Latest / truthunedited / Fall Asleep to The Book of Acts - From Pentecost to Rome _ Peaceful Bible Sleep Story

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Fall Asleep to The Book of Acts - From Pentecost to Rome _ Peaceful Bible Sleep Story · truthunedited

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  Speaker 1: Close your eyes and imagine this. In a small upper
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  Speaker 1: room in Jerusalem, one hundred and twenty believers gather in prayer.
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  Speaker 1: The door is locked. The streets outside are uncertain. Their teacher,
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  Speaker 1: their Lord, has ascended into heaven, and they do not
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  Speaker 1: know what comes next. They are ordinary people, fishermen, tax collectors, women,
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  Speaker 1: who followed Jesus from Galilee. They have no armies, no wealth,
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  Speaker 1: no earthly power. All they have is a promise. Wait
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  Speaker 1: in Jerusalem. Jesus told them, wait for the gift my
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  Speaker 1: Father promised. Now imagine this. Thirty years later, the message
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  Speaker 1: of Jesus Christ has spread across the Roman Empire, from
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  Speaker 1: Jerusalem to Antioch, from Ephesus to Corinth, from Athens to
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  Speaker 1: Rome itself. Thousands upon thousands have believed the Gospel. Has
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  Speaker 1: crossed every border, every language, every barrier, from one hundred
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  Speaker 1: and twenty trembling hearts to multitudes across three continents. Luke,
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  Speaker 1: a physician and careful historian, recorded these events in the
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  Speaker 1: book We call Acts Tonight. You will hear his account
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  Speaker 1: not as dry history, but as living story. The birth
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  Speaker 1: of the Church, the mission of the apostles, and the
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  Speaker 1: unstoppable movement of the Holy Spirit. The images you see
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  Speaker 1: are only here for illustration. You do not need to watch,
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  Speaker 1: just listen. Let this story carry you back two thousand years.
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  Speaker 1: Rest now, breathe deeply, and let the Book of Acts
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  Speaker 1: unfold before you. Chapter one, the Ascension When Heaven opened,
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  Speaker 1: Acts tells us it was forty days after the resurrection.
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  Speaker 1: Jesus had appeared to his disciples many times during those weeks,
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  Speaker 1: showing himself a life, speaking about the Kingdom of God.
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  Speaker 1: And now, on this final morning, they gathered with him
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  Speaker 1: on the Mount of Olives, just outside Jerusalem. The disciples
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  Speaker 1: had walked this mountain path many times before. The Olive
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  Speaker 1: trees stood silent in the morning air. Below them. The
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  Speaker 1: city of Jerusalem spread across the hills, its limestone walls
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  Speaker 1: catching the early light. Everything seemed ordinary, and yet they
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  Speaker 1: sensed that something profound was about to happen. One of
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  Speaker 1: them asked the question that had lingered in their hearts. Lord,
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  Speaker 1: will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel.
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  Speaker 1: They had seen him conquer death itself. Surely now the
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  Speaker 1: kingdom would come in power. But Jesus answered gently, it
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  Speaker 1: is not for you to know times or seasons that
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  Speaker 1: the Father has fixed by his own authority. Then he
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  Speaker 1: gave them a promise that would change everything. But you
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  Speaker 1: will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,
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  Speaker 1: and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in
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  Speaker 1: all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth,
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  Speaker 1: the end of the earth. The words hung in the air.
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  Speaker 1: They were ordinary people. How could they reach the ends
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  Speaker 1: of the earth. Before they could ask, something began to happen.
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  Speaker 1: Luke records that as Jesus blessed them, he was lifted up,
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  Speaker 1: not suddenly, but steadily, as though drawn upward by invisible hands.
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  Speaker 1: His feet lifted from the ground, he rose higher into
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  Speaker 1: the morning sky. They watched, unable to look away. As
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  Speaker 1: he ascended through the clear air, a cloud received him
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  Speaker 1: out of their sight. The cloud was bright, glowing with
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  Speaker 1: a light that seemed to come from within, and then
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  Speaker 1: he was gone. For a long moment, no one moved.
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  Speaker 1: They simply stood there, gazing upward, hoping he might reappear.
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  Speaker 1: The wind rustled through the olive brunt. A bird called
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  Speaker 1: somewhere in the distance, and still they stood. Then suddenly
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  Speaker 1: two men in white robes appeared beside them. The disciples
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  Speaker 1: had not heard them approach, But now they were there,
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  Speaker 1: their presence unmistakable. One of them spoke, his voice, kind
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  Speaker 1: but firm, men of Galilee, why do you stand looking
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  Speaker 1: into heaven. This Jesus, who was taken up from you
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  Speaker 1: into heaven, will come in the same way as you
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  Speaker 1: saw him go into heaven. The words settled deep. He
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  Speaker 1: will come again, but not to day to day. They
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  Speaker 1: had work to do. Slowly, the disciples turned from the sky.
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  Speaker 1: They looked at one another, and without speaking, they understood.
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  Speaker 1: They began to walk down the mountain back toward Jerusalem.
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  Speaker 1: The road was dusty. Beneath their feet, the sun climbed higher,
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  Speaker 1: and with each step the city grew closer. They passed
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  Speaker 1: through the Eastern Gate and made their way through narrow streets.
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  Speaker 1: Merchants were setting up their stalls. Children played in the doorways.
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  Speaker 1: Roman soldiers stood at their posts. The world continued as
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  Speaker 1: it always had, but for these eleven men and the
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  Speaker 1: women who walked with them, everything had changed. They came
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  Speaker 1: to a house with thick stone walls. Inside, up a
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  Speaker 1: narrow staircase was an upper room. It was the same
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  Speaker 1: room where they had shared the passover meal with Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: the same room where he had washed their feet and
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  Speaker 1: broken the bread. Now it would become the place where
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  Speaker 1: they would wait. They entered quietly. Others were already there,
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  Speaker 1: Mary the Mother of Jesus, her face marked by both
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  Speaker 1: sorrow and hope, Mary Magdalen, who had been the first
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  Speaker 1: to see the risen Lord, the brothers of Jesus who
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  Speaker 1: had once doubted but now believed, and many others, perhaps
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  Speaker 1: seventy or eighty in all. Peter stood and looked around
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  Speaker 1: at the gathering. These were not powerful people, not wealthy
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  Speaker 1: or educated, just ordinary believers who had seen extraordinary things,
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  Speaker 1: and now they would wait together for the promise. Acts
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  Speaker 1: records that they devoted themselves to prayer every morning, they
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  Speaker 1: gathered every evening. They broke bread, They sang the ancient psalms,
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  Speaker 1: They remembered the words of Jesus, and they waited, not
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  Speaker 1: knowing when the promise would come, but trusting that it would.
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  Speaker 1: In that waiting, something began to form, not just hope,
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  Speaker 1: but unity, a bond deeper than friendship. They were becoming
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  Speaker 1: something new, not just followers of a teacher, but the
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  Speaker 1: first members of what would soon be called the Church.
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  Speaker 1: Days passed, one week became two and still they prayed.
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  Speaker 1: Still they waited, The city moved around them, unaware that
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  Speaker 1: in a simple upper room the future was taking shape.
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  Speaker 1: One afternoon, Peter stood to address the gathering. He had
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  Speaker 1: been thinking about something that needed to be done. Brothers
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  Speaker 1: and sisters, he said, his voice steady, the scripture had
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  Speaker 1: to be fulfilled. Judas, who guided those who arrested Jesus,
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  Speaker 1: is no longer with us. We must choose some one
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  Speaker 1: to take his place among the twelve. They understood the
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  Speaker 1: number twelve had meaning, representing the twelve tribes of Israel.
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  Speaker 1: It needed to be complete. They put forward two names,
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  Speaker 1: Joseph called Barsabas and Matthias. Both had followed Jesus from
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  Speaker 1: the beginning, both had witnessed the resurrection. Either would serve faithfully.
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  Speaker 1: Then they prayed, Lord, you know the hearts of all,
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  Speaker 1: Show us which of these two you have chosen. And
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  Speaker 1: they cast lots, trust ing God to guide even this
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  Speaker 1: simple act. The lot fell to Mattias, and from that
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  Speaker 1: moment he was numbered with the eleven apostles twelve. Again
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  Speaker 1: the circle complete. And still they waited, not knowing that
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  Speaker 1: in just a few days the waiting would end. In
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  Speaker 1: a way. None of them could imagine the promise was near,
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  Speaker 1: and when it came, it would come with the sound
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  Speaker 1: of rushing wind and tongues of fire, changing not just
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  Speaker 1: their lives but the course of human history. Chapter two,
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  Speaker 1: The Upper Room, one hundred and twenty hearts in prayer.
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  Speaker 1: The days between the Ascension and Pentecost were quiet days,
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  Speaker 1: no miracles, no visions, just waiting. But in that waiting
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  Speaker 1: something profound was taking place. The believers were learning what
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  Speaker 1: it meant to be the Church before the church even
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  Speaker 1: had a name. Every morning they gathered in the Upper Room.
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  Speaker 1: Some arrived before, slipping through the streets while the city
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  Speaker 1: still slept. Others came as the first light touched the rooftops.
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  Speaker 1: But they all came, one hundred and twenty souls, bound
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  Speaker 1: together by what they had seen and what they believed.
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  Speaker 1: Among them were people from every walk of life. There
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  Speaker 1: was Peter, the fishermen, whose hands were calloused from years
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  Speaker 1: of hauling nets. Beside him sat John Younger Thoughtful, the
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  Speaker 1: one Jesus had called beloved. Matthew, who had once collected
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  Speaker 1: taxes for Rome, now sat alongside Simon the zealot, who
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  Speaker 1: had once dreamed of overthrowing Rome by force, different backgrounds,
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  Speaker 1: different stories, but one hope. The women were there too. Mary,
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  Speaker 1: the mother of Jesus, often sat quietly, her eyes closed
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  Speaker 1: in prayer. She had carried him, raised him, watched him die,
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  Speaker 1: and she had seen him alive again. Now she waited
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  Speaker 1: with the others for what would come next. Mary Magdalen
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  Speaker 1: was there, the woman from whom Jesus had cast out
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  Speaker 1: seven demons. She had been the first to see the
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  Speaker 1: empty tomb, the first to hear him speak her name
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  Speaker 1: in the garden. Her face still carried the wonder of it.
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  Speaker 1: The brothers of Jesus sat together, James, Joses, Simon and Judas.
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  Speaker 1: For years they had not believed. They had thought their
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  Speaker 1: brother was mistaken, perhaps even mad, But the resurrection had
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  Speaker 1: changed everything. Now they believed, and they prayed with a
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  Speaker 1: fervor born of both regret and gratitude. Acts does not
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  Speaker 1: tell us exactly what they prayed for during those days.
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  Speaker 1: Perhaps they prayed for courage, perhaps for wisdom. Perhaps they
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  Speaker 1: simply prayed to know God more deeply. Whatever the words,
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  Speaker 1: the posture was the same, humble expectant. Together they also
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  Speaker 1: devoted themselves to the scriptures. Peter and the others would
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  Speaker 1: open the scrolls and read from the prophets. They would
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  Speaker 1: discuss the passages that spoke of the Messiah, seeing with
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  Speaker 1: new eyes how everything pointed to Jesus, the suffering servant,
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  Speaker 1: in Isaiah, the son of Man, in Daniel the King,
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  Speaker 1: from the line of David, in the Psalms. It was
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  Speaker 1: all there, woven through the ancient texts like golden thread.
