Pastor Aaron shares some updates from the elder team regarding corporate worship this Sunday and beyond.
Peter Meets Gentiles | Acts 9:32-10:48
In Acts 1, Jesus promised his disciples that the good news would move beyond the region of Judea to “the ends of the earth.” And here in Acts 10, it finally happens: the nations are being welcomed into the family of God! In this passage, we see Peter (a Jew) and Cornelius (a Gentile) being willing to obey God, even when they don’t fully understand all of the details.
The Power of a True Conversion | Acts 9:1-31
The beginning of Acts chapter 9 tells of one of the most significant conversions in the history of the church, and even the history of the world. Saul of Tarsus had been on a mission to capture and persecute followers of Jesus until his radical encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Saul’s conversion to “the way” demonstrates the power of God. But it also reminds us that every conversion, no matter how big or dramatic, is a miraculous act of God.
Discussion Questions
Take some time to share with one another how Jesus has transformed your life. Even if you met Jesus at an early age, how would your life be different had you not encountered Jesus?
Do you have questions or doubts about your status with Jesus? Are you struggling to believe that you’re “good enough” to be saved?
Do you desire to continue to be changed and transformed by the power of the gospel each and every day? Do you regularly share areas in your life where you are struggling and living in sin? Share with one another how you desire to continue to grow as a disciple of Jesus and be transformed by the Holy Spirit?
How can we hold each other accountable and help each other be obedient to Christ, including going out into the world and speaking boldly about Jesus?
Prayer Points
Pray that Jesus would remind you of the miracle he has done in your own life. Pray that he would reignite a passion and excitement for how he has and continues to transform you.
Pray for God to encourage you and cause you to be more passionate in proclaiming the gospel to the world around you. Pray for courage to speak boldly about Jesus to those in your life who have yet to meet Jesus. And pray, not just for opportunities to share the gospel but for the power of the gospel to lead to true life transformation.
The Gospel Goes to Samaria | Acts 8:1-40
The spread of the gospel has followed the pattern that was promised by Jesus in Acts 1: first Jerusalem, then Judea, then Samaria, then to the ends of the earth. As we see the gospel go to Samaria in ch. 8, we see God working in the middle of some messy situations with some messy people. But we can also see that God is not afraid to meet his people in the middle of the mess. The Holy Spirit does his best work when we are honest about the mess that we are in.
Discussion Questions
Who has God put in your life that you can be 100% real, gut-level honest about the “mess” in your own life? Are there things that you have been holding on to that need to be shared? What fears in your own heart keep you from being fully honest?
In our honesty, we don’t want to wallow in sin or celebrate our mess, but bring it to Jesus. How does the “messiness” of the cross give us hope that Jesus could really forgive us, love us, and transform us?
How could God use our honesty and transparency to further the spread of the gospel to those who have not yet believed in Jesus?
Prayer Points
Pray that God would shape us to be the kind of church community that openly shares our sins, fears, struggles, and messes with each other so that we can experience the redeeming grace of Christ.
Pray for that we would be open, humble, and loving in such a way that draws unbelievers to come to know Jesus and believe the gospel.
Stephen’s Sermon | Acts 7:1-60
As the Jesus movement spreads and grows, opposition reaches a fever pitch against one of the early church deacons, a man named Stephen. As he teaches that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Scriptures, the temple, and the law, he is misunderstood to be against these things. What can we learn from this story and the ways that we misunderstand Jesus even today?
Moses and Jesus | Acts 6:8-15
As the Jesus movement spreads and grows, opposition reaches a fever pitch against one of the early church deacons, a man named Stephen. As he teaches that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Scriptures, the temple, and the law, he is misunderstood to be against these things. What can we learn from this story and the ways that we misunderstand Jesus even today?
Serving The Needs of the Church | Acts 6:1-7
Despite the amazing things that God did in and through the earliest followers of Jesus, the church community was far from perfect. In the early verses of Acts 6, we learn of a situation that requires wise, skilled, and dedicated servant-leaders. We also see that when this type of servant-leader does well, it shows the way that Jesus loves and serves all of us.
Jesus Life is Our Life | Acts 5:12-42
At the end of Acts 4, the followers of Jesus were living a radical, new life of generosity, selflessness, and compassion for one another.Barnabas is set out as an example of this type of living. However, the enemy attacks the believers by appealing to the sinful flesh and raising up greed, pride, and deceit. God’s swift and righteous judgment reminds the believers that sin is serious and that he has saved us to live a new life.
