Acts (Part 2)

By Mary Jane Chaignot

The author has spent the first five chapters of Acts making sure there would be no question that the birth of Christianity had its roots in Jerusalem -- among the Jews. He is asking and answering the question, "How is it that God's promises to Abraham have ended up in a Gentile church?" That question raises serious issues. Either God was not faithful to His promises to Abraham, or Jesus was not the Messiah. Either one of those would be a bad choice. So in last month's comments, we noted that one of the things Luke wanted to do, absolutely, positively, with no exceptions, was to show that the mission to the Gentiles was a continuous outgrowth of those promises to Abraham. He does this by showing how the message of God's Messiah was offered to the Jews first, but for the most part they rejected it. Still, the power of the Spirit was so strong that it simply couldn't be thwarted. So once the Jews started rejecting God's anointing of Jesus, there was simply no choice but to take that message to the Gentiles. The disciples began by going first to Samaria and Caesarea and then beyond.

That is why Luke keeps everything in Jerusalem in those first five chapters. (This is unlike the story in the gospels of Mark or Matthew where the disciples are told to go to Galilee.) For Luke's recounting of events, they must stay in Jerusalem because that is the center of Jewish authority. God's promises to Abraham are ritually located in Jerusalem. That's where the disciples received the Holy Spirit. That's where they did their first preaching. That's where the people first started listening to them; that's where the Holy Spirit first came upon the new believers. And that's where the disciples started getting into trouble. Everything was happening in Jerusalem in the first five chapters.

The final chapters of the first part of Acts focused on Peter. Peter, it seems (at least unofficially), was the spokesperson for the early church community. He was the one who was vested, and he had the authority to initiate that transition from the Jews to the Gentiles. He was vested in the sense that many of his healings were similar to those done by Jesus. Scholars think that's a literary tool (a favorite of Luke's), intended to show how Peter's authority was contiguous to Jesus'; he was of the same line as Jesus. He was authorized. So it was that Peter received the vision that said, "Don't call anything impure that God has made clean." And just prior to the time when he was having his vision, God had already prepared a Gentile (Cornelius) to go looking for him. This was not human planning or a convenient coincidence. This was an incredible example of divine providence.

The bottom line is that Peter was the one who made that initial connection. And it was a perfect connection. There was never a break because it was Peter who took it from the Jews over to the Gentiles. But shortly thereafter, Peter was arrested and thrown into prison. Even though he miraculously escaped, his work was finished in Acts (with the exception of one short incident in this second half), so he disappeared from the scene, and the story moved forward with a new leader.

In this second half, the attention turned towards a man named Saul/Paul. The mission outward operated from two fronts. The leaders of the church, the apostles, stayed in Jerusalem, while Saul and Barnabas worked together from Antioch. So the headquarters of the church for the Gentiles was in Antioch; the headquarters of the church for the Jewish Christians, led by the apostles, was in Jerusalem. They did not always see eye to eye.

This is the basis for some of the major differences between Acts and Paul's letters. One might say that this is where Acts and Paul's letters have a parting of the ways. In reading Paul's letters, one could easily get the feeling that relations between these two centers were tense and oftentimes at odds. Luke, however, doesn't breathe a word of this. It's important for Luke to show that things were going well. Luke wants to show that the path was smooth – that everything was Spirit derived; that everything was Spirit impelled; that there were no problems from within, that whatever problems they did have, were from without. And that's a pretty big difference between their points of view. Once readers see this difference, they want to know: "Was it all very smooth and harmonious, or was it contentious?" The short answer is that it probably was a bit of both.

For now, we will follow the story only in Acts, assuming its integrity but keeping a perspective on its historicity, in order to see how Luke accomplishes the transition from Judaism to Christianity.

We will focus on the second half, in which there are five sections: 12:25-16:5 – The First Missionary Journey; 16:6-19:20 – The Second and Third Missionary Journeys; 19:21-23:35 – Journey to Jerusalem and Paul's arrest; 24:1-26:32 – Paul's Defense in Caesarea; 27:1-28:31 – The Journey and Arrival in Rome.

