Lesson 1170

(Lesson 1170)(12-08-14) Acts 18:12-22

"And when Gallio was the deputy of Achaia, the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment seat, Saying, This fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law. And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked lewdness, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you: But if it be a question of words and names, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such matters. And he drave them from the judgment seat. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. And Gallio cared for none of those things. And Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, and then took his leave of the brethren, and sailed thence into Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila; having shorn his head in Cenchrea: for he had a vow. And he came to Ephesus, and left them there: but he himself entered into the synagogue, and reasoned with the Jews. When they desired him to tarry longer time with them, he consented not; But bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem: but I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus. And when he had landed at Caesarea, and gone up, and saluted the church, he went down to Antioch."

Today's lesson relates how God fulfilled His promise to Paul that He would indeed take care of him and protect him from the wrath of the Jews who hated him.

When the angry Jews took Paul before Gallio he rebuked them for their triviality and freed Paul.

The remainder of today's quote deals with Paul's travels throughout the region as he continued to build and strengthen Christianity and as he prepared to go to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover.

Passover and its celebratory meal is, what is today referred to as the "Lord's Supper, or "Communion". Passover was celebrated by most all who were born Jews in remembrance of the night God punished their Egyptian captors by killing all the first born.

As will become apparent, as we continue this study, it was very important to Paul, as a Jew by blood, that he attend the Passover celebration. ~

Lesson 1169

(Lesson 1169)(12-07-14) Acts 18:7-11

"And he departed thence, and entered into a certain man's house, named Justus, one that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to the synagogue. And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized. Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city. And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them."

Today's lesson relates how Paul planted roots for the Church in Corinth when He preached the gospel of Jesus Christ to Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, whereby Crispus and his family beleived and were "baptized" (sanctified by the Holy Spirit, or saved).

Jesus appeared to Paul in a vision and promised to protect him thereby prompting Paul to stay and continue preaching the gospel and expanding the Church in Corinth.~

Lesson 1168

(Lesson 1168)(12-06-14) Acts 18:1-6

"After these things Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth; And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them. And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers. And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. And when Silas and Timotheus were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ. And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles."

Until the time related in today's quote, Paul had been preaching to both Jews and Gentiles, He preached to the Jews in their synagogues trying to persuade them that Jesus Christ was indeed the Messiah and that at His coming He brought a new law of salvation by the grace of God through faith in the sacrifice of His only begotten Son.

All the while the Jewish hierarchy had been trying to get Paul, and whomever stood with him, either killed, or imprisoned.

From today's quote we learn that Paul finally appeared to give up on the Jews when he said, "Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles."

We will find as these lessons continue that Paul's battle with the Jews was far from over and that during much of his ministry he was still trying to convince the Jews, as a nation, to turn to Christ.~

Lesson 1167

(Lesson 1167)(12-05-14) Acts 17:11-34

"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few. But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also, and stirred up the people.

And then immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea: but Silas and Timotheus abode there still. And they that conducted Paul brought him unto Athens: and receiving a commandment unto Silas and Timotheus for to come to him with all speed, they departed.

Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him. Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection. And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is? For thou bringest certain strange things to our ears: we would know therefore what these things mean. (For all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.)

Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.

God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.

And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them. Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed: among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them."

Today's lesson further relates the travels of the Christian evangelists, Timothy, Silas, and Paul, the Apostle. It also relates how the Jewish hierarchy were constantly intent on stopping the spread of the gospel of Christ.

As he spoke to the Athenians at Mars Hill, Paul made a very important point, a point that should be driven home to all "Christians" who today contend that "good works", in some way, contributes to ones eternal salvation.

In verses 24-26 of today's quote, Paul ,referring to the one true God, said, "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, DWELLETH NOT IN TEMPLES MADE WITH HANDS; NEITHER IS WORSHIPPED WITH MEN'S HANDS AS THOUGH HE NEEDED ANY THING, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;"

Our God is NOT worshiped by "men's hands". That means those physical things done in modern "Christianity", like practicing pompous and outlandish rituals the likes of which so many puff themselves up with today, have nothing to do with the true worship of our God.

Neither does the "church" building. Paul also said, God "dwelleth NOT in temples made with hands;". That means that the thousands of buildings that are designated as "the houses of God" should be considered as nothing more than idols themselves. Billions of dollars that could have been used to feed the hungry over the centuries have gone toward building fabulous and blasphemous "houses of God". "Christianity" should be ashamed.

