As I’ve been studying this New Testament, we’ve learned that the Book of Acts was written by Luke. It is actually a continuation of his gospel. This is important to know because when we take the two books together we learn more about the ministry of Jesus Christ and his apostles. We can easily see that the purpose of Luke’s gospel is to testify of Jesus Christ. He focuses on what Christ did and said. But what is the purpose of the Book of Acts? How does it work with the Gospel of Luke?
In Acts chapter 9, we read of Paul’s conversion. The Lord Jesus Christ appears to him on the road to Damascus, and he is struck blind. Shortly after, the Lord appears to Ananias in a vision telling him of Paul. The Lord commands Ananias to seek Paul, and says “Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentile and kings and the children of Israel: for I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake (15, 16).” Ananias was afraid of Paul because Paul had power to through him in prison. But he goes to seek Paul anyway.
In these few words, I believe we get the purpose of why Luke is writing the Acts of the Apostles. Luke wanted people to know of this prophesy concerning Paul. He was a vessel of the Lord, and he was to bear Christ’s name to the Gentiles, kings and the children of Israel. The Book of Acts shows how Christ spread his gospel and how Christ prophesied of Paul’s mission. I believe Luke is pointing out that this was no accident.
Later in the Book of Acts we read of Paul teaching the gospel in Macedonia. He preached to the Gentiles, people who were not Jewish. In Acts, we also read of Paul preaching to the Jews throughout the western Mediterranean in places like Ephesus. When Paul was coming back to Jerusalem, he is arrested. After sometime, he was taken to Caesarea and preached to King Agrippa. As can be plainly seen, prophesy about Paul came true, and Luke wanted people to know how it came true.
Paul was a powerful missionary for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Luke writes about Christ’s life and then how it spread throughout the ancient world. As it says in Act 28:30-31“Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.” He spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ his entire life.
Showing posts with label Acts of the Apostles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Acts of the Apostles. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
What is the Apostasy?
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint, I believe in something called the Apostasy. This is something that can be easily misunderstood. In fact, I don’t know a lot about the subject. I feel early Christianity is a very difficult subject which many people don’t know about. I’ve tried to learn more about it as I’ve been attending Brigham Young University but I still have much more.
LDS church doctrine states that God always calls prophets and apostles through whom He talks to man. We have many examples of this such as Moses, Abraham, and Isaiah. There have been periods of time when mankind listened to God’s prophets and time when mankind has not listened to them. When people don’t listen to God’s apostles and prophets, they reject them. This act of rejecting God’s messengers is called an Apostasy or a turning away from truth. Just like other periods of time when God’s children turned from the God, we believe that there was a great Apostasy after the death of Jesus Christ.
In Acts 20: 25, Paul is talking to the elders of Ephesus. He says, “And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have done preaching the Kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.” Paul knew that he was not going to be preaching the gospel any more to people in the Eastern Mediterranean. Shortly after Paul talked to the elders of Ephesus, enemies of Paul framed him and he was arrested and never preached the gospel among the people in the Eastern Roman Empire. However what is more startling than Paul’s confession is what he says in verses 28 through 31.
He says, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall me arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch and remember that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”
Paul says that wolves will enter the flock meaning evil men will enter the church “speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them.” Paul had even been teaching this for three years “night and day with tears.” Paul understood that the church would crumble in the first century. One may argue that this was only in Ephesus and not the entire church which the Apostles were directing. There were many more people throughout the empire who believed in “the Way” or in Jesus Christ.
If we look more carefully at the passage it says, “wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves…” What gives me pause is the “also.” It seems that one of the Elders stated, “No not us.” And Paul replied, “Also your own selves.”
But also in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 Paul wrote about the same apostasy. “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, no by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.”
The people of Thessalonica worried about the second coming of Jesus Christ. They wanted to know when it was going to happen. They wanted it to happen. Paul corrects them and says that it will not happen “except there come a falling away first.” This is the same apostasy that Paul taught later to the Ephesians. He really had told people night and day what was going to happen.
Thankfully, God and Jesus Christ established their church once again on the earth. They called a new prophet and more apostles to testify of Jesus Christ and to direct the church. I know that They called Joseph Smith to be a prophet and we can know that he was Their prophet by reading the Book of Mormon which Smith translated by the power of God. We can also know this is true by praying and asking God for ourselves what He did to save His children.
LDS church doctrine states that God always calls prophets and apostles through whom He talks to man. We have many examples of this such as Moses, Abraham, and Isaiah. There have been periods of time when mankind listened to God’s prophets and time when mankind has not listened to them. When people don’t listen to God’s apostles and prophets, they reject them. This act of rejecting God’s messengers is called an Apostasy or a turning away from truth. Just like other periods of time when God’s children turned from the God, we believe that there was a great Apostasy after the death of Jesus Christ.