I -- 12:25-16:5 – The First Missionary Journey

12:25-13:3
- Antioch church sent out Barnabas and Saul
  - 12:25
    - Transition statement from Jerusalem back to Antioch
  - 13:1-3
    - List of elders and prophets in the Antiochean Church
    - Spirit directed Barnabas and Saul be set aside for mission work
    - Church placed their hands on them and sent them off
13:4-13
- First stop: Cyprus – cities of Salamis and Paphos
  - 13:4-6
    - Spirit directed their activities
  - 13:7-12
    - Proconsul and sorcerer
    - Proconsul wanted to hear word of God; sorcerer opposed this Saul (now Paul) said, "The hand of the Lord is against you!"
    - He predicted sorcerer would be blind – happened immediately
    - Proconsul truly believed, praised the Lord
  - 13:13
    - Left for Perga; John Mark returned to Jerusalem
13:14-52
- Arrival at Pisidan Antioch (different Antioch from above)
  - 13:14-15
    - Paul entered the city, went to the synagogue, began to preach
  - 13:16-41
    - Paul's sermon at the synagogue in Antioch
    - Paul began with historical review of Israel's history
    - He announced that God had anointed Jesus (descendant of David)
    - Jews had rejected this Messiah Paul cited from
    - Scripture to verify God's action in Jesus
    - He appealed to them to believe and repent
  - 13:42-45
    - People immediately invited them to return the next Sabbath
    - On that day, the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord
    - The Jews were very jealous, began speaking against Paul
  - 13:46-52
    - Paul clarified policy
    - He would preach to Jews first; then to Gentiles
    - Gentiles were elated
    - Jews incited women of high standing and leading men of the city
    - They had them thrown out of the city; disciples were filled with joy
14:1-28
Visits to Iconium, Lystra, Derbe and back to Antioch
- 14:1-7
  - Paul preached from the synagogue at Iconium
  - A great number of Jews and Gentiles believed
  - Other Jews stirred up unbelieving Gentiles
  - Together, they hatched a plot to stone them
  - Disciples escaped to Lystra
- 14:8-20
  - Ministry at Lystra
  - Paul healed a man who was lame from birth (Similar to Jesus and Peter)
  - People responded by believing they were gods sent down in human form
  - Paul and Barnabas did not understand for a while
  - Priests wanted to offer sacrifices to them
  - Paul and Barnabas stopped the crowd at once
  - This offered them another opportunity for preaching
  - Things were going well until Jews from Antioch came and stirred up crowd
  - People stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city
  - Disciples prayed for him; he was healed, left for Derbe the next day
- 14:21-28
  - Ministry at Derbe
  - Paul and Barnabas won over many converts in Derbe
  - They began to make their way back through cities they had converted
  - Sailed back to Antioch, reported on their successes
  - God had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles
15:1-29
- The Jerusalem Council (ca 49CE)
  - 15:1-4
    - Troublemakers from Judea arrived at Antioch
    - They preached the need for circumcision
    - They debated with Paul and Barnabas
    - The Antioch church sent them to Jerusalem to settle issue once and for all (Luke says the church in Jerusalem "welcomed" them)
  - 15:5-12
    - Peter's speech
    - Peter reminded the church of his experience with Cornelius
    - Paul and Barnabas recounted their experiences with the Gentiles
    - All felt that all this work was Spirit impelled
  - 15:13-21
    - James made the final decision
    - James did not refer to Paul or Barnabas in his speech (political correctness)
    - James referred to scripture for his decision
    - Isaiah expected Gentile converts
    - "Therefore we should not make it difficult for Gentiles to join"
    - He decreed four stipulations: they should refrain from idol meat, sexual immoralities, from things strangled, and from blood
  - 15:22-29
    - Council sent letter to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas
    - Judas and Silas accompanied them as witnesses to carry the letter
    - Letter confirmed James' decision
15:30-16:4
- Aftermath of the Council
  - 15:30-35
    - Church of Antioch was delighted
  - 15:36-41
    - Paul and Barnabas parted company over John Mark
    - Barnabas and Mark (his nephew) left to go to Cyprus
    - Paul and Silas went into Syria
  - 16:1-4
    - Addition of Timothy
    - Paul added Timothy to his team
    - Paul immediately circumcised him because he was a Jew
16:5
- Summary statement
- The churches were strengthened and grew in numbers daily

