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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 Judea 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 excis
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  Speaker 1: explaining 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 imported Jewish festivals of the year. People had
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  Speaker 1: come from all over the Roman Empire to celebrate this
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  Speaker 1: harvest festival. Pentecost was also called the Feast of Weeks
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  Speaker 1: because it came seven weeks after Passover. Jewish families would
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  Speaker 1: travel hundreds of miles to be in Jerusalem for this
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  Speaker 1: special time. The city was bustling with visitors speaking different
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  Speaker 1: 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 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: freeing 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
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  Speaker 1: sermon in Acts two thirty six. He boldly proclaimed, therefore,
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  Speaker 1: let all Israel be assured of this. God has made
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  Speaker 1: this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah. The
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  Speaker 1: impact of Peter's words was immediate and powerful. Acts two
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  Speaker 1: thirty seven tells us when the people heard this, they
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  Speaker 1: were cut to the heart and said to Peter and
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  Speaker 1: the other apostles, brothers, what shall we do? These people
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  Speaker 1: suddenly rearzed what they had done. They had rejected and
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  Speaker 1: killed the very person God had sent to save them.
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  Speaker 1: Their hearts were pierced with conviction, and they desperately wanted
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  Speaker 1: to know how they could make things right with God.
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  Speaker 1: Peter's answer was simple and direct Acts two thirty eight
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  Speaker 1: thirty nine records his response. Peter replied, repent and be baptized,
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  Speaker 1: every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ,
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  Speaker 1: for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive
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  Speaker 1: the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for
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  Speaker 1: you and your children, and for all who are far off,
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  Speaker 1: for all whom the Lord our God will call. The
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  Speaker 1: response was absolutely incredible. Three thousand people believe Peter's message
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  Speaker 1: that day and were baptized. Acts two forty one tells
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  Speaker 1: us those who accepted his message were baptized and about
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  Speaker 1: three thousand were added to their number that day. Think
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  Speaker 1: about that number, three thousand people in one day. The
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  Speaker 1: church grew from one hundred and twenty believers to over
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  Speaker 1: three thousand. Life in the early Church settled into a
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  Speaker 1: rhythm of teaching, fellowship, and worship. The new believers were
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  Speaker 1: eager to learn everything they could about Jesus, and the
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  Speaker 1: apostles were faithful to teach them. Every day, people would
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  Speaker 1: gather in the temple courts to hear the apostles speak
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  Speaker 1: about Jesus and to pray together. One afternoon, Peter and
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  Speaker 1: John were going to the temple for the three o'clock
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  Speaker 1: prayer time. This was one of the regular prayer times
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  Speaker 1: that devout Jews observed every day. Even though they now
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  Speaker 1: followed Jesus, the apostles still participated in the traditional Jewish
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  Speaker 1: worship practices. As they approached the temple, they had to
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  Speaker 1: pass through one of the gates. The gate they were
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  Speaker 1: using was called the Beautiful Gate, and it was probably
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  Speaker 1: made of bronze and decorated with gold and silver. Acts
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  Speaker 1: three two to three describes what they encountered. Now. A
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  Speaker 1: man who was lame from birth was being carried to
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  Speaker 1: the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every
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  Speaker 1: 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
• 21:20
  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
• 21:26
  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 too,
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: about five thousand. The next morning, the religious leaders gathered
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: for an official hearing. This was the same group that
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: had condemned Jesus. They brought Peter and John before them
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: and demanded to know by what authority they had performed
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: 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.
• 25:02
  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
• 26:43
  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
• 27:39
  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
• 29:29
  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.
• 31:03
  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 aware of officially commissioning them for their new
• 33:02
  Speaker 1: responsibility and asking God to bless their ministry. The result
• 33:07
  Speaker 1: of this decision was exactly what the apostles had hoped for.
• 33:12
  Speaker 1: Acts six seven tells us, so the word of God spread.
• 33:19
  Speaker 1: The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: large number of priests became obedient to the faith. When
• 33:28
  Speaker 1: the church was organized properly, with different people focusing on
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: their particular gifts and callings, the I ministry became more effective.
• 33:38
  Speaker 1: The apostles could concentrate on preaching and teaching, which led
• 33:42
  Speaker 1: to more people hearing the gospel and believing in Jesus.
• 33:46
  Speaker 1: Among the seven deacons, Stephen quickly emerged as more than
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: just an administrator. Acts six eight tells us Now Stephen,
• 33:57
  Speaker 1: a man full of God's grace and power, formed great
• 34:00
  Speaker 1: wonders and signs among the people. Stephen wasn't content to
• 34:04
  Speaker 1: just distribute food to widows. He was also gifted as
• 34:07
  Speaker 1: an evangelist and miracle worker. God used him to perform
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: great wonders and signs, just as he had done through
• 34:16
  Speaker 1: the apostles. This showed that the Holy Spirit's power wasn't
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: limited to the Twelve Apostles. God could work through any
• 34:23
  Speaker 1: believer who was filled with faith and the Holy Spirit.
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: Stephen's powerful ministry was drawing attention from all the wrong people.
• 34:32
  Speaker 1: Some men from different synagogue started arguing with him, but
• 34:36
  Speaker 1: they couldn't match his wisdom or the spirit by which
• 34:39
  Speaker 1: he spoke. These men were getting frustrated because they couldn't
• 34:43
  Speaker 1: win against Stephen's arguments about Jesus. So they did what
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: people often do when they can't win fairly. They cheated.
• 34:51
  Speaker 1: They secretly convinced some men to lie about Stephen. These
• 34:56
  Speaker 1: false witnesses came forward and said terrible things that weren't true.
• 35:00
  Speaker 1: They claimed that Stephen spoke against Moses and against God himself.
• 35:05
  Speaker 1: This stirred up the people, the elders and the teachers
• 35:09
  Speaker 1: of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before
• 35:12
  Speaker 1: the Sanhedrin, the same religious court that had condemned Jesus.
• 35:18
  Speaker 1: But something amazing happened when every one looked at Stephen.
• 35:21
  Speaker 1: Acts six fifteen tells us all who were sitting in
• 35:24
  Speaker 1: the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that
• 35:28
  Speaker 1: his face was like the face of an angel. The
• 35:31
  Speaker 1: high priest asked Stephen if these charges were true. Instead
• 35:35
  Speaker 1: of defending himself, Stephen did something unexpected. He began to
• 35:40
  Speaker 1: tell the story of God's people, starting from the very beginning.
• 35:44
  Speaker 1: Stephen started with Abraham in Acts seven two four. Brothers
• 35:48
  Speaker 1: and fathers listened to me. The God of Glory appeared
• 35:51
  Speaker 1: to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia,
• 35:55
  Speaker 1: before he lived in Haron. Leave your country and your people,
• 35:59
  Speaker 1: God said, and go to the land I will show you.
• 36:02
  Speaker 1: So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled
• 36:04
  Speaker 1: in Haron. Stephen went through the stories of Isaac, Jacob, Joseph,
• 36:09
  Speaker 1: and Moses. Then Stephen got to the point that really stung.
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: In Acts seven fifty one to fifty three, he looked
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: directly at his accusers and said, you stiff necked people,
• 36:21
  Speaker 1: your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just
• 36:25
  Speaker 1: like your ancestors. You always resist the Holy Spirit. Was
• 36:29
  Speaker 1: there ever a prophet? Your ancestors did not persecute. They
• 36:33
  Speaker 1: even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One,
• 36:37
  Speaker 1: And now you have betrayed and murdered him. The religious
• 36:41
  Speaker 1: leaders were furious. Acts seven fifty four says when the
• 36:45
  Speaker 1: members of the Sanhedrin heard this. They were furious and
• 36:49
  Speaker 1: gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen wasn't looking at
• 36:52
  Speaker 1: them any more. He was looking up to heaven. Acts
• 36:55
  Speaker 1: seven fifty five fifty six describes what Stephen saw. But Stephen,
• 37:00
  Speaker 1: full of the Holy spirit, looked up to heaven and
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the
• 37:06
  Speaker 1: right hand of God. Look, he said, I see heaven open,
• 37:10
  Speaker 1: and the Son of Man standing at the right hand
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: of God. They covered their ears, yelled at the top
• 37:16
  Speaker 1: of their voices, and all rushed at Stephen. They dragged
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: him out of the city and began to stone him.
