In the opening of chapter 8, Saul gives approval of the killing of Stephen, with the intention of killing even more of those of “The Way” as Christians were called at the time. We will also take a look at Samaria that was situated between Judah and Galilee, where portions of chap. 8 takes place.

Note: you can always go back to the previous lesson, via the Blog Archive in the upper right hand corner of this page. just click on a date. 

Chapter 7 ended with the last words of Stephen as he was being stoned to death for his faith. Saul was there, filled with the same hatred as the Sanhedrin against Christians. Saul, (later to become Paul), imprisoned Christians. He is the same Saul that heard Peter preach before the Sanhedrin, and yet, he wasn’t changed at that time, his hatred continued against what he considered heretical teachings against Judaism. Saul would be considered a righteous Jew in his day!

Philip, one of the seven deacons appointed by the apostles in chap. 6, went into Samaria, a place despised by the Jews, and performed many miracles as noted in v.7. 

Map shows Samaria, where Philip “went down” to proclaim Christ, even though it’s north of Jerusalem. The Bible describes the terrain with Samaria being at a lower elevation than Jerusalem which was situated in a hilly area. Jerusalem is surrounded by valleys and dry riverbeds 

In spite of the miracles of Philip and the Apostles, many still rejected their words about Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and persecuted the Church. We can be confident that their intense hatred was instigated by Satan and his demons. 

1 Tim 4:1  The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.

2 Cor 11:13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 

In Deuteronomy 18:10-12, sorcery is listed among the sinful practices of the nations surrounding Israel. God calls it an abomination: “There shall not be found among you . . . anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD.

The Jews deliberately bypassed Samaria out of religious differences and hatred for the Samaritans. 

The Samaritans believed that Mount Gerizim was the original Holy Place of Israel from the time that Joshua conquered Canaan (what was to become Israel) after their exodus from Egypt and wandering in the desert.  

The Samaritans are a distinct ethnic and religious group found today mostly in Israel. They were a racially mixed people with Jewish and pagan ancestry, although they worshiped Yahweh as did the Jews. The history and origins of the Samaritans are difficult to define, as many of their writings have not survived. There are about 550-600 active practitioners of the Samaritan religion with some admixture of Islam, most of whom live in the city of Nablus in the area now known as the West Bank, as shown on next slide. 

Samaria has been under Israel administration since 1967, when the West Bank was defined by Israeli officials as the Judea and Samaria, of which the entire area north of the Jerusalem District is termed as Samaria, also called Sebaste, modern Sabasṭiyah, an ancient town in central Palestine. 

In these verses from the Gospel of John, Jesus addresses the issue of what religion was right regarding worship, Jew or Samaritan. 

Philip was still in Samaria. The Holy Spirit helped spread the Gospel message by signs and miracles. Why not signs and miracles today? In those days, it brought people to belief in Jesus; today it would be used by fakers to fool and trick people for their own personal gain. There is a time and place for everything God does, even miracles. 

The apostles sent Peter and John to Samaria, to ensure that what was being said about their acceptance of God’s Word was an actual acceptance of Jesus Christ. Since the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon them, and they were not yet born-again (John 3:3). Baptism alone (v.16) did not save nor bring one to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Baptism was/is a visible sign of their acceptance and faith in Jesus Christ.  

John 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.

Paul reminds us in Romans and Galatians that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, and not by works, which applies to every Jew, every Samaritan, and every Gentile that accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. These verses apply to Acts 8:14-17 in that we receive the Holy Spirit by grace, through faith. It was true then and is true now. 

A summary of v.18-24: Laying on of hands is a sign and seal for ordinations; even healing as noted in the Book of James. The gift that Simon wanted to buy, wasn’t to honor God as noted by Peter, but as a means of profit. 

The Holy Spirit displayed visual signs in the early ministry of the apostles to demonstrate that what they professed was truth. Miracles of healing accompanied their preaching of the Word. Today, the church most likely would put more emphasis on miracles than in sharing the gospel, itself. We can be certain there would also be those who would fake miracles for personal gain. And the Word would never be enough unless accompanied by miracles. 

Peter admonishing Simon to repent. Peter’s word struck a cord with Simon, sufficiently to ask for prayer. But, was it true repentance or just fear? We can fear punishment for our sins, but there is also joy in saving grace and forgiveness. 

 

Map shows the route Peter and John took (v.25) on their return to Jerusalem stopping at many Samaritan villages along the way. Map also shows the desert road Philip took from Jerusalem to Gaza (V.26). 

Green arrow is route the Jews took to bypass Samaria, when traveling between Galilee and Judea. 

Philip was sent by an angel (v.26) to Gaza to intercept the Ethiopian eunuch, who was a Jewish convert that believed in the Lord, Jehovah. He was a high court official of Candace, queen of Ethiopia, and was in Israel to worship at the temple. On his trip home to Ethiopia, he had a life-changing encounter with Philip the evangelist. 

