Katy

Q3.Peter talks to the crowd and tells them that nobody was drunk! He talks to them about the prophecy of Joel and how with the presence of the Holy Spirit all may experience visions dreams and speak prophecy. Peter then links the Holy Spirit to the miracles they saw Jesus perform while here on earth. He goes on to tell them that Jesus was crucified by God’s set purpose and for knowledge. But he blames the Jews for condemning Jesus to death with the aid of the Romans. But God raised Jesus from the dead and declared Him Messiah! Peter quotes Psalm 110 to show how it predicts Jesus exaltation to The Fathers right hand. The people were cut to the heart and asked “ What should we do”.

Q2.The messages are convincing to the people because they hear it in their own dialects. The people know these men are Galilean and wonder how can they possibly know their dialect, only spoken in their particular area.They hear them “Declaring the wonders of God”. We see the mighty deeds of God talked about in Deuteronomy 11v2, and in the Psalms, 71v19, 76v4,89v11-13.

Q1. The significance of the sound of the wind: The group of believers were gathered together in prayer and praise when a sound like violent wind reached their ears , it is not wind but the Greek word for Spirit is also the word for wind or breath. It happens as the Spirit is suddenly present in the room. Then they saw fire which divided into flaming tongues which settled over the head of each believer. This was the Spirit filling each of the believers. This is what Jesus had told the believers would happen, Jesus had told them to stay together until the Spirit came. When the believers were filled with the Spirit they started to speak in different languages, praising God. At this point they had spilt out into the open where they were heard by people from many nations who were astonished to hear them praising God in their own languages. There are incidents of people speaking out spontaneously in prophecy in the Old Testament, Moses, Joel, and Saul. This speaking in tongues is a continuation of the prophecy of the Old Testament. It was an ecstatic experience that was led by the Spirit, very similar to inspired prophecy.

Q1. Sometimes people add to Gods word to try and justify what they think or do. Or they may insist on following church traditions and make these a burden to people but they are not Gods word but tradition. So you have the importance of God’s word vying for its rightful place, while tradition takes over. Unfortunately many Christians are hypocrites and probably don’t know that they are. Non Christians can very quickly pull us up about non Christian behaviour. Q2.I am afraid I am hypocritical in many areas. I sometimes surprise myself by how easily I can be less than 100% truthful and yet at other times I am very aware I need to be truthful no matter how humiliating! I can pretend all is great in my life when I am deeply worried about something, I find it hard to be open with most people. I have avoided people I know will make demands of me, yet another time I will go out of my way to help. And my list goes on and on! I am inconsistent and hypocritical. But I am a work in progress and I know I am better than I used to be by the grace of God. Q3.The only antidote to hypocrisy is to bring the problem to God and confess our weakness and ask for help. Then go to those who have witnessed the hypocrisy and explain to them and ask their forgiveness, some will accept what we say but if they are Non Christians they may ridicule us or talk to others etc. That must not stop our efforts to try and be accountable to God and to live with integrity and transparency. Our beliefs and our actions must be consistent. Q4.In our churches we need to love one another. In John 13v 34 -35 Jesus said A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you Love one another. Every thing else will fall into place if we truely love each other. If we love each other as Jesus told us to, we will be walking humbly in His footsteps and living to a high standard both in the church and outside. Each of us needs to guard against any behaviour which would threaten the unity within the church. Sins such as being judgemental, gossiping, being uncooperative, being proud, and being critical can erode the Peace and stability of life in the church which can spill over into the outside world and bring disrepute on the Christian Church and ultimately on God.

Q2.Jesus offers us power to be effective witnesses for Him in our everyday lives. When we receive this power we find we can speak up for Jesus without fear or embarrassment. In Act 1v8 we see the way Jesus planned that the gospel would spread throughout the countryside and then to all areas along the Mediterranean and on to North Africa, Iran, Iraq, on to India and it also reached England. So we in our small way must continue this on throughout our sphere of reach. For some of us that may not be very wide for others it may be to other countries but wherever it is it’s about being faithful to talk to as many people as possible about Jesus. We may think our reach is limited but we do not know what God can do with our small offering. Maybe some young person we share the good news with may become a missionary or may become a preacher, and reach many people for Christ but it may never have happened if we had not shared the good news with that person.