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: The witnesses laid their goats at the feet of a
• 37:25
  Speaker 1: young man named Saul. As the stones were flying through
• 37:28
  Speaker 1: the air, Stephen prayed. Acts seven fifty nine sixty records
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: his final words. While they were stoning him. Stephen prayed, Lord, Jesus,
• 37:37
  Speaker 1: receive my spirit. Then he fell on his knees and
• 37:41
  Speaker 1: cried out, Lord, do not hold this sin against them.
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: When he had said this, he fell asleep. Stephen died
• 37:51
  Speaker 1: just like his master had died. Forgiving his enemies and
• 37:54
  Speaker 1: committing his spirit to God. He became the first Christian martyr.
• 38:00
  Speaker 1: A young man named Saul had watched Stephen die, and
• 38:03
  Speaker 1: he approved of it completely. Acts eight on one tells
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: Us and Saul approved of their killing him. This wasn't
• 38:10
  Speaker 1: just some one who stood by and watched. Saul was
• 38:13
  Speaker 1: actively supporting Stephen's murder. Stephen's death was like a signal
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: that open season had been declared on the followers of Jesus.
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: On that very day, a great persecution broke out against
• 38:26
  Speaker 1: the Church in Jerusalem. Acts eight one describes what happened
• 38:30
  Speaker 1: on that day. A great persecution broke out against the
• 38:34
  Speaker 1: Church in Jerusalem, and all except the Apostles were scattered
• 38:37
  Speaker 1: throughout Judea and Samaria. Saul became like a wild animal,
• 38:42
  Speaker 1: hunting down Christians. Acts eight point three describes his campaign.
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: to house, he dragged off both men and women and
• 38:54
  Speaker 1: put them in prison. Saul wasn't content to just wait
• 38:58
  Speaker 1: for Christians to come to him. He actively hunted them down.
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: He would go from house to house searching for anyone
• 39:05
  Speaker 1: who followed Jesus. When he found them, he would drag
• 39:09
  Speaker 1: them out, men and women alike, and throw them into prison.
• 39:14
  Speaker 1: Saul thought he was doing God a favor by destroying
• 39:17
  Speaker 1: what 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
• 41:57
  Speaker 1: suddenly no one was paying attention to Simon any more.
• 42:01
  Speaker 1: Simon quickly realized that what Philip was doing was completely
• 42:05
  Speaker 1: different from his magic tricks. This was real power from God.
• 42:11
  Speaker 1: So Simon did something surprising. Acts eight thirteen tells us
• 42:15
  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 work words, give me also this ability,
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may
• 43:06
  Speaker 1: 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,
• 43:32
  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. ACTX 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
• 43:57
  Speaker 1: must have seemed like a stray 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
• 44:33
  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 some one else. Acts eight thirty five tells us
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: what Philip did. Then Philip began with that very passage
• 46:13
  Speaker 1: of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
• 46:17
  Speaker 1: Philip 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 may.
• 46:53
  Speaker 1: The eunuch answered, I believe that Jesus Christ is the
• 46:56
  Speaker 1: Son of God. They stopped the chariot and both Philip
• 47:00
  Speaker 1: and the Ethiopian went down into the water. Philip baptized
• 47:05
  Speaker 1: him right there on the spot. Acts eight thirty nine
• 47:08
  Speaker 1: describes what happened immediately after. When they came up out
• 47:12
  Speaker 1: of the water. The spirit of the Lord suddenly took
• 47:15
  Speaker 1: 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 for Damascus
• 48:01
  Speaker 1: with a group of men. Damascus was about one hundred
• 48:04
  Speaker 1: and fifty miles from Jerusalem, so this was a serious journey.
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: As they approached Damascus, something happened that no one expected.
• 48:14
  Speaker 1: Acts nine three four describes the moment that changed everything.
• 48:18
  Speaker 1: As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light
• 48:22
  Speaker 1: from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: and heard a voice say to him, Saul, Saul, why
• 48:29
  Speaker 1: do you persecute me? Saul was confused. Acts ninety five
• 48:33
  Speaker 1: records his response, who are you, Lord, Saul asked. The
• 48:37
  Speaker 1: answer changed Saul's entire worldview. Acts 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
• 49:08
  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
• 49:15
  Speaker 1: blind and did not eat or drink anything. Meanwhile, in
• 49:20
  Speaker 1: Damascus there was a believer named Anonius. The Lord spoke
• 49:24
  Speaker 1: to him in a vision. Acts nine eleven to twelve
• 49:27
  Speaker 1: records God's instructions, go to the house of Judas on
• 49:31
  Speaker 1: Straight 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 Salem, 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
• 50:25
  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
• 51:34
  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. Acts 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 placed 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,
• 53:40
  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 angel's
• 54:59
  Speaker 1: wor words. 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
• 55:09
  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
• 55:57
  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: Seizaria 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
• 56:54
  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
• 57:18
  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 them.
• 58:00
  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
• 58:08
  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 seven U eight continues. He struck Peter on
• 59:26
  Speaker 1: the 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,
• 1:00:28
  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
• 1:00:38
  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: Appointment 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,
• 1:02:14
  Speaker 1: Mannion who had been brought up with Herod the Tetrarch,
• 1:02:17
  Speaker 1: and Saul. These weren't just ordinary men, They were gifted
• 1:02:21
  Speaker 1: leaders from different places and backgrounds. Barnabas was the encourager
• 1:02:26
  Speaker 1: who had first welcomed Saul when everyone else was afraid
• 1:02:29
  Speaker 1: of him. Simeon, called Niger, was probably from Africa. Lucius
• 1:02:34
  Speaker 1: came from Syren. Manayan had grown up with Herod the Tetrarch,
• 1:02:38
  Speaker 1: which meant he came from a wealthy, powerful family. And
• 1:02:41
  Speaker 1: then there was Saul, the former persecutor who had become
• 1:02:45
  Speaker 1: a passionate preacher. These men were gathered together seeking God
• 1:02:49
  Speaker 1: about the future of the church. They weren't just having
• 1:02:52
  Speaker 1: a casual meeting. They were fasting and worshiping, which showed
• 1:02:56
  Speaker 1: how serious they were about hearing from God. Acts thirteen
• 1:03:02
  Speaker 1: two describes what happened during this time. While they were
• 1:03:06
  Speaker 1: worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set
• 1:03:10
  Speaker 1: apart for me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work to
• 1:03:13
  Speaker 1: which I have called them. The Holy Spirit spoke. This
• 1:03:17
  Speaker 1: wasn't a human decision or a committee vote. God himself
• 1:03:21
  Speaker 1: was directing the church to send out Barnabas and Saul
• 1:03:24
  Speaker 1: for a special mission. The Spirit had been preparing these
• 1:03:27
  Speaker 1: two men for something bigger than just ministering in Antioch.
• 1:03:32
  Speaker 1: The church leaders didn't hesitate to obey. Acts thirteen three
• 1:03:36
  Speaker 1: tells us what they did. So, after they had fasted
• 1:03:40
  Speaker 1: and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent
• 1:03:43
  Speaker 1: them off. The laying on of hands was their way
• 1:03:46
  Speaker 1: of blessing Barnabas and Saul and officially commissioning them for
• 1:03:50
  Speaker 1: this new work. This was a huge moment in church history.
• 1:03:55
  Speaker 1: For the first time, the Church was deliberately sending out
• 1:03:58
  Speaker 1: missionaries to take the Gospel to new places. It wasn't
• 1:04:02
  Speaker 1: happening by accident or because of persecution. It was happening
• 1:04:06
  Speaker 1: because God had a plan to reach the world. Barnabas
• 1:04:11
  Speaker 1: and Saul, along with John Mark as their helper, set
• 1:04:14
  Speaker 1: sail from Seleucia and headed for the island of Cyprus.
