The Book of Acts
Chapter 14
The Story Isn't Over
A Brief Recap on the Story So Far
The Book of Acts
Chapter 1:8
“Wait Upon the Lord”
“It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord”
-Lamentations 3:26
“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.”
-Psalm 56:3
Don’t wait upon
Chance,
Luck,
Coincidences
WE BELIEVE AND WAIT UPON GOD!
Acts 2
“Pentecost - Power of the Holy Spirit”
Trust in God as the source of your power.
9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” [Languages]
Acts 3
Power “In the Name of Jesus”
(“In” connection with)
A beggar who was lame from birth healed by Peter
6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, BUT what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk…
Acts 4
Power in Persecution
17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.” 18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him?
Gamaliel said; 38 “In the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”
Acts 5
Praying Boldly – An angel springs the Apostles from prison as the church prayed.
The Apostles Persecuted
17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. 18 They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. 19 BUT during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out.
Acts 6 & 7
Standing Up for the Faith – Stephan the first Christian Martyr
Acts 8
Simon the Sorcerer
“We Have Jesus”
Acts 9
God brings faith to the hearts of people.
*Ethiopian & *Paul
“Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
-Hebrews 11:6
“… Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…”
-Hebrews 12:2
Acts 10
“Legalism”
Peter’s vision of the large sheet with animals that he is now allowed to eat.
11 He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. 12 It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. 13 Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”14 “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or UNCLEAN.” 15 The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”16 This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven. 17 While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon’s house was and stopped at the gate.
Acts 11 & 12
Trusting the wisdom of God in answering prayer.
James is murdered, and yet Peter is miraculously let out of prison
Acts 13
Being a “Whole-hearted” person
“After God’s own heart”.
9 Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas [Sorcerer] and said, 10 “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery.
“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
-1 Samuel 16:7
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
-Proverbs 4:23
Acts 14
At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. 2 BUT the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. 4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. 6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7 where they continued to preach the gospel. In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed 10 and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk. 11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them. 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to TURN from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them... 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. 18 Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them. 19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20 But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. 21 They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said…27 On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.
Take Home Messages from Acts 14
1. Represent Jesus & the Gospel, not yourself.
2. Don’t let others idolize you.
(It is unhealthy for everyone)
3. Know when it is time to leave others in the hands of God.
(Establish healthy “Boundaries”)
Ie. Paul & Barnabas sometimes stayed in a place and sometimes left other places for healthy reasons as guided by God
It is often (wrongly) said that we humans are animals,
with instincts to;
1. “Fight”
2. “Flight”
HOWEVER, unlike animals, we have a 3rd option;
1. “Fight”
2. “Flight””
3. “Stay” for awhile trying to “Work it out”.
Acts 15
Disagreement: Paul and Barnabas
36 Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
Q: Who was wrong?
A1: Neither, if their attitudes were right.
A2: Both, if their attitudes were wrong.
A3: Paul, if his attitude was wrong.
A4: Barnabas, if his attitude was wrong
If conversation arrives at an impasse or becomes disrespectful, it may be time to “Just agree to disagree.”