41:43
  Speaker 1: you know that I have not hesitated to preach anything
• 1:41:46
  Speaker 1: that would be helpful to you, but have taught you
• 1:41:49
  Speaker 1: publicly and from house to house. I have declared to
• 1:41:52
  Speaker 1: both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God
• 1:41:56
  Speaker 1: in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. In
• 1:42:00
  Speaker 1: all continued and now compelled by the Spirit, I am
• 1:42:03
  Speaker 1: going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.
• 1:42:08
  Speaker 1: I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit
• 1:42:10
  Speaker 1: warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. Acts
• 1:42:15
  Speaker 1: twenty twenty four twenty five shows us his determination. However,
• 1:42:20
  Speaker 1: I consider my life worth nothing to me. My only
• 1:42:24
  Speaker 1: aim is to finish the race and complete the task
• 1:42:27
  Speaker 1: the Lord Jesus has given me, the task of testifying
• 1:42:31
  Speaker 1: to the good news of God's grace. Now I know
• 1:42:34
  Speaker 1: that none of you, among whom I have gone about
• 1:42:37
  Speaker 1: preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. Turn twenty
• 1:42:44
  Speaker 1: twenty eight to thirty one reveals Paul's final charge. Keep
• 1:42:48
  Speaker 1: watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the
• 1:42:51
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit has made you overseers, be shepherds of the
• 1:42:55
  Speaker 1: Church of God, which he bought with his own blood.
• 1:42:58
  Speaker 1: I know that after I leave eve, savage wolves will
• 1:43:02
  Speaker 1: come in among you, and will not spare the flock,
• 1:43:05
  Speaker 1: even from your own number. Men will arise and distort
• 1:43:08
  Speaker 1: the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.
• 1:43:12
  Speaker 1: So be on your guard. When Paul finished speaking, he
• 1:43:16
  Speaker 1: knelt down with all of them and prayed. Acts twenty
• 1:43:19
  Speaker 1: thirty seven thirty eight describes the emotional scene in they
• 1:43:23
  Speaker 1: all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. What
• 1:43:27
  Speaker 1: grieved them most was his statement that they would never
• 1:43:30
  Speaker 1: see his face again. After they tore themselves away from
• 1:43:33
  Speaker 1: the elders, Paul and his companions sailed straight to coss
• 1:43:38
  Speaker 1: The next day they went to Rhodes and from there
• 1:43:41
  Speaker 1: to Petara. Acts twenty one three footy six shows us
• 1:43:46
  Speaker 1: that they found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, boarded
• 1:43:49
  Speaker 1: it and set sail. They sighted Cyprus and passed to
• 1:43:54
  Speaker 1: the south of it, sailing on to Syria and landing Attire,
• 1:43:58
  Speaker 1: where the ship was to unload its cargo. They found
• 1:44:01
  Speaker 1: some disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Through
• 1:44:05
  Speaker 1: the spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.
• 1:44:09
  Speaker 1: When it was time to leave, all the disciples and
• 1:44:12
  Speaker 1: their wives and children accompanied them out of the city.
• 1:44:15
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty one five to six tells us that there
• 1:44:18
  Speaker 1: on the beach they all knelt to pray, and after
• 1:44:21
  Speaker 1: saying good bye to each other, they boarded the ship
• 1:44:24
  Speaker 1: and the disciples returned home. They continued their voyage from
• 1:44:28
  Speaker 1: Tire and landed at Totolemaeis, where they greeted the brothers
• 1:44:32
  Speaker 1: and sisters and stayed with them for a day. Acts
• 1:44:35
  Speaker 1: twenty one eight to nine shows us that leaving the
• 1:44:38
  Speaker 1: next day, they reached Caesarea and stayed at the house
• 1:44:42
  Speaker 1: of Philip the Evangelist, one of the seven. He had
• 1:44:45
  Speaker 1: four unmarried daughters who prophesied. After they had been there
• 1:44:49
  Speaker 1: a number of days, a prophet named Egabus came down
• 1:44:53
  Speaker 1: from Judea. Acts twenty one eleven to twelve describes his
• 1:44:58
  Speaker 1: dramatic prophecy coming over to us. He took Paul's belt,
• 1:45:03
  Speaker 1: tied his own hands and feet with it, and said,
• 1:45:06
  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit says, in this way, the Jewish leaders
• 1:45:09
  Speaker 1: in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and
• 1:45:13
  Speaker 1: will hand him over to the Gentiles. And when we
• 1:45:16
  Speaker 1: heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul
• 1:45:19
  Speaker 1: not to go up to Jerusalem. But Paul answered why
• 1:45:22
  Speaker 1: are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready
• 1:45:26
  Speaker 1: not only to be bound, but also to die in
• 1:45:29
  Speaker 1: Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. Acts twenty one,
• 1:45:33
  Speaker 1: fourteen to sixteen shows us that when he would not
• 1:45:36
  Speaker 1: be dissuaded, they gave up and said the Lord's will
• 1:45:40
  Speaker 1: be done. After this, they got ready and went up
• 1:45:43
  Speaker 1: to Jerusalem, where some of the disciples from Caesarea accompanied
• 1:45:47
  Speaker 1: them and brought them to the home of Manson, where
• 1:45:51
  Speaker 1: they were to stay. When Paul arrived in Jerusalem, the
• 1:45:54
  Speaker 1: church leaders welcomed him warmly. They shared how many thousands
• 1:45:58
  Speaker 1: of Jews had believed in Jesus, but these new believers
• 1:46:02
  Speaker 1: were still careful to follow Jewish customs. James and the
• 1:46:06
  Speaker 1: elders had a plan to help Paul show his respect
• 1:46:09
  Speaker 1: for Jewish traditions. In Acts twenty one twenty three to
• 1:46:13
  Speaker 1: twenty four, they told him, do therefore what we tell you.
• 1:46:17
  Speaker 1: We have four men who have taken a vow. Take
• 1:46:19
  Speaker 1: them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses,
• 1:46:23
  Speaker 1: so that they may shave their heads, and all may
• 1:46:26
  Speaker 1: know that those things of which they were informed concerning
• 1:46:29
  Speaker 1: you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly
• 1:46:33
  Speaker 1: and keep the law. Paul agreed to this plan. He
• 1:46:38
  Speaker 1: took the four men and went through the purification ceremony
• 1:46:42
  Speaker 1: at the temple. But when the seven days were almost over,
• 1:46:46
  Speaker 1: some Jews from Asia saw Paul in the temple. They
• 1:46:49
  Speaker 1: had seen him earlier in the city with Trophimus, a
• 1:46:53
  Speaker 1: Greek from Ephesus. These Jews wrongly thought Paul had brought
• 1:46:58
  Speaker 1: this non Jew into the holy area of the temple,
• 1:47:00
  Speaker 1: which was forbidden. The crowd became angry and violent, as
• 1:47:05
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty one twenty eight records, they shouted, men of Israel, help.
