1 Corinthians 5-8

Paul addresses disorder in the church and tells them to expel the immoral brother.  Flagrant and repeated sin is what is being addressed.  To "hand this man over to Satan" mean to exclude him from the fellowship of believers.   Without the spiritual support of Christians, this man would be left alone with his sin and Satan, and perhaps this emptiness would drive him to repentance.    "That the sinful nature may be destroyed" states the hope that the experience would bring him to God to destroy his sinful nature through repentance.  Paul really doesn't want anyone to perish, but to see the light.

Paul didn't think that there should be lawsuits among believers.  Why should a non-Christian person, judge a Christian relationship.  Disagreeing Christians should not have to go to a secular court to resolve their differences..why should we turn to those who lack God's wisdom?

In verses 6:9-11, Paul is describing characteristics of unbelievers.  He doesn't mean that idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexuals, thieves, greedy people, drunkards, slanderers or swindlers are automatically and irrevocably excluded from heaven....Christians that persist in these kinds of practices with no sign of remorse will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Our bodies belong to God...we don't have the right to do with them whatever we please because Jesus bought us back for a price (redeemed)...According to my study Bible, Christ's death freed us from sin, but also obligates us to his service.

Paul then gives instruction on Christian marriage...basically, it is OK to be single like Paul is.   But if you are going to "burn" with lust, get married and contain it within a marriage relationship    Paul urges believers not to regard marriage, home or financial security as the ultimate goals of life....the burdens of this world keep us from doing God's work.

Paul talks about Christian freedom....we should not use our freedom to make a brother stumble.

1 Corinthians 1-4

Paul begins his letter to the church in Corinth.....this is a major cosmopolitan city...the most important city in Achaia...due to the foreign influences coming in to the seaport city, there was a lot of idolotry and immorality.   There were temple prostitutes for the pagan religions and worship to the goddess Artemis.

Paul opens his letter using "Christ" 10 times in 10 verses, so that people know where his power is coming from.  He addresses divisions in the churches...people were fighting about which leader was better than another leader.  I suspect that is what our different denominations are all about today.   Paul says to boast in Christ alone.  He takes this from Jeremiah 9: 23-24.

Paul tells people that there is spiritual maturity from the Holy Spirit...He quotes Isaiah to show that the Spirit reveals to those who accept Christ.   Divisions tear things down...

If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.


That's you and me!!!!!

Paul tells the people to imitate him...this is not a conceited thing, but to imitate what he does in Christ.   Paul announces that he is sending Timothy to remind them of Paul's way of life in Jesus Christ.  Timothy's role was to see that Paul's advice was received, read and implemented.  Then he was to return to Paul and report on the church's progress.

Acts 18:19-19:41

And so begins the third Missionary journey....We meet Apollos, a Greek......people would probably listen to one of their own....Apollos had not heard the whole story.  He knew only of the Baptism of repentance that John preached.  Priscilla and Aquila, Paul's tent maker friends, graciously taught the rest of the story to Apollos and he believed and continued to do great things for The Way.

God did some extraordinary miracles through Paul Scripture tells us....but then some Jews tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus improperly (they probably used all the idol gods in addition and were adding Jesus' name as an extra) and the evil spirits turned on them and beat them....this caused people that practiced the evil arts to bring there scrolls of spells to be burned, and this renouncing of the evil arts cause the word of the Lord to spread

Meanwhile, Paul travels to Ephesus.  This is in modern day Turkey (how fitting after Thanksgiving-LOL).  This is a huge center of worship of the fertility goddess Artemis....she apparently fell down from the Heavens.  The Gentiles worshiped her likeness in little silver statues.  A silversmith named Demetrius got his nose out of joint because his income was slowing down with all this talk about worshiping Jesus, so he started a nice little riot.  People showed up at the assembly without really even knowing why they were there and the City Clerk had to bring order so that they would not get in trouble from the higher up Romans.


Do you prefer Artemis the huntress, or Artemis the fertility goddess with many many breasts????

2 Thessalonians

Paul has to write another letter, about a month after he wrote 1 Thessalonians.  This letter was to clear up the confusion about the second coming of Christ.   According to my study Bible, many in the church were confused about the timing of Christ's return.  Because of mounting persecution, they thought the day of the Lord must be imminent, and they interpreted Paul's first letter to say that the second coming would be at any moment.  In light of this misunderstanding, many persisted in being idle and disorderly, with the excuse of waiting for Christ's return...

Paul explains that several events must occur prior to Christ's return.  He writes in Chapter 2 that the Anti-Christ has to rise up and proclaim himself to be good.  Right now the power of lawlessness is at work, "but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way"...Scholars believe this to be the Holy Spirit or the church.  Essentially, Satan is going to counterfeit God, and God will send people a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie.

We aren't to worry, because verse 13 tells us that from the beginning God chose you (you and me) to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit.    GOD PICKED US TO BE ON HIS SIDE!!!!!!  Can you actually fathom that??????   Chapter 3:3 tells us that God will strengthen us and protect us from the evil one.

