Pentecost, Saul, and Paul's Journeys
The son of a Pharisee, a devout Jew, and persecuted the New Testament church. He later was called Paul
Who was Saul?
He was a selfish, cruel, and depraved emperor of Rome. He was a murderer, distrusted by his subjects, and a persecutor of Christians
Who was Nero?
What is Masada?
Who was Bar-Kokhba?
On his way to Rome, Paul was shipwrecked and stranded on the island of Malta. During his time there, God brought many people to Christ through Paul. Even though Paul went through a scary circumstance, God brought good by using it to share the gospel of Christ with new people.
What is an example of another person in the Bible who God turned their bad situation into something good? Please explain.
Teacher discretion.
The followers of Christ were first called Christians here
What was the Assembly at/in Antioch?
Someone who has died in defense of his or her Christian faith. The word also means "witness."
What is martyr?
What are the Dead Sea Scrolls?
a statement of Christian beliefs written by early church Christians in the 2nd century
What is the Apostles' Creed?
On Paul's missionary journeys, he faced many hardships including beatings, imprisonment, death plots, legal trials, shipwreck, and a poisonous snake bite. Despite this, Paul also brought many people to Christ by displaying God's power through miracles such as healing the demon possessed and ill. Considering all that Paul did, saw, and went through, do you think he had a good or bad experience as a missionary? Please explain why or why not using historical evidence (things that happened to Paul).
Teacher discretion.
The first two missionaries of the Gospel of Christ
Who were Paul and Barnabas?
"One of the best Jewish historians ever to live", he lived through the Jewish Revolt and wrote the history of the Jews
Who was Josephus?
Many Jews were willing to follow Bar-Kokhba because he claimed this identity / title
What is the Messiah?
Probably a martyr who lived in the 3rd century who died under Claudius II on February 14, 269 AD
Who was St. Valentine?
How was Masada used during the Jewish Revolt? What ended its use?
Masada acted as a refuge to the Jewish Zealots (aka Sicarii) who fled from Roman rule during the Jewish Revolt. The Romans found Masada impenetrable. At every attempt to overtake the fortress by force, the Jews had the advantage in location and supply stores. The Romans spent 7 months building a giant dirt ramp to reach the walls of Masada. They brought battering rams and other large weapons to barge their way in. On the second day of bombardment, the Roman soldiers found that the 960 Jewish men, women, and children had died by their own hands rather than face Roman rule.
Question: What is ONE significant detail about the day of Pentecost?
On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was given.
This day happened 50 days after the Last Supper of Christ, just like the Law of Moses was given 50 days after the first Passover.
The Old Testament shows the Jews were freed from physical bondage and were given the Law; the New Testament shows Christians were freed from spiritual bondage and were given the Spirit.
After the Law was given 3,000 people died as a consequence of disobedience; but when the Spirit was given, 3,000 people were saved after Peter’s sermon.
This refers to the scattering of the Jewish people around the world.
What is the diaspora?
Question: Why are the Dead Sea Scrolls significant?
The Dead Sea Scrolls evidence the truth of God's Word because their words match the words of Scripture that we have today.
Question: How is/was the Apostles' Creed used?
The Apostles’ Creed has been used at baptisms and worship services to confirm what members of the Church believe, to teach others about Christianity, and to unify the Church. The Creed also served as an anchor for Christians being persecuted in the early days.
Tell the story of Pompeii. Be sure to include:
1. Pompeii's location
2. How Pompeii was destroyed
3. What was unique about the destruction of Pompeii
On August 24, A.D. 79, around one o’clock in the afternoon, the port Italian city of Pompeii was destroyed by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. The volcano experienced a Plinian eruption, which caused the explosion to suspend in the air for hours. Eventually the ash landed on Pompeii so powerfully that the city and its people were preserved like statues in a museum.
Question: What is ONE significant detail from one of Paul's missionary journeys? Please name which journey you are speaking about.
FIRST
Paul traveled with Barnabas to nine different cities over the course of two years and preached in the synagogues across Europe and Asia minor.
Among other miracles, Paul healed a crippled man in Lystra, and many Jews believed in Christ.
Some people believed Paul and Barnabas were Greek gods and tried to offer them sacrifices after seeing them perform miracles, but some Jews believed Paul and Barnabas were blasphemers and tried to stone them.
SECOND
Paul traveled to 12 cities over two years with his disciples Silas and Timothy.
Paul healed a slave girl from demonic possession, but it resulted in him being illegally beaten and thrown into prison because he upset the girl’s owners. God miraculously loosed Paul and Silas’s bonds in prison, and the jailer who witnessed the event became a Christian that night.
In Athens, Paul preached at Mars Hill and encouraged the Greeks to consider the one true God. Many Greeks came to follow Christ because of Paul’s sermon.
Paul stayed in Corinth for nearly a year and developed deep friendships with Aquila and Priscilla. This friendship may have been the reason Paul wrote 1&2 Corinthians.
THIRD
For 10 years, Paul traveled throughout Europe and Asia Minor
Paul performed many miracles, even raising a man from the dead, and these displays of God’s power brought many to follow Christ.
So many people in Ephesus converted to Christianity that the silversmiths who created idols of Greek gods were losing money!
Paul was thrown into prison, Jews plotted to kill him in Jerusalem, and he spent years waiting for trial under the Roman government in Caesarea.
Paul was shipwrecked in the Mediterranean Sea on his way to a trial with the Roman Emperor, Nero, but an angel of God told Paul he and his shipmates would survive - and they did!
After the shipwreck, Paul stayed on the island Malta until they could make arrangements to continue to Rome. While there, he survived a poisonous snake bite and healed a man of severe fever. Many people in Malta came to believe in Christ and were healed.
Question: How is the Destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD connected to the diaspora?
After the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Jewish Temple, the Jews had no home and no place of worship. Additionally, the Romans were capturing and enslaving any Jews remaining in Jerusalem. Many Jews escaped and were scattered around the world, without a true home. This dispersion is known as the diaspora.
Question: What proved Bar-Kokhba was not the Messiah?
Bar-Kokhba died in battle as Romans reclaimed Jerusalem. He did not rise again.
Question: In 495, Pope Gelasius declared February 14th to be Valentine's Day.
1. What was this day meant to remember?
2. Why did Pope Gelasius make this day?
3. Did Valentine's Day original purpose last?
Valentine's Day was intended to be a day which remembered Christian martyrs. Gelasius intended to make a day for Christians apart from the Roman pagan celebration of Lupercalia, which honored the gods Pan, Jupiter, and Venus through celebrations of romantic love. While Valentine's Day is still recognized today, it's traditions mirror Lupercalia, so the Pope's change did not last.
Please tell the story of persecution of the Early Church. Begin with the origin of persecution and end with Nero's death. Be sure to include:
1. Who first persecuted the Christians?
2. What is a martyr? Who was the first?
3. How did Nero begin persecution in Rome?
4. Where did Christians hide to worship in secret under Roman persecution?
5. Did persecution end with Nero's death? Did persecution stop the spread of Christianity?
The Jews were the first people to persecute the Christians because they believed the Christians threatened the power of the Pharisees. Under the Jews, Stephen was the first Christian to die for his beliefs. Someone who dies for their beliefs is called a martyr, or "witness." In Rome, Nero disliked the Christians because he misunderstood communion. After a great fire in Rome, Nero blamed the Christians for causing it and began persecuting them. Christians were forced to gather in secret, worshipping in catacombs which were burial grounds underneath Rome. After Nero died, persecution continued but the Christian faith continued to spread and grow.