Q3.Both personal prayer and corporate prayer are important. We should not pass one over for another. It is good to have someone to pray with or for you when we are worried or in trouble of any kind . This time between The Ascension and Pentecost was a time of preparation and waiting for the Holy Spirit to come. The disciples were involved in an intense period of prayer and being together in unity, They were devoted to prayer and to each other. I have been involved in corporate intense prayer. We pray in the Autumn before the children’s outreach and activities start for the winter. We pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters. We prayer before camps start in the summer, at Easter and in October. Any important event coming up or any crisis situation is covered in prayer by the church. Not all people turn up to these prayer meetings! If we are members of a church we are part of the church family and as such we should turn up to planned prayer meetings , if at all possible. It should be a delighted and a privilege to do so. In an hours prayer meeting we would spend approx 50 minutes in prayer the other time would be spend on a Bible reading and comments to direct our thoughts to the purpose in hand.

Q1.Jesus has taught the apostles together as a band of men , they have a mission to carry out and Jesus wants them all together to receive the Holy Spirit. Jesus doesn’t want them going home and being separated and being involved with domestic issues. All these things can be dealt with later. Jesus wants them all to experience this monumental occasion together, where they will be changed into fearless advocates for the gospel . It also brings unity when you experience an occurrence together. Their stories would all be similar and of equal importance. The Holy Spirit would give them power, they would see a change in themselves and also in their ministry.They would be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. The power of the Holy Spirit would come upon them as though they were being clothed with the Holy Spirit or immersed in the Holy Spirit similar to what happens in Baptism when we are immersed in the water.

Q1. Jesus didn’t follow the ritual of hand washing before meals because it was a man made law followed by tradition, not for cleansing the hands before a meal but in the hope of keeping spiritual defilement away. Jesus knew that the Pharisees were more interested in looking as though they were holy rather than really trying to be holy. They thought that by carrying out different rituals they could make themselves right with God, while at the same time ignoring the sin going on inside them, greed, selfishness, and being judgemental. Q2. I think of preachers who charm people but are in fact teaching wrong doctrines to their congregations. I think of men in Asia who promise young girls and their families good jobs and then sell them into slavery. I think of charities who do good work but it comes to light that those in charge are creaming money into their own pockets. Unfortunately there are so many examples of greed and wickedness in this world, but this will not go on indefinitely because Jesus has the victory! Q3.By giving food to the poor , we are distracted from selfish thoughts and deeds and think about others and their needs and this helps with spiritual cleansing. Q4.Although the Pharisees were scrupulous about tithing they made a ritual out of it. Making sure that they gave a tenth of all they had, but their was no generosity of spirit there. You can almost imagine them being concerned they might make a mistake and given a little extra! And this would deprive them! 2Corinthians 9v7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Q5. If we are followers of Christ we try to follow His example. Jesus never displayed anything but humility! If we are seeking to be seen and approved by other we are not imitating Jesus. We are all prone to fail at times and this may happen in this area especially if our lives call us to live or work in the public’s eye but as soon as we realise what we are doing we must repent and seek to walk in humility. If we are proud and self assured it is easy to slip into this kind of sin but we are blessed to have a forgiving God who is always ready to welcome us back into His fold.Romans 12v3 Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Q6.Jesus may have been using shock tactics to drive a very serious message home to the Pharisees. Hopefully some of them may have stopped in their footsteps and thought about what Jesus had said and examined themselves to see if their was any truth in His harsh words. In the next few verses Jesus continues to accuse them of wrong doing and the Bible records that they oppose Him and besieged Him with questions. But hopefully even one Pharisee may have accepted what Jesus said. Q7.My nature is sinful so although I am saved by grace, I can easily get distracted and sin. I find if I am not constantly aware of my tongue , my attitudes and my actions I can slip into sin. I need the Lord each day to help and to guide me. Which He does.

Q1. All that Jesus was doing daily among the people in the way of ministering to them, casting out demons, healing them from illness was not sufficient for them to believe in Him. They were asking for a miraculous sign, but Jesus told them that the only sign they will get was the sign of Jonah. The sign of Jonah was a sign of resurrection! Just as Jonah was three days inside the fish, so would Jesus be dead and in the tomb, but then God would raise Him from the dead. But they would have to wait to witness Jesus’s resurrection. Q2. Jesus is the light of the world. There is no darkness in Him. When we become Christians and have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, we shine as a light in a dark world. We must not hide our light we must speak up for Jesus and not hide that we are followers of Christ. If those around us have eyes that see they will see the difference in us and see our good deeds, and question us and hopefully eventually become followers also. Q3.Our spiritual enlightenment very much depends on the health of our spiritual eyes. When our eyes are open to the things of God we will learn the things of God. If our hearts and eyes are not open and willing to listen and learn we become introspective and negative. We become sure of our own opinions and become less interested in what others have to say, especially God. We can become arrogant and we can become full of darkness!. In order to stay focused on the things of God and to ensure we are full of light we must seek God’s help, and self examine ourselves frequently. We must filter out all that wrong and sinful, and only allow into our minds that which is pure, good and of God. Q4.In order to rediscover our spiritual enlightenment if we have drifted away, we must go back to basics. Firstly confess our sin, and ask forgiveness. Seek His precious face in prayer and start to read His word. Get involved with the church once again. Go to Bible studies. Seek out a friend who would be willing to pray with you and keep you accountable. Q5. God in His grace through the Holy Spirit makes us aware of our sin and need of forgiveness. God by His grace forgives us our sin. In the story of Jonah we see that when Jonah preached to the people of Nineveh ,they believed and were sorry for sin, and God forgave them. On the other hand in our passage in Luke we see the hard hearted Jews who won’t believe who Jesus is , who are looking for more proof . They are full of darkness. They don’t see their need of forgiveness. Jesus is standing in front of them offering them His grace and forgiveness and they are so spiritually blind they don’t take it. They are too full of pride and arrogance.