And finally, what I just love is the rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat!!!!....Wonder how the welfare system fits with that?    I do know that Methodists stand for social justice, because there are those that need it and Scripture tells us that there will always be poor among us...my comments go to those who abuse the system.....

1 Thessalonians

This is one of Paul's earliest letters.  He loves the church of Thessalonia.  He was not able to return to it, so he sent Timothy to it to encourage them.  Timothy brought back a good report to Paul.  This was a very young church that needed to mature in its faith.  Believer's were also being persecuted.....the persecution was ugly and Paul understood it because he had once been one who was doing the persecution.

Because this was such a populated city, there were others that brought sexual immorality into the culture.  Paul wanted to make sure that the church understood that they were to stand firm from this.  Do you think we have any of the same influences today?  We are to live as good citizens in a sinful world.   We are all to be prepared for the second coming of Christ because Christ could return at any moment. Those Christians who had died in the faith will be resurrected.

If you look at Chapter 4, you will see where the concept of the Rapture comes from.  It is never mentioned specifically as The Rapture, but the word "caught up" comes from the word "rapturo" in the Greek.  I have a footnote in my bible associated with ..."will be caught up together with them in the clouds"...to Acts1:9....this is where Jesus ascended into Heaven and a cloud covered him.....those of us that have studied Revelation with Beth Moore have been exposed to the many different theories associated with the Rapture....just remember that it is not a saving issue, so try not to get caught up in it.

Paul closes with some final instructions for Christian living.

Thessalonians overview from Patricia

Thesselonian Overniew

Posted November 27, 2010 by Patricia in Book Overviews, Thesselonians. Leave a Comment

We are reading 2 books today!  I am sure you paid attention that one of the towns Paul visited was Thessalonica.  Paul founded a church there after a very brief visit on his second missionary journey.  In the Macedonia area, this town was very large, second to Athens, with a population of about 200,000.  Why was this town so crowded?  Remember when I described several times the “Dispersion” (Diaspora) after the Jews were released from exile, well this area was very wealthy and rich in culture so many Jewish descendant migrated there rather than back to Jerusalem.  However it seems the church was predominantly Gentile.

This is a time of great persecution to the believers.  There were zealous Jews, and Roman authorities that would torture a believer in Christ.  I remember hearing once a story in church about Christians were dipped in tar, tied to stakes and then lit on fire to light up the gardens in the Palaces.  Professed believers in Christ risked being stoned, beat, crucified and tortured.  Paul knew this well  since he once sat on the council that voted FOR it.  He now stood on the other side of the Cross.

This letter was to encourage the believers of Thessalonica AND to assure them of Christ’s return.  Actually, Christ’s return will be mentioned over 20 times in just todays’ read.  Paul gives us a way of living that will prepare us for the Second coming of Christ with exhortations and ends with benedictions and prayers.

We have a hope.  Not we hope, we have A HOPE that Christ will come back and we as believers will spend an eternity in his presence.

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Acts 17-18:18

And they traveled to Thessalonica....wonder what two books in the Bible are going to come from this?  And Paul went to reason with the Thessalonians in the synagogue...the Jews got all bent out of shape and formed a mob (reasonable little group aren't they?) and Paul and Silas were thrown in jail.  Jason, whom we don't know much about, posted bond for them.  I suspect he was their host.

They moved on to Berea.....I love this group because they were "of more noble character than the Thessalonians"  and they examined the Scripture every day to see if what Paul said was true.   THIS IS WHAT WE ARE SUPPOSED TO DO.......THIS IS WHY IT IS SO VERY GOOD THAT YOU ARE READING YOUR BIBLE TO GET ACQUAINTED WITH WERE THINGS ARE AND WHAT GOD'S PROMISES ARE!!!

Paul moves on to Athens and found a city full of idols.  He used a very reasoned approach with the Epicurean :(if it feels good do it) and the Stoic (all about harmony with nature and reason) philosophers.  Paul built a case for the one true God.  I love the part that says (God)  "determined the times set for them and the exact places they should live"  This is us!   We are where God wants us to be....and he centered on the resurrection......he was told, "We want to hear you again on this subject" and some followed Paul

Paul moves to Corinth where he met Aguila and Priscilla who were tent makers like Paul, by occupation.  God had equipped Paul so that he could earn money when he needed to.  Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia and Paul began to preach again.....The Jews still opposed Paul and Paul dismissed them and moved on to the Gentiles (yay!).  The Lord appeared to Paul in a vision and told Paul to continue with the mission...

Just a reminder that Luke, our Gentile doctor is the author of the book of Acts.

Galatians 4-6

Paul talks about how Jesus came to redeem (purchase back) us out of the slave market from our bondage of sin.  Paul was highly concerned for the Galatians and wanted them to imitate his consistency and liberty in Jesus, not to tie back to the bondage of Jewish customs.  Hagar and Sarah were the bearers of two sons of Abraham.  the Judiazers were saying their father was Abraham, and Paul reminded them that Abraham had 2 sons.  One was the child of a bondswoman (slave), and the other was a child of the promise (for eternal life).  The covenant from Mount Sinai is where Moses received the Law.   But the Jerusalem that is above is free...this is the New Jerusalem in Heaven.  Paul says to Get rid of the slave woman and her son because the Law and Grace can't live together as Christian Principles.

