STUDY IV. The Christian Church: First Miracles SEVENTH DAY: THE GROWTH OF THE CHURCH The spiritual power of the apostles and the charity of the Christian believers brought multitudes of converts into the Church; many miracles were wrought by the apostles; and the report of all these things spread about the surrounding district of Judea. 1. Read Acts 5:12-16. 2. In what verses, previously studied, is it stated that the early Christians used to assemble in the temple? 3. How large do you suppose the Church was at this time? 4. Verse 16: The region about Jerusalem, that is, the district of Judea, is now beginning to learn of the work of the apostles. Of what promise is this the fulfilment? See Acts 1:8. 5. The word translated "vexed" is a Greek term often used by ancient Greek medical writers. It is found in only one other passage of the New Testament, namely, in Luke 6:18. What medical or technical words has the physician Luke used already in Acts? 6. Review rapidly the work of this week by reading the introductory paragraph of each lesson. "Lord, Thou hast promised grace for grace, To all who daily seek Thy face; To them who have, Thou givest more "Each step we take but gathers strength "Help us, O Lord, that we may grow -Samuel K. Cox. STUDY V.-The Christian Church: The First Martyr The Church continued to increase in numbers and to grow in favor with the people. In alarm the Sadducees made a second attempt to put down the new faith. They seized the apostles and put them in prison. The apostles, miraculously freed by an angel, returned at once to their work of preaching and teaching, whereupon the Sadducees held them for trial on the charge that they had not obeyed when ordered to cease preaching in the name of Jesus. 1. Read Acts 5:17-26. 2. What three reasons can you assign as the cause of the indignation of the Sadducees (verse 17)? 3. How many of the apostles were arrested? See verse 29. 4. What is meant by the phrase "the words of this life" (verse 20)? Read John 11:25. 5. Verse 21: The "council" was the Sanhedrin; the "senate of the children of Israel" seems to have been an advisory body of elders. 6. From verse 26 what inference do you draw concerning the growth of the Church? See also Acts 2:47; 3:11 and 12; 4:21; and 5:3. 7. Verse 26: "Brought them"-to what place did the officers bring the apostles? See verse 27. "The same body which had been present at those secret, guilty, tumultuous, illegal meetings in which they handed over the Lord Jesus to their Roman executioners-were again assembled, but now with something of misgiving and terror, to make one supreme effort to stamp out the Galilean heresy.”—Canon Farrar. STUDY V.-The Christian Church: The First Martyr SECOND DAY: THE TRIAL OF THE APOSTLES BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN: THE SPEECH OF GAMALIEL The apostles, when brought to trial, again proclaimed the resurrection of Christ, and charged the Council with his death. Filled with rage, the Sanhedrin planned to slay the apostles, but was checked by the coolness and good sense of the Pharisee, Gamaliel, the teacher of St. Paul. After beating the apostles, they dismissed them with a warning. I. Read Acts 5:27-42. 2. Notice in verse 28 the contemptuous allusion to Jesus in the words, "this man's blood." In the Talmud, or Jewish commentary on the Old Testament, Jesus is referred to as Peloni, or "so and so." 3. Gamaliel was the most eminent doctor of the law of the times. "His counsel as to the apostles was not from any leaning to Christianity, but from opposition to Sadduceeism in a case where the resurrection was the point at issue, and from seeing the folly of unreasoning bigotry." 4. Nothing more is known concerning Theudas, of verse 36, than is there given. Judas of Galilee (verse 37) headed an insurrection in 6 or 7 A.D., when the Romans were making a census of the Jews for taxation. His watchword was, "We have no Lord or Master but God." 5. Verse 40: The apostles were beaten or scourged. Their punishment did not exceed forty strokes, for that was the number fixed by the Mosaic law. See Deuteronomy 25:3. THOUGHT FOR TO-DAY: "They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the Name." For a reason why Christians should rejoice in tribulations, see St. Paul's words in Romans 5:3-5. STUDY V.-The Thristian Church: The First Martyr THIRD DAY: SEVEN DEACONS APPOINTED: PAUL COMES TO JERUSALEM As the growth of the Church continued, the number of needy people dependent on the common funds became so great that the apostles had time for little else save the distribution of food, clothing, and money. In order, therefore, to have more time for preaching and teaching, the apostles appointed seven helpers, or deacons, to take charge of the poor. Paul seems to have come to Jerusalem from Tarsus about this time. 1. Read Acts 6:1-7. 2. The Greek word rendered "Grecian Jews" in the R.V. is incorrectly rendered "Grecians” in the A.V. The Jews of Palestine spoke Aramaic, a language akin to Hebrew, though very many of them also understood Greek. Most of the Jews outside of Palestine spoke Greek. In general the Greek-speaking Jews were more liberal than the Hebrew-speaking Jews. The latter, because they spoke a language closely related to the Hebrew of the Old Testament, felt themselves to be truer to their national ideals than were the Jews who habitually used the tongue of a pagan people. 3. How did it happen that the widows of the Greek Jews were neglected? 4. To "serve tables" is to handle money (verse 2). The Greek word trapeza (table) also means bank, when applied to the tables of money lenders. 5. Verse 5: The seven men named in this verse all have Greek names. Of the seven, only Stephen and Philip are subsequently mentioned in the New Testament. 6. Paul probably came to Jerusalem about this time, since he was present at the stoning of Stephen, which took place not long after the events of to-day's lesson. 7. What special accessions to the ranks of the disciples were there at this time? See verse 7. THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Stephen was a man “full of faith and of the Holy Ghost." The heart that is ready may through faith receive the Holy Spirit. Read carefully St. Paul's prayer for the Ephesians, in Ephesians 3:14-21, dwelling especially on verse 17. STUDY V.-The Christian Church: The First Martyr FOURTH DAY: STEPHEN ARRAIGNED BEFORE THE SAN HEDRIN Stephen, the most able and energetic of the seven men appointed to distribute the relief funds, soon joined in debate with the foreign Jews, and proved too much for them in argument. Whereupon they brought him before the Sanhedrin, after preparing lying witnesses, in order to convict him of blasphemy and put him to death. I. Read Acts 6:8-15. 2. Verse 8: "Six good things about Stephen: (1) Full of faith (verse 5). (2) Full of the Holy Ghost (v. 5). (3) Full of power (v. 8). (4) Full of irresistible energy and power (v. 10). (5) Full of sunshine (v. 15). (6) An intrepid witness for God (chapter 7)." -D. L. Moody. 3. The Libertines (verse 9) were probably the children of Jews who had been carried to Rome and then freed at a later time. Cyrene was a Greek city of north Africa, Alexandria a Greek city of Egypt. Asia in the book of Acts is always the province of proconsular Asia. Locate all these cities and regions on the map. 4. It is altogether likely that Paul at this time attended the synagogue of the Cilicians (verse 9). He would therefore hear the arguments of Stephen. 5. They “set up false witnesses” (verse 13). Compare also Matt. 26:59-61 and Mark 14:57-59. 6. It is not exactly clear what the teachings of Stephen were. Apparently he taught that the Laws of Moses were not essential to salvation-that man could be approved of God and justified in His sight without obedience to the oral or written law. 7. Verse 15: "Three men in the Bible whose faces shone: Moses, Jesus, and Stephen."-Moody. PRAYER: "Lord, make us to resemble even here the heavenly kingdom, through mutual love, where all hatred is quite banished, and all is full of love, and, consequently, full of joy and gladness." Amen. |