(1) What happened to the thousands of newly converted disciples of the first church?
(2) How severe was the persecution? How would you expect them to respond to such a severe persecution, given the fact that most of them were really fairly new believers?
(3) Contrast these lay-disciples with the apostles. Why did the apostles stay in Jerusalem? How did the action of these lay-disciples serve to accomplish the Great Commission of 1:8?
(4) What do you know about the city of Samaria (see Jn. 4:9)? Why was it the first “foreign” city to be evangelized?
(5) Philip was one of the seven deacons chosen to serve food in chapter 6. Based on how God used him in Samaria, what can you learn about the roles of the apostles and that of the lay disciples?
(6) Why did the church in Jerusalem feel the need to send Peter and John to Samaria?
(7) Why hadn't these new Samaritan believers received the Holy Spirit yet, though they had truly believed and were baptized in the name of Jesus?
(8) But when Peter and John laid hands on them, they received the Holy Spirit (presumably in a form that could be attested to). How did this fact speak to the believers in Jerusalem (including Peter and John)?
(9) What can you learn about the work of the Holy Spirit?
(10) What is the main message to you today?
One of the most interesting things about the work of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts is when and how He chooses to manifest Himself in coming upon new believers.
In the beginning, it appears almost like a formula that when a person truly repents and believes in Christ, they would be baptized right away in the name of Jesus, and then upon baptism, they would receive the Holy Spirit who manifests Himself through enabling these baptized new believers to speak in a tongue.
Now in Samaria, at the preaching of Philip, many Samaritans also believed and were baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. But it took the prayer and the laying of hands of Peter and John before they would receive (the manifestation of) the Holy Spirit, presumably also in the form of tongue speaking. (Acts 8)
Then when we come to chapter 10 of Acts, before they were baptized and without the laying of hands by Peter, the household of Cornelius and his friends received the Holy Spirit, again in the form of tongue-speaking.
As we continue to read the rest of the Book of Acts, people continued to believe and be baptized, but the manifestation of their reception of the Holy Spirit in the form of tongue-speaking was rarely mentioned, except in chapter 19.
It is significant to note that in all the occasions where tongue-speaking is mentioned in Acts, they serve to bring out the manifestation of the Holy Spirit as a clear evidence of conversion of Gentile believers, including the despised Samaritans. The reason is very obvious: It happened so that the circumcised Jewish believers could have “no further objections” to the reaching of the Gentiles with the gospel of Jesus Christ, as Peter testified “God gave them the same gift as He gave us.” (Acts 11:17) As this fact was firmly established, it appears that tongue-speaking did not necessarily accompany every occasion of conversion.
Yes, there were times when it took the laying of hands of the apostles, especially that of Peter, John and Paul, before the Holy Spirit would manifest Himself by coming upon some of these believers who were converted in their absence. But these occasions were not the norm, but the exception. I believe that it happened to establish the authority of these apostles who appeared to be the few among the apostles ministering beyond Jerusalem and the Jewish communities.
In other words, we should learn not to put God inside a box and allow the Holy Spirit to work as He determines (1 Co. 12:11). Those who insist that tongue-speaking is a must-sign of conversion these days fail to understand the mind of the Holy Spirit.
(1) The people of Samaria were of mixed ethnicity, being partly Jewish and they worshipped God in a syncretized way, using their own version of the Pentateuch (it was called the Samaritan Pentateuch; in it were changes made to fit Samaritan theology). From the way they responded to Simon, how would you describe their religion and attitude toward God?
(2) If Simon was “full of bitterness and captive to sin”, what might be his motive in believing and receiving baptism?
(3) Do you think Simon was saved? Why or why not?
(4) What is your motive in believing and receiving baptism?
(5) Simon was fascinated with the ability to bestow the Holy Spirit on people through the laying of hands which was a spiritual ministry. How then can an aspiration to serve become something not pleasing to God? Reflect on your own heart for ministry. Do you think it is “right before God”?
