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Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Acts 4 - Outspoken Communists!
THE WARM-UP:
In what circumstances do you feel bold? Are you naturally bold or shy?
READ Acts 4
Peter and John have had radical life change since their days of walking with Jesus! Remember Peter who ran when the men came for Jesus? Now, he is standing up to the religious leaders of the day! He is telling them with BOLDNESS about Jesus and performing miracles in Jesus’ name! In verse 31, we see that the people who believed in Jesus were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God BOLDLY! When we have God’s Holy Spirit in our lives today, we too are filled with that same Boldness that took Peter from being the man who denied Jesus to being the man who has preached boldly to thousands and seen thousands come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.
At the very end of this chapter, we see how the early church lived. They shared everything with each other. They made sure that no one was in need.(vs 34) They sold property and gave all the money to the church which was used to take care of the widows, orphans, handicap etc. (In that day, healthy males and married women would never be considered to be part of the “in need” group.)
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How are we doing in boldly speaking out about God?
2. How are we doing with looking out for those in need?
3. What is something we as a Home TEAM can do to reach people for the Lord?
In what circumstances do you feel bold? Are you naturally bold or shy?
READ Acts 4
Peter and John have had radical life change since their days of walking with Jesus! Remember Peter who ran when the men came for Jesus? Now, he is standing up to the religious leaders of the day! He is telling them with BOLDNESS about Jesus and performing miracles in Jesus’ name! In verse 31, we see that the people who believed in Jesus were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God BOLDLY! When we have God’s Holy Spirit in our lives today, we too are filled with that same Boldness that took Peter from being the man who denied Jesus to being the man who has preached boldly to thousands and seen thousands come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.
At the very end of this chapter, we see how the early church lived. They shared everything with each other. They made sure that no one was in need.(vs 34) They sold property and gave all the money to the church which was used to take care of the widows, orphans, handicap etc. (In that day, healthy males and married women would never be considered to be part of the “in need” group.)
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How are we doing in boldly speaking out about God?
2. How are we doing with looking out for those in need?
3. What is something we as a Home TEAM can do to reach people for the Lord?
Monday, July 20, 2009
Acts 3 Miracles- R -Us
THE WARM-UP:
Have you ever seen a very real miracle – Something that can only be explained by admitting that something supernatural has occurred?
READ Acts Chapter 3
One big thing to notice in this chapter is that after the miracle, God used Peter and John to talk to the people there about Jesus! God doesn’t do miracles just to impress people. He does them to draw people to Him! God did amazing things in the first century, and He continues to do amazing things in this century! Note that it was Peter’s faith, not the faith of the man being healed that was in play when God healed the crippled beggar. (vs. 6) Not only was the man’s useless physical body redeemed, restored and healed completely, but it also opened up the opportunity for Peter to redeem many others from spiritual uselessness through the power of Jesus Christ! He calls on the people to repent! Vs. 19 – “Repent then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” The beginning of Chapter 4 (vs 4) lets us know that a few more thousand people got saved!
Also notice that Peter was talking to his audience. The people he was speaking to were Jews, so he used many scriptures from the Old Testament which that audience would know well. To preach the same sermon in modern day South Carolina might not have the same affect. The message of Jesus doesn’t change, but the method of conveying that message must change to reach a new audience. Peter knew this and we see the results!
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How do miracles affect the church in this century?
2. Are you ready for thousands of people to get saved and radically changed for the Lord?
3. How do we get ready?
Have you ever seen a very real miracle – Something that can only be explained by admitting that something supernatural has occurred?
READ Acts Chapter 3
One big thing to notice in this chapter is that after the miracle, God used Peter and John to talk to the people there about Jesus! God doesn’t do miracles just to impress people. He does them to draw people to Him! God did amazing things in the first century, and He continues to do amazing things in this century! Note that it was Peter’s faith, not the faith of the man being healed that was in play when God healed the crippled beggar. (vs. 6) Not only was the man’s useless physical body redeemed, restored and healed completely, but it also opened up the opportunity for Peter to redeem many others from spiritual uselessness through the power of Jesus Christ! He calls on the people to repent! Vs. 19 – “Repent then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” The beginning of Chapter 4 (vs 4) lets us know that a few more thousand people got saved!
Also notice that Peter was talking to his audience. The people he was speaking to were Jews, so he used many scriptures from the Old Testament which that audience would know well. To preach the same sermon in modern day South Carolina might not have the same affect. The message of Jesus doesn’t change, but the method of conveying that message must change to reach a new audience. Peter knew this and we see the results!
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How do miracles affect the church in this century?
2. Are you ready for thousands of people to get saved and radically changed for the Lord?
3. How do we get ready?
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Weird Noises and Crazy Preachers
THE WARM-UP:
Why is it important to get together with other Christians? What are you waiting in anticipation for God to do in your life?
READ Acts Chapter 2
(For the Leader: The gift of Speaking in Tongues has unfortunately been a divisive issue in the modern church. I would like for it not to take over the conversation as we study this section. Here is one point that might make people think, yet stop any division. In Genesis, God confused the languages because of sin at the tower of Babel. In Acts, God is restoring languages through His Holy Spirit, to defeat sin. It is an act of redemption reaching out to multiple peoples instead of just the Jews. Feel free to scripturally answer honest questions, but keep it from becoming a debate.)
The disciples were waiting, just as Jesus had told them to back in Chapter 1 (vs.4). The Holy Spirit shows up, just like Jesus said He would. The emphasis here isn’t on all the signs, but that God gave HIS Spirit to ALL His people to witness and prophesy. The Holy Spirit living in us gives us the boldness to share Jesus Christ with other people; even those people we normally wouldn’t want to talk to. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, people are never brought to faith in Jesus Christ!
