ACTS
(Answers)
Updated
02/2024
CHAPTER 1
- Luke wrote the book of Acts.
- a. Jesus went up from Mount
Olive. b. Jesus told the apostles to go and wait in Jerusalem. c. It was
about a Sabbath day's journey. (This was about a mile, which is equal to
what they were allowed to travel on a Sabbath.) d. The disciples were in
an upper room where they were staying.
- There were about 120
disciples at that time.
- The first order of business
was to find a replacement for Judas Iscariot.
- a. The one to replace Judas
must have accompanied the apostles beginning from the baptism of Jesus by
John the Baptist to the time He was taken up into heaven. b. They chose
Matthias.
CHAPTER 2.
- The apostles received the
Holy Ghost and began to speak of the wonderful works of God in other
languages.
- a. Each person heard and
understood the apostles in his own language. b. The apostles were
Galileans.
- David spoke that Jesus would
not see corruption in the grave but would be resurrected and sit at God’s
right hand until He made the enemies of Jesus a footstool to Him.
- David has not yet rose from
the grave and ascended to heaven.
- To be given the Holy Spirit
is the gift. This gift will enable you to learn and grow and keep faith in
God and the gospel.
- Peter exhorted them to save
themselves from the influence and fate of this perverse world.
- The people received and
continued in the teaching and instruction of the apostles.
- The people continued to meet
together with common belief and hope sharing the gospel and praying
together.
- The believers sold their
possessions and gave to those in need among them.
CHAPTER 3
- a. Peter and John healed a
man lame since birth. b. They gave credit to God who did this to glorify
the name of Jesus.
- a. Repenting of sin is to
turn away from your sins. b. To be converted is to change your heart and
actions so you will walk in the precepts of God and not in sin. c. The
refreshing comes through the Holy Spirit in peace, blessedness, and a
righteous walk. d. If we repent and are converted and guided by the Holy
Spirit, Jesus will return and gather us for the eternal reward.
- Jesus is waiting until all
prophecy is fulfilled and it is the time for all things to be restored to
God.
CHAPTER 4
- The Levite priests, elders,
and high priests confronted Peter and John.
- The authority of Jesus
healed the lame him.
- They perceived that Peter
and John were uneducated and untrained men and had been with Jesus.
- The elders feared losing
their authority, power, status, and respect.
- Barnabas selling his land
and giving the money to the apostles showed that he, a Levite, accepted
their authority.
CHAPTER 5
- Ananias and his wife sold a
possession of land and secretly kept back a part of the proceeds for
themselves while professing to have devoted it all to the Lord.
- a. The Holy Spirit revealed the
lie of Ananais to Peter. b. Ananias thought he could deceive all even the
Spirit and ultimately lied to God. c. He fell dead instantly. d. The wife
also fell dead instantly.
- a. The apostles were able to
heal all the sick and those with unclean spirits that were brought to
them. b. The Sadducees were filled with envy and jealousy. c. The
Sadducees had the apostles imprisoned.
- a. The apostles were freed
from prison by an angel of the Lord. b. The apostles went to the temple
and began teaching the people again. c. The Sadducees wanted the apostles
to stop teaching about Jesus. d. "We should obey God rather than
men."
- Gamaliel advised to wait and
see if the apostles' work was of man or God. If it were of man, it would
come to an end. If it were of God, it could not be stopped.
CHAPTER 6
- a. The Hellenists or
Grecians were Greek speaking Jews that had lived among the Gentiles. b.
Their widows were being neglected in the daily distributions. c. They
chose seven godly and just men and put them in charge of the distributions.
- Stephen was falsely accused
of blaspheming God and Moses.
CHAPTER 7
- Stephen recited in wisdom
and by the Spirit the history of the children of Israel from Abraham unto
Jesus Christ.
- a. They stoned him to death.
b. Stephen asked God to forgive the people. c. Saul (Paul) was also
standing there as they stoned Stephen.
CHAPTER 8
- Saul made havoc for the
church and dragged people from their homes and put them in prison.
- a. Simon was a sorcerer. b.
The people thought he was invested with great power from God.
- Simon believed and was
baptized and continued on with Philip.
- a. Simon offered the
apostles money for the power of the Spirit. b. Peter and John told Simon
he would perish with his money. c. Simon’s heart was not right. He wanted
the power for his purposes. d. Simon needed to get his heart right. He
needed to repent of his sin and ask forgiveness from God.
- a. The eunuch was reading
the book of Isaiah. b. He was reading a prophecy about Jesus.
- Philip baptized the eunuch
after he believed.
- The same Spirit that urged
Philip to talk to the Ethiopian strongly urged him to continue on his
journey instead of spending more time with the Ethiopian who then went on
his way rejoicing. (This seems to have been a supernatural transportation
as soon as Philip and the eunuch came out of the water.)