We should never attempt to elevate our selfish and miserable actions as being something special before God. God should be our ONLY object of worship and the ONLY thing that should EVER be considered in Christian worship. ~

Lesson 1166

(Lesson 1166)(12-04-14) Acts 17:1-10

"Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go. And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews."

Today's quote relates how, when arriving at Thessalonica, Paul and Silas went into the Jewish synagogue and preached the gospel of Christ causing many to be believe and be saved.

Once again, the local Jews, out of jealousy, stirred up the Roman magistrates against Paul and Silas so that they were forced, again, to flee for their lives.

The work done by Paul and Silas in Thessalonica produced a thriving and faithful Church, fully devoted to Christ as noted in the two letters Paul wrote to the Thessalonians.~

Lesson 1165

(Lesson 1165)(12-03-14) Acts 16:16-40

"And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers, And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.

And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.

And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house. And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go. And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace.

But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans. And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city. And they went out of the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed."

Today's quote relates how the Romans beat and imprisoned Paul and Silas for practicing the miracles of the Holy Spirit and preaching the gospel of Christ.

After God had caused the earthquake that freed the prisoners, the jailer, fearing that the Roman magistrates would certainly kill him and seeking eternity with God, asked Paul and Silas "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

Their answer was a simple one and the one that still relates the means by which lost souls are saved today. That answer being; "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.", just as Paul said.

Today's quote, like yesterday's, states that after having been saved by the grace of God, and after having their wounds washed (obviously in water) they were "baptized".

As was stated in yesterday's lesson, the term "baptized", as it is applied in this context, cannot reasonably be intended to imply that what happened to the jailer and his household, was a water baptism of the type that is commonly applied by many isms today. Again, the jailer and his household were "sanctified" by their belief in the message of Jesus Christ as it was told them by Paul and Silas.

Part of this lesson that will confirm what I have said, it the usage of the term "washed" and the term "baptized" in the same sentence.

Strong's bible dictionary defines the term "washed" as: TO BATHE, WASH of a dead person, washing to cleanse blood out of wounds.

The term baptized, as it is applied in this text, is defined by Strong's as: to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk) TO CLEANSE BY DIPPING OR SUBMERGING, TO WASH, TO MAKE CLEAN WITH WATER, TO WASH ONESELF, bathe to overwhelm.

If the intent of the author had been to imply a water baptism was what was done for the jailer and his house, the same term would have been instances, "washed" and "baptized", since the both define the same action in this context.

Therefore, as was the case in yesterday's lesson, the term "baptized" as it is applied in today's quote is intended to imply, not a water immersion, but rather a spiritual sanctification, or securing, within the power of the Holy Spirit of God.~

Lesson 1164

(Lesson 1164)(12-02-14) Acts 16:13-15

"And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither. And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us."

Today's lesson relates Paul's encounter with a woman named Lydia in Thyatira. She was apparently a believer in God even before Paul preached the gospel there.

As the text implies, Lydia was saved after she had accepted and; "attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul."

This particular text does not include "those things" that were said to Lydia, "which were spoken of by Paul". However, we do know from Paul's sermon to the Jews recorded in Romans 3:20-26 et al, that his continuous message was salvation by grace through faith in the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Romans 3:20-26. NOTE" Water baptism was on of the "deeds of the law" Paul spoke of in that sermon.

After Lydia had "attended to those things" she was saved by the grace of God, and according to verse 15 of today's quote, "baptized".

The vast majority of all "Christian" denominations contend that the term baptized as it is applied in this quote refers to a water immersion or "baptism", probably because there is mention of a river in the text. However, the overall context of the gospel of Christ does not allow for that scenario, at all.

Therefore, I believe that, in this instance, the term "baptized" should be interpreted to mean sanctified in Christ. After all, we know, according Galatians 3:26-27 that we receive salvation by being immersed (baptized) into Christ, NOT water; "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ."

Note here that it is not the ones whom have been "baptized" into water that have put on the righteousness of Christ, but those whom have put on the perfection that is in Jesus Christ Himself.

Therefore we can conclude that Lydia, instead of being immersed into water, had been immersed into, and had"put on Christ".~