There is freedom in the Gospel...at this point if the Galatians get circumcized, they are putting themselves back under the Law, because this is the evidence of the covenant of the Law....."As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!"   Yikes, Paul!  Harsh?    Actually, Paul wishes they would be cut off from the congregation of the Lord because of the mutilation (Deuteronomy 25:1).  Life by the Spirit is not cohesive with the sinful nature; they are always conflicting in us (I won't tell you who is winning in me today!!!!)
...The fruit of the Spirit is the spontaneous work of the Holy Spirit in us....

We aren't supposed to get weary of doing good...."at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up"...This is such a beautiful promise.....We are to be representatives of Christ on this earth...the Holy Spirit in us will help us...

And what is up with the marks on Paul's body? Most commentators think that in 2 Corinthians 11:23-25, Paul describes his physical suffering for Jesus' sake.  What he endured was plenty enough to leave scars, marks of the Lord Jesus....some wonder about a stigmata...marks just like Jesus Christ's and also in the military at that time, they branded you for loyalty.

Galatians 1-3

Paul wrote this right before the Jerusalem Council met....the Judaizers who taught that Gentile believers must obey the Jewish law in order to be saved were dealt with in this letter.  Paul, of all people, himself a Pharisee, persecuted Christians and followed the Law judiciously.  His revelation via Jesus Christ was that the Law did not save; the law condemned.  You cannot earn your salvation by good deeds; we are saved by Christ, by faith alone.  It is grace.   The good works, as James taught us are simply evidence of our faith.

This gospel alone saved...the twisted gospel did not.  Jesus' work on the cross was sufficient for salvation.  Paul even opposed Peter when he would not eat with the Gentiles.  Paul called him out in Galatians 2:11 and accused him of being hypocritical.  Peter was afraid of what those that were circumcized would think.    See, even a great leader can be flawed.

Paul discussed the superiority of the gospel by talking about Abraham....."the Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham:  All nations will be blessed through you"..  Abraham was saved by faith, NOT the law.  "Justify" means to be in a right relationship with God; to declare innocent or guiltless.

You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.   If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise

Acts15-16

I am going to give you Patricia's blog today, because she followed a really good commentary that would be great for you to read if you find the time.  It is in the comment section.

Acts 15-16

Posted November 23, 2010 by Patricia in Acts. 4 Comments

Circumcision goes all the way back to Genesis 17.  After Abraham was given the promise of the Messiah through the Covenant, then God instituted the Covenant of Circumcision.   God required His people to be circumcised as an obedience, as a sign of belonging to His covenant, and as  a sign of “cutting” off the old life of sin.  It was EXTREMELY important to the Jewish people to be circumcised.  

So we are about 20 years into the existence of the church and about 10 years since the Gentiles have been considered Christians.  So where does Jewish Law fit?  Well back in chapter 10 and 11 we confirmed the Gentiles did not have to be circumcised,  that Faith was all that was required.  So here we are having Paul dispute the debate at the Council in Jerusalem.  Do Gentiles have to adhere to the Law of Moses.  A unanimous decision was made that the Gentiles did not have to adhere to the Law of Moses .

Paul’s Second Missionary Journey

 Take note to the fact that they started in Antioch and when they got to Lystra the direction changed, because Paul and Silas followed the Holy Spirit.  From Lystra it is assumed that they were originally headed for Ephesus but God detoured them to spread the Gospel even further!  I encourage you to look up some of the history of these towns. (Galatia is the Lystra,  Derbe,  Iconium area and Macedonia is the top left corner.  Philipi is where Paul and Silas were in prison (incredible story) and then through Athens  and Corinth (think about that…Athens, all that Greek philosophy and steeped in culture and art, must have been some tough preaching going on!) and then finally to Ephesus.  Aren’t you glad God detoured them, they had tons of converts along the way but at least we know about Lydia, the slave girl,  and the jailer and his whole family!  Amen.

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1. Posted by Nicolle on November 23, 2010 at 9:26 am

   I have two questions:

   1. Why did Paul circumcise Timothy in Acts 16:1-5 if they had just told everybody (via the letter of the Jewish elders/coucil) that Gentiles did not have to be circumcised? Was is so the Jews in that area would be more likely to believe if he followed Jewish law?

   2. Why would a spirit make the slave girl say that “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” (Acts 16: 17 & 18). I have assumed this was a demon b/c Paul made it leave her but that confuses me b/c of what the girl was saying. Also, I have always thought that only God knows the future; that not even satan or his demons were privy to that…so is it possible that this was a “good spirit”? Or are my assumptions wrong?
2. Posted by LJH on November 23, 2010 at 10:39 pm

   I found the commentary on Biblegateway to be very helpful in this passage….great questions too! check out the following for some interesting perspective.

   http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Acts/Witness-Philippi
3. Posted by Patricia on November 24, 2010 at 8:18 am

   Good question Nicolle. Look at the whole paragraph, his mother was a Jewess but his father was a Greek. What a mark in those days! Even though Paul knew Tim did not have to be circumised, he had him do it for acceptance. It would have been a huge barrier that would have led them to concentrate on that and not ever listened to what Tim had to say. I think this is a HUGE lesson that God wants to teach us. When we witness for the Lord are we so blind to others feelings that we think “Well, this is the Gospel and this is me and if they don’t like it….that is their problem”. No. Our number one concern is spreading the Gospel to the Lost and if we have to change some stuff about us that is not that important…than we should do it. Who in your life won’t listen to your words? What can we do differently?
4. Posted by Patricia on November 24, 2010 at 8:21 am

   Question 2. Yes it was a demon…all the demons immediately recognize the Spirit. See the demon was using it for profit in the woman. Like today, have you ever seen a pastor use pointing to God to line his pockets with money….good grief, turn on the TV (not all of them….but there are some.

