Interesting Facts About the Book of Acts

[phkrause]

How well do you know the Book of Acts?

http://www.beliefnet.com/iLoveJesus/Feat..._term=yahoo.com

[Kevin H]

Interesting! Now the last question is not quite correct: It asked who was the first gentile convert and answer was Cornelius. However, that is not accurate for the question. Cornelius was the first gentile convert by an apostle. Technically we find the first gentile convert(s) being the man/2 men, who were converted when the pigs ran into the sea. Then we also have the woman who said that even the dogs get the crumbs from the table.

However, the chapter in acts after the story of Cornelius tells us that it was discovered that the Hellenized Jews who had accepted Jesus were bringing Gentiles to Christ about 10 years before Cornelius.

When Paul began persecuting the church, he was not merely focused on the followers of Jesus for the sake of following Jesus. The Christians were under the protection of Gamaliel. In laying their coats at the feet of Saul in the stoning of Stephen, Saul was saying "The protection of Gamaliel only extends to good law keeping Hebrew, or at least Aramaic, speaking Jews. Not to the Hellenized Jews who were more liberal. Thus Peter, James and John were not the subject of Saul's persecution and were able to practice openly and freely until around AD 44, the year Herod died, and when Gamaliel had either died or had been too old to be of influence any more.

While the Apostles were fine, the Hellenized converts had to flee. And they shared the gospel with gentiles in the places where they fled to.

[Restin]

I just read it again after 20 yrs. What impressed me was how Paul was always in danger for his life and had groups of helpers to guide him out of deadly situations so frequently. He did suffer penalties, too, like we would never have to face. Imagine saying to your friends, in a dead serious way, that you "were saved from the lion's mouth!" That was one way the Romans killed people, really! I felt ashamed for the times I've complained or felt my life to be hard.