The first account which I drew up, Theophilus, dealt with all that Jesus did and taught from the very first,

Down to that day on which he was taken up to Heaven, after he had, by the help of the Holy Spirit, given instructions to the Apostles whom he had chosen.

With abundant proofs, he showed himself to them, still living, after his death; appearing to them from time to time during forty days, and speaking of all that related to the Kingdom of God.

And once, when he had gathered them together, he charged them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the fulfillment of the Father's promise-- "that promise," he said, "of which you have heard me speak;

"Brothers," he said, "it was necessary that the prediction of Scripture should be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit made by the lips of David about Judas, who acted as guide to the men that arrested Jesus,

This became known to every one living in Jerusalem, so that the field came to be called, in their language, 'Akeldama,' which means the 'Field of Blood.')

Therefore, from among the men who have been with us all the time that Jesus, our Master, went in and out among us--

From his baptism by John down to that day on which he was taken from us--some one must be found to join us as a witness of his resurrection."

When suddenly there came from the heavens a noise like that of a strong wind rushing by; it filled the whole house in which they were sitting.

Then there appeared tongues of what seemed to be flame, separating, so that one settled on each of them;

Then how is it that we each of us hear them in our own native language?

Either Jews by birth or converts, and some are Cretans and Arabians--yet we all alike hear them speaking in our own tongues of the great things that God has done."

'It shall come about in the last days,' God says, 'That I will pour out my Spirit on all mankind; your sons and your daughters shall become Prophets, your young men shall see visions, and your old men dream dreams;

The sun shall become darkness, and the moon blood-red, Before the Day of the Lord comes--that great and awful day.

Indeed it was to him that David was referring when he said-- 'I have had the Lord ever before my eyes, For he stands at my right hand, that I should not be disquieted.

David, then, Prophet as he was, knowing that God 'had solemnly sworn to him to set one of his descendants upon his throne,' looked into the future,

And referred to the resurrection of the Christ when he said that 'he had not been abandoned to the Place of Death, nor had his body undergone corruption.'

It was this Jesus, whom God raised to life; and of that we are ourselves all witnesses.

And now that he has been exalted to the right hand of God, and has received from the Father the promised gift of the Holy Spirit, he has begun to pour out that gift, as you yourselves now see and hear.

So let the whole nation of Israel know beyond all doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ--this very Jesus whom you crucified."

So those who accepted his teaching were baptized, and about three thousand people joined the disciples on that day alone.

The very Guide to Life you put to death! But God raised him from the dead--and of that we are ourselves witnesses.

And it is by faith in the Name of Jesus, that this man, whom you all see and know, has--by his Name--been made strong. Yes, it is the faith inspired by Jesus that has made this complete cure of the man, before the eyes of you all.

And yet, my Brothers, I know that you acted as you did from ignorance, and your rulers also.

But it was in this way that God fulfilled all that he had long ago foretold, as to the sufferings of his Christ, by the lips of all the Prophets.

Therefore, repent and turn, that your sins may be wiped away; so that happier times may come from the Lord himself,

And that he may send you, in Jesus, your long-appointed Christ.

And it shall be that should any one among the people not listen to that Prophet, he will be utterly destroyed.'

Let me tell you all and all the people of Israel, that it is by the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead--it is, I say, by his Name that this man stands here before you lame no longer.

When the Council saw how boldly Peter and John spoke, and found that they were uneducated men of humble station, they were surprised, and realized that they had been companions of Jesus.

"What are we to do to these men?" they asked one another. "That a remarkable sign has been given through them is obvious to every one living in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

All who heard their story, moved by a common impulse, raised their voices to God in prayer: "O Sovereign Lord, it is you who has 'made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything that is in them,'

Sold a farm that belonged to him, and brought the money and laid it at the Apostles' feet.

"Ananias," Peter exclaimed, "how is it that Satan has so taken possession of your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit, and kept back a part of the money paid for the land?

"Is it true," Peter asked, addressing her, "that you sold your land for such a sum?" "Yes," she answered, "we did."

The consequence was that people would bring out their sick even into the streets, and lay them on mattresses and mats, in the hope that, as Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on some one of them.

But, when the officers got there, they did not find them in the prison; so they returned and reported that,

Presently, however, some one came and told them, that the men whom they had put in prison were actually standing in the Temple Courts, teaching the people.

But Gamaliel, a Pharisee, who was a Doctor of the Law and who was held in universal respect, rose in the Council, and directed that the men should be taken out of court for a little while.

But the Apostles left the Council, rejoicing that they had been thought worthy to suffer disgrace for that Name;

About this time, when the number of the disciples was constantly increasing, complaints were made by the Jews of foreign birth against the native Jews, that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution.

But some members of the Synagogue known as that of Libertines, Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and Visitors from Cilicia and Roman Asia, were roused to action and began disputing with Stephen;

Then they induced some men to assert that they had heard Stephen saying blasphemous things against Moses, and against God;

Indeed, we have heard him declare that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this Place, and change the customs handed down to us by Moses."

And, upon that, Stephen spoke as follows: "Brothers and Fathers, hear what I have to say. God, who manifests himself in the Glory, appeared to our ancestor Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, and before he settled in Haran, and said to him--

'Leave your country and your kindred, and come into the country that I will show you.'

God did not at that time give him any part of it, not even a foot of ground. But he promised to 'give him possession of it and his descendants after him, though at that time he had no child.

But I myself will judge the nation, to which they will be enslaved,' God said, 'and after that they shall leave the country and worship me in this place.'

Hearing, however, that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob sent our ancestors there on their first visit.

