Return with me to verse five where I referenced the word “and.” Recall that there were some Pharisees present who “believed.” Still being bound to the Talmud and their man-made rules and regulations, they insisted that Gentile converts be circumcised AND keep (obey) the law of Moses. This became a matter of much debate among the apostles. Though the Lord did away […]

Having returned to the church in Antioch following a long and eventful ministerial journey, Paul and Barnabus have rehearsed everything God had done through them during their first ministry trip. For those attending the meeting, one thing stood out above all else: the conversion of Gentiles. Verses one through six: This passage has been used […]

Paul and Barnabus have been expelled from Antioch for preaching the Word of the Lord, leaving behind in each place a small group of believers for whom God would raise up a leader to guide them. This was at that time and continues today to be the pattern wherever God plants a church. Note it: In God’s church THE PEOPLE […]

Paul and Barnabus, having been sent on their first ministry tour, have set the tone for the Lord’s commanded ministry by shutting down an enemy of the Lord named Elymus. From this point on the world would not be the same as God’s men spread His gospel and displayed His power throughout the known world. Verses thirteen through […]

Barnabus and Saul, having taken food to the famine-affected church people in Jerusalem, have returned to Antioch. Verses one through five: Back together again, the disciples, prophets and apostles set out to find the will of the Lord relative to His ministry. They sought His will by “ministering” unto Him through fasting and prayer. This prompted Him to speak to […]

The Apostle Peter has received a shock to his system–a group of Gentiles have received the Holy Spirit, making them eligible for eternal life. Peter, like so many Israelites, had failed to believe what God had written several times in the Old Testament: “Gentiles will come to your light.” Then, as now, people take from the Scriptures what they […]

Saul’s transformation has brought a semblance of peace to Jerusalem. Saul himself is being accepted by the Lord’s disciples. Now Peter takes center stage in the life of the church. Verses thirty-two through forty-three: In Lydda Peter found a man named Aeneas who had been paralyzed for 8 years and pronounced healing upon him. This caused […]

Ananias the Law-keeper has ushered his new spiritual brother–Saul of Tarsus–into the Christian community in Damascus. From this point on the ministry of the church will change dramatically for the better as God unleashes him on the Jewish nation. Verses twenty through thirty-one: “And immediately Saul preached Christ in the synagogues, proclaiming that He is the […]

Saul of Tarsus, the scourge of all things Christian, has emptied the Israelite capital of all but a few members of the cult that has thrown the Holy Land into turmoil. Determined not to allow anyone to escape his wrath, the popular Pharisee is hunting down the heretics, capturing them and bringing them back to Jerusalem for trial. The […]

After lighting a spiritual fire in Samaria, Deacon Philip has been miraculously transported to Azotus from where he leaves on a preaching trip which ends in the city of Caesarea. But trouble is looming back in Jerusalem where the Lord has instructed the apostles to stay until they receive further orders. Chapter nine Verses one through nine: Saul of Tarsus, the probable instigater of the […]