Week #23 Insights: June 3-9

This week's blurbs are written by Jeff Quint (Monday), Mandy Treder (Tuesday-Saturday), and Pastor Kyle Bitter (Sunday).

June 3 – Acts 7:44 – 8:3: The things Stephen saw and heard during Jesus’ ministry shaped him forever. He became a devoted disciple and apostle, allowing himself to be an instrument of God’s will in the building of the Christian church. His story lives forever in holy Scripture. He may not have known Saul at all, but it was God’s will that Saul facilitate Stephen’s wrongful death, even if by such a small thing as tending the cloaks of the killers. Stephen prayed for them, then fell asleep in his Lord while Saul watched, in agreement with the killers. We too have stood watching while God’s Word or his church have been condemned by mockers and blasphemers, fearful of drawing attention to ourselves lest we become one of the condemned. We love our positions in this world too much. May God have mercy on us and strengthen us to behave better in the future. Study question: What would be good encouragement to help us prepare for something like this?
 
June 4 – Acts 8:4-25: Acts 1:8 serves as an outline for the book of Acts. Jesus tells his disciples that they will be his witnesses in 1) Jerusalem 2) Judea and Samara 3) to the ends of the earth. After the stoning of Stephen, the church scatters from Jerusalem (part 1), and chapters 8-12 of Acts tell of the spread of the Gospel next to Judea and Samaria (part 2). While many Samaritans had been baptized and were believers when they heard the Gospel, they had not yet received the Holy Spirit. It wasn’t until John and Peter came to Samaria and placed their hands on them that they received the Holy Spirit. While we are not told why the Holy Spirit did not come immediately to the Samaritans at the time of baptism, perhaps when the apostles put their hands on them, it marked that the Gospel is for all people and the same gifts of the Spirit were given to the Samaritans as to the Jews. “Spread, oh, spread the mighty Word; spread the kingdom of the Lord ev’rywhere his breath has given life to beings meant for heav’n” (Christian Worship 576:1). Study question: While the persecution in Jerusalem was a horrible experience for the Jewish believers, God used it to scatter believers throughout the world, thereby spreading his Word to other nations. What are some experiences you have had to deal with that were unpleasant? How has the Lord used those situations for your good and the good of his kingdom?
 
June 5 – Acts 8:26-40: Philip was directed by the angel of the Lord where to go to evangelize just one person. Through Philip, the Holy Spirit worked understanding and faith in the Ethiopian eunuch’s heart. So many details in this situation were an open opportunity for Philip to talk with this man. Does the Lord do the same for us today? Are we placed in situations where we find ourselves given opportunity to share our faith and explain Scriptures to someone? “Can we whose souls are lighted with wisdom from on high, can we to those benighted the lamp of life deny? Salvation! Oh, salvation! The joyful sound proclaim till each remotest nation has learned Messiah’s name” (Christian Worship 571:3). Study question: What are things you can do to “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15)? Pray boldly and courageously that the Lord gives each of us opportunities to share our Savior with others and the Holy Spirit gives us the words to say.
 
June 6 – Acts 9: Isn’t it astounding that the Lord called not just any man, but a man who was at work to destroy his church, to be his worker who would take the Gospel message to the ends of the earth? Do you wonder what the disciples and believers thought and felt when Saul began preaching in the synagogues? We are told they were baffled. Could they also have experienced some envy? Here was a man who was their enemy, and now the Lord had given him such spiritual gifts. The Lord used Saul and the Lord also uses us, sinful though we are, to serve in his earthly kingdom. God saw to it that his Word continued to spread, and he will continue to do so today. “(My word) will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). Study question: Sometimes we hear of someone having a “change of heart.” How does Barnabas serve as an example for us as to how we can work together with others to share the Gospel message?
 
June 7 – Acts 10: I marvel at Peter’s faith and obedience to Jesus’ words. In a vision, he was told to eat animals that were unclean and forbidden. He was told not to hesitate to go with the Gentile men from Cornelius’s house. Both eating unclean meat and going into the home of a Gentile would have made Peter unclean according to the Old Testament law of Moses. Jesus had fulfilled the Old Testament law, and Peter understood this. The Gospel is for all people- Jews and Gentiles. Jesus does not show favoritism, but accepts men from every nation (Acts 10:34-35). Peter obeyed Jesus, went to Cornelius’s home, and preached the Gospel to a whole house full of Gentiles. The Holy Spirit brought these people to faith and proved the Gospel is for all nations by giving them the same spiritual gifts the Jews had been given. Study question: Sometimes it is easy to feel as though church traditions are Gospel truth. Our conscience may even be bothered if we “do something different or new.” How can Peter’s example of obedience to God’s command serve as an example to us as we seek to share the Gospel with others? How can we differentiate between what is tradition and what is doctrine?
 
June 8 – Acts 11: In this chapter we read how the gospel continued to spread to both Jews and non-Jews. Several of God’s workers and their teaching style are mentioned in this chapter. Peter spoke very clearly and sincerely with confidence when questioned and criticized for going to Cornelius’s house. The Lord blessed his words and the Jewish believers praised God that salvation is found in Jesus and not in Jewish customs. In a different region, Barnabas greatly encouraged the believers. The Lord used his gifts and brought a great number of people to faith. Saul, working with Barnabas, taught a great number of people. Each of God’s servants used the abilities and personalities God had given specifically to him to serve the Lord and spread his message of salvation. God blessed the work of each of them and caused his church to grow and spread. The work of the Lord is not about the person preaching or teaching—it is about Jesus and his work of salvation. Study question: The Lord used the varied gifts and personalities of many different people to share in his work. Today he continues to use different people with different gifts and abilities for work in his kingdom. How do the varied gifts and personalities in the body of Christ work for the good of the church and the spread of the Gospel message?
 
June 9 – Acts 12: Persecution is an ongoing struggle for God’s people. In the events recorded in Acts we see that for all the efforts Satan pours into destroying God’s church, he only goes as far as God allows him to go. Here we see that clearly as God’s angels release Peter from prison in a miraculous way, and we see it again when God demonstrates his authority over even King Herod, the perpetrator of this particular wave of persecution. God uses persecution to strengthen his church, and he allows it to go no further than necessary for that purpose. Study question: Our country is blessedly free from the kind of persecution Christianity has suffered for much of history. How does God use the tamer persecution that we face to strengthen his people?