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Acts: The Church's Steadfast Purpose

2/10/2019

Here’s a link to a simple, free, online cost/benefit analysis calculator… just for fun! How do you make decisions when it comes to things like your time, money, and energy? Running a cost/benefit analysis or a return on investment projection is the way of the world. Will we get more out of this than we’ve put in? Or at the very least, we we break even?
Yet we can’t exactly apply the principles of wise business to all personal choices or matters of ministry. So what other factors do you weigh as an individual when making major decisions in life?
1. What uncontrollable variables are you willing to risk while still moving forward?
2. Which factors should a church consider when setting direction?
Read Acts 13:1-3 and look at the early church of Antioch in Syria. How did this fledgling church approach decision making?
1. Are there practices here for us to imitate? Have you ever fasted...specifically food…. as you’ve entreated God for direction? What is the significance of fasting in this passage (note the 2 different functions of it between v2 and v3). Do you see any room in your cost/benefit analysis for not just prayer, but fasting as well?
Look at Acts 13:4-5. They were told to go, and they were told where to go. Pastor Jeremy said that this wasn’t random but that Barnabas was actually from this area. How would you feel about the Holy Spirit setting you aside to be a missionary to your own people in your hometown?
When making decisions about your future, how do you consider the presence of overt opposition? V6-8 is the description of the opposition the missionaries faced. If you were in the missionaries place, would you consider this as sign that you’re going in the wrong direction? In a relationship where you’ve been ministering to someone, how do you discern when to cut your losses and regroup? As a church, how much trial is too much? At what point would we consider the cost too great to continue in the direction we initially were called in (both individually and corporately)?
The account finishes with Paul making a powerful public stand, yet this isn’t always the case in his ministry. Next week we’ll see him be stoned and left for dead for sharing this same message with others. And even though John-Mark deserted the team, Paul and Barnabas continue on, undeterred by these experiences. What do you think made the difference between the reactions of Paul and Barnabas as opposed to John-Mark. Who do you feel you most naturally identify with? Why? Is there a specific experience behind your answer?
Look at the parable Jesus tells in Matthew 13:44. The discovery of the treasure changed everything for this man. 15 minutes before finding it, he would never have considered selling everything he had to buy that field. Viewed one way, the cost was exceedingly high for the man. Viewed another way though it was kind of a no-brainer because of what he obtained in the end.
What is the the thing that would bring you to the point of selling everything to acquire it? (Sunday school answer right?) But functionally, what would this kind of exchange look like in your life right now? What have you hung on to that you should get rid of? (Comfort, pride, safe relationships, your Spotify subscription perhaps?)
Remember, Jesus laid it out for the rich young man in Mark 13 and this guy walked away because the cost was too great for him.
How can we spur each other on when the comforts of this world draw us away from the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus? How can you walk this journey together as a person, couple, life group, and as a church? And what hope is there for us when we fail?

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Acts: Do Your Prayers Glorify God?

2/3/2019

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This past Sunday Pastor Matt talked about two big ideas, suffering and God’s glory.
This conversation will probably work better if we’re all on the same page with these words.

How do you define suffering?
How do you define God’s glory? I’m not sure if this article is helpful for you, but it may work as a bit of a primer on a very big theological theme.
Suffering is a bit more straightforward to define, (a link if you need it), but God’s glory could be best defined as, “The outward radiance of the intrinsic worth and beauty and greatness of his manifold perfections.” (That’s from John Piper)
Pastor Matt asked a very big, and very difficult question. Read Acts 12:1-19 to set the stage.
There are several levels of suffering at work in this passage. What do you see? Is there any unfairness, or injustice described here? Note verses 2, 11, and v19. How do you deal with these deaths? How do you feel about God’s role or seeming absence in each verse?
Pastor Matt said that the prayer of the early church was that they would suffer with boldness. They didn’t consider this spiritual warfare in the way we often do today, they simply looked at their suffering as a way which God could be glorified (don’t forget our definitions above).
Read the believers prayer in Acts 4:23-31, particularly verses containing the word “boldness” (vs. 29 & 31), how do you process these three words together now… boldness, suffering, and God’s glory? How does the prayer of the early Christians make you feel?
As an aside, It’s interesting to notice that the first martyr is recorded just 4 chapters later in chapter 7, the stoning of Stephen.
Last week we discussed being called to not just build lives of comfort, but now we seem to be called to pray for boldness! Pastor Matt spoke of how praying for God to be glorified is easier to pray for himself than it is to pray for his children. How do you feel about praying for your kids to be bold if you knew it would mean them suffering for the glory of God?
No matter what the situation, we know that Christ will not abandon us. And when we fail to speak out and live boldly, we’re reminded that Jesus has done this already for us as well. Yet we’re given a mission, a charge, and to pursue it is to glorify God and find joy in him!
Finish off with Matthew 28:16-20 Think of your family, occupation, social circles, neighbourhood, etc. Where can you live out this mission this week? Who do you know that needs the hope of Christ this week?

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Acts: The Characteristics of Christianity

1/27/2019

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Today we’re talking about shattering the myth of comfort. What does that mean?
Perhaps it’s best to first talk about what it is that makes us comfortable. In your life (personal, familial, vocational, spiritual, experiential) what things have you put in place to ensure comfort? Maybe a better way to explore this is to ask, what are the discomforts you actively, consciously avoid in your life?

