Sunday School Lesson for May 28, 2023 - Saul of Tarsus: Printed Text: Acts 9:9-17 NLT, Background Scripture: Acts 9:1-31 NLT, Devotional Reading: Philippians 3:1-14 NLT

 

Unit 3: The Birth of the Church

Key Verse:

Acts 9:17 NLT

17 So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you might regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Prelude:

Philippians 3:5-6 NLT

5 I was circumcised when I was eight days old. I am a pure-blooded citizen of Israel and a member of the tribe of Benjamin—a real Hebrew if there ever was one! I was a member of the Pharisees, who demand the strictest obedience to the Jewish law. 6 I was so zealous that I harshly persecuted the church. And as for righteousness, I obeyed the law without fault.

Every saint has a testimony. Every saint remembers what the Lord delivered him from. Every saint remembers the path that led from depravity to deliverance. I’m not sure the stench of our old life is ever fully cleansed from our members however, God uses our testimonies as a witness to the power of the Glory of His Grace. There is nothing that has ever happened in our past that God cannot use to our benefit and for His Glory.

Psalm 107:2-3 NKJV

2 

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,

Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,

3 

And gathered out of the lands,

From the East and from the West,

From the North and from the South.

Saul of Tarsus, for example, had such a testimony. A Pharisee of Pharisees, he learned at the feet of Gamaliel, Saul had no peers among the Jews. Because of his zeal for the Law of Moses and his all-or-nothing temperament, he was perfectly suited for the grim responsibility of stopping the explosive growth of this new movement that named Jesus of Nazareth as Lord. His fervor ensured that he would see the job through. In fact, so effective was he in his pursuit and persecution of the believers that the religious leaders in Jerusalem increased his sphere of influence to include areas well outside of Judea. He was on the road to Damascus, in Syria, when he had a divine encounter.

Acts 9:3-6 NLT

3 As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”

5 “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked.

And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! 6 Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 

As it turns out, Saul’s fervor and determination had not gone unnoticed. None other than the Lord Jesus Christ had seen Saul’s persecution of the Church and had determined that Saul’s singular focus of mind and his dogged, intense determination would serve the eternal purposes of the Kingdom of God. So He (Jesus) stopped Saul in his tracks, knocked him off of his horse, and gave him … a testimony.

Acts 9:7-8 NLT

7 The men with Saul stood speechless, for they heard the sound of someone’s voice but saw no one! 8 Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus.

Galatians 1:13-16a NLT

13 You know what I was like when I followed the Jewish religion—how I violently persecuted God’s church. I did my best to destroy it. 14 I was far ahead of my fellow Jews in my zeal for the traditions of my ancestors.

15 But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him 16a to reveal his Son to me[e] so that I would proclaim the Good News about Jesus to the Gentiles.

The Lesson

  

Acts 9:9 NLT

9 He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.

Saul finds himself in quite a predicament. For the first time in, quite probably, a very long time, Saul finds himself completely helpless. For three long days, he has had to feel his way, questioning every step. Certainly, with his careful consideration of every dark step, Saul has had time for introspection as well. How had he come to this place? How had his missteps misled him so far from the will of the God of his fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? It comes as no surprise that Saul neither ate nor drank during this period, as this would have been a customary response of a devout Jew in a time of duress. 

Acts 9:10 NLT

10 Now, there was a believer[b] in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, calling, “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord!” he replied.

While Saul is ensconced in this time of introspection, the Lord is preparing the way ahead. The Lord calls out to a believer, Ananias. This man is identified in Scripture as ‘a believer’. Not a prophet, not an Apostle, just … a believer: one who has accepted Christ as Saviour and Lord and one who has received the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is by the unction of the Holy Spirit that Ananias is able to hear and respond to Christ. As a child growing up in East Austin, I observed this phenomenon time and again with the elders in Christ in the community, including my grandmother, whose house we stayed at every day after school. These elder saints spoke as if they’d just seen Jesus down the block. Certainly, God speaks to individuals today, just as he did in Ananias’ day.

