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| 1 And the apostles and the brethren who were in Judaea heard that the nations also had received the word of God; |
And the apostles – Though prejudiced as Jews, they were enabled to see that while their nation would be blessed, all the families of the earth should be blessed also. A59
They had different degrees of insight into God's plan. A26, A27
The chief representatives of the Church still resided at Jerusalem. R1455:2
The writings of the Apostles were divinely inspired. R1584:4
Gentiles had also received – The New Testament writers realized the fulfillment of the prophecies. A59
They realized that a change of dispensation was upon them. R2996:1
Word of God – The Scriptures do claim to be the Word of God. R1584:3
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| 2 and when Peter went up to Jerusalem, they of the circumcision contended with him, |
Peter – The eldest, and in some respects the strongest, of the apostles. R2995:3
Jerusalem – The church at Jerusalem was the first local New Testament church. R1087:2*
Contended with him – Doing their duty, to make sure that no liberty was taken with the Lord's direction, to circumvent his arrangements. R2996:1
Not that he had recognized Cornelius as a Christian, but had eaten bread with him. R2996:2
Believers unprepared for this great change in the operation of divine favor. HG354:5
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| 3 saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised and hast eaten with them. |
Didst eat with them – Contrary to Jewish custom. R2996:2
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| 4 But Peter began and set forth the matter to them in order, saying, |
Rehearsed the matter – He considered the evidence which had convinced him. R2996:3
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| 5 I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in an ecstasy I saw a vision, a certain vessel descending like a great sheet, let down by four corners out of heaven, and it came even to me: |
I saw a vision – Greek, horama, not real but a vision. R4142:4*
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| 6 on which having fixed mine eyes, I considered, and saw the quadrupeds of the earth, and the wild beasts, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the heaven. |
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| 7 And I heard also a voice saying to me, Rise up, Peter, slay and eat. |
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| 8 And I said, In no wise, Lord, for common or unclean has never entered into my mouth. |
I said, Not so, Lord – He told them of his surprise when the Lord manifested his favor toward the Gentiles. R2996:6
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| 9 And a voice answered the second time out of heaven, What God has cleansed, do not *thou* make common. |
Answered me again – It was some time before the apostles had a clear understanding of the work being done, and the blessings which were to go to the Gentiles. A59, A80, A81
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| 10 And this took place thrice, and again all was drawn up into heaven; |
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| 11 and lo, immediately three men were at the house in which I was, sent to me from Caesarea. |
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| 12 And the Spirit said to me to go with them, nothing doubting. And there went with me these six brethren also, and we entered into the house of the man, |
Six brethren – Peter took with him the six of the Joppa brethren who had accompanied him to the house of Cornelius. R2995:3
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| 13 and he related to us how he had seen the angel in his house, standing and saying to him, Send men to Joppa and fetch Simon, who is surnamed Peter, |
Peter – In some respects the eldest and strongest of the apostles, guided in judgment in taking with him six other brethren. R2995:3 11:14
Tell thee words – That he might be brought to a condition of harmony and sonship. F680, F681
Words of life. R4345:1
Necessary instructions; that God had provided a great sin-offering, Jesus, who had tasted death for every man; and that for the blessing of the world a Little Flock was being selected to reign with Christ. R5833:1, 2989:6
"The old, old story." R2989:6
The blessing could not come to him except through a knowledge of the truth. R4344:6
Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God--the simple story of the cross. R4345:1
He obeyed, he heard the words of eternal life, "the truth"; he was sealed with the spirit of adoption. R2071:4
Peter explained facts in harmony with the prophets. R1451:6
He used the "key" which introduced the Gentiles to the Pentecostal blessings. NS803:5
Cornelius, as well as every other one who experiences the great blessing of this age, must first of all by justified. HG354:6
Shall be saved – Brought into covenant relationship with God. R5833:1
Delivered from condemnation and alienation. F681; R2989:6, 1451:6
Not permitted to have communion with God in the full proper sense, even through he led a righteous life. F680, F681
It is a false idea that "lost" means condemned to eternal torment, and "saved" means released from such a calamity. R1451:5
