Week 31

 Monday, July 28

Acts 5:12-42

 

Commentary

          In the rest of chapter 5, we see the church’s popularity grow as the apostles perform miracles and the church worships at the temple. People respected the believers, but were afraid to join them because of the Jewish opposition (and perhaps the Annanias/Saphira incident as well). Yet folks brought their sick and demon-possessed to the church, so much so that the high priest and Sadducees arrested the apostles for their Jesus-preaching and spotlight-taking. A few months ago, Peter cut off someone’s ear when Jesus was being arrested, now he calmly surrenders to arrest for the second time. God works through our “character flaws,” those traits we pretend are not sinful because we are unwilling to change or uncertain we can change. He will sanctify us if we submit ourselves to his work in our lives.

          An angel miraculously leads the apostles out of prison. Ironically, the Sadducees who sent the apostles there did not believe in angels! The apostles were faithful to do God’s work no matter the cost; God was faithful to keep them in that work until he called them home. Again, the apostles immediately go from being imprisoned to preaching the gospel until they get in trouble! When their escape is discovered, the Sanhedrin sends a party out to arrest the apostles yet again. The captain had to bring them back without violence – the authorities are now aware of how much the people respected the church. When the apostles are tried again, they boldly declared they would continue to obey God and preached the gospel to these hateful enemies.

          In the close of the chapter, Gamaliel, the most famous and respected member of the Sanhedrin of that day, tells the council to pause and take a breath. Showing his wisdom, he notes that other self-claimed Messiahs have risen and fallen, with their followers scattering to the wind. If the Jesus movement was from God, time would prove it. For now, the apostles should just be flogged and released. Time certainly did prove Jesus and his disciples were right. Hopefully, Gamaliel realized that and turned his life to Christ. What about you?

 

Application/Discussion

1. How do you conduct yourself to the lost around you – those in your family, neighborhood, and city? How can you be a brighter light for Christ in your community?

2. Why did the apostles rejoice in suffering for the name of Christ? What does this teach us about the role of suffering in the Christian life?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for the convicting might and bountiful wisdom of the gospel.

Confession: Ask for God’s forgiveness for any shrinking back from obeying to the point of suffering.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for the great spread of the gospel from Jerusalem all the way to you today.

Supplication: Pray for the Holy Spirit’s conviction and boldness for your church to live for Christ, even when it is costly or uncomfortable.

Tuesday, July 29

Acts 6

 

Commentary

As the early church grows, its needs grow as well. The church community was supposed to take care of its widows (see 1 Tim 5) but the Hellenists (Greeks) were not being cared for as well as the Jews. The two groups disputed with each other and, leading the church to keep the peace, the apostles stepped in. They recognized that their primary ministry was to teach God’s Word and pray for the church, so to busy themselves with the care of dozens and dozens of widows would be poor stewardship. Instead, the apostles told the church to appoint seven godly men to help in the widow care so these women would be provided for and the church’s preaching and praying would not suffer or lessen. The church appointed these men, even wisely selecting Greeks, to serve the widows and the church continued to receive God’s blessing.

This gives us the foundation of the office of deacon in the church. The twelve apostles are serving the Jerusalem church as elders/pastors, leading and teaching the church. They direct the church to recognize men to serve in the practical needs of the more vulnerable members, yet it is the church, not the apostles, who appoint these men. The church sets these men before the apostles, who charge them to their ministry by laying on hands and praying. The pastors lead the church. The deacons serve the church. The congregation simultaneously leads, in deciding its deacons and pastors, is served by its deacons, and is led by its pastors. When we miss these building blocks of the church and its offices, we dishonor God and deprive ourselves of great blessings for our church.

God blesses one of the proto-deacons, Stephen, in a mighty way in wonders and word. Angry Jews rose up against him, unable to understand God’s truth in his words, and soon Stephen, too, is brought before the Sanhedrin. Stephen’s face appears angelic, perhaps like Moses’ face shone after being with God, and he prepares to give a great sermon about Jesus the Savior.

 

Application/Discussion

1. Why was it important that the apostles were not tasked with taking care of so many windows? Why was it important for the church to choose and the apostles to bless servants for them?

2. How does your church reflect what we have seen in Acts so far? Do you have pastors who devote themselves to faithful preaching and prayer? Do you have deacons who serve the widows? Do you have church members who care about who leads them and how they work alongside them faithfully?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for showing his love and care through imperfect vessels like us.

Confession: Ask for the Holy Spirit’s help in serving your church and living for others, not yourself.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for your pastors and deacons by name.

Supplication: Pray for the Holy Spirit’s encouragement and comfort to the widows and homebound in your church.

Wednesday, July 30

Acts 7:1-29

 

Commentary

          Today we see Stephen’s apologetic (defending) sermon to the Sanhedrin when they question him. Stephen does not object to the charges, even though they were partly false. Instead, he addressed the council as family. Stephen tells the truth of the gospel, from the beginning of God’s covenant with Christ. The council knew the Scriptures better than anyone, yet they had missed that salvation comes through God’s forgiveness and that the Christ would be a suffering Savior. Stephen recounts the lives and faith of Abraham, Joseph, and Moses and notes how God preserved them. All of these heroes of old, however, still faced death. Even the best of Israel’s leaders were just men, fallible, mortal men whose bodies lay in the grave. The story of redemption is not about these men, or the temporary ways they worshipped God, but God himself and the Son of Man who was to come.

