Thursday
Evening Bible Study
November
1, 2007
Introduction
In our last study, we saw how God orchestrated a number of events in order
for the gospel to be shared with the Gentiles for the very first time. Peter found himself talking about Jesus at
the house of a Roman centurion named Cornelius.
As Peter talked about Jesus, the Holy Spirit fell on people, just like
on the day of Pentecost. Peter realized
that God wanted the Gentiles to come to know Jesus as well as the Jews.
Acts 11
:1-18 Peter defends the Gentile believers
:1 Now the apostles and brethren who were in Judea
heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.
:2 And when Peter came up to Jerusalem,
those of the circumcision contended with him,
:3 saying, "You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them!"
You see, up to this point, the church consisted only of good Jewish boys
and girls.
The church was still under the impression that Gentiles were good for
nothing but the fuel for the fires of hell.
It was totally outrageous to think that a Gentile could be part of God’s
kingdom.
:4 But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning, saying:
In verse 5-14 Peter simply tells the story of what happened…
:15 "And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon
us at the beginning.
Peter remembered how the Holy Spirit fell on the believers at Pentecost.
:16 "Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, 'John indeed
baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'
:17 "If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we
believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?"
:18 When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified
God, saying, "Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to
life."
The Jewish church in Jerusalem
has come to the conclusion that Gentiles are now getting saved. It will be a few years later for some of the
implications of this to be worked out.
Questions will arise over whether these Gentiles will now need to become
circumcised and be law-abiding Jews as well as believers. That question will be dealt with when we get
to chapter 15.
Lesson
Caution to Lone Rangers
Illustration
As the Lone Ranger and Tonto were riding along towards the north, they
spotted a war party of about 50 Apaches coming at them. They turned south, but
another war party appeared. They turned east and met another party of 100
braves. They turned west as their last remaining hope and saw a party of 500.
The Lone Ranger turned to his friend and said, “Well, faithful friend, this is
the end, there’s not much we can do.” Tonto looked back at the Lone Ranger.
“What you mean WE, white man?”
That’s the problem of being a “Lone Ranger”, you might find yourself at
times with no one to protect you.
Sometimes believers can fall into the trap of thinking that they’re like
the “Lone Ranger”, out to do God’s work all by themselves. They might do their own particular ministry
basically on their own. They make decisions
about things, even ideas about doctrine and what the Bible is all about – all
on their own.
Don’t get me wrong – there are going to be times when you need to do what
you believe is right even if nobody else agrees.
But there is value in hearing what the “church” has to say about your
ideas. It’s the value of the “multitude
of counselors”. We are a
“pastor-led-church”. Our church government
is set up with the idea that the Senior Pastor is the one directing the
church. Yet I have found it valuable
over the years to discuss difficult issues and ideas with others. I talk things over with my wife. I talk things over with my assistant pastors. I will call older more experienced
pastors. Our board of elders is also one
of those groups I go to for wisdom, advice, and feedback.
What you see at work here is the church coming to these conclusions
together. It isn’t just Peter the Pope
making the grand declaration that Gentiles can get saved. The church adds it’s input.
:19-26 Christians in Antioch
:19 Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over
Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word
to no one but the Jews only.
Phoenicia
– the Phoenicians were centered in the cities of Tyre
and Sidon on the coast to the north
of Israel in
modern Lebanon,
100 miles north of Jerusalem.
Cyprus
– the island in the northeast corner of the Mediterranean, 250m from Jerusalem.
Antioch – a city in Syria
(actually today the city is in modern Turkey,
close to Syria)
300 miles north of Jerusalem. It
was the third largest city in the empire, with a population of about 500,000. Antioch
was one of the cosmopolitan centers of the world of that day and a center of
commerce. It would eventually replace Jerusalem
as the center of Christianity through its missionary activity.
These believers who had been scattered by the persecution are only
preaching the gospel to Jews.
:20 But some of them were men from Cyprus
and Cyrene, who, when they had come
to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists,
preaching the Lord Jesus.
Hellenists – Jews who had adopted the Greek culture over the Jewish
culture. Some see these “Hellenists” as
Gentiles and not Jews at all.
:21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and
turned to the Lord.
:22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem,
and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch.
Barnabas, the “son of encouragement”.
He is sent to strengthen this church in distant Antioch.
:23 When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged
them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord.