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| 14 who shall speak words to thee whereby *thou* shalt be saved, thou and all thy house. |
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| 15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them even as upon us also at the beginning. |
The Holy Spirit fell on them – From both Jews and Gentiles, found worthy to be made joint-heirs. A59
They received the gifts of the holy Spirit, similar to Jewish believers. R2996:6
All with Peter were "astonished." ( Acts 10:45) R199:1
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| 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, John baptised with water, but *ye* shall be baptised with the Holy Spirit. |
With the Holy Spirit – He understood clearly that the holy Spirit baptism was of much greater importance than the water baptism. R2996:6
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| 17 If then God has given them the same gift as also to us when we had believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who indeed was *I* to be able to forbid God? |
I could withstand God – He understood that in the Lord's estimation Gentiles must be reckoned as members of the Body of Christ. R2996:6
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| 18 And when they heard these things they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then indeed God has to the nations also granted repentance to life. |
Heard these things – Because of their prejudices, it was slow for them to grasp the recognition of Gentiles. Peter had to be taught by a special vision. R1727:6, 1728:1; 972:1
Were glad to learn of the good works, took steps to help the new believers by sending Barnabas. R1455:2
Glorified God – Their difficulty was not due to meanness of heart, but to conscientious conviction respecting the divine program. R2996:4
Also to the Gentiles – To be heirs of the Abrahamic promise. R919:4, 658:2, 414:2
Repentance unto life – Granted unto the Gentiles as well as to the Jews. R2997:1
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| 19 They then who had been scattered abroad through the tribulation that took place on the occasion of Stephen, passed through the country to Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one but to Jews alone. |
Scattered abroad – Scattered the believers everywhere, to preach the Gospel. D480
The divine purpose, that thus messengers of the Gospel might be in every quarter. R4357:2
They did not put their lights under a bushel (Matt. 5:15) but "showed forth the praarkness." (1 Pet. 2:9) R2133:3
Communism is not the Lord's arrangement now. D478, D480; R2102:3, 1862:2, 1390:5
The persecution – The persecution scattered the light instead of extinguishing it. R1455:1, 1862:6
Should persecution come again, let all continue to preach, on authority of the Lord. R992:6
Another parallel to the harvest of the Jewish age. B263
Resulted from the persecution at the time of Stephen's death. R2997:2
And Antioch – A city of 500,000 population, 300 miles north of Jerusalem, at that time the third largest city in the world, and the first city outside of Palestine in which a church was formed. R2997:2, 4357:1, 2133:3, 1455:1
It was the capital of the province of Syria. R2133:3
Preaching the word – All the brethren were to exhort one another and stir up each other's pure minds in remembrance. R984:4
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| 20 But there were certain of them, Cyprians and Cyrenians, who entering into Antioch spoke to the Greeks also, announcing the glad tidings of the Lord Jesus. |
Men of Cyprus and Cyrene – Jews, converts to Christianity, more familiar with the Greek and less familiar with the Hebrew. R4357:2
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| 21 And the Lord's hand was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord. |
Hand of the Lord – The true secret of all successful Christian work. R4357:2
Hand signifies power and direction. Each individual Christian is a finger of the Lord. (Luke 11:20) R4357:2
We see how the Lord led others to preach the Gospel. R1455:1
A great number believed – A testimony to their efficient work. R2134:1
We are not to gauge the success of our endeavors by the "great numbers." R4357:3
And turned – Believing is one thing, and "turning" every sentiment, hope, ambition and desire to the Lord is quite another. R2134:1
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| 22 And the report concerning them reached the ears of the assembly which was in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go through as far as Antioch: |
Ears of the church – The apostles at Jerusalem were on the lookout to help, encourage, assist in forwarding the Gospel in every quarter. R4357:3
God uses human means so far as possible. R4357:4
Sent forth – To forewarn them of dangers and to assist to a clearer knowledge of the divine plan. R4357:4
That he might see and judge of the true condition of things. R2997:6
Barnabas – Chief representatives residing at Jerusalem, glad to learn of the good work being done, took steps to send Barnabas. R1455:2
A faithful servant. With a loving and kind disposition. R2134:3
A native of Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean, near Antioch. He was a Levite, well learned in the Law, "a son of consolation," a "helper." R2998:1