(6) It appeared that the people of Samaria responded readily to the gospel. Can you think of some of the reasons?
(7) What is the main message to you today?
We always read with sympathy about the discrimination the people of Samaria received at the hand of the Jews. Jews have traditionally connected the origin of the Samaritans with the events described in 2 Kings 17:24-41: The Assyrian king moved foreigners into their land, and they became a race with mixed blood, despised as impure by the Jews.
Perhaps, in reaction to such discrimination, the Samaritans sought to discredit the Jewish Bible (the Tanakh) as corrupted and not of divine inspiration. In so doing, they had developed their own Pentateuch (the first five books of the OT) which constitutes their entire biblical canon.
In
analyzing the Samaritan Pentateuch, scholars have discovered some 6,000
variants from the Jewish Masoretic text. While most variants are minor, having to do with scribal errors and
grammatical variations, some reflect deliberate, theologically motivated
changes. The most obvious one is in
Deuteronomy 27:4 where Moses commanded the people:
“And when you have crossed the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal, as I command you today, and coat them with plaster.”
The Samaritan Pentateuch changed the place where the altar should be set up from Ebal to Gerizim in order to justify the place of worship they set up at Gerizim. They also changed the verbal tense from future to present to indicate that God has already chosen this place.
Of course, it did not fare well with the law-obsessed Jews, as one Rabbi Eleazar b. Simeon noted in the Talmud, “You have falsified your Pentateuch…and you have not profited aught from it.” The Samaritan Pentateuch only deepened the hatred the Jews had towards the Samaritans.
Therefore, it was not a small breakthrough when the first ethnic group outside of Jerusalem to be reached by the disciples was the Samaritans. This is a clear demonstration of the power of the gospel which “has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.” (Eph. 2:14)
(1) The gospel’s breakthrough beyond Jerusalem continued with the story of Philip, reaching now to an Ethiopian (an East African). Why did God choose Philip to achieve such a breakthrough? The angel of the Lord could have easily appeared to Peter and John?
(2) Where did the angel of the Lord tell Philip to go? Did it make any sense to Philip? What can you learn from Philip, next time the Lord gives you instructions that may not make a lot of sense?
(3) Why did this important official from Ethiopia go all the way to Jerusalem? How would he be treated in the temple? To what extent was he able to truly “worship” God there?
(4) Together with the fact that he was reading the book of Isaiah in the chariot, how would you describe this seeker? How did God reward his seeking heart? (See Matt. 7:7)
(5) The Jewish rabbis mostly interpreted Isaiah 53:7-8 to refer to the entire people of Israel and they do so even today. How may you help them to understand it as a foretelling of Jesus Christ?
(6) The Ethiopian said he could not understand what he read, unless someone explained it to him. So the ability to understand scripture is very important to the sharing of the gospel. How and where can you gain this ability to explain the scripture in your role to fulfill the Great Commission?
(7) Philip had baptized many in Samaria who had waited for the apostles to lay hands on them before they could receive the Holy Spirit (v. 17). Do you think this Ethiopian received the Holy Spirit upon his belief and baptism? (See Acts 2:38)
(8) What marks the life of new believers? (v. 8 and v. 39)
(9) What is the main message to you today?
The Book of Acts often depicts those Gentiles who attended the Jewish synagogues as “God fearing” (Acts 10:2, 22; 13:26, 50; 17:4, 17). I often wonder why these Gentiles, often of high society, would seek the God of the Jews. One of the most credible reasons given is that Judaism stood out as basically the only monotheistic and morally sound religion in the Roman world.
That explains why the Ethiopian eunuch, given the exclusiveness of Judaism and the less-than-friendly attitude toward eunuchs, would travel such a distance to worship in the Jerusalem temple (note that according to Deut. 23, as a eunuch, he would have been forbidden to enter the temple, a place where he would not have heard the correct interpretation of the Messianic prophecies anyway).
