Acts - Week 80

Week 80 Acts 26 

Day 1 

READ 

Acts 26:15-16 

15 “‘Who are you, lord?’ I asked. “And the Lord replied, ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. 16 Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. Tell people that you have seen me, and tell them what I will show you in the future. 

Paul continued to tell King Agrippa and the others gathered about his conversion on the road to Damascus. He told about a bright light that caused his group to fall down and a voice speaking to him. Jesus identified Himself and tells Paul he has been appointed a “servant and witness.” Paul was to tell people that he had seen Jesus and what Jesus would tell him to do. 

REFLECT 

Does it seem simple at first that all Paul was to do was to tell that he had seen Jesus and later what he was commanded to do? 

REFSPOND 

Talk with your disciple about seeing Jesus in the Scriptures with eyewitness reports. You may also see what Jesus has commanded by reading Matthew 22:34-40. 

Day 2 

READ 

Acts 26:17-18 

17 ‘And I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles. Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles 18 to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God’s people, who are set apart by faith in me.’ 

Paul continued to tell King Agrippa what Jesus told him in his vision. Paul certainly needed to be delivered from his own Jewish people and even the Gentile unbelievers. The directive for Paul was that Jesus was sending him to the Gentiles whereas the gospel previously was taken to primarily Jews. When the Gentiles received forgiveness they would have a place among God’s people. This must have been an unbelievable statement to the Jews present. 

REFLECT 

Notice that all who accept God’s forgiveness have a place among God’s people. There are no distinctions among ethnic groups. 

RESPOND 

Tell others that regardless of background they can be counted among God’s people by accepting forgiveness for sins that Jesus has provided. 

Day 3 

READ 

Acts 26:19-21 

19 “And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven. 20 I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do. 21 Some Jews arrested me in the Temple for preaching this, and they tried to kill me. 

Paul then addressed King Agrippa directly. How could he have thought Paul could do otherwise than obey his vision of Jesus? It was for his message of forgiveness available to both Jew and Gentile that Paul was arrested and the Jews tried to kill him. Surely King Agrippa would understand. Paul had described him as an “expert on all Jewish customs and controversies” (v. 3). But would he understand? 

REFLECT 

Be aware that proclaiming the gospel can sometimes be hated by God-rejecters. But it is also their only hope of salvation. Do what you believe God wants you to do. 

RESPOND 

Visit with your disciple about any opposition experienced when telling about the forgiveness of sins available by trusting in Jesus. Discuss how to react when opposition arises. 

Day 4 

READ 

Acts 26:22-23 

22 But God has protected me right up to this present time so I can testify to everyone, from the least to the greatest. I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen— 23 that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, and in this way announce God’s light to Jews and Gentiles alike.” 

Paul verified that Jesus’ promise of safety was true because he had been protected right up to this moment. For the Jews, Paul emphasized he had preached nothing but that which was revealed by the prophets and Moses. How could any of them oppose this? Paul gave more details about the Messiah suffering and rising from the dead. It was Jesus’ resurrection that announced “God’s light to Jews and Gentiles.”  

REFLECT 

Think about when Paul was preaching that he had only what is now called the “Old Testament” available to him. Yet he was gleaning all this information about the Messiah from its pages. 

RESPOND 

Notice how Jesus referred to the entire Old Testament as He talked to those on the road to Emmaus after His resurrection. Read Luke 24:25-27 and discuss this with your disciple. 

Day 5 

READ 

Acts 26:24-27 

24 Suddenly, Festus shouted, “Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!” 25 But Paul replied, “I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth. 26 And King Agrippa knows about these things. I speak boldly, for I am sure these events are all familiar to him, for they were not done in a corner! 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do—” 

Governor Festus couldn’t take it any longer. He cried out for Paul to stop because he thought he was insane. Paul was sure, however, that King Agrippa would understand what he was saying. In spite of Governor Festus’s opposition, Paul asked King Agrippa a direct question, “Do you believe the prophets?” Paul then answered his own question: “I know you do--.” Now what would Agrippa say?  

REFLECT 

Paul’s question to King Agrippa would be like you asking someone, “Do you believe the Bible?” 

Strangely, some people will believe the writings of God-deniers but will not believe what God Himself has inspired to be written in the Bible. 

RESPOND 

Asking a specific question of someone would be like Jesus who first asked what others were saying about Him. Then He asked, who they thought He was. Read Matthew 16:13-17 to see the interaction.