(1) Luke ended the account of the Jerusalem Council without mentioning the believers who belonged to the Pharisees. Judging from the outcome of the Council, and the wording of the letter (see v. 24 in particular), what might their reaction be?
(2) Who were sent to deliver the letter (see v. 22) and how did the (gentile) believers in Antioch receive the letter? Again, what can you learn about resolving conflicts within the church?
(3) What prompted Paul to have the desire to embark on his 2nd missionary journey? What began as a ministry with good intentions quickly soured into a fierce division:
a. What was the cause of such a division?
b. Who’s right? Who’s wrong?
c. In your opinion, how should Paul and Barnabas have approached their difference in opinion?
d. Do you sense that the church had taken sides? (see v. 40)
e. In his last letter before his martyrdom, Paul mentioned John Mark again in 2 Timothy 4:11. What does this tell you?
f. What were the results of this conflict? Name one positive aspect and one negative aspect.
g. Do you think Romans 8:28 applies here? Why or why not?
(4) What is the main message to you today?
Part of the beauty of the Bible is its honesty. Luke, as led by the Holy Spirit, would not hide the fact that the highly respected leaders of the early church were human, just like you and me. Luke used very strong language to describe the heated dispute between Paul and Barnabas over whether they should accept John Mark back to join their 2nd missionary journey.
Luke did not give us the reason why John Mark left their first journey, nor did he tell us, in this case, which of Paul or Barnabas was right. It means that Luke did not take sides; he would let time and history to be the judge. Or rather, he would let God be the final judge.
In any case, the result was devastating to both parties and to the church.
Paul and Barnabas parted their ways. Barnabas took the original route and headed back to Cyprus, his hometown. Paul took a different route and in the opinion of many scholars, he simply could not follow the original route without Barnabas. What was he going to tell the churches, which they had helped to establish, and the believers whom they had helped convert. What would Paul say if they asked, “Where is Barnabas? Why is he not with you?”?
And what was the impact on this mission-minded church in Antioch? Well, Luke only recorded that they prayed for Paul, and he did not mention prayer for Barnabas! How would the new believers react to their heated exchange? When they saw their two beloved leaders part ways, what would it do to their faith in Christ? Luke was silent, but it does not take a mental giant to imagine the devastating impact it had on the church and the believers, both new and mature.
Since we know nothing of the details surrounding this incident, it is impossible for us to take sides, and we shouldn’t anyways. But two things do stand out to me:
(1) Through many of the epistles written in the latter part of Paul’s life, including 2 Timothy 4:11, we have come to understand that Paul did not only accept John Mark, but he considered him a very useful helper indeed. Time does heal ― for in time Paul changed his mind, and John Mark did not hold any grudges toward Paul for his initial rejection. They set an example for us regarding reconciliation.
(2) Perhaps too, Paul should have understood where Barnabas was coming from in his decision to take John Mark with him. His nickname was the son of encouragement. True to his name, he took the risk of accepting Paul (who was Saul) in Jerusalem when no one believed in him. What he did for John Mark, he first did for Paul.
I do think the way Luke retold this incident to us also serves to teach us the following:
(1) Do not be alarmed when good Christians, even when very good Christians fight. After all, we are human.
(2) Do not take sides, unless the dispute has to do with basic doctrinal issues, like salvation through Christ alone. Otherwise, allow time to heal.
(1) We are introduced to Timothy for the first time in Acts. Together with 1 Corinthians 4:17 and 2 Timothy 1:5, what do you know about Timothy and what is there about him that might impress you most?
(2) We just finished reading about the controversy about circumcision in the last chapter, and now Paul chooses to have Timothy circumcised. Was he not contradicting his own principle (especially given his teachings in Gal. 5:2-6)?
(3) Read 1 Corinthians 9:20-23. Does it help you understand his action in Lystra about Timothy?
(4) How many times was Paul stopped by the Holy Spirit here? Does it mean that we should not exercise our mind to plan and strategize? What is the most important message here?
(5) It was through a vision that Paul and his team eventually steered away from the mainland to set sail to the more important Roman city of Macedonia and later on to the main Greek cultural city of Athens. Why would God use a vision to get across His plan to Paul?
(6) Please
reflect on your own journey in seeking life’s direction from God. What can you
learn from Paul’s experience in this segment of Scripture?
(7)What is the main message to you today?
It is interesting to read that even the Apostle Paul needed the Spirit’s intervention quite a few times as he embarked on his 2nd missionary journey.