But true to the promise of Jesus that “seek and you will find” (Lk. 11:9), God sent Philip to explain to him what he would not have understood while at the temple of Jerusalem. As a result, he understood, accepted the truth and was baptized.
When I reflect on this conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch, I am reminded that God really sees the hearts of all mankind (Ps. 33:13-15), especially those who seek Him. As much as I need to seek to evangelize, strive to convince and labor to intercede, ultimately, it is God who creates the searching heart. If this is lacking, there is not much else we can do.
Time and time again, I have discovered that those who come to Christ with the clearest evidence of repentance are not people we have to almost push to make a decision, but those whose hearts had been searching and made ready by the Holy Spirit.
(1) As the gospel was reaching beyond Jerusalem, so was the persecution. The one who appeared to be the champion of the latter was Saul. According to v.1, what kind of power was accorded to Saul? What was his motive or motivation (see Gal. 1:13-14)?
(2) Have you met or do you know of anyone who zealously objects to the gospel? What might be his or her motive or motivation?
(3) Since Saul literally had blood in his hands, why would Jesus choose to speak to him?
(4) True, this encounter was a miracle, but does such a miraculous encounter guarantee a conversion or change of heart? Why or why not? Many people in the Bible experienced miraculous encounters and were spoken to directly from God. Can you remember a case where the person immediately obeyed, and another case in which a person disobeyed? Even in a miraculous encounter, what might be the key to obedience or conversion?
(5) Why did Jesus choose to blind Saul for three days? What might Saul be doing in the three days — given his firm conviction of traditions, his hatred for Christians, and his reputation among the Pharisees? What would you have done in his case during the 3 days?
(6) Reflect on the words that the Lord spoke to Saul, how special were they? — How had He Himself addressed him and how He had He looked at Saul’s action towards Him?
(7) What is the main message today, and how would you act on it?
I find it interesting that it was by being blind physically that Saul had come to gain his spiritual sight.
In his zeal for God, Saul was less busy arguing with the Christians, but more busy in putting them into jail, or even to death. He was so zealous that he would take the risk of arresting Christians beyond the Judean region and he ventured into Damascus, a different Roman governing district. How receptive would the local governor be to him exercising such authority given by the high priest? We don’t know. Saul probably didn’t really know either, but he was determined to be true to his God and his religion. He was totally blind to the fact that he was “kicking against the goads” (Acts 26:14), that is, until he was blinded by the bright light from heaven.
What did he do in the three days in complete blindness? We were told that he would be praying. Apart from praying, I am sure he would be doing a lot of soul searching, remembering the things he heard during the debate between the Grecian Jews and Stephen, and gradually all the Messianic prophecies pointing to Jesus began to make sense to him. He had come to see the light.
Indeed, there was no better way for Saul to comprehend this heavenly encounter and to come to both a spiritual conversion and a rational conviction by being blind for three days — without distractions and in complete rest (after all, what could he do in blindness!)
I find that this is often the case in order for us to see the light. We need a time of total rest without distractions. It is only when we come to a complete halt physically and spiritually, or we will not be able to hear the voice of God, and we will not be able to see our follies. That is why it is so important for us to cut out time, a long chunk of time in solitude, to pray, to wait before the Lord and to meditate on His word. Such a time of self-examination is crucial for us to purify our motives and to re-awaken our love for God and for people.
For those who truly seek to love God, they will find that such a time of rest will come either voluntarily or involuntarily. For Saul, it came first involuntarily, and then he learned to do so voluntarily in the desert of Arabia (Gal. 1:17).
(1) V. 11 tells us what Saul was doing during the three days. What might he be praying about?
(2) It appears that the Christians in Damascus were well aware of the coming persecution by Saul. What might they be doing in preparation for Saul’s arrival? Why then was Ananias reluctant to help Saul?
(3) V. 15 gives us the commission of Saul and how God would use him and his fate as well. Do you yearn to be chosen like Saul, why or why not?
