SUMMARY OF THE ACTS CHAPTER 4-BIBLE STUDY EXTRA

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Acts 4

Acts 4 Commentary Bible Study

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Acts 4:1-10 Commentary

Acts 4:11-12 Commentary: Chief Cornerstone
Acts 4:13 Commentary: Peter and John
Acts 4:14-22 Commentary: Lame Man
Acts 4:23-31 Commentary: You are God
Acts 4:32-35 Commentary: One Heart One Soul
Acts 4:36-37 Commentary: Barnabas

ACTS 4:1-2  1 Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

Who are "they" (Acts 4:1) and where were they?
Acts 4 continues Acts 3, in which Peter and John healed a lame man in the name of Jesus, and then preached the Gospel to the people who gathered at Solomon's Porch.

Who is the "captain of the temple" (Acts 4:1)?
The captain of the Jewish temple guards. Most likely, he would have brought some of his guards with him.

Who are the "Sadducees" (Acts 4:1)?
See Sadducees.

Why would they be "greatly disturbed" (Acts 4:2) by Peter's message?
They considered the temple to be their turf, and "resurrection from the dead" (Acts 4:2) would have been particularly disturbing to the Sadducees, who deny life after death.

ACTS 4:3-4  3 And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

What was the result of Peter's message?
"Many of those who heard the word believed" (Acts 4:4). Acts 2:41 records the number of men who believed after Peter's first sermon as three thousand. Now it was "about five thousand" (Acts 4:4), which means the total number of Christians including women and children would have been in the five figures.

What happened to Peter and John?
They were arrested and put "in custody until the next day" (Acts 4:3).

ACTS 4:5-7  5 And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, 6 as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”

Who had gathered "on the next day" (Acts 4:5)?
The Sanhedrin.

Wasn't Caiaphas the high priest?
See Annas and Caiaphas.

Who are "John and Alexander" (Acts 4:6)?
The "John" named in this passage is most likely Annas' son who succeeded Caiaphas as the 'official' high priest in 37 AD. Not much is known about Alexander.

Why did they ask, "By what power or by what name have you done this (Acts 4:7)?"
They were asking at least about the power or authority by which the lame man had been healed. In addition, they could have been asking also about the power or authority by which the people in the temple had been taught.

Did Peter and John have cause for concern?
The last time this group had gathered for something to do with Jesus, they had committed murder. We know that Peter and John lived past this confrontation, but standing before the Sanhedrin at this moment, the apostles could well have thought that they would be murdered as well because of what Peter was about to tell them.

ACTS 4:8-10  8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel: 9 If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, 10 let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.

Does Peter mince words or try to sugarcoat his response?
No, he confronts them head on, even mentioning, "Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead" (Acts 4:10).

Who is empowering Peter?
"The Holy Spirit" (Acts 4:8) 

SOURCE: http://www.bibleversestudy.com/acts/acts4.htm

2.  SUMMARY OF ACTS

The Book of Acts: Summary and Overview

by Pamela Rose Williams ·  Print ·  Email

The Book of Acts in the Bible, written around 62-63 A.D., may be best described as a history of the founding and growth of the early church. While there are some areas of great detail of the Acts of the Apostles, many times you must use cross references to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John as well as some other epistles in the New Testament to get the full picture of what was happening at this time in history. The book was written by Luke, the same writer of the Gospel of Luke and you might want to think of it as a continuation and even a sequel to that Gospel.

Found as the 5th book in the New Testament, the Book of Acts can best be split into two parts; the first part dealing with the home church and its mission and the last concentrating on foreign missions. The book begins with the Ascension of Jesus and goes on through Paul’s jail time in Rome, which opens his ministry to the church at Rome. In this book we see the first mention of the dispensation of the Holy Spirit and Jesus’ command to take His gospel to all the world. Here is a summary and overview of the Book of Acts.

At Home in Jerusalem

Peter and his mission to the Jews is the main focus in this first part of the Book of Acts.

Key Verses at the Beginning of this Missionary Work:

The Great Commission from Jesus

Acts 1:4–8  And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Jesus Ascends to Heaven

Acts 1:10–11  And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Pentecost

Acts 2:1–4  And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Power for Boldness

Acts 4:31  And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

Peter steps out in faith and boldly preaches Jesus as the Christ to the Jews.