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  Speaker 1: And they broke bread together, not just on the Sabbath,
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  Speaker 1: but every day in the evening, as the lamps were lit,
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  Speaker 1: they would gather around simple meals, bread and fish, olives
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  Speaker 1: and cheese, figs and honey. And as they ate, they remembered,
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  Speaker 1: this is my body broken for you, This is my
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  Speaker 1: blood poured out. For many, the memory was still fresh,
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  Speaker 1: the presence of Jesus still felt near. Perhaps most remarkably,
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  Speaker 1: they shared every thing they had. Those who owned property
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  Speaker 1: or possessions began to sell them, bringing the money to
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  Speaker 1: the apostles to distribute to any one in need. It
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  Speaker 1: was not commanded, It was not a law. It was
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  Speaker 1: simply the overflow of hearts made new. When one person
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  Speaker 1: had need, another met it. No one said this is mine.
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  Speaker 1: Everything belonged to all. It was a glimpse of the Kingdom,
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  Speaker 1: a small picture of what the world could be when
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  Speaker 1: the love of God truly dwells in human hearts. In
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  Speaker 1: a city divided by wealth and poverty, by jew and gentile,
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  Speaker 1: by slave and free, here in this upper room all
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  Speaker 1: were one. The days passed slowly, One week became two,
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  Speaker 1: The feast of Passover came and went outside. Pilgrims from
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  Speaker 1: distant lands began arriving in Jerusalem for the next great feast, Pentecost,
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  Speaker 1: which would come fifty days after Passover. The city grew crowded,
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  Speaker 1: the streets filled with travelers speaking many languages, and still
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  Speaker 1: the believers waited. They did not know exactly what they
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  Speaker 1: were waiting for. Jesus had said, you will receive power,
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  Speaker 1: but what kind of power? When would it come? How
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  Speaker 1: would they know? Yet they trusted. They had seen too
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  Speaker 1: much not to trust. They had watched Jesus heal the sick,
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  Speaker 1: calm the storm, raise the dead. They had seen him crucified,
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  Speaker 1: and they had seen him alive. If he said the
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  Speaker 1: promise would come, then it would come. And so they
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  Speaker 1: prayed and waited, And in that quiet, faithful waiting, they
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  Speaker 1: were being prepared. Their hearts were being made ready. The
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  Speaker 1: rough edges of pride and ambition were being smoothed away.
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  Speaker 1: They were learning to listen, not just with their ears,
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  Speaker 1: but with their spirits. One evening, as the so unset
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  Speaker 1: and the room grew dim, someone began to sing. It
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  Speaker 1: was one of the psalms of David, an ancient song
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  Speaker 1: of trust. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not
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  Speaker 1: want others joined in their voices blending. He makes me
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  Speaker 1: lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
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  Speaker 1: He restores my soul. The song rose and fell, gentle
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  Speaker 1: and sure, and in that moment, though they did not
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  Speaker 1: yet know it, Heaven was listening. The promise was near,
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  Speaker 1: the spirit of God was about to be poured out,
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  Speaker 1: and the quiet waiting was about to give way to
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  Speaker 1: a sound like rushing wind. Chapter three, Pentecost, Tongues of Fire.
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  Speaker 1: It was the morning of Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Passover.
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  Speaker 1: Jerusalem was filled with pilgrims who had come from every
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  Speaker 1: nation under Heaven to celebrate the feast of weeks, the
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  Speaker 1: harvest fest. The streets were crowded, the temple courts echoed
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  Speaker 1: with prayers in many languages, Greek, Latin, Aramaic, Hebrew, and
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  Speaker 1: countless others mingled in the air. In the upper room,
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  Speaker 1: the one hundred and twenty were gathered as they had
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  Speaker 1: been every day for the past ten days. They were
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  Speaker 1: praying together when suddenly, without warning, a sound came from heaven.
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  Speaker 1: It was not a gentle breeze, it was not a whisper.
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  Speaker 1: Luke describes it as the sound of a mighty, rushing wind.
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  Speaker 1: It filled the entire house where they were sitting. The
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  Speaker 1: shutters rattled, the lamps flickered, the very air seemed to
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  Speaker 1: vibrate with power. This was not of the earth. This
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  Speaker 1: was the presence of God. And then they saw it.
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  Speaker 1: Tongues as of fire appeared and rested on each one
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  Speaker 1: of them. The flames did not burn, They were not
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  Speaker 1: hot or destructive. They simply rest did there, one on
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  Speaker 1: each person, like a crown, like a seal, like the
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  Speaker 1: very touch of Heaven itself, And they were all filled
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  Speaker 1: with the Holy Spirit. Something surged through them in that moment,
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  Speaker 1: a power they had never known, a clarity they had
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  Speaker 1: never experienced. Their minds were suddenly awake, their hearts were
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  Speaker 1: burning with a love and boldness that was not their own,
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  Speaker 1: and they began to speak, not in their native tongue,
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  Speaker 1: but in other languages. As the spirit gave them utterance.
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  Speaker 1: Peter found himself speaking words he did not know, yet
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  Speaker 1: they flowed freely. John spoke in a tongue he had
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  Speaker 1: never learned. Mary proclaimed the wonders of God in a
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  Speaker 1: language that was foreign to her lips, yet perfectly formed.
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  Speaker 1: All around the room, the believers were declaring the mighty
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  Speaker 1: works of God in languages they had never studied. The
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  Speaker 1: sound poured out of the upper room and into the
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  Speaker 1: street below, and the crowd that had gathered for the
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  Speaker 1: feast heard it. They stopped in their tracks, their conversations forgotten.
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  Speaker 1: What is that sound? They asked one another, where is
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  Speaker 1: it coming from? They came running from every direction, Pilgrims
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  Speaker 1: from Parthia and Media and Elam, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea
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  Speaker 1: and Cappadocia, Visitors from Pontus and Asia, from Phrygia and Pamphylia,
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  Speaker 1: Travelers from Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene,
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  Speaker 1: Romans both Jews and Converts, people from Crete and Arabia.
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  Speaker 1: They all pressed into the narrow street, trying to see
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  Speaker 1: what was happening and what they heard left them utterly bewildered.
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  Speaker 1: Each one heard the believers speaking in his own native language.
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  Speaker 1: The man from Parthia heard Parthian, the woman from Egypt
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  Speaker 1: heard Egyptian. The Roman centurion heard Latin. And the words
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  Speaker 1: were not nonsense. They were clear, powerful declarations of the
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  Speaker 1: mighty works of God. The crowd began to murmur among themselves,
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  Speaker 1: amazed and perplexed. Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
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  Speaker 1: They asked, how is it that we hear each of
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  Speaker 1: us in his own native language? What does this mean?
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  Speaker 1: But others in the crowd, skeptical and mocking, sneered. They
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  Speaker 1: are filled with new wine. They are drunk. Peter heard them,
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  Speaker 1: and the same man who had once denied Jesus three times,
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  Speaker 1: who had cowered before a servant girl, now stood up.
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  Speaker 1: The Holy Spirit had come upon him, and fear was gone.
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  Speaker 1: He raised his hand, and the crowd fell silent. Men
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  Speaker 1: of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, he said,
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  Speaker 1: his voice carrying over the noise. Let this be known
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  Speaker 1: to you, and give ear to my words, For these
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  Speaker 1: people are not drunk as you suppose. Since it is
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  Speaker 1: only the third hour of the day. It was nine
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  Speaker 1: in the morning, far too early for drunkenness. But this
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  Speaker 1: is what was uttered through the prophet Joel. Peter's voice
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  Speaker 1: grew stronger. And in the last days it shall be,
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  Speaker 1: God declares that I will pour out my spirit on
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  Speaker 1: all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
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  Speaker 1: and your young men shall see visions, and your old
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  Speaker 1: men shall dream dreams. The crowd pressed closer. Peter continued
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  Speaker 1: his words, flowing with a power and clarity that was
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  Speaker 1: not his own. He spoke of Jesus of Nazareth, a
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  Speaker 1: man attested to you by God with mighty works and
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  Speaker 1: wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst.
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  Speaker 1: As you yourselves know, he did not shy away from
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  Speaker 1: the hard truth. This Jesus delivered up according to the
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  Speaker 1: definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed
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  Speaker 1: by the hands of lawless men. The words hung in
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  Speaker 1: the air. Some in the crowd shifted uncomfortably. Others looked
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  Speaker 1: down the They knew what he was talking about. They
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  Speaker 1: had been there, they had seen it happen. But Peter
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  Speaker 1: did not stop with the cross. He moved to the resurrection.
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  Speaker 1: But God raised him up loosing the pangs of death
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  Speaker 1: because it was not possible for him to be held
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  Speaker 1: by it. He quoted from the Psalms of David, showing
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  Speaker 1: how the ancient king had prophesied about the one who
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  Speaker 1: would not see corruption, whose soul would not be abandoned
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  Speaker 1: to hades. Brothers, Peter said, I may say to you
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  Speaker 1: with confidence about the Patriarch David, that he both died
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  Speaker 1: and was buried, and his tomb is with us to
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  Speaker 1: this day. They all knew the tomb. It stood just
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  Speaker 1: outside the city. But Jesus's tomb was empty. Everyone knew
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  Speaker 1: that too. Peter's voice rose, This Jesus, God raised up,
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  Speaker 1: and of that we all are witnesses, being therefore exalted
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  Speaker 1: at the right hand of God, and having received from
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  Speaker 1: the fire the promise of the Holy Spirit. He has
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  Speaker 1: poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.
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  Speaker 1: And then came the declaration that would pierce their hearts.
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  Speaker 1: Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain
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  Speaker 1: that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this
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  Speaker 1: Jesus whom you crucified. The silence that followed was heavy.
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  Speaker 1: The weight of truth pressed down on the crowd. Men
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  Speaker 1: who had mocked. Were now pale women who had laughed
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  Speaker 1: now wept. And from somewhere in the crowd, a voice
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  Speaker 1: cried out, roar with conviction. Brothers, what shall we do?
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  Speaker 1: The cry spread? What shall we do? How can we
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  Speaker 1: be forgiven? Is there any hope for us? Peter looked
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  Speaker 1: at them, and his heart filled with compassion. These were
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  Speaker 1: his people. They were lost, but they could be found.
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  Speaker 1: They had sinned, but they could be forgiven. And so
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  Speaker 1: he gave them the answer that would echo through the ages. Repent,
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: he said, and be baptized, every one of you in
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins,
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: For the promise is for you and for your children,
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: and for all who are far off, every one whom
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: the Lord our God calls to himself with many other words,
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: Luke tells us. Peter bore witness and continued to exhort them,
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: and the people responded. Right there in the streets of Jerusalem,
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: under the blazing sun of Pentecost, three thousand souls believed
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: they came forward, confessing their sins, declaring that Jesus was
• 22:41
  Speaker 1: Lord and they were baptized in the pools near the temple,
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: in the cisterns, in the ritual baths, the water ran constantly,
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: as person after person went down into the water and
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: came up new. The old life washed away, the new
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: life begun. By the end of the day, the one
• 23:02
  Speaker 1: hundred and twenty had become three thousand, one hundred and twenty.
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: The Church was born, and Luke records what happened next.