• 1:04:19
  Speaker 1: This wasn't a random choice. Barnabas was from Cyprus, so
• 1:04:23
  Speaker 1: he knew the people and the culture there. It made
• 1:04:26
  Speaker 1: sense to start their missionary work in a place where
• 1:04:28
  Speaker 1: they had connections. They arrived at Salamis and immediately began
• 1:04:33
  Speaker 1: preaching in the Jewish synagogues. Acts thirteen five tells us
• 1:04:38
  Speaker 1: when they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the Word of
• 1:04:42
  Speaker 1: God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as
• 1:04:45
  Speaker 1: their helper. After preaching throughout the island, they came to Paphos,
• 1:04:51
  Speaker 1: the capital city on the western coast. This was where
• 1:04:54
  Speaker 1: the Roman governor lived, and it was here that they
• 1:04:57
  Speaker 1: would face their first major conference. Acts thirteen six to
• 1:05:02
  Speaker 1: seven describes what they found in Paphos. They traveled through
• 1:05:07
  Speaker 1: the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they
• 1:05:11
  Speaker 1: met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named bar Jesus,
• 1:05:16
  Speaker 1: who was an attendant of the Proconsul Sergius Paulus. The Proconsul,
• 1:05:20
  Speaker 1: an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he
• 1:05:24
  Speaker 1: wanted to hear the word of God. Sergius Paulus was
• 1:05:28
  Speaker 1: the Roman governor of Cyprus, and he was genuinely interested
• 1:05:32
  Speaker 1: in spiritual things. When he heard that these Jewish teachers
• 1:05:36
  Speaker 1: were in town, he invited them to come and speak
• 1:05:39
  Speaker 1: to him. This was exactly the kind of opportunity that
• 1:05:44
  Speaker 1: missionaries dream about. But there was a problem. Bar Jesus,
• 1:05:48
  Speaker 1: also called Elimas, was a Jewish sorcerer who had the
• 1:05:51
  Speaker 1: governor's ear. When he heard that Barnabas and Saul were
• 1:05:55
  Speaker 1: going to speak to Sergius Palas, he knew this could
• 1:05:58
  Speaker 1: threaten his position. Acts thirteen eight tells us what Elimus did.
• 1:06:05
  Speaker 1: But Elimus, the sorcerer, for that is what his name means,
• 1:06:09
  Speaker 1: opposed 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 Eleimus 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: o 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,
• 1:08:09
  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
• 1:09:47
  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
• 1:10:45
  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 every one was
• 1:12:45
  Speaker 1: happy about their success. Acts fourteen two describes the opposition,
• 1:12:49
  Speaker 1: but the Jews, who refused to believe, stirred up the
• 1:12:53
  Speaker 1: other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. Despite
• 1:12:58
  Speaker 1: the growing opposition, Paul and Barnabas didn't run away immediately.
• 1:13:03
  Speaker 1: They stayed in Iconium for a considerable time, continuing to
• 1:13:08
  Speaker 1: preach boldly. Acts fourteen three explains why they were able
• 1:13:12
  Speaker 1: to stay so they stayed there a long time, speaking
• 1:13:17
  Speaker 1: boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his
• 1:13:20
  Speaker 1: grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. God
• 1:13:26
  Speaker 1: was backing up their preaching with miraculous signs and wonders.
• 1:13:30
  Speaker 1: People could see that divine power was working through these men,
• 1:13:34
  Speaker 1: But the division in the city was growing deeper. Acts
• 1:13:39
  Speaker 1: fourteen four describes how the city split. The people of
• 1:13:44
  Speaker 1: the city were divided. Some sided with the Jews, others
• 1:13:48
  Speaker 1: with the Apostles. The whole community was taking sides. The
• 1:13:52
  Speaker 1: tension in Iconium continued to build until it reached a
• 1:13:56
  Speaker 1: dangerous level. Acts fourteen five 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: advance 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
• 1:14:35
  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
• 1:14:47
  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 Listre, 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
• 1:15:29
  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 Listra, 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
• 1:20:00
  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.
• 1:20:55
  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 the
• 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.
• 1:21:54
  Speaker 1: After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them. Acts
• 1:21:58
  Speaker 1: fifteen seven to nine records his words, brothers, you know
• 1:22:03
  Speaker 1: that some time ago God made a choice among you
• 1:22:06
  Speaker 1: that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message
• 1:22:08
  Speaker 1: of the Gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart,
• 1:22:12
  Speaker 1: showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit
• 1:22:16
  Speaker 1: to them, just as he did to us. He did
• 1:22:19
  Speaker 1: not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their
• 1:22:22
  Speaker 1: hearts by faith. Peter reminded everyone that God himself had
• 1:22:27
  Speaker 1: already settled this question. When Cornelius and his household believed
• 1:22:31
  Speaker 1: God gave them the Holy Spirit without requiring circumcision. First,
• 1:22:36
  Speaker 1: then Peter said something that must have shocked the Judaizers.
• 1:22:40
  Speaker 1: Acts fifteen ten eleven records his challenge, Now, then, why
• 1:22:46
  Speaker 1: do you try to test God by putting on the
• 1:22:49
  Speaker 1: necks of gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our
• 1:22:52
  Speaker 1: ancestors have been able to bear. No, we believe it
• 1:22:56
  Speaker 1: is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we
• 1:22:58
  Speaker 1: are saved, just as they are. After Peter spoke, the
• 1:23:02
  Speaker 1: whole assembly listened as Paul and Barnabas told about the
• 1:23:06
  Speaker 1: miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles. Finally, James,
• 1:23:12
  Speaker 1: the brother of Jesus and the leader of the Jerusalem Church,
• 1:23:15
  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: didn't have to become Jews to follow Jesus. The gospel
• 1:25:03
  Speaker 1: really was for everyone, regardless of their ethnic or cultural background.
• 1:25:08
  Speaker 1: But then something unexpected happened that would change the course
• 1:25:12
  Speaker 1: of Paul's ministry. Paul suggested to Barnabas that they should
• 1:25:16
  Speaker 1: revisit the churches they had planted on their first missionary journey,
• 1:25:21
  Speaker 1: but when Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them again,
• 1:25:24
  Speaker 1: Paul disagreed. Acts fifteen thirty seven thirty nine tells us
• 1:25:29
  Speaker 1: Barnabas wanted to take John also called Mark, with them,
• 1:25:33
  Speaker 1: but Paul did not think it wise to take him
• 1:25:35
  Speaker 1: because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not
• 1:25:38
  Speaker 1: continued with them in the work. They had such a
• 1:25:41
  Speaker 1: sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and
• 1:25:46
  Speaker 1: sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left commended
• 1:25:49
  Speaker 1: by the believers to the grace of the Lord. Paul
• 1:25:52
  Speaker 1: and Barnabas had a sharp disagreement and decided to go
• 1:25:56
  Speaker 1: separate ways. Barnabas took John Mark and went to Cyprus.
• 1:26:01
  Speaker 1: Paul chose Silas and prepared for his second missionary journey.
• 1:26:05
  Speaker 1: The team that had accomplished so much together was splitting up,
• 1:26:09
  Speaker 1: but God would use both teams to spread the Gospel
• 1:26:13
  Speaker 1: even further. Paul decided to visit the churches he had
• 1:26:16
  Speaker 1: started before. When he reached Durbey and Listra, he met
• 1:26:20
  Speaker 1: a young believer named Timothy. Acts sixteen one to three
• 1:26:24
  Speaker 1: tells us that Timothy was well spoken of by believers
• 1:26:27
  Speaker 1: in both cities, and his mother was Jewish while his
• 1:26:31
  Speaker 1: father was Greek. Paul wanted Timothy to join him on
• 1:26:35
  Speaker 1: his journey, so he had him circumcised because of the
• 1:26:39
  Speaker 1: Jews in those areas who knew his father was Greek.
• 1:26:43
  Speaker 1: As they traveled through the cities, they shared the decisions
• 1:26:47
  Speaker 1: made by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. Act sixteen
• 1:26:50
  Speaker 1: four to five shows us that the churches grew stronger
• 1:26:54
  Speaker 1: in faith and increased in number daily. Paul and his
• 1:26:58
  Speaker 1: team wanted to preach in Aisia, but Act sixteen sixt
• 1:27:02
  Speaker 1: seven reveals that the Holy Spirit prevented them from doing so.
