Lesson 1
Introduction: In Acts 11 the church in Antioch had begun. In this study, the focus will return briefly to Jerusalem, then we will observe as the Antioch church begins its work of spreading the gospel.
I. Caring for the Needy - Acts 11:27-30
>>> Please read Acts 11:27-30. <<< *1* What problem did Agabus predict would occur? He predicted (a) a famine (dearth), (b) Jesus' second coming, (c) a flood, (d) a plague of grasshoppers, (e) a fire, (f) all of the preceding. Answer: ______. *2* What did the Antioch church do about it? Answer: Antioch sent relief to the ______ in Judea. *3* To whom were funds sent? (a) central headquarters, (b) a benevolent society, (c) elders of the churches in Judea, (d) all of these. Answer: ______. Comments: We have earlier read about local churches helping needy disciples (Acts 2:44,45; 4:32-35; 6:1-7). We remember that churches emphasized the spiritual work of helping souls please God. Churches did help the needy, but as discussed in Acts 6, they did not let this divert their focus from their spiritual work. They did this by limiting their benevolent work to needy disciples. Individual Christians helped relatives and other needy people, but local church benevolence was always to brethren in Christ (cf. 1 Tim. 5:3-16). The Antioch church gathered funds, each person giving according to his ability (cf. 1 Cor. 16:1,2; 2 Cor. 9:6,7). The funds were sent to the elders of the churches in Judea. This is our first introduction to the work of elders. We will see later that this term refers to men in each local church who were appointed to oversee the church's work (Acts 14:23; 20:28; 1 Peter 5:1-3). They were mature, experienced Christians who possessed leadership qualifications listed in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. Since these men were appointed in each local church, it follows that each church in Judea would have had its own elders. This in turn demonstrates the concept of independence among local churches. Notice in Acts 11:22-30 that each local church functioned without any central organization or governing body of any kind. The Jerusalem church sent a preacher to Antioch (v22) and the Antioch church spread the gospel (v24-26) without the guidance or control of any missionary board. Likewise, needy members were cared for without the need for any central benevolent institutions. Local churches supervised their own work, but never sent financial donations to any central institutions of any kind. As illustrated here, local churches did cooperate, but only in ways that respected local church independence according to God's will. We will learn more later, but note here that churches sent funds to other churches only in cases of emergency to help needy saints in the receiving church. And even then each church was free to oversee its own work under its own elders. Never did one church or one eldership oversee the work of another church or a centralized work for many churches. We will return later to learn more about this Antioch church.
II. Persecution in Jerusalem - Acts 12:1-19
James Slain and Peter Arrested
>>> Please read Acts 12:1-5. <<< *4&5* Who caused the next persecution, and whom did he kill? Answer: A king named ______ killed ______, the brother of John. *6* What did he do to Peter? (a) killed him, (b) imprisoned him, (c) beheaded him, (d) beat him, (e) all the preceding. Answer: ______. Comments: The Herods were a family of Jewish kings. The Romans ruled Palestine, but they allowed some Herods to remain in power if they were cooperative. This Herod was Agrippa I. Herod raised a persecution against the church, killing James the brother of John (cf. Matt. 4:21,22). This was the first recorded death of an apostle. Herod then imprisoned Peter in the charge of four squads of soldiers. Imagine how severely this would affect the Jerusalem church! Verse 4 in the KJV refers to "Easter," however this has nothing to do with the modern religious holy day of that name. This is a misprint and a mistake in the King James Bible . It should read Passover. (1) V3 calls it the "days of unleavened bread," which was the Passover (Ex. 12). (2) All modern translations say "Passover." (3) The original Greek word is everywhere else translated "Passover." (4) There is no indication in the context that this was a Christian holy day. Why would Herod, as a Jewish enemy of the gospel, have any respect for a Christian holy day? An annual holy day in celebration of Jesus' resurrection is unknown in the Scriptures. In fact, Christians kept no annual holy days of any kind. Instead, they remembered Jesus' death in the Lord's supper on the first day of each week (Acts 20:7). The modern holy day of Easter was originally a pagan holy day, which was later adopted by Catholicism (see any encyclopedia). All annual religious holy days exist without Bible authority (cf. Galatians 4:8-11; 1:8,9; Matthew 15:9,13; 2 John 9-11).Peter's Release