James

The author of this book is the brother of Jesus...he was a leader in the Jerusalem church..it was written prior to the Jerusalem council which was held in AD50....they ended up addressing things like, did the Gentiles have to follow the Jewish law....The audience for this epistle was persecuted Christians who were once part of the Jerusalem church.

James tells his audience that you can't just hear the Word...you have to be a doer of the Word.  Do good deeds save you?  No...however, they are evidence of your faith.  

The themes of his letter deal with Living Faith, Trials, Law of Love, Wise Speech and Wealth....

Chapter summary:

Chapter 1      Confident Stand          What a Christian has
Chapter 2      Compassionate Service  What a Christian does
Chapter 3      Careful Speech           What a Christian says
Chapter 4      Contrite Submission    What a Christian feels
Chapter 5      Concerned Sharing      What a Christian gives

But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do....

....so, faith without deeds is dead.

My study Bible also points out that James offers a larger number of similarities to the Sermon on the Mount than any other book in the New Testament....

Acts 13-14

I think we need a little dose of Patricia from Jersey today:

Posted November 21, 2010 by Patricia in Acts. 3 Comments

Since reading Acts I am sure you have all been moved by the Holy Spirit to push the Gospel forward and talk to someone that does not know the way to Salvation about Jesus. (Ok, maybe maybe not, but I am praying you will)  So suppose someone said to you (or you said to yourself).  “what is the Bible about? How do you know Jesus is real? And How do  the Jews fit in and how do the rest of us fit in to the plan…oh and How do you get to Heaven”  DON”T fret! Just grab  your Bee Eye Bee Ell EE and read off Chapter 13!  It has it all.  The history of the Hebrews, Sin, The COVENANT,  Jesus, the Resurrection, The fulfillment of prophecy, the rejection from the  Jews and opening door for the Gentiles.  Yup, so tattoo the name Acts 13 in your brain for that moment when you don’t know what to say in that moment of evangelism that usually scares the bajeebees out of you.  Or just memorize 13:39!

Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.  Acts 13:39.

OK, you ready?  Saul is now Paul.  Yeah!  A decade of learning for him has passed in our reading so far and he is with the Encourager Barnabas.  Barnabas was the Jewish Leader (converted) that first took Saul/Paul in after “seeing the light”.  Man I can spend a million years on this topic.  Be  a BARNABAS to someone new in the Word!  Look at the difference it makes…uhhhh PAUL!  Sorry…I sooo digress!   Let’s look at the journey this is sooo stinkin cool. 

In the Old Testament, God allowed the Hebrews to be captured and put into exile for 70 years (I think it was 70) Anyway, then the Persian leader Cyrus released them back to Jerusalem they scattered instead (called The Dispersion or Diaspora)  The temple being far from the scattered regions the Jews created synagogues to teach their children in.  It was not a replaced temple, just a place to learn and study.  People would come from far on the Sabbath and they would always ask the strangers visiting to speak…opening the door to Paul’s Ministry.  Are you seeing God’s Plan as this HUGE perfect Puzzle without a gap!

Look at this.  This map is just the FIRST MISSION TRIP!

They are in the south area of Galatia…see it?  Ummmm I am going to  guess we might be reading GALATIANS soon!

  Anyway, an incredible read.  I was completely convicted on what I may have done.  Do you realize that the men were thought to be Zeus the god himself!  The world is at their fingertips at that very moment.  WHat would you have done?  They could have said “Yes I am a god” Instead they continue on and get stoned to the point that they were assumed dead!  Man it must have been pretty bad.  And they stand up and say “NEXT!” Man I give up on the lost wayyyyy too fast.  Ugggggg I want to throw up.

Cliff note about the Zeus/Hermes part: 

In Greek mythology, it was common for the “gods” to come to earth in human form, though they did not always do so for the good of man. The people in Lystra had a legend that once Zeus and Hermes had visited their land disguised as mortals, and no one gave them any hospitality except for one older couple. In their anger at the people, Zeus and Hermes wiped out the whole population, except for the old couple. No wonder the people of Lystra were so quick to honor Paul and Barnabas!

Hermes was known as the messenger of the gods, so it made sense to the Lystrans that Paul (the more talkative one) would be Hermes.

“The crowd’s use of Lycaonian explains why Paul and Barnabas did not grasp what was afoot until the preparations to pay them divine homage were well advanced.”

