written by Luke and we're going to read about five verses here and then we're going to go to Herbert Lockyer's All the Parables of the Bible on page 341. The first account I composed, or I made, O Theophilus, Theophilus means friend of God, about all that Jesus kept on doing and teaching. until the day when I was taken up or when he was taken up after that he had been by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom he had chosen. To these he had also presented himself alive after his suffering and by many convincing proofs appearing to them over a period of 40 days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. And gathering them together, he commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but wait for what the Father had promised, which he said, you heard from me. For John baptized you in water, but you shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit, in the Spirit Holy, not many days from now. Now let's go to our textbook, our other textbooks. All the Powers of the Bible, page 341, by Herbert Lockyer. While the miraculous permeates this fifth book of the New Testament, which has been called the Gospel of the Holy Spirit, I would like to call it the Acts of the Churches, the Acts of the Churches. It's called the Acts of the Apostles most of the time. Parables such as the Gospels present are not to be found in the Book of Acts. A striking fact that outside of the Gospels there are no parables in the New Testament. I believe that Paul's and James' and John's and Jude's writings are full of parables. The disciples of Jesus were loyal to the Lord and they could only interpret his mission to man. They could preserve his masterless teaching including his remarkable body of stories. They could witness to the world, even to the point of death, as to what God in Christ had done for them, for all who believed, and established a church to be the living and continuous witness to their faith in Jesus Christ as God's Messiah and the world's Savior. Yet not once, even with the form before them in the gospel parables, did they produce a single parable. This is true even though there were many circumstances in the life of the early church in which a fresh parable would have been helped greatly. Perhaps the nearest approach to a parable is the miracle of the sheep let down from heaven in Acts 1 and 9 and 11 through 18. The parabolic miracle delivered Peter from his religious isolationism and brought him into harmony with God's embraced purpose. Though this parable of grace, through this parable of grace the apostle came to see that the salvation of Christ purchased with his blood was for all men. That's when God sent the sheep down out of heaven with all kinds of unclean beasts in it. And God told him, arise and slay and eat. And he said, no way, not one unholy profane has ever touched my lips. And the Lord said to him, When God is cleansed, would you not call the unclean and the profane? As perceived that God was no respecter of persons, that Jesus and the Gentiles alike could become recipients of God's saving power, listening as we read the book through all the notes in the glorious Christian gospel, as they peeled forth in rapturous harmony for both the Jewish and the Roman worlds to hear. It is apparent that the apostles did not follow their master's method of parabolic teaching. Their spirit-inspired message were unadorned. Their words so plain and pointed were devoid of imagery, yet weighted with power to convict. Their ministry was largely a miraculous nature and their miracles established by the authority of the apostles and the Holy Spirit. and also confirming the church as the divine institution which God had left in this world. Thou art Peter, but upon this gigantic rock. Thou art Peter but a little stone, but upon this gigantic rock I shall be building my church and the gates of hell cannot wrestle her down. Paul taught the people out of the law and the prophets and preached the kingdom as those concerning the Lord Jesus Christ in Acts 28, 24, and 25, 31. And he drew attention to the significance of the kingdom parables. After the apostles, some of the early church fathers constructed parables for the setting forth of spiritual mysteries. French gives several samples of these in his dedication, so to speak, of the acts to his intimate friend, Theophilus. Luke used this characteristic word began. And the verb which occurs some 31 times in this gospel, it occurs here, Acts 1 and 1 is proof of the identity of the authorship of the book of Acts. All Christ began to do, or kept on doing actually, to teach his works and to teach in the days of his flesh is according to the four gospels. And remember, the gospel of Luke and Acts is the proof of the literal incarnation of Christ. He here continues through his apostles in the Acts. After his resurrection, Christ spent 40 days continuously or in intervals with his own, what days they must have been for them to behold. Now on the victory side of the cross, fresh light would be focused upon all Jesus taught them while he was among them. Parables