Have you ever wondered how the gospel began to spread to the Gentiles? At the end of the book of Acts, we see the gospel start to bridge the gap between the Jews and the Gentiles. God’s heart has always been for the nations. The nation of Israel was given the task of showing God’s love and judgment to the nations around them, though they often failed. But through Jesus’ sacrifice, a new covenant was created, bringing hope for all nations.
Up until this point, the gospel had only reached people who were adjacent to the Jews. In our Guide Through the Bible Acts Series Part 1, we saw how the gospel was spread in Jerusalem. In Part 2, we saw it spread to the surrounding lands of Judea & Samaria, but now we see it begin to spread to the whole world. All people now have the opportunity to have a relationship with Jesus. Let’s look at how Jesus’ work continues to turn the world upside-down.
This last section of GTB’s series in Acts focuses on Chapters 13-20, which are about the Gospel spreading “to the uttermost parts of the earth.”
We mainly follow Paul, who proclaims the Gospel to many Gentiles outside of Israel in 48-65/67 AD. We are excited to study these rich chapters and dig into the Word of God.
Trevor Drudge teaches the first 3 episodes, followed by Anthony and Arlin joining us as teachers once again.
Trevor has served Heralds of Hope as a Hope Rep for over a year, but his main occupation is a high school teacher and school principal. He is passionate about Bible teaching because he has seen the transformation that Bible study can bring. When teaching high school students the Bible, he loves seeing their eyes light up when they understand a biblical idea. He is excited to teach from this portion of Acts because this is the story of the gospel going “to the uttermost,” which fuels his passion for global evangelism.
Trevor teaches on Paul’s first missionary journey, where Paul faced two very different responses to the message of the Gospel—acceptance and opposition. We learn about the struggles the church faced as the gospel spread and as the issue of how Gentiles fit into the church came to the forefront.
Trevor teaches on Paul’s Second Missionary Journey. In these chapters, we see how God’s heart has always been for the nations, that God is leading the spread of the Gospel, and that nothing can stop this spread.
Trevor teaches us about Paul’s Third Missionary Journey, where Paul brings the gospel to Ephesus. In this passage, we see several examples of how the gospel has implications that will transform and yet sometimes disrupt society.
Anthony High teaches on Paul’s arrest and God’s sovereignty over his life. In these chapters, we consider the cost of following Jesus, the comfort he provides, and how our identity can rest in Christ.
Arlin Horst teaches on the trials of Paul, as well as his encounters with Felix Festus and Agrippa. We look at how Festus and Agrippa respond when they encounter the gospel.
Arlin teaches on Paul’s imprisonment. We see that Paul’s situation was less than ideal, but he remained faithful in this difficult time, doing what he could with what he had.
The first episode in Part 3 is released on July 17!
This year at Heralds of Hope, our focus is bringing God’s Word “to the uttermost.” It is fitting that we are studying these chapters on the podcast so we can see the work that Jesus continued to do through his people in Acts, as they spread the gospel. But it also reminds us that we can help bring the Word to those who lack access.
We would love to have you join us in learning about the continuing work of Jesus in Acts and how the Gospel began to be spread to the Gentiles! All the videos for our Acts series can be found here. Be sure to subscribe and follow.