CHAPTER 9
- a. Jesus met Saul on the road
to Damascus. b. Saul was blinded by the bright light.
- Saul would be a chosen vessel
to carry the name of Jesus before kings, the Gentiles, and the children of
Israel.
- Saul immediately began to
preach that Jesus was the Son of God.
- The disciples let Saul down
in a basket through a window.
- Saul disputed with the
Hellenists or Grecians.
- Peter healed Aeneas of
paralysis of eight years.
- Peter brought a woman back to
life.
CHAPTER 10
- a. Cornelius was a
centurion of the Roman army. b. He was a devout man of God.
- God brought Coenelius to
the next level of faith and salvation and poured out the Holy Spirit on
him and his household.
- What God has cleansed
should not be considered unclean any longer. God had also cleansed the
Gentiles through Jesus.
- Peter and his circumcised
company were surprised to see God pour out the Spirit on the Gentiles.
CHAPTER 11
- John's baptism was with
water and was a symbolic washing away of sins. The baptism of the Holy
Ghost is with power that sanctifies us in the ways of the Lord.
- The disciples are first
called Christians at the city of Antioch.
CHAPTER 12
- Herod harassed the church.
- Herod killed James, the
brother of John, of the sons of Zebedee.
- a. Herod next seized Peter
to kill him. b. Peter was set free from the prison by an angel.
- Herod was struck down
because being a Jew he glorified himself as a god instead of fearing the
only God and giving Him the glory.
CHAPTER 13
- Barnabas and Saul were
called to work.
- a. Elymas tried to prevent
Barnabas and Saul from converting the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, to the
faith. b. Saul told him he was full of deceit and unrighteousness - a son
of the devil perverting the ways of the Lord. c. Elymas was stricken with
blindness for a time. d. God gave Elymas a physical blindness to match his
spiritual blindness. (This is similar to what happened to Paul on the road
to Damascus). Ultimately, the blindness was to produce repentance in
Elymas.
- a. Paul exhorted the people
how Jesus was foretold by the prophets and is the savior of the people.
They must beware of despising or rejecting this truth lest calamity or
destruction come upon them. b. The people wanted to hear more the next
Sabbath.
- The Gentiles were prophesied
in the scriptures to become children of God too. Each has an opportunity
after hearing the word.
CHAPTER 14
- Paul healed a man crippled
in his feet since birth that had never walked at Lystra.
- a. The people believed Paul
and Barnabas to be gods come in the likeness of men. b. Paul and Barnabas
denounced this identity and exhorted the people to turn to the only living
God.
- The Jews from Antioch and
Iconium who opposed the teachings of Paul and Barnabas followed them to
Lystra.
- God opened the door of faith
to the Gentiles giving them the opportunity for salvation too.
CHAPTER 15
- The Judeans wanted to
enforce the law of circumcision for the Gentiles.
- God knows the hearts of men
and will judge all people by their hearts.
- The apostles and elders did
not want to impose unnecessary and burdensome rituals, namely
circumcision, on the Gentiles. The Gentiles were required only to abstain
from all unclean things, meat offered to idols, and fornication. These
should be familiar to them because Moses was taught in the many synagogues
each Sabbath.
- a. Paul wanted to revisit
cities hr had been to see how the people were doing in their faith and to
strengthen them. b. John Mark had left Paul and Barnabas and the work when
in Pamphylia (Acts 13:13).
CHAPTER 16
- The Jews in this region
would not even begin to listen to an uncircumcised person. Paul knew
circumcision was not necessary but had Timothy circumcised so the Jews
would listen to the word (see 1Co.9:22).
- Paul and Silas were thrown
into prison or healing a demon-possessed girl who was used for profit in
fortune telling.
- a. Paul and Silas were set
free from the prison by an earthquake. b. The guard in the prison became a
believer of Jesus.
CHAPTER 17
- The people searched the
scriptures daily to see if the words of Paul and Silas were true.
- a. The Jews from
Thessalonica followed Paul and Silas to Berea. b. They came to stir up
people against Paul and Silas.
- Areopagus was the place or
court of the supreme judges. They were highly knowledgeable, intelligent,
religious people who ruled on cases and sought and shared understanding in
any new philosophy or thing.
- The unknown god of the
Areopagus was the God who
made the universe, who is the very reason we exist and whose offspring we
are.
CHAPTER 18
- a. Aquila and Priscilla
were a Jewish husband and wife deported from Rome who were followers of
Christ. b. They and Paul had the same occupation as tentmakers.
- a. Paul shook his garments
at them as a sign of shaking off the guilt of their condemnation and went
to the Gentiles. b. In the vision Paul was told to not give up but to keep
speaking. No one would harm him for there were many people there who
believed in God. c. Paul stayed at Corinth a year and six months.