• 1:47:09
  Speaker 1: This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against
• 1:47:12
  Speaker 1: the people, the law and this place. And furthermore, he
• 1:47:16
  Speaker 1: also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this
• 1:47:19
  Speaker 1: holy place. The whole city was in chaos. People came
• 1:47:24
  Speaker 1: running from everywhere, grabbing Paul and dragging him out of
• 1:47:27
  Speaker 1: the temple. They were trying to kill him. When the
• 1:47:29
  Speaker 1: Roman commander heard about the riot, he quickly took soldiers
• 1:47:34
  Speaker 1: and officers and ran down to the crowd. When the
• 1:47:37
  Speaker 1: people saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.
• 1:47:41
  Speaker 1: The commander arrested Paul and ordered him to be tied
• 1:47:44
  Speaker 1: up with two chains. He asked who Paul was and
• 1:47:48
  Speaker 1: what he had done, but everyone was shouting different things.
• 1:47:52
  Speaker 1: Because of all the noise and confusion, the commander couldn't
• 1:47:55
  Speaker 1: understand what was happening. He ordered his soldiers to take
• 1:47:59
  Speaker 1: Paul into the fortress. The crowd was so violent that
• 1:48:03
  Speaker 1: the soldiers had to carry Paul to protect him. People
• 1:48:06
  Speaker 1: were following and screaming, as Acts twenty one thirty six
• 1:48:10
  Speaker 1: tells us away with him. When they reached the steps
• 1:48:15
  Speaker 1: of the fortress, Paul spoke to the commander in Greek.
• 1:48:19
  Speaker 1: This surprised the Roman officer, who thought Paul might be
• 1:48:22
  Speaker 1: an Egyptian rebel who had caused trouble before. Paul quickly
• 1:48:26
  Speaker 1: explained that he was a Jew from Tarsus, a citizen
• 1:48:30
  Speaker 1: of an important city. He asked for permission to speak
• 1:48:33
  Speaker 1: to the crowd. The commander agreed, and Paul stood on
• 1:48:37
  Speaker 1: the steps. When he began speaking to them in Hebrew,
• 1:48:40
  Speaker 1: they became quiet and listened. In Acts twenty two three,
• 1:48:44
  Speaker 1: Paul told them about his background. I am indeed a
• 1:48:48
  Speaker 1: Jew born in Tarsus of Celicia, but brought up in
• 1:48:52
  Speaker 1: this city at the feet of Gamaliel taught according to
• 1:48:55
  Speaker 1: the strictness of our father's law and was zealous toward
• 1:48:59
  Speaker 1: God as you all are today. He explained how he
• 1:49:02
  Speaker 1: had once persecuted Christians, just like they were doing now.
• 1:49:06
  Speaker 1: He told them about his trip to Damascus to arrest
• 1:49:09
  Speaker 1: believers there. Then he shared how Jesus had appeared to
• 1:49:12
  Speaker 1: him in a bright light and how he had become
• 1:49:14
  Speaker 1: a follower of Christ. The crowd listened until he mentioned
• 1:49:18
  Speaker 1: that God had sent him to preach to non Jews.
• 1:49:21
  Speaker 1: At this they became angry again and shouted that Paul
• 1:49:25
  Speaker 1: should die. The commander, still not understanding what was happening,
• 1:49:30
  Speaker 1: ordered his soldiers to bring Paul inside and question him
• 1:49:34
  Speaker 1: with whips. But as they were tying him up, Paul
• 1:49:37
  Speaker 1: asked the officer standing near by a crucial question Acts
• 1:49:41
  Speaker 1: twenty two twenty five records. Is it lawful for you
• 1:49:46
  Speaker 1: to scourge a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned.
• 1:49:50
  Speaker 1: This question changed everything. The officer immediately told the commander,
• 1:49:56
  Speaker 1: who came to Paul and asked if he was really
• 1:49:59
  Speaker 1: a Roman city. When Paul confirmed this, the commander was
• 1:50:03
  Speaker 1: worried because he had already put chains on Paul without
• 1:50:07
  Speaker 1: a proper trial. Roman citizens had special rights and protections
• 1:50:11
  Speaker 1: under the law. The next day, the commander wanted to
• 1:50:15
  Speaker 1: understand why the Jews were accusing Paul. He ordered the
• 1:50:19
  Speaker 1: chief priests and the entire council to meet. Then he
• 1:50:23
  Speaker 1: brought Paul down and placed him before them. Paul looked
• 1:50:28
  Speaker 1: straight at the council and said, in Acts twenty three ie,
• 1:50:31
  Speaker 1: men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience
• 1:50:34
  Speaker 1: before God until this day. This statement made the High
• 1:50:38
  Speaker 1: Priest Anonius angry. He ordered those standing near Paul to
• 1:50:43
  Speaker 1: hit him on the mouth. Paul responded firmly, saying, in
• 1:50:47
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty three three, God will strike you, you whitewashed wall,
• 1:50:52
  Speaker 1: for you sit to judge me according to the law,
• 1:50:55
  Speaker 1: and do you command me to be struck contrary to
• 1:50:58
  Speaker 1: the law. The people around Paul were shocked and asked
• 1:51:02
  Speaker 1: how he dared to speak like that to God's High priest.
• 1:51:05
  Speaker 1: Paul apologized, saying he didn't know the man was the
• 1:51:08
  Speaker 1: High Priest and he wouldn't speak evil of a ruler
• 1:51:12
  Speaker 1: of the people. Then Paul noticed something important about the council.