• 1:27:06
  Speaker 1: They also tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of
• 1:27:10
  Speaker 1: Jesus would not allow them. That night, Paul had a
• 1:27:13
  Speaker 1: vision described in Acts sixteen nine to ten. A man
• 1:27:18
  Speaker 1: from Macedonia appeared to him and begged come over to
• 1:27:22
  Speaker 1: Macedonia and help us. Paul immediately understood this was God's
• 1:27:27
  Speaker 1: call to bring the Gospel to Europe. They sailed from
• 1:27:30
  Speaker 1: Troas to Samothrace and then to Neapolis. In Philippi, Paul
• 1:27:37
  Speaker 1: looked for a place of prayer by the river on
• 1:27:39
  Speaker 1: the Sabbath day. Acts sixteen thirteen twenty fourteen introduces us
• 1:27:44
  Speaker 1: to Lydia, a seller of purple cloth from Thiatyra. She
• 1:27:48
  Speaker 1: was already a worshiper of God, and the Lord opened
• 1:27:52
  Speaker 1: her heart to listen to Paul's message. She and her
• 1:27:55
  Speaker 1: household were baptized, and she invited Paul and his team
• 1:28:00
  Speaker 1: to stay at her house. One day, a slave girl
• 1:28:03
  Speaker 1: with a spirit of divination kept following them and shouting
• 1:28:07
  Speaker 1: about their mission. After many days of this, Paul became
• 1:28:10
  Speaker 1: annoyed and commanded the spirit to leave her. Acts sixteen
• 1:28:16
  Speaker 1: nineteen to twenty one shows us that when her owners
• 1:28:19
  Speaker 1: saw their hope of prophet was gone, they dragged Paul
• 1:28:22
  Speaker 1: and Silas to the market place. They accused them of
• 1:28:26
  Speaker 1: disturbing the peace and teaching customs that Romans could not accept.
• 1:28:31
  Speaker 1: The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates ordered
• 1:28:35
  Speaker 1: them to be beaten with rods and thrown into prison.
• 1:28:38
  Speaker 1: The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully, so he
• 1:28:41
  Speaker 1: put them in the inner prison and fastened their feet
• 1:28:44
  Speaker 1: in stocks. Acts sixteen twenty five twenty six tells us
• 1:28:49
  Speaker 1: that around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns,
• 1:28:53
  Speaker 1: when suddenly a violent earthquake shook the prison. All the
• 1:28:56
  Speaker 1: doors flew open, and everyone's chains came loose, and the
• 1:29:00
  Speaker 1: jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open. He
• 1:29:03
  Speaker 1: drew his sword to kill himself, thinking all the prisoners
• 1:29:07
  Speaker 1: had escaped, but Paul shouted, don't harm yourself, we are
• 1:29:11
  Speaker 1: all here. Acts sixteen twenty nine to thirty four describes
• 1:29:15
  Speaker 1: how the jailer called for lights, rushed in trembling, and
• 1:29:18
  Speaker 1: fell down before Paul and Silas. He brought them out
• 1:29:22
  Speaker 1: and asked what must I do to be saved. They replied,
• 1:29:26
  Speaker 1: believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved,
• 1:29:29
  Speaker 1: you and your household. That very hour, he washed their
• 1:29:33
  Speaker 1: wounds and was baptized with his entire family. Paul and
• 1:29:38
  Speaker 1: Silas traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia before reaching Thessalonica, where
• 1:29:43
  Speaker 1: there was a Jewish synagogue. Acts seventeen two three shows
• 1:29:47
  Speaker 1: us that Paul reasoned with them from the scriptures for
• 1:29:50
  Speaker 1: three Sabbath days, explaining and proving that the Christ had
• 1:29:54
  Speaker 1: to suffer and rise from the dead. Some Jews were
• 1:29:58
  Speaker 1: persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with many god
• 1:30:02
  Speaker 1: fearing Greeks and prominent women. But Acts seventeen five to
• 1:30:07
  Speaker 1: seven reveals that other Jews became jealous and gathered some
• 1:30:10
  Speaker 1: trouble makers from the market place. They formed a mob
• 1:30:14
  Speaker 1: and started a riot in the city, rushing to Jason's
• 1:30:17
  Speaker 1: house to look for Paul and Silas. When they couldn't
• 1:30:21
  Speaker 1: find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before
• 1:30:24
  Speaker 1: the city officials, shouting, these men who have turned the
• 1:30:28
  Speaker 1: world upside down have come here too. The believers sent
• 1:30:32
  Speaker 1: Paul and Silas away to Berea during the night. Acts
• 1:30:35
  Speaker 1: seventeen eleven two to twelve tells us that the Bereans
• 1:30:39
  Speaker 1: were more noble than those in Thessalonica because they received
• 1:30:43
  Speaker 1: the message with great eagerness and examined the scriptures every
• 1:30:46
  Speaker 1: day to see if what Paul said was true. Many
• 1:30:51
  Speaker 1: of them believed, including prominent Greek women and men. When
• 1:30:55
  Speaker 1: the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching in Berea,
• 1:30:59
  Speaker 1: they went there too and stirred up the crowds. Acts
• 1:31:03
  Speaker 1: seventeen fourteen two fifteen shows us that the believers immediately
• 1:31:07
  Speaker 1: sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed
• 1:31:11
  Speaker 1: in Berea. Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens
• 1:31:15
  Speaker 1: and returned with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join
• 1:31:18
  Speaker 1: 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,
• 1:32:03
  Speaker 1: I see that in every way you are very religious.
• 1:32:07
  Speaker 1: For as I walked around and looked 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. Paul,
• 1:32:44
  Speaker 1: quoted from their own poets. Acts seventeen thirty thirty one
• 1:32:48
  Speaker 1: shows us that Paul declared God now commands all people
• 1:32:51
  Speaker 1: everywhere to repent, because he has set a day when
• 1:32:55
  Speaker 1: he will judge the world with justice by the man
• 1:32:58
  Speaker 1: he has appointed. When they heard about the resurrection of
• 1:33:01
  Speaker 1: the dead, some sneered, but others said they wanted to
• 1:33:04
  Speaker 1: hear him again. A few people believed, including Dionysius, a
• 1:33:09
  Speaker 1: member of the Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris. After
• 1:33:14
  Speaker 1: leaving Athens, Paul went to Corinth. Acts eighteen two three
• 1:33:20
  Speaker 1: introduces us to Aquila and Priscilla, a Jewish couple who
• 1:33:24
  Speaker 1: had recently come from Italy because Emperor Claudius had ordered
• 1:33:27
  Speaker 1: all Jews to leave Rome. Paul stayed with them because
• 1:33:31
  Speaker 1: 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 heard,
• 1:34:20
  Speaker 1: Paul believed and were baptized. One night, the Lord spoke
• 1:34:24
  Speaker 1: to Paul in a vision, do not be afraid, keep
• 1:34:28
  Speaker 1: on speaking, do not be silent, for I am with you,
• 1:34:32
  Speaker 1: and no one is going to attack and harm you,
• 1:34:35
  Speaker 1: because I have many people in this city. Acts eighteen
• 1:34:39
  Speaker 1: eleven reveals that Paul stayed for a year and six
• 1:34:42
  Speaker 1: months teaching them the word of God. When Gallio was
• 1:34:46
  Speaker 1: proconsul of Achiah, the Jews made a united attack on
• 1:34:50
  Speaker 1: Paul and brought him to court. Acts eighteen fourteen sixteen
• 1:34:54
  Speaker 1: shows us that before Paul could speak, Gallio said to
• 1:34:58
  Speaker 1: his accusers, if this were matter of wrongdoing or serious crime,
• 1:35:02
  Speaker 1: I would listen to you, but since it involves questions
• 1:35:05
  Speaker 1: about words and names and your own law, settle the
• 1:35:08
  Speaker 1: matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.