Acts 9:11 NLT

11 The Lord said, “Go over to Straight Street, to the house of Judas. When you get there, ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is praying to me right now.

Jesus begins to reveal His instructions to Ananias. Very specific instructions. He tells Ananias exactly where to go, who to look for, and the exact state in which he will find the object of God’s purpose; Saul. 

Acts 9:12 NLT

12 I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying hands on him so he can see again.”

Additionally, we discover that the Lord Jesus has been speaking to Saul as well. He has prepared Saul for the eventual arrival of Ananias. Again, Jesus delivers specific details concerning the arrival and the mission of Ananias. When Anias and Saul eventually meet, they will not be strangers.

Acts 9:13-14 NLT

13 “But Lord,” exclaimed Ananias, “I’ve heard many people talk about the terrible things this man has done to the believers[c] in Jerusalem! 14 And he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest everyone who calls upon your name.”

Take note of Ananias’ befuddlement. “But Lord”, he responded. Ananias was well aware of Saul’s reputation. He recounts Saul’s crimes against the Church, and they are many. Not only has Saul been responsible for the torture and murder of many believers, but his authority had been expanded by the Sanhedrin to regions far outside of Jerusalem’s natural borders. How can it be that the Lord is sending Ananias to see him? Just leave him blind. Surely, he deserves that, if not worse.

Acts 9:15-16 NLT

15 But the Lord said, “Go, for Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. 16 And I will show him how much he must suffer for my name’s sake.”

The Lord responds by delivering an imperative: “Go!” He follows that imperative command by providing an explanation, “...he (Saul) is my chosen instrument…” God has a plan for Saul. In fact, before time, God had a plan for Saul. A plan for Saul to deliver the Gospel to the Gentiles. God sees. He sees Saul’s dynamic leadership skills and tenacity. God knows. He knows that Saul is uniquely qualified to carry the Gospel to those who have no knowledge of YHWH, the God of Israel. 

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NLT

7 even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

8 Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. 9 Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 10 That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Finally, God informs Ananias that He will bless Saul with His Presence, but that it will carry a price. Saul will sacrifice much for the sake of the Gospel. In the same way that he administered torment to believers under the authority of Jerusalem, he would now encounter that same persecution and more. Not only would he suffer torment at the hand of the Judaizers, but he would also suffer ridicule at the hands of the Gentiles as he carried this message to foreign lands.

Acts 9:17 NLT

17 So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you might regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Ananias complies with the Lord’s directive. He finds Saul and prays in accordance with God’s will for Saul. He prays for Saul’s sight to be restored. He prays for Saul to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Like Ananias, Saul would respond to God’s directives in a very personal way, coveting God’s Presence above all else. He would come to be regarded as the most significant of the Apostles and the most prolific and influential writer of the New Testament Epistles. His influence on the modern Church is without question, and his imprint on eternity is certifiable. The plans that God had for Paul before time began will carry over into an everlasting legacy. An everlasting legacy of Grace.

Selah,

wb

Psalm 27:7-8 NLT

7 

Hear me as I pray, O Lord.

    Be merciful and answer me!

8 

My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”

    And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”

Sunday School Lesson for May 21, 2023 - An Ethiopian is baptized: Printed Text: Acts 8:29-40 NLT, Background Scripture: Acts 8:26-40 NLT, Devotional Reading: Isaiah 60:9-14 NLT

 

Unit 3: The Birth of the Church

Key Verse:

Acts 8:38 NLT

38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

Prelude:

Acts 8:1 NLT

1 Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen. A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria.

The religious leaders in Jerusalem declared war on the followers of Christ. They were determined to stop this rapidly growing sect before it completely overran the entire religious order in Jerusalem. However, that persecution didn’t quite work as planned. Rather than shrink in fear, Christ’s followers fled into Samaria and Judea, carrying the Gospel with them. The Good News was spreading.

