THE FOLLOWING IS AN EXCERPT FROM THE ADVANCED BIBLE STUDIES SERIES “ACTS”
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The following is an excerpt from the Advanced Bible Studies Series course on Acts, which is available from Way of Life Literature. (It is best to order them by phone at 866-295-4143, but they can also be ordered from the newly redesigned online order form at the Way of Life web site, http://www.wayofife.org.)
There are currently 20 titles in the series, and any of them can be special ordered in large print and in ring coil binding. We don’t believe that you will find better quality, more truly life-changing Bible courses from any other source. They are based strictly upon the King James Bible and the powerful word studies assist in the understanding of the KJV but never cast doubt upon it. They are thorough and comprehensive. They are very practical and have the objective of producing well-equipped Christian soldiers that have a solid understanding of the Bible. They stress holy and obedient Christian living and separation from worldliness and error, exalt evangelism and the New Testament church, and promote world missions. They emphasize the crucial differences between law and grace and positional and practical sanctification, and they continually fortify the student’s understanding of the life-changing doctrines such as justification, substitutionary atonement, and eternal security. The courses are non-Calvinistic and interpret Bible prophecy literally. The student will be prepared to stand against the wiles of the Devil and to refute the major theological heresies of our day. One pastor said the books “are extremely helpful for any Christian, no matter where they are spiritually; the practical application is extremely helpful and edifying.”
The Advanced Bible Studies Series can be used as private study guides for the individual Christian, as Sunday School lessons, as textbooks in Bible colleges, as part of a home schooling curriculum, as study material in jails and prisons, for discipling new (or older) Christians, and as refresher study material for Bible College graduates.
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ACTS 13-14
PAUL’S FIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY
This is a further stage of fulfillment of the Lord’s Commission in Acts 1:8. The disciples preached first in Jerusalem in Acts 2, then in Samaria in Acts 8, and now they are going to the uttermost parts of the earth. In the Great Commission in Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, and Acts 1:8, the Lord describes the church’s work, and the book of Acts explains how to accomplish it. This is the church’s authority and pattern. We are not to look to the “church fathers” or to the Protestant reformers or to the “great fundamentalist leaders” or to some contemporary church growth program.
The Call and Ordination (Acts 13:1-4)
1. The call (Acts 13:1-2)
a. Consider some things that preceded their missionary call:
(1) They had proven themselves in the Lord’s work. Barnabas and Paul had established this church (Acts 11:22-26). Proving is a necessary part of one’s qualification for ministry (1 Tim. 3:10). It is not wise to put an individual into any type of special Christian service until he has proven himself faithful and capable.
(2) They were busy in the Lord’s work (Acts 13:2). They had started the church and it had grown strong, but they did not retire. They were as busy as ever. Those who want to find God’s will must get busy right where they are and serve God in whatever capacity they can find, and He will lead them step by step in His more particular will.
(3) They were able to work in harmony with other men (Acts 13:1).
b. Some characteristics of their missionary call:
(1) The call was personal (Acts 13:2).
(2) The call was unmistakable (Acts 13:2). God’s call to a specific ministry such as pastoring or missionary work is clear and sure.
(3) The call was specific, to a particular work (Acts 13:2).
(4) The call was recognized by others (Acts 13:2). It is not enough that a man be convinced that he is called to a special work; the call should be recognized by others who know him, particularly by his own congregation. Of course, this is assuming that the church is scriptural and is walking in fellowship with the Holy Spirit, which in these days of apostasy will not always be the case.
(5) The call was by the Holy Spirit. He was sent on the Day of Pentecost to empower the believers to oversee the work of the Great Commission (Acts 1:8). Though God gives leaders to churches, they must be careful not to usurp the place of the Holy Spirit in church and missionary work.
2. The ordination (Acts 13:3-4)
a. What is ordination? The following three things are signified by the laying on of hands:
(1) It is the church’s recognition of God’s call upon a man.
(2) It is to set apart a man for a special work (v. 2 “separate me”) and to release the individual for God’s work (v. 3).
(3) It is a promise to stand behind and support a man (v. 3 “sent them away”). This usually involved support. Compare Rom. 15:24; 1 Cor. 9:13-14; Titus 3:13; 3 John 6.
b. How was it done?
* It was done with fasting and prayer.
(1) Jesus taught that certain demonic strongholds can only be removed through fasting and prayer (Mat. 17:21).
(2) The preachers at Antioch fasted during their regular ministry (Acts 13:2).
(3) Fasting also accompanied the ordination of elders (Acts 14:23).
(4) Fasting was an important part of Paul’s ministry (2 Cor. 11:27).
c. Who is to be ordained?
