eleven. In Mark 16: 17 the Lord said "And these signs shall follow them that believe".

If this promise is true--and we may be assured that every promise of the Lord is true--

then there is no doubt about it that these signs will follow every true believer. "In my

Name they shall cast out devils (or demons), they shall speak with new tongues"; this

they did, on the day of Pentecost and onwards. Now note: "They shall take up serpents"

(Paul had done this very thing), "and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them.

They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover". Now not only did Paul

experience a deadly snake bite, but we find him also healing again, as recorded in this

chapter, showing the promise of Mark 16: is still holding good at this point. Following

hard on the episode concerning the snake bite, verse 8 states "and it came to pass, that the

father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux". We would call it by its

modern name--dysentery--a very serious and difficult disease to treat, especially in

those days; "to whom when Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and

healed him". This was instantaneous healing; it was the real thing. He did not have to

wait for two or three weeks before he was cured. "So when this was done, others also,

which had diseases in the island, came and were healed." So there is the second promise

of Mark 16: being fulfilled in connection with Paul's public ministry. Do these signs

follow every true believer today according to the Lord's promise? If not, why not? This

should be a challenge to everyone who is saved to find a Scriptural answer. Now he

comes to Rome, the very centre of civilization at that time, and the first thing he does is

to do what he has done all the way through the Acts; he contacts the leaders of Israel.

He gather them together, speaks to them and reasons with them thus: (verse 20) "For this

cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for

the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain." Now he had already before Agrippa

stated that Israel's hope was still possible. The twelve tribes, he said, are still waiting for

their hope, and here he asserts that he is bound for the hope of Israel. This awaited one

thing--Israel's repentance and their conversion--their turning back to God. We are

never going to understand the Divine movement through the Acts unless we put Israel in

the proper place that this book puts them. It is "to the Jew first" to the last chapter,

clearly showing that they had not yet been laid aside in unbelief by God.  But now

God's longsuffering runs out. God had not "cast away His people which He foreknew"

(Rom. 11: 2). He had waited in matchless patience for some 35 years since Calvary. He

said "all day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying

people" (Rom. 10: 21). But now His judgment is about to fall.

Coming to verse 23 we read "And when they had appointed him a day, there came

many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the Kingdom of God,

persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the

prophets". There is an earthly side and a heavenly side to the all-embracive Kingdom of

God.  Which is Paul dealing with here?  The context connects it with Moses (the

Pentateuch) and the O.T. prophets. He must have been dealing then with the Israel and

the earthly kingdom purpose. It was that part of the Kingdom of God that was revealed

in the O.T. concerning God's kingdom on earth.

What was their response? Let us see (verse 24) "And some believed the thing which

were spoken, and some believed not". Still no unanimity you see--some believed, some