Transcription
Which brings God's word alive with meaning, as he takes you on a chapter by chapter, verse by verse study of God's letter to you, the Bible. And now, here is Pastor Arnold Murray.
Good day to you. God bless you. Say, welcome to the Shepherd's Chapel. Welcome to this family Bible study hour. We're ready to get back into our Father's word, The Acts of the Apostles. This lets you know how they acted, and it, in turn, lets you know how you should act and react. So you can learn great lessons from this book of Acts, written by Luke, as he traveled with various, uh, mainly Paul, after his conversion, throughout the areas in which they traveled. And we're going to move on now, as we've completed that 16th chapter, with the 17th. And this is the way the word travels. It is remarkable that in this generation, in this century, we have the ability through the ether waves of television, radio, and what have you, that we cover all of these spots at one time. And then, did Christ not tell us, "Greater miracles than these shall you do," when he was speaking to a very large group at a lake? That now, the miracle is, and it is a miracle, that we can speak to the world, even live. And it's fantastic. We appreciate that and we thank our Father for it. We ask a word of wisdom in Yeshua's name.
Chapter 17, the book of Acts, verse 1. And it reads, "Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews."
Verse 2. "And Paul, as his manner was, this what he had on his mind, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures." So he spent spends three weeks here. But what does he, it's important that you note, how do you plant seeds? You reason with the scriptures. You document what you teach. When you go forth, it does not, uh, if men argue traditions of men, if they teach traditions of men, what furthereth that the word of God? Nada. It doesn't do any good. But when you teach and reason with the scriptures, that causes them to come alive, come to life before your very eyes, whereby you have a better understanding of what it is your Father would have you discern.
Verse 3. "Again, emphasizing scriptures, three opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered and risen again from the dead, and that this Jesus whom I preach unto you is Christ." Now, hey, there was no New Testament at this time. What did it mean? He taught Christ from the scriptures. That he should be crucified, and that he would rise again. Where is that written? In the Old Testament. I thought the Old Testament was all through and gone. Oh, that's what prophecy is. Prophecy documents a fact when it comes to reality or to pass. And yet, many of the prophets or prophecies haven't yet remain unfulfilled, but they will be. They shall be. Where did he teach this from about the crucifixion? Do you not remember Christ's words on the cross? Pure Hebrew, with one Aramaic verb, quoting verse 1 of Psalms 22. Christ himself on the cross, teaching you from the scripture that you should go there and read that what was written in Psalms 22 was coming to pass as he was nailed to the cross. It spoke of he being pierced and nailed through the hands and feet on the cross, how they would mock him, and how they would try him in detail in the Old Testament, whereby those that are not biblically illiterate can know and understand God's word is true, written a thousand years before the fact, even down to the Roman soldiers gambling for his clothing at the at the foot of the cross. And then the final verse, "It is finished," or "It is done," in the Hebrew. The equivalent of "As it is written," in the Greek. Even his words down to "I thirst," written in that psalm. And it is also written in that psalm, I think it's along about the 22nd verse, as it carries forth in Hebrews chapter 2, verse 14, that a message was being delivered there that should be taught the whole congregation throughout time, for it gave not only Christ being on Earth, but why he came to this Earth, to place God in the flesh, whereby Emmanuel, God with us, whereby in his being crucified, as it's written in that verse, he, in turn, then could destroy death, which is the devil. In other words, it was God's foretelling, "You, I'm going to stop this." Which side are you going to be on at that time? And also, inasmuch as it was Satan and his offspring that brought about the crucifixion, then God has no problem on Judgment Day to give marching orders into the pit. Or we could go to Isaiah chapter 53 in the scripture, and we could tell of that sprout from Jesse, that one that was delivered up, never opened his mouth to defend himself, and his body took the stripes, and we received the healings. Quiet as a lamb led before the shears. And even in that same chapter, along about verses 7 and 8 and 9, how that he would be crucified with the mouth factors, and yet buried among the rich, meaning the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. Written, set in concrete, which by that I mean even more stable or a better foundation than that written in the word of God. That's what Paul was teaching. And when you have someone that listens to God's word, chapter by chapter and verse by verse, then you have someone that God loves, and he will bless that anointing of the spirit in the spirit through the scripture, God's word to us. This is what Paul was preaching. It's what he was teaching was the word of God. You know, in the beginning, when Passover came, what was read? The scriptures, whereby from children to senior citizens, everyone's standing, listening to the word of God, not traditions of men. It is rather sad that those days have slipped away from us. For many, see that it doesn't, for you now. There we see a witness of the scriptures.
Okay, let's continue on. Verse 4. "And some of them believed, naturally, because there's power and truth, and consorted with Paul and Silas, then of the devout Greeks, a great multitude, not just a few of them, a great multitude, and of the chief women, not a few." So we have here both men and women hearing that truth from what Paul? No, the scripture.
Verse 5. "But the Jews which believed not, moved within their, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort." Now, I want to caution you, when you hear "lewd fellows of the baser sort," you know that this word "Jews" is "Ioudas," which means, yes, can mean our brother Judah. But he was not a lewd sort. It was the Kenites that claimed to be of our brother Judah that were the baser type that brought to pass the crucifixion and were a baser sort. So don't try to lay any trips on our brother Judah. Learn rather the difference between a geographical identifier and a genetic identifier. This is geographical. "And gathered a company and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, Jason meaning one who heals, and sought to bring them out to the people." Right. Take care of this. Get a mob together. And some of the baser types right there with them. That is your gossip experts of the community that can hear anything and take it as gospel rather than sticking to facts. Every community has a bunch of gossips, usually, that hears something and whether it's true or not, they pass it on, giving it their credentials, which means their credentials don't amount to a hill of being so. Why waste your time with them? All right. But that's the type we've got. They're the baser kind that gossip.
Verse 6. "And when they found them not, they weren't there, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, saying, 'These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.'" Talking about Paul and Silas. They weren't turning the world upside down. They were turning it right side up from these baser few that had slipped in unawares, as Christ had taught, and brought truth and brought stability to the people of the land. That stability, solidifying in the word of God, which is to say the truth, setting free those from the deceit, the gossip, and the lies. That goes real tough on the baser sort. All right.
Verse 7. "Whom Jason hath received." And I brought him right into Jason. And old Jason took him right into his home. "And these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus." That isn't what they were saying. But it's that same old lie that brought about ultimately the crucifixion. And it would continue naturally in, in a Roman rule. It was very dangerous to say there was another king. Caesar was, uh, would get really uptight about that.
Verse 8. "And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things." They caused quite a stir. What's new under the sun?
Verse 9. "And when they had taken security of Jason, that's to say, when they paid his bail, and of the other, they let them go." It was probably the money they wanted in the first place. But, uh, having that all worked out.
Verse 10. "And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea." Berea means well watered. All right. So well watered with spiritual truth. We hope our Father places these words and names, titles. And it is better to translate them rather than to only transliterate, because sometimes God has a message even in that. Continuing, "Who coming, Vivo, went into the synagogue of the Jews." And the first thing, get that word out.
Verse 11. "These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind." In other words, they were all open-minded. So they were well watered with the truth. "And searched the scriptures daily." They searched what traditions? No. They searched the scriptures daily, whether these things were so. That says a great mouthful there. And that gives you an example of how, when you hear a man teach, you should search the scriptures to see if that that he teaches aligns with and is truly the word of God. That's one advantage to one that teaches chapter by chapter and verse by verse, because it is the word of God. It gives you the opportunity to question any statement, comment, or remark that he might make on his own, other than teaching the scriptures from the languages as they are written. It gives you the opportunity. Any good teacher will also teach you how to acquire the tools that if he were to say Berea meant well watered in the Greek or Hebrew, as the case is, you should be able to go there and find out. Is that true? Right. That's why we recommend from our library, The Strongest Concordance, as well as other tools.
Verse 12. "Therefore many of them believed." I mean, the truth, it hits home. The truth overcomes. "Also of honorable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few." This word is "ethnos." It means of the ethnic peoples, not necessarily of the Greek tribes. Verse, I speak of the Greek language, "ethnos."
Verse 13. "And when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also and stirred up the people." Now, I don't have to tell you again, it's the same baser lot. Just couldn't quite leave it alone. They feel that, why? Because truth, when you once teach a people the truth, no one's going to be able to lie to them. They will go to the word of God to find out if what that person is teaching is honest, straightforward, but most of all, from God. So you could mess up a would-be preacher's playhouse in a hurry teaching real truth.
Verse 14. "And then immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea." And Silas and Timotheus, or Timothy, abode there still. They hung around. It was Paul they wanted. Paul was sent away.
Verse 15. "And they that conducted Paul brought him into Athens." Hey, we're getting downtown here. "And receiving a commandment unto Silas and Timotheus for to come to him with all speed, they departed." In other words, Paul said, "I need you. I want you here." Was what he found in Athens that caused him to do that?
Verse 16. "Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him." That means the Holy Spirit was directing him. "When he saw the city wholly given to idolatry." Wholly, that means the whole group. That it was simply running over with idols. That there was no truth really taught there. That it was basically religion rather than God's word.
Verse 17. "Therefore disputed he in the synagogue." That's to say, he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him.
