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- [00:01]
Dr. Manny Arango
Hey, Bible nerds.
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Unknown Co-host
This is Dr. Manny Arango and I'm your host for the Bible department podcast powered by Arma. This podcast follows a Bible reading plan we created to help you read the entire Bible in a year. You can head to the show notes or thebibledepartment.com to download our reading plan and join the journey. We're right in the middle of the book where we're getting the cross section between Paul and, and Peter. Okay, we've seen Paul's conversion already. We've seen a lot of highlights from Peter's ministry as the real, as the leader of the church, as the person who's like pushing the gospel forward in Jerusalem. And so we're going to go into Acts 11, 12, 13 and 14. If you haven't done today's reading, just go ahead, pause the podcast, do today's reading and then come on back. Because I'm not going to go verse by verse. It's not going to be a super detailed in depth teaching, just giving overview so that you have enough context and enough orientation so that you can actually like get the most out of your reading. But I always want to, I want you to get observations first before you hear mine. So always do the reading first, then come listen to the episode. One thing I want to point out, in 1126, Acts chapter 11, it says this. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. So we get the birth of the word Christian. Okay, so most of us, we would all identify as Christians. But before that, when Paul is persecuting the church, he's persecuting followers of the Way. So we get the birth of that term. Acts, chapter 11, verse 1. The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. So when Pier went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him and said, you went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them. So the big contention here is that Peter is veering away. Peter is not abiding by or not following Jewish customs. Though when you see circumcised believers, these are Jewish Christians. And again, you're, we are seeing that the birth place of Christianity is right within the context of Judaism. I know it's hard for a lot of like modern readers of, of Scripture to, to see how related Judaism and Christianity are. But essentially Christianity is like Judaism with Gentiles like that. That is, that is what Christianity is. Jesus is Jewish. These earliest followers are Jewish. And as we're going to see throughout The Book of Acts, like, even when there's persecution, they have to stand before, like, Roman judges. So the secular world, they're just like, oh, yeah, you're talking about, like, the Jewish. The Jewish thing, right? Like that Jewish sect, like Christianity is just under the umbrella of Judaism, for sure. Peter is giving a defense for the whole deal with him at Cornelius's house. Ob. See, the circumcision crew is not happy about that. We get into chapter 12, and we have a miraculous escape from prison for Peter. I want you to start to see that the Book of Acts is going to set up all these parallels between Peter and Paul. So Peter has had a couple of miraculous escapes from prison at this point. And guess who's going to have some miraculous escapes from prison? Paul is going to have some miraculous escapes from prison. And we'll hint at a couple other, like, just parallels from Peter's ministry and Paul's ministry. What Luke is trying to do is trying to communicate continuity that the same. That Peter is just continuing what Jesus did, and Paul is going to also continue what Peter did in the same spirit that was with Peter, the same spirit that's now with Paul. I want to take note of just a character here. It was about this time, this is chapter 12, that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church. Intending to persecute them, he had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. So Herod has become a persecutor of the church. When he saw that this was met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the festival of unleavened bread. This happens during Passover. And who died during Passover? That's right. Ding, ding, ding. Jesus died during Passover. And so naturally, the church would be scared that Herod is going to kill Peter, that Peter's going to die in in the same fashion that Jesus died. Now, let's break this down. Which Herod is this? And. And there are upwards of about five Herods in the Bible, and they're all named Herod. So let me, like, give you a nerdy nugget, okay? So the Herod that's alive when Jesus is born, who kills all the babies, that's Herod the Great. Okay? Herod who was there at the death in the crucifixion of Jesus, That's Herod Antipas. And this Herod is Herod Agrippa. And the Bible calls all of them Herod. Okay? So King Herod. And I think Herod Agrippa is like the nephew of Herod Antipas. And Herod Antipas is, I think, one of the sons of Herod the Great. It's a massive family tree, and they're all named Herod, and there's a bunch of them in the Bible. And. Yeah, so that can be a little confusing. So I hope that what I just told you brings some clarity. 