Sharing and Theft | Acts 4:32-5:11
At the end of Acts 4, the followers of Jesus were living a radical, new life of generosity, selflessness, and compassion for one another.Barnabas is set out as an example of this type of living. However, the enemy attacks the believers by appealing to the sinful flesh and raising up greed, pride, and deceit. God’s swift and righteous judgment reminds the believers that sin is serious and that he has saved us to live a new life.
Peter and John Arrested | Acts 4:1-31
In Acts 4, Peter and John face political consequences as a result of their healing ministry and their preaching ministry. When faced with persecution, these disciples have a chance to evaluate their relationship with the politics of the day. In this evaluation, they respond with perseverance, with prayer, and with bold proclamation of the gospel.
The Healing of a Lame Man | Acts 3:1-26
As Peter and John enter the temple courts, they encounter a man who knew that he was broken and in need of redemption. God uses these men to not only heal his physical body but also to heal his sin-diseased soul. When we are truly honest about how unwell we are, we can truly experience Christ’s healing, and we can share that healing with others.
The Community of Jesus | Acts 2:42-47
Today we finish out chapter two in our sermon series in the Book of Acts. As a result of the coming of the Spirit, we now find the people of God seeing through new eyes, and experiencing the fullness of the not so common Spirit-indwelled life that God has called his people to — the committed life of Christian fellowship that overflows into evangelism and mission.
The Spirit and Pentecost | Acts 2:1-41
In Jewish tradition, Shavout is the day the Torah was given to Moses. In the New Testament, Shavuot is the giving of the Holy Spirit. Same day and no coincidence! While many believe Acts 2 is the birth of the Church the disciples understood that what happened to them there was equal in importance to what happened on Mt. Sinai. It was the empowerment by the Holy Spirit that gave them the revelation to preach the gospel for the first time to Jewish people, in the Temple courts, in Jerusalem! Today, the Holy Spirit still empowers followers of Yeshua to turn from our sins, lead us to better living and save us from judgement.
Poised For Action | Acts 1:12-26
Christianity exploded onto the scene in the latter half of the first century. Through miracles, persecution, and missionary endeavors the gospel spread. Over the centuries followers of Jesus have transformed the world. It all started with 120 people gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem waiting for the Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and empower. What can we learn from them to help us spread the gospel today?
Jesus’s Ascension | Acts 1:1-11
Without the book of Acts we would not know what happened in the initial grass-roots phase of Christianity. Still worse, we would not know how the truth of Jesus' Ascension launched his disciples off into a hostile world to proclaim the authority of their new King. Praise God that from Acts, to today, till Jesus comes back, He is King!
How Does The Story End? | Job 42:10-1732
Does the end of the book of Job teach that we should expect things to always turn out happy after we go through a period of suffering? When understood in the context of the entire book (as well as the rest of the Bible), we can confidently say that is not what the end of Job is teaching. As followers of Jesus, we know that the ultimate end of the story is eternal joy, even if we experience hardship and suffering in this life.
God’s Wise Rule | Job 38-41
Many modern readers struggle with God’s response to Job near the end of the book. Many people hear it as a power play in which God deflects Job’s questions and puts him in his place. However, this misunderstanding is due to our failure to see God’s parental and personal heart of love for Job in these chapters. When rightly understood, God’s invitation to Job is the same invitation to all of us: trust in him because he is perfectly wise.
Justice vs. Wisdom | Job 4, 28
Sermon Description
It has been said that in the book of Job, Job goes through trials, but it is God himself who is on trial. Specifically, the question is raised whether it is right for God to reward people for righteous behavior. It is this issue that is behind the majority of the book of Job, some 33 chapters of dialogue between Job and his friends. In the end, we are invited to see that the world is far more complex than we often think, and we are invited to trust in God’s wisdom as he governs the world.
Job’s Advocate | Job 16:15-22
Throughout the Book of Job, Job expresses his desire to meet with God and work out whatever the problem is. In multiple places, he cries out for an advocate, somebody to mediate between him and God. For a moment, it looks like the surprise character of Elihu might be that mediator. But in the end we see that the advocate that Job longs for is surpassed in every way by Jesus.
The Sin of Self-Righteousness | Job 3, 31
At the beginning of the book of Job, we are introduced to a man who is blameless and full of integrity; God himself speaks of Job’s outstanding moral character. But at the end of the book, Job is rebuked by God and repents of his prideful speech. What happens to Job that leads to this dramatic change? A careful look at the words of Job shows that he despairs because, at the end of the day, he trusts in his own righteousness and not the mercy of God.