Paul appeals to the crowd to recognize the true God instead of worshipping Paul and Barnabas

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1. Posted by Penny on November 22, 2010 at 9:58 am

   Boy, oh, boy, isn’t Acts 13 incredible?! Yes, I’ll get another tattoo. 

   Time for a question: Acts 13 explains that Paul went to a synagogue on the sabbath to speak to the Jewish people about the Word. I’m assuming that he spoke on the sabbath in a synagogue, not because he actually kept the sabbath, but because the same knuckleheads that wanted to crucify Christ were still keeping the sabbath b/c they didn’t understand the fulfillment of the law. Therefore, Paul knew where to find people that needed to hear the message. Is that right? See Acts 13:32.

   Glad Paul and Barnabas realized they were only men. I also like what Paul and Barnabas explained about God in Acts 14:16, “In the past, he let all nations go their own way. yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” It’s true that God is so very patient!!!!

   Isn’t is cool that Paul was stoned yet did NOT die?

   Thanks for the heads up about Galatia. I was so wrapped up in other ideas that I would have completely and totally missed that.

   I’m thinking that Acts might be one of my favorite books. I’m learning way more about Psalms while reading Acts than I did when we read the Psalms.
2. Posted by Patricia on November 22, 2010 at 10:17 am

   Ok, read Acts not from man’s eye but from God’s. What is God doing? (not man). The answer is Spreading the Gospel. The Covenant in Genesis 12 is for ALL nations. God is using his army (believers) to spread the Word of the Messiah. Example: Why did Stephen have to get stoned to death? It was horrible. BUT look at the ripple effect…it caused the scattering of the disciples. When we are scattered the WORD is being brought to the ends of the earth. So now let’s look at the synagogues. Created DURING the Hebrew captivity and then used after the Dispersion (Diaspora…otherwise known as the release of the captivity) How is God putting all the pieces together. He now has set up a vehicle (like we can use the internet) to spread the Truth. The Synagogues had a tradition of allowing the NEW SPEAKER in town to take the podium. Thus we saw Jesus there reading Isaiah and now God has instituted a way for His Disciples and Paul to Spread the Word. Synagogues were used in a mighty way, first to reach the lost Jews, then to be Churches to the believers.

   Acts might be your new favorite today but wait till you read some of the Letters…good grief! Galatians is going to knock your socks off this week.
3. Posted by Erica on November 23, 2010 at 8:58 am

   I’m not sure I understand 13:39. What exactly could you not be justified from by the law of Moses?

   I’ve been playing catchup after a busy week last week and the girls retreat. I’m happy to finally read about Paul! I knew from sermons and small group discussions that he killed Christians but I never knew why. Now I do!

   
   

Acts 11-12

When Peter brought the news of Cornelius' acceptance of Jesus Christ back to Jerusalem, the believers were shocked the Peter had eaten with those nasty old unclean Gentiles.  They proceeded to handle something they didn't understand very maturely...they asked questions of Peter and heard him out.  This is what God wishes us to do.

The church in Antioch, Syria played a more important role in the early church than any other city according to my study Bible.  After Rome and Alexandria, Antioch was the largest city in the Roman world.  In Antioch, the first Gentile church was founded, and there the believers were first called Christians.

King Herod arrests Peter to persecute him and other Christians....the church prayed for Peter in prison and he had a miraculous escape with an angel leading the way.

Herod dies a horrible death because he didn't give praise to God....an angel of the Lord struck him down and he was eaten by worms and died.  The word of God continued to spread.  Barnabus and Saul had done a mission trip and they returned from Jerusalem and took John Mark (our Gospel of Mark) with them.  This is the one who was mentioned fleeing in fear and so that he left his clothes behind.

Acts 9-10

Saul is converted...this persecutor of "the Way" was taking prisoners.  Jesus approached him in an amazing way as they approached Damascus....A light from heaven flashed around him and Jesus said:

Saul, Saul why do you persecute me???  I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting!

Hello??????





Jesus had plans for this man..he was to be the instrument to carry His name before the Gentiles.

After this experience and recovering his sight, Paul began to preach and people were amazed at this "turn around".  Those nasty little Jews decided to kill him, too, but Saul escaped.  Even the disciples were skeptical of him, but Barnabas stood up for him and his witness.  There was a period of peace as the church strengthened.

We focus in on Peter, who heals on his way to stay with Simon the tanner.    This is a big deal because tanning involved contact with dead animals, and Jewish law considered it an "unclean" job.

We meet Cornelius...he is a Roman centurion; though he was of the oppressing ruling party, Scripture says he followed God.  An angel appears to him and tells him to bring Peter to him...meanwhile Peter has a vision in which God teaches him that things under the Moses law are no longer unclean under the new covenant of Jesus Christ.....Even Peter has to struggle with the change in the traditional law.  He is summoned to Cornelius, and normally Jews couldn't even go into a Gentiles home...God is showing Peter that he can't call any man impure or unclean.   Peter preaches the Gospel to the Gentiles...this is HUGE......Peter points out that the Gentiles have received the Holy Spirit just as the Jews have....even major followers of Jesus must remain teachable....