- a. Apollos was an eloquent
Jew of Alexandria who knew the scriptures and taught diligently the things
of the Lord. b. He had knowledge of the scriptures and of the doctrines
pertaining to the Messiah but knew only the baptism of John. c. Aquila and
Priscilla explained to Apollos that the Messiah had already come and
enlightened him on the gospel of Christ.
CHAPTER 19
- a. Paul worked unusual or
extraordinary miracles like the touching of handkerchiefs or aprons
brought from his body that healed people of diseases and evil spirits.
- a. The sons of the priest
believed the power for miracles came from just saying “in the name
Jesus.” They did not have the
true power in them. b. The sons of the priests were beaten up badly by a
man possessed by an evil spirit.
- The miracles magnified the
name of Jesus and helped the word of the Lord to be believed, grow
mightily, and prevail. Many came to accept Jesus
- Demetrius and other
craftsmen like him were losing money for their work of crafting idols. He
also accused Paul of despising their goddess Diana (Artemis).
CHAPTER 20
- a. Paul spoke all night
until daybreak. b. Eutychus fell asleep and fell out of a third story
window and died but Paul restored him to life.
- Paul taught repentance
toward God and faith in Jesus Christ which is to turn from sin and to know
forgiveness through Jesus.
- Paul had taught all things
that would promote salvation and help the people live and endure life. If
they suffered the second death it would be due to their own neglect.
- Paul knew strong opposition
and false teachers would come even from within the church and mislead them
by distorting doctrines of the gospel. Some would distract the church from
selfish ambition not leading them in the proper work and focus of the
kingdom.
CHAPTER 21
- Phillip was one of the
seven chosen to administer to the needs of the widows (6:5) and who also
witnessed to the eunuch (8:26-40)
- Agabus prophesied Paul
would be bound or taken prisoner at Jerusalem.
- a. Paul taught that
circumcision of their sons and other rituals of the law were no longer
necessary. b. The elders feared for Paul and wanted him to go with four
men who were being purified and go through the ritual of the law with them
to show he was upholding the law to perhaps save him from the Jews.
CHAPTER 22
- The crowd in Jerusalem had
enough when Paul said God sent him to the Gentiles because the Jews would
not receive him.
- Paul could not be scourged
because he was Roman, uncondemned.
CHAPTER 23
- The Pharisees believed in
angels or spirits and the resurrection. The Sadducees did not believe in
the resurrection or spirits.
- a. The Jews plotted to
ambush Paul and kill him when he was coming to be questioned before the
council. b. Paul's nephew, his sister's son, overheard this plot.
- Paul would be sent to
Felix, the governor, in Caesarea.
CHAPTER 24
- Tertullus was a well-trained
orator. He would be more effective against Paul.
- Paul was accused of evil
because he taught of the resurrection of the dead.
- He listened to Paul teach
about righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment. Felix was lax
in all these things.
- Paul lived for two years in
Rome under Felix.
CHAPTER 25
- The Jews wanted Festus to
send Paul back to Jerusalem under the pretense of wanting to try him
there. Their plan was to lay in ambush to kill Paul.
- Festus also found no wrong
in Paul.
- a. Festus wanted King
Agrippa to hear the case of Paul. b. Festus hoped King Agrippa could
specify a charge against Paul to justify bringing him to Caesar.
CHAPTER 26
- Paul strove hard against
the name of Jesus. With his extensive training in the law and prophets he
should have realized that prophecy was being fulfilled.
- Paul’s mission was to turn
the Jews and the Gentiles from darkness to light, from the power of Satan
unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an eternal
inheritance for those who have faith in God.
- Paul almost persuaded King
Agrippa to become a Christian.
- Paul had appealed to Caesar
and God had intended for him to go to Rome to witness the gospel there.
CHAPTER 27
- Paul predicted voyage would
be a disaster. There would be loss of cargo and the ship, and loss of lives
(which he later reveals there would be no loss of lives).
- Pal told them they needed
to eat, for they would need their strength.
- Two hundred and seventy six
were on board the ship.
- The centurion wanted Paul
to be spared.
CHAPTER 28
- a. A poisonous snake bit
Paul. b. The natives assumed Paul must be a murderer who was not allowed
to escape death. c. When Paul did not die from the snake bite the natives
thought he must be a god. d. Paul healed the father of Publius of fever
and dysentery. After this all who had diseases came to him and they were
healed.
- Paul was able to dwell
freely with just a guard.
- No report had been sent
ahead to the Jews in Rome concerning any evil of Paul.
- The Jews in Rome wanted to
know more about the gospel and the sect of the Way.
- Paul showed the Jews from
the scriptures and prophets that Jesus was the Christ.
- Paul dwelled two whole
years in his own house receiving all who came to him.