Bible Study: July 16, 2020

Acts 18

The Founding of the Church at Corinth & The Third Missionary Journey

July, 2020

Our Weekly Bible Study begins with us reading the assigned scripture ahead of time and preparing our hearts for study and discussion. When we meet (virtually or in person) we first read the scripture as a group, and then take turns sharing and discussing what impacted us the most, and our general interpretation of what we read.

Making Notes as we go through Bible Study is always encouraged, as it helps to increase our understanding of what we have read, and also allows us to become more comfortable and familiar with the Bible.

To make participation easier and more memorable for our younger children, we will include a link to Storybook Bible images of the readings whenever these are available.

This week’s virtual Bible Study focused on Acts 18. After praying and reading through the chapters, we discussed the verses at length, and shared our personal views on what we had read.

Highlights:

At the start of Chapter 18, Paul is in Corinth, which was a city of trade, and one widely known for its idolatry and the evil behaviour of many of it’s citizens.

Verse 4: Paul diligently goes to the Synagogue everyday to teach the Word and speak the Gospel.

Verse 6: Paul clears his conscience of the blasphemous, unbelieving actions and words of some of the Jews by ‘washing his hands’ of them to indicate his disapproval and spiritual distance from them.

Verse 9 and 10: We can assume that Paul entered a period of discouragement at some point during this journey as we are told in Verse 9 and 10 that he receives a reassuring visit from the Lord in a vision. (1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians do actually discuss dark times in Paul’s ministry). The Lord reassures Paul that He is with him, and that he should not be afraid to continue speaking the Gospel. The Lord also encourages Paul by telling him that he will not be hurt as He, the Lord, has “many people in this city”. Clearly, God knows who is His, and who He can count on to follow and obey Him. This revelation should give us hope in our own lives. After this encounter with God, Paul remains in Corinth for a year and a half, and continues to teach the Word. (We also see the Lord reassuring Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:3).

Verse 12: Gallio, an official in the city, was one of those people sent by the Lord to help Paul.

Verse 18: Paul heads to Syria with Priscilla and Aquila. husband and wife missionaries who had welcomed Paul in their home in Corinth. (Aquila was a Tentmaker by trade, just as Paul was).

Verse 21: As Paul leaves for Caesarea, he tells his fellow missionaries that he will see them again “if God will”. This is a reminder of Paul’s dependence on, and submission to, the will of God.

Verse 25: We meet Apollos, a Jew, who knew the Hebrew Scriptures well, and clearly had a heart for the Lord, even though he only knew about the baptism of John. (He did not know about the full story of Jesus’ life and death). Priscilla and Aquila took him aside and explained the details of Christ and the Gospel to him.

We talked about how doors open and close in our lives, and that some doors may reopen, while others may remain permanently closed. Our reassurance in the case of permanently closed doors is that one day, heaven’s door will be open for us.

We also discussed seasons of discouragement in our own lives, and referenced various chapters and verses in the Bible that have provided great encouragement during these times.

Some of these are: