Acts 10:45 “And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles” is pivotal for all of us who were not born Jewish, for this is the point when it is realized that Gentiles could also be recipients of the Holy Spirit. With this, the availability to all of God’s blessing and the true universality of Christendom is established. The Great Commission given by our Lord in Mark 16:15, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” now became clearer to those current believers…Christ really meant it when He said, “to the WHOLE creation,” not just the Jews. Praise God for using the Jewish people to reveal His plan for the world, but praise Him even more for including all humanity in His saving plan!
For Acts 10, I was made aware of the things that happen in and around prayer. Cornelius is praying and God reveals Himself. Peter is praying and God reveals Himself.
I also looked at the phrasing of Acts 10:33 – “… We have come to hear all the things that have been commanded to you by the Lord.”
These things that the Lord commanded came through revelation in prayer. But I love the expectation and desire to hear God speak.
My take away today is being reminded that prayer is not just me talking, but being open to the Holy Spirit’s leading in my time of prayer.
“And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.” Here in Acts 9 we have the dramatic conversion of Saul, but what stood out to me today is this statement in verse 31. This is exactly how we should lead our lives everyday…walking in the fear or reverence of our Lord while in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. If we face all our issues and challenges daily in this state of being, we will live lives pleasing to Him. What a great reminder of how we can serve our Lord!
I have never made this pitch to someone as the reason they need to give their life to Jesus – “I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name (Acts 9:16).” Yet, this is what was told Saul, who became later Paul.
When Jesus told his followers to go “preach the good news,” suffering, persecution, and death threats doesn’t sound too “good newsy” to me. Yet, Saul gives his life to Christ and gives testimony from his own experience as well as tries to convince the Jews from the Scripture how Jesus is the Christ. Experiential testimony and the Holy Scriptures are a powerful combination.
Within a short time frame, traps are laid to kill Saul (Acts 9:23-25; 9:29-30). Shame is a big deal in Near Eastern culture. Just as in Islam today, if you convert to Christianity in these places where Sharia law is in place, you have shamed the Muslim religion, and a devout Muslim is commanded in the Koran to kill you.
It’s a reminder for me to give my total loyalty to Jesus and to look for ways to share Christ both out of my personal life and the Bible. Help me Jesus. I want to be led by and filled with you today so I can seize the opportunities you place before me to share you. Amen.
“Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” In Acts 8 we see that Stephen’s stoning led directly to a great scattering, or diaspeirō of Christians, led by Saul. What the Jewish authorities meant for evil God turned into the Great Commission on steroids as believers went all directions to escape the persecution, and spread the Gospel everywhere they went. Peter and John went to Samaria where Simon the sorcerer saw the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as a commodity to be bought and sold, which they corrected by telling Simon to repent and be forgiven. Philip’s witnessing and subsequent baptism of an official from Ethiopia led directly to the spread of Christianity in Africa. This was an important and integral part of the early spread of the Gospel, and so interesting to watch how it is orchestrated by God.
What would it be like to be a Christian in Iran today? Persecuted. The Iran Revolutionary Guard have hunted down, imprisoned and murdered Christians in that country. Acts 8:3 says Saul was ravaging the church.
But as Christians fled for their lives in the early church (Acts 8:4) they fled telling people about Jesus. Amazing. Jesus, help me to be so loyal to you that truly I can say and live, “I surrender all.”
I have always really appreciated Acts 7. Stephen’s soliloquy is the best concise summation of Jewish history in the entire Bible. If you can’t bring yourself to study the Old Testament, consider Acts 7 to be your Cliff Notes on it. The hardness of heart of those hearing this speech is then illustrated by their stoning the man who has just given it. We are seeing the pains of the Old Testament Covenant being replaced by the New Covenant, where God now resides in our hearts rather than a temple. Stephen’s martyrdom was a hallmark in this new covenant, and one that inspired and motivated many of those new to the faith. It was a tragedy that God used to continue expanding His kingdom. We thank You, Lord, for the Stephens of the world who were so instrumental in advancing your Kingdom. May we all be as bold as he in representing You in our world!
Acts 7 is an amazing, condensed history of God’s call and working in His people in the Old Testament. I was struck again by God’s moving and intervening behind the scenes.
I am struck with how Stephen is so close to and full of the Holy Spirit that he has the courage to speak straight to the people, though he knows they are not going to like it. But the end of this story is not the end of the story. They laid their garments at the feet of Saul as they stoned Stephen (Acts 7:58) and it was Saul that God appeared to and used to spread His message throughout the known world.
I’m blown away at Stephen’s guts, courage, and audacity to speak Jesus and God’s supernatural ability to take something that looks like defeat into future victory.