• 1:51:17
  Speaker 1: Some were sadducees and others were Pharisees. These two groups
• 1:51:21
  Speaker 1: had very different beliefs, especially about life after death. Paul
• 1:51:26
  Speaker 1: used this to his advantage. In Acts twenty three to six,
• 1:51:29
  Speaker 1: he declared, men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the
• 1:51:34
  Speaker 1: son of a Pharisee. Concerning the hope and resurrection of
• 1:51:37
  Speaker 1: the dead, I am being judged. This statement immediately caused
• 1:51:42
  Speaker 1: an argument between the Pharisees and Sadducees. The Sadducees didn't
• 1:51:46
  Speaker 1: believe in resurrection, angels, or spirits, but the Pharisees believed
• 1:51:50
  Speaker 1: in all these things. The argument became so heated that
• 1:51:54
  Speaker 1: some Pharisees began defending Paul, saying in Acts twenty three nine,
• 1:51:59
  Speaker 1: we find no evil in this man, but if a
• 1:52:03
  Speaker 1: spirit or an angel has spoken to him, let us
• 1:52:06
  Speaker 1: not fight against God. The argument became violent, and the
• 1:52:10
  Speaker 1: commander was afraid they would tear Paul apart. He ordered
• 1:52:14
  Speaker 1: his soldiers to go down and take Paul away from
• 1:52:17
  Speaker 1: them by force, bringing him back to the fortress. That night,
• 1:52:21
  Speaker 1: the Lord stood by Paul and encouraged him. In Acts
• 1:52:26
  Speaker 1: twenty three eleven, Jesus said, be of good cheer, Paul,
• 1:52:31
  Speaker 1: for as you have testified for me and Jerusalem, so
• 1:52:34
  Speaker 1: you must also bear witness at Rome. This was a
• 1:52:37
  Speaker 1: promise that Paul would make it to Rome despite all
• 1:52:41
  Speaker 1: the dangers he was facing. The next morning, more than
• 1:52:44
  Speaker 1: forty Jews made a serious plan to kill Paul. They
• 1:52:49
  Speaker 1: promised not to eat or drink anything until they had
• 1:52:52
  Speaker 1: killed him. These men went to the chief priests and
• 1:52:56
  Speaker 1: elders with their plan. Acts twenty three fourteen records their words,
• 1:53:00
  Speaker 1: we have bound ourselves under a great oath that we
• 1:53:02
  Speaker 1: will eat nothing until we have killed Paul. They asked
• 1:53:07
  Speaker 1: the religious leaders to work with the commander to bring
• 1:53:10
  Speaker 1: Paul back to the council, pretending they wanted to ask
• 1:53:14
  Speaker 1: him more questions. Their plan was to kill Paul on
• 1:53:17
  Speaker 1: the way there, but Paul's nephew heard about this plot.
• 1:53:21
  Speaker 1: He was just a young man, but he was brave
• 1:53:24
  Speaker 1: enough to go to the fortress and tell Paul about
• 1:53:27
  Speaker 1: the danger. Paul called one of the officers and asked
• 1:53:31
  Speaker 1: him to take his nephew to the commander because he
• 1:53:34
  Speaker 1: had important information to share. The officer brought the young
• 1:53:39
  Speaker 1: man to the commander, who took him aside privately and
• 1:53:42
  Speaker 1: asked what he wanted to tell him. The nephew explained
• 1:53:45
  Speaker 1: the whole plot. He told the commander about the forty
• 1:53:48
  Speaker 1: men who had sworn not to eat until they killed Paul.
• 1:53:52
  Speaker 1: He warned him not to be fooled by their request
• 1:53:55
  Speaker 1: to bring Paul back to the council. The commander listened
• 1:53:59
  Speaker 1: carefully and then told the young man to keep this
• 1:54:02
  Speaker 1: information secret. Immediately, the commander called two of his officers
• 1:54:07
  Speaker 1: in Acts twenty three twenty three twenty four. He gave
• 1:54:10
  Speaker 1: them urgent orders prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and
• 1:54:15
  Speaker 1: two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third
• 1:54:18
  Speaker 1: hour of the night and provide mounts to set Paul
• 1:54:22
  Speaker 1: on and bring him safely to Felix, the governor. D
• 1:54:28
  Speaker 1: commander also wrote a letter to Governor Felix explaining the situation.
• 1:54:33
  Speaker 1: He told Felix that Paul was a Roman citizen and
• 1:54:37
  Speaker 1: that the Jews wanted to kill him for religious reasons,
• 1:54:41
  Speaker 1: not because he had broken any Roman law. That night,
• 1:54:45
  Speaker 1: the soldiers took Paul and brought him safely to Antipatris,
• 1:54:49
  Speaker 1: a town about half way to Caesarea. When Paul arrived
• 1:54:53
  Speaker 1: in Caesarea, the soldiers gave him and the commander's letter
• 1:54:57
  Speaker 1: to Governor Felix. Felix read the letter and asked Paul
• 1:55:01
  Speaker 1: which province he was from. When he learned that Paul
• 1:55:04
  Speaker 1: was from Celicia, he said he would hear Paul's case
• 1:55:07
  Speaker 1: when his accusers arrived. He ordered Paul to be kept
• 1:55:11
  Speaker 1: under guard in Herod's palace. Five days later, the high
• 1:55:16
  Speaker 1: priest Anonius came to Caesarea with some elders and a
• 1:55:20
  Speaker 1: lawyer named Turtullus. They presented their case against Paul to Felix.
• 1:55:26
  Speaker 1: Turtullus began with flattery, praising Felix for bringing peace and
• 1:55:30
  Speaker 1: making improvements for the Jewish people. Then he made serious
• 1:55:34
  Speaker 1: accusations against Paul. In Acts twenty four five six, Turtullus claimed,
• 1:55:41
  Speaker 1: for we have found this man a plague, a creator
• 1:55:45
  Speaker 1: of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and
• 1:55:49
  Speaker 1: a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even
• 1:55:52
  Speaker 1: tried to profane the temple, and we seized him. Turtullus
• 1:55:56
  Speaker 1: said they would have judged Paul according to their law,
• 1:55:59
  Speaker 1: but the commander had taken him away with great violence.
• 1:56:03
  Speaker 1: He claimed they could prove all these charges against Paul.
• 1:56:07
  Speaker 1: Then Felix motioned for Paul to speak. Paul began his
• 1:56:12
  Speaker 1: defense by showing respect for Felix, acknowledging that he had
• 1:56:16
  Speaker 1: been a judge over the Jewish nation for many years.
• 1:56:21
  Speaker 1: But Paul's approach was different from Tetulus. He spoke with
• 1:56:25
  Speaker 1: honesty and directness. Paul pointed out that it had only
• 1:56:29
  Speaker 1: been twelve days since he went to Jerusalem to worship
• 1:56:33
  Speaker 1: in Acts twenty four, twelve thirteen, he said, and they
• 1:56:37
  Speaker 1: neither found me in the temple, disputing with anyone, nor
• 1:56:40
  Speaker 1: inciting the crowd, either in the synagogues or in the city,
• 1:56:44
  Speaker 1: Nor can they prove the things of which they now
• 1:56:46
  Speaker 1: accuse me. Paul admitted that he followed what they called
• 1:56:50
  Speaker 1: the way, but he explained that he still believed everything
• 1:56:54
  Speaker 1: written in the Jewish law and prophets. He had the
• 1:56:57
  Speaker 1: same hope in God that his accuser had, that there
• 1:57:01
  Speaker 1: would be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.