Acts 8:4-6,12 NLT

4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 

12 But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. 

For example, Philip, the Deacon turned Evangelist, after being forced out of Jerusalem, began to preach the message of Christ in the region of Samaria. Recall that early in His ministry, Jesus had a providential encounter with a woman at Jacob’s well. Philip went back there to provide proof that, indeed, that same Jesus had risen from the grave and had ascended to the Father in Heaven. It was Philip’s duty to bring the latest breaking news, the Good News to Samaria.

The Lesson

  

Acts 8:26 NLT

26 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south[b] down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 

God had more in store for Philip. His effective presentation of the Gospel brought many into the Kingdom of God. Now he was being directed by God’s messenger to turn south toward Gaza. Wedged on the border between Israel and Ethiopia, Gaza was part of the territory in Cannan that the Lord had promised to the Hebrews after their liberation from Egypt. While the Hebrews had many great victories there, they never fully settled the area. Instead, it became a stronghold for the enemies of God, the Philistines. Now, in a divine play on words, Philip was sent to Gaza to preach the Gospel of liberation …to Ethiopia.

Acts 8:27-28 NLT

27 So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and he was now returning. Seated in his carriage, he was reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

It was on the road to Gaza that Philip would encounter an Ethiopian of great influence. This man answered only to the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. Kandake is a title, not a name, meaning queen-mother. There are a large number of Kandakes recorded in Alkebulan’s (Africa’s) history. From a biblical standpoint, theologians connect this woman, whose name was Garsemot, Kandake VI, to the Queen of Sheba, whose given name was Makeda. Makeda was a woman of great influence. It was she who visited King Solomon and marveled at his God-given wisdom. Queen Sheba was regarded as a Kandake. Allow me to press this point a bit further. This office of Kandake is evidence of what is called matrilineal succession, as well as an indication of matriarchial leadership. History records many ancient societies that were led by women, including the Iroquois Confederation here in North America. In fact, the Iroquois Confederation influenced the founders of The United States so profoundly that they adopted many of the Iroquois principles in the writing of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Suffice it to say, these were very powerful women who ruled vast kingdoms of great wealth. Thus, the Ethiopian Eunuch was a man of great influence.

The reason that theologians connect Kandake Garsemot to Kandake Makeda (of Sheba) is because of the thread of commonality between them, the worship of YHWH, the God of Abraham Isaac, and Ja’cov. The fact that the Eunuch had traveled to Jerusalem to worship informs us that there were thousands, possibly millions of people in Alkebulan (Africa) whom God remembered and determined that they must also hear this Gospel of the Kingdom, given to us by Christ, our King.

Acts 8:29 NLT

29 The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.”

While Philip had preached to Samaritans, who had some claim to the promise of God to Abraham as their divine inheritance, to go toward an Ethiopian chariot may have left him bewildered. Philip may have imagined that the Holy Spirit was leading him to proclaim the Gospel to a Jewish community within the formerly Philistinian region. However, God had so much more in mind.

Acts 8:30-31 NLT

30 Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

31 The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

As Philip approached the chariot, Philip was able to hear the man reading, what was to him, a familiar passage of Scripture. It was then that it began to dawn on Philip that this cross-cultural encounter was prearranged by God Almighty. Following the leading of the Holy Spirit, Philip began by questioning the Ethiopian official concerning the Scripture he had been reading. The Ethiopian official responded by admitting that he did not understand what he was reading. How could he? He had no one to instruct him. As an officer of the Kandake’s administration, he had been given the responsibility of bringing an offering, a gift to the Temple of God: a tradition that had held since the time of King Solomon and Makeda, the Kandake of Sheba. 

Remarkably, the long journey from Alkebulan to Jerusalem had piqued the curiosity of the Ethiopian official in such a way that he seemingly acquired a scroll from which to investigate the matter for himself. In His great providence, God sent Philip to uncover the mysteries that the Scriptures held. The Ethiopian official invited Philip to join him in the chariot in order that he might receive from Philp the instruction that he so desired.

Acts 8:32-33 NLT

32 The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this:

“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter.
    And as a lamb is silent before the shearers,
    he did not open his mouth.

