Question: If you hear a stranger preaching, how can you tell if he’s an ordinary preacher or Jesus himself? Answer: Check your watch. If the message is a 45-minute sermon, it’s a preacher. If the message is a 20-second parable, it’s Jesus. Stay tuned now for The Bible Study Hour as Dr. James Boice begins a series of ... well, 25-minute sermons ... talking about Jesus the master parable-teller.
Matthew 13:3-9
In one way, it’s not a happy ending to the book of Acts. The hero of the early chapters is forgotten. The hero of the later chapters is in jail. The Jews are blasé about the gospel. Yet it’s the ending God planned. New churches are everywhere. The gospel is being preached. And the book’s real hero, Christ himself, is alive and well.
Acts 28:17-31
Turmoil on one side, peace on the other. Wavering on one side, decisiveness on the other. Fear on one side, faith on the other. The turmoil, the wavering, and the fear were all on the side of the Roman authorities. While the peace, the decisiveness, and the faith were all on the side of their prisoner Paul.
Acts 28:1-16
It’s the stuff of adventure movies. A sea voyage with a boatload of prisoners. Unfavorable winds, worsening weather, a brewing storm. Throwing cargo overboard to lighten the load. Hurricane-force winds, shipwreck on an island. And finally, the guards on the brink of killing all the prisoners -- among them, the apostle Paul.
Acts 27
In this corner: Agrippa II, king of Israel; son of Herod Agrippa, who imprisoned Peter and killed James; great-grandson of Herod the Great, who massacred babies trying to kill Jesus. And in this corner: Paul; a Jew from Tarsus; a prisoner, a troublemaker, a chronic nuisance for two Roman governors. Is this a fair fight?
Acts 25:13-26:32
Not many of us inspire enough hatred in other people to become the target of an assassination plot. The apostle Paul was one who did. In Jerusalem, forty men vowed not to eat or drink until they killed him. Keep listening as Dr. James Boice talks about the plot, what it meant for Paul’s life, and what it means for us -- even if we don’t see people plotting against us.
Acts 23:12-35
It’s a clever ploy. When two groups of people are attacking you at the same time, do something that will turn them against each other. That’s exactly what Paul did when the Pharisees and Saducees were ganging up on him in Jerusalem. He pushed their hot button by mentioning the resurrection, and it was all over but the shouting.
Acts 22:23-23:11
Everybody wants their church to grow. But what if your church suddenly started attracting ... well ... the wrong class of people? Undesirables. Outcasts. Rejects. That’s what was happening in the early church as the gospel spread beyond its Jewish roots to the much-despised Gentiles. And some of the Jews were ready to start a riot.
Acts 21:27-22:22
The apostle Paul was a superstar of the faith. But like all superstars, he was an imperfect, flawed human being. The strong personality that drove him to succeed in preaching the gospel also drove him to put his own plans above God’s. Keep listening as Dr. James Boice explores what happens when a man of faith ignores his friends, a prophet, and God himself.
Acts 21:1-26
The book of Acts shows us the public Paul -- preaching, debating, attracting crowds, causing a stir. But it also shows us Paul the person -- meeting with a few intimate friends, sharing his testimony with them, counseling them, saying an emotional goodbye.
Acts 20:13-38
How would you like to be remembered in scripture as the guy who fell asleep during one of Paul’s long talks? If only Eutychus hadn’t fallen out of the window he was sitting in, we’d never have heard of him. As it is, he’s a hero to every long-suffering pew sitter.
Acts 20:1-12