• 1:57:05
  Speaker 1: He explained that he had come to Jerusalem to bring
• 1:57:07
  Speaker 1: gifts to help his people and to make offerings. While
• 1:57:11
  Speaker 1: he was doing this purification ceremony in the temple, some
• 1:57:15
  Speaker 1: Jews from Asia found him there. Paul pointed out that
• 1:57:19
  Speaker 1: these Jews should be there to accuse him if they
• 1:57:22
  Speaker 1: had something against him, since they were the ones who
• 1:57:25
  Speaker 1: actually saw what happened. Paul challenged those who were present
• 1:57:30
  Speaker 1: to say what crime the council had found when he
• 1:57:32
  Speaker 1: stood before them, he said the only thing they could
• 1:57:35
  Speaker 1: accuse him of was one statement he had made about
• 1:57:38
  Speaker 1: believing in the resurrection of the dead. Felix knew quite
• 1:57:42
  Speaker 1: a bit about the way that Paul followed. He decided
• 1:57:46
  Speaker 1: to wait until the commander came down from Jerusalem before
• 1:57:49
  Speaker 1: making his decision. He ordered Paul to be kept under guard,
• 1:57:53
  Speaker 1: but to be given some freedom, and he allowed Paul's
• 1:57:56
  Speaker 1: friends to visit him and take care of his needs.
• 1:58:01
  Speaker 1: Several days later, Felix came with his wife, Drusilla, who
• 1:58:05
  Speaker 1: was Jewish. They sent for Paul and listened to him
• 1:58:09
  Speaker 1: speak about faith in Jesus Christ. Paul talked about living right,
• 1:58:14
  Speaker 1: having self control, and the judgment that was coming. Ezacts
• 1:58:18
  Speaker 1: twenty four twenty five tells us now as he reasoned
• 1:58:21
  Speaker 1: about righteousness, self control, and the judgment to come, Felix
• 1:58:26
  Speaker 1: was afraid and answered, go away for now. When I
• 1:58:30
  Speaker 1: have a convenient time, I will call for you. Felix
• 1:58:33
  Speaker 1: was also hoping that Paul would offer him money to
• 1:58:36
  Speaker 1: be released. Because of this, he sent for Paul frequently
• 1:58:40
  Speaker 1: and talked with him. But two whole years passed and
• 1:58:44
  Speaker 1: Paul remained in prison. When Felix's time as governor ended,
• 1:58:50
  Speaker 1: Portius Festus replaced him. Felix left Paul in prison because
• 1:58:56
  Speaker 1: he wanted to please the Jews. When Festus became the
• 1:58:59
  Speaker 1: new he wasted no time in dealing with Paul's case.
• 1:59:03
  Speaker 1: Three days after arriving in his province, he went from
• 1:59:07
  Speaker 1: Caesarea to Jerusalem. The chief priests and Jewish leaders immediately
• 1:59:12
  Speaker 1: brought their accusations against Paul to Festus. They had not
• 1:59:16
  Speaker 1: given up their desire to have Paul killed. These leaders
• 1:59:20
  Speaker 1: asked Festus for a special favor. They wanted him to
• 1:59:24
  Speaker 1: send Paul back to Jerusalem, claiming they wanted to judge
• 1:59:27
  Speaker 1: him there, but they were secretly planning to kill Paul
• 1:59:31
  Speaker 1: along the way. Festus, however, had a different plan. In
• 1:59:36
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty five four five, he told them Paul shall
• 1:59:40
  Speaker 1: be kept at Caesarea, and I myself am going there shortly. Therefore,
• 1:59:44
  Speaker 1: let those who have authority among you go down with
• 1:59:47
  Speaker 1: me and accuse this man to see if there is
• 1:59:50
  Speaker 1: any fault in him. Festus stayed in Jerusalem for about
• 1:59:54
  Speaker 1: eight or ten days, then returned to Caesarea. The very
• 1:59:58
  Speaker 1: next day, he sat his judgment seat and ordered Paul
• 2:00:02
  Speaker 1: to be brought before him. When Paul appeared, the Jews,
• 2:00:05
  Speaker 1: who had come from Jerusalem, surrounded him and brought many
• 2:00:09
  Speaker 1: serious charges against him, But as Acts twenty five seven explains,
• 2:00:14
  Speaker 1: they could not prove any of these accusations. Paul defended
• 2:00:19
  Speaker 1: himself simply and clearly. In Acts twenty five eight, he said,
• 2:00:25
  Speaker 1: neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the Temple,
• 2:00:28
  Speaker 1: nor against Caesar, have I offended in anything at all.
• 2:00:32
  Speaker 1: Paul's defense was straightforward. He had not broken Jewish law,
• 2:00:36
  Speaker 1: he had not done anything wrong in the Temple, and
• 2:00:39
  Speaker 1: he had not committed any crime against the Roman government.
• 2:00:42
  Speaker 1: But Festus wanted to please the Jewish leaders. He asked
• 2:00:46
  Speaker 1: Paul a question that would put him in great danger.
• 2:00:49
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty five nine records, Are you willing to go
• 2:00:52
  Speaker 1: up to Jerusalem and there be judged before me concerning
• 2:00:56
  Speaker 1: these things? Paul knew this was a trap. If he
• 2:01:00
  Speaker 1: agreed to go to Jerusalem, the Jews would likely kill
• 2:01:03
  Speaker 1: him on the way. As a Roman citizen, Paul had
• 2:01:07
  Speaker 1: rights that he could use to protect himself. He made
• 2:01:10
  Speaker 1: a bold decision that would change his entire future. In
• 2:01:15
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty five ten eleven, Paul gave his answer, I
• 2:01:20
  Speaker 1: stand at Caesar's judgment seat, where I ought to be judged.
• 2:01:25
  Speaker 1: To the Jews, I have done no wrong, as you
• 2:01:27
  Speaker 1: very well know. For if I am an offender or
• 2:01:30
  Speaker 1: have committed anything deserving of death, I do not object
• 2:01:34
  Speaker 1: to dying. But if there is nothing in these things
• 2:01:37
  Speaker 1: of which these men accuse me, no one can deliver
• 2:01:41
  Speaker 1: me to them. I appeal to Caesar. This was Paul's
• 2:01:45
  Speaker 1: right as a Roman citizen. When some one appealed to Caesar,
• 2:01:48
  Speaker 1: it meant their case would be heard by the emperor himself.
