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Chapter 12—From Persecutor to Disciple This chapter is based on Acts 9:1-18. Prominent among the Jewish leaders who became thoroughly aroused by the success attending the proclamation of the gospel, was Saul of Tarsus. A Roman citizen by birth, Saul was nevertheless a Jew by descent and had been educated in Jerusalem by the most…

Chapter 11—The Gospel in Samaria This chapter is based on Acts 8. After the death of Stephen there arose against the believers in Jerusalem a persecution so relentless that “they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.” Saul “made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and…

Chapter 10—The First Christian Martyr This chapter is based on Acts 6:5-15; 7. Stephen, the foremost of the seven deacons, was a man of deep piety and broad faith. Though a Jew by birth, he spoke the Greek language and was familiar with the customs and manners of the Greeks. He therefore found opportunity to…

Chapter 9—The Seven Deacons This chapter is based on Acts 6:1-7. “In those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.” The early church was made up of many classes of people, of various nationalities.…

Chapter 8—Before the Sanhedrin This chapter is based on Acts 5:12-42. It was the cross, that instrument of shame and torture, which brought hope and salvation to the world. The disciples were but humble men, without wealth, and with no weapon but the word of God; yet in Christ’s strength they went forth to tell…

Chapter 7—A Warning Against Hypocrisy This chapter is based on Acts 4:32-37 to 5:11. As the disciples proclaimed the truths of the gospel in Jerusalem, God bore witness to their word, and a multitude believed. Many of these early believers were immediately cut off from family and friends by the zealous bigotry of the Jews,…

Chapter 6—At the Temple Gate This chapter is based on Acts 3; Acts 4:1-31. The disciples of Christ had a deep sense of their own inefficiency, and with humiliation and prayer they joined their weakness to His strength, their ignorance to His wisdom, their unworthiness to His righteousness, their poverty to His exhaustless wealth. Thus…

Chapter 5—The Gift of the Spirit When Christ gave His disciples the promise of the Spirit, He was nearing the close of His earthly ministry. He was standing in the shadow of the cross, with a full realization of the load of guilt that was to rest upon Him as the Sin Bearer. Before offering…

Chapter 4—Pentecost This chapter is based on Acts 2:1-39. As the disciples returned from Olivet to Jerusalem, the people looked on them, expecting to see on their faces expressions of sorrow, confusion, and defeat; but they saw there gladness and triumph. The disciples did not now mourn over disappointed hopes. They had seen the risen…

Chapter 3—The Great Commission After the death of Christ the disciples were well-nigh overcome by discouragement. Their Master had been rejected, condemned, and crucified. The priests and rulers had declared scornfully, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we…