• 1:35:13
  Speaker 1: Then he dismissed them from the court. Paul traveled through
• 1:35:17
  Speaker 1: Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples. When he arrived
• 1:35:22
  Speaker 1: in Ephesus, he found some disciples and asked them, did
• 1:35:26
  Speaker 1: you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? Acts nineteen
• 1:35:29
  Speaker 1: two to four records their reply, no, we have not
• 1:35:32
  Speaker 1: even heard that there is a holy spirit. Paul asked
• 1:35:35
  Speaker 1: what baptism they had received, and they answered John's baptism.
• 1:35:40
  Speaker 1: Paul explained that John baptized with a baptism of repentance,
• 1:35:44
  Speaker 1: telling people to believe in the one coming after him,
• 1:35:48
  Speaker 1: that is in Jesus. Acts nineteen five seven shows us
• 1:35:52
  Speaker 1: that when they heard this, they were baptized in the
• 1:35:55
  Speaker 1: name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed his hands
• 1:35:58
  Speaker 1: on them the holy space, it came on them, and
• 1:36:01
  Speaker 1: they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve
• 1:36:05
  Speaker 1: men in all. Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly
• 1:36:09
  Speaker 1: 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 that the evil spirit answered, Jesus,
• 1:37:03
  Speaker 1: I know and Paul, I know about, but who are you.
• 1:37:07
  Speaker 1: The man with the evil spirit jumped on them and
• 1:37:11
  Speaker 1: overpowered them all. When this became known to all Jews
• 1:37:14
  Speaker 1: and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear,
• 1:37:19
  Speaker 1: and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in
• 1:37:22
  Speaker 1: high honor. Acts nineteen eighteen twenty describes how many believers
• 1:37:27
  Speaker 1: openly confessed their evil deeds and brought their scrolls of
• 1:37:32
  Speaker 1: magic to burn publicly. The value of the scrolls was
• 1:37:35
  Speaker 1: fifty thousand drachmas, and the word of the Lord spread
• 1:37:40
  Speaker 1: widely and grew in power. About that time there arose
• 1:37:45
  Speaker 1: a great disturbance about the way. Acts nineteen twenty four
• 1:37:49
  Speaker 1: to twenty seven introduces us to Demetrius, a silversmith who
• 1:37:54
  Speaker 1: made silver shrines of Artemis. He gathered craftsmen and said,
• 1:37:58
  Speaker 1: you know, we receive a good income from this business,
• 1:38:01
  Speaker 1: and you see and hear how this fellow Paul has
• 1:38:05
  Speaker 1: convinced large numbers of people that gods made by human
• 1:38:08
  Speaker 1: hands are no gods at all. There is danger not
• 1:38:12
  Speaker 1: only that our trade will lose its good name, but
• 1:38:15
  Speaker 1: also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will
• 1:38:19
  Speaker 1: be discredited. Acts nineteen twenty eight thirty one shows us
• 1:38:24
  Speaker 1: that when they heard this, they were furious and began shouting,
• 1:38:28
  Speaker 1: Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. The whole city was
• 1:38:32
  Speaker 1: in an uproar, and people rushed into the theater, dragging
• 1:38:36
  Speaker 1: along Gius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions. Paul wanted to
• 1:38:41
  Speaker 1: appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him.
• 1:38:45
  Speaker 1: Even some officials of the province urged him not to
• 1:38:49
  Speaker 1: venture into the theater. The city clerk finally quieted the
• 1:38:52
  Speaker 1: crowd and dismissed the assembly. Acts nineteen thirty five tixty
• 1:38:57
  Speaker 1: forty one records his words, fellow Ephesians, doesn't all the
• 1:39:02
  Speaker 1: world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian
• 1:39:05
  Speaker 1: of the temple of the Great Artemis. Since these facts
• 1:39:08
  Speaker 1: are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do
• 1:39:11
  Speaker 1: anything rash. If there are any other matters, they must
• 1:39:15
  Speaker 1: be settled in a legal assembly. When the uproar ended,
• 1:39:19
  Speaker 1: Paul sent for the disciples, and, after encouraging them, said
• 1:39:23
  Speaker 1: goodbye and set out for Macedonia. Acts twenty two three
• 1:39:27
  Speaker 1: tells us that he traveled through that area, speaking many
• 1:39:31
  Speaker 1: words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece,
• 1:39:35
  Speaker 1: where he stayed three months. Because some Jews made a
• 1:39:38
  Speaker 1: plot against him just as he was about to sail
• 1:39:41
  Speaker 1: for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. Several
• 1:39:45
  Speaker 1: men accompanied him, Sopotaire from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica,
• 1:39:52
  Speaker 1: Gaius from Derbe, Timothy Antichicus, and Trophemus from Asia. Acts
• 1:39:58
  Speaker 1: twenty five to six shows that these men went on
• 1:40:01
  Speaker 1: ahead and waited for them at Troas. Paul sailed from
• 1:40:05
  Speaker 1: Philippi after the festival of unleavened Bread and five days
• 1:40:10
  Speaker 1: later joined the others at Troas, where they stayed seven days.
• 1:40:16
  Speaker 1: On the first day of the week, they came together
• 1:40:18
  Speaker 1: to break bread. Paul spoke to the people, and because
• 1:40:21
  Speaker 1: he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking
• 1:40:25
  Speaker 1: until midnight. Acts twenty nine to ten describes how a
• 1:40:29
  Speaker 1: young man named Eutychus was sitting in a window, and
• 1:40:32
  Speaker 1: as Paul talked on and on, he was overcome by
• 1:40:36
  Speaker 1: 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 publicly,
• 1:41:50
  Speaker 1: and from house to house. I have declared to both
• 1:41:53
  Speaker 1: Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in
• 1:41:56
  Speaker 1: repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. In Paul continued,
• 1:42:01
  Speaker 1: and now compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem,
• 1:42:05
  Speaker 1: not knowing what will happen to me there. I only
• 1:42:08
  Speaker 1: know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me
• 1:42:11
  Speaker 1: that prison and hardships are facing me. Acts twenty twenty
• 1:42:16
  Speaker 1: four twenty five shows us his determination. However, I consider
• 1:42:20
  Speaker 1: my life worth nothing to me. My only aim is
• 1:42:24
  Speaker 1: to finish the race and complete the task the Lord
• 1:42:27
  Speaker 1: Jesus has given me the task of testifying to the
• 1:42:31
  Speaker 1: good news of God's grace. Now I know that none
• 1:42:35
  Speaker 1: of you, among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom,
• 1:42:38
  Speaker 1: will ever see me again. Turn twenty twenty eight to
• 1:42:44
  Speaker 1: thirty one reveals Paul's final charge. Keep watch over yourselves
• 1:42:50
  Speaker 1: and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has
• 1:42:52
  Speaker 1: made you overseers. Be shepherds of the Church of God,
• 1:42:56
  Speaker 1: which he bought with his own blood. I know that
• 1:42:59
  Speaker 1: after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you
• 1:43:03
  Speaker 1: and will not spare the flock, even from your own number.
• 1:43:06
  Speaker 1: Men will arise and distort the truth in order to
• 1:43:09
  Speaker 1: draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard.
• 1:43:14
  Speaker 1: When Paul finished speaking, he knelt down with all of
• 1:43:17
  Speaker 1: them and prayed. Acts twenty thirty seven thirty eight describes
• 1:43:21
  Speaker 1: the emotional scene in they all wept as they embraced
• 1:43:25
  Speaker 1: him and kissed him. What grieved them most was his
• 1:43:28
  Speaker 1: statement that they would never see his face again. After
• 1:43:32
  Speaker 1: they tore themselves away from the elders, Paul and his
• 1:43:35
  Speaker 1: companions sailed straight to coss. The next day they went
• 1:43:39
  Speaker 1: to Rhodes and from there to Petara. Acts twenty one
• 1:43:44
  Speaker 1: three foot six shows us that they found a ship
• 1:43:47
  Speaker 1: crossing over to Phoenicia, boarded it and set sail. They
• 1:43:52
  Speaker 1: sighted Cyprus and passed to the south of it, sailing
• 1:43:55
  Speaker 1: on to Syria and landing Attire, where the ship was
• 1:43:58
  Speaker 1: to unload its cargo. They found some disciples there and
• 1:44:02
  Speaker 1: stayed with them seven days. Through the spirit they urged
• 1:44:06
  Speaker 1: Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. When it was
• 1:44:09
  Speaker 1: time to leave, all the disciples and their wives and
• 1:44:12
  Speaker 1: children accompanied them out of the city. Acts twenty one
• 1:44:16
  Speaker 1: five to six tells us that there on the beach
• 1:44:19
  Speaker 1: they all knelt to prey, and after saying good bye
• 1:44:21
  Speaker 1: to each other, they boarded the ship and the disciples
• 1:44:25
  Speaker 1: returned home. They continued their voyage from Tire and landed
• 1:44:29
  Speaker 1: at Ptolemais, where they greeted the brothers and sisters and
• 1:44:33
  Speaker 1: stayed with them for a day. Acts twenty one eight
• 1:44:36
  Speaker 1: to nine shows us that, leaving the next day, they
• 1:44:39
  Speaker 1: reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the Evangelist,
• 1:44:43
  Speaker 1: one of the seven. He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.
