God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a […]
Read More Acts Actually: 15 – Breath Freely, No PressureThen Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first.Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring […]
Read More Acts Actually: 13 – Adventures on the MissionWhen she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!” “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.” (Acts 12:14, 15) James is killed. Peter is arrested and looks […]
Read More Acts Actually: 12 – The Surprising Power of PrayerWhether it’s teaching together or sharing meals together, there’s something powerful about life together. Seeing the Holy Spirit in operation in the book of Acts it’s just so remarkable how He knits hearts and minds together to do mission together, to spread the Word together, to live the Word together. It is not a story […]
Read More In It TogetherThen Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. (Acts 11:25, 26) The gospel spreads and Jerusalem catches up […]
Read More Acts Actually: 11 – Partnership Teaching; Community SharingYou are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. (Acts 10:28) What makes Acts such a great narrative is how it shows people getting the hint and going with the […]
Read More Acts Actually: 10 – Gospel Expansion – Breaking Down The BarriersToday, I was reminded how important prayer is to every day life as a follower of Christ. I recognised again that without prayer and an attitude predisposed to ongoing communication with God, my life is likely to go off the rails. What triggered that was reading another chapter in the excellent book Seven Marks of […]
Read More Prayer AssistPart of the story in the book of Acts is the unstoppable spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Religious rulers tried to at first to shut up the disciples by warning them. This failed. They then imprisoned them. This failed too. Internal disputes and iniquities threatened the community. This failed as well. They killed a […]
Read More Acts Actually: 9 – Gospel UnstoppableThis morning I was reading Acts 8 and noticing what came out of the followers of Christ when the pressure bore down. It’s always apt when the things you study in scripture have a bearing on what you will subsequently experience. The test is always there to determine what is in each of us. When […]
Read More What Comes OutPhilip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea. (Acts 8:40) The juice does not emerge unless the fruit is put under pressure. The Holy Spirit inspired Stephen to give the speech that would allow the pressure to be applied and now the news that had some […]
Read More Acts Actually: 8 – Philip and the Spread Under Pressure
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