II – 16:6-19:20 -- The Second and Third Missionary Journeys

16:6-10
- The Holy Spirit prevented Paul from going into Asia
- The Spirit told him to go to Macedonia
16:13-15
- Conversion of Lydia (dealer of purple goods)
- She met Paul at the river, heard his message, and believed
16:16-34
- Encounter and aftermath involving demon- possessed girl
  - 16:16-18
    - She followed them for days, shouting they were from the Most High God
    - Paul finally healed her at which point the spirit left her
  - 16:19-24
    - Owners of the girl got Paul and Silas arrested
    - Owners felt loss of income, accused
    - Paul and Silas
    - Magistrate had them flogged, thrown in prison
  - 16:25-34
    - Rescue from prison, conversion of jailor
    - Paul and Silas spent the night singing hymns
    - About midnight, an earthquake opened all the prison doors
    - Jailor thought they had all escaped, planned to kill himself
    - Paul and Silas stopped him, preached to him
    - He cared for them, listened to them, and was baptized
16:35-40
- Paul revealed he was a Roman citizen
- The next morning the magistrates told them they were free to leave
- Upon finding out they were Roman citizens, they escorted them out (Roman citizens were never to be publicly flogged – too humiliating)
17:1-9
- Ministry at Thessalonica
- Paul preached successfully in the synagogue
- Then the Jews were "jealous" and started a riot against them
- They dragged their host, Jason, before the magistrates
- Paul and Silas left so Jason wouldn't be implicated
17:10-15
- Ministry at Berea
- Bereans received the message eagerly
- Jews of Thessalonica followed, agitated the crowd
- Paul left by himself to go to Athens
17:16-34
- Ministry at Athens
- Paul preached to the Jews, was overheard by philosophers
- Philosophers invited him to speak before the Council of Ares at Areopagus
- Paul modified his speech: spoke of God's nature (not Jewish history)
- A few were persuaded
18:1-17
- Ministry at Corinth, met Priscilla and Aquila
- Paul stayed there for 18 months (ca 50-52CE)
- Silas and Timothy joined him there; Paul devoted all his time to preaching
- Jews opposed him again, but he went "next door" to house of Crispus
  - 18:12-17
    - Paul appeared before Gallio Jews stirred up accusations
    - Gallio dismissed charges because they were of a religious matter
18:18-23
- Paul traveled back to Antioch
- First stop was Ephesus, then Caesarea
- Then Paul traveled throughout Galatia and Phrygia
18:24-28
- Interlude involving Apollos
- Apollos came to Ephesus, was taught by Priscilla and Aquila
19:1-19
- Paul's Third Missionary Journey (mostly in Ephesus)
  - 19:1-7
    - Paul talked with 12 men who only knew the baptism of John
    - Paul preached to them; Holy Spirit came upon them
  - 19:8-12
    - Summary of Paul's ministry
    - Preached in Ephesus until some opposed him
    - Paul rented a lecture hall; spoke there daily for two years
    - "All the Jews and Greeks who lived in Asia heard the word of God"
    - Paul also did many miracles
  - 19:13-19
    - Seven sons of Sceva
    - Some Jews were trying to heal in the name of Jesus
    - Evil spirit turned on them, beat them
    - When people heard this, they held the name of Jesus in high honor
    - Burned sorcery scrolls in public ceremony
19:20
- Summary statement
- "The word of the Lord spread widely and grew"