would be reiterated seeing he further instructed them in things pertaining to the kingdom. Acts 1 and 3. In the light of his previous teaching regarding the true interpretation of the admission of the Gentile world into the kingdom, Matthew 28 and 19, Jesus' parables like the sower with the broadcasting of the seed and the feast and the universal invitation sent out to all the highways and byways and the hedges of the Gentile peoples took a brand new added meaning. that it had never done in their hearts before. The parable became the bridge which joins the two dispensations. Then the book as a whole illustrates the second opportunity given to Israel in the parable of the barren fig tree. As the writer states here, Israel was done. Only way Israel will come to God now is through the blood of Jesus Christ and to serve him through one of his visible, physical, literal churches. This year also was not the literal year, but an acceptable year of the Lord, which the book of Acts covers the delayed judgment. on the tree resulted in multiples of Jews turning to the Savior but through the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, not in the synagogues. My parable and precepts, he taught his own, that his provision was for all men and in the acts of the churches, the one message was for all places, Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world. Although we have indicated here that there are no recognized parables in the Demonic Book, yet the Fifth Gospel, as it has been named, contains many expressive figures of speech. And we're talking about allegories, metaphors, proverbs, hyperboles, miracles. We herewith enumerate the majority of these parabolic germs for the guidance of the reader. Baptism. Baptism pictures the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Baptism here on the church on the day of Pentecost, the church was immersed in the spirit that would lead them into all truth, not some, but all truth. Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit, Acts 1, 5-8. Ye shall be immersed in the spiritual power which shall cover you as well as fill you and flow out from you. The Bible nowhere speaks of the baptism of the Holy Ghost. He is not the baptizer, but the element. The Holy Spirit is not the baptizer, but He's the element into which we are baptized and immersed, into the Holy Spirit. When you come forward and present yourself before a New Testament church, they will vote, if it's an old time Baptist church, to accept you on your profession of faith, and after baptism, full rights and fellowship of that church. Baptism is something you must have before you go into that church. And in that church, once you're in that church, you're led into all truths, if that church is teaching the word of God. Pentecost. That miraculous aspect that took place on that 50th day. The manifestation of the Spirit's presence and power, Acts 2 and 2. The rushing mighty wind is a figure of speech. The flames of fire is a figure of speech that were distributed upon them. And those who listened were divided in their response to the word. Some mocked. These men are full of new wine and the apostles were God intoxicated men. There was a certain appearance of the holy excitement in the tone, matter and words. Some of the people thought of this as drunkenness. What happened there is they heard every man speak in his own language. And these people did not know the language, but the miracle was the anti or the reverse of the Babylonian effect that happened at the Tower of Babel. Now Peter talks about the prophecy of Joel. The prophet by divine inspiration not only spoke to his own age, Acts 2, 28 through 31, but set forth a judgment parable related to far off and far away future. His descriptive language of the promised spirit had a partial fulfillment at Pentecost. The full and the final fulfillment, however, it was far future yet. The divine footstool. Marilyn read a little statement the other day that, well, the Bible says the throne of God is in heaven, his feet, the earth is his footstool, and Mark Marilyn said that the clouds were the dust on his feet. The quotation Peter uses from Psalm 110 and his parabolic of Christ's supreme conquest of these foes, having them as his footstool, implies his absolute sovereignty being at the right hand of God in a position of authority and privilege and all power in his subjugate, his enemies and reign supreme. He will subjugate his enemies and reign supreme. The rejected stone that's talked of in the book of Acts. The rejected cornerstone. He is also the cornerstone, Ephesians 2, 20 and 21. A foundation and stumbling stone, Isaiah 8, 14 and 28, 16, Zechariah 3 and 9, Luke 2, 34, Romans 9, 32 and 33 and 1 Peter 2, 4, 6, 7 and 8. A rock, Deuteronomy 32 and verse 31 and Acts and Psalm 18, 2 and 3. and 31, 2, 3, 4, and 42, 9, Isaiah 73, 26. The builders were the leaders of Israel that projected the stone. The stone on which the two walls of the Jew and the Gentile met and were bounded together Ephesians 2.20, 30 years after Peter thus spoke, Christ was still to him as