Acts 7-8

At his accusation from the High Priest, Stephen gives a long speech about Israel's relationship with God.   I loved taking my highlighter to the Old Testament and referencing this part..I think this will make it so much more relevant when I re-read the Bible again...Stephen showed that historically, Israel rejected God's message...Stephen didn't defend himself...Isn't it wild that Stephen is accused by the religious leaders, of the very same thing that Jesus Christ was.

Stephen points out that the people were still circumsizing their children as a sign of the covenant with God...God kept his side of the bargain like he promised he would do, but the people continued not to.  They would be obedient if they followed the Law.

Stephen had been accused of speaking against the temple (6:13).  Although he recognize the importance of the temple, he knew that it was not more important than God..l.God is not limited; he doesn't live only in a house of worship, but wherever he is received.  The people stoned Stephen for this...this is Old Testament Laws (Leviticus 24: 14, 16).    Stephen saw into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.....we meet a man named Saul...He is going to be HIGHLY INSTRUMENTAL in the rest of the New Testament.



Stephen is the first martyr who died for the Christian faith.  Persecution begins.

The church begins to spread as a direct result of this persecution....people are scattered throughout Judea and Samaria as written in Acts 1:8.....Saul begins to destroy the church......we meet Simon the Sorcerer.....he was doing amazing acts that weren't as a result of God's power...Philip, one of the 7 picked earlier, baptized Simon because he believed once he was properly taught the Gospel....Peter and John wanted to come and see Samaria (this was a place that the full blooded Jews hated.   During the Assyrian captivity, only the weak and poor Jews were left behind, and the land was settled with foreigners.  The foreigners married the weak and poor Jews, and were considered half- breeds)...Jesus commanded that the Gospel be taught there.  Now normally, the Holy Spirit will come to you when you believe, but this was a special event in which the Holy Spirit was delivered by the laying on of hands.   Simon wanted to buy some of that power and was rebuked....He understood the rebuke and "took it like a man".  Philip then proceeds to Ethiopia as directed by an angel and converts a eunuch who served Candace, queen of the Ethiopians.  He desires to be baptized and is, fulfilling the last part of 1:8 to "witness to the ends of the earth"....then POOF the Spirit of the Lord takes Philip to Azotus where he can begin witnessing to the Gentiles....keep in mind that the Apostles still didn't know if the Holy Spirit could be received by a nasty old Gentile....the old Law wouldn't even let a Jew in the presence of Gentile's home......

Acts 4-6

Here come the lovely religious leaders that were OH so concerned about their appearance and authority....how dare Peter and John talk about the risen Christ????  The Saducees didn't believe in the resurrection, only the Books of Moses, so they were particularly threatened.  Peter gets filled with the Holy Spirit again, and points out that Jesus Christ, whom this group crucified was raised from the dead and quotes Psalm 118:22...He proceeds to tell them that Salvation is found ONLY through Jesus Christ..

The religious leaders command Peter and John to shut up, and Peter and John reply that they only listen to God in this matter, not man.   Peter and John go back and report this to the new church, and the Believer's Prayer comes from this....Psalm 2: 1,2 is referenced.  They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and that place was shaken....they spoke the word of God boldly (not reckless impulsiveness, simply courage to press on).  The Believers all share their possessions (no this is not Communism; they gave only what they wished and it was voluntary and was not a membership requirement to be part of the church).  Annias and Sapphira get in trouble not because they were stingy, but because they lied to God and God's people-they said they gave the whole amount trying to make themselves look more generous than they really were.  Serious punishment:  Death!  

The apostles heal through Jesus' power..this shows that the Jesus that ascended had power that was now with his apostles.  The apostles are persecuted, and God freed them from jail...they got flogged but considered themselves fortunate to have shared in suffering like Jesus did.

Now the new church is growing so fast that they begin to have internal issues (ha!  You think we are the only church that does????)......the food distribution to the poor (widows) was not fair...the apostles figured out they they needed to give some administrative tasks to be delegated while they continued to spread the word....Keep note of Stephen, one of the godly men that is a powerful evangelist......big stuff in the next chapter.

Acts 1-3

The author of Acts is Luke, our Physician.  The purpose of the book of Acts is to give an accurate account of the birth and growth of the Christian Church...Acts begins with Peter's ministry....God had plans for Peter, and clearly forgave him for claiming he didn't know Him.

Notice that the disciples begin to be called apostles.  A disciple is a follower, but an apostle is a messenger.  We learn that Jesus made many appearances for a period of 40 days and then he was taken up to Heaven....this was very important for the apostles to see.....angels tell the apostles that Jesus is going to return in the same way He left...this is why people think Jesus will appear on Mount Olive.

Matthias is chosen to replace Judas...Peter quoted Psalms 69:25 and Psalm 109:8 as the basis for doing that.

And chapter 2 is where the Holy Spirit arrives.  Pentecost is first found in Leviticus 23:15-16.....

