They waited, like seeds in the ground

I love the book of Acts.  It is so vibrant and so visual.  It’s an action book! 

We find that there are three main characters in this sequel to, or part two of, the book of Luke viz. Peter, Paul, and the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost.  Remember chapter one verse 8: “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.”  In order to locate these areas, the reader may enjoy finding some maps, like those here: http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=New+Testament+Maps&FORM=RESTAB#view=detail&id=78922BE55A5A6BFA2B902004E00B60B76D0C6708&selectedIndex=36

I’ve managed to borrow a book via an inter-library loan.  It’s called PAUL: A Man Who Changed the World by Henrietta Buckmaster, copyrighted in 1965.  I read it years ago and am glad to have it in my hands again – if only for a brief time.  It’s fascinating.  We’ll get on to Paul later; let’s now take a peek at some of Ms Buckmaster’s commentary.

We’ll start with Peter’s speech in Acts 2: 22 – 28, which appears in this week’s Bible Lesson.  Buckmaster gives us some background to the “law”, about which we read so much. (All quotes here are from chapter one in her book):

      "The [Jewish] laws of purity were ... exact and minute...  The Jew ... was surrounded on all sides   by the polytheism and phallic cults of the pagans who made immorality a virtue, and for this reason he saw his law, his nation, his hope of salvation preserved only by the most rigorous adherence to the law."

And what of the Roman authorities?  Rome had power over a vast area of the known world so what did they think of little Judea, and how did they manage it?  Buckmaster writes:

     "The Romans hated Judea, with its strong invisible god and its intractable people...  But the Romans had political cunning.  They turned to the Sadduccees and the Sadducean High Priests to carry out their orders."

 

Meanwhile

      "The Nazarene disciples who had been shaken by betrayal, doubt, and grief had been commanded to wait.  They waited, like seeds in the ground.  They had been children while he was here.  While they waited they became men."

I love that!  Buckmaster continues:

      "They were simple men... They lived in a community of fellowship."

And now to Peter. 

      "Peter was not a great rabbi but he found the power of speech."

Acts 2: 14 “Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said...hearken to my words...”  And he goes on to proclaim the fact of Jesus’ resurrection, reassuring the “men of Israel” listeners that this had been prophesied by David, whom he quotes.  And his careful listeners “were pricked in their heart” and asked “what shall we do?”  Peter assures them that they can “repent and be baptized...and...receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”  After all, the day of Pentecost, when they were “all with one accord in one place” had given them absolute evidence of this Holy Spirit and soon they would have further evidence of the Christ power in the so significant healing of the lame beggar at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple.  Buckmaster says:

      "The lame man, leaping, liberated the apostles to see themselves as they were, formidable men, resounding with joy, speaking with confidence, acting like heirs of the future...The authority of the High Priest in his great turban and the members of the Sanhedrin, in their prayer shawls was greatly diminished by this...But when Peter had found his tongue he had found it forever.  Right or wrong he said, we must tell what we know."

What extraordinary times these were.  My heart leaps to read about it.

Julie Swannell