(1) Three types of men are ordained in Acts
(a) Deacons (Acts 6:6)
(b) Missionaries (Acts 13:3)
(c) Pastors (Acts 14:23)
(2) There were no women ordained in the book of Acts.
3. Misc. lessons from this passage (Acts 13:1-4)
a. The church is the headquarters for missionary work. The Lord worked through the church to send out the first foreign missionaries. Compare 1 Tim. 3:15.
b. Each church is independent and autonomous. When the Holy Spirit called Paul and Barnabas from Antioch, the church did not have to send word to Jerusalem or elsewhere to ask their permission.
c. Each church should pattern itself after Antioch, the great first century missionary congregation.
(1) Each church should be busy reaching its own area.
(2) Each church should be training and preparing workers for the Lord’s harvest.
(3) Each church should be listening earnestly to the Lord’s voice in order to be able to discern His will and direction.
(4) Each church should be prepared to send out its best men for the Lord’s work in other places.
(5) Each church should be prepared to support and assist the men and women that the Lord calls. God’s plan is for His people to support the work, and He has promised to bless the giver (Lk. 6:38; 2 Cor. 9:6).
d. Missionary work is best done by teams of men rather than by single individuals.
(1) This is the pattern we see throughout the book of Acts.
(2) This was the pattern set by Jesus when He chose 12 apostles instead of one and then sent them out two by two (Mk. 6:7; Lk. 10:1).
(3) Of course, there are exceptions to this when one man is required to be alone in a work. Sometimes we see one man working alone in Acts for a short time (such as Philip), but the rule and divine pattern we see in Scripture is for teams of men, sometimes two, sometimes several. Compare Acts 20:4.
(4) There are many advantages of this pattern:
(a) The work of God can progress much more quickly when two or more men work together in church planting. It can be more fruitful.
(b) The work of God is greatly strengthened when two or more men work together in church planting (Ecc. 4:11-12). Different men have different gifts and they can complement and assist one another as did Paul and Barnabas and the other co-laborers.
(b) The work of God can be better protected when two or more men work together in church planting. Two or more godly men can see spiritual dangers and can discern the enemy’s devices more clearly than one can.
e. The Holy Spirit is a person and not merely an influence or the same as the Father and the Son (Acts 13:2, 4).
At Paphos and Salamis in Cyprus (Acts 13:4-12)
* Maps: Paul’s First Missionary Journey
1. John Mark was their minister (Acts 13:5). He is the author of the Gospel of Mark.
2. They preached the Word of God (Acts 13:5). Note that they did not preach themselves, as the gurus of this world do, and they did not preach their own opinions.
3. God opened a great door for them (v. 7).
a. Sergius Paulus was a prudent man. All unsaved men have the same sinful nature but they are not all the same in character and in their attitude toward God’s Word.
b. The parable of the Sower describes four kinds of hearts, determined by how men respond to God’s Word (Mk. 4:2-9, 13-20). The reason why the devil is able to catch away the Word of God from the “way side heart” is that he doesn’t understand (Mat. 13:19). And the reason why he doesn’t understand is because he doesn’t try to understand. God is ready and able to enlighten any sinner who responds to the Gospel.
4. The conflict (Acts 13:6-11).
a. The preaching of the gospel is always resisted and always attended by trouble.
b. One of the devil’s chief tactics is false teaching to confuse the minds of people and to lead them away from the truth (v. 8).
c. This is the first problem that the new missionaries encountered, which instructs us that false teaching is a perpetual problem that cannot be ignored.
d. False teachers pervert sound doctrine (v. 10). This means they take true doctrine and change it. This means they take true doctrine and change it. They do this in many ways, such as the following. They change the definition of Bible words, such as grace. They take verses out of context, and they use the more difficult passages to overthrow the plain teaching of the clear.
e. Paul dealt with this problem (Acts 13:9-11).
(1) Paul didn’t focus only on “positive truth.”
(2) The Holy Spirit is always zealous for the truth (v. 9). Those who claim to be in a close relationship with the Holy Spirit but who are soft on heresy and apostasy and draw back from doctrinal controversy are deceived. An example is the modern charismatic movement which is willing to yoke together with almost any doctrine and which is exceedingly soft toward the defense of the faith.
(3) Paul boldly rebuked the false teacher (v. 10).
(4) Paul exercised apostolic authority (v. 11). Compare 2 Cor. 12:12.
5. The deputy believed (Acts 13:12). He did not believe because of the miracles but because of the doctrine. Compare Romans 10:17. Many saw Christ’s great miracles, but most did not believe.