Read Acts 11:19-30 together.
Pastor Jeremy listed 3 characteristics which these first Christians in the city of Antioch displayed. He noted;
- The gospel was preached by ordinary people.
- They displayed a heart of humility and sacrificial generosity.
- And they quickly developed a mercy ministry.
For each of these points, discuss what the cost would have been for the disciples involved in Antioch. Think of social, financial, and personal issues. How did Barnabas model these 3 characteristics?
What do you think it was that made these Christians willing to live like this?
Now for each point, consider your own Christian life. Are you living a life of personal sacrifice or have you unintentionally built a life based on self preservation or comfort?
Consider the words of Jesus in Luke 18:29-30
How does the gospel fill the gap we surely see between the lives of the Christians and our own? This past Saturday at the Men’s Morning we said that actions are based on decisions, decisions are based on beliefs, and beliefs are based on loves. If this is true, what do our actions then say about our true loves?

Looking at the personal cost of the early Christian mercy ministries, Pastor Jeremy pointed to Rodney Stark’s excellent book The Rise of Christianity. We’ve ordered this for the church library if you’re interested in taking a look. (This book also comes with Pastor Brennan’s personal thumbs up!)

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Acts: The Gospel Knows No Boundaries

1/20/2019

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When you look at where you are today and who you are today, what are some of the circumstances God used to prepare you? What did he do to build you up and get you ready for what you’re facing right now? Are there things you look back on and you can see that his hand was at work, yet at the time it seemed like he was absent or distant?
In looking at the circumstances God used to prepare Cornelius and Peter for their encounter, Pastor Jeremy pointed out that the activity was all God initiated. Read Acts 10:1-11. Which things jump out at you as evidence of God’s initiative?
Pastor Jeremy called God sovereign. What does this word mean to you? How do you understand God’s sovereignty in your relationship with Him? What about in your relationships with others? What about in your relationship with His church?
What is the relationship between your good works and your salvation? Read Acts 10:1-2, 22, 44 and consider the pre-salvation good works of Cornelius and what had to happen before he was saved.
1. Read James 2:14
2. How do these concepts fit together for you? If works do not lead to salvation, and faith without works doesn’t save, how can both of these be true?
3. In your life, which comes easier for you? Having faith, or doing works? (It’s ok if it’s not very clear cut).
4. Now, how does this passage fit? Phil. 2:12-13 Do you think this verse applies to this conversation? How or why not?
Pastor Jeremy said that salvation comes through the words of the gospel, the good news of Jesus. Acts 11:13-14 puts this in a clear and interesting way. Often we don’t realize the importance God has placed on us being verbal witness. Read what Paul says about this in Romans 10:14-17. So faith is created through the act of preaching, and receiving the preached gospel. We were told in this sermon that we are now God’s witnesses to the ends of the earth. Where can you be a witness this week? Think about work, neighbourhood, friends, family, teams, etc. Who are those who have seen your good works and have not yet heard your good news?
1. Take some time to name people together and pray for them. If you have a group chat going, add these names to it right now and check in with each other throughout the week. Pray for boldness, not for just for opportunities.
2. Preach the gospel to each other. This works against our sin bent tendency for self justification. Lean into God, because it is not your works which save you, it is Jesus!

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Acts: Prepared to Serve

1/13/2019

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Read Acts 9:19-31 together
On Sunday, Pastor Jeremy pointed out that Paul had to wrestle with two primary questions in his early Christian state. Who are you Lord? and Who am I?
1. John Calvin begins his seminal work The Institutes of Christian Religion with this statement which runs along the same trajectory, “Nearly all wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves”
2. What do you think of this statement? How do you wrestle with these questions? Is the order of God then self interchangeable or important?
  1. Optional: Check out this brief article for some help.
What do you think of when you put v22 beside v23? How can he prove to them that Jesus was the Christ, and then they rise up to take his life? How does this phenomenon look in our day and age?
Read 2 Cor. 11:30-33 and 2 cor. 12:9-10
1. What is the benefit of being aware of, and contemplating our weaknesses?
2. Pastor Jeremy said, “Our meditation should lead us to contemplation of our weaknesses,God's strength, and the grace of Christ.” How does this happen for you? What is the result in your faith journey?
3. Calvin was clear that this was part of the “knowledge of self”, but the knowledge of self he was talking about was, “what we must know is our “shaming nakedness” which exposes “a teeming horde of infirmities.” Knowledge of self is indispensable because from “the feeling of our own ignorance, vanity, poverty, infirmity” we can recognize “that the true light of wisdom, sound virtue, full abundance of every good, and purity of righteousness rest in the Lord alone.” The goal is not to discern our personality type or figure out our giftedness or get in touch with our past, though all of these have their place. For Calvin, knowledge of self is essential because we will only begin to seek after God when “we begin to become displeased with ourselves.”
How have you experienced God using community to support you in your weakness, build you up in faith, and equip you for further ministry? How have you done this for someone else in Christian community? This is the Barnabas effect.
Jot down one or two things you will bring into your personal time with God from this discussion.
What is one way your actions this week will be driven by this discussion?

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Acts: The Blindness That Leads To Christ

1/6/2019

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Acts 9:1-18.

Read Acts 9:1-18 together
Pastor Jeremy said that this conversion was not Saul pursuing God, but the exact opposite, it was God pursuing Saul. What do you think of this reversal of ideas? He said that Christ is always the pursuer and initiator.
Is there anything in your life right now that God would need to tear down to get your full attention? He did this to Saul, didn’t he?
Why were the original disciples not enough? Why did Christ recruit Saul / Paul when he already had so many others?
No one is lost beyond hope. Our individual conversion is no less than Paul’s. What do you think of this statement; “It took no less a miracle to save you than it did to save Paul!”
Discuss this statement, “We love to hear the Lord say ‘Come to me.’ But it is hard for us to hear him say… ‘Now go!’
In truth, he asks each of us to go. What would look different in your life this coming week if you took that statement from #6 to heart?