1)  a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from Heaven
2)  tongues of fire separated and came to rest on the people
3)  They all began to speak in tongues

Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit preaches that the men are not drunk and quotes Joel for identifying what is happening (Pentecost was predicted)...Peter does some serious witnessing..He quotes from Psalm 16:8-11 where David talks not about himself, but of a prophet who would be resurrected.   The people were deeply moved and wanted to know what they could do and the Acts 2 church is born.  The Holy Spirit is going to help to get the word out that Jesus Christ is Lord and that they witnessed the resurrection and ascension of Him.  Pentecost means Day of Harvest....3000 believers came in that day.  The New Testament church was born that day.

Peter then heals a crippled beggar...Peter gives the credit to Jesus and cites the prophesies of Psalm 22, Isaiah 50:6 and Isaiah 53....all prophets had pointed to this day....click on the link below for a creative presentation of Pentecost...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoiXpNbgrbs

Luke 24; John 20-21

And the Gospels are drawn to a close.....Jesus appears in His resurrected form to various people.  They are eye-witnesses of the resurrection and the central tenant of our Christian faith.  John was there and called himself, "the disciple that Jesus loved"......it was not easy for everyone to believe this resurrection.  Jesus understands their hearts..a denial is different than a doubt.  If a doubt makes you research or look closer to something, it is good.  Since Jesus conquered death, we too as believers will have resurrected bodies.  Jesus' body had flesh and blood, after all he ate with disciples to teach that He was not a ghost.  However, he could appear and disappear.  He could keep himself disguised, and then open peoples' eyes.   Jesus was especially kind to Peter because He probably knew how worthless Peter felt for denying his dear friend and teacher, 3 times.   Note that He asked Peter 3 times if he loved Him.  He made Peter face his feelings and as we'll soon see, Jesus had great plans for Peter to grow the church.

Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit into the disciples.....this was a foretaste of Pentecost which we'll read about in Acts I.   Remember how God breathed the universe into existence.....and how He breathed life into Adam.....Note how the Scriptures were opened to the disciples for understanding......that is what the Holy Spirit does....that is why Scripture to a non-believer is "stupid".....now, we won't get instant scholarly understanding when we read the Bible sometimes, but the Holy Spirit gets us to commentaries, or people like Beth Moore or our Pastor to begin to help us understand.

This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down.  We know that his testimony is true.


....and we will read more about an ultimate vision of this very disciple when we get to Revelation.

Question:  do you have a favorite Gospel and why?

Matthew 28, Mark 16

Jesus rises from the dead......this is the central point of our Christian faith.  This is so huge, it isn't even funny.   Jesus conquered DEATH...we WILL be resurrected, too...notice that Peter is mentioned by name in Mark's gospel.....you know that Peter was hating himself for betraying Jesus.....he did an unforgivable thing and Jesus forgave him because he knew Peter's heart, and just you wait to see the plans that Jesus has for Peter.

As we go forward, take note of who Jesus reveals himself to....there will be witnesses to this resurrection so that no one can refute it.

Jesus appears to Mary and to two believers traveling on the road...none of them believed it.  Jesus appears to the twelve and rebukes them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.......remember even Peter and John had run to the tomb per John's account.....Jesus understands his followers and loves them, because they were not doubting to be faithless...they simply didn't get it.....the Holy Spirit was not in them yet to counsel them.

The Great Commission:

This is for everyone..not just the Jews...."to all creation" is to whom the message goes.  Great signs and wonders will witness the message, so that people may know it is from God.

Matthew's gospel talks about a great earthquake when Mary and Mary went to the tomb.....don't you think Mark would've noticed that????  I dunno, maybe it was like a sonic boom that some people feel and others don't :-)....in all the gospels, we see that the stone has rolled away from the grave....this is so people could see inside!  One thing I had never noticed was that Jesus tells the disciples to meet him in Galilee before he died....the disciples were so afraid of the political climate, that they didn't go...they stayed indoors and hidden.

Religious leaders were so afraid of Jesus' resurrection that they bribed soldiers to say that the disciples came and took Jesus' body in the night....God knew how this was all going to play out.....

We have a Great Commission from Matthew's account and I just love:

And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age......That's a promise, folks.....

Can you believe that tomorrow is the last day of reading the Gospels?  We are in the homestretch of reading the Bible in a year!

Jesus Paid It All with lyrics

Jesus Paid It All with lyrics

Jesus Paid It All

Click on this and be blessed!

http://youtu.be/O3o3DiMVdOI

Luke 23; John 18-19

I love Scripture where it dead out says:  "This fulfills what is written in...."  I have a highlighter that I cross reference with and it is going to be so cool to look at that when I start doing this again next year.   I sincerely hope I'll be able to remember some of these details.   I know that since it is the Living Word, that God will use his own highlighter on us to teach us something he has targeted for us.   Our job is to remain teachable and to be equipped to share this Gospel....I had to give you Patricia's blog, Bonnie, because this is only her second time reading this and I imagine that you will connect with it...your questions are soooo awesome.....
Oh, one last thing, when Jesus says, "It is finished", the same word means, "Paid in full"....dang if I didn't get chills on that one, and it reminded me of a song I like at the 8:30 service where we sing, "Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe."   And it struck one of Patricia's readers and she has the lyrics below.