• 1:44:48
  Speaker 1: After they had been there a number of days, a
• 1:44:51
  Speaker 1: prophet named Egabus came down from Judea. Acts twenty one
• 1:44:56
  Speaker 1: eleven to twelve describes his dramatic prophecy coming over to us.
• 1:45:01
  Speaker 1: He took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet
• 1:45:04
  Speaker 1: with it, and said, the Holy Spirit says, in this way,
• 1:45:08
  Speaker 1: the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of
• 1:45:12
  Speaker 1: this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.
• 1:45:15
  Speaker 1: And when we heard this, we and the people there
• 1:45:18
  Speaker 1: pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem, but
• 1:45:21
  Speaker 1: Paul answered, why are you weeping and breaking my heart?
• 1:45:25
  Speaker 1: I am ready not only to be bound, but also
• 1:45:28
  Speaker 1: to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
• 1:45:32
  Speaker 1: Acts twenty one, fourteen to sixteen shows us that when
• 1:45:36
  Speaker 1: he would not be dissuaded, they gave up and said
• 1:45:39
  Speaker 1: the Lord's will be done. After this, they got ready
• 1:45:43
  Speaker 1: and went up to Jerusalem, where some of the disciples
• 1:45:46
  Speaker 1: from Caesarea accompanied them and brought them to the home
• 1:45:49
  Speaker 1: of Manson, where they were to stay. When Paul arrived
• 1:45:53
  Speaker 1: in Jerusalem, the church leaders welcomed him warmly. They shared
• 1:45:57
  Speaker 1: how many thousands of Jews had believed in Jesus, but
• 1:46:01
  Speaker 1: these new believers were still careful to follow Jewish customs.
• 1:46:05
  Speaker 1: James and the elders had a plan to help Paul
• 1:46:08
  Speaker 1: show his respect for Jewish traditions. In Acts twenty one
• 1:46:12
  Speaker 1: twenty three to twenty four, they told him, do therefore
• 1:46:15
  Speaker 1: what we tell you. We have four men who have
• 1:46:18
  Speaker 1: taken a vow. Take them and be purified with them,
• 1:46:21
  Speaker 1: and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads,
• 1:46:25
  Speaker 1: and all may know that those things of which they
• 1:46:27
  Speaker 1: were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also
• 1:46:32
  Speaker 1: walk orderly and keep the law. Paul agreed to this plan.
• 1:46:38
  Speaker 1: He took the four men and went through the purification
• 1:46:41
  Speaker 1: ceremony at the temple. But when the seven days were
• 1:46:44
  Speaker 1: almost over, some Jews from Asia saw Paul in the temple.
• 1:46:49
  Speaker 1: They had seen him earlier in the city with Trophimus,
• 1:46:53
  Speaker 1: a Greek from Ephesus. These Jews wrongly thought Paul had
• 1:46:57
  Speaker 1: brought 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
• 1:49:45
  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
• 1:52:16
  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
• 1:52:40
  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
• 1:52:55
  Speaker 1: elders with their plan. Acts twenty three fourteen records their word.
• 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
• 1:54:21
  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
• 1:55:44
  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 Turtulus. 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
• 1:57:14
  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. Zacts
• 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 gun, 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
• 1:59:23
  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
• 1:59:39
  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
• 1:59:49
  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 on his judgment seat and ordered
• 2:00:01
  Speaker 1: Paul to be brought before him. When Paul appeared, the
• 2:00:05
  Speaker 1: Jews who had come from Jerusalem, surrounded him and brought
• 2:00:08
  Speaker 1: many serious charges against him, But as Acts twenty five
• 2:00:12
  Speaker 1: seven explains, they could not prove any of these accusations.
• 2:00:18
  Speaker 1: Paul defended himself simply and clearly. In Acts twenty five eight,
• 2:00:24
  Speaker 1: he said, neither against the law of the Jews, nor
• 2:00:27
  Speaker 1: against the Temple, nor against Caesar, have I offended in
• 2:00:31
  Speaker 1: anything at all. Paul's defense was straightforward. He had not
• 2:00:34
  Speaker 1: broken Jewish law, he had not done anything wrong in
• 2:00:38
  Speaker 1: the temple, and he had not committed any crime against
• 2:00:41
  Speaker 1: the Roman government. But Festus wanted to please the Jewish leaders.
• 2:00:46
  Speaker 1: He asked Paul a question that would put him in
• 2:00:48
  Speaker 1: great danger. Acts twenty five nine records, Are you willing
• 2:00:52
  Speaker 1: to go up to Jerusalem and there be judged before
• 2:00:55
  Speaker 1: me concerning these things? Paul knew this was a trap.
• 2:00:59
  Speaker 1: If he agreed to go to Jerusalem. The Jews would
• 2:01:02
  Speaker 1: likely kill him on the way. As a Roman citizen,
• 2:01:06
  Speaker 1: Paul had rights that he could use to protect himself.
• 2:01:10
  Speaker 1: He made a bold decision that would change his entire future.
• 2:01:15
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty five ten eleven, Paul gave his answer,
• 2:01:20
  Speaker 1: I stand at Caesar's judgment seat, where I ought to
• 2:01:23
  Speaker 1: be judged. To the Jews, I have done no wrong,
• 2:01:27
  Speaker 1: as you very well know. For if I am an
• 2:01:29
  Speaker 1: offender or have committed anything deserving of death, I do
• 2:01:33
  Speaker 1: not object to dying. But if there is nothing in
• 2:01:36
  Speaker 1: these things of which these men accuse me, no one
• 2:01:39
  Speaker 1: can deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar. This
• 2:01:44
  Speaker 1: was Paul's right as a Roman citizen. When some one
• 2:01:47
  Speaker 1: appealed to Caesar, it meant their case would be heard
• 2:01:50
  Speaker 1: by the Emperor himself. In Rome, no local governor could
• 2:01:54
  Speaker 1: overrule this appeal. Festus talked with his advisers about Paul's request.
• 2:02:00
  Speaker 1: Then he gave his official answer in Acts twenty five twelve.
• 2:02:03
  Speaker 1: You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar, you shall go.