• 23:10
  Speaker 1: They devoted themselves to the apostles, teaching and the fellowship,
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: to the breaking of bread and the prayers, and the
• 23:17
  Speaker 1: Lord added to their number day by day those who
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: were being saved. The flame that had been lit in
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: the Upper Room was now burning in thousands of hearts,
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: and it would never be extinguished. Chapter four, Peter's First
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: Sermon and the Early Church. In the days that followed Pentecost,
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: the new believers did not scatter back to their homes
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: across the Empire. They stayed in Jerusalem, hungry to learn more,
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: eager to understand what had happened to them. Every day
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: they gathered in the temple courts to hear the apostles
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: teach Peter and John, James, and Andrew. They opened the
• 23:57
  Speaker 1: scriptures and explained the way of salvation. They told stories
• 24:01
  Speaker 1: of Jesus, how he had healed the sick and cast
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: out demons, how he had calmed the storm and fed
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: five thousand with a few loaves and fish, how he
• 24:11
  Speaker 1: had wept at the tomb of Lazarus and then called
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: him out from the dead. The new believers listened with wonder,
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: drinking in every word, and they devoted themselves not just
• 24:22
  Speaker 1: to learning, but to fellowship. The Greek word luke uses
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: is cononea which means more than just friendship. It means
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: deep sharing, true community. Lives intertwined. They were no longer strangers.
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: They were family. Every evening they broke bread together in
• 24:42
  Speaker 1: homes throughout the city. Small groups gathered around simple meals,
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: bread and wine, fish and olives, lentils and honey, And
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: as they ate, they remembered, this is my body broken
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: for you. This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: The presence of Jesus felt near, almost tangible, as they
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: shared these meals. They prayed together constantly in the morning
• 25:11
  Speaker 1: before the sun rose, in the evening as the lamps
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: were lit. In the middle of the night, when the
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: city slept, their prayers were not formal or rigid. They
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: were honest, heartfelt conversations with God. They prayed for boldness,
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: for wisdom, for the sick, for those who did not
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: yet believe, And perhaps most remarkably, they shared everything they owned.
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: Luke records that all who believed were together and had
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: all things in common, and they were selling their possessions
• 25:43
  Speaker 1: and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: had need. It was not forced, it was not a rule.
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: It was simply love overflowing. If a brother needed a cloak,
• 25:56
  Speaker 1: someone gave him a cloak. If a sister had no food,
• 26:00
  Speaker 1: some one brought her bread. No one said this is mine.
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: No one hoarded wealth while others went hungry. It was
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: a community transformed by grace, day by day, attending the
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: temple together and breaking bread in their homes. They received
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: having favor with all the people. The joy was unmistakable.
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: Even those who did not yet believe could see that
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: something was different about these people. They loved one another
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: in a way that defied explanation, and the Lord added
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: to their number day by day. Those who were being
• 26:39
  Speaker 1: saved It was not a program, it was not a strategy.
• 26:44
  Speaker 1: It was simply the Holy Spirit drawing hearts to Jesus,
• 26:47
  Speaker 1: one soul at a time. A merchant who heard Peter
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: preach in the market place, a widow who saw the
• 26:54
  Speaker 1: believer's care for the poor, a young man who witnessed
• 26:57
  Speaker 1: the joy in their faces. They came, they believed, and
• 27:02
  Speaker 1: they were baptized. The Church was alive, The Church was growing,
• 27:07
  Speaker 1: and in Jerusalem, in the shadow of the very temple
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: where Jesus had been condemned, the name of Jesus was
• 27:14
  Speaker 1: now proclaimed with power and great joy. The message that
• 27:19
  Speaker 1: had begun with twelve frightened disciples in an upper room
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: was now spreading through the streets, into the homes, into
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: the hearts of thousands. And this was only the beginning.
• 27:32
  Speaker 1: Chapter five. The Lame Man walks a sign at the
• 27:36
  Speaker 1: Beautiful Gate. It was mid afternoon, the ninth hour, the
• 27:41
  Speaker 1: time when faithful Jews went up to the temple to pray.
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: The sun hung low in the western sky, casting long
• 27:47
  Speaker 1: shadows across the stone courtyards. Worshipers streamed through the gates,
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: their sandals shuffling on the smooth pavement. The smell of
• 27:56
  Speaker 1: incense drifted from the inner courts, mingling with the smoke
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: of the afternoon sacrifices. Peter and John walked together toward
• 28:04
  Speaker 1: the temple they had come to pray, as they did
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: every day. The early Church still observed the Jewish customs,
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: still kept the hours of prayer, but now their prayers
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: were offered in the name of Jesus. As they approached
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: the gate called Beautiful, the main entrance to the Court
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: of Women, they encountered a man who had been there
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: for years. He was lame from birth, Luke tells us.
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: Every day friends carried him to this spot and set
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: him down, and every day he stretched out his hand
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: and begged for arms. He had never walked, never run,
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: never stood on his own feet. For more than forty years,
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: his legs had been useless, and so he sat day
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: after day, calling out to the passing crowd alms for
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: the love of God, a coin for a poor man.
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: Most people walked past us without looking. Some tossed a
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: coin into his bowl, A few murmured a brief prayer,
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: but no one stopped. He was part of the scenery,
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: as familiar and unremarkable as the stones of the gate itself.
• 29:13
  Speaker 1: But when Peter and John passed by, something was different.
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: The man called out to them, expecting perhaps a small coin,
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: but Peter stopped and John stopped beside him. Peter looked
• 29:26
  Speaker 1: down at the man, and the Holy Spirit stirred within him.
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: This was not about pity, This was about the power
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: of Jesus, Peter said, look at us. The man looked up,
• 29:38
  Speaker 1: hope flickering in his eyes. Perhaps these two would be generous.
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: Peter spoke words that must have seemed impossible. I have
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: no silver and gold. But what I do have I
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: give to you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
• 29:54
  Speaker 1: Rise up and walk. The words hung in the air.
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: Rise up and walk. Stared at Peter, confusion and disbelief
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: mingling on his face. Walk He had never walked. His
• 30:08
  Speaker 1: legs were twisted, the muscles withered. How could he walk?
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: But Peter did not wait for understanding. He reached down,
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: took the man by the right hand, and lifted him up,
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: and immediately, Luke records his feet and ankles were made strong.
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: Strength flooded into limbs that had never known it. The
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: twisted bones straightened, the atrophied muscles surged with life. He
• 30:34
  Speaker 1: felt the ground beneath him, solid and real, and for
• 30:38
  Speaker 1: the first time in his entire life, he stood. The
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: man gasped, His eyes went wide. He looked down at
• 30:46
  Speaker 1: his legs, at his feet planted firmly on the stone pavement.
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: He shifted his weight, the legs held. He took a step,
• 30:56
  Speaker 1: then another, and then, unable to contain the explosion of
• 31:00
  Speaker 1: joy within him, he jumped. Leaping up, he stood and
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: began to walk, And he entered the temple with them,
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: walking and leaping and praising God. He could not stop.
• 31:11
  Speaker 1: He danced through the courts, his voice ringing out, Blessed
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: be the Lord, Glory to God in the highest. He
• 31:19
  Speaker 1: laughed and wept and shouted all at once. The crowd
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: turned to look, and they recognized him. That is the
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: beggar from the beautiful Gate. Someone whispered, But he is walking?
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: How is he walking? The murmur spread quickly. People pressed in, pointing, gasping.
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: The man had been lame from birth. Everyone knew him,
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: and now he was leaping like a deer. The man
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: clung to Peter and John, afraid perhaps that if he
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: let go, the miracle would vanish, And all the people
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: ran together to them in the portico called Solomon's Portico.
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: Utterly astounded, Peter saw the crowd gathering and knew this
• 32:01
  Speaker 1: was his moment. The Holy Spirit was opening a door.
• 32:05
  Speaker 1: He raised his voice, Men of Israel, why do you
• 32:09
  Speaker 1: wonder at this or why do you stare at us?
• 32:13
  Speaker 1: As though by our own power or piety we have
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: made him walk? He wanted them to understand, this was
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: not about Peter and John. This was about Jesus, the
• 32:23
  Speaker 1: God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God
• 32:26
  Speaker 1: of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant, Jesus,
• 32:31
  Speaker 1: whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: Pilate when he had decided to release him. But you
• 32:38
  Speaker 1: denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a
• 32:41
  Speaker 1: murderer to be granted to you, and you killed the
• 32:44
  Speaker 1: author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To
• 32:47
  Speaker 1: this we are witnesses. The words were direct, unflinching. The
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: crowd shifted uneasily, but Peter did not soften the message.
• 32:57
  Speaker 1: And his name, by faith in his mind, has made
• 33:01
  Speaker 1: this man strong, whom you see and know, And the
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: faith that is through Jesus has given the man this
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: perfect health in the presence of you all. The man
• 33:09
  Speaker 1: stood beside Peter, still grinning, still flexing his legs in wonder.
• 33:15
  Speaker 1: The evidence was undeniable. This was a miracle, and it
• 33:19
  Speaker 1: had been done in the name of Jesus. Peter's voice softened,
• 33:23
  Speaker 1: And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance,
• 33:27
  Speaker 1: as did also your rulers. But what God foretold by
• 33:31
  Speaker 1: the mouth of all the prophets that his Christ would suffer,
• 33:35
  Speaker 1: he thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and turn back, that your
• 33:40
  Speaker 1: sins may be blotted out. Repent again, the same call,
• 33:46
  Speaker 1: the same invitation. Turn from sin, turned toward the Savior,
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: be forgiven. And Luke records that many of those who
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: heard the word believed, and the number of the men
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: came to about five thousand, five thousand. The church continued
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: to grow, not through human effort, but through the power
• 34:06
  Speaker 1: of the risen Christ. Yet not every one was pleased.
• 34:10
  Speaker 1: In the shadows of Solomon's portico temple, guards watched with
• 34:14
  Speaker 1: narrow eyes. This was a problem. These Galileans were causing
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: a disturbance, and worst of all, people were listening. The
• 34:24
  Speaker 1: opposition was beginning to stir, But for now, in the
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: fading light of the afternoon, The Healed Man danced, and
• 34:33
  Speaker 1: the people marveled, and Peter and John stood ready for
• 34:36
  Speaker 1: whatever came. Next chapter six, Persecution begins the first arrest.
• 34:45
  Speaker 1: As the sun dipped below the western hills, casting Jerusalem
• 34:49
  Speaker 1: in shades of gold and purple, Peter continued to teach.
• 34:53
  Speaker 1: The crowd around him in Solomon's portico had grown larger.
• 34:57
  Speaker 1: The Healed Man stood beside him, a living testimony to
• 35:00
  Speaker 1: the power of Jesus. People pressed in, eager to hear more.
• 35:05
  Speaker 1: Some believed immediately, others listened with growing conviction. The atmosphere
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: was charged with both wonder and tension. But as Peter spoke,
• 35:16
  Speaker 1: a group of men pushed through the crowd. At the
• 35:19
  Speaker 1: front was a captain of the temple guard, his face stern,
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: his hand resting on his sword. Behind him were several priests,
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: members of the Sadducees, the religious elite who controlled the
• 35:31
  Speaker 1: temple and denied the resurrection of the dead. They were
• 35:35
  Speaker 1: greatly annoyed. Luke records these fishermen from Galilee were teaching
• 35:39
  Speaker 1: the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead,
• 35:44
  Speaker 1: and they were doing it in the temple in the
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: very heart of the Sadducees domain. This could not be tolerated.
• 35:51
  Speaker 1: The captain stepped forward and seized Peter by the arm.
• 35:55
  Speaker 1: Enough he said, sharply, you are under arrest. Guard grabbed John.
