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Wednesday, January 26, 2011 @ 10:12 PM

BIBLE STUDY

Hey!Its this week's BS,I'm continuing from where it last stopped.This is going to be a long and wordy post,I've tried my best to shorten it alrdy.Do try your best to read it,Saul aka Paul is quite an interesting man...so yeah.

Note:
It's my first time doing BS(belive it or not),so I got a lot of help from Esther's 'easy way out' (;
Credits to Jonathan Teram

ACTS 9:19b-20
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.

This was right after Saul's conversion to Christainity.The words 'At once' shows us that his conversion could not have been more sincere as he immediately began to preach the Word.Saul was also boldly preaching the Word in synagogues(a place where people gathered and talked about religious issues)

---> We can infer that one of the true marks of genuine conversion is the desire to spread the Gospel

ACTS 9:21-22
All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

Saul was “proving” that Jesus was the Messiah by using the Hebrew Bible to explain how the prophesies pointed to Jesus.Saul knew that Jesus was the Christ but after his encounter(9:3-9) with Christ himself,Saul was able look at the prophesies in a new light

The Jews in the synagogues understood that Saul was preaching Jesus despite the fact that he was sent to Damascus to arrest those who preached Jesus(9:1-2).We can say that the Jews were not really listening to Saul’s arguments but instead,they were literally shocked that Saul was saying what he was saying

ACTS 9:23-25
After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him.But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.

Some time had passed and Paul became more vocal, more influential and more powerful. Luke says in Acts that "the Jews" plotted to kill Saul but Saul tells the story differently:

In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascences guarded in order to arrest me.But I was lowered in a basket from a window in a wall and slipped through his hands
(2 Corinthians 11:32-33)

The major events between Luke’s account and Paul’s account are in harmony.The only difference is that Luke mentions the Jews wanting to kill Paul and Paul said it was King Aretas. Obviously,the Jews sought to kill Saul by convincing the King that Saul was causing trouble in the town.God was with Saul all the time.

ACTS 9:26-28
When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple but Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.

Although Saul returned to Jerusalem to escape persecution in Damascus,being in Jerusalem also posed a challenge to him because:
1.Jerusalem was where Stephen was stoned,Saul gave approval to his death (8:1)
2.where Saul persecuted the church (8:1-3)
3.where Saul came from before going to Damascus to persecute the churches

Now,he would be surrounded and judged by all his friends who would learn of his conversion.However, the first thing Saul did was join the disciples.It is understandable that the disciples did not trust Saul as they were afraid of him. They thought that he might be pretending to be a Christian in order to infiltrate them and arrest them.

At this point,we can also see Barnabas truly being a Son of Encouragement(which is also what his name meant). Barnabas stood up for Saul when no one else would and his testimony about Saul convinced the disciples to accept him.They accepted him as a brother in Christ.Imagine the man who had once tried to kill them!Note again that Saul could not help but preach the Word, even in Jerusalem.

-->This is an extremely tender moment. Saul received grace from God, but now Saul also received grace from the church

ACTS 9:29-30
He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews,but they tried to kill him.When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

This is an extremely powerful verse.The last debates we saw with "Grecian" Jews were held by Stephen. Now it was Saul himself who picked up the debate where Stephen left off. However,Saul was once again the victim of a murder conspiracy.He was now being persecuted for the very same reason Stephen was persecuted. The reason why Saul was the one getting trouble was because he was so incredibly vocal in preaching Christ.

The other touching aspect of this passage is that, once again, the church (whom Saul persecuted) saved his life. The forgiveness they extended to Saul could not have been more sincere!

-->Remember,Satan wants to exterminate the message. When we preach Christ, we naturally invite persecution

ACTS 9:31
Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

Now that the chief persecutor joined forces with the Christians, the persecutions died down. God was able to bless the church in persecution but He wills for peace and thus,He blessed the church with peace and growth. It is important to note the Holy Spirit’s role in all of this. Satan tried to destroy the church but the Spirit caused the church to thrive instead.

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT:

1.Will you be like Saul?Having the willingness and desire to share the Gospel despite how people may judge or say about you?

2.Are you a Barnabas?Are you able to be the first one to accept and encourage someone when no one else does?

3.Are you able to forgive someone who have done horrible or wicked things to the extent that the Church mentioned in the passage did?

Beryl wrote.