• 2:01:51
  Speaker 1: In Rome, no local governor could overrule this appeal. Festus
• 2:01:56
  Speaker 1: talked with his advisers about Paul's request. Then he gave
• 2:02:00
  Speaker 1: his official answer in Acts twenty five twelve, you have
• 2:02:03
  Speaker 1: appealed to Caesar. To Caesar, you shall go. With these words,
• 2:02:08
  Speaker 1: Paul's fate was sealed. He would be going to Rome,
• 2:02:12
  Speaker 1: but not as a free man preaching the gospel. He
• 2:02:15
  Speaker 1: would be going as a prisoner under guard to face
• 2:02:18
  Speaker 1: trial before the most powerful man in the world. Yet
• 2:02:23
  Speaker 1: this was exactly what the Lord had promised him that
• 2:02:26
  Speaker 1: he would bear witness in Rome. A few days after
• 2:02:30
  Speaker 1: Paul's appeal to Caesar, King Agrippa and his sister Benice
• 2:02:34
  Speaker 1: came to Caesarrea to visit Festus. Agrippa was a king
• 2:02:39
  Speaker 1: under Roman authority, and he knew a lot about Jewish
• 2:02:42
  Speaker 1: customs and beliefs. During their visit, Festus told Agrippa about
• 2:02:47
  Speaker 1: Paul's case. Festus explained how the Jewish leaders had brought
• 2:02:52
  Speaker 1: serious charges against Paul, but when he investigated, he found
• 2:02:57
  Speaker 1: that their accusations were about religion questions, not crimes against
• 2:03:02
  Speaker 1: Roman law. He told Agrippa about Paul's appeal to Caesar
• 2:03:07
  Speaker 1: and how he was required to send him to Rome.
• 2:03:10
  Speaker 1: Festus had a problem though. When he sent Paul to Caesar,
• 2:03:14
  Speaker 1: he needed to write a letter explaining what crimes Paul
• 2:03:18
  Speaker 1: had committed, but Festus couldn't find any real crimes to report.
• 2:03:24
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty five twenty six twenty seven, he told
• 2:03:27
  Speaker 1: a gripper, I have nothing certain to write to my
• 2:03:31
  Speaker 1: Lord concerning him. Therefore I have brought him out before you,
• 2:03:35
  Speaker 1: and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the
• 2:03:39
  Speaker 1: examination has taken place, I may have something to write
• 2:03:43
  Speaker 1: for It seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner
• 2:03:46
  Speaker 1: and not to specify the charges against him. Agrippa was
• 2:03:50
  Speaker 1: interested in hearing Paul for himself. He told Festus that
• 2:03:54
  Speaker 1: he would like to hear this man speak. Festus arranged
• 2:03:58
  Speaker 1: for Paul to appear before them the next day. The
• 2:04:01
  Speaker 1: next day was quite a show. Agrippa and Benice came
• 2:04:05
  Speaker 1: with great ceremony, along with the commanders and important men
• 2:04:09
  Speaker 1: of the city. When they were all gathered, Festus brought
• 2:04:12
  Speaker 1: Paul in. Festus explained to every one present how both
• 2:04:16
  Speaker 1: the Jews in Jerusalem and those in Caesarea had demanded
• 2:04:20
  Speaker 1: Paul's death, but he had found no reason why Paul
• 2:04:25
  Speaker 1: should die. Festus told them that since Paul had appealed
• 2:04:30
  Speaker 1: to Caesar, he would be sent to Rome, but he
• 2:04:33
  Speaker 1: still needed to write a proper report about Paul's case.
• 2:04:37
  Speaker 1: He hoped that after they heard Paul speak, they would
• 2:04:40
  Speaker 1: be able to help him understand what charges should be made.
• 2:04:44
  Speaker 1: Then Agrippa spoke to Paul directly in Acts twenty six one,
• 2:04:48
  Speaker 1: He said, you are permitted to speak for yourself. Paul
• 2:04:53
  Speaker 1: stretched out his hand and began his defense. He started
• 2:04:57
  Speaker 1: by expressing his happiness at being able to speak before Agrippa,
• 2:05:01
  Speaker 1: since the king was an expert in Jewish customs and questions.
• 2:05:06
  Speaker 1: Paul told his story in detail. He explained how he
• 2:05:10
  Speaker 1: had lived as a pharisee, following the strictest form of
• 2:05:14
  Speaker 1: Jewish religion. He described how he had persecuted Christians, even
• 2:05:18
  Speaker 1: traveling to other cities to arrest them. Then he shared
• 2:05:22
  Speaker 1: the amazing story of his encounter with Jesus on the
• 2:05:25
  Speaker 1: road to Damascus. In Acts twenty six thirteen to fifteen,
• 2:05:30
  Speaker 1: Paul described what happened at mid day o king along
• 2:05:35
  Speaker 1: the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than
• 2:05:39
  Speaker 1: the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me.
• 2:05:43
  Speaker 1: And when we all had fallen to the ground, I
• 2:05:46
  Speaker 1: heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the
• 2:05:49
  Speaker 1: Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It
• 2:05:56
  Speaker 1: is hard for you to kick against the gods. So
• 2:05:59
  Speaker 1: I said, who are you, Lord? And he said, I
• 2:06:05
  Speaker 1: am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Paul explained how Jesus
• 2:06:09
  Speaker 1: had chosen him to be a servant and a witness
• 2:06:12
  Speaker 1: to open people's eyes so they could turn from darkness
• 2:06:15
  Speaker 1: to light and from Satan's power to God. He had
• 2:06:19
  Speaker 1: been obedient to this vision from heaven, preaching first in Damascus,
• 2:06:24
  Speaker 1: then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and finally to
• 2:06:29
  Speaker 1: the non Jewish people. He told them this was why
• 2:06:32
  Speaker 1: the Jews had seized him in the temple and tried
• 2:06:35
  Speaker 1: to kill him, but God had helped him, and he
• 2:06:38
  Speaker 1: continued to testify to both small and great people, saying
• 2:06:42
  Speaker 1: nothing different from what Moses and the prophets had said
• 2:06:45
  Speaker 1: would happen. As Paul spoke with passion and conviction, Festus
• 2:06:50
  Speaker 1: suddenly interrupted him. Acts twenty six, twenty four records Paul,
• 2:06:56
  Speaker 1: you are beside yourself. Much learning is driving you mad.
• 2:07:01
  Speaker 1: But Paul calmly replied that he was not mad, but
• 2:07:04
  Speaker 1: spoke words of truth and reason. Then Paul turned to
• 2:07:08
  Speaker 1: King Agrippa and made a direct appeal. In Acts twenty
• 2:07:12
  Speaker 1: six twenty seven, he asked King a Gripper, do you
• 2:07:15
  Speaker 1: believe the prophets? I know that you believe. This put
• 2:07:19
  Speaker 1: a Gripper in a difficult position. If he said yes,
• 2:07:23
  Speaker 1: he would have to agree with Paul's message about Jesus.
• 2:07:27
  Speaker 1: If he said no, he would be denying the Jewish prophets.
• 2:07:30
  Speaker 1: A gripper gave a careful answer that has become famous.
• 2:07:34
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty six twenty eight, he said, you almost
• 2:07:38
  Speaker 1: persuade me to become a Christian. Paul's response showed his
• 2:07:42
  Speaker 1: heart for people's salvation. He said, in Acts twenty six
• 2:07:46
  Speaker 1: twenty nine, I would to God that not only you,
• 2:07:50
  Speaker 1: but also all who hear me to day might become
• 2:07:53
  Speaker 1: both almost and altogether such as I am, except for
• 2:07:57
  Speaker 1: these chains. After Paul finished speaking, the King, the Governor, Bernice,
• 2:08:03
  Speaker 1: and all who sat with them stood up and left.
• 2:08:06
  Speaker 1: They talked among themselves about what they had heard. They
• 2:08:09
  Speaker 1: all agreed that Paul had done nothing that deserved death
• 2:08:13
  Speaker 1: or imprisonment. Agrippa told Festus that Paul could have been
• 2:08:17
  Speaker 1: set free if he had not appealed to Caesar, but
• 2:08:20
  Speaker 1: now that he had made his appeal, he would have
• 2:08:23
  Speaker 1: to go to Rome. When it was decided that Paul
• 2:08:26
  Speaker 1: would sail to Rome, he was handed over to a
• 2:08:29
  Speaker 1: Roman officer named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment.
• 2:08:34
  Speaker 1: Julius was responsible for Paul and other prisoners who were
• 2:08:37
  Speaker 1: also going to Rome. Luke and another man named Aristarchus
• 2:08:42
  Speaker 1: were allowed to travel with Paul to help take care
• 2:08:45
  Speaker 1: of him. They boarded a ship from Adramytium that was
• 2:08:49
  Speaker 1: going to sail along the coast of Asia. The next
• 2:08:53
  Speaker 1: day they stopped at Sidon, and Julius was kind to Paul.
• 2:08:57
  Speaker 1: He let Paul visit his friends there so they could
• 2:08:59
  Speaker 1: take take care of his needs. From Sidon, they sailed
• 2:09:03
  Speaker 1: north of Cyprus because the winds were against them. After
• 2:09:06
  Speaker 1: sailing across the sea by Cilicia and Pamphylia, they came
• 2:09:10
  Speaker 1: to Myra in Lycia. There Julius found a ship from
• 2:09:15
  Speaker 1: Alexandria that was sailing to Italy, and he put Paul
• 2:09:19
  Speaker 1: and the other prisoners on board. For many days, they
• 2:09:22
  Speaker 1: sailed slowly and had difficulty reaching Cannidas because the wind
• 2:09:26
  Speaker 1: was not helping them. They sailed south of Crete, near
• 2:09:30
  Speaker 1: a place called Salmoni. Moving along the coast with difficulty,
• 2:09:35
  Speaker 1: they came to a place called fair Havens near the
• 2:09:38
  Speaker 1: city of Larcia. By this time much time had passed
• 2:09:42
  Speaker 1: and sailing was becoming dangerous because it was late in
• 2:09:45
  Speaker 1: the year. Paul warned them about continuing the journey. In
• 2:09:49
  Speaker 1: acts twenty seven ten. Paul said, men I perceived that
• 2:09:54
  Speaker 1: this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not
• 2:09:58
  Speaker 1: only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.
• 2:10:01
  Speaker 1: But the Roman officer believed the ship's captain and owner
• 2:10:05
  Speaker 1: more than Paul's warning. Since the harbor at fair Haven's
• 2:10:09
  Speaker 1: was not good for spending the winter, most people wanted
• 2:10:12
  Speaker 1: to continue sailing. They hoped to reach Phoenix, a harbor
• 2:10:16
  Speaker 1: in crete that faced southwest and northwest, where they could
• 2:10:20
  Speaker 1: spend the winter safely. When a gentle south wind began
• 2:10:24
  Speaker 1: to blow, they thought they could safely make the trip.
• 2:10:27
  Speaker 1: They pulled up the anchor and sailed close along the
• 2:10:29
  Speaker 1: coast of Crete, but soon a terrible storm hit them.
• 2:10:33
  Speaker 1: It was called a northeaster, a violent wind that came
• 2:10:37
  Speaker 1: down from the island. The ship was caught by the
• 2:10:40
  Speaker 1: storm and could not sail against the wind, so they
• 2:10:43
  Speaker 1: had to let it carry them along. They sailed south
• 2:10:46
  Speaker 1: of a small island called Clouder, where they were barely
• 2:10:49
  Speaker 1: able to secure the ship's lifeboat. The sailors used ropes
• 2:10:53
  Speaker 1: to hold the ship together because they were afraid it
• 2:10:56
  Speaker 1: would break apart. They were also afraid of running into
• 2:10:59
  Speaker 1: the sand bars near the African coast, so they lowered
• 2:11:03
  Speaker 1: the sea anchor and let the ship drift. The storm
• 2:11:07
  Speaker 1: was so violent that the next day they began throwing
• 2:11:10
  Speaker 1: the cargo overboard to make the ship lighter. On the
• 2:11:17
  Speaker 1: e third day, they threw the ship's equipment overboard with
• 2:11:20
  Speaker 1: their own hands. For many days they could not see
• 2:11:24
  Speaker 1: the sun or stars because of the storm. The situation
• 2:11:28
  Speaker 1: looked hopeless, and everyone gave up hope of being saved.
• 2:11:33
  Speaker 1: After the men had gone without food for a long time,
• 2:11:36
  Speaker 1: Paul stood up among them and spoke. In Acts twenty
• 2:11:40
  Speaker 1: seven twenty one twenty two, He said, men, you should
• 2:11:44
  Speaker 1: have listened to me and not have sailed from crete
• 2:11:47
  Speaker 1: and incurred this disaster and loss. And now I urge
• 2:11:50
  Speaker 1: you to take heart, for there will be no loss
• 2:11:52
  Speaker 1: of life among you, but only of the ship. Paul
• 2:11:56
  Speaker 1: explained why he was so confident. He told them that
• 2:12:00
  Speaker 1: an angel of God had appeared to him the night before.