Patrick Schreiner explained, “Stephen is accused of disrespecting the temple and law, and responds with an argument about the temporary nature of the temple and the rejection of God’s prophets through history. Stephen stands in the long line of righteous sufferers: Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and Jesus Himself. Stephen’s speech displays God as unable to be contained within the temple. Jesus now stands in the true temple in heaven, and [spoilers for tomorrow] Stephen sees Him as he dies.”[1]

Like Abraham, Joseph, and Moses tried to follow God even though it was costly, Stephen put his own life on the line for Jesus – Literally! Moses tried to initiate God’s justice on his own terms and failed miserably; Stephen trusted himself in God’s hands and found paradise moments later.

 

Application/Discussion

1. Aside from the examples Jesus gave, how else does the Old Testament point us to Christ?

2. How does Moses’ example of both disobedience and faithfulness encourage and convict you?

3. How would you rather live – trying to do things and find happiness your own way, or doing things God’s way and finding his blessing?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for the perfect testimony of His Word

Confession: Ask God’s forgiveness for any ways you have fallen short of his goodness today.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for Jesus’ humble submission to slander, torture, and death for our salvation.

Supplication: Ask for the Holy Spirit’s help for your church members to boldly witness for Christ in your community and his strength for persecuted Christians around the world.

 

Thursday, July 31

Acts 7:30-60

 

Commentary

Today’s reading concludes the witness of Stephen. He continues to detail the life of Moses. God chose Moses, who was exiled both from the Israelites and his adopted Egyptian family, to lead the people out of Egypt. David was a “man after God’s own heart,” one favored by God who set his heart on God. David wanted a temple worthy of the worship of his great God, and his son Solomon built it later. As grandiose the description of the temple is, think about how insignificant even that seems for God to dwell. God was never confined to the earthly temple – he dwells in heaven – but manifested himself on earth for his people.

God ultimately dwelled (literally, “tabernacled” or “tented”) among his people in the Incarnation of Christ. With Jesus, we do not have to try and accommodate our worship to God’s perfect splendor; he humbly came down as a man. Stephen’s words were harsh and painful – he attacked their entire identity and called them murderers. Yet they needed to hear this. As John Calvin explained, “from the feeling of our own ignorance, vanity, poverty, infirmity, and—what is more—depravity and corruption, we recognize that the true light of wisdom, sound virtue, full abundance of every good, and purity of righteousness rest in the Lord alone.”[2] Rather than repenting, the religious leaders became angrier, even screaming to drown out his words. Finally, they stone Stephen to death and he is received into heaven. The first martyr, the first person to die for the faith, has now been killed by an illegal, backdoor execution, yet even through that, he prayed for his attackers salvation.

 

Application/Discussion

1. What does the witness of Stephen teach us about following God and what priorities to set in out lives?

2. Why did the Sanhedrin members become angrier and scream rather than reason with Stephen?

3. How does Stephen’s exposition of the Old Testament show us that we need God’s help to understand his Word?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for showing his glory by convicting and converting his enemies.

Confession: Ask for God to help you love, listen to, and live out his truth even when you do not want to.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for the paradise that awaits believers because of the work of Christ.

Supplication: Pray for the Holy Spirit’s conviction and enlightenment to those who violent’y persecute the church.

Friday, August 1

Acts 8:1-25

 

Commentary

In today’s reading, we meet one of the most consequential people in history. Saul (Paul) will eventually come to write 13 letters to the early church and spread the gospel throughout the Roman Empire. Here, he holds the coats of those who stone and kill the innocent Stephen. This persecution scattered the Christians to all corners of the Roman Empire – a brilliant way that God used this evil to bring about the spread of his word to all the world. We will return to Saul soon, but for now, the scene shifts to another proto-deacon, Phillip.

Acts 1:8 is being fulfilled. From Jerusalem, the gospel is going with these fleeing Christians to the ends of the Roman Empire and here, Philip is sharing the gospel with the Samaritans. Simon was a magician who amazed everyone in Samaria for quite some time. We do not know if he had demonic influence or simply cheap party tricks, but after claiming faith in Christ he recognizes that the power of the Holy Spirit is fair greater. The Samaritans found something better than an egotistical parlor trickster; they found Christ, the real man of God! Meanwhile, when Peter eventually comes to Samaria, Phillip receives the rebuke he deserves. God’s power is not ours to harvest for our own gain. He asks for Peter to pray for him, but he does not mention personally praying. Like the rich young ruler, Simon appears to be someone working his way to God when that will never work.

 

Application/Discussion

1. Peter and John did not have money to give, but they had the gospel. Even to someone crippled and in poverty, the greatest help possible is to hear about Jesus. How can you work to share the gospel with those around you?