>>> Please read Acts 12:6-11. <<< *7* How was Peter held captive? (a) two chains, (b) two soldiers, (c) guards outside the door, (d) all the preceding. Answer: ______. *8* Who released Peter and led him out of the prison? Answer: An ______ awoke Peter and led him out. Comment: As Peter lay sleeping in the prison, an angel awoke him and released his chains. The angel led him past the guards and out the iron gate, which opened by itself. The angel led him a ways from the prison and then left him. For other examples of miraculous releases from prison see Acts 5:17-25; 16:19-34.Peter Finds the Disciples
>>> Please read Acts 12:12-19. <<< *9&10* Where did Peter find the disciples, and what were they doing? Answer: He went to the home of ______ where people were ______. *11&12* Who answered the door, and what did people say of her story? Answer: ______ answered. When they heard her story, people thought she was ______. Comments: Peter went to the home of Mary, the mother of Mark. Christians had gathered there to pray, presumably for Peter. Yet when he appeared, at first they did not believe the answer to their own prayer! After telling them what had happened, Peter went elsewhere. Next day, Herod and the soldiers were shocked that Peter was gone. The penalty for losing a prisoner in those days was death.III. The Death of Herod - Acts 12:20-25
>>> Please read Acts 12:20-25. <<< *13&14* What caused God to be angry with Herod? Answer: He allowed people to call him a ______, not a ______. *15* What happened to Herod? (a) God killed him, (b) he lived to a ripe old age, (c) his son assassinated him, (d) nothing happened to him. Answer: ______. Comments: Herod made a speech for the people of Tyre and Sidon. To please him, they said he was a god, not a man. God killed him for allowing this, instead of giving glory to God. God is never pleased when people worship religiously anyone but Him (Matt. 4:10). This confirms our previous conclusion that we should not honor men religiously in ways that only God should be honored (Acts 10:25,26). This ends the second major section of the book of Acts. The gospel had been spread from Jerusalem throughout Judea and Samaria. Next we will see it spread to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8).
IV. Start of Paul's First Journey - Acts 13:1-12
(Note: A Bible or Bible atlas with good maps will be helpful in tracing Paul's journeys throughout the rest of the book of Acts.) >>> Please read Acts 13:1-12. <<< *16* Who called Barnabas and Saul to their work of preaching? (a) a missionary society, (b) the Holy Spirit, (c) the earthly headquarters. Answer: ______. *17&18* What two men did they meet on the island of Cyprus? Answer: The proconsul ______ wanted the truth but a sorcerer named ______ opposed it. *19* What was Elymas guilty of? (a) deceit, (b) opposing righteousness, (c) perverting God's ways, (d) all the preceding. Answer: ______. *20* What happened to him? Answer: Paul struck Elymas with temporary ______. Comment: The church in Antioch of Syria had a major role in the work of preaching throughout the world. The Holy Spirit began the work by instructing Barnabas and Saul to go on a preaching journey. They first traveled to Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean Sea southwest of Antioch. There they met a Roman ruler named Sergius Paulus, who wanted to hear the gospel. But a sorcerer named Elymas withstood the truth. The truth has always had opponents, and as in the case of Simon in Acts 8, the opponent in this story was a sorcerer. Note that Saul is called "Paul" for the first time in v9 ("Paul" is the Greek form of the Hebrew name "Saul"). Paul firmly rebuked Elymas for his deceit and error. Sorcery is clearly identified in Scripture as being opposed to truth and based on deceit (cf. Gal. 5:19-21). Faithful preachers have always firmly rebuked error (2 Tim. 4:2-4; Rev. 3:19). Paul did a miracle by striking Elymas temporarily blind. As in Acts 8:5-13, true prophets, who had the power to do true miracles, were perfectly willing to use their power in the presence of unbelievers and false teachers. They did so to validate their message by proving the superior power of true miracles over the power false prophets. Note that not all miracles gave physical benefits to people. Some actually caused problems as punishment for sin. But all served the purpose of confirming a message or teaching to be from God (Acts 14:3). What modern "faith healer" will do miracles today like the one Paul did here? Note that, on the basis of the evidence of the miracle, Sergius Paulus did in fact become a believer.
Comments