In Acts 20: 25, Paul is talking to the elders of Ephesus. He says, “And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have done preaching the Kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.” Paul knew that he was not going to be preaching the gospel any more to people in the Eastern Mediterranean. Shortly after Paul talked to the elders of Ephesus, enemies of Paul framed him and he was arrested and never preached the gospel among the people in the Eastern Roman Empire. However what is more startling than Paul’s confession is what he says in verses 28 through 31.
He says, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall me arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch and remember that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”
Paul says that wolves will enter the flock meaning evil men will enter the church “speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them.” Paul had even been teaching this for three years “night and day with tears.” Paul understood that the church would crumble in the first century. One may argue that this was only in Ephesus and not the entire church which the Apostles were directing. There were many more people throughout the empire who believed in “the Way” or in Jesus Christ.
If we look more carefully at the passage it says, “wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves…” What gives me pause is the “also.” It seems that one of the Elders stated, “No not us.” And Paul replied, “Also your own selves.”
But also in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 Paul wrote about the same apostasy. “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, no by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.”
The people of Thessalonica worried about the second coming of Jesus Christ. They wanted to know when it was going to happen. They wanted it to happen. Paul corrects them and says that it will not happen “except there come a falling away first.” This is the same apostasy that Paul taught later to the Ephesians. He really had told people night and day what was going to happen.
Thankfully, God and Jesus Christ established their church once again on the earth. They called a new prophet and more apostles to testify of Jesus Christ and to direct the church. I know that They called Joseph Smith to be a prophet and we can know that he was Their prophet by reading the Book of Mormon which Smith translated by the power of God. We can also know this is true by praying and asking God for ourselves what He did to save His children.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Circumcision or Not? That is the Question
I have been continued to read the second half of the New Testament. One of the issues at divided the early Christians centered on the conversion of Jews and non-Jews. The question was this: should a non-Jew before converting to Christianity first have to become a Jew by circumcision or can a gentile directly become a Christian bypassing circumcision?
In Acts 15:1-2 it says, “And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren and said, except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain other of them should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.” Why were Paul and Barnabas so upset?
We can find the answer in Galatians. In this epistle, Paul is writing about this very question. Other Christian proselytizers had come to the people or place of Galatia after Paul had already taught them. These other Christians, as Paul writes, “pervert the gospel of Christ” and “called... unto another gospel (Galatians 1:6-7).” Later Paul writes in chapter 4, “God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons, and because ye are sons, God hath sent forth his Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying Abba, Father. Wherefore, thou are no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”
The other Christians were teaching that Christ was not powerful enough to make a gentile a Christian. Rather, converts first had to become a Jew then a Christian to be saved. This angered Paul. These Christians in a sense were saying that the Atonement of Jesus Christ had only power to save Jews. This is completely untrue! These teachers were cheapening and lowering the sacrifice of Christ. Paul taught that God sent forth his Son, Jesus Christ, who saves men and makes them sons of God. Paul testified and knew the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
How is this important in our lives? Do we forgive others? If we don’t, are we not in a sense saying that the Atonement of Christ is not powerful enough to make someone perfect? Do we forgive ourselves? If we don’t, are we not in a sense saying that the Atonement of Christ is not powerful enough to make us perfect? How do we feel about the Savior of the World?
In Acts 15:1-2 it says, “And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren and said, except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain other of them should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.” Why were Paul and Barnabas so upset?
We can find the answer in Galatians. In this epistle, Paul is writing about this very question. Other Christian proselytizers had come to the people or place of Galatia after Paul had already taught them. These other Christians, as Paul writes, “pervert the gospel of Christ” and “called... unto another gospel (Galatians 1:6-7).” Later Paul writes in chapter 4, “God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons, and because ye are sons, God hath sent forth his Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying Abba, Father. Wherefore, thou are no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”
The other Christians were teaching that Christ was not powerful enough to make a gentile a Christian. Rather, converts first had to become a Jew then a Christian to be saved. This angered Paul. These Christians in a sense were saying that the Atonement of Jesus Christ had only power to save Jews. This is completely untrue! These teachers were cheapening and lowering the sacrifice of Christ. Paul taught that God sent forth his Son, Jesus Christ, who saves men and makes them sons of God. Paul testified and knew the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
How is this important in our lives? Do we forgive others? If we don’t, are we not in a sense saying that the Atonement of Christ is not powerful enough to make someone perfect? Do we forgive ourselves? If we don’t, are we not in a sense saying that the Atonement of Christ is not powerful enough to make us perfect? How do we feel about the Savior of the World?
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