The series begins to show at this point how the message of Jesus is going beyond Jerusalem. We read in Acts 1:8: "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth."
We are introduced to Philip who now travels to Samaria, and there he is beaten and left alone on the road. A good Samaritan comes along who helps him recover. Philip then encounters a sorcerer by the name of Simon who can do magic (restoring Philip's pendant that was stolen from him - though not recorded in Scripture). However, Philip shows that he is really the one who can do magic with faith by reviving someone, where Simon could not do it. This portrayal was reminiscent of the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal. Each party was to show who really had power; and of course, Elijah won out.
Simon remarkably becomes one of those who is baptized by Philip! I would have liked to have seen more of the work of Philip in this episode.
The episode also introduces us to the emperor Tiberius. He is coming to Jerusalem and in so doing will evaluate the work of Pilate and Caiaphas in trying to maintain order in the holy city. It was interesting seeing how Pilate and Caiaphas were seeking to work together at this point. We see both of these men trying to defend themselves before the emperor and wanting to maintain their positions! Caiaphas ad his wife were even talking about coming up with a large sum of money in order to keep Rome happy. The tension gets highlighted here of how Pilate and the high priest are going to deal with this Jesus' movement.
While the episode highlighted Saul's persecution of Jesus' followers, I will look forward to when we see how Saul gets converted on the road to Damascus.
You can view the NBC page here for previous episodes. I must say that the abundance of commercials during the hour did hinder the flow of the narrative for me.
Anyway, I would have you consider these questions for yourself.
1. What caught your attention in how Pilate, Caiaphas, and the Emperor are portrayed?
2. From this series, what was it be like being a post-resurrection disciple?
3. Do you see value in television doing a series like this?
We are introduced to Philip who now travels to Samaria, and there he is beaten and left alone on the road. A good Samaritan comes along who helps him recover. Philip then encounters a sorcerer by the name of Simon who can do magic (restoring Philip's pendant that was stolen from him - though not recorded in Scripture). However, Philip shows that he is really the one who can do magic with faith by reviving someone, where Simon could not do it. This portrayal was reminiscent of the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal. Each party was to show who really had power; and of course, Elijah won out.
Simon remarkably becomes one of those who is baptized by Philip! I would have liked to have seen more of the work of Philip in this episode.
The episode also introduces us to the emperor Tiberius. He is coming to Jerusalem and in so doing will evaluate the work of Pilate and Caiaphas in trying to maintain order in the holy city. It was interesting seeing how Pilate and Caiaphas were seeking to work together at this point. We see both of these men trying to defend themselves before the emperor and wanting to maintain their positions! Caiaphas ad his wife were even talking about coming up with a large sum of money in order to keep Rome happy. The tension gets highlighted here of how Pilate and the high priest are going to deal with this Jesus' movement.
While the episode highlighted Saul's persecution of Jesus' followers, I will look forward to when we see how Saul gets converted on the road to Damascus.
You can view the NBC page here for previous episodes. I must say that the abundance of commercials during the hour did hinder the flow of the narrative for me.
Anyway, I would have you consider these questions for yourself.
1. What caught your attention in how Pilate, Caiaphas, and the Emperor are portrayed?
2. From this series, what was it be like being a post-resurrection disciple?
3. Do you see value in television doing a series like this?
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