6. Saul is first called Paul here (Acts 13:9). Saul is Hebrew and Paul is Greek.
At Perga (Acts 13:13)
* Maps: Paul’s First Missionary Journey
Here John Mark left them. We do not know the reason, but we know that Paul did not think that he had a good reason. We will see that this eventually caused a split between Paul and Barnabas.
At Antioch in Pasidia (Acts 13:14-50)
* Maps: Paul’s First Missionary Journey
1. Paul preached to the Jews (Acts 13:16-41). This is the fifth major sermon recorded for us in Acts (Peter Acts 2, Peter Acts 3, Stephen Acts 7, Peter Acts 10) and the first of Paul’s three sermons recorded in Acts.
a. He proved that Jesus is the promised Messiah, the Son of David (v. 24)
(1) He proved it with John’s testimony (vv. 24-25).
(2) He proved it with the witnesses to the resurrection (vv. 30-31).
(3) He proved it from Scripture (vv. 33-37).
(a) Psalm 2:7 (Acts 13:33)
(b) Isaiah 55:3 (Acts 13:34)
(c) Psalm 16:10 (Acts 13:35)
b. He preached forgiveness of sins through faith (Acts 13:38-39). He taught justification by faith alone. Justification means “to be declared righteous.” It means that God not only forgives all of our sins, but He also puts to our account the very righteousness of Christ. It is like a poor man who is deeply in debt, and a compassionate rich man not only pays the debt but puts great wealth into the poor man’s bank account!
c. He warned them of rebellion and unbelief (Acts 13:40-41). Contrast this with those who teach that God is only love and that He will not judge anyone. The preaching in the book of Acts is filled with strong warnings.
2. Paul took the sincere seekers aside and taught them more (Acts 13:42-43). This was his custom. He preached the gospel widely and then worked carefully with those who responded.
3. The next sabbath there was a sharp division (Acts 13:44-50).
a. The Jews were envious (v. 45). This is one of the special dangers associated with leadership. It was the sin of King Saul.
b. The gospel was first preached to the Jews, but it is also for all men (vv. 46-47).
c. Paul quotes Isaiah 42:6 and 49:6.
(1) The Old Testament foretold that the Messiah would bless the Gentiles.
(2) But it did not foresee the church age in which Jews and Gentiles would form one special body. The church is a mystery that was not revealed in the Old Testament (Eph. 3:9-10).
d. Calvinists quote Acts 13:48 to support their doctrine, but it must be interpreted in the context of verse 46.
(1) Men are not elected and rejected on the basis of sovereign choice, but on the basis of faith. Compare John 6:40.
(2) Salvation is for all men (v. 47). God gives men a choice.
e. The gospel can spread quickly in places where it has never been heard (v. 49).
f. Persecution always accompanies the preaching of the truth (v. 50).
g. Those who reject gospel preachers are rejecting Christ, and He also rejects them (v. 51; Lk. 10:16).
h. The gospel brings both blessing and curse (v. 52), depending on men’s response.
i. They were filled with the Holy Spirit but did not speak in tongues (v. 52).
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The previous is an excerpt from the Advanced Bible Studies Series course on Acts, which is available from Way of Life Literature. (It is best to order them by phone at 866-295-4143, but they can also be ordered from the newly redesigned online order form at the Way of Life web site, http://www.wayofife.org.)
There are currently 20 titles in the series, and any of them can be special ordered in large print and in ring coil binding. We don’t believe that you will find better quality, more truly life-changing Bible courses from any other source. They are based strictly upon the King James Bible and the powerful word studies assist in the understanding of the KJV but never cast doubt upon it. They are thorough and comprehensive. They are very practical and have the objective of producing well-equipped Christian soldiers that have a solid understanding of the Bible. They stress holy and obedient Christian living and separation from worldliness and error, exalt evangelism and the New Testament church, and promote world missions. They emphasize the crucial differences between law and grace and positional and practical sanctification, and they continually fortify the student’s understanding of the life-changing doctrines such as justification, substitutionary atonement, and eternal security. The courses are non-Calvinistic and interpret Bible prophecy literally. The student will be prepared to stand against the wiles of the Devil and to refute the major theological heresies of our day. One pastor said the books “are extremely helpful for any Christian, no matter where they are spiritually; the practical application is extremely helpful and edifying.”
The Advanced Bible Studies Series can be used as private study guides for the individual Christian, as Sunday School lessons, as textbooks in Bible colleges, as part of a home schooling curriculum, as study material in jails and prisons, for discipling new (or older) Christians, and as refresher study material for Bible College graduates.