:24 For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a
great many people were added to the Lord.
The church continued to grow under Barnabas’ encouragement. Barnabas’ encouragement was to “continue”.
continue – prosmeno (“with”
or “toward” + “to remain” or “abide”) –
to remain with, to continue with one; to hold fast to: the grace of God
received in the Gospel
Lesson
Encourage to Continue
The writer to the Hebrews was concerned
about his readers quitting and giving up.
Throughout the book he is encouraging them (like a Barnabas) to keep
going.
(Heb 3:12-14 NKJV) Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you
an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; {13} but exhort one another daily, while it is
called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness
of sin. {14} For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,
The problem is that sometimes what
happens when Christians get together isn’t always encouraging…
Illustration
A wealthy businessman
hosted a spectacular party in which he had filled his swimming pool with
sharks, barracuda, and other assorted dangerous fish. He announced to his
guests that he would like to challenge any of them to try swimming across the
pool, and he would offer a first prize of either a new home in the mountains, a
trip around the world for two, or a piece of his business. No sooner had he
made the announcement than there was a splash and a man swam rapidly across the
infested waters and bounded up out on the other side. The millionaire said to
the dripping man, “That was a stunning performance. What prize do you want?” He
answered tersely, “Right now I really don’t care about the prize. I just want
to get the name of the turkey who pushed me in.”
Encourage. Don’t push.
The difference between an eastern and western shepherd. Western shepherds “drive” or push their
flocks. The shepherds in the middle east
“lead” their flocks. They develop a
relationship with them, they name the sheep, the sheep follow.
Our encouragement is to continue – keep going.
Illustration
Norwegian wharf rats
I remember hearing about tests done with laboratory wharf
rats. These are the rats that live under
the piers along the waterfront. One
group of rats was placed in a large container of water, in the dark, with no
place to stand on, they had to keep swimming.
They all drowned within fifteen minutes. The second group was placed in
a similar container, yet every ten minutes the lab technician would open the
container, take the rats out, stroke them a few seconds, and put them back in
the water. They didn't have time to
rest, they just got a little encouragement.
These rats went on swimming for over 12 hours (or something like
that...).
:25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus
to seek Saul.
Tarsus is 95 miles northwest of
Antioch.
:26 And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch.
So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a
great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.
Christians – Christianos –
a follower of Christ; “Christ’s people”.
It started off as a name to ridicule the believers, but eventually the
church decided to keep it.
Apparently Barnabas felt he needed some help. He didn’t think he could do this work by
himself. It’s been about five years
since Barnabas has seen Saul. Saul has been a believer about 9 years. It is because of Barnabas that Saul will go
on to be the apostle that spreads the gospel like no other and goes on to write
much of the New Testament.
:27-30 Judean Famine relief
:27 And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem
to Antioch.
:28 Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that
there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also
happened in the days of Claudius Caesar.
Josephus records a famine occurring in 46 AD.
Church tradition has it that Agabus was
one of the “seventy” disciples that Jesus sent out in Luke 10.
We’ll see Agabus again, many years
later in Caesarea, when Paul is on his last trip to Jerusalem (Acts 21:10-15)
:29 Then the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send
relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea.
This reminds me of the story of Joseph where God warns the world through
Pharaoh’s dream about the coming famine.
God use Joseph to prepare the world for the famine ahead. Now God is using the church to prepare people
for the coming famine.
:30 This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas
and Saul.
The church in Antioch felt compelled to help out the people in Judea, so
they took up a collection and sent it south with Barnabas and Saul.
If you follow the chronology of the events, it appears that the church sent
money at least three years ahead of the famine. (Herod dies in 44AD - Acts 12:23; famine comes in 46AD)
Barnabas and Saul are going to spend some time in Jerusalem
while some interesting things take place.
Acts 12
:1-11 Peter’s arrest and deliverance
:1 Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some
from the church.
This is Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod the Great the one who remodeled
the Temple and who killed the
babies at the time of Jesus’ birth.
:2 Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
James becomes the first apostle to die a martyr’s death. He won’t be the last. This was the James that was part of the “inner
three” of Jesus’ disciples – Peter, James, and John.
Tradition (Eusebius, Clement) tells us that James was beheaded with a
sword. When James’ accuser saw his
courage as he was about to be executed, the
accuser repented, and joined James in being beheaded.
