Unveiling the Mystery - The Book of Acts
In Paul's letter to the Ephesians, he declared that he had been given the revelation of the mystery of God which was the uniting together of Jews and Gentiles through the redemptive work of Christ. The book of Acts is the Unveiling of that Mystery. This series of messages is an exegetical study of the book of Acts. This series of messages were presented at Family Bible Church located in Martinez, Georgia in 2022 and 2023.
Episodes
August 13, 2023
* This is the final message in this series on the book of Acts. As we have considered "The Acts of the Apostles," we have seen that it is more aptly titled "The Acts of the Holy Spirit." From the beginning, we have seen how the Holy Spirit empowered and filled the servants of God to distribute the message of redemption through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.
* It is appropriate then, that the book should close with a...
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* This the 41st message in this series on the book of Acts. It is, as well, the penultimate of the series.
* Over the past couple of weeks, we have seen the sovereignty of God guiding Paul to the city of Rome in order that he might have an audience with Caesar.
* This has been accomplished, first of all, through Paul being imprisoned by Rome on account of false charges brought against him by the Jews, and the unwillingness of seve...
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* Over the past couple of weeks, we have been considering the transition of Paul's ministry from proclaiming the gospel in a traveling ministry to the ultimate fulfillment of God's prophetic proclamation to him that Paul would bear His name before kings (cf. Acts 9:15-16) We have seen how God used Paul's wrongful imprisonment to begin the process of moving him along to Rome, just as Jesus had promised him (cf. Acts 23:11).
* In th...
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* Over the past couple of weeks, we have been considering the transition of Paul's ministry from proclaiming the gospel in a traveling ministry to the ultimate fulfillment of God's prophetic proclamation to him that Paul would bear His name before kings (cf. Acts 9:15-16) We have seen how God used Paul's wrongful imprisonment to begin the process of moving him along to Rome.
* Last week, Paul appealed his case to Caesar.
* Today...
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* Over the past couple of weeks, we have been considering the transition of Paul's ministry from proclaiming the gospel in a traveling ministry to the ultimate fulfillment of God's prophetic proclamation to him that Paul would bear His name before kings (cf. Acts 9:15-16) We have seen how God used Paul's innocent attendance at the Temple to fulfill a vow to begin the process of moving him along to Rome.
* Last week, we began the f...
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* History can be aptly broken into "His Story." It is the account of what God has done in the world and amongst the nations. As we have been studying the book which is titled "The Acts of the Apostles" we can as well state that it could be more aptly called, "The Acts of God." Throughout the account written by Luke regarding the beginning of the church, we have seen the power and personal engagement of God - Father, Son, and Hol...
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* Paul had been pressing back to Jerusalem. As he had told the elders of Ephesus along the way, "And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me." (Acts 20:22-23)
* Last week, we saw the beginning stages of this prophetic declaration.
* Paul was fulfilling a vow to YHWH and subm...
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June 25, 2023
* We have titled this exegetical study of the Book of Acts - "Unveiling the Mystery." That "Mystery" is the church. In our study of Paul's letter to the Ephesians, we saw the proclamation of how God had extended His grace in Christ Jesus to both the Jews and the Gentiles. In Christ, both Jews and Gentiles come to the Father, through the Spirit, as "one new man." Through the sacrificial death of Christ, and His ensuing victory ...
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June 18, 2023
* Paul has been hurrying to get to Jerusalem in time for Pentecost. We are not told why.
* Over the past two weeks, we have consider part of Paul's ministry along the journey - with the church in Troas and then his exhortations to the elders of Ephesus.
* In today's passage, we get to ponder the situation when two individuals, or groups, believe that they have a “word from the Lord” ... or that the Spirit is “leading them” ... and...
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June 11, 2023
* Two weeks ago, we considered the extent and effect of God's work in Ephesus through Paul. Paul spent more than two years in Ephesus at that time. Last week, we tracked Paul's travels from Ephesus to Macedonia to Greece and then back to Troas, where he spoke to a gathering of the church.