• At Pentecost (Acts 2:14-40)
• His second sermon which speaks of the Patriarchs and the fulfillment of the promise of a Deliverer through Jesus (Acts 3:12-26)
• Deacons appointed (Acts 6:1-6)
• Deacon Stephen preaches, rebuking the Jews for their unbelief and is stoned to death (Acts 7:1-60)
• Church persecution at the hand of Saul of Tarsus (Acts 8:1-3)
• Philip, Peter and John preach to the Samaritans (Acts 8:5-25)
• Philip shares the gospel with the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:26-40)

Foreign Missions

A pivotal point in the Book of Acts is when Saul of Tarsus (the Apostle Paul) meets Jesus on the road to Damascus and is converted. Philip, Peter and John’s ministry to the Samaritans as well as Peter’s vision at Joppa made it clear that they needed to take the gospel to the Gentiles and confirms that the Holy Spirit is leading them to broaden the mission field.

• The conversion of Paul (Acts 9:1-30)
• Peter’s vision is confirmed by the offer of salvation to the Gentiles (Acts 10:1-44)
• Barnabas is sent to Antioch by the elders at Jerusalem (Acts 11:22-24)
• Paul joins Barnabas in Antioch and they establish the church where followers of Jesus where first called Christians (Acts 11:25-26)
• The church at Jerusalem is persecuted by Herod, James is put to death and Peter is imprisoned and miraculously freed from prison (Acts 12:1-19)
• More about the first foreign missionary journeys:
  • Paul’s first missionary journey, joined by Barnabas & John Mark (Acts 13:4-14:26)
  • The Council at Jerusalem – Does the Law of Moses apply to the Gentiles? (Acts 15:5-30)
  • Paul’s second missionary journey, Silas chosen to go with Paul (Acts 15:36-18:22)
  • Paul’s third missionary journey (Acts 18:23-21:15)
  • Paul returns to Jerusalem to share about his mission; he is confronted by various groups and is sent to Caesarea to escape a plan by the Jews to kill him (Acts 21:18-23:33)
  • Paul defends his belief in Christ (Acts 24:1-26:29)
  • Paul’s voyage to Rome as a prisoner and his ministry there (Acts 27:1-28:31)
• SOURCE:  https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/the-book-of-acts-summary-and-overview/

3.  

Acts Chapter 4

The Book of Acts focuses on the deeds of the apostles after Jesus rose and ascended into Heaven after a period of 40 days. In Acts Chapter 4, the apostles began to face persecution for their works and teachings.

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The Sadducees, who were the religious rulers of the day, were angered and afraid of the miracles that the apostles were doing throughout Jerusalem.

Boldly Healing and Preaching

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The apostles taught the people in Jerusalem and they preached while healing in the name of Jesus. Peter and John are major figures in Acts Chapter 4 as they were confronted by the religious leaders for their actions. The Sadducees were fully aware that many of the apostles were ordinary men, many of them even lowly fishermen. As a result, they marveled at what they were able to do. However, they were worried about the possible outcome as it reflected badly on them.

The Apostles Face Persecution

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The religious leaders wanted to stop the apostles from preaching. They banned the apostles from preaching in Jesus’ name, but they had no charges to arrest them or punish them. The apostles continued their mission to preach and heal in the name of Jesus. They raised their voices and prayed. The Holy Spirit filled them with the courage and strength to continue to do so.

People Donate to the Cause

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Many people gave the apostles various possessions so that they could distribute them to those who were in need. In Acts Chapter 4, a man named Barnabas is mentioned because of such a noble act. He sold land and laid the money he earned at the apostles’ feet.

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Acts 4 (King James Version)

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1 And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,

2 Being grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

3 And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold unto the next day: for it was now eventide.

4 Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand.

5 And it came to pass on the morrow, that their rulers, and elders, and scribes,

6 And Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.

7 And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,

9 If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;

10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

14 And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

15 But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,

16 Saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath been done by them is manifest to all them that dwell in Jerusalem; and we cannot deny it.

17 But that it spread no further among the people, let us straitly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.

18 And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

19 But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.

20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

21 So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people: for all men glorified God for that which was done.

22 For the man was above forty years old, on whom this miracle of healing was shewed.

23 And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

24 And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:

25 Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?

26 The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.

27 For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,

28 For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

29 And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word,

30 By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus.

31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,

35 And laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.

36 And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus,

37 Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

SOURCE: http://totallyhistory.com/acts-chapter-4/

Read more: https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/the-book-of-acts-summary-and-overview/#ixzz5sPRFSmAX