1224 is where we're going to go next. It says this, but the word of God continued to spread and flourish. So even in the middle of persecution, okay, so Herod is persecuting the church, but what's the end result? The word of God continued to spread and flourish. The gospel message, the word of God, the teachings of scripture, the. The person of Jesus is. Is continuing to spread and flourish. 13, verse two is actually one of my favorite verses. It says this. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting the church, while the church was worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set apart for me, Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. See, when there's a real call of God, God doesn't just reveal it to the individuals. He reveals it to the church. And then. So it says this in verse three. So after they fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. So often, I think the current paradigm that we have is I feel like I'm called, so I'm going to fight for the call of God on my life. Kind of like Moana, you know, like the sea is calling me. And I don't care who tells me I shouldn't. I'm just. I know what God told me to do and, you know, blah, blah, blah. And chapter 13, verse 2 says that when now, in the church of Antioch, there were prophets and teachers. Barnabas, Simeon, Lucius, Manaen, and Saul. They were worshiping and fasting, and the Holy Spirit spoke. So again, the Holy Spirit's a main character in the Book of Acts. Okay? The Holy Spirit is running point guard. The Holy Spirit is the mat, is the main quarterback. Then Saul, who was called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, you are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right. Are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. You will never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord. So right here, the name that's being used is Saul, who is called Paul. I want to see. I want to kind of compare that with chapter 13, verse 13. You just. For me, I'm just, like, going to scroll right down Maybe you may need to turn the page. And it says, from Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Pera in Pamphylia. So we finally see, like, we're going to kind of essentially be done with the name Saul. And now Paul is just going to go by his Latin name, which makes sense. He's on the mission field and he is ministering to Gentiles, and it makes sense for him to go by the name of Paul. It's funny, because I think that Paul's main ethos, like for ministry, is don't put stumbling blocks in the way for people to understand the gospel, even if that stumbling block is you. So he takes this young man, Timothy. Even though Paul doesn't believe there's power in circumcision, he still takes Timothy to be circumcised so that people don't have an issue with Timothy. Paul's down to do whatever he needs to do in order for the Gospel to be preached without a stumbling block. He is a definition of all things to all men. His favorite name for himself could have been Saul, we really don't know. But he goes by Paul because that's just easier for everyone who's interacting with him. It's funny, I used to have, like, really long dreadlocks. I had dreads down in the middle of my back. And I remember my pastor one time saying to me, hey, there are going to be people who knows who they are or where they are. They're going to be people who will be distracted by your hair. And so that's going to be a stumbling block for people. The next day, all my hair was gone. And I think that if. If there's, like, a fear that I have of, like, especially Gen Z, it's that you love your favorite names and the way you dress and your style so much that you don't even care. If it's a stumbling block to people. Paul says, you could call me by a whole different name. I will go by whatever name is easier for the people I'm trying to reach. If my hair is a problem, I'll cut it. If. If my solid dress is a problem, I'll change it. I'll do whatever I need to do to be all things to all men. I'll never change the message of the gospel. Now we get that clear in the Book of Corinthians. I'll never compromise the message of the gospel. I'll never compromise truth. But hair, name, style, clothing, whatever, I'll change whatever I need to change in order to win some I don't even need to guarantee that I'm going to win everybody.
- [10:51]
Dr. Manny Arango
What if I told you that what you're learning in this video was just the tip of the iceberg? The Bible department is actually powered by arma. What is arma? I'm so glad you asked. ARMA is an online subscription based platform that we design to help people, everyday people, learn the Bible for themselves. We started ARMA so that anybody, anywhere can have access to trustworthy and entertaining Bible and theology content. In addition to this podcast, we have over 60 courses on individual books of the Bible, on theology topics, and on some hot topics like homosexuality, tithing and women in ministry. But really, ARMA is a community. A community of people that I've gotten to know. A community where thousands of people are currently finding family, asking questions and nerding out on the Bible together. If you want a community community to read the Bible with you this year, or if you want to dive into some deeper theological content, or if you want more exclusive access to me and the entire armor team, how about you go to thebibledepartment.com I'll be sure to post the link in the description of this video. Let's make this your year to become a Bible.
