Steve Webb 0:00 Boanerges. Steve Webb 0:01 This is the Lifespring! One Year Bible coming to you almost live from Riverside, California podcasting since 2004. My name is Steve Webb and I'm your OG Godcaster. This episode is pre recorded since I'm on vacation, as you know, and if everything is going as planned, the lovely lady Leanne and I are either on a train on the way to Alaska's Denali state park, or we're at the park right now, as you're hearing this, I'll share some of the highlights of our trip when I'm back behind the mic next week. It's gospel Saturday, and we'll read Acts 11 and 12. The website is Lifespringmedia.com. and of course, I'll have contact information at the end of the show. Before we read, let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we love you and we thank you for our time together. I pray God that you would bless our time of reading and that you would teach us as we read, I pray this in Jesus name, Amen. All right, are you ready? Let's begin. Steve Webb 0:56 Acts chapter 11. The apostles and the other believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. When Peter went to Jerusalem, those who are in favor of circumcising Gentiles criticized him saying, you were a guest in the home of uncircumcised Gentiles, and you even ate with them. So Peter gave them a complete account of what had happened from the very beginning. While I was praying in the city of Joppa, I had a vision. I saw something coming down that looked like a large sheet being lowered by its four corners from heaven, and it stopped next to me. I looked closely inside and saw domesticated and wild animals, reptiles and wild birds. Then I heard a voice saying to me, get up Peter, kill and eat. But I said, certainly not Lord. No, ritually unclean or defiled food has ever entered my mouth. The voice spoke again from heaven, do not consider anything unclean, that God has declared clean. This happened three times. and finally the whole thing was drawn back up into heaven. At that very moment, three men who had been sent to me from sesor RIA arrived at the house where I was dying, the Spirit told me to go with them without hesitation. These six fellow believers from Joppa accompanied me to assess Surya and we all went into the house of Cornelius, he told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house who said to him, send someone to Joppa. For a man whose full name is Simon Peter, he will speak words to you by which you and all your family will be saved. and when I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came down on them just as on us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had said, John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. It is clear that God gave those Gentiles the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I then to try to stop God. When they heard this they stopped their criticism and praised God saying, then God has given to the Gentiles also the opportunity to repent and live. Some of the believers who were scattered by the persecution, which took place when Steven was killed, went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message to Jews only. But other believers who were from Cyprus and Cyrene, he went to Antioch and proclaimed the message to Gentiles also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus, the Lord's power was with them and a great number of people believed in turn to the Lord. The news about this reached the church in Jerusalem, so they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw how God had blessed the people, he was glad and urged them all to be faithful and true to the Lord with all their hearts. Barnabas was a good man full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and many people were brought to the Lord. Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul. When he found him, he took him to Antioch, and for a whole year The two met with the people of the church and taught a large group. It was at Antioch that the believers were first called Christians. About that time some prophets went from Jerusalem to Antioch, one of them named Agabus stood up and by the power of the Spirit, predicted that a severe famine was about to come over all the earth. It came when Claudius was Emperor, the disciples decided that they would each sand as much as they could to help their fellow believers who lived in Judea. They did this then and sent the money to the church elders by Barnabas and Saul, Steve Webb 4:25 Acts chapter 12. During that same time, King Herod began to mistreat some who belong to the church. He ordered James the brother of John to be killed by the sort. Arid saw that some of the people like this, so he decided to arrest Peter to this happened during the time of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. After Herod arrested Peter, he put him in jail and handed him over to be guarded by 16 soldiers. Herod planned to bring Peter before the people for trial after the Passover feast. So Peter was kept in jail, but the church prayed earnestly to On for him. The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers bowed with two chains. Other soldiers were guarding the door of the jail. Suddenly an angel of the Lord stood there, and a light shined in the cell. The angel struck Peter on the side and woke him up. Hurry, get up, the angel said, and the chains fell off Peters hands. Then the angel told him get dressed and put on your sandals. and Peter did. The angel said, Put on your coat and follow me. So Peter followed him out. But he did not know if what the angel was doing was real. He thought he might be seeing a vision. They went past the first and second guards and came to the iron gate that separated them from the city. The gate opened