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Exegesis

of
Acts 15 v.7b

*
PCJB
PP Presentation
devised and prepared
at
Gujranwala Theological Seminary
may be copied for non-commercial use only
February 2005
Acts 15 v. 7b

“…God made a choice among


you that the Gentiles might
hear from my lips the message
of the gospel and believe.”
Step 1 - PRAY

Ask GOD to SPEAK to you first


(with a personal message for you!)

and then

ask Him to guide you


as you study this passage
in order to expound it to others
Step 2 – Note the GENRE

Do we know who wrote the book


in which this passage occurs?

What kind of writing


is the author using here?
The GENRE used by the AUTHOR
Luke
who was both a doctor and a historian

He was writing
an account of what happened
from the time Jesus ascended into heaven
to Paul’s imprisonment in Rome

In this passage he is reporting


an explanitory speech by Peter
Step 3 – List the IDEAS

God made a choice among you that the


Gentiles might hear from my lips the
message of the gospel and believe
Step 3 – List the IDEAS

God made a choice


among you
that the Gentiles might hear
from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and believe
Step 3 – List the IDEAS

God made a choice among you that the


Gentiles might hear from my lips the
message of the gospel and believe
Step 3 – List the IDEAS

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles might hear
from my lips
the message of the gospel
and believe
Step 4 – Observe the STRUCTURE

Re-arrange the lay-out of the verse


to show its structure by
indenting the text
Underline the actions
Acts 15 v. 7b
WORKSHEET

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles might hear
from my lips
the message of the gospel
and believe
Acts 15 v. 7b
WORKSHEET
God made a choice among you
that the Gentiles might hear
from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and believ

e
Acts 15 v. 7b (1 Draft) st

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles might hear
from my lips
the message of the gospel
and believe
Structure Shape (2 draft) nd

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and believe.
Acts 15 v. 7b (best version?)

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and [might] believe.

Note:
 Relationship between “hear” and “believe” (Conjunction
“and” is consequential (links cause with effect)
 Toggle (inter-change) structure of “from my lips” and
“the message”
Step 5 – Analyse the CONTENT
Ask QUESTIONS (Kipling‘s “six serving men“)
God made a choice among you
that the Gentiles might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and [might] believe.
Analysis:
 Who was involved in this activity? – “God” – “you” – “the
Gentiles” – Peter (“my”)
 From where did God make a choice? – “among you”
 How did the Gentiles hear? – “from my lips”
 What did they hear? – “the message of the gospel”
 When did they believe? – after they heard this message?
Step 5 – Analyse the CONTENT(cont.)
Note the ACTION
God made a choice among you
that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
Who is doing the message
what? of the gospel
and believe.
God
makes a choice
of a
messenger

The Gentiles
hear the gospel
and respond
Step 6 – Check the CONTEXT
When they arrived in Jerusalem, Paul and Barnabas were welcomed by the
whole church, including the apostles and elders. They reported on what God
had been doing through their ministry.
But then some of the men who had been Pharisees before their conversion stood
up and declared that all Gentile converts must be circumcised and be
required to follow the law of Moses.
So the Apostles and church elders got together to decide this question.
At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as
follows: “Brothers, you all know that

God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles
so that they could hear the Good News and believe.
God, who knows people’s hearts, confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving
them the Holy Spirit, just as he gave him to us.
He made no distinction between us and them, for he also cleansed their hearts
through faith.

Why are you now questioning God’s way by burdening the Gentile believers
with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear?

We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the special favor of the Lord
Situation (Context before the passage)

What has been happening


beforehand?
Peter is speaking to the Council of Jerusalem
about whether Gentiles need to undergo
the rite of circumcision
to be accepted as true believers
Situation (Context after the passage)

What follows on afterwards?


Peter asks the former Pharisees
why they want to question
God’s way of doing things
by burdening the Gentile believers
with requirements that
even they themselves could
not bear
Step 7 – Decide the over-all SUBJECT
What is
the subject of the passage
that covers all the topics /
ideas?

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and believe.
Preaching
Step 8: Identify the TEACHING
Key Points (about the Subject)
What does the text
say about this
subject -
preaching?

God made a choice among you


that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel
and believe.
Key Points (about the Subject)

We can see
how God’s sovereignty
works out
in preaching….
God made a choice among you
that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel

and believe.

…when we consider:

 The preacher (Peter chosen from “among you”)


 The audience (“the Gentiles”)
 The method (“hearing from my lips”)
 The message (“the message of the gospel”)
 The outcome (“believe”)
Step 9 – Check for CONSISTENCY
Biblically Sound?
Is your interpretation of the passage so far
in agreement with
the rest of Scripture?

Refer to Commentaries
Check a doubtful point with a Concordance
(or with the NIV Thematic Study Bible Index)
Step 10 – Expose the HEART-BEAT
God made a choice among you
that the Gentiles
might hear from my lips
the message
of the gospel

and believe.
What is the heart-beat of the text?
God has chosen preaching as an effective way of
bringing his truth to the world
Acknowledgements
are due to J.A.Motyer whose Preface to Haddon Robinson‘s “Expository Preaching“ provided the
inspiration for the lay-out of Frame 14
Also to Toni William for the Urdu translation and its computer setting
Step 11 – Apply the LESSON
 Without preachers who preach God’s own
message (not their own) people will not be
able to hear and respond to the Gospel
 So pray for more God-chosen preachers
(not simply man-appointed) to answer the
call to the Ministry of the Gospel

 Pray for your own ministers that they bring


God’s message (not their own thoughts)
each Sunday when they preach
Step 12 – Get a RESPONSE

The End

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