- [12:13]
Unknown Co-host
So we're back to missionary journey. So we get five stops on this missionary journey. The first stop is Cyprus. The second stop is Pisidian, Antioch. The third stop is Iconium, and the fourth stop is Lystra. In Lystra, they experience persecution. Is the first time that Paul is stoned and the man clearly almost dies because they think he is dead. I want you to take note as they are on this missionary journey, who turns back. Let's go all the way back up to 13 because this is going to like rear its ugly head in the future. And I kind of want to make sure that you. Here we go. From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. So this is not John, the beloved disciple. This is John Mark who turns back to leave them. This is going to be the reason that Paul and Barnabas are going to have a massive contention later on. Okay, so we're following along on this missionary journey. They get to Lystra and the people think that Paul is dead. Not only is he not dead, he goes back in the city and, and continues preaching. Okay, it says this verse 49 of chapter 13, the word of the Lord spread through the whole region. But the Jewish leaders incited the God fearing women of high standing. And leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled him from their region. So they shook off the dust of their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. And they preach in Iconium. And then we get to Lystra. That repeated phrase, the word of the lord began to spread. The word of the Lord begin to spread. So now Jews from Antioch and Iconium, so the last stops on the journey, they get to Lystra. They stoned Paul, Dragged him outside of the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. Yo, my man is in Lystra. Gets stoned. Lystra. Lra is. It is within an inch of his life. Gets dragged outside the city. The disciples get around him. He gets up and goes right back into the city. Like, this is just gangster. It says they preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God. It's actually my verse for the day, and that's actually my timeless truth. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God. When you read Acts, I think one of the things that it does is you start to realize how petty our problems are in the first century. You start to realize how in America, like, in a nation where Christians are not persecuted, how the stuff that we're mad about is, like, so just. You're. You're mad. You're. You're mad that, you know, we lost some video files or some audio file. Like, that's what you're upset about. Yo, people are getting stoned. Like, stoned, like, straight. Like, rocks. Take rocks, throw them until the person dies. I don't know if you know this. This is a nerdy nugget. I'll give you some context. I think sometimes, like, before, I'd, like, kind of gotten, like, into my nerdy season. I was like, yo, like, if everybody's circling around someone and they're getting stoned, like, what if they miss and, like, hit somebody? Well, that's not how stoning works. You actually have to put somebody in a pit. So you put them in a hole, okay, in the ground. And then everybody stands above them and stones them. So the stones are coming from above. All right? And so you're in a pit, so you can't get away. Okay? You're not just, like, in A circle, like, with people throwing rocks at you. You're in a pit in the ground with people throwing stones down at you. And so Paul is getting stoned. He almost dies. My man gets up and keeps on preaching. And, you know, I travel a ton, and there have been a lot of times where I've been walking through airports. Like, man, my back hurts, my feet hurt. Like, we just put a lot of, like, miles on. On, you know, this year. And then I go, but I did this on an airplane. These jokers are walking, like, walking and getting on boats. There are no commercial shipping vessels in the first century. Every shipping vessel is a cargo ship. So you're just getting on a ship, taking stuff somewhere, and you're just kind of, like, on it, like, as a passenger. And they are, like, trekking it, just walking miles to reach 50, 100, 200. People like to preach the gospel to people, like, at the. At a marketplace so they can get saved. The moment you read the Book of Acts, you just start to go, yeah, I really got nothing to complain about. Like, I live a pretty cushy Christian lifestyle. Like, that is just the reality. And there's nothing wrong inherently wrong with that. But cushy can sometimes create spoiled. And reading the Book of Acts is a massive reminder that the word of God works in the wilderness. It doesn't just work in the tamed, organized, cute LED screen, smoke in the sanctuary. Like, beautiful experiences, curated spiritual experiences that we have in the modern church, but that it works in the wild. It works in the marketplace. It works. And if there's anything the Book of Acts would cause us to do, it is to not complain. It is to realize that, man, we should actually be actively evangelizing a whole lot more. And if homies can get stoned for the gospel in Acts, chapter 14, the least you can do is invite somebody to church on a Sunday. Like, the least you could do is invite them to church. Our Thomas truth for the day is Acts, chapter 14, verse 22. Strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God. That they are linking the kingdom of God and hardships as two things that are inextricably connected. And I think that in our world, the kingdom of God means blessing. In their world, the kingdom of God meant hardship and that they were blessed even in the middle of difficulty. All right, family, I'll see you tomorrow. We got a lot of ground to cover. Tomorrow we'll be back in the Book of Acts. I'm proud of you for reading your Bible this year. I hope that this journey is adding value to you, that it's blessing your life and that ultimately it's helping you to hear the voice of God for yourself. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow. Peace. Thank you so much for joining me on the Bible Department podcast. If this episode was helpful, it would mean the world to me if you'd give us a follow rate and review the show. And don't forget to share. You can learn more about the show@thebibledepartment.com and find us on Instagram at the Bible Department. If you want to dive deeper into the Bible, you can get free access to our library of courses@thebibledepartment.com we'll see you back here tomorrow.