This king acted deceitfully towards our race and ill-treated our ancestors, making them abandon their own infants, so that they should not be reared.

It was just at this time that Moses was born. He was an exceedingly beautiful child, and for three months was brought up in his own father's house;

He thought his brothers would understand that God was using him to save them; but they failed to do so.

The next day he again appeared upon the scene, when some of them were fighting, and tried to make peace between them. 'Men,' he said, 'you are brothers; how is it that you are ill-treating one another?'

Do you mean to make away with me as you did yesterday with that Egyptian?'

This same Moses, whom they had disowned with the words--'Who made you a ruler and a judge?' was the very man whom God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer, under the guidance of the angel that had appeared to him in the bush.

Yet our ancestors refused him obedience; more than that, they rejected him, and in their hearts turned back to Egypt,

That was the time when they made the Calf and offered sacrifice to their idol, and held festivities in honor of their own handiwork!

This Tabernacle, which was handed down to them, was brought into this country by our ancestors who accompanied Joshua (at the conquest of the nations that God drove out before their advance), and remained here until the time of David.

David found favor with God, and prayed that he might find a dwelling for the God of Jacob.

Yet it is not in buildings made by hands that the Most High dwells. As the Prophet says--

Was it not my hand that made all these things?'

Saul approved of his being put to death. On that very day a great persecution broke out against the Church which was in Jerusalem; and its members, with the exception of the Apostles, were all scattered over the districts of Judea and Samaria.

And many who were paralyzed or lame were cured, so that there was great rejoicing throughout that city.

Every one, high and low, paid attention to him. 'This man,' they used to say, 'must be that Power of God which men call "The Great Power."'

When the Apostles at Jerusalem heard that the Samaritans had welcomed God's Message, they sent Peter and John to them;

And they, on their arrival, prayed that the Samaritans might receive the Holy Spirit.

When Simon saw that it was through the placing of the Apostles' hands on them that the Spirit was given, he brought them a sum of money and said:

"Give me also this power of yours, so that, if I place my hands upon any one, he may receive the Holy Spirit."

"A curse upon you and upon your money," Peter exclaimed, "for thinking that God's free gift can be bought with gold!

Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord, that, if possible, you may be forgiven for such a thought;

For I see that you have fallen into the 'bitterness of envy' and the 'fetters of sin.'"

"Pray to the Lord for me, all of you," Simon answered, "so that none of the things you have spoken of may befall me."

Meanwhile an angel of the Lord had said to Philip: "Set out on a journey southwards, along the road that runs down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (It is now deserted).

And he has seen, in a vision, a man named Ananias coming in and placing his hands on him, so that he may recover his sight."

I will myself show him all that he has to suffer for my Name."

So Ananias went, entered the house, and, placing his hands on Saul, said: "Saul, my Brother, I have been sent by the Lord--by Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here--so that you may recover your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit."

All who heard him were amazed. "Is not this," they asked, "the man who worked havoc in Jerusalem among those that invoke this Name, and who had also come here for the express purpose of having such persons put in chains and taken before the Chief Priests?"

Saul's influence, however, kept steadily increasing, and he confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by the proofs that he gave that Jesus was the Christ.

On his arrival in Jerusalem, Saul attempted to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, as they did not believe that he was really a disciple.

After that, Saul remained in Jerusalem, in close intercourse with the Apostles; and he spoke fearlessly in the Name of the Lord,

And so it came about that the Church, throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, enjoyed peace and became firmly established; and, ordering its life by reverence for the Lord and the help of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

Just at that time she was taken ill, and died; and they had washed her body and laid it out in an upstairs room.

Jaffa was near Lydda, and the disciples, having heard that Peter was at Lydda, sent two men with the request that he would come on to them without delay.

And saw that the heavens were open, and that something like a great sail was descending, let down by its four corners towards the earth.

While Peter was still perplexed as to the meaning of the vision that he had seen, the men sent by Cornelius, having enquired the way to Simon's house, came up to the gate,

"You are doubtless aware that it is forbidden for a Jew to be intimate with a foreigner, or even to enter his house; and yet God has shown me that I ought not to call any man 'defiled' or 'unclean.'

That was why I came, when I was sent for, without raising any objection. And now I ask your reason for sending for me."

Accordingly I sent to you at once, and you have been so good as to come. And now we are all here in the presence of God, to listen to all that you have been instructed by the Lord to say."

Then Peter began. "I see, beyond all doubt," he said, "that 'God does not show partiality,'

But that in every nation he who reverences him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

We are ourselves, too, witnesses to all that he did in Judea and in Jerusalem; yet they put him to death by hanging him on a cross!

Further, God charged us to proclaim to the people, and solemnly affirm, that it is Jesus who has been appointed by God Judge of the living and the dead.

To him it is that all the Prophets bear witness, when they say that every one who believes in him receives through his Name forgiveness of sins."

Those converts from Judaism, who had come with Peter, were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been bestowed even upon the Gentiles;

"Can any one refuse the water for the baptism of these people, now that they have received the Holy Spirit as we did ourselves?"

And he directed that they should be baptized in the Faith of Jesus Christ; after which they asked him to stay there a few days longer.

The Apostles and the Brethren throughout Judea heard that even the Gentiles had welcomed God's Message.

On the ground that he had visited people who were not circumcised, and had taken meals with them.

At that moment three men, who had been sent from Caesarea to see me, came up to the house in which we were.

Since then, God had given them the very same gift as he gave us when we became believers in Jesus Christ the Master--who was I that I could thwart God?"