2. Although our sins sent Jesus to the cross, God wants to forgive and bless us rather than destroy us if we repent of our sins. What does this say about the satisfaction of God’s wrath against sin on the cross? How does this relate to situations where we are wronged and want to take revenge or withhold forgiveness?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for his loving, forgiving, redeeming grace and mercy.

Confession: Ask God’s help in making the gospel the greatest priority in your relationships.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for his perfect, complete forgiveness and future glorification for all believers.

Supplication: Pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance for your church to love and reach out to the lost in your community.

Saturday, August 2

Acts 8:26-40

 

Commentary

In today’s reading, Philip is drawn by the Spirit down towards Gaza. Phillip was busy and “successful” in Samaria. Perhaps he may never have gone out to the desert near the ruined and uninhabited city and bumped int/o it. Philip meets an Ethiopian eunuch, someone who is a far cry from home and a great vehicle to spread the gospel even beyond Judea and Samaria. A eunuch was a castrated man who served female royalty, as he was less of a “threat.” He happens to be reading Isaiah in a passage that perfectly describes the gospel. The eunech comes to faith in Christ and Philip baptizes him. Generally, baptism would be more tied to the church, but here, these are the only two believers for some distance. However, the eunech could now bring the gospel back all the way to Ethiopia.

This concludes Phillip’s role in the New Testament, but God used him in a significant way. Patrick Schreiner explained, “Both Samaritans (8:4–25) and the Ethiopian (8:26–40) are outcasts and have an uncomfortable relationship with the temple: Samaritans rejected the Jerusalem temple and eunuchs could not even pass the court of the Gentiles. But God refused to be bound by temple obstacles. The Lord declared He would gather the dispersed of Israel and still others “besides those already gathered” (Isa. 56:8).”[3] God grants salvation to anyone with a sincere interest in him. He is not the God of the Jews or the Americans or those born to Christian parents. Further, God’s work isn’t to gain attention or notoriety, it’s to glorify him. How is your life? How does it glorify God?

 

Application/Discussion

1. When God is leading you somewhere, go! It is more uncomfortable to stay still in fear than to jump out in faith.

2. Why should baptism come after a confession of faith and not before?

3. Why should we be cautious about whether new believers are truly saved?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: Praise God for his great grace, mercy, and love, as displayed in the gospel.

Confession: Ask for God’s help in proclaiming the gospel to everyone around you.

Thanksgiving: Thank God for the help of the Holy Spirit.

Supplication: Pray for the Holy Spirit’s conviction and enlightenment of lost person you know well and for opportunities to witness.

Sunday, August 3

Acts 9:1-31

 

Commentary

Today’s reading gives us Saul’s Damascus Road encounter with Jesus, perhaps the most famous story in Acts aside from Pentecost. Saul viciously seeks leads to find even more Christians to persecute; he was zealous to destroy what he saw as a blasphemous cult. As he js on his way to Damascus, Jesus appears to him as a brilliant light. (Witnessing this appearance of Jesus is why Saul could be an apostle according to the definition of Acts 1.)  Jesus essentially tells Saul to just go to the city and do what he wants. Saul did not find Jesus, Jesus found him. Saul was not arresting Christians, he was arrested by God. He was blinded and had to be led to the city. At some point before he regains his sight, he puts his faith in Christ and thus is welcomed as “brother Saul.”

When God speaks to Annanias, he is wary of Saul. He had become known as one of the most vicious of the Sanhedrin. God assures Annanias that he is using Saul in a mighty way to reach the Gentiles, so Annanias embraces Saul in faith. Saul then proves himself a genuine and trustworthy believer. Saul was baptized and became deeply involved with the Damascus church, preaching in the local synagogues until his zeal gets him driven out of town. When he reaches the Jerusalem church, people are understandably afraid, but Barnabas, a godly man and future companion of Saul, needs only the Holy Spirit to trust and accept this new believer. God used this zealous, bloodthirsty Pharisee to reach the everyday Jews and Gentiles for Christ, what a lesson in humility! (PS, notice that Saul never receives a new name here. Paul is simply his Gentile name, and Paul spent most of his ministry in heavily Gentile areas.)

 

Application/Discussion

1. Saul had everything a person could ask for – education, financial means, fame, and a true passion. He abandoned it all to join the very group he hated, one that regarded him as a terrorist, only to find incredible suffering and poverty. Saul had his priorities right! How does Saul’s radical conversion encourage you to live for Christ?

2. Saul and Annanias both gladly embraced each other – this kind of love for the saints is a mark of salvation. Do you love God’s people? How can you better encourage and serve your fellow believers at church this week?

 

Points of Prayer

Adoration: How can you praise God based on what you just read?

Confession: Is there unconfessed sin in your heart today?

Thanksgiving: How can you thank God based on what you just read?

Supplication: What can you ask for God’s help with based on what you just read?

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[1] Patrick Schreiner, The Visual Word: Illustrated Outlines of the New Testament Books, ed. Connor Sterchi (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2021), 47.

[2] John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, ed. John T. McNeill, trans. Ford Lewis Battles, vol. 1 & 2, The Library of Christian Classics (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011), 36.

[3] Patrick Schreiner, The Visual Word: Illustrated Outlines of the New Testament Books, ed. Connor Sterchi (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2021), 47.