V.30 tells us that Philip ran to catch the chariot, which implies that the chariot was moving. Then he had to raise his voice loud enough to get the eunuch’s attention. 

V.32-33 are quoted from the Book of Isaiah 53:7. 

V.35 Philip explained that Isaiah had prophesized about Jesus, and that Jesus was crucifixion as an atonement for our sins. Something we could never earn on our own merit before a holy and righteous God.  Only God’s atonement and grace could suffice. 

The eunuch desired to express a sign of his faith with baptism (v.36-39). V.37 is not included in many Bible translations, including the NIV, because it is not found in the oldest and best translations of Acts.

Philip was transported by the Spirit, from Gaza to Azotus (Az-o-us) as shown on the map (dotted line). From there, he continued preaching the gospel all the way to Caesarea (red line on map). 

What the seaport city of Caesarea is believed to have looked like during the time of Philip. 

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The Holy Spirit isn’t transporting people today like He did with Philip. But, we have radio, TV, Zoom, Livestream, social media like Facebook and Twitter, to share the gospel. An email, a casual conversation, all of which are means to share the good news that Jesus Christ is not only Lord, but Savior from eternal damnation in hell, and separation from God. What accompanies the Word is eternal bliss in heaven with God. Something worth pondering, especially for anyone who never accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Redeemer. and repented of their sins. 

It gets down to praying in the Spirit. How effective are our prayers? How often do we pray, and do we know that God is even listening? Adrian Rogers' 43-minute message explains: How to Pray in the Spirit.

https://youtu.be/Px9SVbmR9PE

(copy and paste into your web browser)

My goal is to see today’s world and our lives from a biblical perspective. In our Sunday Foundations studies, 9:00 A.M. in Heritage Lounge, we are currently looking at God’s sovereignty and the State of Israel.  Hope to see you there. 

Is America a Nation in Crisis, as posted last week? We need to pray for America. If not us, then who? If not now, then when? A whole generation’s future is at stake, perhaps our own children, grandchildren, and perhaps even our great grandchildren. 

End of

The Acts of the Apostles

Chapter 8

A special posting for this week. It is worth your time. Is America a Nation in crisis? 

The early Christians found themselves facing a hostile pagan world, but over time they changed it for good. Can we as Christians do the same for America? Is America a Nation in crisis? How do we make that determination? Can we as individual Christians make a difference? We have the same Holy Spirit if we call on Him. 

(Our study of Acts began with an introduction to Act on 3/19. Click on date in the Blog Archive in upper right hand corner of page)

If you recognize that there is a problem in our society and culture, you, like many others, may be wondering how did we get here? What happened to the America I grew up in? Are we still "One Nation Under God"?

A number of significant Supreme Court decisions have changed America’s relationship with God, which we will look at. Should the Church be interested in politics? If not, others will and their decisions and those they elect to public office, will determine the course of the Nation—for better or for worse. 

Shown on the slide is a list of major Supreme Court decisions that have literally changed America’s relationship with God, perhaps forever. Can we recover? Pray for America.

America’s turning point; the nine Supreme Court justices that changed the Nation. Those justices are named on the next slide. 

A list of the justices of the Warren Supreme Court. Nine men (and the presidents that appointed them) that changed the Nation forever…. Can we recover? Pray for America.

The American Church that stands firm on the Word of God, is the Nation’s first line of defense. The battle for the soul of the Nation isn’t over just yet. 

As Pastor Scott Larson explains in his Wednesday teaching about the Great Commission, it was the Church that changed the pagan world with the Great Commission. We all can’t go on a missionary journey, but we are all in a mission field right here at home. Share Jesus with your friends and neighbors when the opportunity presents itself. Be part of the Great Commission right here at home. The Church has the Holy Spirit and power to change the world, if we call upon Him. The Holy Spirit is not an "it" or a "force". He is the third Person of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

https://covp.org/connect/wednesdays-live-lessons

(copy and paste the web address into your web browser, scroll down to the lesson when there)

Pastor Adrian Rogers doesn’t just tell us what’s wrong and how we got here, but what we, as Christians, can and should do. His sermon is just as relevant today as when he made it, maybe more so. 

Pastor Adrian Rogers 35-minute sermon on how we got here: A Nation in Crisis! 

https://youtu.be/E-JP_KFS4qc

(highlight and copy the above web address, and paste into your web browser and hit enter)

My current weekly focus, in our Sunday Foundations classes, is to see today’s world and events from a biblical perspective. Anyone watching Newsmax or One America News (OAN) or Fox will readily recognize that America is a nation in crisis. I believe one basic reason, as explained by Adrian Rogers, is that America has lost its spiritual compass and its GPS. Join us on Sunday to explore this further.

The End

Chapter 7 is the first Christian martyr. Would you die for your faith? How many Christians ever have to face that decision during the course of their life? Many have, even in today’s world, and died for their faith. We are blessed in America that we don’t have to face that decision. But we can live for our faith!  

