Commentary on the book of acts bible study lessons. It records the burial of stephen, the beginnings of christian persecution, and the spread of the gospel of jesus christ to the people of samaria and ethiopia. The early journeys of the apostle peter as recorded in the acts of the apostles. Acts 1 niv jesus taken up into heaven bible gateway.
Acts 1 new international version niv jesus taken up into heaven. While there are some areas of great detail of the acts of the apostles, many times you must use cross references to the gospels of matthew, mark, luke and john as well as some other epistles in the new testament to get the full picture of what was. The disciples waited there for the promised power acts 1. Why had the believers in samaria not received the holy spirit. Acts facts galatia, galilee, gaza, iconium, illyricum. Along the way they preached the gospel to many villages of the samaritans. The acts of the apostlesthe gospel in samaria wikisource, the. Jan 02, 2020 in the book of acts it is stated that he amazed all the people of samaria acts 8. After the death of stephen there arose against the believers in jerusalem a persecution so relentless that they were all. According to a later account in the book of acts, he also withheld the spirit from some ephesian converts who had been disciples of john the baptist acts 19. First, it is good to remember the book of acts is a history of how god started the church. As a second volume to lukes gospel, it joins what jesus began to do and to teach 1. Actus apostolorum, often referred to simply as acts, or formally the book of acts, is the fifth book of the new testament. Later, philip lived in caesarea maritima with his four daughters who foretold, where he was visited by paul the apostle acts 21.
Then philip went down to the city of samaria, and preached. Commentary on the book of acts bible study notes and comments by david e. When the holy spirit overpowered the upper room with the sound like a roaring windstorm, history changed forever. The title as we know it comes from the second century and only partially discloses the theme of the document. The city of samaria this does not mean a city whose name was samaria, for no such city at that time existed. The first church of christ was established there acts 2. Luke next introduces the man who will soon become the main. While there are some areas of great detail of the acts of the apostles, many times you must use cross references to the gospels of matthew, mark, luke and john as well as some other epistles in the new testament to get the full picture of what. The people of samaria samaritans claimed god of abraham and jacob as their god but rejected the hebrew tanakh what we call the old testament except for the pentateuch the first five books. For example, the churches in galilee and samaria are barely mentioned acts 9.
Philips work in samaria was marked with great success, and, thus encouraged, he sent to jerusalem for help. The book of acts is a key part of gods plan to reach the whole world. He preached and reportedly performed miracles in samaria, and met and baptised an ethiopian man, a eunuch, on the road from jerusalem to gaza, traditionally marking the start of the ethiopian church acts 8. Samaria in hebrew is shomron, meaning watchmountain, or watchtower. Acts spans a period of about 30 years, and takes us up to about a. T he book of acts in the bible, written around 6263 a. The city of samaria was founded by king omri around 880 b. The gospel of luke anticipates the samaritan mission in the book of acts by demonstrating that god seeks the redemption of the lost tribes of israel, not their destruction. When we consider their unusual spiritual journey, we will show why god treated them like the samaritans. It became established and as it went forward in reverence for the lord and in the strengthening presence of the. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. Samaria the ancient city, the region, and the province. He boasted that he was someone great, 10 and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, this man is rightly called the great power of god. Acts overview spurgeons verse expositions of the bible.
But you will receive power when the holy spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in jerusalem and in all judea and samaria, and to the end of the earth. The theme or key to the book of acts is found in 1. The ancient city samaria, the capital of that region, had been destroyed by hyrcanus, so completely as to leave no vestige of it remaining. As implied by the title acts of the apostles, the 5th book in the gospel is a contemporaneous document of what the apostles did after jesus resurrection. Oct 28, 2017 the book of acts is considered the only biblical book that chronicles the background of the church soon after jesuss ascension. First of all luke mentions the fact that acts is the sequel to the gospel of luke written around 5560 ad, and therefore must have been written later. Samaria in the bible was the target of ancient racism. The book of acts is the record of that commission beingcarried out.
And peter was present in corneliuss house acts 10, when the spirit was given to the gentiles. Within a short time, philip brought the light of the gospel to three new regions. But ye shall receive power, after that the holy ghost is come upon you. Christian apologist justin martyr is believed to have propagated the idea that simon was a samaritan from the city of gitta, and this has been accepted in early church tradition and today by.
