Saul’s Conversion & the Body of Christ

Saul was a zealous persecutor of Messianic believers, but I don’t think he persecuted the Church for more than six or seven months, or from the mid 7th month of 34 CE to cir. 1^st month of 35 CE. Therefore, the reigning high priest would have been Caiaphas and from him Saul would have sought papers of extradition (Acts 9:1-2) in order to arrest Messianic believers at Damascus and bring them before the Sanhedrin at Jerusalem for judgment.

 

The Enemy Retaliates!

Just when Luke has us thinking that nothing could go wrong with this new body of Messianic believers, he brings us back to reality with the sudden jolt. Ironically, he has set the stage of one of the most scandalous affairs of early Church fellowship with the innocent and loving act of Barnabas at the end of chapter four. Then as we begin reading chapter five, Luke drops the other shoe with the Ananias and Sapphira affair. But, who are they? Luke just unloads them into his account of early church history without a word of introduction. He names them, but a name without an introduction is still meaningless.

 

Discerning Between Holy and Common

The Lord is a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24; 9:3; Hebrews 12:29), and he tries our faith so that we might be found worthy to praise and honor him and glorify him before others in the things we do (1Peter 1:7). Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, were killed in the presence of the Lord when they offered strange fire before him, which the Lord had commanded them not to do (Leviticus 10:1-2). Whether or not they had been drinking when they had done this (cp. the Lord’s immediate command after their death in Leviticus 10:8-11) is not clearly stated, but they certainly did not discern from that which was common and that which was holy, something they should have known.

 

The Son of Consolation

In the conclusion of Acts 4 we are introduced to a man called Joseph who is given the name “Barnabas” by the Apostles, and Luke translates the name as “son of consolation”. However, strictly speaking the name, Barnabas, means “son of prophecy” (cp. Hebrew: H5030 nabiy meaning prophet; and H5016 nebuah meaning prophecy). No doubt Luke intends for us to see the fruit or end result of his new name, for the end of the words of the prophet is to console and encourage his hearers.

 

Authority But Not “Our” Authority

After Peter’s testimony before the Sanhedrin in Acts 4, the rulers took note that Peter and John had been with Jesus. They were surprised with the Apostles’ boldness. They had marveled at Jesus’ boldness despite the lack of formal education (John 7:15) He spoke with authority, but not authority conferred upon him by any of the Jewish rabbinical schools. The rulers were faced at this time with a similar phenomenon in Jesus’ disciples. Boldness is one of Luke’s favorite descriptions of believers (Acts 2:29; 4:13, 29, 31; 9:27, 29; 13:46; 14:3; 18:26; 19:8; 26:26; 28:31). The Greek word (G3954 or G3955) means to have assurance or confidence; to speak freely etc., and this boldness is always used in connection with the Gospel and testifying to the fact that Jesus is Lord (cp. Acts 9:27-29).

 

The Union of Jews and Gentiles

Once you get the Jews and the Gentiles in the Church together, how does that work? Under what conditions is this possible, and who gets to say? God’s plan has always been not only to sum up everything in heaven and earth in Christ, but to bring together the whole human race in him as a sign to the principalities and powers (Ephesians 3:10). Caesar and world powers today would have loved to unite the world in this way, but they cannot. Only God is able to cross national and traditional boundaries with all the differences this implies, and cross gender lines, social class, and levels of authority and unite all in one body under the Lordship of Jesus.

 

The Builders and the Stone

When the Apostles were arrested in Acts 4 they were force to confront the very people that had Jesus put to death. While some of these people could be swayed according to the theology they held, many of the members of the Sanhedrin were harsh, having their own interest in view. Their judgment was tempered only by the prevailing will of the people, which, if they could influence as was done in the case of Jesus’ crucifixion, strengthened their resolve to have their own desires implemented. Six months to a year ago these same men had Jesus put to death, and now they found themselves wrestling with his movement in the persons of the Apostles.

 

Jesus is Alive and Here’s the Proof!

Peter and John had been brought before the Sanhedrin in an effort to squash the Gospel before it really began to take hold in Jewish society. The authorities had found the Apostles preaching the resurrection in the Temple and arrested them, planning to hear their case the following day (Acts 4:1-3). The problem for the authorities was they put themselves between a rock and a hard place as far as squashing the new movement was concerned. To bring up the resurrection (the real reason for their arresting the Apostles; see verse-2) would have divided the court between Sadducees and Pharisees and nothing would be accomplished. What to do? So, they decided to threaten them (Acts 4:17).

 

The Blunder of the Powerful

Few of us have ever been confronted by the world and threatened in such a manner as was done to the Apostles, Peter and John, in Acts 4. Luke places a special responsibility of blame upon the Sadducees, and the Annas family in particular, for the rejection of the Gospel message and for the persecution of the church later. In chapter 4 Luke highlights the position of the Sadducees by comparing this sect with the ordinary Jews. Later, in the next chapter he does the same when he contrasts the positions of the two ruling parties of Judaism—the Sadducees and the Pharisees (who had their own reasons for not embracing the new Jewish movement among them).

 

The Day of the Lord

At times I wonder if it isn’t easier to convince an unbeliever of the truth about the Lord and his word than to convince a believer who believes wrong doctrine and thinks he is correct. It doesn’t seem to matter how many Scriptures I use to prove a point, the brother will cling to the error taught him by a man he trusts or the organization of which he is a member.

 

The Coming of the Kingdom of God

Pentecost celebrated the enactment of the Old Covenant between God and Israel. It occurred on the fiftieth day following the weekly Sabbath within the eight day Passover Festival. The first day which counted toward Pentecost or the Feast of Weeks was always a Sunday. Its date varied, hence the need to count. This Sunday was the day the Wave Sheaf Offering was lifted up to be received of God, and in its offering the whole harvest was made holy to the Lord. Nothing in the fields could be harvested until this offering was made.