• 2:02:07
  Speaker 1: With these words, Paul's fate was sealed. He would be
• 2:02:10
  Speaker 1: going to Rome, but not as a free man. Preaching
• 2:02:13
  Speaker 1: the Gospel. He would be going as a prisoner under
• 2:02:17
  Speaker 1: guard to face trial before the most powerful man in
• 2:02:20
  Speaker 1: the world. Yet this was exactly what the Lord had
• 2:02:24
  Speaker 1: promised him that he would bear witness in Rome. A
• 2:02:29
  Speaker 1: few days after Paul's appeal to Caesar, King Agrippa and
• 2:02:33
  Speaker 1: his sister Benice came to Caesarrea to visit Festus. Agrippa
• 2:02:38
  Speaker 1: was a king under Roman authority, and he knew a
• 2:02:41
  Speaker 1: lot about Jewish customs and beliefs. During their visit, Festus
• 2:02:46
  Speaker 1: told a gripper about Paul's case. Festus explained how the
• 2:02:51
  Speaker 1: Jewish leaders had brought serious charges against Paul, but when
• 2:02:55
  Speaker 1: he investigated, he found that their accusations were about religious questions,
• 2:03:01
  Speaker 1: not crimes against Roman law. He told a gripper about
• 2:03:05
  Speaker 1: Paul's appeal to Caesar and how he was required to
• 2:03:08
  Speaker 1: send him to Rome. Festus had a problem though, When
• 2:03:12
  Speaker 1: he sent Paul to Caesar, he needed to write a
• 2:03:15
  Speaker 1: letter explaining what crimes Paul had committed, but Festus couldn't
• 2:03:20
  Speaker 1: find any real crimes to report. In Acts twenty five,
• 2:03:25
  Speaker 1: twenty six, twenty seven, he told a gripper, I have
• 2:03:29
  Speaker 1: nothing certain to write to my Lord concerning him. Therefore,
• 2:03:33
  Speaker 1: I have brought him out before you, and especially before you,
• 2:03:37
  Speaker 1: King Agrippa, so that after the examination has taken place,
• 2:03:41
  Speaker 1: I may have something to write. For it seems to
• 2:03:44
  Speaker 1: me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to specify
• 2:03:47
  Speaker 1: the charges against him. Agrippa was interested in hearing Paul
• 2:03:52
  Speaker 1: for himself. He told Festus that he would like to
• 2:03:55
  Speaker 1: hear this man speak. Festus arranged for Paul to appear
• 2:03:59
  Speaker 1: before them the next day. The next day was quite
• 2:04:02
  Speaker 1: a show. Agrippa and Benice came with great ceremony, along
• 2:04:07
  Speaker 1: with the commanders and important men of the city. When
• 2:04:10
  Speaker 1: they were all gathered, Festus brought Paul in. Festus explained
• 2:04:14
  Speaker 1: to everyone present how both the Jews in Jerusalem and
• 2:04:18
  Speaker 1: those in Caesarea had demanded Paul's death, but he had
• 2:04:22
  Speaker 1: found no reason why Paul should die. Festus told them
• 2:04:28
  Speaker 1: that since Paul had appealed to Caesar, he would be
• 2:04:31
  Speaker 1: sent to Rome, but he still needed to write a
• 2:04:34
  Speaker 1: proper report about Paul's case. He hoped that after they
• 2:04:38
  Speaker 1: heard Paul speak, they would be able to help him
• 2:04:41
  Speaker 1: understand what charges should be made. Then Agrippa spoke to
• 2:04:45
  Speaker 1: Paul directly. In Acts twenty six one, he said, you
• 2:04:50
  Speaker 1: are permitted to speak for yourself. Paul stretched out his
• 2:04:54
  Speaker 1: hand and began his defense. He started by expressing his
• 2:04:57
  Speaker 1: happiness at being able to speak before Agrippa, since the
• 2:05:01
  Speaker 1: king was an expert in Jewish customs and questions. Paul
• 2:05:07
  Speaker 1: told his story in detail. He explained how he had
• 2:05:10
  Speaker 1: lived as a pharisee, following the strictest form of Jewish religion.
• 2:05:15
  Speaker 1: He described how he had persecuted Christians, even traveling to
• 2:05:19
  Speaker 1: other cities to arrest them. Then he shared the amazing
• 2:05:23
  Speaker 1: story of his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus.
• 2:05:27
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty six thirteen to fifteen, Paul described what
• 2:05:31
  Speaker 1: happened at mid day o king along the road, I
• 2:05:36
  Speaker 1: saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining
• 2:05:40
  Speaker 1: around me and those who journeyed with me. And when
• 2:05:44
  Speaker 1: we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a
• 2:05:47
  Speaker 1: voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul,
• 2:05:53
  Speaker 1: why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you
• 2:05:56
  Speaker 1: to kick against the gods. So I said, who are
• 2:06:00
  Speaker 1: you Lord? And he said, I am Jesus, whom you
• 2:06:06
  Speaker 1: are persecuting. Paul explained how Jesus had chosen him to
• 2:06:10
  Speaker 1: be a servant and a witness to open people's eyes
• 2:06:14
  Speaker 1: so they could turn from darkness to light and from
• 2:06:17
  Speaker 1: Satan's power to God. He had been obedient to this
• 2:06:20
  Speaker 1: vision from heaven, preaching first in Damascus, then in Jerusalem
• 2:06:26
  Speaker 1: and throughout all Judea, and finally to the non Jewish people.
• 2:06:31
  Speaker 1: He told them this was why the Jews had seized
• 2:06:33
  Speaker 1: him in the temple and tried to kill him, but
• 2:06:36
  Speaker 1: God had helped him, and he continued to testify to
• 2:06:40
  Speaker 1: both small and great people, saying nothing different from what
• 2:06:43
  Speaker 1: Moses and the prophets had said would happen. As Paul
• 2:06:47
  Speaker 1: spoke with passion and conviction, Festus suddenly interrupted him. Acts
• 2:06:53
  Speaker 1: twenty six twenty four records Paul, you are beside yourself.
• 2:06:58
  Speaker 1: Much learning is driving you mad. But Paul calmly replied
• 2:07:03
  Speaker 1: that he was not mad, but spoke words of truth
• 2:07:06
  Speaker 1: and reason. Then Paul turned to King Agrippa and made
• 2:07:09
  Speaker 1: a direct appeal. In Acts twenty six twenty seven, he
• 2:07:13
  Speaker 1: asked King a gripper, do you believe the prophets? I
• 2:07:17
  Speaker 1: know that you believe this put a gripper in a
• 2:07:20
  Speaker 1: difficult position. If he said yes, he would have to
• 2:07:23
  Speaker 1: agree with Paul's message about Jesus. If he said no,
• 2:07:28
  Speaker 1: he would be denying the Jewish prophets. A gripper gave
• 2:07:31
  Speaker 1: a careful answer that has become famous. In Acts twenty
• 2:07:35
  Speaker 1: six twenty eight, he said, you almost persuade me to
• 2:07:38
  Speaker 1: become a Christian. Paul's response showed his heart for people's salvation.
• 2:07:44
  Speaker 1: He said in Acts twenty six twenty nine, I would
• 2:07:48
  Speaker 1: to God that not only you, but also all who
• 2:07:51
  Speaker 1: hear me to day, might become both almost and altogether
• 2:07:54
  Speaker 1: such as I am, except for these chains. After Paul
• 2:07:59
  Speaker 1: finished speaking, the King, the governor, Bernice, and all who
• 2:08:04
  Speaker 1: sat with them stood up and left. They talked among
• 2:08:07
  Speaker 1: themselves about what they had heard. They all agreed that
• 2:08:10
  Speaker 1: Paul had done nothing that deserved death or imprisonment. Agrippa
• 2:08:15
  Speaker 1: told Festus that Paul could have been set free if
• 2:08:18
  Speaker 1: he had not appealed to Caesar, but now that he
• 2:08:21
  Speaker 1: had made his appeal, he would have to go to Rome.
• 2:08:25
  Speaker 1: When it was decided that Paul would sail to Rome,
• 2:08:28
  Speaker 1: he was handed over to a Roman officer named Julius,
• 2:08:31
  Speaker 1: who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. Julius was responsible for
• 2:08:35
  Speaker 1: Paul and other prisoners who were also going to Rome.
• 2:08:39
  Speaker 1: Luke and another man named Aristarchus were allowed to travel
• 2:08:43
  Speaker 1: with Paul to help take care of him. They boarded
• 2:08:47
  Speaker 1: a ship from Adramytium that was going to sail along
• 2:08:51
  Speaker 1: the coast of Asia. The next day they stopped at Sidon,
• 2:08:55
  Speaker 1: and Julius was kind to Paul. He let Paul visit
• 2:08:58
  Speaker 1: his friends there so they could take care of his needs.
• 2:09:01
  Speaker 1: From Sidon, they sailed north of Cyprus because the winds
• 2:09:05
  Speaker 1: were against them. After sailing across the sea by Cilicia
• 2:09:08
  Speaker 1: and Pamphylia, they came to Myra in Lycia. There Julius
• 2:09:14
  Speaker 1: found a ship from Alexandria that was sailing to Italy,
• 2:09:17
  Speaker 1: and he put Paul and the other prisoners on board.