I am sure that Paul would have maintained a very disciplined spiritual habit of praying, waiting and reading the Word of God constantly, as he sought to grow in his knowledge of God and His will, especially in the carrying of his mission from heaven. He knew that he had been given the all-important mission to reach the Gentiles, and his current trip was a very important part of that mission. It was so important that he would not allow anything to interfere with it. That was probably the reason why he exercised extreme prudence in selecting his team members, to the point that he would not allow John Mark to join in.
Paul was obviously a brilliant strategist and had great spiritual insight. So, it appeared that he desired to reach Asia Minor, and especially the city of Ephesus, a very important city of the region. As it turned out, the church of Ephesus became indeed, the most important church in the region for many years to come. But in God’s own timing, it was not the right time for Paul to evangelize that city yet. So, as much as Paul recognized the strategic importance of the city, God knew what the best timing was. Therefore the Spirit had to intervene directly to steer Paul in a different direction.
We were not told how the Spirit conveyed His direction to Paul, but it would be safe to assume that it was during Paul’s time of devotion. The Spirit revealed His plan to him not once, but twice. It speaks volume of Paul’s sensitivity to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It does not take away the need to plan and strategize, but it does highlight the need to leave room for the Spirit to override our otherwise sound, spiritual judgment.
It is also interesting to note that after these changes of plan as guided by the Spirit, it took a special vision for Paul to understand not only where not to go, but where he should be heading next, and that was Macedonia.
I understand that we admire these wonderful spiritual experiences of Paul, but such experiences were not meant to be “enjoyed” by Paul nor for Paul’s own benefits. They were purely for the work of mission. Many who are obedient to the call of God in giving themselves fully to the gospel ministry would testify that they have had similar experiences, not because they are better Christians, but because of the urgency and significance of the work of God’s kingdom.
It is worth noting that it was at Troas that Luke changed the narrative from “they” to “we”, indicating that he joined Paul’s company here. The apparent lack of a synagogue indicates that the gospel had yet to reach the Jews here, and the few who gathered for prayers included a gentile woman, Lydia, from Thyatira in Asia Minor (Rev. 2:18-29).
(1) What did Luke attribute the conversion of Lydia to and how did she manifest her true conversion?
(2) What was the slave girl shouting about and why?
(3) Since she was, in a way, testifying about the gospel and who Paul and his company were, why did Paul stop her?
(4) If Paul did not stop her and people came to believe in the gospel on the strength of the slave girl’s testimony (or rather the evil spirit’s), how would the people look upon fortune-telling?
(5) What did Paul’s action of driving the spirit away prove?
(6) This passage gave us insight into the anti-Semitic sentiment of this Roman city (which might explain why there was no synagogue and that they had to meet near the river to pray).
Barrett “suggests that Paul and his companions were accused of illicit proselytizing.” (TICC, Acts, II, 790) If you were in a country that prohibits proselytizing, should you or should you not obey the local law? Why? What would Paul have done?
(7) What is the main message to you today?
I have come across incidents where Buddhist monks or nuns attempted to reach out to Christian churches, with the notion that we are really the same and all religions somehow lead to the same God. Some Christian leaders appeared also to welcome them with open arms.
Paul’s treatment of the slave girl in Acts 16 should help us guard against such misguided enthusiasm.
When you think about it, the slave girl was actually doing Paul and Silas a great favor on the surface. The two were foreigners introducing a brand new faith to this pagan city. The slave girl was not only known locally, but quite sought after too. Therefore, it would not seem to hurt Paul’s cause when the slave girl (or rather the demon or evil spirit within her) testified to who Paul and Silas was. She told the people, “The men are servants of the Most High God.” Not only that, she appeared to give credence to their message: “(they) are telling you the way to be saved.” (16:17)
The hearers who revered the slave girl and her spirit would have no problem welcoming Paul and Silas and their message because of her testimony. But Paul would have none of that. In the name of Jesus, he drove out the evil spirit from the slave girl. One might wonder why Paul would choose to do this. The reason, in fact, is not hard to understand.
In 2 Corinthians 6:15, Paul strongly preached against the unequal yoke between believers and the world, and in so doing he said, “What harmony is there between Christ and Belial (i.e. demon)?”
In testifying about who Paul and Silas were and what their message is, the evil spirit was hoping that the people would not only believe the gospel message, but would also remain loyal to him. In other words, the evil spirit was trying to elevate himself to the level of God, and was hoping that the people would not take Christ as the only way to salvation.
But God would have none of that. There is no room for coexistence between God and demons or idols. By driving the evil spirit out of the slave girl in the name of Jesus, Paul proved to the people that there is only one true God, and there is also only one true way to salvation, which is through Jesus Christ.
I do understand that even Buddhist monks need to hear the gospel, but we should guard against being manipulated into sending a wrong message to the people that Christ and Belial can be in harmony!