33 

He was humiliated and received no justice.
    Who can speak of his descendants?
    For his life was taken from the earth.”[c]

The passage from which the Ethiopian read was from the Fifty-Third Chapter of Isaiah, verses 7 and 8. This passage speaks of the unjust crucifixion of Christ. He bore our shame so that we might inherit the promise of eternal life through His shed blood. Jesus fully understood the gravity, the weight of the cup of sorrow that the Father had set before Him. He drank from that cup without complaint. He’d left His complaint in the garden in Gethsemane. It was there that He had completely surrendered to God’s will for His life.

Acts 8:34 NLT

34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, was the prophet talking about himself or someone else?”

Isaiah 53:2 NLT

2 

My servant grew up in the Lord’s presence like a tender green shoot,

    like a root in dry ground.

The Ethiopian official’s question to Philip seems to have stemmed from Isaiah 53:2.  He rightfully had questions about the identity of the person of whom Isaiah spoke. The duality of prophetic writing lends itself to a truth that was pertinent at the time of the writing as well as to a deeper truth that God intends to reveal at some future date. The Ethiopian apparently was aware of the possible duality of the writing and hoped that Philip could provide clarity and understanding.

Acts 8:35 NLT

35 So beginning with this same Scripture, Philip told him the Good News about Jesus.

Philip understood the assignment. He explained, from the writings of Isaiah, the Gospel of Christ. Certainly, he explained Christ’s Eternal Divinity, His conception by way of the Holy Spirit, and His Earthly ministry. Certainly, Philip told of Jesus’ miracles, then finally of His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. Certainly, the Ethiopian listened carefully and then carefully formed his next line of questioning:

Acts:8:36 NLT

36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?”

Obviously, the Ethiopian official found the answers he was seeking in his conversion with Philip. He affirms that this is so by requesting that Philip baptize him. In essence, he had already made the life-altering decision to follow Christ. To be buried with Christ by the symbolism of baptism and to be symbolically raised up with Christ into the New Life that Christ offers to those who believe on His great Name. Baptism does not save. Baptism is only an outward sign of an inward change. The hearing of the Gospel by an Emissary of the Gospel is what delivers saving faith to the believer. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. The Ethiopian’s question was evidence of the spiritual awakening that had taken place.

(Some manuscripts add verse 37, “You can,” Philip answered, “if you believe with all your heart.” And the eunuch replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”)

Acts 8:38 NLT

38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

Philip obeyed the direction of Scripture as well. He was also conforming to precedent established in the ministries of John, the Baptist and then of Jesus, the Christ. Why Baptize? Again, an outward sign of an inward change. A very public declaration and identificatio with the risen Savior, Jesus. Philip understood the assignment. And now suddenly, so did the Ethiopian.

Acts 8:39 NLT

39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing.

Herein lies a note of interest. Philip and the Ethiopian are immediately separated by the Holy Ghost. The Holy Spirit takes Philip away and leaves the Ethiopian to rejoice alone, solely in the Presence of the Lord. The Holy Spirit will teach Him. The Holy Spirit will guide him. The Holy Spirit will confer upon the Ethiopian an assignment of his own; to carry the Gospel back to Alkebulan (Africa), back to the Kingdom of the Kandake whom he serves, and deliver to her and her subjects the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

Acts 8:40 NLT

40 Meanwhile, Philip found himself farther north at the town of Azotus. He preached the Good News there and in every town along the way until he came to Caesarea.

Meanwhile, the Holy Spirit directs Philip to journey north, along the western coast of Israel, then continuing on into Caesarea, spreading the Good News of the Kingdom all along the way. Philip eventually settled in Caesarea and raised his family there. It was there that he would, many years later, invite Paul and his missionary partners into his home as guests. Not only did Philip preach the Gospel, but he also lived it, raising his family in the way of the Lord and welcoming fellow believers into his home as necessarily required.

Acts 21:7-9 NLT

7 The next stop after leaving Tyre was Ptolemais, where we greeted the brothers and sisters[c] and stayed for one day. 8 The next day we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the Evangelist, one of the seven men who had been chosen to distribute food. 9 He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophecy.

Selah,

wb