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| 23 who, having arrived and seeing the grace of God, rejoiced, and exhorted all with purpose of heart to abide with the Lord; |
The grace of God – Manifested in faith and conduct. R2997:6
Was glad – He himself received a blessing. R4357:6
Quickly discerned the cleansing and sanctifying power of the truth amongst the believers at Antioch. R2997:6
Exhorted – That they should abide, separated from further affiliations and bound unto the Lord. They had already separated themselves from heathenism and Judaism and had been joined unto the Lord. R4357:6
In Greek, signifies comfort, stimulation, assistance. R2998:1
They would cleave – The word signifies to glue, to adhere. To see that their consecration was complete. R2998:2
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| 24 for he was a good man and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith; and a large crowd of people were added to the Lord. |
He was a good man – Moral, upright, reverential, full of faith and the holy Spirit. R2998:3
What more could be said to the credit of any child of God? R4357:6
Of the Holy Spirit – The holy Spirit guiding all his efforts. R2998:3
Much people was added – The work was one of proclaiming Christ and turning the hearts of men from sin to righteousness. R4358:1
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| 25 And he went away to Tarsus to seek out Saul. |
For to seek Saul – The time had come for Saul to be introduced into the Gospel work. Again God used an instrumentality. R4358:1
Went to see him personally, to urge upon him activities in the Lord's service. R4358:1
To his introduction as the great "Apostle to the Gentiles," (Rom. 11:13) to take the place of Juda R1455:2
The Lord had allowed Saul to rest in quietness for the development of humility, faith and obedience. R4358:1
Barnabas apparently discerned that they needed instruction as well as exhortation, and immediately he thought of Paul. R2134:3
His ideas were extremely broad in respect to the Gospel. The brethren would be profited. R2998:4
Thirteen years after returning from Arabia, Paul was chosen an elder of Antioch. Q697:4
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| 26 And having found him, he brought him to Antioch. And so it was with them that for a whole year they were gathered together in the assembly and taught a large crowd: and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. |
Unto Antioch – The first church in which Gentiles seemed to predominate in numbers. PD76/90
Taught much people – Without waiting for anybody to "lay hands" on them. F285
Disciples – Pupils, learners. R2998:5
Called Christians – This was the name which believers adopted for themselves, by which they would be known to outsiders. R2134:4
They were first called it by others, but not by the Jews. R4358:2
Signifies a believer in and a follower of Jesus Christ, and is applicable only to the new creation. F494; R4358:2, 2998:5, 2134:6, 1455:4
One who trusts in Christ as the Messiah, the Redeemer. R2998:5
Implies he is our Head; our present share with him in the anointed sacrificing priesthood, and our association with him as anointed kings and joint-heirs in the Kingdom. R2134:6
The only ones who properly take Christ's name are those who really become his disciples--take up their cross, give up their life, surrender their will. R5404:6
It would be far better if many professed Christians did not take the name at all. R5404:6
The name Christian is borne by many as a heavenly livery to appease their own consciences and increase their opportunity for selfishness. R4988:2
The name that will stand will be Christians. R4358:4
By what name may the Church be called? By the name of its founder. The "Church of Christ" or "Church of God." R5848:3
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| 27 Now in these days prophets went down from Jerusalem to Antioch;
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Jerusalem – The center of influence in Palestine. The head-center of the Christian work, so to speak. R2997:2,5
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| 28 and one from among them, by name Agabus, rose up and signified by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine over all the inhabited earth, which also came to pass under Claudius. |
Agabus – Spoke as a mouthpiece of the holy Spirit. R2223:4
Possessed of the spirit of prophecy, after the manner of the ancient prophets, so that he foretold future events. R4467:4
Be great dearth – A famine. R4526:1, 4358:5, 1455:5
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| 29 And they determined, according as any one of the disciples was well off, each of them to send to the brethren who dwelt in Judaea, to minister to them; |
To send relief – The only appeal for money recorded in the Bible, for the poor at Jerusalem, sorely pressed by the famine. R4526:1
When an opportunity comes to us for doing good, it should not be slighted, but reasonably investigated. R4358:5
The love of God shed abroad in our hearts overcomes much of our natural selfishness. R4358:5
It was a noble return in temporal matters for spiritual favors they had received. R1455:5
The blessing to the giver is far greater. R2999:1
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| 30 which also they did, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul. |
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