Acts 26 It was Teddy Roosevelt who said,"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." In Acts 26, the apostle Paul dares mighty things. I love this chapter...

Acts 25 As I read through Acts 25, one thing that continuously runs through my mind is Galatians 5:22-23, which we will get to later in this reading plan. But to quickly summarize, Paul is writing to the churches in Galatia regarding what it looks like to walk in the Spirit. These are the verses in which he explains to us the fruit of the Spirit, but after which he make...

ACTS 24 Throughout life we can often find ourselves wrongly accused. It is not uncharacteristic to become defensive, to focus on the other parties behavior and see the situation elevate into personal attacks. In Acts 24 we see Paul be falsely accused and defamed. He is attacked and arrested. Just one chapter prior there were plots to kill him. How does he react to being...

ACTS 23 Working with teenagers, I hear many excuses from students as to why they don't read their Bibles. I don't get anything out of it I don't understand what it's saying I don't have the time I can kind of understand where they're coming from, but there's one answer I don't understand at all. IT'S BORING! When I hear that excuse I usually think to myself, "...

Acts 22 (Acts 22:15) "For you will be a witness for Him to everyone of what you have seen and heard." The Book of Acts is exciting, amazing stuff! And it is also very encouraging.I am encouraged that the greatest evangelist ever, the Apostle Paul, would often default to simply sharing his personal testimony. Paul had an awesome intellect, was highly educated,skilled in...

Acts 21 Sometimes an act of bravery, commitment, and unbelievable resolve captures our imagination and inspires us to examine ourselves for hidden reservoirs of such qualities within ourselves. Such acts, though are rare and noteworthy. They are often history-worthy events. Two come readily to mind for me: Who can forget the images and reports from 9/11/2001 of firefig...

Acts 20 Paul isn't known as the encourager, but here he is showing his love for these people who are "in battle" with him for the Lord. Within the first two verses, Luke comments that he encouraged disciples before he had to leave (Ephesus) and then went to several other regions and encouraged the disciples there. Every church (or set of churches) needs someone like thi...

Acts 19 As I've read through Acts approaching the 19th chapter, we've had great discussions in my small group, my discipleship group and at home regarding the adversaries and obstacles that Paul, Peter, Philip, Stephen and others faced as they sought to advance the gospel to the ends of the earth. One real obstacle were the bands of Jewish "groupies" who seemed to show ...

ACTS 18 Acts 18:1-16 chronicles Paul's time in Corinth. Verse 11 tells us that he spent a full 18 months in the city. This chapter gives us the background to understand the letters he would later write to the church there. WHAT DOES THIS TELL ME ABOUT GOD? When we are on God's side, God is on our side. Paul's initial efforts in Corinth were rather discouraging. Afte...

Acts 17 Great chapter! Paul ministers is three very different cites, facing opposition in each while remaining faithful to the gospel.If you are looking for an example to follow, Paul is a pretty good one! Thessalonica -(Acts 17:2-3) ...he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from th...

Acts 16 In Acts 16 we see Paul being led to many different places in an unconventional missionary journey. In a string of Holy Spirit led divine appointments its easy to almost get frustrated for Paul as we would probably be unsure of what in the world to do next in his situation. "The Holy Spirit forbid them to speak the word in Asia" Acts 16:6 "And when they had...

Acts 15 Essence of the Gospel The thing I like about Acts 15 is that it reminds me of the essence of the gospel. The chapter opens with a heated argument between Paul and Barnabas and Jewish Christians from Judea. The argument was over traditions and customs established under the Law of Moses. The Jewish Christians argued that one must adhere to the customs of the Law ...

Acts 14 Throughout this chapter clear evidence is communicated or demonstrated regarding the Gospel. In the first paragraph "Paul and Barnabas spoke so effectively," some believed but others chose not to. Our Lord confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. But again there were those that chose to believe and those that chose not to...

ACTS 13 It's time to pass the torch! Up to this point in Acts we've primarily been following Peter, but starting in Acts 13, we start to track Paul, his three missionary journeys, and his trial and imprisonment. Here are some details on Paul's first missionary journey from the ESV Study Bible: Paul's First Missionary Journey (Acts 13:414:26)c. A.D. 4647Barnabas a...

Acts 12 This passage begins with the sober news that Herod, "killed James the brother of John with the sword." As I read this sentence, my thoughts landed on John - the little brother who was left behind. What if you were John and youreceived news that your brother and best friend had just been martyred for his faith in Jesus? How would you feel? How would you respond? ...

ACTS 11 I like you. I feel comfortable around you. In general, I know what to expect from you. Or I probably would if I got to know you. Even though I don't know who'll end up reading this blog, the statements above are likely true. If you're reading this chances are very good we're a lot alike. Unless you came across the URL via a "friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend" ...

Acts 10 Luke starts off by introducing us to a centurion, or a Roman military officer, who was "a devout man, who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people and prayed continually to God."Here is a Gentile (or non-Jew) that is chasing hard after God. It appears he is trying to follow the Old Testament laws and be obedient to the Lord. If someo...

Acts 9 In Acts 9, Luke relates the amazing work of the Holy Spirit in Saul's life. Saul was renamed Paul to reflect the radical turn his life took from being a passionate persecutor of Christ's followers to being a passionate follower of Christ himself. Not only did he "sell out" everything (in the Philippian letter, he says, "I count everything as loss in view of the s...

ACTS 8 Have you read something in the Bible and thought to yourself that it makes absolutely no sense? That's a little bit like how I feel about the first four verses of this chapter; It's easy to miss if you read too quickly, but it's right in the text. Here's what happens: Persecution breaks out People are pulled from their homes for preaching the gospel People ...

Acts 7 Stephen makes his entrance in Acts 6 and his exit in Acts 7. He isdescribed as being "Full of grace and power." Grace and power is an unusual, but awesome,combination. It's kind of like "sweetness and strength."You will need both to be an effective witness for Jesus. These two chapters tell us that Stephen was "Full of grace and power," "Full of the Spirit and o...