• 2:09:20
  Speaker 1: For many days, they sailed slowly and had difficulty reaching
• 2:09:24
  Speaker 1: Cannidas because the wind was not helping them. They sailed
• 2:09:28
  Speaker 1: south of Crete, near a place called Salmoni. Moving along
• 2:09:33
  Speaker 1: the coast with difficulty, they came to a place called
• 2:09:36
  Speaker 1: fair Havens near the city of Lcia. By this time
• 2:09:41
  Speaker 1: much time had passed and sailing was becoming dangerous because
• 2:09:44
  Speaker 1: it was late in the year, Paul warned them about
• 2:09:47
  Speaker 1: continuing the journey. In Acts twenty seven ten, Paul said,
• 2:09:52
  Speaker 1: men I perceived that this voyage will end with disaster
• 2:09:56
  Speaker 1: and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship,
• 2:10:00
  Speaker 1: but also our lives. But the Roman officer believed the
• 2:10:03
  Speaker 1: ship's captain and owner more than Paul's warning. Since the
• 2:10:07
  Speaker 1: harbor at fair Haven's was not good for spending the winter,
• 2:10:11
  Speaker 1: most people wanted to continue sailing. They hoped to reach Phoenix,
• 2:10:16
  Speaker 1: a harbor in Crete that faced southwest and northwest where
• 2:10:20
  Speaker 1: they could spend the winter safely. When a gentle south
• 2:10:23
  Speaker 1: wind began to blow, they thought they could safely make
• 2:10:26
  Speaker 1: the trip. They pulled up the anchor and sailed close
• 2:10:29
  Speaker 1: along the coast of Crete, but soon a terrible storm
• 2:10:32
  Speaker 1: hit them. It was called a northeaster, a violent wind
• 2:10:36
  Speaker 1: that came down from the island. The ship was caught
• 2:10:39
  Speaker 1: by the storm and could not sail against the wind,
• 2:10:43
  Speaker 1: so they had to let it carry them along. They
• 2:10:45
  Speaker 1: sailed south of a small island called Clouder, where they
• 2:10:49
  Speaker 1: were barely able to secure the ship's lifeboat. The sailors
• 2:10:53
  Speaker 1: used ropes to hold the ship together because they were
• 2:10:55
  Speaker 1: afraid it would break apart. They were also afraid of
• 2:10:59
  Speaker 1: running into the sand bars near the African coast, so
• 2:11:02
  Speaker 1: they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship drift.
• 2:11:06
  Speaker 1: The storm was so violent that the next day they
• 2:11:10
  Speaker 1: began throwing the cargo overboard to make the ship lighter.
• 2:11:16
  Speaker 1: On the e third day, they threw the ship's equipment
• 2:11:20
  Speaker 1: overboard with their own hands. For many days, they could
• 2:11:23
  Speaker 1: not see the sun or stars because of the storm.
• 2:11:27
  Speaker 1: The situation looked hopeless, and everyone gave up hope of
• 2:11:31
  Speaker 1: being saved. After the men had gone without food for
• 2:11:35
  Speaker 1: a long time, Paul stood up among them and spoke.
• 2:11:39
  Speaker 1: In Acts twenty seven twenty one twenty two, He said, men,
• 2:11:43
  Speaker 1: you should have listened to me and not have sailed
• 2:11:46
  Speaker 1: from crete and incurred this disaster and loss. And now
• 2:11:49
  Speaker 1: I urge you to take heart, for there will be
• 2:11:52
  Speaker 1: no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.
• 2:11:56
  Speaker 1: Paul explained why he was so confident. He told them
• 2:12:00
  Speaker 1: that an angel of God had appeared to him the
• 2:12:02
  Speaker 1: night before. In Acts twenty seven twenty three to twenty four,
• 2:12:06
  Speaker 1: Paul shared the angel's message, do not be afraid, Paul.
• 2:12:10
  Speaker 1: You must be brought before Caesar and indeed, God has
• 2:12:14
  Speaker 1: granted you all those who sail with you. Paul told
• 2:12:18
  Speaker 1: them he believed God completely, and everything would happen just
• 2:12:22
  Speaker 1: as the angel had said. Paul said they would run
• 2:12:25
  Speaker 1: aground on some island. After drifting for fourteen days and
• 2:12:29
  Speaker 1: nights across the Adriatic Sea, the sailors thought they were
• 2:12:32
  Speaker 1: getting close to land. They checked the water depth and
• 2:12:35
  Speaker 1: found it was twenty fathoms deep. A little later it
• 2:12:39
  Speaker 1: was fifteen fathoms. They were afraid they might crash into
• 2:12:42
  Speaker 1: the rocks, so they dropped four anchors from the back
• 2:12:45
  Speaker 1: of the ship and prayed for daylight. The sailors tried
• 2:12:49
  Speaker 1: to escape from the ship by lowering the lifeboat and
• 2:12:53
  Speaker 1: pretending they were going to put out anchors from the front,
• 2:12:56
  Speaker 1: but Paul warned the Roman officer and soldiers in Acts
• 2:13:00
  Speaker 1: twenty seven thirty one. He said, unless these men stay
• 2:13:04
  Speaker 1: in the ship, you cannot be saved. The soldiers quickly
• 2:13:09
  Speaker 1: cut 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 everyone. He broke it and began to eat. This
• 2:13:37
  Speaker 1: 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
• 2:13:46
  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 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 Bolt 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
• 2:16:57
  Speaker 1: the island during the winter. The sh ship had a
• 2:17:00
  Speaker 1: sign of the Twin Brothers, which were gods that sailors
• 2:17:04
  Speaker 1: believed would protect them. They sailed first to Syracuse, a
• 2:17:08
  Speaker 1: city on the island of Sicily, and stayed there for
• 2:17:11
  Speaker 1: three days. From Syracuse, they sailed to Regium, on the
• 2:17:16
  Speaker 1: southern tip of Italy. After one day there, a south
• 2:17:19
  Speaker 1: wind began to blow and they were able to sail
• 2:17:22
  Speaker 1: to Puteoli in just two days. At Puteoli, they found
• 2:17:26
  Speaker 1: some believers who invited them to stay for seven days.
• 2:17:30
  Speaker 1: This was encouraging for Paul, who had been traveling as
• 2:17:33
  Speaker 1: a prisoner for so long. Finally, they continued their journey
• 2:17:38
  Speaker 1: toward Rome. The believers in Rome had heard that Paul
• 2:17:42
  Speaker 1: was coming, and they traveled out to meet him. Some
• 2:17:45
  Speaker 1: came as far as Appii Forum, which was about forty
• 2:17:49
  Speaker 1: three miles from Rome. Others met him at Three Inns,
• 2:17:52
  Speaker 1: which was about thirty three miles from the city. When
• 2:17:56
  Speaker 1: Paul saw these believers, he was greatly encouraged and thanked
• 2:18:00
  Speaker 1: God for their love and support. When Paul finally arrived
• 2:18:06
  Speaker 1: in Rome, he was allowed to live by himself with
• 2:18:09
  Speaker 1: the soldier who guarded him. This was a special arrangement
• 2:18:13
  Speaker 1: because of his status as a Roman citizen and because
• 2:18:16
  Speaker 1: Julius had spoken well of him to the authorities in Rome.
• 2:18:22
  Speaker 1: Three days after arriving in Rome, Paul called together the
• 2:18:26
  Speaker 1: leaders of the Jews who lived in the city. He
• 2:18:28
  Speaker 1: wanted to explain to them why he had come to
• 2:18:31
  Speaker 1: Rome as a prisoner. When they met, Paul spoke to
• 2:18:34
  Speaker 1: them honestly about his situation. In Acts twenty eight seventeen
• 2:18:38
  Speaker 1: to nineteen, Paul explained, men and brethren, though I have
• 2:18:44
  Speaker 1: done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers,
• 2:18:48
  Speaker 1: Yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into
• 2:18:52
  Speaker 1: the 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 them 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 them 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
• 2:19:57
  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
• 2:20:27
  Speaker 1: sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it. After
• 2:20:30
  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
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  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.