Acts Lesson 1: Jesus' Final Commission and the Advent of the Holy Spirit (9:19)
Acts is one of the most exciting books in the New Testament. Luke chronicles the first three decades of early church history and the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to Rome. Acts is a valuable resource for the church sin... more
Acts Lesson 2: Healing and Opposition (10:04)
Acts 2 concludes with the mighty work of the Spirit among the Jerusalem believers. But just as Jesus encountered opposition in his earthly ministry, so also the disciples would encounter opposition as they proclaimed the cru... more
Acts Lesson 3: Preaching of Stephen (10:07)
In spite of opposition to the preaching of the Gospel, unity and generosity characterized the Jerusalem church (4:32-34). The struggles of the early church were internal as well as external. Acts 5 records the hypocrisy of A... more
Acts Lesson 4: Philip: A Faithful Witness (9:58)
Following the death of Stephen the Gospel began to make its way outside of Jerusalem. Persecution only increased the effectiveness of the church’s witness to Christ. The dominant theme of Acts 8 is the preaching of Philip,&... more
Acts Lesson 5: The Conversion of Saul (10:46)
One of the most amazing conversions recorded in Scripture is that of Saul of Tarsus. Saul has already appeared in the narrative of Acts as a threat to the early church (cf. 7:58; 8:1-3). Acts 9:1-19 records his conversion on the ... more
Acts Lesson 6: A Gospel for All People: Jew and Gentile (10:17)
That Luke considered the conversion of the Gentile centurion Cornelius significant is evidenced by the amount of space he devoted to it. All of Acts 10 and a good portion of chapter 11 describe the visions of both Peter and ... more
Acts Lesson 7: The Church at Antioch (8:45)
Following the account of the conversion of Cornelius through the witness of Peter, Luke now moves on to describe the founding and the activity of the church at Antioch. Here also, Gentiles are brought into the church through... more
Acts Lesson 8: Continuation of First Missionary Journey (11:32)
Acts 12 records yet another instance of persecution against the church initiated by Herod Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great. Herod put James the brother of John to death and, since this “pleased the Jews,” he impri... more
Acts Lesson 9: The Jerusalem Conference (10:49)
Acts 14 ends with the report by Paul and Barnabas to the church at Antioch regarding the success of the Gospel among the Gentiles. Certain Jews, however, opposed the Gentile mention. They wanted Gentiles to become Jews befor... more
Acts Lesson 10: The Unknown God (12:48)
Acts 17 continues the narration of the second missionary journey. Following a ministry in Thessalonica and Berea, Paul arrived in Athens awaiting the missionary team from which he had been temporarily separated. While waitin... more
Acts Lesson 11: Paul and Apollos (9:40)
Following Athens, Paul moved on to Corinth where he remained for a year and a half (18:11). After a brief stay in Ephesus (18:19-21), he traveled to Caesarea, back to Antioch, and then to various locations throughout the reg... more
Acts Lesson 12: Paul in Jerusalem (10:16)
God calls his people to commitment, to stay the course regardless of consequences. Fulfilling the will of God exceeds all other considerations of personal comfort or personal ambition. Paul magnificently illustrates this pri... more
Acts Lesson 13: Steadfast in Trial (9:32)
Because of the imminent threat upon his life in Jerusalem (cf. 23:12-22), prison officials transferred Paul to Caesarea to appear before Felix, governor of Judea. Paul reasoned with Felix concerning the Gospel, but to no avail.&n... more
Acts Lesson 14: Paul in Rome (9:20)
Finally, Paul arrived in Rome. He wanted to go to Rome as a preacher, but instead he arrived as a prisoner. Nevertheless, his circumstances gave occasion for the Gospel. The conclusion of Acts focuses on Paul's conference wi... more