Posted November 13, 2010 by Patricia in John, Luke. 3 Comments

Luke and John.  Luke will write in detail because it is the nature of Luke to do so, being a physician and all.  John on the other hand,  was THERE (at the Cross)  and will write according to his eye-witness account so it will be graphic .  But what you can gather from both was there were Stages of Jesus’s trial.

• Preliminary hearing by Annas.  why?? Annas was the Prior  High Priest.  High priests were supposed to hold the position for life but Annas was replaced in 15 A.D. instead.  The Roman’s appointed Annas’s son-in-law into that position named Caiaphas.  remember him?  When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead he said “uhhhhh I think it is time for Jesus to go! he is getting way to politically powerful”.  Annas, according to the Jews,  was still considered the “official” high priest because of law AND the Jewish council also probably considered him in the “Good Ole Boy” club…know what I mean.  BUT Annas was smart enough to pass it on to Caiaphas…..
• Caiaphas.  Still this pre-trial was done at night.   This was yesterday’s reading in Matthew 25:57 when Caiaphas charges him with blasphemy without the proper witnesses and sends him to the Roman Governor Pilot to carry out the death sentence.
• Pilate (Luke 23).  They changed the crime in front of Pilate and declared that Jesus called himself a King, King of the Jews.  This would be treason and against Caesar.  However, Pilot found him not guilty and sent him to Herod.  Who is Herod again??
• Herod.  Still have your Herod Family Tree handout?  This Herod is Antipas, the same one that killed John the Baptist.  Herod was in Jerusalem for the Passover.  He was in charge of  Galilee and Perea.  So Pilot sent him to Herod since Jesus was from Galilee.  The Herod brother who should have been in place to rule Judea was removed years ago from position (Pilot governed instead) so Pilot sent Jesus to Antipas.  Herod may have been a drunk fool but he was not idiot…he sent Jesus away too.
• Back to Pilate.  Pilate tried but eventually hands him over to be crucified.

I guess for me it was the layering of the NT on top of the OT.  Maybe it’s because it is my first time reading all of it together but I love the BIG picture.  I loved figuring out things like the Jews could not enter Pilate’s house because he was a Gentile and they would have been ceremonially unclean.  Or the RUSH to get Jesus off the cross because the sun was setting and you cannot work past sundown….small things like that AWE me!

Finally, how awesome was it to see our seeking friend Nicodemus be so bold now in his Faith.  WOW.  He went from sneaking in the night to caring for his public body.

Some of you know this is my second time ONLY  reading the Gospel and I am granted an opportunity to dig a little deeper.  One of the cool reveals this year was Luke 23:43 “Today you will be with me in Paradise”.  The Greek word is Paradeisos.  This word is used several times in the original scriptures.  First, referring to the Garden of Eden! (11 times in the OT)   Then here in Luke and in 2 Corinthians 12 but finally in Revelation!  Revelation 2:7 

 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

That is where this sinner went…on his profession of faith of Jesus being Lord!!! Can I get an AMEN!

I know we looked at Isaiah 53 yesterday but note that when Jesus calls out in “Father into your hands I intrust my Spirit and breathed his LAST breath he was speaking a fulfillment of Isiah 53:12!

I just cannot handle all this!

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1. Posted by Anonymous on November 13, 2010 at 11:06 am

   Amazing Love—
   “I’m forgiven because You were forsaken
   I’m accepted, You were condemned
   I’m alive and well, Your Spirit is within me
   Because You died and rose again

   Amazing love, how can it be
   That You, my King, should die for me?
   Amazing love, I know it’s true
   It’s my joy to honor You
   In all I do, to honor You

   You are my King
   You are my King
   Jesus, You are my King
   You are my King”

   …..This song kept playing in my head after the reading today…so I thought I would
   share it.

   Jeanie
2. Posted by peggy on November 13, 2010 at 9:58 pm

   Yes what a great song Jeanie !!

   Father, into your hands I entrust my Spirit…..AWE ………………
3. Posted by Helen on November 14, 2010 at 10:06 pm

   We sang this at Church today. How appropriate for todays read! There has been so much for the past few days…Reading what JESUS said has really spoken to me this time. No mattter how many times I read it, it always appears fresh and new……..and WHAT A BLESSING to know that JESUS prayed for us…I keep going back to John 17:20. Thank you Erica for pointing that out. Also gotta say that I loved the passage where Jesus tells the thief on the cross , “Today, I will be with you in Paradise. Folks, he is taking to us…What a promise we have to be in Heaven with our Lord and Savior!

   JESUS PAID IT ALL

   Jesus paid it all,
   All to Him I owe;
   Sin had left a crimson stain,
   He washed it white as snow.
   For nothing good have I
   Whereby Thy grace to claim;
   I’ll wash my garments white
   In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb.
   And now complete in Him,
   My robe, His righteousness,
   Close sheltered ’neath His side,
   I am divinely blest.
   Lord, now indeed I find
   Thy pow’r, and Thine alone,
   Can change the leper’s spots
   And melt the heart of stone.
   When from my dying bed
   My ransomed soul shall rise,
   “Jesus died my soul to save,”
   Shall rend the vaulted skies.
   And when before the throne
   I stand in Him complete,
   I’ll lay my trophies down,
   All down at Jesus’ feet.