Study 22, Acts 11:19-30

By -
8. What was the relationship between the churches in Jerusalem and Antioch (see 11:22,27-29)?
  • Antioch was under the authority of Jerusalem.
    On previous occasions (8:14; cf. 9:32) the leaders of the church at Jerusalem had sent representatives to follow up mission work outside the city
  • Antioch was richer
 Consider our relationship with those with whom we have a complex relationship - because we are older or higher in secular or spiritual authority, but compared to whom we are disadvantaged in other ways. It takes grace from both sides to navigate this well.

9. What laudable traits do Barnabas and the Christians at Antioch show in 11:19-30? 
  •  Barnabas was glad to see the gospel received even though it was unfamiliar territory
  • He prioritized the spiritual well-being of the new converts and exhorted them personally
  • 'a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith'. "no other man is described by Luke as good in Acts, and in his spiritual gifts he stood on a level with Stephen" (Marshall)
  • He looked for talent.
  • He committed himself to the Antioch church as a teacher.
The Christians from Cyprus and Cyrene did not restrict their witness, but saw that the Gospel was needed by all. They witnessed even though they were in a new location. God approved of their attitude and action and enabled their witness.
  • The Antioch church was generous.

 
10. Look back at your answers to questions 1–9. What one insight from 9:1-31 and 11:19-30 would you like to apply to your life? How will you apply it?

  1. For Thought and Discussion: What was the Holy Spirit’s role in the events of 9:1-31 and 11:19-30? (Look carefully at the text.) How are your observations relevant to your life?
  • So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”  (9:17). 
  • And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied (9:31). The Spirit strengthened the believers through the evident work of God in their midst.
  • And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.(11:21). The Spirit mediates the power of God to His church. The "hand of the Lord" refers to His powerful action. (cf. 13:11, Lk 1:66)
    When he came and saw the grace of God...(11:23).     The Spirit mediates the grace of God to His church
  • for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith (11:24) The Spirit also works through individuals.
  • And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit  (11:28)  The Spirit leads in specific ways.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Study 9 ("Reach out to people")

By -
1 Cor 9:1-18 is Paul’s defence of his apostleship to a difficult church. He insists from commonsense (v.7-8), Scripture (v.8-10), natural justice(v.11-12) and Jewish custom (v.13) that he is totally entitled to material support from the Corinthians. However, he refuses to exercise this right, and takes pains to ensure that mentioning his right is not misunderstood as an attempt to exercise it. He is concerned for the purity of the gospel, which must not be sullied by greed on the part of the preacher. He will never be put in a position where his integrity is compromised by accusations of personal gain by his preaching (v.15). He will “boast” that he can present the gospel free of charge. Here we made a note that boasting is not necessarily a bad thing. Boasting that takes glory away from God and directs it to ourselves is wrong (1 Co 1:29), but boasting about one’s weaknesses to glorify God’s provision (1 ), God’s people (2 Co 1:14), and our ministry enabled by God (Ro 15:17ff) is...
Read more

Study 5. Acts 2:14-42

By -
 3. Peter says that the babble of languages is a sign of something greater than drunkenness. What does the sign demonstrate (see 2:15-21)?  God's work. Fulfillment of prophecy of the Spirit's outpouring, and the opportunity for salvation.   4. Next Peter recounts the key facts of Jesus’ life (see 2:22-24).  a. How could the Jews have known that Jesus was a special person sent by God (see 2:22)?   ' mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst' b. How did Israel respond to Jesus (see 2:23)?  ' you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men '. The teachers of the Law had acted contrary to the Law in causing Jesus to be killed by Gentiles. ' delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God ' cf. Acts 4:28 -  a powerful affirmation that God's permissive/decretive will is often fulfilled through the breaking of His revealed/prescriptive/preceptive will.   c. What was the crucial event of Je...
Read more

Study 11 "Knowing the right time to speak"

By -
We began our study by looking at Romans 10:5-17. Here, Paul contrasts the "righteousness that is based on the law" (v.5) and "the righteousness based on faith" (v.6).The Jews had sought to establish their own righteousness through the former, instead of the God's righteousness based on the latter (v.3). Paul takes the words of Deut 30 and says that, just as Christ is the 'end' (the objective and completion) of the law (v. 4), so also the words of Dt 30:12-13 also find their ultimate fulfilment in Christ, who has both come down from heaven and is raised from the dead. His completed work makes works of the law unnecessary. Instead, the word of life is found in confessing (the truth of our allegiance to Christ in public, before others) with the mouth and believing (trusting in) the whole complex of belief associated with His resurrection (i.e. the need for His death as atonement for our sin and His resurrection from the dead). We noted that co...
Read more