(4) At the time, there were twelve apostles already named and Saul did not fit the profile of 1:21-22. Why then would the Lord choose Saul instead to take on, perhaps, the most important role in the furtherance, if not fulfillment, of the Great Commission He had given to the apostles in Acts 1:8?
(5) This was Saul’s first friendly encounter with a Christian. Imagine that you were the blind Saul. How special was this encounter of being received and accepted by those who saw you as enemies?
(6) Pause and reflect on your “conversion” experience. How special was it? Give thanks to the Lord now.
(7) Do you have a sense of your calling, i.e. what God expected of you as He called you?
(8) What is the main message to you today?
I was watching a documentary on TV the other day, and I was quite shocked to find out that the pastor who was being interviewed was a former pimp who sold and forced young girls into prostitution. Honestly, I watched his interview and wondered within me, “Is it for real that he is a pastor?”
I guess people, especially slaves, who heard that the former slave-trader, John Newton, had repented and had now become a minister of the gospel would have the same skepticism that I had.
No wonder the disciples of Jerusalem hesitated to believe in Paul’s conversion too.
As incredible as it is, everyone who is in Christ, including Paul, John Newton, the former pimp and you and I, “is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Co. 5:17)
I invite you to meditate on these familiar
lyrics of John Newton, and give thanks to God for our salvation.
Amazing Grace
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.
T’was Grace that taught...
my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear...
the hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares...
we have already come.
T’was Grace that brought us safe thus far...
and Grace will lead us home.
The Lord has promised good to me...
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be...
as long as life endures.
When we’ve been here ten thousand years...
bright shining as the sun.
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise...
then when we’ve first begun.
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me...
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
Luke is summarizing the immediate post-conversion years of Saul here. It is therefore needful to read Galatians 1:17-21 and 2 Corinthians 11:32-33 to get a more detailed chronicle of these ensuing years. To start with, after his conversion, Saul left Damascus for Arabia and for three years, he likely spent time meditating and reading the word of God in the desert; then he returned to Damascus and afterwards left for Jerusalem. He had to escape to Tarsus, his hometown, going through Caesarea. Here in Acts 9:30 is where the first account of Saul stops; it will resume in Acts 11:25.
(1) Saul obviously knew full well his calling, as he “at once” began to preach. Apart from his academic excellence and skills in rhetoric, what might distinguish Saul from the rest of the disciples in his role as witness to the gospel (or how unique was he in the furtherance of God’s kingdom)?
(2) What might be your uniqueness as God has called you too to be His witness in His Kingdom?
(3) Were Jews known to be a people with a violent history or were they victims of violence? Why then would they seek to kill people like Saul, whether in Damascus or in Jerusalem? What then should distinguish a religious zealot (whether in Judaism or Muslim) from a zealous Christian?
(4) As a former champion of Christian persecution, what kind of a dilemma did Saul face right away? What did he need most at the time? Of all people in Jerusalem, why would Barnabas dare risk to believe in and receive Saul? (See Acts 4:36-37.) What lesson can you learn from Barnabas, and how can you emulate him?
(5) Why did Luke mention that Saul debated with the “Grecian Jews”?
(6) According to Saul’s own recollection, he spent three years in the Arabian Desert after his conversion. Why was it necessary? What then does it say about our preparation for ministry?
(7) What is the main message to you today?
Upon Paul’s conversion the Bible says, “At once, he began to preach…” (Acts 9:20)
I have not met a Christian who became an instant preacher or teacher of the Word upon their conversion. In fact, the church will make sure that no new believer will lead a Bible study or teach Sunday School until they become more mature as a believer. It will take quite a few years of personally studying and learning the Bible.
Of course, we all agree that Paul was different; after all, there was only one Apostle Paul in history.