Acts 10:45 “And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles” is pivotal for all of us who were not born Jewish, for this is the point when it is realized that Gentiles could also be recipients of the Holy Spirit. With this, the availability to all of God’s blessing and the true universality of Christendom is established. The Great Commission given by our Lord in Mark 16:15, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” now became clearer to those current believers…Christ really meant it when He said, “to the WHOLE creation,” not just the Jews. Praise God for using the Jewish people to reveal His plan for the world, but praise Him even more for including all humanity in His saving plan!
For Acts 10, I was made aware of the things that happen in and around prayer. Cornelius is praying and God reveals Himself. Peter is praying and God reveals Himself.
I also looked at the phrasing of Acts 10:33 – “… We have come to hear all the things that have been commanded to you by the Lord.”
These things that the Lord commanded came through revelation in prayer. But I love the expectation and desire to hear God speak.
My take away today is being reminded that prayer is not just me talking, but being open to the Holy Spirit’s leading in my time of prayer.
“And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.” Here in Acts 9 we have the dramatic conversion of Saul, but what stood out to me today is this statement in verse 31. This is exactly how we should lead our lives everyday…walking in the fear or reverence of our Lord while in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. If we face all our issues and challenges daily in this state of being, we will live lives pleasing to Him. What a great reminder of how we can serve our Lord!
I have never made this pitch to someone as the reason they need to give their life to Jesus – “I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name (Acts 9:16).” Yet, this is what was told Saul, who became later Paul.
When Jesus told his followers to go “preach the good news,” suffering, persecution, and death threats doesn’t sound too “good newsy” to me. Yet, Saul gives his life to Christ and gives testimony from his own experience as well as tries to convince the Jews from the Scripture how Jesus is the Christ. Experiential testimony and the Holy Scriptures are a powerful combination.
Within a short time frame, traps are laid to kill Saul (Acts 9:23-25; 9:29-30). Shame is a big deal in Near Eastern culture. Just as in Islam today, if you convert to Christianity in these places where Sharia law is in place, you have shamed the Muslim religion, and a devout Muslim is commanded in the Koran to kill you.
It’s a reminder for me to give my total loyalty to Jesus and to look for ways to share Christ both out of my personal life and the Bible. Help me Jesus. I want to be led by and filled with you today so I can seize the opportunities you place before me to share you. Amen.
“Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” In Acts 8 we see that Stephen’s stoning led directly to a great scattering, or diaspeirō of Christians, led by Saul. What the Jewish authorities meant for evil God turned into the Great Commission on steroids as believers went all directions to escape the persecution, and spread the Gospel everywhere they went. Peter and John went to Samaria where Simon the sorcerer saw the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as a commodity to be bought and sold, which they corrected by telling Simon to repent and be forgiven. Philip’s witnessing and subsequent baptism of an official from Ethiopia led directly to the spread of Christianity in Africa. This was an important and integral part of the early spread of the Gospel, and so interesting to watch how it is orchestrated by God.
What would it be like to be a Christian in Iran today? Persecuted. The Iran Revolutionary Guard have hunted down, imprisoned and murdered Christians in that country. Acts 8:3 says Saul was ravaging the church.
But as Christians fled for their lives in the early church (Acts 8:4) they fled telling people about Jesus. Amazing. Jesus, help me to be so loyal to you that truly I can say and live, “I surrender all.”
I have always really appreciated Acts 7. Stephen’s soliloquy is the best concise summation of Jewish history in the entire Bible. If you can’t bring yourself to study the Old Testament, consider Acts 7 to be your Cliff Notes on it. The hardness of heart of those hearing this speech is then illustrated by their stoning the man who has just given it. We are seeing the pains of the Old Testament Covenant being replaced by the New Covenant, where God now resides in our hearts rather than a temple. Stephen’s martyrdom was a hallmark in this new covenant, and one that inspired and motivated many of those new to the faith. It was a tragedy that God used to continue expanding His kingdom. We thank You, Lord, for the Stephens of the world who were so instrumental in advancing your Kingdom. May we all be as bold as he in representing You in our world!
Acts 7 is an amazing, condensed history of God’s call and working in His people in the Old Testament. I was struck again by God’s moving and intervening behind the scenes.
I am struck with how Stephen is so close to and full of the Holy Spirit that he has the courage to speak straight to the people, though he knows they are not going to like it. But the end of this story is not the end of the story. They laid their garments at the feet of Saul as they stoned Stephen (Acts 7:58) and it was Saul that God appeared to and used to spread His message throughout the known world.
I’m blown away at Stephen’s guts, courage, and audacity to speak Jesus and God’s supernatural ability to take something that looks like defeat into future victory.