37th & 38th Occasions of Believe in Acts: Paul Witnesses to King Agrippa, Bernice and Governor Festus:
Volume 4, Number 49The study before last (Vol 4, No 47) documented the incident when the Chief Priests and Elders, along with 40 men who had taken an oath not to eat or drink until they killed Paul came to Caesarea from Jerusalem to accuse him before the Roman Governor Felix. They brought a spokesman named Tertullus to state the charges, Acts 23:12 - 35 and Acts 24:1 - 4; that Paul: 1) was pestilent. The Greek word translated “pestilent” is only found two other places in the New Testament (NT) where it is translated “plague.” So, their claim was that Paul was... Continue reading →
The Significance of: The power of death; The Woman’s seed; Fathers and Blood
Volume 4, Number 48Video unsupported... Continue reading →
36th Occasion of Believe in Acts: Paul rescued from Jerusalem and testifies he believes the entire Old Testament Scriptures:
Volume 4, Number 47We last read about the Apostle Paul reasoning with a mob of his Jewish countrymen while standing on the steps of the Roman fortress next to the Temple in Jerusalem, Acts 22:1 - 20. The mob had seized, carried him out of the Temple, and attempted to kill him, Acts 21:27 - 31 when Claudius Lysias, Acts 23:26, the Chief Captain of the Roman soldiers stationed in Jerusalem, Acts 21:31, got word and rescued him, Acts 21:32. (The title “Chief Captain” is translated from the Greek “chiliarchos,” (G5506) found 22 times in the NT, meaning a commander of 1000 soldiers.)... Continue reading →
35th Occasion of Believe in Acts - Paul sent to the Gentiles - his attempt to reach Israel thwarted:
Volume 4, Number 46Our last study concluded with the Apostle Paul accompanying four Jewish men into the Temple at Jerusalem, having taken a Nazarite vow with them (as decreed in the Law - Numbers 6:1 - 21). James and the Jewish Elders had asked Paul to do this to prove to the Jews in Jerusalem who believed Jesus was their Messiah that Paul followed the Law of Moses, Acts 21:18 - 26, as did they while they waited for the Tribulation, as prophesied in the Old Testament as well as by Jesus when He was on earth, Matthew 24:3 - 28. They rightfully... Continue reading →
Believe in Acts (33 & 34) - Elders, Disciples, Brethren, Evangelists and Saints:
Volume 4, Number 45Elders - The 20th chapter of Acts closes in the City of Miletus (on the Mediterranean coast of modern-day Turkey) with the Apostle Paul saying goodbye to the Elders from Ephesus who had traveled there to meet with him. They were in tears knowing they would never see him again as they prayed and accompanied him to his ship, Acts 20:17 - 38. The Greek word translated Elders is “presbuteros” (Greek # 4145) found 66 times in the New Testament (NT); most often in Acts with 18, Matthew with 13 and 12 in Revelation. Obviously, our English word Presbyterian comes... Continue reading →
Paul's Epistles and the Book of Acts:
Volume 4, Number 44The following audio clip is a recording of a talk I presented at West Valley Grace Fellowship in Sun City West on Sunday, January 20, 2019. Included is a map of the Mediterranean countries through which Paul traveled, outlining his travels. You can view the map as the study progresses to better understand Paul’s travels and ministry.This study presents a basic timeline of events recorded from about the 17th to the 20th chapters of Acts recording part of the Apostle Paul’s second missionary journey and into his third. The events and places in these chapters are compared to the epistles... Continue reading →
Paul's 3rd & Last Recorded Missionary Journey - Money Collected for the Poor Jewish Saints in the Jerusalem Church:
Volume 4, Number 43Our last study examined the 19th chapter of Acts, which documents Paul’s visit to Ephesus. The 30th and 31st occasions of the word “believe” in Acts occurs there describing believers in Ephesus who were not aware of the gift of the Holy Spirit prior to Paul’s arrival, Acts 19:2 and Acts 19:3 - 4. The 32nd occasion refers to those in Ephesus who burned their pagan/cultic books worth 50,000 pieces of silver, Acts 19:18 - 19. Chapter 20 does not contain the word believe. This study will document the timeline of events recorded in Acts 19 & 20 by comparing... Continue reading →
30th, 31st & 32nd Occasions of Believe in Acts - Paul in Ephesus:
Volume 4, Number 42Like Corinth, Ephesus played a key role in the Apostle Paul’s ministry. It was a seaport on the Mediterranean, bustling with commerce and religion but the religion was idolatry. One temple after another to the pagan goddess Artemis (or Diana, as identified in Acts) had been built, destroyed and rebuilt. During Paul’s time that temple was a magnificent marble structure, one of the 7 wonders of the ancient World. Artemis/Diana was the goddess of fertility, its idol was the figure of a woman with multiple breasts and eggs hanging from her body. The temple and city ruins have been partially... Continue reading →
29th Occasion of Believe in Acts & The Apostle Apollos:
Volume 4, Number 41We’ve studied the context of the 27th and 28th occasions of the word “believed” in Acts where used in regard to Paul’s ministry in Corinth: “And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed (27th occasion) on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, (28th occasion) and were baptized.” Acts 18:8. Today, we’ll cover the 29th occasion, also involving Corinthians who “believed,” but this time used in relation to the Apostle Apollos’ follow-up ministry there: “And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who,... Continue reading →
The Transitional Nature of the Corinthian Church
Volume 4, Number 40“Believe” in Acts: Part 19 - “The Transitional Nature of the Corinthian Church”:First, let me advise that I misspelled Samson’s name on my website, which was announced in the last Faith Study. I had it spelled Sampson and am surprised that only one reader caught the error. Thanks to that one reader, the error has been corrected on the website.Today’s study was presented at the West Valley Grace Fellowship in Sun City West on October 14, 2018. The video is 55 minutes long and can be viewed from the website below, or downloaded directly using the following link.Video unsupportedhttps://www.faith-studies.com/videos/18-10-14-corinthians-transition.mp4... Continue reading →