• 36:01
  Speaker 1: The crowd gasped and stepped back. The healed man tried
• 36:05
  Speaker 1: to protest, but he was pushed aside. Peter did not resist.
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: He looked at the captain calmly. We have done nothing wrong,
• 36:14
  Speaker 1: he said. We healed a man in the name of
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: Jesus Christ. We proclaimed the truth. If that is a crime,
• 36:22
  Speaker 1: then take us, and they did. Peter and John were
• 36:26
  Speaker 1: led away through the darkening streets, their hands bound. They
• 36:30
  Speaker 1: did not hang their heads, They did not plead for mercy.
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: They walked with quiet dignity, knowing that this was part
• 36:37
  Speaker 1: of the path Jesus had warned them about. But it
• 36:40
  Speaker 1: was too late in the day to convene the Sanhedrin,
• 36:44
  Speaker 1: the council of rulers who governed Jewish religious matters. So
• 36:48
  Speaker 1: Peter and John were taken to a holding cell beneath
• 36:51
  Speaker 1: the temple complex. The door was shut, the lock turned,
• 36:56
  Speaker 1: and they were left in the darkness. The cell was
• 36:59
  Speaker 1: small and damp. The only light came from a thin
• 37:02
  Speaker 1: crack beneath the door, but Peter and John were not afraid.
• 37:06
  Speaker 1: After a while, Peter began to hum. It was a
• 37:10
  Speaker 1: psalm they had sung together in the upper room, the
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: Lord is my Light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?
• 37:18
  Speaker 1: John joined in, and their voices blended in the darkness.
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: They spent the night in prayer. They prayed for the
• 37:25
  Speaker 1: healed man. They prayed for the new believers. They prayed
• 37:30
  Speaker 1: for the apostles still in the city, and they prayed
• 37:33
  Speaker 1: for their captors, that God would open their eyes to
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: the truth. When morning came, the door was unlocked. Guards
• 37:41
  Speaker 1: led them up into the light. The city was already awake,
• 37:44
  Speaker 1: the streets filled with the sounds of daily life. Peter
• 37:48
  Speaker 1: and John were brought to the council chamber, where the
• 37:51
  Speaker 1: seventy one members of the Sanhedrin sat in a semicircle.
• 37:55
  Speaker 1: At the center sat Annas, the high Priest, and Caiaphas,
• 37:59
  Speaker 1: his son in law. These were the same men who
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: had interrogated Jesus before handing him over to Pilate. The
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: room was tense. The rulers and elders looked down at
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: the two apostles with expressions ranging from curiosity to contempt.
• 38:14
  Speaker 1: Standing to one side, unable to hide his joy, was
• 38:18
  Speaker 1: the man who had been healed. They had brought him
• 38:20
  Speaker 1: as evidence. Annus leaned forward. By what power or by
• 38:25
  Speaker 1: what name did you do this? It was a trap,
• 38:29
  Speaker 1: But Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit, and the
• 38:31
  Speaker 1: words flowed from him with clarity and power. Rulers of
• 38:35
  Speaker 1: the people and elders, if we are being examined to
• 38:38
  Speaker 1: day concerning a good deed done to a crippled man,
• 38:41
  Speaker 1: by what means this man has been healed? Let it
• 38:44
  Speaker 1: be known to all of you and to all the
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ
• 38:50
  Speaker 1: of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the
• 38:54
  Speaker 1: dead by him, this man is standing before you. Well,
• 38:58
  Speaker 1: the room erupted in murmurs. Peter had just accused them
• 39:03
  Speaker 1: to their faces of crucifying the Messiah. But he was
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: not finished. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected
• 39:11
  Speaker 1: by you, the builders, which has become the corner stone.
• 39:15
  Speaker 1: And there is salvation in no one else, For there
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: is no other name under Heaven given among men by
• 39:21
  Speaker 1: which we must be saved. No other name, not Moses,
• 39:26
  Speaker 1: not the Temple, not the Law, only Jesus. It was
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: the most radical claim imaginable, and it was spoken with
• 39:35
  Speaker 1: such conviction that even the hardened hearts of the council
• 39:39
  Speaker 1: could not dismiss it. The council members looked at Peter
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: and John and were astonished. Luke records that they recognized
• 39:46
  Speaker 1: them as uneducated common men. Yet they spoke with wisdom
• 39:50
  Speaker 1: and boldness that rivaled the most learned scribes. And then
• 39:54
  Speaker 1: they realized these men had been with Jesus. The council
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: conferred among them themselves, in hushed voices, what shall we
• 40:03
  Speaker 1: do with these men? For that a notable sign has
• 40:06
  Speaker 1: been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants
• 40:09
  Speaker 1: of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. The healed man
• 40:13
  Speaker 1: stood there as proof. But to stop it from spreading
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: any further among the people, let us warn them to
• 40:19
  Speaker 1: speak no more to any one in this name. They
• 40:22
  Speaker 1: called Peter and John back in and charged them not
• 40:25
  Speaker 1: to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
• 40:28
  Speaker 1: The command was clear, stop preaching, stop healing, or face consequences.
• 40:35
  Speaker 1: Peter and John looked at each other, then Peter turned
• 40:38
  Speaker 1: to the council and spoke respectfully but firmly, whether it
• 40:42
  Speaker 1: is right in the sight of God to listen to
• 40:44
  Speaker 1: you rather than to God. You must judge, for we
• 40:47
  Speaker 1: cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.
• 40:50
  Speaker 1: It was a gentle refusal, but a refusal none the less.
• 40:55
  Speaker 1: They would not stop. They could not stop. The council
• 40:59
  Speaker 1: threatened them further, but there was nothing more they could do.
• 41:02
  Speaker 1: The people were praising God for what had happened. To
• 41:06
  Speaker 1: punish the apostles now would risk unrest, so they let
• 41:10
  Speaker 1: them go. Peter and John walked out into the sunlight.
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: The cities spread before them, alive and bustling, and they
• 41:18
  Speaker 1: were free, free to preach, free to heal, free to
• 41:23
  Speaker 1: proclaim the name of Jesus. They went straight to the
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: other believers. When they arrived, the room irrupted in thanksgiving.
• 41:32
  Speaker 1: Peter and John recounted everything, and when they finished, the
• 41:36
  Speaker 1: believers did not respond with fear. They responded with prayer.
• 41:41
  Speaker 1: Together they lifted their voices, Sovereign Lord, who made the
• 41:45
  Speaker 1: heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them,
• 41:48
  Speaker 1: Why did the gentiles rage and the people's plot in vain?
• 41:52
  Speaker 1: They prayed the words of the ancient Psalms, trusting that
• 41:56
  Speaker 1: the same God who had protected David would protect them. Now, Lord,
• 42:02
  Speaker 1: look upon their threats and grant to your servants to
• 42:05
  Speaker 1: continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you
• 42:10
  Speaker 1: stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders
• 42:13
  Speaker 1: are performed through the name of your holy servant, Jesus.
• 42:17
  Speaker 1: And when they had prayed, the place in which they
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: were gathered together was shaken. The room trembled, and they
• 42:24
  Speaker 1: were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to
• 42:27
  Speaker 1: speak the word of God with boldness. The persecution had begun,
• 42:32
  Speaker 1: but so had the power, and nothing could stop the
• 42:36
  Speaker 1: Church of Jesus Christ Chapter seven Anoneus and Sophira the
• 42:43
  Speaker 1: Fear of God. The church continued to grow in both
• 42:47
  Speaker 1: numbers and in unity. The fellowship was marked by extraordinary generosity.
• 42:53
  Speaker 1: Luke records that no one said that any of the
• 42:55
  Speaker 1: things that belonged to him was his own, but they
• 42:58
  Speaker 1: had everything in common. If a brother needed bread, it
• 43:01
  Speaker 1: was given. If a sister had no shelter, a door
• 43:05
  Speaker 1: was opened. Many who owned lands or houses sold them
• 43:09
  Speaker 1: and brought the proceeds to the apostles, laying the money
• 43:12
  Speaker 1: at their feet. The apostles then distributed it to any
• 43:15
  Speaker 1: one who had need. It was not commanded, it was
• 43:19
  Speaker 1: not forced. It was the overflow of hearts transformed by
• 43:24
  Speaker 1: the spirit. Among those who gave generously was a man
• 43:27
  Speaker 1: named Joseph, a levite from Cyprus. The apostles called him Barnabas,
• 43:33
  Speaker 1: which means son of encouragement. Barnabas owned a field, and
• 43:37
  Speaker 1: when he saw the needs around him, he sold it.
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: He brought the full amount of money and laid it
• 43:42
  Speaker 1: at the apostles feet, asking for nothing in return. The
• 43:46
  Speaker 1: church rejoiced at his generosity. But there was another couple,
• 43:51
  Speaker 1: a man named Anonius and his wife Saphira. They watched
• 43:55
  Speaker 1: as Barnabas and others were honored for their giving, and
• 43:58
  Speaker 1: a thought took root. We should do the same. Anonius
• 44:01
  Speaker 1: said to his wife, think of how they will regard us.
• 44:06
  Speaker 1: So they sold a piece of property. The sale went
• 44:09
  Speaker 1: through and the money was counted. But as Anonius held
• 44:13
  Speaker 1: the proceeds, another thought crept in. Why give it all?
• 44:18
  Speaker 1: We could keep some for ourselves. No one will know.
• 44:22
  Speaker 1: We will say we gave everything, just like Barnabas. Safira agreed.
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: They counted out a portion and hid it away. Then
• 44:31
  Speaker 1: Anonius took the rest and went to where the apostles
• 44:34
  Speaker 1: were gathering. He walked forward confidently and laid the money
• 44:39
  Speaker 1: at Peter's feet. Here, he said, loud enough for others
• 44:43
  Speaker 1: to hear, My wife and I have sold our property.
• 44:47
  Speaker 1: This is the full price. Peter looked down at the money.
• 44:51
  Speaker 1: Then he looked up at Anonius, and in that moment
• 44:54
  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit revealed the truth Anonius. Peter said quietly,
• 45:00
  Speaker 1: why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of
• 45:05
  Speaker 1: the proceeds of the land. The room fell silent. Every
• 45:10
  Speaker 1: eye turned to Anonius. His smile vanished. Peter continued, his voice,
• 45:16
  Speaker 1: filled not with anger but with sorrow. While it remained unsold,
• 45:21
  Speaker 1: did it not remain your own? And after it was sold,
• 45:25
  Speaker 1: was it not at your disposal? Why is it that
• 45:28
  Speaker 1: you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have
• 45:32
  Speaker 1: not lied to man but to God. The words struck
• 45:36
  Speaker 1: like lightning. Anonaeus opened his mouth, but no sound came.
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: His legs buckled, he fell to the floor, and he
• 45:45
  Speaker 1: breathed his last. Luke records that great fear came upon
• 45:50
  Speaker 1: all who heard of it. The young men rose wrapped
• 45:53
  Speaker 1: his body, carried him out, and buried him. The entire
• 45:57
  Speaker 1: event took perhaps three hours, and the room remained silent,
• 46:01
  Speaker 1: the weight of what had just happened pressing on every heart.
• 46:05
  Speaker 1: About three hours later, Sir Fira arrived. She did not
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: know what had happened to her husband. She walked in
• 46:12
  Speaker 1: expecting gratitude and admiration. Peter looked at her, Tell me
• 46:17
  Speaker 1: whether you sold the land for so much? And he
• 46:20
  Speaker 1: named the amount Annonius had brought. Yes, Sir Fhira said quickly,
• 46:26
  Speaker 1: that was the price. Peter's voice was low, almost a whisper.
