Truth and Good News of the Gospel - Research Paper Example

Module The Gospel Unhindered The first century Jews widely rejected Christianity owing to the fact that it did not expand withinthe Jewish national community. The impact was that the Jews were rebellious with regard to the propagation of Christianity. This, in part, was due to incorporation of the Gentiles into Christianity. Therefore, for Jews to accept Christianity, the Gentiles had to be forced into Judaism. Obviously, Christianity could not achieve this fete as it went against the very principles for which it was founded. However, despite rebellion from the Jews, the gospel continues to be propagated throughout the world. This brings forth the very last word of Luke’s account of Acts, akolutos, which when translated means unhindered (Frank 460). Definition and Translation of Unhindered. The last word of the extant text of Luke’s Acts is akolutos which when translated means unhindered (Frank 460). This underlines the essence of Luke’s writing as evidenced in the word hinder as used on a various occasions. Philip found nothing to hinder the Ethiopian eunuch from being baptized (Acts 8:36). Moreover, in his defense for mingling with uncircumcised men, Peter stated that he would not hinder God (Acts 11:17). Therefore, the usage of the word hinder by Luke outlined the unhindered nature of the gospel. Timeless Application. Luke wrote the book of Acts at a time when the gospel was predominately acceptable among the gentiles. However, the Jews remained adamant to the gospel. It is necessary to note their adamancy did not hinder the gospel from being propagated to other communities. Consequently, even acts of violence from the Jewish community such as the stoning of Stephen and the expulsion of Paul from synagogues did not prevent the gospel from being propagated. As a result, the power of the gospel remains unhindered today, just as it was during the early church period. Breaking through Barriers PERSECUTION Early Church. The early church underwent immense persecution. In the inception of the propagation of the gospel, Peter and John were arrested and threatened (Bock 436). Moreover, the apostles were also imprisoned by the Sadducees (Acts 5:18). This was as a result of the Sadducees’ jealousy towards their flourishing ministry. Later on, Stephen became the first martyr of the early church as he was murdered for defending the gospel. Stephen’s death resulted in the scattering of the early church as the disciples fled from Saul to the Diaspora. However, Saul was eventually converted into a preacher of the gospel. Nevertheless, just like the other Christians, he also underwent numerous persecutions in the ministry (Paul 323). Present Day. The church still undergoes persecution even in the modern day as evidenced in the prohibition of Christianity in various countries (Soci?as 133). For instance, in North Korea, practicing and propagation of Christianity could be tantamount to gross persecution from the authorities. Persecution occurs in the form of violence, imprisonment and in extreme cases, death. Therefore, persecution of the church still occurs even in the modern day. However, it is highly prevalent among the Muslim, Asian, Chinese, Korean and Indian communities. As a result, Christians from these countries have been forced to flee to other Christian-friendly countries. Therefore, despite being in a modern world of civilization and freedom of religion, the church still receives immense persecution from the anti-Christian communities. ETHNIC AND CULTURAL PREJUDICE Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. The Spirit of the Lord leads Philip to an esteemed person in the Ethiopian government. The eunuch was in charge of treasury in the land of Egypt (Acts 8:26). Nevertheless, he was not an Israelite. Thus, according to the Jewish culture, he did not qualify to be part of the Jewish family. This is because he was unclean and uncircumcised. However, despite his inadequacies, Philip reaches out to the eunuch and preaches to him. This is further evidenced when they come across a river and the eunuch requests to be baptized, and his request is granted. Philip did not see anything that could hinder him from being baptized (Acts 8:36). Therefore, although the Jewish community was biased and prejudiced based on ethnical and cultural values, Philip broke all these barriers in his propagation of the gospel to the nations. Peter and Cornelius. Just like the Ethiopian eunuch, Cornelius was not Jewish. He was a Roman centurion officer (Acts 10:1). However, Cornelius and his family were God-fearing people. In fact, it is recorded that Cornelius gave generously to the needy. In addition, he also prayed regularly (Acts 10:2). Just like Philip was led by the Lord’s Spirit to the eunuch, Peter was also sent to Cornelius. From Peter’s vision concerning Cornelius, we learn that the Jews considered the Gentiles as unclean (Acts 10:15). In fact, it was against the Jewish law for Jewish people to associate and interact with the Gentiles (Acts 10:28). Therefore, despite the fact that it was against the law to interact with the Gentiles, Peter, like Philip, chose to obey God’s voice in propagating the gospel to the