I taught in church today about Acts 6-9 and 10-15, which is the last two weeks from the Come Follow Me program. I have developed a new love for Acts!
Recapping the start of this new book - it's such a strange time for the twelve disciples (with the twelfth being Matthias, who replaced Judas after his betrayal and death). They've lost their Savior here on earth but woah, he came back after dying, taught them for forty more days, then dramatically is taken back up to Heaven in a cloud. These guys have witnessed so much in their time with Jesus. They have received power from the gift of the Holy Ghost, and they have promised to "be witnesses unto me both in Jersualem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." (Acts 1:8). They are going to face huge trials - in fact, though not all of their deaths are recorded in the Bible, I've read that they most likely were all martyrs, like the Savior. They know they are walking into danger, pain, hatred - but they know who they are, and they cannot deny their Savior, and the everlasting piece and joy of the gospel.
In fact, Saul and Barnabas are successfully teaching the gospel to people in Antioch when they get booted by dissenters of Chris, and how do they respond?
"And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost."
Wow.
Fast forward to Acts 6. What's happening at this point? I absolutely love it because it's the forming of a team! Thing "Avengers" or "Guardians of the Galaxy" - there are so many more examples, but in these movies that are capturing fans everywhere today, people with different strengths and weaknesses come together, and make a super team. Well, the disciples of the Lord are a super team, and we get to learn about so many of them in Acts.
Who is added to "the team" in Acts 6-9? See the red names below.
Who is added to "the team" in Acts 10-15? See the new red names below.
There's a lot that can be learned from each of these individuals. When I taught today, I barely even talked about Saul and he's one of the most well known of the new disciples of Christ.
Dieter F. Uchtdorft gives a really great message about Saul and what it means to ask "What Wilt Thou Have Me Do?" I highly recommend the full talk, but also, this "Mormon Message" about it.
I was intrigued by Stephen, who taught about Moses and tried to help the Jewish leaders understand that Jesus changed the law of Moses and made it better. They leaders chose to ignore the Holy Ghost though, and as a result, Stephen was stoned. However, Stephen was faithful until the end, even asking the Lord not to judge them too harshly for their sins. Then there was Philip, who obeyed the prompting of the Lord to go Gaza, and to teach an Ethiopian. Already, the disciples were beginning to change, to understand that there was a better way. I also wanted to highlight Tabitha, because we don't hear about the great women in the scriptures as often, but they are there, quietly doing good deeds and good works, like Martha, Ruth, and so many others. Tabitha was an early version of the Relief Society, whose motto is "Charity Never Faileth."
Recapping the start of this new book - it's such a strange time for the twelve disciples (with the twelfth being Matthias, who replaced Judas after his betrayal and death). They've lost their Savior here on earth but woah, he came back after dying, taught them for forty more days, then dramatically is taken back up to Heaven in a cloud. These guys have witnessed so much in their time with Jesus. They have received power from the gift of the Holy Ghost, and they have promised to "be witnesses unto me both in Jersualem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." (Acts 1:8). They are going to face huge trials - in fact, though not all of their deaths are recorded in the Bible, I've read that they most likely were all martyrs, like the Savior. They know they are walking into danger, pain, hatred - but they know who they are, and they cannot deny their Savior, and the everlasting piece and joy of the gospel.
In fact, Saul and Barnabas are successfully teaching the gospel to people in Antioch when they get booted by dissenters of Chris, and how do they respond?
"And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost."
Wow.
Fast forward to Acts 6. What's happening at this point? I absolutely love it because it's the forming of a team! Thing "Avengers" or "Guardians of the Galaxy" - there are so many more examples, but in these movies that are capturing fans everywhere today, people with different strengths and weaknesses come together, and make a super team. Well, the disciples of the Lord are a super team, and we get to learn about so many of them in Acts.
Who is added to "the team" in Acts 6-9? See the red names below.
Who is added to "the team" in Acts 10-15? See the new red names below.
There's a lot that can be learned from each of these individuals. When I taught today, I barely even talked about Saul and he's one of the most well known of the new disciples of Christ.
Dieter F. Uchtdorft gives a really great message about Saul and what it means to ask "What Wilt Thou Have Me Do?" I highly recommend the full talk, but also, this "Mormon Message" about it.
I was intrigued by Stephen, who taught about Moses and tried to help the Jewish leaders understand that Jesus changed the law of Moses and made it better. They leaders chose to ignore the Holy Ghost though, and as a result, Stephen was stoned. However, Stephen was faithful until the end, even asking the Lord not to judge them too harshly for their sins. Then there was Philip, who obeyed the prompting of the Lord to go Gaza, and to teach an Ethiopian. Already, the disciples were beginning to change, to understand that there was a better way. I also wanted to highlight Tabitha, because we don't hear about the great women in the scriptures as often, but they are there, quietly doing good deeds and good works, like Martha, Ruth, and so many others. Tabitha was an early version of the Relief Society, whose motto is "Charity Never Faileth."
A few suggestions for exciting ways to study the scriptures:
1. Assemble the team - look for the heroes, the villians, and like any good superhero movie, the bystanders that often end up adding to the story.
2. Follow the works of Peter. He has been truly converted to Christ at this point, from his earlier failure in the Gospels where he denies knowing Jesus Christ three times. He is brave, and he performs the kind of miracles that Jesus performed while he was here on the earth.
3. Trace the missionary moments.
Lastly, think about how the Lord teaches us "line upon line, precept upon precept" so that we can take baby steps and learn.
I made a game that lists most but not all of the main new people and stories that show up in Acts 1-15. I missed a few just because I didn't have time to get to another set of nine cards but I want to share what I have here.
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