The Strand Study Bible

ACTS ACTS to experience the “joy of the Lord” ( and sang praises unto God ) despite their hardships ( Neh 8:10 a , 17 and Mt 5:10-12 ). THE ADAGE IS TRUE: We can expect discouragement (vs 19-24) ; let’s just not accept it (vs 25) NOTE – Things turn out best for people who make the best out of the way things turn out. Spirit-filled men and women are not isolated from what’s going on around them, and they are certainly not without their faults (Acts 15:36-39). They experience hurt and disappointment just like everybody else. They even have their daily bouts with temptation. However, what sets them apart from the rest of the world is their response ( And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God ). When circumstances wreck havoc with the peace of Spirit-filled people, there will be some down time for sure. But they won’t stay down. They refocus their attention on the big picture, acknowledge the truth that their peace is from the Lord, and then move forward for good and for God. THE ADAGE IS TRUE: Joyful people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything 16:31 It is interesting to contemplate the strange psychology of people who cannot act entirely upon what God says; rather they have to have some kind of “emotional” experience before they can do the “logical” thing. I have searched the Scriptures and cannot find any verse that reads like this: “ Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ , and get a “tingling” sensation, and thou shalt be saved .” Nowhere in the Bible does it say, “ For whosoever shall call upon the name of the LORD , and “cry,” shall be saved .” The Bible sets forth a promise of salvation in a clear, factual, and logical manner and teaches that salvation is the result of the intelligent acceptance of Christ as God and Savior, and this acceptance is supposed to be made on the basis of the evidence offered. It is faith, not feelings that save us. Billy Graham in God’s Ambassador said of his own conversion: I didn’t have any tears, I didn’t have any emotion, I didn’t hear any thunder, there was no lighting…but that’s when I made my decision for Christ. It was as simple as that. 1 Salvation has nothing to do with how we feel and everything to do with what God says. Joe Gibbs in Game Plan for Life notes: 1814 Naturally, once the decision is made to accept Christ as God and Savior (based upon the facts of the Gospel) there comes a psychological change. First, there comes a relief from the burden of sin and the consciousness of guilt. No longer is the fear of death in your heart (I Cor 15:54-57). Secondly, your eyes begin to open spiritually as the Scriptures begin to come alive (I Cor 2:9-14). Faith in what God says must come first ; then comes the feeling. Sadly, too many people put the “cart” before the horse. Accept the facts of salvation and the joy that accompanies Christianity will bring the feeling. 17:6 Rare is the generation that reaches their generation for God. Yet that is exactly what the disciples, whom Christ had trained, endedupdoing( Thesethathaveturnedtheworldupsidedownarecomehitheralso ).TheyreachedmuchoftheirworldwiththeGospelof Christ in just nineteenyears (fromAD32 - 51).Theydidsobecause they followed the threeprerequisites fordiscipleship ( Lk14:26 c ). 17:11 This word ( more noble ) is the Greek word ευγενεσ τ ερο L ( eugenesteroi ) and generally means “ well (eu) born (genos);” a person of means. This word is used three times in the NT (Lk 19:12, Acts 17:11 and I Cor 1:26) and once in the Septuagint (Job 1:3) to describe Job’s greatness in riches. Here however, in Acts 17:11, the word is used to describe attitude instead of affluence. Meaning: The Jews in Berea were not slaves to religious prejudice, as were most Jews. They did not look down upon Paul because he, a Jew himself, became a Christian. Thus, the Jews in Berea were “richer” ( more noble ) in their spiritual endeavor than any other persons Paul had known; and because they were more noble-minded in their spiritual endeavor, it led to their salvation - vs 12. NOTE – Good things, spiritually speaking ( many of them believed – vs 12), happen to those who are: 1. Fair minded; open to other opinion; not prejudice ( more noble ) Good things, spiritually speaking, happen to those who presuppose nothing . Because the Word of God is eternal and exceedingly greater than any one person’s interpretation of its contents ( I Cor 13:12 ), allowing others to think for themselves biblically is looked upon by God as a good thing ( Heb 11:26 ). The attitude “I could be wrong, therefore I will look into it” goes a long way with God. 2. Eagerly waiting to hear the Word ( they received the word with all readiness of mind ) Good things, spiritually speaking, happen to those who love the Word because of what the Word can do ( I Sam 19:22 ). Because the Word of God has the power to change people, being ready to always hear what God has to say goes a long way with God… no matter who’s saying it ( Phil 1:18 ). You never want to be one of those people who automatically write other people off simply because you have the mindset to do so. 3. Willing to double check, scripturally, what they happen to hear ( and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so ) Good things, spiritually speaking, happen to those who are willing to search the Scriptures in order to mine for truth ( Prov 24: 13- 14 , Jn 5:39 and II Tim 2:15). Because the Word of God contains the answers to life, we need to keep up the search in order to find the answers. 17:12 Those who endeavor to “question” why they believe what they believe will find themselves “set free” religiously ( many of them believed ), and thus free of religion itself ( Jms 1:26b ). I became a Christian during my second year of college. That means I accepted the fact that Jesus died on the cross for my sins, and I believed that God had raised Him from the dead. You’ve probably heard people talk about a “bolt of lightning” conversion experience. Well, nothing that dramatic happened to me. But, in time, there were some obvious changes in my life. 2

1 Graham, Billy. God’s Ambassador . San Diego, CA: W Publishing Group. 1999. Print. 2 Gibbs, Joe. Game Plan for Life , Carol Stream, ILL, Tyndale House Pub., 2009, Print.