:3 And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to
seize Peter also. Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread.
This event is taking place during the time of the Passover, the same time
when Jesus was arrested and crucified.
:4 So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to
four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people
after Passover.
They are being extra careful to guard Peter.
The last time Peter was arrested (a couple of years earlier)…
(Acts 5:19 NKJV)
But at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought
them out…
This time they’re taking no chances.
four squads – tetradion –
a quaternion; the quaternion consisted of four soldiers – two would be changed
to Peter, to would stand guard. With
four of these “squads”, the soldiers would rotate in three hour shifts, one
squad for each of the four watches of the night.
:5 Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to
God for him by the church.
constant – ektenes –
stretched out; metaph. intent, earnestly, assiduously
Lesson
The work of prayer
I think that sometimes I underestimate what God will do in prayer, as well
as underestimate how serious my prayers are to Him.
We’ve seen in the early church how much prayer was a part of what was
happening.
It was during a season of prayer that the Holy Spirit was poured out at
Pentecost:
Ac 1:14 These all continued with one accord in
prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with
His brothers.
It was at the “hour of prayer” that Peter healed the lame man at the Temple:
Ac 3:1 Now
Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth
[hour].
When the apostles asked the church to set up deacons to help them with the
work of the ministry it was because they were realizing they didn’t want to be
so busy that they were neglecting prayer:
Ac 6:4 "but we will give ourselves
continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word."
When the door for the gospel was opened to the Gentiles, it came as a
result of a Gentile man praying:
Ac 10:4 And when he observed him, he was afraid,
and said, "What is it, lord?" So he said to him, "Your prayers
and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.
We will see here that the implication is that Peter’s deliverance was
directly related to the prayers of the church.
Don’t neglect prayer. Your prayers
are effective.
:6 And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was
sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the
door were keeping the prison.
:7 Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the
prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, "Arise
quickly!" And his chains fell off his hands.
:8 Then the angel said to him, "Gird yourself and tie on your
sandals"; and so he did. And he said to him, "Put on your garment and
follow me."
:9 So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by
the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.
Peter thinks he’s dreaming. It
doesn’t seem real to him.
:10 When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to
the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord;
and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed
from him.
:11 And when Peter had come to himself, he said, "Now I know for
certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of
Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people."
God delivered Peter. God didn’t
deliver James.
:12-19 Peter shows up at church
:12 So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the
mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together
praying.
Tradition has it that this was also the house where the last supper was
held. Now it’s one of the centers of the
church in Jerusalem.
Mary – Paul tells us that she is Barnabas’ sister
(Col.4:10), which means that John Mark was Barnabas’ nephew. Keep in mind that at this time Barnabas and
Saul are visiting in Jerusalem and possibly staying with Mary.
Most certainly they are part of the prayer meetings that are going on
for Peter.
Mark – this is the one that Paul and Barnabas would argue
and split over. He would eventually
write the gospel of Mark. Early church
historians say that Mark would eventually be Peter’s interpreter in Rome, and that his gospel was essentially the
preaching of Peter written down.
:13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came
to answer.
:14 When she recognized Peter's voice, because of her gladness she did not
open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate.
:15 But they said to her, "You are beside yourself!" Yet she kept
insisting that it was so. So they said, "It is his angel."
They did not believe it could be Peter.
Perhaps it was just Peter’s guardian angel.
:16 Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw
him, they were astonished.
How much the early church is just like we are.
They have been praying earnestly for Peter.
Yet when God delivers Peter they can’t believe it.
Illustration
The story is told of a small town in which there were no liquor
stores. Eventually, however, a nightclub
was built right on Main Street. Members of one of the churches in the area
were so disturbed that they conducted several all night prayer meetings, and
asked the Lord to burn down that den of iniquity. Lightning struck the tavern a
short time later, and it was completely destroyed by fire. The owner, knowing how the church people had
prayed, sued them for the damages. His attorney claimed that their prayers had
caused the loss. The congregation, on the other hand, hired a lawyer and fought
the charges. After much deliberation the
judge declared, “It’s the opinion of the court that wherever the guilt may lie,
the tavern keeper is the one who really believes in prayer while the church
members do not!”
:17 But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them
how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, "Go, tell
these things to James and to the brethren." And he departed and went to
another place.
James – this is the half brother of Jesus, who was the head of the
church in Jerusalem.