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: How is it that you have agreed together to test
• 46:33
  Speaker 1: the spirit of the Lord. Behold, the feet of those
• 46:37
  Speaker 1: who have buried your husband are at the door, and
• 46:39
  Speaker 1: they will carry you out. Immediately, she fell down at
• 46:43
  Speaker 1: his feet and breathed her last. The young men came in,
• 46:47
  Speaker 1: found her dead, and carried her out and buried her
• 46:50
  Speaker 1: beside her husband. And great fear came upon the whole church,
• 46:54
  Speaker 1: and upon all who heard these things. Fear not terror,
• 46:59
  Speaker 1: but a deep, reverent fear, a recognition that God is holy,
• 47:04
  Speaker 1: that the church is not a social club, but the
• 47:06
  Speaker 1: body of Christ in dwelt by the Holy Spirit, and
• 47:11
  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit cannot be mocked. The story spread quickly
• 47:15
  Speaker 1: through Jerusalem. Some were sobered, others were shaken, but every
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: one understood the Church was a place where truth mattered,
• 47:25
  Speaker 1: where holiness was not optional, where God himself dwelt, and
• 47:30
  Speaker 1: yet acts records. The church continued to grow. Now many
• 47:35
  Speaker 1: signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by
• 47:38
  Speaker 1: the hands of the apostles, and they were all together
• 47:41
  Speaker 1: in Solomon's portico. None of the rest dared join them,
• 47:45
  Speaker 1: but the people held them in high esteem, and more
• 47:49
  Speaker 1: than ever, believers were added to the Lord. Multitudes of
• 47:53
  Speaker 1: both men and women. The sick were brought into the
• 47:56
  Speaker 1: streets on cots and mats, hoping that as Peter passed by,
• 48:00
  Speaker 1: even his shadow might fall on them, and they were healed.
• 48:04
  Speaker 1: The power of God was undeniable. In the midst of grace,
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: there was also judgment. In the midst of love, there
• 48:13
  Speaker 1: was also holiness. The church was learning that to follow
• 48:16
  Speaker 1: Jesus meant to walk in truth, to live in the light,
• 48:20
  Speaker 1: and to honour the one who had called them out
• 48:22
  Speaker 1: of darkness. The fear of the Lord had come upon them,
• 48:26
  Speaker 1: and it was the beginning of wisdom. Chapter eight Stephen
• 48:33
  Speaker 1: the first Martyr. As the church grew, so did the
• 48:37
  Speaker 1: practical needs of caring for so many people. The apostles
• 48:40
  Speaker 1: found themselves overwhelmed, not just with preaching and teaching, but
• 48:45
  Speaker 1: with the daily distribution of food to widows and the poor.
• 48:48
  Speaker 1: The work was good, but it stretched them beyond their capacity.
• 48:53
  Speaker 1: And then a complaint arose. The Hellenistic Jews, those who
• 48:57
  Speaker 1: spoke Greek and had grown up in foreign land, murmured
• 49:00
  Speaker 1: that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution.
• 49:05
  Speaker 1: Whether this was true or simply perceived, it threatened to
• 49:08
  Speaker 1: create division. The twelve Apostles gathered the disciples together, brothers
• 49:14
  Speaker 1: and sisters. Peter said, it is not right that we
• 49:17
  Speaker 1: should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables,
• 49:21
  Speaker 1: not because the work of service was unimportant, but because
• 49:24
  Speaker 1: they could not do both well. Therefore, pick out from
• 49:28
  Speaker 1: among you seven men of good repute, full of the
• 49:31
  Speaker 1: spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
• 49:35
  Speaker 1: But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the
• 49:38
  Speaker 1: ministry of the Word. The proposal pleased everyone. They chose
• 49:42
  Speaker 1: seven men to serve. At the top of the list
• 49:45
  Speaker 1: was Stephen, a man full of faith and of the
• 49:48
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit. The others were Philip, Procorus, niconor Timon, Parmenas,
• 49:54
  Speaker 1: and Nicolaus. These seven were brought before the apostles, who
• 49:58
  Speaker 1: prayed and laid their hands on them them. But Stephen
• 50:01
  Speaker 1: was more than a servant. Luke tells us. He was
• 50:04
  Speaker 1: full of grace and power, and he was doing great
• 50:07
  Speaker 1: wonders and signs among the people. He spoke with such
• 50:11
  Speaker 1: wisdom such clarity, that even the most learned scribes could
• 50:15
  Speaker 1: not refute him. In the synagogues, he proclaimed that Jesus
• 50:19
  Speaker 1: was the Messiah, that the Law had been fulfilled in him.
• 50:22
  Speaker 1: This made him dangerous. Men from the synagogue of the
• 50:25
  Speaker 1: Freedmen rose up to dispute with Stephen. These were educated
• 50:29
  Speaker 1: Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. They challenged him,
• 50:36
  Speaker 1: trying to trap him in his words, but they could
• 50:38
  Speaker 1: not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he
• 50:41
  Speaker 1: was speaking. Frustrated, they resorted to treachery. They secretly persuaded
• 50:47
  Speaker 1: men to say, we have heard him speak blasphemous words
• 50:51
  Speaker 1: against Moses and God. The accusation spread blasphemy was a
• 50:57
  Speaker 1: capital offense. The people were stirred up, and before Stephen
• 51:01
  Speaker 1: knew what was happening, he was seized and brought before
• 51:04
  Speaker 1: the Sanhedrin. False witnesses came forward. This man never ceases
• 51:10
  Speaker 1: to speak words against this holy place and the law,
• 51:14
  Speaker 1: they said, for we have heard him say that this
• 51:17
  Speaker 1: Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change
• 51:21
  Speaker 1: the customs that Moses delivered to us. The accusations were
• 51:25
  Speaker 1: twisted versions of what Stephen had actually said, but the
• 51:29
  Speaker 1: council did not care about truth. They wanted him silenced.
• 51:33
  Speaker 1: As he stood before them, all who sat in the
• 51:36
  Speaker 1: council fixed their eyes on him, and Luke records that
• 51:40
  Speaker 1: they saw his face was like the face of an angel, calm, rageant,
• 51:46
  Speaker 1: filled with a peace that transcended his circumstances. The high
• 51:50
  Speaker 1: priest demanded, are these things? So Stephen looked around the
• 51:54
  Speaker 1: room at the men who held his life in their hands,
• 51:57
  Speaker 1: and then he began to speak, not in his own defense,
• 52:01
  Speaker 1: but in proclamation of the truth. He began with Abraham,
• 52:06
  Speaker 1: recounting how God had called him out of Mesopotamia. He
• 52:10
  Speaker 1: spoke of Isaac and Jacob of Joseph, sold into slavery,
• 52:13
  Speaker 1: who became the savior of his family. He spoke of Moses,
• 52:17
  Speaker 1: raised in Pharaoh's palace, who led Israel out of Egypt.
• 52:21
  Speaker 1: Stephen's voice was strong, his words flowing like a river.
• 52:26
  Speaker 1: He was building a case showing that throughout history their
• 52:30
  Speaker 1: ancestors had resisted God's messengers. They had rejected Joseph, they
• 52:35
  Speaker 1: had rebelled against Moses. They had worshiped the Golden calf
• 52:39
  Speaker 1: while Moses was receiving the law. And then Stephen came
• 52:43
  Speaker 1: to the point, you stiff necked people, uncircumcised in heart
• 52:48
  Speaker 1: and ears, You always resist the Holy Spirit, as your
• 52:52
  Speaker 1: fathers did. So do you. Which of the prophets did
• 52:55
  Speaker 1: your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced
• 52:59
  Speaker 1: beffehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have
• 53:03
  Speaker 1: now betrayed and murdered. The words struck like stones. The
• 53:08
  Speaker 1: council members ground their teeth, their faces flushed with rage,
• 53:13
  Speaker 1: but Stephen did not see them. His eyes were lifted upward. Behold,
• 53:18
  Speaker 1: he said, his face shining, I see the heavens opened,
• 53:22
  Speaker 1: and the Son of Man standing at the right hand
• 53:24
  Speaker 1: of God. It was more than they could bear. They
• 53:27
  Speaker 1: cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears
• 53:30
  Speaker 1: and rushed together at him. The council chamber erupted. They
• 53:34
  Speaker 1: dragged Stephen out of the city to a place of execution,
• 53:38
  Speaker 1: and there they began to stone him. The witnesses laid
• 53:41
  Speaker 1: down their garments at the feet of a young man
• 53:44
  Speaker 1: named Saul, a pharisee from Tarsus, who stood watching with approval.
• 53:49
  Speaker 1: Then the stones began to fall, but Stephen did not
• 53:52
  Speaker 1: curse them. He did not scream. As the stones struck him,
• 53:56
  Speaker 1: he called out, Lord, Jesus, receive my spirit. His voice
• 54:01
  Speaker 1: was calm, almost peaceful. And then, kneeling down, he cried
• 54:05
  Speaker 1: with a loud voice, Lord, do not hold this sin
• 54:09
  Speaker 1: against them. The words echoed those Jesus himself had spoken
• 54:13
  Speaker 1: on the cross. And when he had said this, he
• 54:16
  Speaker 1: fell asleep, not died. Luke says, fell asleep for Stephen.
• 54:22
  Speaker 1: Death was not an end, it was the beginning. Devout
• 54:27
  Speaker 1: men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him. The
• 54:31
  Speaker 1: believers wept not because he had lost his life, but
• 54:34
  Speaker 1: because they had lost a brother, a friend, a man
• 54:38
  Speaker 1: full of faith and the Holy Spirit. And on that
• 54:41
  Speaker 1: day a great persecution broke out against the Church in Jerusalem.
• 54:46
  Speaker 1: Saul began to ravage the church, going from house to house,
• 54:49
  Speaker 1: dragging off men and women and committing them to prison.
• 54:53
  Speaker 1: The believers scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. But what the
• 54:57
  Speaker 1: enemy meant for evil, God used for good. Those who
• 55:01
  Speaker 1: were scattered went about preaching the Word. The persecution did
• 55:05
  Speaker 1: not destroy the church, it spread it like a fire
• 55:09
  Speaker 1: scattered by the wind. The Gospel began to burn across
• 55:12
  Speaker 1: the nations. Stephen was gone, but his witness remained, and
• 55:17
  Speaker 1: the mission continued. Chapter nine Saul's conversion from persecutor to apostle.
• 55:27
  Speaker 1: While the scattered believers carried the Gospel into new regions,
• 55:31
  Speaker 1: Saul remained in Jerusalem, burning with zeal. He was a
• 55:35
  Speaker 1: young Pharisee trained under Gamaliel, brilliant and passionate. He was
• 55:40
  Speaker 1: utterly convinced that the followers of Jesus were a dangerous
• 55:43
  Speaker 1: sect that threatened Judaism itself. He had stood by and
• 55:48
  Speaker 1: watched Stephen die, and he felt no regret, only satisfaction.
• 55:53
  Speaker 1: Now he was determined to finish what he had started.
• 55:57
  Speaker 1: Saul went to the high priest and asked for letters
• 55:59
  Speaker 1: to the synagogues in Damascus. If he found any belonging
• 56:03
  Speaker 1: to the Way, men or women, he would bring them
• 56:07
  Speaker 1: bound to Jerusalem. Damascus was about one hundred and thirty
• 56:11
  Speaker 1: five miles northeast, a journey of roughly a week on foot.