• 2:12:03
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty seven twenty three to twenty four, Paul
• 2:12:06
  Speaker 1: shared the angel's message. Do not be afraid, Paul, you
• 2:12:10
  Speaker 1: must be brought before Caesar, and indeed God has granted
• 2:12:14
  Speaker 1: you all those who sail with you Paul told them
• 2:12:18
  Speaker 1: he believed God completely and everything would happen just as
• 2:12:22
  Speaker 1: the angel had said. Paul said they would run aground
• 2:12:25
  Speaker 1: on some island. After drifting for fourteen days and nights
• 2:12:29
  Speaker 1: across the Adriatic Sea, the sailors thought they were getting
• 2:12:32
  Speaker 1: close to land. They checked the water depth and found
• 2:12:35
  Speaker 1: it was twenty fathoms deep. A little later it was
• 2:12:39
  Speaker 1: fifteen fathoms. They were afraid they might crash into the rocks,
• 2:12:43
  Speaker 1: so they dropped four anchors from the back of the
• 2:12:45
  Speaker 1: ship and prayed for daylight. The sailors tried to escape
• 2:12:50
  Speaker 1: from the ship by lowering the lifeboat and pretending they
• 2:12:53
  Speaker 1: were going to put out anchors from the front, but
• 2:12:56
  Speaker 1: Paul warned the Roman officer and soldiers in Acts twenty
• 2:13:00
  Speaker 1: seven thirty one. He said, unless these men stay in
• 2:13:05
  Speaker 1: the ship, you cannot be saved. The soldiers quickly cut
• 2:13:09
  Speaker 1: the ropes holding the lifeboat and let it fall away.
• 2:13:12
  Speaker 1: As morning approached, Paul encouraged everyone to eat some food.
• 2:13:17
  Speaker 1: He reminded them that they had not eaten anything for
• 2:13:19
  Speaker 1: fourteen days because they were so worried about the storm.
• 2:13:24
  Speaker 1: Paul told them they needed to eat to have strength
• 2:13:27
  Speaker 1: to survive what was coming. After Paul said this, he
• 2:13:30
  Speaker 1: took some bread and gave thanks to God in front
• 2:13:33
  Speaker 1: of every one. He broke it and began to eat.
• 2:13:36
  Speaker 1: This encouraged all two hundred seventy six people on the ship,
• 2:13:41
  Speaker 1: and they also ate food. After they had eaten enough,
• 2:13:44
  Speaker 1: they threw the wheat into the sea to make the
• 2:13:47
  Speaker 1: ship even lighter. When daylight came, they could see land,
• 2:13:51
  Speaker 1: but they didn't recognize where they were. They saw a
• 2:13:54
  Speaker 1: bay with a beach and decided to try to run
• 2:13:57
  Speaker 1: the ship aground there if possible. They cut loose the
• 2:14:00
  Speaker 1: anchors and left them in the sea. At the same time,
• 2:14:04
  Speaker 1: they untied the ropes that held the rudders and raised
• 2:14:07
  Speaker 1: the front sail to catch the wind. Then they headed
• 2:14:10
  Speaker 1: toward the beach, but the ship hit a sand bar
• 2:14:14
  Speaker 1: where two seas met. The front of the ship got
• 2:14:18
  Speaker 1: stuck and wouldn't move, while the back began to break
• 2:14:21
  Speaker 1: up from the powerful waves. The soldiers wanted to kill
• 2:14:24
  Speaker 1: the prisoners so none of them could swim away and escape,
• 2:14:28
  Speaker 1: but Julius wanted to save Paul, so he stopped the
• 2:14:32
  Speaker 1: soldiers from carrying out their plan. Instead, Julius ordered that
• 2:14:36
  Speaker 1: those who could swim, should jump overboard first and swim
• 2:14:40
  Speaker 1: to land. The others should grab planks or pieces of
• 2:14:43
  Speaker 1: the ship and use them to get to shore. In
• 2:14:46
  Speaker 1: this way, everyone made it safely to land, just as
• 2:14:49
  Speaker 1: Paul had promised. Not one person was lost, exactly as
• 2:14:54
  Speaker 1: God had said through his angel. When everyone was safely
• 2:14:58
  Speaker 1: on shore, they learned that the the island was called Malta.
• 2:15:02
  Speaker 1: The people who lived there were very kind to the
• 2:15:04
  Speaker 1: shipwrecked travelers. It was raining and cold, so they built
• 2:15:08
  Speaker 1: a fire and welcomed everyone to warm themselves. Paul was
• 2:15:12
  Speaker 1: helping gather wood for the fire when he put a
• 2:15:15
  Speaker 1: pile of sticks on the fire. The heat caused a
• 2:15:18
  Speaker 1: poisonous snake to come out and bite his hand. The
• 2:15:21
  Speaker 1: snake hung from his hand, and the local people saw
• 2:15:25
  Speaker 1: what happened. They said to each other in Acts twenty
• 2:15:27
  Speaker 1: eight four, no doubt this man is a murderer, whom,
• 2:15:31
  Speaker 1: though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not
• 2:15:34
  Speaker 1: allow to live. But Paul simply shook the snake off
• 2:15:37
  Speaker 1: his hand into the fire and felt no harm. The
• 2:15:41
  Speaker 1: people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead.
• 2:15:45
  Speaker 1: They watched him carefully for a long time, but nothing
• 2:15:49
  Speaker 1: bad happened to him. When they saw that he was
• 2:15:52
  Speaker 1: not hurt at all, they changed their minds and said
• 2:15:55
  Speaker 1: he must be a god. Near that place were lands
• 2:15:58
  Speaker 1: that belonged to the chief official of the island. His
• 2:16:01
  Speaker 1: name was Publius, and he welcomed Paul and his companions.
• 2:16:05
  Speaker 1: For three days, Publius took care of them in a
• 2:16:08
  Speaker 1: friendly way. It happened that Publius's father was sick, in
• 2:16:12
  Speaker 1: bed with fever and dysentery. Paul went to see the
• 2:16:16
  Speaker 1: sick man. Acts twenty eight eight tells us what happened.
• 2:16:21
  Speaker 1: Paul went in to him and prayed, and he laid
• 2:16:23
  Speaker 1: his hands on him and healed him. When the people
• 2:16:26
  Speaker 1: of the island heard that Publius's father had been healed,
• 2:16:29
  Speaker 1: others who were sick came to Paul, and he healed
• 2:16:32
  Speaker 1: them too. The people of Bolta honored Paul and his
• 2:16:36
  Speaker 1: companions in many ways. When it was time for them
• 2:16:39
  Speaker 1: to leave the island, the people gave them everything they
• 2:16:42
  Speaker 1: needed for their journey. Paul and his companions had stayed
• 2:16:46
  Speaker 1: on Malta for three months through the winter season. After
• 2:16:50
  Speaker 1: three months, they found another ship to take them to Rome.