:18 Then, as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers
about what had become of Peter.
:19 But when Herod had searched for him and not found him, he examined the
guards and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judea
to Caesarea, and stayed there.
The penalty for losing a prisoner was to suffer the same punishment that
the prisoner was condemned with.
Herod goes back to his government headquarters in Caesarea,
on the coast.
:20-25 Herod’s death
:20 Now Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; but
they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king's personal
aide their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied
with food by the king's country.
Tyre and Sidon
were the Phoenician cities north of Israel
on the coast of modern Lebanon. They imported their grain from the area of
the Galilee.
For some reason, Herod was punishing these cities with some sort of
economic embargo.
They apparently hired this fellow Blastus to act as sort of lobbyist to
persuade Herod to be nice to them and allow them to buy grain from the farmers
under Herod’s authority.
:21 So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and
gave an oration to them.
:22 And the people kept shouting, "The voice of a god and not of a
man!"
:23 Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not
give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died.
Josephus’ account of Herod Agrippa’s death, as he came to one of the
festivals he had organized to honor Caesar –
“On the second day of which shows he put on a garment made wholly of
silver, and of texture truly wonderful, and came into the theater early in the
morning, at which time the silver of his garment being illuminated by the fresh
reflection of the sun’s rays upon it, shone out after a surprising manner, and
was so resplendent as to spread a horror over those that looked intently upon
him. And presently his flatterers cried
out, one from one place, and another from another, (though not for his good,)
that he was a god. And they added, -“Be
thou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as a
man, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature.” Upon this the king did neither rebuke them,
nor reject their impious flattery.”
It was then that he was struck with a pain in his gut. He died five days later. He died in 44AD.
Lesson
Cultivating humility
God alone is glorious and deserving of our praise. He doesn’t share His glory.
(Isa 42:8 NKJV) I am the
LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give to another, Nor My praise
to carved images.
The root of Satan’s fall and the cause of most of our sin is pride.
What are the things we can do to cultivate humility and avoid the trap of
falling into pride?
1) Admit your faults.
(Luke 18:9-14 NKJV) Also He spoke this parable to some who
trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: {10}
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax
collector. {11} "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I
thank You that I am not like other men; extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or
even as this tax collector. {12} 'I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all
that I possess.' {13} "And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not
so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!' {14}
"I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the
other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be
exalted."
Jesus told this parable for the purpose of dealing with
pride.
The man who “humbled himself” was the one who confessed
his sin to God and asked for mercy.
It is humbling to admit your sin. But humbling is good.
I think this can also work in our
relationships as well. Are you a person
who can say those two awful words, “I’m sorry”.
Or even worse, “I was wrong”?
2) Embrace your weaknesses
(2 Cor 12:7-10 NKJV) And lest I should be exalted above measure by
the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a
messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. {8}
Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart
from me. {9} And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My
strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather
boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. {10} Therefore
I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in
distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was not some sort of sin. But it was something that made him “weak”.
Paul came to realize that this weakness was being used by
God to promote humility as well as a dependence upon Jesus.
Are there things in your life you wish you were better
at? Are there things you are a little
embarrassed about? Some of us don’t like
the way our body looks. Some of us are
tired of the physical infirmities we struggle with.
It’s not a bad thing to have them in your life.
3) Serve others
(Phil 2:3-5 NKJV) Let nothing be done through selfish ambition
or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than
himself. {4} Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also
for the interests of others. {5} Let this mind be in you which was also in
Christ Jesus,
Paul goes on to talk about Jesus’ own life of humility,
especially that Jesus took on the role of a servant.
One of the great pictures of Jesus’ servanthood is seen on
the night of the last supper when He washed His disciples’ feet. He was doing the lowly job that was reserved
for a slave. After doing this, Jesus
said,
(John 13:15-17 NKJV) "For I have given you an example, that
you should do as I have done to you. {16} "Most assuredly, I say to you, a
servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he
who sent him. {17} "If you know these things, blessed are you if you do
them.
Serving others is one
of the ways we cultivate humility.
If you’re too good to
get up and take care of someone else’s needs, then you’ve got too much pride.
:24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.
:25 And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem
when they had fulfilled their ministry, and they also took with them John whose
surname was Mark.
Barnabas and Saul had been in Jerusalem
with money for the church to be prepared for the coming famine.