(Note: our study of Acts began on 3/21. You can access it by clicking on that date on the Blog Archive in the upper right hand corner of the page)

Even if you studied Acts before, why study Acts again? Each section of the Bible provides a different aspect of God’s Word as noted by Pastor Alistair Begg. It's always worth your time. If you studied Acts before and you believe there’s nothing else to learn, you didn’t study it sufficiently…because there is always more to learn.

Much of what happens in Chapter 7 takes place at the temple mount. The image notes the Western Wall, a.k.a. Wailing Wall, which is a place of prayer today for Jews from around the world. “Royal Stoa” situated along the southern wall, is a covered walkway where people gathered. Much of the apostles preaching took place there.

You may want to read the first fifty verses on your own—v.1 is noted on the slide. The overview on the next few slides will give you insight into the first 50 verses, which cover Israel's history, without far too many additional slides being added. It picks up where chap. 6 left off, with Stephen before the Sanhedrin Council.

Stephen, begins with Abraham; their 400 years of captivity in Egypt, and that God sent Moses to lead them out of bondage. And yet, they remained a stiff-necked people that turned from God. Without faith in God that generation wandered in the desert for 40 years, and Joshua led a new generation into the promised. 

This slide highlights the first 50 verses. Of course, God’s true Tabernacle (v.44-50) is Jesus Christ, which the Sanhedrin rejected, heaping guilt on themselves and the Jewish people.  They too will stand on trial before the Jesus they rejected.

Rev 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it.... 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13....each person was judged according to what he had done. 

The Sanhedrin rejected God’s true Tabernacle, Jesus Christ, and retained the stone temple, which Rome destroyed in 70 AD. Not only was the Jerusalem temple destroyed, but the Jewish people, including the Sanhedrin, were scattered, with many being sold into slavery. 

We can be certain the Sanhedrin Council were very much aware of their history, and it hit a sensitive cord with them. Do you want to see outrage—tell a group of high-ranking officials that they’re wrong, that the very premise of what their organization was founded on, they themselves violated—be it religion or politics. 

Stephen calls them out for “resisting the Holy Spirit”. In the hardness of their hearts, they covered their ears at everything he said. Their very actions blasphemed against the Spirit of God, which as stated by Jesus in Mark 3:29 is an unpardonable sin. 

Mark 3:29 "But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin."   

Stephen’s accusations angered them (v.54). In denying Stephen’s words about Jesus, they were resisting the Holy Spirit (v.51). Rather than repent—or even pondering it—they lashed out at Stephen. Satan was active on planet earth from the very beginning, in the Garden of Eden, at the crucifixion of Christ, and at that very moment in stirring up sinful man against the things of God. Their verdict was based on lies. Satan was a liar from the beginning and the father of lies. (John 8:44)

There were both temporal and eternal consequences in resisting the Holy Spirit. We see such a warning in Zechariah 7:11-14 (this and next slide). Every word came true about 40 years later when Rome destroyed Jerusalem, and the Jews were scattered across the Roman world, and into slavery. 

In A.D. 135 the remaining remnant of Judea was destroyed, and those Jews were also scattered across the Roman world and beyond. 

Their scattering as a people, wasn’t just a one-time occurrence, as noted on the map. Did God know they would reject Jesus as Messiah? Of course. Even though God knows our sins, past, present and future, there are still consequences for sin. The Jews were even scattered centuries later at many other places, such as Czarist Russia and Nazi Germany. 

We can assume that the Council heard, or heard of, Peter’s preaching and of his miracle cures (prior chapters), and yet, in a similar manner, Stephen was rejected by that same religious Council, whose hearts were hateful at anything that threatened their authority, power and prestige. How could they possibly justify themselves if they acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah? 

Consequently, their anger overflowed into pure rage, in their hearts they knew the truth but out of pride, they rejected it. In v.60 Stephen asked the Lord not to hold their sin against them. He fell asleep, meaning he died. We know of one whose sin was not held against him—Saul of Tarsus, a participant (Acts 8:1), who not only accepted Christ as Messiah and Savior, but dedicated his life to telling others. 

Our life and time has been predetermined by God, even before the foundation of the world was laid. He has been merciful to us to be born in the U.S.A. in the 20th century. There are Christians still being stoned to death in certain Islamic countries. Hold them up in your prayers. 

Christians, like Stephen, are still facing persecution for their faith, even death across the world. Nevertheless, the rewards God has planned, far outweigh the cost of standing firm in the faith that Jesus is the Messiah, not just for the Jews but also for the Gentiles. 

Has the modern church lost its interest in praying in the Spirit? We can pray in the Spirit, asking the Holy Spirit to intercede on our behalf as a church and as a people—as the Body of Christ.

Why did they stone Stephen? Because he told the truth that contradicted their lies. 

Pastor Adrian Rogers 37-minute sermon: Four Lies That Ruined the World

https://youtu.be/-O3rQ9LdCe4

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Our study of Acts began on March 21, 2021. Click on the 

Blog Archive in the upper right hand corner on that date (03/21-03/28).

Hope to see you there.