• 2:16:54
  Speaker 1: It was a ship from Alexandria that had stayed on
• 2:16:58
  Speaker 1: the island during the winter. The ship had a sign
• 2:17:00
  Speaker 1: of the Twin Brothers, which were gods that sailors believed
• 2:17:04
  Speaker 1: would protect them. They sailed first to Syracuse, a city
• 2:17:08
  Speaker 1: on the island of Sicily, and stayed there for three days.
• 2:17:12
  Speaker 1: From Syracuse, they sailed to Regium, on the southern tip
• 2:17:17
  Speaker 1: of Italy. After one day there, a south wind began
• 2:17:20
  Speaker 1: to blow and they were able to sail to Puteoli
• 2:17:23
  Speaker 1: in just two days. At Puteoli, they found some believers
• 2:17:27
  Speaker 1: who invited them to stay for seven days. This was
• 2:17:31
  Speaker 1: encouraging for Paul, who had been traveling as a prisoner
• 2:17:34
  Speaker 1: for so long. Finally, they continued their journey toward Rome.
• 2:17:39
  Speaker 1: The believers in Rome had heard that Paul was coming,
• 2:17:43
  Speaker 1: and they traveled out to meet him. Some came as
• 2:17:46
  Speaker 1: far as Appii Forum, which was about forty three miles
• 2:17:49
  Speaker 1: from Rome. Others met him at Three Inns, which was
• 2:17:53
  Speaker 1: about thirty three miles from the city. When Paul saw
• 2:17:56
  Speaker 1: these believers, he was greatly encouraged and thanked God for
• 2:18:00
  Speaker 1: their love and support. When Paul finally arrived in Rome,
• 2:18:07
  Speaker 1: he was allowed to live by himself with the soldier
• 2:18:10
  Speaker 1: who guarded him. This was a special arrangement because of
• 2:18:13
  Speaker 1: his status as a Roman citizen and because Julius had
• 2:18:17
  Speaker 1: spoken well of him to the authorities in Rome. Three
• 2:18:22
  Speaker 1: days after arriving in Rome, Paul called together the leaders
• 2:18:26
  Speaker 1: of the Jews who lived in the city. He wanted
• 2:18:29
  Speaker 1: to explain to them why he had come to Rome
• 2:18:31
  Speaker 1: as a prisoner. When they met, Paul spoke to them
• 2:18:35
  Speaker 1: honestly about his situation. In Acts twenty eight seventeen to nineteen,
• 2:18:39
  Speaker 1: Paul explained, men and brethren, though I have done nothing
• 2:18:44
  Speaker 1: against our people or the customs of our fathers, Yet
• 2:18:49
  Speaker 1: I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the
• 2:18:53
  Speaker 1: hands of the Romans, who, when they had examined me,
• 2:18:56
  Speaker 1: wanted to let me go because there was no cause
• 2:18:59
  Speaker 1: for putting me to death. But when the Jews spoke
• 2:19:02
  Speaker 1: against it, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar, not
• 2:19:05
  Speaker 1: that I had anything of which to accuse my nation.
• 2:19:09
  Speaker 1: Paul told them that he had asked to meet with
• 2:19:11
  Speaker 1: them because he was wearing chains for the hope of Israel,
• 2:19:14
  Speaker 1: the hope that God would send the Messiah. He wanted
• 2:19:17
  Speaker 1: them to understand that he was not against the Jewish
• 2:19:21
  Speaker 1: people or their traditions. The Jewish leaders replied that they
• 2:19:25
  Speaker 1: had not received any letters from Judea about Paul, and
• 2:19:29
  Speaker 1: none of their people who had come from there had
• 2:19:32
  Speaker 1: said anything bad about him. But they were curious to
• 2:19:35
  Speaker 1: hear what Paul believed because they knew that people everywhere
• 2:19:39
  Speaker 1: were speaking against the Christian faith. They arranged a day
• 2:19:43
  Speaker 1: to meet with Paul again, and many more Jews came
• 2:19:46
  Speaker 1: to hear him. From morning until evening, Paul explained and
• 2:19:50
  Speaker 1: testified about God's kingdom. He tried to convince them about Jesus,
• 2:19:55
  Speaker 1: using both the Law of Moses and the writings of
• 2:19:58
  Speaker 1: the prophets to prove his points. Some of the Jews
• 2:20:01
  Speaker 1: believed what Paul said, but others did not. They argued
• 2:20:05
  Speaker 1: among themselves and began to leave. As they were going,
• 2:20:08
  Speaker 1: Paul spoke one last important message to them. He quoted
• 2:20:12
  Speaker 1: from the prophet Isiah about people who hear but don't understand,
• 2:20:16
  Speaker 1: and see but don't perceive the truth in Acts twenty
• 2:20:21
  Speaker 1: eight twenty eight. Paul told them, Therefore, let it be
• 2:20:24
  Speaker 1: known to you that the salvation of God has been
• 2:20:28
  Speaker 1: sent to the gentiles, and they will hear it. After
• 2:20:31
  Speaker 1: Paul said this, the Jews left, having a great dispute
• 2:20:34
  Speaker 1: among themselves. For two whole years, Paul stayed in his
• 2:20:38
  Speaker 1: own rented house in Rome. He welcomed every one who
• 2:20:42
  Speaker 1: came to visit him. Acts twenty eight thirty one tells
• 2:20:46
  Speaker 1: us how Paul spent these two years preaching the Kingdom
• 2:20:50
  Speaker 1: of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord
• 2:20:53
  Speaker 1: Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no one forbidding him. Even
• 2:20:58
  Speaker 1: though Paul was under house arrest, he was free to
• 2:21:02
  Speaker 1: teach and preach to any one who wanted to listen.
• 2:21:05
  Speaker 1: Many people came to hear him, and the gospel continued
• 2:21:08
  Speaker 1: to spread throughout Rome, the most important city in the
• 2:21:11
  Speaker 1: world at that time. Paul wrote several letters during this
• 2:21:16
  Speaker 1: time to churches he had started encouraging them and teaching
• 2:21:20
  Speaker 1: them more about following Jesus. The Book of Acts ends
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  Speaker 1: with Paul still in Rome, still preaching about Jesus. His
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  Speaker 1: dream of bringing the Gospel to the capital of the
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  Speaker 1: Roman Empire had finally come true. From Jerusalem to Rome,
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  Speaker 1: the message of Jesus had spread throughout the known world,
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  Speaker 1: just as Jesus had promised his disciples at the very
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  Speaker 1: beginning of Acts. If this journey through Acts has inspired
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  Speaker 1: Someone you know might need to hear Paul's story of
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  Speaker 1: courage and faith to day. Drop a comment below and
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  Speaker 1: tell us which part of Paul's journey impacted you the most.
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  Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us on this incredible adventure through the
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  Speaker 1: Book of Acts. Until next time, keep exploring God's amazing Word.