It is true. Even before his conversion, Paul would have known the O.T. inside out. The only problem was he did not believe Jesus is the Christ (i.e. Messiah). But as a Pharisee, he was already a teacher of the Word of God. So, once he was converted, he was able to teach correctly and even debated so powerfully that he even baffled the Jews (Acts 9:22). But spiritually he was still a very young believer, a babe in Christ of a few weeks or months. And biblically, true knowledge comes from our experiential walk with God in truly understanding the truth of God’s word. In a way, there would still be much for Paul to learn, to put into practice, and to mature in his understanding of God and His Word.
But his instant service provided him the best and quickest way to mature and grow in both the knowledge and grace of the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3:18).
I am grateful that the church of my youth gave me opportunities to serve, to lead Bible study and even teach Sunday School not long after my conversion. As ignorant as I was, I began also to share the gospel within my circle of influence too. Yes, looking back, I made a lot of mistakes and I gave a lot of stupid answers to people with whom I debated my faith. But it was through serving, making mistakes and learning from my mistakes that I have gradually grown into a Christian who could make a bit of difference for the Kingdom of God.
(2) Peter now was taking on a pastoral role of visiting established Christian communities (Lydda is 25 miles northwest of Jerusalem). What did Luke call these Christian communities in v. 32? What does it mean to you, especially in light of the fact that this term is always used in the plural in the NT?
(3) Since Peter called the paralytic by name, it appears that the setting was in a home and Aeneas was probably a believer already, but the healing resulted in more people turning to the Lord. How did this miracle serve to “strengthen and encourage” the church?
(4) How does the description of Tabitha touch you? Do you know of a Christian who might resemble her in your church community? What is your own attitude towards helping the poor (and in this case, widows in particular)?
(5) What part of the story of Tabitha impacts you most?
– Her character
– The church’s response to her death
– The presence of many widows with robes made by her
– Her resurrection
– The impact of her resurrection which brought many to Christ?
Why?
(6) Tanning was one of the most despised professions as the Babylonian Talmud states that “Woe to him who is a tanner by trade”, because tanning at the time involved the handling of dead animals. Why do you think Luke cared to mention Simon’s trade and the fact that Peter stayed with him for some time at this juncture of time?
(7) What is the main message to you today?
A good part of the Book of Acts contains events that have to do with the struggle by the Jewish Christians over the conversion of Gentiles to Christ. Comments like the following highlight the intensity of their struggle in this respect:
“The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.” (Acts 10:45)
“So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.” (Acts 11:18)
As explained previously, even though the Holy Spirit used tongue-speaking by these Gentile believers to affirm their salvation, some Jewish Christians still insisted they would not have been saved like they were, unless these Gentile believers were circumcised (Acts 15:1).
The problem originated from their fear of the Law of Moses with which they had been brought up from youth. While Paul could break with the Law and its tradition with a clear understanding of the complete work of Jesus Christ who fulfilled every aspect of the Law, not all Jewish Christians were as strong in their faith. We can see that God is patient in bringing such a change in their understanding because even such a change in understanding is part of their organic growth in their faith in Christ. All organic changes are slow by nature.
We witness part of such a change at the end of Acts 9 which precedes the pivotal event of the conversion of Cornelius through the visit by Peter.
Acts 9 ends with these words,
“Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.”
While some Jewish Christians from Jerusalem took issue with Peter for his association with Cornelius, the Gentile, no one seemed to challenge him for staying with the tanner, Simon, who appeared to be a Jew himself.
As a tanner, Simon would be working with animal skins all the time, and indirectly he would be in contact with dead animals. As a result, according to the Jewish tradition, a tanner was considered unclean and the profession was despised, as the Babylonian Talmud states that “Woe to him who is a tanner by trade.”
For Peter to be willing to stay with this Christian tanner was a breakthrough in itself. It reflects Peter’s break with this traditional bias and his understanding that one’s sanctification depends on his relationship with Jesus Christ. Perhaps, Peter stayed there for this very purpose, to help the other Jewish Christians grow in their understanding of the complete work of redemption of Jesus Christ…only to find out in the next chapter that he himself had yet to fully comprehend the full impact of the redemption of Christ which extends to include all peoples of the world.
Organic changes are always slow!