* In Acts 20, Paul is at the end of his third missionary journey, and he is hurrying to get to Jerusalem by Pentecost. He sailed from Philippi...
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June 4, 2023
* All Scripture is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16). Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21).
* Why does Luke spend much time on certain portions of Paul's trips and moves quickly through other areas? The final answer ... God wanted us to know those parts and determined that the other parts were not needed for our edification!
* Last week, we considered the extent and effect of God's work in E...
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May 28, 2023
* Last week, we transitioned from Paul's 2nd missionary journey to his third journey. On that trip, he promised those in Ephesus that he would return.
* On his first stop in Ephesus, Paul was received well and people begged him to stay. However, wherever the gospel is proclaimed continuously, there will eventually be opposition. That is what discuss today ... the opposition to the Gospel in Ephesus.
* The City of Ephesus was the...
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May 21, 2023
* In 2 Timothy 2:1-2 Paul revealed the process of functional discipleship to Timothy: 1 "You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also."
* In today's passage, we see that philosophy, or process, of discipleship being demonstrated by, and through, Paul himself.
* This portion ...
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May 14, 2023
* Last week we considered Paul's engagements in the metropolis of Athens - the center of the Grecian philosophical world. While there, Paul could not help but continue to tell people about Jesus. This led to his confrontation with the Stoics and Epicureans at the Areopagus. As a result, we are told, some believed.
* Paul continued his travel southward to the city of Corinth - one of the major cities of Greece.
* Some of the pa...
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* As we have studied the book of Acts, we have seen how God Sovereignly oversaw the expansion of the church from Jerusalem into Asia Minor (which we refer to today as Eurasia) and then specifically toward the European continent by guiding Paul into Macedonia and then down into the Ionian peninsula - to Thessalonica and Berea - toward the epicenter of the world culture of the day - Athens.
* In each place that they have gone, they h...
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April 30, 2023
* In Acts 9, we saw the call and conversion of Saul of Tarsus. In that account, Jesus speaks to the prophet Ananias telling him to go and heal Saul. Ananias balks and Jesus states, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake."
* As Paul began his ministry with Barnabas and they traveled proclaiming ...
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April 16, 2023
* Throughout the book of Acts - we have seen how God has Unveiled His Mystery of the Church. God has sovereignly overseen the expansion of the Church through various means of guidance.
* Two weeks ago, we saw how a sharp disagreement between Paul and Barnabas led to the multiplication of this expansion.
* Today, we will again see God's direct intervention in the continuance and expansion of His kingdom - via the ministry of Paul.
*...
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April 2, 2023
* Last week we saw how the church had worked through their first major doctrinal conflict. The church of Antioch had sent Barnabas and Paul to Jerusalem, along with others, to obtain the input of the Apostles and Elders there regarding what requirements should be placed upon Gentiles who were coming to the faith. The decision of the Jerusalem Council was that the Gentiles were not obligated to fulfill the Law as a means of salvati...
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March 26, 2023
* Barnabas and Paul had traveled from Syrian Antioch to Cyprus, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Derbe, Lystra, Perga and Attalia. On their travels they witnessed God pour out His power through their lives and pour out His grace on the Gentiles through the Gospel. They had also had a foretaste of the hardships that would come along with the spread of the Gospel.
* They traveled back to their sending church - Syrian Antioch - to give a ...
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March 19, 2023
* The Holy Spirit called Barnabas and Paul to begin their first Evangelistic Journey while they teaching the believers of Syrian Antioch.
* The Spirit led them to Cyprus where they would meet the Roman Proconsul, Sergius Paulus. After Sergius Paulus believes on Christ, Barnabas and Paul head to Pisidian Antioch in the midst of the Roman Province of Asia - which we refer to as Asia Minor.
* Last week, we saw how Paul proclaimed th...
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