III – 19:21-23:35 – Journey to Jerusalem and Paul's arrest

19:21-41
- Paul decided to go to Jerusalem
- Silversmith (Demetrius) in Ephesus accused Paul of being bad for business
- People weren't buying as many silver shrines of Artemis
- He convinced people Artemis would be robbed of her divine majesty
- People rioted in Ephesus, gathered at the theater
- Disciples prevented Paul from appearing there
- Greeks cried, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians"
- City clerk quieted crowd, told Demetrius to use courts to press charges
- Managed to dismiss crowds
20:1-6
- Paul set out for Macedonia after riot
- Jews had plotted against him, so he varied his route
20:7-12
- Death and raising of Eutychus
- Paul preached at Troas; he talked "on and on"
- Eutychus fell out of second story window, was picked up dead
- Paul threw himself on the lad's body and put his arms around him
- Paul resumed preaching; Eutychus was taken home alive
20:13-16
- Paul intensified his efforts to get to Jerusalem
20:17-38
- Paul's farewell address to the Ephesian elders
- Paul spoke to them while in Melitus
- Paul encouraged, exhorted, and warned them of things to come
- Afterward they all knelt together and prayed
- They accompanied him to the ship headed for Jerusalem
- (A highly emotional moment indicative of their esteem for Paul)
21:1-16
- Disciples warned Paul against going to Jerusalem
- Agabus (a prophet) predicted Paul's imprisonment
- Paul would not be dissuaded
21:17-26
- Paul's arrival in Jerusalem
- Luke says the "brothers received them warmly"
- Jews urged Paul to join with others in making a vow and paying their expenses
- (This is one hint in Acts that Paul had brought money from the outlying churches for the poor in Jerusalem)
- Because of Paul's encounters with Gentiles, he was ritually unclean
- He began purification rites and went to temple to set date for offerings
21:27-36
- Paul's arrest in the temple
- When the purification was up, Paul went into temple as scheduled
- Jews from Asia stirred others up, accused Paul of having Gentiles in the restricted area
- The whole city was aroused, dragged Paul out of the temple, shut the gates
- Commander of Roman troops was alerted because of the commotion; he immediately intervened
- Commander ordered that Paul be taken to the barracks
- Crowd kept shouting that Paul should be killed
21:37-22:22
- Paul spoke to the crowd
- Paul alerted the Commander that he was a Jew of Tarsus; he asked to speak to the crowd
- Paul recounted his conversion, his blindness, and subsequent healing
- He relayed his commission to preach to the Gentiles
- The crowd turned on him again, shouting "Away with him!"
22:23-29
- Paul revealed his Roman citizenship
- Commander rescued Paul again, ordered him to be flogged
- Paul claimed he was a Roman citizen
- Commander was fearful that he might have already harmed him
22:30-23:11
- Paul spoke before the Sanhedrin
- Commander couldn't understand why Paul was accused by Jews
- He asked Sanhedrin to convene, set Paul before them Paul argued that he was a Pharisee, believed in the resurrection
- (Since Sadducees didn't believe in resurrection, that started a big uproar)
- Pharisees defended Paul; Sadducees argued against him
- Commander had to rescue Paul one more time -- from Sanhedrin this time
- That night Paul had a vision saying he would testify in Rome
23:12-22
- Jews plotted to kill Paul
- Jews contrived with Sanhedrin to lay a trap for Paul
- Sanhedrin were to ask to interview him again, he would be assassinated on the way
- Paul's nephew tipped him off about the plot
- Paul had him inform the commander (who was worried about Paul's safety)
23:23-35
- Commander sent Paul to Caesarea
- Commander provided a night escort to Caesarea Wrote letter of explanation to Governor Felix
- Commander said he "could find no charge against him" deserving of death
- Governor accepted the case, put Paul under guard in Herod's palace
- Sent for Paul's accusers

IV – 24:1-26:32 – Paul's Defense In Caesarea

24:1-27
- Paul before Felix
- After five days, High Priest went to Caesarea, laid out charges against Paul
- Accused Paul of stirring up trouble all over the world
- Accused Paul of desecrating the temple
- All the Jews agreed with him, asserted these things were true Paul's defense
- He had come to Jerusalem for worship
- He had not argued with anyone and they had no witnesses to the contrary
- Paul claimed he had brought gifts for the poor (the collection)
- Paul denied all charges, said those who had accused him were not present
- Claimed he was being accused because he believed in resurrection
- Felix adjourned the proceedings – issue seemed to be simply a religious matter
- He ordered that Paul be kept under guard but given some freedoms
- Felix brought his wife to listen to Paul
- TWO years went by, then Felix was succeeded by Festus
25:1-12
- Paul before Festus
- Festus inherited the case of Paul from Felix Festus went to Jerusalem (get acquainted visit) and met with high priest High priest wanted to know his decision regarding Paul Invited them to return with him to Caesarea to state charges against Paul
- Jews went to Caesarea, accused Paul of many things,
- But again, Jews had no witnesses so they couldn't prove any of the charges
- Paul denied everything
- Festus asked if he would go to Jerusalem to stand trial
- Paul said he was already in Caesar's court
- Claimed his right as a Roman citizen to appeal his case to Caesar
- Festus granted it be done
- He wanted to keep peace with Jewish leaders
- He was willing to pass off his problem case to Caesar
25:13-22
- Festus met with Agrippa II
- However, one simply didn't send an accused man to Caesar without cause
- When King Agrippa and his sister came to visit, Festus discussed the matter
- Festus thought it was about a religious matter and someone named Jesus
- He admitted he didn't really know how to handle it
- Agrippa agreed to interview Paul himself
25:23-26:32
- Paul before Agrippa
- Festus brought Paul before Agrippa and Bernice
- Festus asked what he should write to Caesar about the matter
- Agrippa gave Paul permission to speak for himself
- Paul described his Jewish heritage – impeccable in all regards
- Described his conversion experience again
- Described his commission and ministry to the Gentiles
- Festus interrupted by thinking him insane
- Paul refuted this; he said his claims were all true and reasonable
- Paul appealed to Agrippa's knowledge of the prophets
- Agrippa asked if Paul thought he could make him a Christian in such a short time
- Agrippa said if Paul had not asked to see Caesar, he could have been set free