• 56:15
  Speaker 1: Saul set out with a small company of men, the
• 56:17
  Speaker 1: letters tucked in his robe. His mind was fixed on
• 56:21
  Speaker 1: the task. He would arrest the believers, He would bring
• 56:25
  Speaker 1: them to justice. As they neared Damascus, the road dusty
• 56:29
  Speaker 1: beneath their feet, something happened that would change not only
• 56:32
  Speaker 1: Saul's life, but the course of history. Suddenly, a light
• 56:36
  Speaker 1: from heaven shone around him. It was not the light
• 56:39
  Speaker 1: of the sun. It was brighter, more intense, a blazing
• 56:43
  Speaker 1: radiance that struck Saul to the ground. He fell on
• 56:47
  Speaker 1: his face, his hands covering his eyes, and he heard
• 56:51
  Speaker 1: a voice, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Saul's
• 56:57
  Speaker 1: heart pounded. Who are you, Lord? He asked, I am Jesus,
• 57:03
  Speaker 1: whom you are persecuting? Jesus. The name struck Saul like
• 57:08
  Speaker 1: a sword. Jesus, the one he believed was dead, Jesus
• 57:14
  Speaker 1: whose followers he was hunting. Jesus was alive. He was speaking,
• 57:20
  Speaker 1: and Saul in persecuting the Church had been persecuting him.
• 57:25
  Speaker 1: Everything Saul had believed shattered in that moment. He had
• 57:29
  Speaker 1: been wrong, catastrophically wrong. The voice continued. But rise and
• 57:35
  Speaker 1: enter the city, and you will be told what you
• 57:37
  Speaker 1: are to do. The light faded. Saul lay on the ground, trembling.
• 57:43
  Speaker 1: When he opened his eyes, he could see nothing. His
• 57:47
  Speaker 1: companions helped him to his feet and led him by
• 57:50
  Speaker 1: the hand into Damascus. For three days, he remained blind,
• 57:54
  Speaker 1: neither eating nor drinking. In those three days, Saul was
• 57:59
  Speaker 1: alone with God. He prayed, he wept, He remembered Stephen's
• 58:04
  Speaker 1: face as he died. The peace, the forgiveness, and he
• 58:08
  Speaker 1: understood Jesus was the Messiah, the resurrection was real, and
• 58:14
  Speaker 1: Saul was being called to become what he had once persecuted. Meanwhile,
• 58:19
  Speaker 1: in Damascus there was a disciple named Anonius. The Lord
• 58:23
  Speaker 1: spoke to him in a vision. Anonaeus, go to the
• 58:26
  Speaker 1: street called Strait, and at the house of Judas, look
• 58:30
  Speaker 1: for a man of Tarsus named Saul. For behold, he
• 58:33
  Speaker 1: is praying, Anonaeus hesitated. Lord, I have heard from many
• 58:38
  Speaker 1: about this man, how much evil he has done to
• 58:41
  Speaker 1: your saints at Jerusalem. It was a reasonable objection Saul
• 58:46
  Speaker 1: was the enemy, But the Lord said, go, for he
• 58:50
  Speaker 1: is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name
• 58:53
  Speaker 1: before the gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.
• 58:56
  Speaker 1: Anonaius obeyed. He found the house on Stray Street and entered.
• 59:02
  Speaker 1: There sat Saul, his face gaunt from fasting, his eyes empty.
• 59:07
  Speaker 1: Anoneas felt compassion. This was not the terrifying persecutor. This
• 59:13
  Speaker 1: was a broken man searching for truth. Anonius laid his
• 59:16
  Speaker 1: hands on Saul's head. Brother, Saul, the Lord Jesus, who
• 59:21
  Speaker 1: appeared to you on the road has sent me so
• 59:24
  Speaker 1: that you may regain your sight and be filled with
• 59:26
  Speaker 1: the Holy Spirit. Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes.
• 59:32
  Speaker 1: The world came flooding back. He looked up at Anonius,
• 59:36
  Speaker 1: tears streaming down his face, and he rose and was baptized.
• 59:41
  Speaker 1: For several days, Saul remained with the disciples in Damascus, learning, listening,
• 59:48
  Speaker 1: and then, to every one's astonishment, he began to preach
• 59:52
  Speaker 1: in the synagogues, proclaiming that Jesus is the Son of God.
• 59:56
  Speaker 1: The people were amazed. Is not this the man who
• 59:59
  Speaker 1: made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name.
• 1:00:03
  Speaker 1: But Saul grew more and more powerful, proving that Jesus
• 1:00:07
  Speaker 1: was the Christ. Not every one was convinced. After many days,
• 1:00:12
  Speaker 1: some Jews plotted to kill him. They watched the gates
• 1:00:15
  Speaker 1: day and night. But Saul learned of their plan, and
• 1:00:19
  Speaker 1: one night the disciples lowered him in a basket through
• 1:00:22
  Speaker 1: an opening in the wall. Saul escaped to Jerusalem. But
• 1:00:26
  Speaker 1: when he arrived, the believers were afraid of him. They
• 1:00:30
  Speaker 1: did not believe he was truly a disciple. How could
• 1:00:33
  Speaker 1: they trust the man who had dragged their brothers and
• 1:00:36
  Speaker 1: sisters to prison. But Barnabas took him and brought him
• 1:00:40
  Speaker 1: to the apostles. He testified how Saul had seen the Lord,
• 1:00:44
  Speaker 1: how he had preached boldly in Damascus. Slowly the apostles
• 1:00:48
  Speaker 1: began to accept him. Saul preached in Jerusalem until opposition
• 1:00:52
  Speaker 1: arose again. The brothers brought him to Caesarea and sent
• 1:00:56
  Speaker 1: him to Tarsus, his home town, where he would spend
• 1:00:59
  Speaker 1: years preparation. Luke records that the church throughout all Judea
• 1:01:04
  Speaker 1: and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built
• 1:01:08
  Speaker 1: up and walking in the fear of the Lord, and
• 1:01:11
  Speaker 1: in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied. The
• 1:01:14
  Speaker 1: persecutor had become a preacher, the enemy had become a brother,
• 1:01:19
  Speaker 1: and nothing was beyond the reach of God's transforming grace.
• 1:01:25
  Speaker 1: Chapter ten, the Gospel goes to the Gentiles. For centuries,
• 1:01:30
  Speaker 1: the Jewish people had understood themselves as God's chosen nation,
• 1:01:35
  Speaker 1: set apart from all others. The Law of Moses had
• 1:01:38
  Speaker 1: built walls around them, designed to keep them distinct and holy.
• 1:01:43
  Speaker 1: The Gentiles, those outside the Covenant, were considered unclean, But
• 1:01:48
  Speaker 1: now something was about to change. In the coastal city
• 1:01:52
  Speaker 1: of Caesarea lived a man named Cornelius, a centurion of
• 1:01:56
  Speaker 1: the Italian cohort. He was a Gentile, a Roman soldier,
• 1:02:02
  Speaker 1: but Luke tells us he was a devout man who
• 1:02:04
  Speaker 1: feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to
• 1:02:08
  Speaker 1: the people, and prayed continually to God. One afternoon, about
• 1:02:13
  Speaker 1: the ninth hour, Cornelius saw clearly in a vision an
• 1:02:17
  Speaker 1: Angel of God coming in and saying to him, Cornelius,
• 1:02:21
  Speaker 1: he stared at the angel in fear, What is it? Lord?
• 1:02:26
  Speaker 1: Your prayers and your arms have ascended as a memorial
• 1:02:29
  Speaker 1: before God, and now send men to Jopper, and bring
• 1:02:33
  Speaker 1: one Simon, who is called Peter. He is lodging with
• 1:02:36
  Speaker 1: one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.
• 1:02:41
  Speaker 1: When the angel departed, Cornelius immediately sent two servants and
• 1:02:45
  Speaker 1: a devout soldier to Joppa. The next day, as they
• 1:02:48
  Speaker 1: were approaching the city, Peter went up on the house
• 1:02:51
  Speaker 1: top to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat.
• 1:02:55
  Speaker 1: While the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.
• 1:03:00
  Speaker 1: Or the heavens opened, and something like a great sheet descending,
• 1:03:04
  Speaker 1: being let down by its four corners upon the earth.
• 1:03:07
  Speaker 1: In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds,
• 1:03:11
  Speaker 1: clean animals and unclean animals, all mixed together. A voice
• 1:03:17
  Speaker 1: came to him, Rise, Peter, kill and eat no, Lord,
• 1:03:22
  Speaker 1: Peter said instinctively, for I have never eaten anything that
• 1:03:26
  Speaker 1: is common or unclean. The voice came a second time.
• 1:03:30
  Speaker 1: What God has made clean, do not call common. This
• 1:03:34
  Speaker 1: happened three times, and the sheet was taken up to heaven.
• 1:03:38
  Speaker 1: Peter was perplexed, trying to understand what it meant. While
• 1:03:42
  Speaker 1: he was still thinking, the spirit said to him, behold,
• 1:03:47
  Speaker 1: three men are looking for you. Rise and go down
• 1:03:50
  Speaker 1: and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them.
• 1:03:54
  Speaker 1: Peter went down and greeted the men. They explained that
• 1:03:58
  Speaker 1: Cornelius had been directed by an anim to send for him.
• 1:04:01
  Speaker 1: Peter invited them in for the night. The next day,
• 1:04:05
  Speaker 1: Peter set out with them, along with some believers from Jopper.
• 1:04:09
  Speaker 1: When they arrived in Caesarea, Cornelius was waiting with his
• 1:04:13
  Speaker 1: relatives and close friends gathered. As Peter entered. Cornelius met
• 1:04:18
  Speaker 1: him and fell down at his feet, but Peter lifted
• 1:04:21
  Speaker 1: him up. Stand up, I too, am a man. Peter
• 1:04:26
  Speaker 1: looked around at the gathering all gentiles, and he understood
• 1:04:31
  Speaker 1: the vision had not been about food. It had been
• 1:04:34
  Speaker 1: about people. God was showing him that no person should
• 1:04:37
  Speaker 1: be called unclean. You yourselves know how unlawful it is
• 1:04:41
  Speaker 1: for a Jew to associate with or to visit any
• 1:04:44
  Speaker 1: one of another nation, Peter said, But God has shown
• 1:04:48
  Speaker 1: me that I should not call any person common or unclean.
• 1:04:52
  Speaker 1: So when I was sent for, I came without objection.
• 1:04:56
  Speaker 1: Cornelius recounted his vision and concluded, So now we are
• 1:05:00
  Speaker 1: all here in the presence of God to hear all
• 1:05:03
  Speaker 1: that you have been commanded by the Lord. Peter took
• 1:05:06
  Speaker 1: a breath. Truly, I understand that God shows no partiality,
• 1:05:11
  Speaker 1: but in every nation, any one who fears Him and
• 1:05:14
  Speaker 1: does what is right is acceptable to him. It was
• 1:05:17
  Speaker 1: a radical statement. And then Peter proclaimed the gospel. He
• 1:05:22
  Speaker 1: told them about Jesus, how God anointed him with the
• 1:05:25
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit and with power, how he went about doing
• 1:05:29
  Speaker 1: good and healing. How they put him to death by
• 1:05:32
  Speaker 1: hanging him on a tree. But God raised him on
• 1:05:34
  Speaker 1: the third day, and he commanded us to preach to
• 1:05:38
  Speaker 1: the people and to testify that he is the one
• 1:05:40
  Speaker 1: appointed by God to be judge of the living and
• 1:05:43
  Speaker 1: the dead. Every one who believes in him receives forgiveness
• 1:05:47
  Speaker 1: of sins through his name. While Peter was still speaking
• 1:05:50
  Speaker 1: these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard.
