God's New Revelations

The Acts of the Apostles

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- Chapter 1 -

(Luke 1:1–4)
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Dear Theophilus, In my first book that I wrote for you, I wrote about many of the things that Jesus did and taught
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until the day on which God took him up to heaven. Before he went to heaven, he told the apostles by the power of the Holy Spirit the things that he wanted them to know.
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After he had suffered and died on the cross, he became alive again. As he appeared often during the next forty days, the apostles saw him many times. He proved to them in many ways that he was alive again. He talked with them about how God would rule the lives of people in his kingdom.
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One time while he was with them, he told them, “Do not leave Jerusalem. Instead, wait here until my Father sends his Spirit to you, as he promised to do. You have heard me speak to you about that.
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John baptized people in water, but after a few days God will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.”

The Ascension

(Mark 16:19–20; Luke 24:50–53)
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One day when the apostles met together with Jesus, they asked him, “Lord, will you now become the king of Israel?”
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He replied to them, “You do not need to know the time periods and the days when that will happen. My Father alone has decided when that will happen.
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But the Holy Spirit will make you strong when he comes to you. Then you will tell people about me in Jerusalem and in the regions of Judea, Samaria, and all over the world.”
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After he said that, he rose up into heaven, and a cloud kept them from seeing him any longer.
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While the apostles were still staring toward the sky as he was going up, suddenly two men wearing dazzling white clothes stood beside them. They were angels.
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One of them said, “You men from Galilee, you do not need to stand here any longer looking up at the sky! Some day this same Jesus, whom God took from you up to heaven, will come back to earth. He will return in the same manner as you just now saw him go when he went up to heaven.”

Matthias Replaces Judas

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Then after the two angels left, the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, which was a short distance from Jerusalem.
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After they entered the city, they went into the upstairs room in the house where they were staying. Those who were there included Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, another James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of another man named James.
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All these apostles began to pray together all the time. Others who prayed with them included the women who had been with Jesus, Mary who was Jesus’ mother, and his younger brothers.
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During those days Peter stood up among his fellow believers. There was a group of about 120 followers of Jesus at that place. He said,
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“My brothers, there are words about Judas that King David wrote long ago. These words had to come true, and they did, because the Holy Spirit told David what to write.
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Although Judas was an apostle like us, he guided the people who arrested Jesus and killed him.”
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Now this man earned money by doing this evil. With this money he bought a field. Then he fell there onto the ground, his body split wide open, and all his intestines fell out.
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All the people who reside in Jerusalem heard about that, so they called that field according to their own Aramaic language, Akeldama, which means “Field of Blood,” because it was where someone died.
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Peter also said, “I see that what happened to Judas is like what the Psalms say: ‘May his family line die out; may there be no one left in it at all.’ And it seems that these other words that David wrote also refer to Judas: ‘Let someone else take over his work as a leader.’”
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“So it is necessary for us apostles to choose a man to replace Judas. He must be one who was with us all the time when the Lord Jesus was with us.
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That is, from the time when John the Baptizer baptized Jesus until the day when Jesus left us and rose up to heaven. The man to replace Judas must be one who saw Jesus alive again after he died.”
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So the apostles and other believers suggested the names of two men. One man was Joseph Barsabbas, who also had the name Justus. The other man was Matthias.
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Then they prayed: “Lord Jesus, Judas stopped being an apostle. He sinned and went to the place where he deserves to be.
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You know what every man thinks in his own heart, so please show us which of these two men you have chosen to take the place of Judas.”
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Then they cast lots to choose between the two of them, and the lot fell for Matthias, and he became an apostle along with the other eleven apostles.
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(Luke 1:1–4)
1
The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,
2
until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.
3
To these he also showed himself alive after he suffered, by many proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking about God’s Kingdom.
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Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, “Don’t depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me.
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For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

The Ascension

(Mark 16:19–20; Luke 24:50–53)
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Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?”
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He said to them, “It isn’t for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.
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But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.”
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When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.
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While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold,(a) two men stood by them in white clothing,
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who also said, “You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.”

Matthias Replaces Judas

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Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.
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When they had come in, they went up into the upper room where they were staying, that is Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.
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All these with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer and supplication, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
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In these days, Peter stood up in the middle of the disciples (and the number of names was about one hundred twenty), and said,
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“Brothers, it was necessary that this Scripture should be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who was guide to those who took Jesus.
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For he was counted with us, and received his portion in this ministry.
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Now this man obtained a field with the reward for his wickedness; and falling headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines gushed out.
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It became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem that in their language that field was called ‘Akeldama,’ that is, ‘The field of blood.’
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For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his habitation be made desolate. Let no one dwell in it;’(b) and, ‘Let another take his office.’(c)
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“Of the men therefore who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
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beginning from the baptism of John to the day that he was received up from us, of these one must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”
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They put forward two: Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias.
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They prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen
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to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas fell away, that he might go to his own place.”
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They drew lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was counted with the eleven apostles.

Footnotes

(a)1:10 “Behold”, from “ἰδοὺ”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection.
(b)1:20 ℘ Psalms 69:25
(c)1:20 ℘ Psalms 109:8
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