(1) What did Paul and Silas go through prior to v. 25? What kind of condition were they in?
(2) In such a condition, would you be praying and singing hymns in the middle of the night? How can you explain why Paul and Silas could do so?
(3) The owners of the slave girl and the jailer all saw miracles - the former had the driving out of the evil spirit within her and the latter saw the breaking loose of chains. Which do you think is a bigger miracle?
(4) What was the reaction of the slave owners and why?
(5) What was the reaction of the jailer and why?
(6) Read v. 31 carefully and try to understand its meaning. Why did Paul say that?
(7) What aspect of the faith of the jailer might you be most impressed with and why?
(8) Why did Paul exert the right of his Roman citizenship? Was it for their own sake as retribution, or for the sake of those who have become believers? What do you think?
(9) What is the main message to you today?
We are often puzzled by what Paul and Silas really meant when they said to the jailer, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved — you and your household.” (Acts 16:31)
We often use this verse to encourage others (and ourselves) that if we become believers in Christ, our entire family will eventually come to believe in Christ as well, and therefore be saved. Is it the real meaning of this verse? Is this a promise given to us so that we can have confidence that one day, every single member of our family will come to Christ?
From the plain reading of this verse in the original language, it appears that “believe” and “saved” are both directed to the entire household. This means that it is not so much a guarantee of the salvation of an entire household, but that as each member of the household responds in belief, they will each be saved.
However, the scripture often tells us that as the gospel was shared, the entire household did respond together in believing in Christ and as a result the entire family was saved. It happened in the case of this jailer clearly, and it appeared that it also happened to the entire household of Cornelius in Acts 10.
And in my own experience as a Christian and as a pastor, when one person in the family became a Christian, gradually and eventually everyone in the family would one by one come to faith in Christ as well. I have seen this happen over and over again in the majority of the families I have had the privilege to minister to. The fervent prayers of their Christian members within the family were heard, sometimes after many, many years. God is indeed faithful.
However, I have also witnessed a few families whose Christian members also prayed very fervently and tried for years to reach their non-believing members with the gospel. In the end, these non-believing members did not come to Christ, not even at their deathbed. Yes, we may never know whether these non-believing members did accept Christ in their coma until we get to heaven. But it would not surprise me that some of them did reject Christ till their last breath.
My own interpretation of this verse is that it is probably not meant to be read as a promise of “family salvation”, but since “God so loved the world that He had given us His only begotten Son, so that whosoever believeth in Him will not perish, but has everlasting life” (Jn. 3:16), our prayers for the salvation of our loved ones are certainly prayers that we pray according to His will. There is no reason why He would not answer our prayer for the gift of the Holy Spirit in the life of our loved ones. (Lk. 11:13)
However, a gift has to be received in order to be ours. The ultimate decision to receive or reject this greatest gift of love in Jesus Christ still rests with our loved ones, and ultimately too, we have to yield to the sovereignty of God.
(1) Throughout these two missionary journeys, we often read that God-fearing Greeks were among the listeners at the Jewish synagogues. What do you think was the uniqueness of Judaism (the beliefs in the OT) that has attracted so many gentiles to the Jewish faith?
(2) Why were they also more receptive to the gospel than the Jews themselves?
(3) It appears that persecution is a given throughout Paul’s missionary journey. If it were you, would you carry on this journey?
(4) In 1999, there was a global missiological conference in Brazil, and one of the findings of the conference was that today’s missiology lacks a theology of martyrdom and suffering. What do you think? How should it change our mindset about mission strategy, both short and long term?
(5) “On arriving there (i.e. Berea), they went to the Jewish synagogue” (v. 10). What does this tell you about Paul and Silas?
(6) What can you learn from the attitude of the people of Berea in terms of how you should read the scripture? Is this your attitude today?
(7) What is the main message to you today?
As we seek to learn from the Bereans who, upon hearing the message of Paul, examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true, I invite you to reflect on this familiar prayer by John Wesley, and see if we can learn from him as well as we approach the reading and hearing of the Word of God:
“Here then I am, far from the busy ways of men. I sit down alone: only God is here. In His presence I open, I read this book; for this end, to find the way to heaven. Is there a doubt concerning the meaning of what I read? Does anything appear dark or intricate? I lift up my heart to the Father of lights — Lord, is it not Thy word, ‘If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God’? Thou ‘givest liberally and upbraidest not’ (James 1:5). Thou hast said, ‘If any be willing to do thy will, he shall know’ (John 7:17). I am willing to do: let me know thy will. I then search after, and consider parallel passages of Scripture, ‘comparing spiritual things with spiritual’(1 Co. 3:13). I meditate thereon, with all the attention and earnestness of which my mind is capable. If any doubt still remains, I consult those who are experienced in the things of God; and then, the writings whereby, being dead, they yet speak. And what I thus learn, that I teach.”