the head of the corner, that cornerstone, that special tried and polished and inspected stone. The Holy Spirit illuminated his mind and the true significance of his Lord's use of the simile in Matthew 16 and 18 and Matthew 21, 42 through 44. The temple. Stephen's illustration, used both at the tabernacle and the temple in Acts 7, 46 through 50, recalls our Lord's conversation with the woman that dwelled in John 4th chapter. And of the application of the temple to himself as the incarnation and divine presence of God. It is interesting to observe that Peter reproduces the thought which, when he was the persecutor, he heard from the lips of the martyr Stephen. Paul remembers and reproduces the thought which he was a persecutor. The head man of the Sanhedrin that condemned Stephen to death, Acts 17, 24 through 25. We're prone to be taken up with a sphere of worship. They that worship God, whether in a barn or in a cathedral, must worship him in spirit and in truth. The gall and the bond, the gall and the bond, gall is something bitter. Peter repels with horror the thought of Simon Magnus that the gift of the spirit could be purchased with money. Gall used in this literal sense in the gospels, Matthew 27, 34 is now used by Peter figuratively of Simon's extreme moral depravity The bond of iniquity speaks of the strong change of evil habits from which he could not free himself. Simon, however, seemed to be more concerned about a future penalty for his sins than for a present deliverance from them. Simon, however, seemed to be more concerned about a future penalty for his sins than for a present deliverance from them. The vessels. The vessels. While we have many parabolic terms describing those who are elected to God to serve him, none is so arrested as that of a vessel, normally of a clay fragile vessel. Preached the message on fragile vessels here several months ago and it became one of the biggest downloads in the world, fragile vessels that we are. Which may derange meaning in the Bible, see Genesis 27, three of arms and Deuteronomy 22 and verse five of garments. Genesis 3156 of household goods. The whole body of the believer or members of his party are spoken of as a vessel or a tool. Paul was one of the God's chosen tools to work out his gracious purpose in the bringing of the Gentiles into the church. Our solemn responsibility is to see that the vessel, although an earthen one, a fragile one, is clean enough for the master of the house to use it. Are you clean enough for the master of the house to use you? The light, the light. Through the Spirit's tuition, Paul came to see the Old Testament reverence of Christ as light. And his own use of the symbol as an illustration of his mission was now being fulfilled in the unfolding of divine purpose of love toward the whole Gentile world. And Paul knew that he himself was a light shining in a vast darkness. The dust of their feet, parabolic. Proverbs. The scribes taught that the dust of the Gentile lands caused defilements. The shaking off the dust of feet was therefore symbolic of the tradition that although the place might be in Israel, it was as though it were a heathen and profane, deviled place. Acts 13, 51. Paul, of course, would have in mind of our Lord's use of such a parabolic action in Matthew 10, 14 and 16 and 11. Mark 6 and 11, that is. Luke 9 and 5 and John 13 and 16. The open door, the parabolic use of the open door. Paul, knowing of our Lord's use of the door in John 10, made it to be one of his favorite figures of speech. Through grace, the door into the Father's house was now opened with wider than it would have been before. Whosoever will can enter into the door while it stands ajar. No man can shut the door. He who opened it will shut it and when he does it will be blessed for those on the right side of the door and woe for those on the wrong side of the door. The yoke on the neck, the yoke on the neck. Paul's exhortation to the Jewish council in his use of heavy yokes, Acts 15 and verse 10, reveals how familiar he was with Christ's parabolic language and was able to weave it into his own discourses. Here he produced the heavy burdens of the Pharisee tradition, Matthew 23 and 4, and the master's easy yoke, Matthew 11 and 34. Matthew 11 and 30. When we come to Paul's epistle, we find him using the same figure of speech again and again, in Galatians 5 and 1, and the yoke of burdensome ceremony, earnest and spiritual men found impossible to fulfill. The shaking of their clothing, or their raiment, The shaking of the dust off from the feet and the shaking of a garment were parabolic actions common in ancient times both among the Jews and the Gentiles. Matthew 10, 14 and 27 and 24. By such action, those performing them vividly shook themselves from all connection with others and all responsibility for their guilt and rejection them and their message. Acts 18 and verse 6, as a Jew to Jews, no words, no act could be so well expressed as Paul's indignant protest against the rejection of his ministry, not only his ministry, but the person of Jesus Christ whom they