Chapter one explains Luke's purpose in writing. It was to follow up all that Jesus began to do and teach with the sending of the Holy Spirit to empower the disciples as his witnesses from Jerusalem to the ends of the world.  

The church is born when many in Jerusalem for the Feast of Weeks repent and are born anew by the Holy Spirit.  

There is one last chance for Israel. This chapter describes God's final offer. 

Jesus told his disciples in a parable that the leaders of the Jews and the nation would have another year or two of grace to decide if they would receive Jesus as Messiah.  In this chapter they have reached the end of that time and have not repented.  

Holiness is important. 

The Apostles needed to share the duties with others.

Stephen is given the opportunity of giving the nation one last chance. They could yet own the Savior as their Savior. 

God sends the Gospel to the nations, beginning with Sameria. 

Pivot points in world history are few, but the day Saul the bitter enemy of the church and of Jesus became Paul the Apostle to the nations is one.  

Sometimes the mesage needs to be dramatic. That is the case with this message: All are included in the gospel. 

Antioch would become the hub for sending the gospel to the ends of the earth. But first the church must discover and live the truth that all men are one. Jew and Gentile must become a thing of the past. There is no Jew or Gentile, bond or free, all are one in Christ Jesus. 

The new king Herod Agrippa became the most serious danger to the early Jerusalem church. He had aspirations of becoming a second Herod the Great and ushering a new golden age for Israel. It was not to be, however. God had other plans - gospel to the ends of the earth. 

The work begins, at least for Paul. Jesus said to take the good news to the ends of the earth, and every journey begins with the first step. That step was to take the good news to the people of Cyprus. 

It began in Antioch. It will not be complete until the good news of Jesus Christ is heard in every language and proclaimed to every tribe. Paul had an important part in this work at the beginning, but he was not the only one. 

Can a Gentile be a Christian and a member of the church? That was the issue before the council of apostles and elders in Jerusalem. Their answer would make or break the church and God's purpose in opening up the Gospel and the kingdom to the whole world.  

Paul returns to several of the churches he planted in Galatia then turns to new territory in northern Turkey. But the Lord does not give him peace to preach there.  After reaching Troas on the west coast, Paul has a dream, and the adventure begins. Europe!

The different receptions Paul received in Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens provide preview of how the gospel has been accepted in all ages. They also provide a picture of how Paul dea,t with each one which is instructive to us.  

No one can be a lone wolf in gospel work. We all need others to partner with us or we with them by encouraging, praying, supporting, helping, and by holding us accountable. Yes, even Paul needed partners. We are all called to be partners in the gospel. 

Spiritual warfare up close and personal in Ephesus.

Paul's final message to the church at Ephesus is his message to us as well. 

As Paul heads back to Jerusalem, he stops at many of the churches he had planted in years past. This will be his final time with them. He knows that. The visits are emotional. They would like to have kept Paul with them. But Paul sensed that God was leading him on. To what exactly, he did not know, but he had longed to go to Rome. But first to Jerusalem. There he wants to share Jesus one final time. 

Paul's final trip to Jerusalem was on Pentecost, the Festival of Weeks when Jews from around the Roman world would be in the city. It will be his last chance to explain to them what drove his life, and to leave with them his testimony to Jesus and an invitation to receive him as Messiah and follow him as Savior and Lord. He does so in a masterful address. 

There are two groups that deermined the course of the nation of Judea, the people and the government and religious leaders. The people rejected the gospel and the Lord in chapter 22. Here in chapter 23 the religious leaders reject him. There remans only disciple for the nation. 

The essential truth in this chapter is the resurrrection of Jesus the Christ. Paul makes it he center of his defense. He is not concerned about himself or his fate before Felix. He is concerned about Felix's fate before God the judge of all men. 

Whether big or small, there are no small things in our lives. Everything is woven into our lives and is part of the larger tapestry of God's purpose. That is the story of Festus and King Agrippa in this chapter.

Not many have the opporunity to talk to kings about Jesus. Even fewer I suppose are invited to. Paul was, and he did so with respect and diplomacy but without pulling punches. He ends with an invitation. Did Agrippa accept? 

Some times things don't go as we planned. But God has a plan that never goes wrong. 

The final chapter is not the final chapter. It is a pivot to the nations. Paul does not abandon his people; does everything posssible to bring them along. That was the passion of his heart, But theier rejection of Jesus opens the door to the Gospel to the ends of the earth.