Study Desk

You have carried with you the tent to worship Molech and the idols of the star god Rephan that you made to worship. So I will send you away beyond Babylon.' Amos 5:25–27

"The Holy Tent where God spoke to our ancestors was with them in the desert. God told Moses how to make this Tent, and he made it like the plan God showed him.

Later, Joshua led our ancestors to capture the lands of the other nations. Our people went in, and God forced the other people out. When our people went into this new land, they took with them this same Tent they had received from their ancestors. They kept it until the time of David,

who pleased God and asked God to let him build a house for him, the God of Jacob.

Stephen continued speaking: "You stubborn people! You have not given your hearts to God, nor will you listen to him! You are always against what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell you, just as your ancestors were.

You received the law of Moses, which God gave you through his angels, but you haven't obeyed it."

But Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit. He looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at God's right side.

All the people—the least important and the most important—paid attention to Simon, saying, "This man has the power of God, called ‘the Great Power'!"

But when Philip told them the Good News about the kingdom of God and the power of Jesus Christ, men and women believed Philip and were baptized.

When the apostles who were still in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them.

You cannot share with us in this work since your heart is not right before God.

[Philip answered, "If you believe with all your heart, you can." The officer said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."]

Soon he began to preach about Jesus in the synagogues, saying, "Jesus is the Son of God."

Cornelius was a religious man. He and all the other people who lived in his house worshiped the true God. He gave much of his money to the poor and prayed to God often.

One afternoon about three o'clock, Cornelius clearly saw a vision. An angel of God came to him and said, "Cornelius!"

Cornelius stared at the angel. He became afraid and said, "What do you want, Lord?" The angel said, "God has heard your prayers. He has seen that you give to the poor, and he remembers you.

But the voice said to him again, "God has made these things clean, so don't call them ‘unholy'!"

They said, "A holy angel spoke to Cornelius, an army officer and a good man; he worships God. All the people respect him. The angel told Cornelius to ask you to come to his house so that he can hear what you have to say."

He said, "You people understand that it is against our law for Jewish people to associate with or visit anyone who is not Jewish. But God has shown me that I should not call any person ‘unholy' or ‘unclean.'

He said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and has seen that you give to the poor and remembers you.