Verse 18. "Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans and of the Stoics encountered him." And some said, "What will this babbler say?" Others, "He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods," meaning demonic swords, if you would, "because he preaches unto them, because he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection." Now, between the Epicureans and the Stoics, their belief was, one was that, um, you kind of, I'll just put it right down where the rubber meets the road, that you better kind of enjoy yourself here on Earth, because that was the end of it, and that's all you were going to get, uh, period. And the other philosophy was that your good deeds and good intentions was the fact that brought you a good life while you were here in the flesh, but, uh, no mention of afterwards. And so there again, traditions, traditions, yakety yakety yakety, a bunch of ratcheted jaws with preachers' robes on. Religion, religion, that turns to the traditions of men, usually basing itself on one verse from God's word and then going off on a tangent of self-egoism, self-preaching, rather than teaching God's word chapter by chapter and verse by verse, leads one away from the true path and into God only knows what. There's nothing new under the sun. I mean, I could set that scene for you in many places, even in this day.
Verse 19. "And they took him and brought him unto the Areopagus, saying, 'May we know what this new doctrine whereof thou speakest is?'" I mean, they, Areopagus, mean Mars Hill. They took him right up on Mars Hill, the high place. I mean, this is where the really the philosophers get right down with it, you know, let us hear about it. They wanted to hear it. Now, an interesting thing, when they called him a babbler in the last verse, uh, the full translation is "seed picker." It's a word in the Greek that means someone that, like a little bird, that a seed picker, that tested everything. Little this, little of that, little something else, little of this, little of that, little of men's traditions here, traditions there, and traditions here, and scramble it all up, and who knows what's going to come out. All right. It's all right to be a seed picker if you take all your seed from the word of God. But when you get off out here into the remnants and fragments, as Christ taught you not to do, after feeding the multitude, you got to be aware of the doctrine you find out there. And you firm it back up to the truth by getting back to the word of God. So they're, they're going to have some fun here, you know. They've, this is all they did, so they got all day. Might as well listen to him, see what he's got to say. After all, he might have something new. And in the way of the world, who doesn't like a new religion? Some people, that's all they chase is something new. And anyone that is a student of God's word, from the great preacher Ecclesiastes chapter one, there's nothing new under the sun. And it is the old that is exciting, vivacious, that gives life, that is to say, God's word.
Okay, verse 20. "For thou bringest certain, um, strange things to our ears. We would know, therefore, what these things mean. We, we want to hear more. Lay it on us."
Verse 21. "For all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else." All they had to do but either to tell or to hear some new thing. Again, look about you today. There are people today that still haunt Mars Hills, be spiritually speaking. I just wish I could have something new. Then that was fulfilling. And they're biblically illiterate. And they've got that that fills in their possession already, which is to say, the word of God, if they would do a little work in it and ask God's blessings and leadership.
Verse 22. What advice does Paul give them? And he still stands good to this day. "Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill, and said, 'Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious.'" You know what this really should translate? Religious. "I perceive that in all things you're just a little too religious." And let me hasten to add, Christianity is not a religion, it's a reality. So don't ever try to classify it as a religion. It isn't. It's the facing of the real and life daily that makes it a belief of reality, for it speaks of that which is real and fulfilling, and that sticks with you, that upholds you, that strengthens you, that makes sure that you always have the victory, even when you stumble, you get up fighting and claim that victory. That's what it is. Not religion. Religion is full of, well, look at Mars Hill. I can see it today. If you were to clam a bunch of this clam bake circus shows together and put them all on Mars Hill, there would be nothing new again under the sun. I do not say that to insult anyone, but truth is truth, and let's convey the facts.
Verse 23. Paul continues, "For as I passed by, I was walking by over there, and behold your devotions. I found an altar with this inscription, 'To the unknown God.' Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you." In other words, the whole city was full of idolatry. And to the altar to the unknown God, for certainly they did not know him. Was that that Paul fell upon that he would instruct them of Yahweh, the Heavenly Father? I don't know. I might say, "Do you know God today, or have you heard a bunch of seed pickers that have been picking out of maybe a manure pile instead of the true clean grain bin?" I have. I fall back upon the Greek word "babla," hill. Okay. And, uh, the real people will probably more understand what I'm talking about than many others might. But you can really, when you start, when you don't know where your seed's been picked from, you can get into a mess. All right. Likewise, when you begin listening to tidbits and tidbits, you see people today, "Have you heard the new religion?" You really get into it. You get so active that the whole flesh just gets into it, and wham, bang, I mean, it just really praising. And oh, but what about God's scripture? And there's nothing wrong with praise. But you hear of new religions all the time. You've got the "Ah-ha" bunch, and I could go on and on. But we, we, no need offending anyone. Everything in moderation. But most of all, everything the way God has written it should be. If some man brings along some garbage or some new mess, you'd better be careful unless you can declare it and document it in God's word.
Verse 24. "God that made the world, he did what? God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands." He dwelleth not in temples made with hands. God made the rock that you make the altar out of. Men have tried to force God into a house from time immemorial. God doesn't need your house. He might come and visit you, but he doesn't need it for himself. He's, he has heaven for his, um, and he has heaven for his mansion abode. May know, I would prefer to use the Greek word, and Earth for his footstool. All right.
Verse 25. "Neither is worshiped with men's hands." That is to say, some stick you've whittled out and made it a little pretty there and say, "Say three odd men's to my little stick here." "As though he needed anything, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things." In other words, it's God that gives us everything, even the air we breathe, and the metabolism of your flesh body created by Him, whereby it is able to, with that intake of oxygen, uh, formulated, mixing it through the lungs into, um, into the bloodstream, the pump, the heart, putting it out in and through the body, taking nutrients and and so forth, which is called the metabolism of the body, to give it life, to make it keep going, to keep it healthy. He made it that way. He created that. It's kind of like God doesn't necessarily need us. We need Him. That's what Paul is laying on them.
Verse 26. "All hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth." And hath determined, here we come into God's command, determined the times before appointed and the bounds of their habitation. That means the boundaries of their habitation. Unfortunately, this verse confuses more people because they either do not have access to the text, and then if they were to have access to the text, could not handle the Greek. For my friend, the word "blood" is not in the text. It has been added by man, by the translators. It isn't there. Yeah, I, I know I make light of the Scofield Bible, and probably I shouldn't. But I mean, this is even he, even Schofield caught this, and that's saying a lot, because he, in many of his opinions, I know I probably attend a certain denomination in saying this, but God help us all, um, in my opinion, that is a, a fair evaluation of his work. Even he caught this, that the word "blood" was not in the text, was not in the manuscripts. But do you know what should be there? Dust. Clay. That makes a big difference. For even God himself would teach in back in the ninth chapter of the Great Book of Romans that, uh, he could take from the same clay and make a, a chamber pot or a flower vase, whichever he wanted, speaking of Esau and Jacob, and speaking of a barrel in that ninth chapter of Romans. In other words, he took from the same clay and created the nations, "ethnos," the ethnic races, all of us, as it is written, all races on the sixth day, and set the boundaries thereof, that Israel would always control its gates as the boundaries and so forth. And those boundaries still stand, in part, to this day, biblically speaking. Sometimes wars are caused by those boundaries. But I want to go, I must go back now and read that verse as the text as God gave it, whereby you better understand what is said there and are not confused by, um, a non-scholarly description or translation or definition or explanation of what is meant here. Verse 26, I read again as it should be: "And hath made of one clay." You could even say, "OT atom," "atom," "dust," "speck of all dust," "all nations of men," "all ethnos of men," "all peoples of men," "for to dwell on all the face of the earth." And hath determined the times before appointed and the bounds or boundaries of their habitation. God created all the races from the same piece of clay. He formed us different. And there, that, that's he was happy with it. I don't understand why people are not. For when he had finished the six-day creation, as it is written in the last verse of the first chapter of Genesis, it was good. He was happy with it. And then on that eighth day, he formed that one who would till the soil. It's really sad that people, through one verse, excuse me, through one verse, can be so confused, and it can bring confusion. And that's why that you must acquire the ability, uh, to find out for yourself. Now, I have said many things here. I could be misleading. I mean, that's quite different than what most people teach. This, so you should not believe me, inasmuch as it is rather unusual, and you should check it out for yourself. And I dare you to, for you see, that is my duty is to drive you into the work whereby you find out for yourself. And I guarantee you, just as they made the security or bail for Jason, I guarantee you, you will find out I am very accurate in that opinion of this verse from the original text, or our copies of the original text. It's real easy for you to check it out. Um, [Music] it just isn't there. You that have companion Bibles, the Bible that I highly recommend, it will, it will, um, assist you in that as well. Make it real easy for you. That have that study Bible that I recommend. Okay. Um, so we see there, in a sense, God's plan and create of creation. There should be no racial problems, racially or genetically speaking. Now that we have DNA, it is obvious, and many things can be proved. When the scholarship of theology catches up with the high tech of modern days, there will be many things laid to rest. DNA, ultimately, when the scholarship of theology catches up with the high-tech, um, of science, and I should have said that the other way around, when the high-tech of science catches up, they will document that evolution is a fluke. Can't be. DNA will document that. DNA will also document that we're different, and that's good. There's nothing to apologize for or be ashamed of. That's the way God made us. That's the way he wanted us. And, um, we're supposed to get along because there's only one Father.