Then philip went down to the city of samaria, and preached christ to them. Secondly luke at the end of acts luke mentions pauls twoyear imprisonment in rome. The rest of the books major focus is on paul, the most prolific. Samaria in the bible is the central highland region of ancient israel located between galilee to the north and judea to the south. For the sake of illustration, we will focus on three of these passages. In the book of acts it is stated that he amazed all the people of samaria acts 8. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout judea and samaria. Acts can be neatly divided into two sections, the first dealing primarily with the ministry of peter in jerusalem and samaria acts 112 and the second following paul on his missionary journeys throughout the roman empire acts 28. In the book of acts, luke returned many times to the dramatic work of the spirit after pentecost. Samaria was bought and built in 878 bc by omri, the king of the northern kingdom of israel the twelve tribes of jews that settled in israel eventually split into the northern kingdom of israel and the southern kingdom of judah.
The book of acts provides a bridge for the writings of the nt. The apostles now perceived more fully the meaning of the words of christ, ye shall be witnesses unto me both in jerusalem, and in all judea, and in samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. The samaritans manner of receiving the spirit should be taken for what it isan accurate account of what happened in their case. Witherington, acts, 27980, suggests that luke viewed samaria, insofar as the name is grouped with judea in 1. The samaritans believe the gospel of the reign of god in the powerful name of jesus and are baptized. Acts reveals gods passionate pursuit of his people, beginning with his followers in jerusalem, expanding to samaria, then to the rest of the world. The jews despised the beliefs and ancestry of the samaritans and rejected them as a spiritually and racially unclean mongrels. The book of acts is considered the only biblical book that chronicles the background of the church soon after jesuss ascension. Why had the believers in samaria not received the holy. Genesis, exodus, leviticus, numbers, deuteronomy and worshipped in their own temple built on mount gerizim see samaritan woman. Why had the believers in samaria not received the holy spirit acts 8. By the end of the book we see paul living in rome proclaiming the kingdom of god and teaching about the lord jesus christ with all boldness and without hindrance acts 28.
After they had further proclaimed the word of the lord and testified about jesus, peter and john returned to jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many samaritan. The book containing this chapter is anonymous, but early christian tradition uniformly affirmed that luke composed this book as. Luke prepares the way for the samaritan mission in the book of acts with several references to samaria and samaritans in the gospel that bears his name. It is the record of the transition between the old covenant and the new covenant, and much of what we see in acts relates to that transition.
Book of acts overview insight for living ministries. The life and teachings of jesus christ are established in the four gospel narratives, and the book of acts provides a coordinated account of the beginning and spread of the church as the result of the work of the risen lord and the holy spirit through the apostles. Acts is significant for chronicling the spread of the gospel, not only geographically but also culturally. Kjv the book of acts is the historical link between the. He preached and reportedly performed miracles in samaria, and met and baptised an ethiopian man, a eunuch, on the road from jerusalem to gaza, traditionally marking the start. People from many nations were beside themselves with wonder at hearing gods amazing acts in their own languages. Acts 8 is the eighth chapter of the acts of the apostles in the new testament of the christian bible. The book will therefore have been written only after the end of this time. He was one of the seven chosen to care for the poor of the christian community in jerusalem.
Maps, acts, apostles, philip, samaritans, ethiopian, eunuch. We will look first at an event that took place in an unnamed city in samaria. It begins with recording the spread of the christian church in jerusalem, judea and samaria got, n. Acts 1 the former account i made, o theophilus, of all that jesus began both to do and teach. The church expands into judea, galilee and samaria acts 8. In word and deed, jesus shows us that samaritans can exemplify what god wants from his chosen people. It alone presents an extensive picture of early church life and history. And at that time there was a great persecution against the church which was at jerusalem. Oct 14, 2019 luke prepares the way for the samaritan mission in the book of acts with several references to samaria and samaritans in the gospel that bears his name. In verse 4, luke quotes jesus as saying something that seems counterintuitive at first glance, given the urgency of their task.
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