Acts 17

Greetings!
This is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible.  Paul is in Greece, where he gives a winsome, thorough and excellent presentation of the Gospel.  He understands his audiences well and treats them with respect.  Yet he doesn’t patronize them or water down the message.  Those who are interested in hearing more do so, but many [...]

Acts 16

Greetings! 
Timothy Joins Paul and Silas
16     He came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek. 2 The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so [...]

Acts 15

Greetings! 
The Council at Jerusalem
15     Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other [...]

Acts 14

Greetings!  We know so much about Paul because of the letters he wrote and his travels documented here in the Book of Acts.  Yet notice how often he is referred to with others, and how many people he thanks in his letters.  Here he is teaming with Barnabas.
In Iconium
14     At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went [...]

Acts 13

Greetings! 
Barnabas and Saul Sent Off
13     In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for [...]

Acts 12

Greetings!
King Herod (Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great), was partly Jewish.  He had James put to death for reasons that appeared to be political, not religous.
He might have known that Peter escaped from prison once before (see Acts 5, starting with v. 17), so security was probably quite high.  But God rescued Peter once [...]

Acts 10

Greetings!  One of the messages in this story that gets missed is that even though Cornelius was a devout, God-fearing Gentile, he still needed Jesus.  One of the great myths of the church today is that “good” people go to Heaven.  But that isn’t a Biblical motif at all.  We are all sinners in need [...]

Inerrant, infallible, inspired

Claims of Biblical inerrancy, inspiration and infallibility apply to the original writings.  I have researched countless difficulties and found answers that satisfied me.  Some are tougher than others.  Some things are in the Job category (as in, I’m not capable of understanding them or God doesn’t need me to understand them). 
I learned enough about the book to [...]

Acts 9

Greetings!  This is one of three tellings of the conversion of Saul (aka Paul) in the book of Acts. 
I like Paul. I appreciate his writing and especially his passion. He gets a bad rap for allegedly being anti-female, but if you read him properly and in the context of his culture, he was quite the [...]

Acts 8

Greetings!
The persecution of the church begins.  The Apostles stayed in Jerusalem but others fled.  Saul was on a mission to destroy the church.  The Jewish leaders didn’t come to their senses after killing Jesus.  They ratified their rebellion by continuing to reject the Gospel. 
Many others have tried to destroy the church as well.  Yet here we are 2,000 [...]

Acts 11

Greetings!  Peter re-tells the story of his vision almost verbatim from chapter 10.  I think that means it is important.  God is quite clear when he is giving guidance like this.

Peter Explains His Actions
11     The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when [...]

Acts 7

Greetings!  This is an incredible chapter.  Stephen has been brought before the Jewish council to address charges brought by false witnesses. 
The section through verse 50 is an amazingly clear and concise summary of the Old Testament.  I encourage everyone to read it closely and share it with others who are new to the Bible. 
I imagine that [...]

Acts 6

Greetings!  The church was just starting and already they had problems.  It is good that these examples are in the Bible so we can see that even those who saw signs and wonders and Jesus in person still had squabbles.  There is a way to work them out that glorifies God. 
The primary purpose of the [...]

Acts 5

Greetings!
This story could be called “the worst church growth program ever.”
Ananias and Sapphira
5     Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet. [...]

Acts 4

Greetings!
Peter and John Before the Sanhedrin
4     The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. 2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. 3 They seized [...]

Acts 3

Greetings!
Peter Heals the Crippled Beggar
3     One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. 2 Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple [...]

Acts 2

Greetings!  This chapter describes Pentecost, the birth of the church.

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
2     When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what [...]