crucified, the God of glory. It was the last resource one would found appeals to reason and conscience powerless and was met by brute violence and clamor. The shorn head, the closely clop-cropped head, in connection with the vow of the temporary Nazarite to cutting off the hair implied a separation from the world and common life. While under the vow, The man who had taken it was to drink no wine, strong drink, and let not a razor pass over his head. That was actually, the law of the Nazarite was actually a voluntary priest. He couldn't do anything the priest would do. He was a voluntary priest, even though he may not have been of the lineage, but he was a voluntary priest. He voluntarily laid his privileges of life aside to serve like God would have him serve. On page 345, The Grievous Wolves, Paul warned the church that Ephesus had two classes of enemies that would seek to destroy the flock. The one class wolves, more external to themselves, the other class bred in the bosom of their own community, of their own selves, both groups were to be teachers, and the grievous wolves would make prey of the folk, and the other group would be perverters of the truth, dividing the flock by their heresy. Acts 20, two, nine, and 30, and 1 Timothy 1, 15 through 20, and 2 Timothy 2, 17, three and eight, and 13. Here the apostle adopts some of the figurative language of our Lord, use the flock of its open enemies. Wolves in sheep's clothing were the false prophets. Usurping of authority and leaders of divisive parties within that church, Matthew 7 and 15 and John 10 and 12. The girdle, the girdle, that's a belt. The dramatic action of Agabus in taking Paul's girder to announce an important event recalls how the prophets of old symbolized their prediction. They symbolized. They acted out. Isaiah acted out many of his things. Jeremiah. Ezekiel. In the prophetic manner of predicting by symbolic acts, Isaiah 20, 34, Jeremiah 13, 1 to 11, 27 to Ezekiel 4, 1 to 3 and 5, 1 to 4. According to Agamas, foreseeing the danger to which the apostle would be exposed, sought to warrant him by means of a parabolic illustration. The plot of the Jews to deliver Paul up to the Gentiles, deep emotion, was his at parting with the saints at Ephesus, but he was ready not only to be bound, but also, as the girdle action represented, but to die for his Lord Jesus Christ. The whited wall, the whited wall. Probably with Christ's condemnation of the Pharisees as the whited sepulchers, Matthew 23, 27, Luke 11, 44 in mind, Paul used a similar expression to the high priest, Ananias, who had commanded those who stood to smite Paul on the mouth, a method common in the East of silencing a speaker. Paul hastily said, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall, Acts 23 and two and two three. which he did some years later when during the Jewish war Ananias was killed by an assassin. In the true gentlemanly fashion, Paul apologized for addressing the high priest as he did. Recognition that the powers that are ordained of God was a ruling principle of Paul's conduct, Romans 13, one through six. Ears and eyes, the parable of ears and eyes. In this last glimpse of the apostle, we see him with a patience almost exhausted by the long contest with prejudice and unbelief, Acts 28, 26 through 28. After his exposition of the kingdom of God, as it concerned Jesus, some believed the things which were spoken of and some believed not. The former were among the faithful remnant and the later were the hardened. Romans 11, 7-25. Blindness is part of what happened unto Israel following the track of the Master's teaching. Paul used language illustrative of willful blindness and deafness of those truths which should have produced repentance and faith. Matthew 13 and 3, 13 that is, Mark 4 and 12, John 12, 40, and Acts 20, 35. It was Paul's heart's desire and prayer that Israel might be saved. Great heaviness and continual sorrow were his over Israel's hardness of heart. Romans 9 and 2 and 10 and 1. Therefore it must have been with much pain that he delivered his last stern condemnation to those who would not hear and who would not see. They heard the message yet heard it not. They saw the truth yet saw it not. There are still multitudes of people still spiritually blind and spiritually deaf. Of Paul's oral ministry as a whole, he spoke not with the radical cadences in which Greek rhetoricians delighted, but with the words that went home like an arrow to the heart of men's hardened hearts. The voice was perhaps untunable, but the words were full of life. 2 Corinthians 10 and 12, or 10 and 10, and 11, 25, and 1 Corinthians 14, 25. Our Father, we send this message out to all those that will hear and to all those that will see. Father, help us to fall in line with your word. and with your truths, help those that are out there that are seeking, help them find Jesus and Him crucified. Help them to understand that Jesus is the only answer, that He is the only forgiveness of sins through this death, burial, and resurrection. In Jesus' name we pray. And forgive me where I have failed.