V – 27:1-28:31 – The Journey and Arrival in Rome

27:1-12
- The first stop: Crete
- Paul was placed in the care of Julius, a centurion in the Imperial Regiment
- They set sail late in the season, only to find the winds against them
- More time slipped by
- Because they couldn't make much headway, they took cover in Crete
- Paul warned them, predicted loss of cargo and possibly their lives
- Centurion followed advice of ship owner who wanted to continue journey
- Harbor was not safe for winter, so they had to move somewhere anyway
27:13-44
- Storm at sea and shipwreck
- When the winds changed, they set sail from Crete
- Unexpected Northeaster came up, blew them way off course
- Sailors threw over much cargo hoping to lighten the load
- Paul encouraged them, knowing he would appear before Caesar
- Fourteen days went by before sailors heard sounds of water crashing against rocks
- They had no idea where they were
- Sailors tried to escape off ship
- Paul had centurion cut ropes holding lifeboats
- Eventually ship ran aground, broke up
- Sailors intended to kill prisoners; centurion intervened and kept them all safe
- All people on board (276) were able to reach land safely
28:1-10
- Coming ashore at Malta
- Islanders showed much kindness to the people from the ship
- Paul, in being helpful, was bitten by a viper while throwing logs on fire
- Islanders expected him to swell up and die
- When he didn't, they thought he was a god
- Paul healed the father of the chief official
- Others were also healed; in return islanders gave them supplies
28:11-16
- Arrival at Rome
- After three months, they set sail for Rome
- "Brothers" from Rome greeted Paul
- He was allowed to live by himself, under guard of course
28:17-29
- Paul met with Jewish leaders
- Paul explained what had happened in Jerusalem
- Jews said no one had told them anything, asked to hear Paul's teachings
- Upon hearing what he had to say, many left in disgust
- Others listened and were convinced
- This only encouraged Paul, affirming his mission to the Gentiles
28:30-31
- And for two years, Paul stayed there in his house and welcomed all who came to see him
- Boldly he taught the Lord and preached the kingdom of God

Luke ends his writing without telling us how things turned out. Legend has it that Paul might have been released from prison and at least made some forays towards his Spanish mission. Others think he was imprisoned in Rome until his death. The story doesn't tell us. Nor do we know whether he ever stood before the Emperor, or if he was deemed guilty or innocent. Scholars think he might have arrived around 60CE, but don't think he was killed until much later. Those who argue for the historicity of Acts cannot explain why there was no mention of his death – considering Acts was written after 80CE. Apparently, Luke did not think that was needed for his story. His motive in writing was to show how God's promises to the Jews ended up in a Gentile church. Paul was simply the vehicle, the instrument for the work of the Holy Spirit. By the end of Acts, Paul's work was complete – the young church was burgeoning. Next month, we will resume with the gospel of John.

Bibliography

Barclay, William. "Acts." Daily Study Bible. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster Press, 1975.

Gaebelein, Frank. "Acts." Expositor's Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing, 1981.

Gaventa, Beverly Roberts. "Acts." Abingdon New Testament Commentaries. Nashville, TN, Abingdon Press, 2003.

Johnson, Luke Timothy. "The Acts of the Apostles." Sacra Pagina. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1992.

Witherington, Ben, III. The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm B Eerdmans, 1998.

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