Results

PRAY & INTRO: Coming right off the heels of a HUGE win for the church at large, where the leaders reach a clear consensus and communicate in a letter that guards the gospel, commands purity, and promotes fellowship among Gentile and Jewish Christians… Paul and Barnabas, close companions in ministry,…

***Consider explaining concentric circles of fellowship/teamwork? ? Difference or Disagreement? Let it go Go to the other person directly Get help from leadership (knowing that such may bring resolution, or it may lead to church discipline or may involve governing legal authority)

PRAY & INTRO: Not all disagreements are created equal. We squabble over petty things. Sometimes we bicker over nothing; we’re just grumpy, and we selfishly let that spill out on others. Or we take personal offense at something and forget what it is that we’re striving towards together. But some disagreements…

PRAY & INTRO: The missionary success among the Gentiles leads to dispute within the Christian community because there are some Jewish believers who want to bring these Gentile converts to Christ under the Mosaic law. Disagreement from within threatens the Christian community. How should the church at…

PRAY & INTRO: Building anything of consequence takes hard work and persistence. Looking for shortcuts just isn’t an appropriate approach to handling things of importance, to do them well and to make them last. Do you want sloppy design or shortcut labor on the bridges you plan to drive on, or the house…

INTRO - What if we asked ourselves this question at the end of a short season, or at the end of a day? How successful was I today in the mission Jesus has given to his followers—belonging to him and being used by him, set apart to him and sent as his representative? (And for me and others in any capacity…

PRAY INTRO (Review) We’ve noted in the past that what might be most tricky thing about understanding and applying Acts to our own lives is determining what it descriptive and what it prescriptive. Said another way, what specific details are unique to their Apostolic ministry in the earliest days of the…

PRAY INTRO: Imagine you are preparing a research paper. I know, I know, most of us don’t want to imagine that. But just hang with me here. In preparing and presenting a research paper, most of us are super familiar with what is the primary “no-no” to be avoided: don’t take somebody else’s words and ideas…

Review: How many times have you wondered if you are adequately prepared to proclaim the gospel? How many times have you wondered what gospel tract or approach to use in doing so? Well, in my study of Acts chapter 13, I’ve become convinced that as Luke is establishing the patterns followed by Paul and…

PRAY INTRO: Recall that Luke has been establishing the pattern followed by this missionary team (that was last week’s emphasis, that we should follow their pattern). What we haven’t heard yet is an example of Paul’s evangelistic preaching when they entered a new city or town. Following the Pattern of…

PRAY INTRO: Luke is laying out what would become the pattern of these missionary endeavors. (Patterns emerging from this new missions effort) We’ll be asking, what can we learn from these patterns to apply to our lives as we pursue faithfulness to be Christ’s people? (who are set apart apart to him and…

PRAY INTRO: Pivotal Moments? When we come to Acts chapter 13, we are reaching a critical turning point in the narrative. The lead figure shifts from being the Apostle Peter to the Apostle Paul, and the progress of the gospel shifts from being spread primarily because of persecution to the church intentionally…

PRAY INTRO: Do you ever fear for your life? Do you ever fear for your safety (and for the safety of those you love)? Do you ever fear concerning your comfort and overall well-being? Do you ever fear for your soul and eternity? Do you ever fear concerning your usefulness to the kingdom of God? Today we…

Last week we emphasized in Acts 11:19-26 that God is in the business of planting and growing faithful churches to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and advance his kingdom. In describing the Christ-centered church at Antioch, we saw that God establishes and builds up faithful churches through Christ-centered…

PRAY: Help us to see your truth clearly/accurately, help us to submit to it wholly/completely. May you conform us in spirit and in truth to what you have said is best for us because it glorifies you most. Amen. When we come to Acts chapter 11 and verse 19, we backtrack in time slightly to pick up the…

PRAY INTRO: Right belief and behavior begins with right understanding. (or to reverse the order) Right thinking leads to right belief leads to right living. Right perception (seeing rightly) leads to right conclusions which lead to right conduct. We must let God correct our wrong thinking. If we don’t…

PRAY: Triune God, we bow our hearts to you in a prayer of confession, a prayer of submission, a prayer of dependence. Holy Father, by the finished work of your Son and the ongoing work of your Spirit, use the truth of your word to remake us and reshape us and reform us according to your own perfect character…

To be the messengers of the gospel that Jesus desires for us to be, we must learn to see ourselves and others as God sees. ( Acts 10:1-11:18 ) Such was our overarching point last week, and really it is the theme that Luke has for his readers (and consequently for us) from the broader narrative of 10:1-11:18.…

PRAY INTRO: Today we celebrate what is known in Christendom as Palm Sunday, which marks the beginning of Holy Week, or Passion Week. This is the week memorialized in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ that climaxes with his crucifixion on Friday and culminates with his resurrection on Sunday. So we’re…

INTRO: It’s true, I’m no Simon Peter. Peter is not your Average Joe Christian. Peter is one of the unique Apostles chosen by Jesus and given unique authority, unique spiritual empowerment, and unique influence. He’s even first among equals of the small band of Apostles! It’s true, I’ll never be Simon…

PRAY Intro: We’ve come to the place in Acts where Christ has just transformed the primary persecutor of the church into a zealous proponent of the gospel. Right after the episode of Saul’s conversion and commissioning ( Acts 9:1-19 ), we get to observe what happens when Saul switches sides (9:19b-31).…

PRAY INTRO: The last we heard in Acts of a young man named Saul, he was giving approval as the Sanhedrin stoned Stephen to death. Then he continued to persecute the disciples of Jesus in Jerusalem, so that most of them scattered. Since then, he’s continued to be busy persecuting the church. But Saul’s…

PRAY: INTRO: Let me tell you a story that happened to one of our guys recently. Eric Pallozzi was headed (just over a week ago) to celebrate the home-going of his grandpa, Jerry Smith. On the way, he stopped at a gas station. While at the pump, a couple of rough and tough-looking biker dudes pulled up…

PRAY INTRO: I have never been a soldier, so I have not been at war and therefore never been in a real battle. Some of you have. But I can imagine the possibility for confusion on the battlefield, especially in close hand to hand combat. [ image ] In such a situation they would want to clearly mark who…

PRAY: God of all glory and grace, the Scripture tells us that you know our needs even before we ask. And there is nothing we need more than more of you. By the power of your Holy Spirit, use the truth of your word to show us more of your radiant glory, and your perfect goodness, and your beautiful grace.…