marginalized people. GEOGRAPHIC EXTENSION 30 Years of Growth beyond Jerusalem. The gospel was propagated, not just from one person to another, but also from one geographical region to another (Trites 166). Consequently, the gospel was spread from Jerusalem to the Diaspora. This implies that the gospel spread to Lydda, Sharon and Joppa (Acts 9:35-36). This message was mainly propagated by the apostles of Christ under the leadership of Peter. Consequently, the gospel was also spread to Samaria (Acts 8:5-12) a mission spearheaded by Philip. In addition, the gospel was also taken to Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch (Acts 11:19-26). The implication herein is that the gospel was meant for all nations. Therefore, even geographical barriers could not hinder the propagation of the gospel. Consequently, the gospel has been able to percolate throughout the world, even in the midst of the geographical barriers. Paul & Barnabas – 1st Missionary Journey. The first missionary journey was taken by Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:1). This missionary journey involved the geographical regions of Antioch, Cyprus, Perge, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe. Throughout their mission, Paul and Barnabas had to endure huge challenges in each geographical region. For instance, in Antioch, they experienced resistance from the Jewish leaders who were jealous and insecure about the huge following that Paul and Barnabas received. Consequently, they were evicted and thrown out of the city (Acts 13:45-47). Therefore, Paul and Barnabas had to leave for Iconium. Here, they received threats that they would be stoned to death. Consequently, they had to flee to Lystra (Acts 14:1-6). However, the Jewish leaders pursued them to Lystra and turned the crowds against them. Thus, Paul is stoned almost to death but manages to survive and continues with his missionary journey. Therefore, it is evident that Paul and Barnabas faced numerous geographical challenges in their first missionary journey. However, they were able to overcome these challenges in their quest for the propagation of the gospel. Paul in Ephesus. Paul stayed for more than two years in Ephesus. Here, Paul as usual spoke vehemently of the gospel of Christ. However, despite being careful and diplomatic in the way he propagated the gospel in Ephesus, Paul still faced challenges. Most of the natives refused to listen to him. In addition, they spoke ill of the gospel of Jesus even in public. Consequently, Paul had to change his strategy. Thus, he resolved to hold daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This was in an effort to reach out to all the people. As a result, this moved was a success as he not only reached the people of Ephesus, but also people from other nations, both Greeks and Jews. This implies that, despite the challenges, Paul was committed to spreading the gospel of Christ to all nations. Therefore, through these measures, Paul was able to overcome the geographical barrier and, hence, spread the gospel to numerous nations of the world. CONCLUSION The Gospel Has Not Failed. Therefore, owing to success in propagation of the gospel by the early church the gospel continues to thrive. Initially, propagation of the gospel was hindered by many factors. These factors mainly included the persecution of the apostles. However, the apostles overcame the persecutions and continued with the propagation of the gospel. These apostles were willing to lay down their lives for the sake of the gospel. In fact, many of them died in the process of propagating the gospel. However, their deaths were not in vain. As a result of their sacrifices, the gospel has been preached to the ends of the earth. Truth and Good News of the Gospel. Consequently, the good news of the gospel of Christ continues to be preached today. This implies that the power of the gospel remains unhindered even today. Despite persecution of Christians in anti-Christianity countries, Christianity continues to thrive today. Racial discrimination and victimization has been minimized in most parts of the world (Sudderth 16). Thus, people can interact and worship freely regardless of their gender or race. Therefore, the truth of the good news of the gospel is that we transcend all barriers including racial, gender and economic barriers. This will, in turn, enforce a united church that is involved in the unhindered propagation of the gospel of Christ. Works Cited Bock, Darrell L. Acts. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007. Print. Frank, Stagg. “The purpose and message of Acts.” Review & Expositor 44.1 (1947): 3-21. Print. Holy bible: Acts of the Apostles. Paul, House R. “Suffering and the Purpose of Acts.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society JETS 33.3 (1990): 318-330. Print. Soci?as, James. The history of the church: a complete course. Woodridge, Ill.: Midwest Theological Forum, 2005. Print. Stagg, Frank. “Unhindered gospel.” Review & Expositor 71.4 (1974): 451-462. Print. Sudderth, Jennifer. “Overcoming Barriers.” Priscilla Papers PP 13.2 (1999): 16-17. Print. Trites, Allison A. “Church Growth in the Book of Acts.” Bibliotheca Sacra BSAC 145.578 (1988): 163-173. Print. Read More