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There were a group of prophets and teachers gathered together there. While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them

  Good morning. Barnabas and Saul are back in Antioch. There were a group of prophets and teachers gathered together there. It does not say which ones were which, or if all of them were both. While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. First notice that this was a group of leaders gathered together and not the entire church. It does not say why they were fasting. It could have been that they were seeking to hear from the Lord and He spoke, or that may have been totally unexpected. God specifically called both Barnabas and Saul to an important task. It does not say whether or not they already had heard from Him within their hearts, but usually a person has an indication of their calling before an audible word of the Lord comes to them. They didn’t just say, goodbye, have a good trip. Even after hearing from the Lord, they fasted and prayed, laid their hands on them, and sent t...
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And so when the servant girl said that Peter was at the door, they told her, you are out of your mind! Even though she kept insisting that it was so, they kept saying, it is his angel

  Good morning. And so when the servant girl said that Peter was at the door, everyone said, thank God our prayers have been answered - Peter is here! Wrong. They told her, you are out of your mind! Even though she kept insisting that it was so, they kept saying, it is his angel. But Peter kept on knocking. When they opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. Why were they amazed? After all they had been praying for his release. Sadly that is the way too many Christians are today. We pray for something, but we don’t really believe it’s going to happen. Then Peter told them what had happened and left. When daylight came, everyone at the prison was discombobulated (always wanted to use that word legitimately in a sentence). King Herod interrogated the guards and said tough beans old man. No, he had them executed. He was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. They were afraid because their country was fed by the king’s country. As he was giving a speech, the people began fl...
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The iron gate that leads into the city opened for them by itself, and the angel left him. When Peter came to himself, he said, now I know for sure that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod.

  Good morning. On the very night when King Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. Talk about rescue coming just in the nick of time! And what was Peter doing - moaning and groaning? No, he was fast asleep. We don’t know whether or not he knew he was about to be executed. However, King Herod had just put to death James the brother of John, so it was highly probable that Peter would be too. An angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shown in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, get up quickly. And his chains fell off his hands. Peter followed the angel even though he did not know that what was being done was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. The iron gate that leads into the city opened for them by itself, and the angel left him. When Peter came to himself, he said, now I know for sure that the Lord has sent His angel ...
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Some prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world. And this took place in the reign of Claudius

  Good morning. Some prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world.  And this took place in the reign of Claudius. We will hear of Agabus again at the end of Acts. When God tells you something, you should act upon it. They didn’t sit around saying oh woe is us; we need to save up all of our money that we can to take care of ourselves when the famine comes. Instead, they collected money to send for the relief of the brethren living in Judea. They sent the collection with Barnabas and Saul to the elders in Jerusalem. Notice that Barnabas is mentioned first. There will come a time later when the order is reversed. Acts now talks about Herod the king. According to my Bible this is not the same Herod who participated in the crucifixion of Jesus. He is the grandson of the King Herod who put to death the babies in Bethlehem after Jesus was born. He had James the brother...
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So then those who were scattered because of the persecution that occurred in connection with Stephen made their way to Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews alone

  Good morning. So then those who were scattered because of the persecution that occurred in connection with Stephen made their way to Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews alone. Of course the gospel was to go to the Jews first. Even Peter’s experience did not convince them to also preach to the Gentiles. However there were some that came to Antioch and began speaking to the Greeks (people who lived by Greek customs and culture) also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord. The news about them reached the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch. This was just like Peter and John coming to Samaria after they heard of the people there becoming believers through the ministry of Philip. When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he encouraged them all with resolute heart to remain true to the Lord; for he was full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. A large number of people were ...
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They heard them all speaking with tongues; so Peter said, surely no one can refuse the water for those to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?

  Good morning. They heard them all speaking with tongues; so Peter said, surely no one can refuse the water for those to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he? As we will see in a minute, this was a very big deal for the Jews. He ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Hopefully you have been shielded from this; but there is a big controversy among some people about the formula for baptizing someone as far as into what name you baptize them. One would think that everyone would be excited about this happening when the apostles and the brethren who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. When Peter came to Jerusalem, those who were circumcised took issue with him, saying, you went to uncircumcised men and ate with them. Seriously? The Gentiles had just received salvation, and all they can think about is Peter eating with uncircumcised men? So Peter told them all that had happened with Cornelius....
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And he ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead

  Good morning. And he ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. Jesus did not take this assignment upon Himself; it was predetermined by God before the beginning of time. Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins. Remember that it said earlier that there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved. OK so next Peter led them in prayer, and then gave an invitation for all to come to the altar. No, it was totally out of his control. While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. If it had been left to Peter, this probably would not...
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