• 1:05:54
  Speaker 1: There was no altar call, no prayer spoken aloud. Peter
• 1:05:59
  Speaker 1: had not even finished, but God could not wait. The
• 1:06:03
  Speaker 1: believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the
• 1:06:06
  Speaker 1: gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on
• 1:06:09
  Speaker 1: the gentiles, for they were hearing them speaking in tongues
• 1:06:12
  Speaker 1: and extolling God. Peter looked around in wonder, can anyone
• 1:06:17
  Speaker 1: withhold water for baptizing these people who have received the
• 1:06:20
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit just as we have, and he commanded them
• 1:06:24
  Speaker 1: to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. On
• 1:06:27
  Speaker 1: that day the first Gentiles were brought into the Church,
• 1:06:31
  Speaker 1: not through the law, not through circumcision, but through faith
• 1:06:36
  Speaker 1: in Jesus Christ. The barrier had been broken, the wall
• 1:06:40
  Speaker 1: had fallen, and the Gospel was now unleashed to go
• 1:06:44
  Speaker 1: to the ends of the earth. Chapter eleven Paul's missionary
• 1:06:50
  Speaker 1: journeys to the ends of the earth. After his conversion, Saul,
• 1:06:56
  Speaker 1: who would be known by his Roman name Paul, spent
• 1:06:59
  Speaker 1: years in reparation. He went to Arabia, returned to Damascus,
• 1:07:04
  Speaker 1: and eventually to his hometown of Tarsus. And when the
• 1:07:07
  Speaker 1: time was right, Barnabas found him and brought him to Antioch,
• 1:07:11
  Speaker 1: where a thriving church was growing. It was in Antioch
• 1:07:15
  Speaker 1: that believers were first called Christians, and it was from
• 1:07:18
  Speaker 1: Antioch that the Holy Spirit would launch the greatest missionary
• 1:07:22
  Speaker 1: movement the world had known. One day, as the prophets
• 1:07:26
  Speaker 1: and teachers were worshiping and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,
• 1:07:30
  Speaker 1: set apart for me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work
• 1:07:33
  Speaker 1: to which I have called them the Church, laid hands
• 1:07:36
  Speaker 1: on them, prayed, and sent them out. Paul and Barnabas
• 1:07:41
  Speaker 1: sailed to Cyprus, then traveled through Galatia. In Pisidian Antioch,
• 1:07:46
  Speaker 1: Paul preached in the synagogue. Many believed, but others were
• 1:07:51
  Speaker 1: filled with jealousy. Paul and Barnabas spoke boldly, it was
• 1:07:55
  Speaker 1: necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you,
• 1:07:59
  Speaker 1: since you thrust it aside. Behold, we are turning to
• 1:08:02
  Speaker 1: the gentiles. The gentiles rejoiced, and as many as were
• 1:08:07
  Speaker 1: appointed to eternal life believed, but opposition arose and they
• 1:08:12
  Speaker 1: were driven from the region. In Listra, Paul saw a
• 1:08:16
  Speaker 1: man crippled from birth. He said in a loud voice,
• 1:08:20
  Speaker 1: stand upright on your feet, and the man sprang up
• 1:08:24
  Speaker 1: and began walking. The crowds cried out, the gods have
• 1:08:28
  Speaker 1: come down to us in human form. They called Barnabas
• 1:08:31
  Speaker 1: Zeus and Paul Hermes. But Paul and Barnabas rushed into
• 1:08:36
  Speaker 1: the crowd, men, why are you doing these things? We
• 1:08:40
  Speaker 1: also are men of like nature with you, and we
• 1:08:44
  Speaker 1: bring you good news that you should turn from these
• 1:08:47
  Speaker 1: vain things to a living God. But then Jews from
• 1:08:51
  Speaker 1: other cities came and persuaded the crowds. They stoned Paul
• 1:08:55
  Speaker 1: and dragged him out of the city, supposing he was dead,
• 1:08:59
  Speaker 1: but as the disciple gathered around him, he rose up.
• 1:09:03
  Speaker 1: The first journey ended and they returned to Antioch, reporting
• 1:09:07
  Speaker 1: all that God had done with them. Soon Paul set
• 1:09:10
  Speaker 1: out on a second journey, this time with Silas. They
• 1:09:14
  Speaker 1: traveled through Syria and Celicia, strengthening the churches. In Lystra,
• 1:09:19
  Speaker 1: they met Timothy, a young disciple who joined them. As
• 1:09:23
  Speaker 1: they traveled, the Holy Spirit guided them westward. One night,
• 1:09:27
  Speaker 1: Paul had a vision a man of Macedonia was standing there,
• 1:09:31
  Speaker 1: urging him come over to Macedonia and help us. Immediately
• 1:09:36
  Speaker 1: they set sail for Europe. In Philippi, they met Lydia,
• 1:09:40
  Speaker 1: a seller of purple goods. The Lord opened her heart
• 1:09:44
  Speaker 1: and she was baptized along with her household. The church
• 1:09:48
  Speaker 1: in Europe was born, but opposition came. Paul cast out
• 1:09:53
  Speaker 1: a spirit from a slave girl, and her owners had
• 1:09:55
  Speaker 1: Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into prison. About midnight,
• 1:10:00
  Speaker 1: Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns. Suddenly there
• 1:10:04
  Speaker 1: was a great earthquake. All the doors were opened, and
• 1:10:08
  Speaker 1: everyone's bonds were unfastened. The jailer, seeing the doors open,
• 1:10:13
  Speaker 1: drew his sword to kill himself, but Paul cried out,
• 1:10:17
  Speaker 1: do not harm yourself, for we are all here. The
• 1:10:20
  Speaker 1: jailer fell trembling, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
• 1:10:26
  Speaker 1: Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved,
• 1:10:29
  Speaker 1: you and your household. That night he and his family
• 1:10:33
  Speaker 1: were baptized. From Philippe, Paul traveled to Thessalonica, Berea, Athens,
• 1:10:40
  Speaker 1: and Corinth. In Athens, he stood in the areopagus and
• 1:10:44
  Speaker 1: preached to the philosophers the God who made the world
• 1:10:47
  Speaker 1: and everything in it does not live in temples made
• 1:10:50
  Speaker 1: by man. Some mocked, but others believed. In Corinth, Paul
• 1:10:56
  Speaker 1: stayed eighteen months, the Lord spoke to him in a vision.
• 1:11:00
  Speaker 1: Do not be afraid, but go on speaking, for I
• 1:11:04
  Speaker 1: am with you. The second journey ended, but soon Paul
• 1:11:08
  Speaker 1: set out on a third journey. He spent three years
• 1:11:12
  Speaker 1: in Ephesus. God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul,
• 1:11:17
  Speaker 1: so that even handkerchiefs that had touched his skin were
• 1:11:20
  Speaker 1: carried to the sick and diseases left them. The gospel
• 1:11:24
  Speaker 1: was spreading. Churches were being planted from Jerusalem to Judea,
• 1:11:29
  Speaker 1: from Samaria to Syria, from Cyprus to Galatia, from Macedonia
• 1:11:34
  Speaker 1: to Greece, from Ephesus to the ends of the known world.
• 1:11:38
  Speaker 1: The name of Jesus was proclaimed, and Paul, the former persecutor,
• 1:11:43
  Speaker 1: was now the greatest missionary the Church had known. He
• 1:11:47
  Speaker 1: traveled thousands of miles. He was beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, imprisoned,
• 1:11:53
  Speaker 1: but nothing could stop him, for he had seen the
• 1:11:57
  Speaker 1: risen Christ, and he had been called to carry his
• 1:12:00
  Speaker 1: name to the nations Chapter twelve, shipwreck and snake bite,
• 1:12:07
  Speaker 1: God's protection. After years of ministry, Paul returned to Jerusalem.
• 1:12:13
  Speaker 1: He knew the risks. The Jewish leaders viewed him as
• 1:12:16
  Speaker 1: a traitor, but he went anyway, carrying a collection from
• 1:12:20
  Speaker 1: the Gentile churches for the poor in Jerusalem. When he arrived,
• 1:12:25
  Speaker 1: he was seized in the temple by a mob. Roman
• 1:12:28
  Speaker 1: soldiers intervened, placing him under arrest. For two years, he
• 1:12:33
  Speaker 1: remained in custody in Caesarea. Finally, Paul exercised his right
• 1:12:38
  Speaker 1: as a Roman citizen. I appealed to Caesar. The governor replied,
• 1:12:43
  Speaker 1: you have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar, you shall go.
• 1:12:48
  Speaker 1: Paul was placed in the custody of a centurion named Julius.
• 1:12:51
  Speaker 1: Along with other prisoners. They boarded a ship and set sail.
• 1:12:56
  Speaker 1: The journey was slow and difficult. Winter was approaching the
• 1:13:00
  Speaker 1: season when the sea became dangerous. At fair Haven's on
• 1:13:04
  Speaker 1: the island of Crete, Paul warned them, Sirs, I perceive
• 1:13:08
  Speaker 1: that the voyage will be with injury and much loss,
• 1:13:12
  Speaker 1: not only of the cargo and the ship, but also
• 1:13:15
  Speaker 1: of our lives. But the centurion paid more attention to
• 1:13:19
  Speaker 1: the pilot than to Paul. Shortly after leaving Crete, a
• 1:13:23
  Speaker 1: fierce wind called the northeaster struck. The ship was caught
• 1:13:27
  Speaker 1: and driven along For fourteen days and nights. They were
• 1:13:31
  Speaker 1: tossed by the storm. The sky was dark, waves crashed
• 1:13:36
  Speaker 1: over the deck. They threw cargo overboard, then the ship's tackle.
• 1:13:41
  Speaker 1: All hope was abandoned. But on the fourteenth night Paul
• 1:13:45
  Speaker 1: stood among them, men, you should have listened to me.
• 1:13:50
  Speaker 1: Yet now I urge you to take heart, for there
• 1:13:52
  Speaker 1: will be no loss of life among you, but only
• 1:13:55
  Speaker 1: of the ship. For this very night there stood before
• 1:13:58
  Speaker 1: me an angel of the God to whom I belong,
• 1:14:01
  Speaker 1: and he said, do not be afraid, Paul. You must
• 1:14:04
  Speaker 1: stand before Caesar and behold, God has granted you all
• 1:14:08
  Speaker 1: those who sail with you. So take heart, for I
• 1:14:12
  Speaker 1: have faith in God that it will be exactly as
• 1:14:14
  Speaker 1: I have been told. When daylight came, they saw a
• 1:14:18
  Speaker 1: bay with a beach. They ran the ship aground. The
• 1:14:22
  Speaker 1: bough stuck fast, but the stern was broken by the surf.
• 1:14:26
  Speaker 1: The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners, but the centurion,
• 1:14:30
  Speaker 1: wishing to save Paul, stopped them. All two hundred and
• 1:14:33
  Speaker 1: seventy six people reached land safely, just as the angel
• 1:14:37
  Speaker 1: had said, They discovered they were on the island of Malta.