Peter, who is most remembered for denying Jesus on the night of His trial, preaches his first sermon. (Vs. 14-41) Having never been to Bible College or Seminary, we can’t be too hard on Peter. His sermon only was able to lead about 3,000 people to the Lord when he gave the altar call. We see the power of the Holy Spirit working in people’s lives to start the church! Imagine a church plant that has 3,000 people show up the first day!
Then in the last part of the chapter, Vs 42-47, we see how all the believers came together to help each other out. They took care of each other in very real and tangible ways. In verses 42 &46, we see that the early church took part in the “breaking of bread”. This can have two distinct meanings. One is communion or the Lord’s Supper. The other meaning is that they ate together just as here in our Home TEAM we connect through eating together. (Leader: Feel free to celebrate the Lord’s supper at the conclusion of this lesson – some good scripture to read for that is 1 Corinthians 11:23-29)
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How can you apply Peter’s message to your own life?
2. Are we looking out for other believers?
3. Do you know the power of the Holy Spirit?
Why is it important to get together with other Christians? What are you waiting in anticipation for God to do in your life?
READ Acts Chapter 2
(For the Leader: The gift of Speaking in Tongues has unfortunately been a divisive issue in the modern church. I would like for it not to take over the conversation as we study this section. Here is one point that might make people think, yet stop any division. In Genesis, God confused the languages because of sin at the tower of Babel. In Acts, God is restoring languages through His Holy Spirit, to defeat sin. It is an act of redemption reaching out to multiple peoples instead of just the Jews. Feel free to scripturally answer honest questions, but keep it from becoming a debate.)
The disciples were waiting, just as Jesus had told them to back in Chapter 1 (vs.4). The Holy Spirit shows up, just like Jesus said He would. The emphasis here isn’t on all the signs, but that God gave HIS Spirit to ALL His people to witness and prophesy. The Holy Spirit living in us gives us the boldness to share Jesus Christ with other people; even those people we normally wouldn’t want to talk to. Without the power of the Holy Spirit, people are never brought to faith in Jesus Christ!
Peter, who is most remembered for denying Jesus on the night of His trial, preaches his first sermon. (Vs. 14-41) Having never been to Bible College or Seminary, we can’t be too hard on Peter. His sermon only was able to lead about 3,000 people to the Lord when he gave the altar call. We see the power of the Holy Spirit working in people’s lives to start the church! Imagine a church plant that has 3,000 people show up the first day!
Then in the last part of the chapter, Vs 42-47, we see how all the believers came together to help each other out. They took care of each other in very real and tangible ways. In verses 42 &46, we see that the early church took part in the “breaking of bread”. This can have two distinct meanings. One is communion or the Lord’s Supper. The other meaning is that they ate together just as here in our Home TEAM we connect through eating together. (Leader: Feel free to celebrate the Lord’s supper at the conclusion of this lesson – some good scripture to read for that is 1 Corinthians 11:23-29)
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. How can you apply Peter’s message to your own life?
2. Are we looking out for other believers?
3. Do you know the power of the Holy Spirit?
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The End of Jesus? Acts 1
THE WARM-UP:
Have you ever felt abandoned by someone you looked up to? Do you like to wait? Does God ever answer prayers in a way that wasn’t at all what you anticipated?
READ Acts Chapter 1
Acts chapter 1 starts out with the end of the time of Jesus. He has walked with the disciples for three years; He was crucified, died, laid in a grave for three days, rose from the dead and then hung out with the disciples for a while before taking off to heaven to be with His Father again. Now the disciples are left to figure out life without Jesus. They begin by following his directions from verse 4: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait…” They watched Jesus go and then stayed in Jerusalem. Is it hard to wait on God? The disciples thought that Jesus was going to build a kingdom here on earth, but when Jesus left them, they set about continuing with His ministry. How can we continue on with the Ministry that God has empowered us with?(Re-read Acts 1:8) In addition to Jesus no longer walking with them in the physical sense, they dealt with the fact that one of their own, Judas, had committed suicide and was no longer with them. They chose Matthias to replace him. So they got together and took care of business and then began to wait on the Lord to figure out what to do next. Next time we get together, we will dive into some of the incredible miracles that unfold in the book of Acts.
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. Do you ever feel like you are waiting on God?
2. What would you have done in their situation?
3. What does Acts 1:8 mean to you personally?
Have you ever felt abandoned by someone you looked up to? Do you like to wait? Does God ever answer prayers in a way that wasn’t at all what you anticipated?
READ Acts Chapter 1
Acts chapter 1 starts out with the end of the time of Jesus. He has walked with the disciples for three years; He was crucified, died, laid in a grave for three days, rose from the dead and then hung out with the disciples for a while before taking off to heaven to be with His Father again. Now the disciples are left to figure out life without Jesus. They begin by following his directions from verse 4: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait…” They watched Jesus go and then stayed in Jerusalem. Is it hard to wait on God? The disciples thought that Jesus was going to build a kingdom here on earth, but when Jesus left them, they set about continuing with His ministry. How can we continue on with the Ministry that God has empowered us with?(Re-read Acts 1:8) In addition to Jesus no longer walking with them in the physical sense, they dealt with the fact that one of their own, Judas, had committed suicide and was no longer with them. They chose Matthias to replace him. So they got together and took care of business and then began to wait on the Lord to figure out what to do next. Next time we get together, we will dive into some of the incredible miracles that unfold in the book of Acts.
THE TEAM WORK-OUT:
1. Do you ever feel like you are waiting on God?
2. What would you have done in their situation?
3. What does Acts 1:8 mean to you personally?
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