Posted on 08/17/2015 6:34:57 AM PDT by LearsFool
Some will tell you the Bible can't be understood. Others say you can't understand it without a theology degree, or an ordained teacher, or a special vision/revelation.
I challenge those claims, and invite everyone to read Acts 2 and see whether the following questions are too difficult. And when you're done, you might find you know more than your preacher. :-)
1. Something unusual happened on Pentecost. Was this predicted by Jesus in the previous chapter?
2. How many different nationalities were represented in Jerusalem at Pentecost?
3. How did they know the apostles were Galileans?
4. Joel's prophecy quoted by Peter contained (A) good news (B) bad news (C) both
5. How had God demonstrated His approval of Jesus? (v. 22)
6. How had the Jews responded? (v. 23)
7. How did God overturn their verdict with an ultimate demonstration of His approval of Jesus? (v. 24, 32-33)
8. How did Jesus equip His chosen witnesses? (v. 32-33)
9. What was going to happen to Jesus' enemies?
10. Some who heard were cut to the heart by what Peter said. What did Peter tell them to do?
11. Verses 42-47 are a summary of the situation following Pentecost. Who was teaching and performing wonders and signs at this time?
There will be those who cannot understand what the Word, even though it’s simple enough for a child to grasp and no matter who explains it. To those who are perishing the Word is foolishness.
The Holy Spirit needs to enlighten them.
The man without the Spirit of God cannot understand the things of God as they are foolishness to him.
We need to pray for those that the Holy Spirit would give them understanding.
So...Were the questions to difficult for you? ;-)
Christianity requires belief before you can understand.
Just another example of God performing His works backward (according to the world).
On #3, our deacon once said it was their deep back-woods hick Gallilean accents that gave them away. But of course we are in Arkansas, so that would be appealing to us!
Amen, Sister.
1. Something unusual happened on Pentecost. Was this predicted by Jesus in the previous chapter?
The unusual event, that the Holy Spirit would come upon the apostles, was predicted by Jesus in the previous chapter.
2. How many different nationalities were represented in Jerusalem at Pentecost?
I am not sure what the number of nationalities is, but 15 places and people were named, which represented devout Jewish men from every nation under heaven.
3. How did they know the apostles were Galileans?
Acts 2 does not tell us how the people knew the apostles were Galileans. It could be their accent, the way they were dressed, their demeanor, or maybe some knew who they were and the information spread through the crowd.
4. Joel’s prophecy quoted by Peter contained (A) good news (B) bad news (C) both
Joel’s prophecy quoted by Peter contained good news for those who would call on the Lord by repenting and being baptized. It was bad news for those who would not.
5. How had God demonstrated His approval of Jesus? (v. 22)
God demonstrated His approval of Jesus by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by Him.
6. How had the Jews responded? (v. 23)
The Jews responded by crucifying Jesus.
7. How did God overturn their verdict with an ultimate demonstration of His approval of Jesus? (v. 24, 32-33)
God overturned their verdict by raising Jesus up.
8. How did Jesus equip His chosen witnesses? (v. 32-33)
Jesus equipped His chosen witnesses by pouring the Holy Spirit on them.
9. What was going to happen to Jesus’ enemies?
Jesus’ enemies would become His footstool.
10. Some who heard were cut to the heart by what Peter said. What did Peter tell them to do?
Peter told them to repent and be baptized in the name of the Jesus Christ for the repentance of their sins.
11. Verses 42-47 are a summary of the situation following Pentecost. Who was teaching and performing wonders and signs at this time?
The apostles were teaching and performing wonders during the time following Pentecost.
When my Dad served in the Pacific as a Marine during WW II, one of the men in his battery was from Arkansas. They called him Arky. Dad said Arky could neither read nor write, that he had little formal education. But with his back-woods smarts, Dad would trust his life with him.
You must have the “teacher’s edition” of the Bible - the one with all the answers in it! :-)
I really must stop posing questions that the Bible doesn’t give us answers to, such as #3. Thank you for pointing that out. It’s an interesting question, but I knew we weren’t given the answer, and should’ve left that one out. :-/
The answer to #7 seems to be a very important point, and one I missed for many years. The emphasis in the gospels is not so much on the physical suffering of Christ, but on the rejection of Him - the mocking, the spitting, the ridicule, the choosing of a murderer to be freed instead of Him, etc. He had been executed as a blasphemer because He claimed to be the Messiah.
So when God raised Him up, that was the Father’s testimony of Him, that He is indeed the Messiah. If the resurrection really happened, that would prove His claims were true. In addition to the apostles’ testimony, Peter’s sermons in chs. 2 and 3 make two different arguments to that end.
#11 brings out an interesting aspect of Luke’s writing: He gives these summaries from time to time.
The answer to #7 seems to be a very important point, and one I missed for many years. The emphasis in the gospels is not so much on the physical suffering of Christ, but on the rejection of Him - the mocking, the spitting, the ridicule, the choosing of a murderer to be freed instead of Him, etc. He had been executed as a blasphemer because He claimed to be the Messiah.
So when God raised Him up, that was the Fathers testimony of Him, that He is indeed the Messiah. If the resurrection really happened, that would prove His claims were true. In addition to the apostles testimony, Peters sermons in chs. 2 and 3 make two different arguments to that end.
There is a very powerful song about the rejection of Christ, My God My God by David Kauffman. It caused me to reflect that the physical pain Jesus suffered was nothing compared to the pain in His heart that was caused by the hatred of the people. The last verse is about God raising Him up. I offer it to you for your reflection -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_bAaMAmI64
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