Acts - Week 37

Week 37 Acts 11 

Day 1 

READ 

Acts 11:11-12 

11 “Just then three men who had been sent from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were staying. 12 The Holy Spirit told me to go with them and not to worry that they were Gentiles. These six brothers here accompanied me, and we soon entered the home of the man who had sent for us. 

Peter continues to defend himself before the accusing believing Jews in Jerusalem. They didn’t understand how he could go into the home of a Gentile and even eat with him. They were still clinging to their legalistic past. Peter says the Holy Spirit told him to go. How could the Jewish believes argue with that? Peter also mentions the exact number of fellow Jews who went with him so he did not do this secretly.  

REFLECT 

Think of a time in the past when you had difficulty explaining to someone that you did what you believed God was leading you to do. 

RESPOND 

Talk with your disciple and discuss the difficulty it is sometimes trying to make other believers understand you doing something they do not think honored God. Suggest how to handle such a situation. 

Day 2 

READ 

Acts 11:13-14 

13 “He told us how an angel had appeared to him in his home and had told him, ‘Send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. 14 He will tell you how you and everyone in your household can be saved!’ 

Peter continues to tell his inquisitors about the supernatural aspect of his going to the house of Cornelius. It was an angel who had appeared to Cornelius and told him to send for Peter. Notice that until this point the Scriptures tell only of the Holy Spirit falling on the Gentiles, but here Peter equates that with their salvation. How could the Jewish believers in Jerusalem object to the Gentiles being saved? Not only Cornelius; everyone in his household. 

REFLECT 

Are you willing to go anywhere to tell others about Jesus so they might place their faith in Him? Are you willing to do this where you live? 

RESPOND 

Consider Peter equating the Holy Spirit coming on the Gentiles as an indication they were saved. Read Romans 8:9 in this regard. This indicates the Holy Spirit enters a person’s life at the time of salvation. 

Day 3 

READ 

Acts 11:15-17 

15 “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning. 16 Then I thought of the Lord’s words when he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?” 

What was Peter referring to when he said the Holy Spirit fell on the Gentiles “just as he fell on us at the beginning”? As you search back through the Scriptures you are brought to Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit fell on the Jewish people. This reveals that salvation is not just for the Jews but also for the Gentiles. Peter also associates this act of the Holy Spirit with the baptism of the Holy Spirit that Jesus referred to. So Peter asks his believing doubters how could he have stood in the way of what God was doing. 

REFLECT 

Do not doubt how God can work in other ethnic groups to bring them to Jesus. He died for all and wants all to be saved if they would just believe in Him. 

RESPOND 

Notice the terms being equated: Holy Spirit falling on someone; being saved; and being baptized by the Holy Spirit. This indicates they occur at the same time. Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-13 to see how the baptism of the Spirit is described. 

Day 4 

READ 

Acts 11:18 

18 When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.” 

Finally! The objectors were satisfied with Peter’s defense and they began praising God. They observed two important matters: the Gentiles had the privilege of repenting of their sins; and receiving eternal life. This was a giant step for Jewish believers because they had been steeped in the thought that God favored only the Jewish people. Even so, they thought it was the pure line of Jewry and would not associate with the half-breed Samaritans. Prejudice is not new. 

REFLECT 

Is God dealing with you about being more generous in your thinking regarding another ethnic group? Remember, Jesus died for them also. 

RESPOND 

With your disciple, read John 8:31-47. This passage shows the prejudice of Judaism. Whereas all are brought into existence by God, not all have the right to call Him “Father.” 

Day 5 

READ 

Acts 11:19-21 

19 Meanwhile, the believers who had been scattered during the persecution after Stephen’s death traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch of Syria. They preached the word of God, but only to Jews. 20 However, some of the believers who went to Antioch from Cyprus and Cyrene began preaching to the Gentiles about the Lord Jesus. 21 The power of the Lord was with them, and a large number of these Gentiles believed and turned to the Lord. 

The scene now shifts back to what happened after the stoning of Stephen when persecution broke out against believers. They were scattered and preaching only to Jews as they went as far as the cities referred to. Antioch of Syria was the third largest city in the Roman Empire, outflanked only by Rome and Alexandria, Egypt. In Antioch the attention was focused on the Gentiles and many believed in Jesus and were saved. Antioch will be an important center for the early church in the days to come. The location is not as important as what will be seen occurring there. 

REFLECT 

Are you praying for those seeking to evangelize other ethnic groups? Be encouraged by those from other groups turning to Jesus as Savior. 

RESPOND 

Antioch is mentioned many times in the book of Acts. Not all was good there, however, as Paul later tells Timothy as he writes to him in 2 Timothy 3:10-12. Verse 12 gives a sobering reminder to all who want to live a godly life.