• 1:14:41
  Speaker 1: The native people showed unusual kindness, lighting a fire to
• 1:14:45
  Speaker 1: warm them. Paul gathered sticks and put them on the fire,
• 1:14:49
  Speaker 1: but a viper came out and fastened on his hand.
• 1:14:53
  Speaker 1: The islanders said, no doubt, this man is a murderer.
• 1:14:57
  Speaker 1: Justice has not allowed him to live. But all shook
• 1:15:00
  Speaker 1: off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
• 1:15:03
  Speaker 1: The people waited, expecting him to swell up or fall dead,
• 1:15:08
  Speaker 1: but when nothing happened, they changed their minds and said
• 1:15:11
  Speaker 1: he was a god. The chief of the island, Publius,
• 1:15:15
  Speaker 1: welcomed them. His father lay sick with fever. Paul visited him, prayed,
• 1:15:21
  Speaker 1: and laying hands on him, healed him. After this, the
• 1:15:25
  Speaker 1: rest on the island who had diseases came and were cured.
• 1:15:29
  Speaker 1: For three months, they stayed on Malta. When spring came,
• 1:15:34
  Speaker 1: they boarded another ship and continued the journey. They sailed
• 1:15:38
  Speaker 1: to Syracuse, then Regium, then Putioli. From there they traveled
• 1:15:43
  Speaker 1: by road to Rome. When the brothers in Rome heard
• 1:15:46
  Speaker 1: Paul was coming, they traveled to meet him. When Paul
• 1:15:50
  Speaker 1: saw them, he thanked God and took courage. Paul entered Rome,
• 1:15:54
  Speaker 1: the greatest city in the world, the heart of the Empire.
• 1:15:58
  Speaker 1: He entered not as a conqueror, but as a prisoner,
• 1:16:01
  Speaker 1: chained to a Roman soldier, and yet, in God's providence,
• 1:16:06
  Speaker 1: that was exactly where he needed to be. Chapter thirteen, Rome,
• 1:16:13
  Speaker 1: the Gospel reaches the heart of the Empire, Rome, the
• 1:16:18
  Speaker 1: eternal city, capital of an empire that stretched from Britain
• 1:16:22
  Speaker 1: to Mesopotamia, from North Africa to Germany. A city of
• 1:16:26
  Speaker 1: marble temples and crowded tenements, of wealth and poverty, of
• 1:16:30
  Speaker 1: power and oppression, and now the Gospel had arrived at
• 1:16:34
  Speaker 1: the center of the world. Luke records that Paul was
• 1:16:38
  Speaker 1: allowed to stay by himself with the soldier who guarded him.
• 1:16:42
  Speaker 1: It was house arrest more lenient than a dungeon. He
• 1:16:46
  Speaker 1: rented a small dwelling, and there, chained to a guard,
• 1:16:50
  Speaker 1: Paul began the work he had been called to do.
• 1:16:53
  Speaker 1: After three days, he called together the local leaders of
• 1:16:56
  Speaker 1: the Jews. Brothers, though I had done nothing against our
• 1:17:01
  Speaker 1: people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was
• 1:17:03
  Speaker 1: delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of
• 1:17:06
  Speaker 1: the Romans. For this reason, I have asked to see
• 1:17:10
  Speaker 1: you and speak with you, since it is because of
• 1:17:13
  Speaker 1: the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain.
• 1:17:17
  Speaker 1: The leaders responded cautiously, we have received no letters from
• 1:17:21
  Speaker 1: Judea about you, but we desire to hear from you
• 1:17:24
  Speaker 1: what your views are. For with regard to this sect,
• 1:17:27
  Speaker 1: we know that everywhere it is spoken against. They set
• 1:17:31
  Speaker 1: a day. Many came to Paul's lodging. From morning till evening.
• 1:17:36
  Speaker 1: He expounded to them, testifying to the Kingdom of God
• 1:17:39
  Speaker 1: and trying to convince them about Jesus, both from the
• 1:17:42
  Speaker 1: law of Moses and from the prophets. Luke tells us
• 1:17:46
  Speaker 1: that some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved.
• 1:17:50
  Speaker 1: As they departed, Paul made one statement, The Holy Spirit
• 1:17:55
  Speaker 1: was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the Prophet,
• 1:17:58
  Speaker 1: you will indeed hear, but never understand. Therefore, let it
• 1:18:02
  Speaker 1: be known to you that this salvation of God has
• 1:18:04
  Speaker 1: been sent to the Gentiles. They will listen, and they did.
• 1:18:09
  Speaker 1: For two whole years. Paul lived there at his own
• 1:18:12
  Speaker 1: expense and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the
• 1:18:16
  Speaker 1: Kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ
• 1:18:19
  Speaker 1: with all boldness and without hindrance. Two whole years, and
• 1:18:23
  Speaker 1: in that time the Gospels spread through Rome. Soldiers who
• 1:18:28
  Speaker 1: guarded Paul heard and believed. Servants in Caesar's household came
• 1:18:32
  Speaker 1: to faith. Merchants, slaves, noble women, craftsmen. They all came
• 1:18:38
  Speaker 1: to Paul's small room and heard about Jesus. Paul also
• 1:18:43
  Speaker 1: wrote letters during this time, letters that would become Scripture,
• 1:18:47
  Speaker 1: to the Ephesians urging them to walk in love, to
• 1:18:51
  Speaker 1: the Philippians encouraging them to rejoice always, to the Colossians,
• 1:18:56
  Speaker 1: proclaiming the supremacy of Christ. Every letter carried the same message.
• 1:19:02
  Speaker 1: Jesus is Lord. He died for our sins. He rose
• 1:19:07
  Speaker 1: from the dead. Through faith in Him, we are forgiven
• 1:19:11
  Speaker 1: and made new. And the church in Rome grew. They
• 1:19:14
  Speaker 1: met in homes, breaking bread, praying, singing. They cared for
• 1:19:20
  Speaker 1: widows and orphans. They lived with a boldness that astonished
• 1:19:24
  Speaker 1: the world around them. To the Romans, Christians were strange.
• 1:19:29
  Speaker 1: They refused to worship the emperor. They treated slaves as equals.
• 1:19:33
  Speaker 1: They spoke of loving their enemies. They did not fear death,
• 1:19:38
  Speaker 1: and that confidence drew people like light draws those lost
• 1:19:42
  Speaker 1: in darkness. Luke does not tell us what happened to
• 1:19:45
  Speaker 1: Paul after those two years. Tradition suggests he was released,
• 1:19:50
  Speaker 1: traveled again, then arrested once more, and executed under Nero.
• 1:19:55
  Speaker 1: But whether he lived or died, the mission continued. The
• 1:19:59
  Speaker 1: gosp had reached Rome, and from Rome it would spread
• 1:20:04
  Speaker 1: to the ends of the earth. The church that began
• 1:20:07
  Speaker 1: with one hundred and twenty believers in an upper room
• 1:20:10
  Speaker 1: was now a movement that could not be stopped. Emperors
• 1:20:13
  Speaker 1: would try to crush it, philosophers would try to discredit it,
• 1:20:17
  Speaker 1: persecutions would come, but the gates of hell would not prevail,
• 1:20:22
  Speaker 1: because the Church was built on the risen Christ, and
• 1:20:25
  Speaker 1: he had promised, I will build my church. I will
• 1:20:29
  Speaker 1: be with you always to the end of the age.
• 1:20:32
  Speaker 1: The Book of Acts ends with Paul in Rome preaching
• 1:20:36
  Speaker 1: with all boldness and without hindrance. The last word in
• 1:20:40
  Speaker 1: Greek is arcaulitos, without hindrance. It is a word of hope.
• 1:20:46
  Speaker 1: The Gospel cannot be stopped. From one hundred and twenty
• 1:20:50
  Speaker 1: to three thousand, from three thousand to five thousand, from
• 1:20:55
  Speaker 1: Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria, to the ends of the earth.
• 1:20:59
  Speaker 1: The flot lit at Pentecost has never been extinguished, and
• 1:21:03
  Speaker 1: the story continues not in a book, but in lives,
• 1:21:08
  Speaker 1: in churches, gathering in believers, sharing their faith, in quiet prayers,
• 1:21:14
  Speaker 1: in bold testimonies. The Book of Acts is not finished.
• 1:21:18
  Speaker 1: It is being written still, and you are part of it.
• 1:21:25
  Speaker 1: And so our journey through the Book of Acts comes
• 1:21:27
  Speaker 1: to a close. We have walked with the Apostles from
• 1:21:30
  Speaker 1: the mount of Olives to the streets of Rome. We
• 1:21:33
  Speaker 1: have witnessed the coming of the Holy Spirit, the birth
• 1:21:36
  Speaker 1: of the Church, the healing of the lame, the martyrdom
• 1:21:40
  Speaker 1: of Stephen, the conversion of Paul. We have seen the
• 1:21:44
  Speaker 1: Gospel break through every barrier, crossing oceans and cultures, penetrating
• 1:21:49
  Speaker 1: the heart of the Roman Empire. But as we said,
• 1:21:52
  Speaker 1: the story is not finished. Luke ends his account with
• 1:21:56
  Speaker 1: Paul in Rome, teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with
• 1:22:00
  Speaker 1: all boldness and without hindrance. That final word, without hindrance,
• 1:22:05
  Speaker 1: echoes across the centuries. The Gospel cannot be stopped. Chains
• 1:22:11
  Speaker 1: cannot silence it, Persecution cannot destroy it, Death itself cannot
• 1:22:16
  Speaker 1: overcome it. From one hundred and twenty believers in an
• 1:22:20
  Speaker 1: upper room, the Church has grown across every continent. The
• 1:22:24
  Speaker 1: flame lit at Pentecost still burns. The mission given to
• 1:22:28
  Speaker 1: the apostles is still our mission today. And the same
• 1:22:32
  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit who empowered Peter and Paul, Stephen and Philip,
• 1:22:36
  Speaker 1: is the same spirit who dwells in every believer who
• 1:22:39
  Speaker 1: calls on the name of Jesus. So as you rest tonight,
• 1:22:43
  Speaker 1: remember this, you are not alone. The Spirit of the
• 1:22:47
  Speaker 1: Living God is with you, the same spirit who shook
• 1:22:51
  Speaker 1: the room in Jerusalem, who guided Paul across the seas,
• 1:22:54
  Speaker 1: who opened prison doors, and healed the sick. He is
• 1:22:57
  Speaker 1: with you now, and when you wake tomorrow, you will
• 1:23:01
  Speaker 1: wake as part of the greatest story ever told. The
• 1:23:04
  Speaker 1: story that began in a garden was written in blood
• 1:23:08
  Speaker 1: on a cross, and will end in a city where
• 1:23:10
  Speaker 1: there are no more tears, no more death, no more pain,
• 1:23:15
  Speaker 1: Where the Lamb who was slain will reign forever, and
• 1:23:19
  Speaker 1: where every tribe and tongue and nation will stand together
• 1:23:22
  Speaker 1: and sing. Worthy is the Lamb until that day. Rest
• 1:23:27
  Speaker 1: in his peace, walk in his love, proclaim his name
• 1:23:31
  Speaker 1: with boldness and without hindrance. The book of Acts is
• 1:23:36
  Speaker 1: not finished, and neither are you. Good Night. May the
• 1:23:41
  Speaker 1: Lord bless you and keep you. May His face shine
• 1:23:44
  Speaker 1: upon you and give you peace now and forever. Amen.