(1) Why was Paul distressed in the city of Athens?
(2) Was there a city that you know of today that might be similar?
(3) Are you distressed with the city where you live? Why or why not?
(4) How did Paul deal with his distress?
(5) In reading this passage, you may get a sense that the Greeks were both superstitious and intellectual. How can you reconcile this apparent contradiction? What might be common between superstition and philosophy?
(6) Luke’s summary of Paul’s message gives us a very good model of how to present the gospel to people totally foreign to our faith. Let’s analyze his message and learn from him
a. Did Paul attack their superstition directly?
b. How did he refer to their superstition in a positive way and turn it around to point to the gospel?
c. How did he contrast our God with theirs?
d. What common ground did Paul also use as a springboard to the gospel?
e. Did Paul talk about sin and repentance? How?
f. How did Paul end his message?
(7) Was Paul’s message effective?
(8) What can you learn from his gospel presentation?
(9) What is the main message to you today?
Paul’s first visit to Athens must have been very puzzling to him. With Paul’s intellectual flair, he would have expected to engage in philosophical debates with people of this learned city. To his apparent amazement, what he saw were “forests of idols”, in addition to schools of philosophy. How can one reconcile such an apparent contradiction? Idol worship is necessarily superstition, and philosophy is necessarily based on human reasoning. How could the two co-exist in the city of Athens?
When you think about it, superstition and philosophy thus have one thing in common. They are based on human speculations. The superstitious speculate as to which gods might be real, and the philosopher also speculate about the meaning of life and the source of the universe. Because they are both based on human speculations, they both end up in futility.
The gospel of Christianity, on the other hand, is entirely different, because it is a revealed religion, meaning that it is God who takes the initiation to reveal Himself to us. It is because He, the Creator God, is so great and we are creatures so small in comparison that even the brightest of us humans cannot fathom the ways of God, let alone God Himself. Worse, because of our sinfulness, our inner sight has been blurred to the point that we cannot have the proper vision of who God is
God knows our plight and our hopeless search for Him on our own. Therefore, He has chosen to reveal Himself to us, not just through His marvelous creation pointing to the existence of the Creator, but through His words in the Bible, and finally through the incarnation of His Son, Jesus Christ. Now, the unknowable is knowable, but only if we would humble ourselves and acknowledge both our creatureliness and our sinfulness, repent and believe in His Son. If we do, we will not only come to know Him, but have everlasting life. (Jn. 6:47)
The church in Corinth, as we all know, caused Paul much grief. It was a proud and morally corrupt church. Luke records the beginning of this church in Acts 18.
(1) Paul was a maker of tents, and now in Corinth, he engaged in his trade. Read 1 Corinthians 9:13-18 to get a sense of why Paul chose to work. What can you learn from Paul’s attitude?
(2) V. 5 in the NIV reads, “When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching…”
What can you learn from this verse?
(3) Why did Paul react so vigorously in v. 6? How can you describe his feeling? Was it warranted?
(4) Was the vision a response by God to his feeling? Why or why not?
(5) How did Paul respond to the vision?
(6) What is the main message to you today?
Just imagine there was no church in Corinth, and the two letters to the Corinthians did not exist! (Scholars already agree that there should be three letters to the Corinthians from Paul. One of them was lost.)
If this were the case, we would only read of great churches like the ones in Philippi and Ephesus. We would read about how harmonious the first churches were, how zealous unto death they were for the gospel. We would read of Paul’s commendations of their purity, faith and love. By any comparison, we would feel that we can never measure up to the lives of those saints in the first century. In fact, we might even doubt if we could call ourselves saints at all.
But, with the two letters to the church in Corinth, we have come to understand that the first churches were not all pure and rosy in health. There were proud churches which would even challenge the apostleship of Paul. They would pitch one preacher against another. They took pride in human knowledge. They were divided churches. They would sue one another over money. They would sin and tolerate sins within the church. They would despise the poor and eat of the Lord’s Supper without regard to its sacred meaning. They caused huge interruptions of services because some took pride in their tongue-speaking. And the list goes on and on.
And yet, Paul did not abandon them. He prayed for them; he wrote to them and he continued to call them saints. Why? Because that’s who they were and who we are. These letters to the Corinthians do not only give us hope, but they also give us practical guidelines on how to live out Christian love and continue to be effective witnesses for Jesus Christ.