by itself for them, and they went through it. When they had walked down one street, the angel suddenly left him. Then Peter realized what had happened. He thought, Now I know that the Lord really sent this angel to me. He rescued me from Herod and from all the things that people thought would happen. When he considered this he went to the home of Mary the mother of John Mark. Many people were gathered there praying. Peter knocked on the outside door and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it. When she recognized Peters voice. She was so happy she forgot to open the door. Instead, she ran inside and told the group Peters at the door. They said to her, You're crazy. But she kept on saying it was true. So they said, it must be Peters Angel. Peter continued to knock in when they opened the door. They saw him and were amazed. Peter made a sign with his hand to tell them to be quiet. He explained how the Lord led him out of the jail and he said, tell James and the other believers what happened. Then he left to go to another place. The next day the soldiers were very upset and wondered what had happened to Peter. Herod looked everywhere for him but could not find him. So he questioned the guards and ordered that they be killed. Later Herod moved from Judea and went to the city assessor area where he stayed. Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, but the people of those cities all came in a group to him. After convincing blastocyst, the Kings personal servant to be on their side, they asked cared for peace because their country got its food from his country. On a chosen day, Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his throne and made a speech to the people. They shouted. This is the voice of God, not a human. Because Hera did not give the glory to God, an angel of the Lord immediately caused him to become sick, and he was eaten by worms and died. God's message continued to spread and reach people. After Barnabas and Saul finished their task in Jerusalem, they returned to Antioch taking John Mark with them. Steve Webb 7:48 In verse one of chapter 12, we read that King Herod had arrested some of the Christians in order to persecute them. and in verse two, we read that Herod had James, the brother of John put to death with the sword. and that's all that said about James. The narrative moves quickly to the imprisonment of Peter and how the angel came to release him in the middle of the night before he was scheduled to be martyred. But I want to talk a little bit about James, which James is this? Well, it tells us right there in the verse, it is James, the brother of John. He was one of the first three disciples that Jesus called at the beginning of His ministry, Jesus called James and his brother, John Bo energies, which means Sons of Thunder. I was curious about this nickname. So I did a little research. Why did Jesus call these brothers Sons of Thunder? I had a hunch that maybe it was because they had a commanding presence, maybe with loud voices. I've got a brother in law with a very loud, booming, baritone speaking voice. It's not that he's yelling. He's just got a very loud voice. and when Mike speaks everybody in the room, here's him. Maybe you know, somebody like that just has a loud, piercing voice. I love Mike, don't get me wrong. I'm not criticizing at all. But that's just one of his characteristics. I can imagine James and John maybe being like that. We do know that Jesus always had a reason for everything he did. So let's see if Scripture gives us a clue. It's in Mark 317, that we learned that Jesus called them Bolander jeez, but that verse doesn't tell us why. Now a clue might be found in Luke 924. Jesus was traveling with his disciples and they passed through Samaria on the way to Jerusalem. and while in Samaria, they wanted to stop for the night, but the Samaritan people didn't want them there. Remember, Jews and Samaritans have a hatred for each other. So since Jesus and his disciples were on the way to Jerusalem, the Samaritans thought they were Jews, which of course they were technically, because of this trouble James and John asked Jesus if he wanted them to call down fire from heaven to destroy them. Well, of course, Jesus didn't let them do that and he rebuked them at the idea, but they were West dust suggests that maybe James and John had passionate personalities, and perhaps they had short fuses to anger. Sons of Thunder seems to fit, don't you think? One thing I didn't mention in my comments about my brother in law, Mike is that he's a bit hard of hearing. I was saying to the lovely lady the other day that Mike's voice is so loud that maybe he made himself hard of hearing. and don't get me wrong. I love the guy but man, that voice of his can rattle windows, drop me a line, if you have a comment, a question, a prayer request or a praise report, you can do so via Boostagram. Or if you'd like to leave a voice message called plus 1-951-732-8511. Or for prayer requests and praise reports, go to prayer.lifespringmedia.com You'll find a form there. and if you want to remain anonymous, just let me know there. and for comments or questions, go to comment dot Lifespringmedia.com and you can always send me an email at Steve at Lifespringmedia.com dot com. Steve Webb 11:07 Brother Scott did today's show art. Thank you, Brother Scott. Thanks also to Sister Denise Michael Haner, Jason Paschall and sister Brittaney for their stupendous donations of time and talent. I've enjoyed our visit today, beloved, thank you. Until tomorrow may God bless you richly. My name is Steve Webb. Bye. James Cooper 11:35 All the programs in the Lifespringmedia.com family are made possible by the generous gifts of people like you Transcribed by https://otter.ai