Q1. A. The Pharisees we’re claiming that Jesus was casting out demons by the Beelzebub. But He pointed out to them how outrageous that accusation was because He did not want any doubt lingering in His listeners minds that there could be any truth in what they said. Jesus point out that any kingdom divided would crumble, just as home with bitterness and strife going on will be unhappy. Satan would not be helping Jesus cast out ‘demons’, in other words himself or one of his spirits.Q1.B. There were other Jews casting out demons at this time and Jesus second point is if I am casting out demons by the power of Satan then these disciples of your are also doing the same thing.Q1.C. Then Jesus goes on to make the point that if He is not casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub then they are missing something wonderful, that the Spirit of God is with them and they are so caught up in their own thinking that they cannot grasp the magnitude of the happenings around them. Q2.verses 21 and 22 portrays satan as a strong man guards his house and thinks all his possessions are safe but someone stronger comes along( this is Jesus) and removes all that was supposed to be safe. All through Scripture we see that God is more powerful than Satan . He attempted to tempt Jesus by His power was greater than Satan’s . Jesus did not sin. When Jesus died on the cross He defeated Satan, and redeemed us from the clutches of Satan. Q3.In Luke 9v49-50 Jesus told His disciples that someone who is working against evil is on their side even if they don’t know this person. In 11v23 Jesus makes it clear that that anyone not with Him is against Him. There is no sitting on the fence! No place for being neutral, we either stand with the Lord or we are against Him. The battle has been won at Calvary but Satan will keep trying until end times and we have to be very sure where we stand either with Christ or with Satan! Q4.We cannot claim allegiance to Christ because of a family connection. Nor by the fact that we appear at church Sunday by Sunday, or by any other outward sign . The only true way of having and showing our allegiance to Christ is by listening to and obeying God’s word.

Q1.The man who has an unexpected visitor is in an awkward position because he finds he has no bread to offer his visitor. To be unable to offer a meal to a guest would be considered shameful and insulting to the guest and it would bring disgrace on him and his family. Even though it is long after bedtime he goes to his friend and bangs on his door but he is told to go away because the household are tucked up in bed, and the animals have settled for the night. He cannot return empty handed , and so he persists with his banging until the neighbour in fear of all the children being woken as well as the animals being disturbed stumbles out of bed. You can imagine the sight of him half asleep struggling to step over each child and almost loosing his balance. He is desperate to get rid of his friend before the household is wakened and the children think it’s time to get up! He doesn’t get up out of friendship but because of his persistent knocking! Q2.We have no right to expect anything from God , never mind insist. We must not insist that God gives or does anything for us. We must come to God in great humility and ask for the things we need and we must believe that He will give them to us provided it is His Will. John 15v7 If you remain in me and my word remains in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be given to you. That verse and others do not say we will get what we ask for immediately , we must trust God and keep laying the matter before Him. God wants us to persist in prayer and not give up. Even if it takes years, we may not even see the answer in our lifetime but we must continue to trust that God will answer at the correct and best time. Q3.We are told we must Ask, Seek, Knock. We must keep on doing these three things and if we do we will get an answer to our prayers. It may not always be the answer we want but it is always the best answer for us from God who knows all things. Q4.Some May fear that if they pray in a wrong manner or maybe for something big that God will not be pleased withthem. We must remember that God loves us and wants good things for us. If we approach God with a sincere and humble heart and speak to Him from our hearts He will hear and answer us because He loves us and delights in giving us good things. Q5.As soon as anyone accepts Jesus as their Lord and Saviour , the Holy Spirit dwells within them . He will never abandon us, we may displease Him, quench Him but He will never desert anyone who is earnestly trying to follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity and therefore is equal with God the Father and God the Son. The Spirit has the power of God and we have all that power at our disposal to help us every day, to lead us and guide us in every thing we do. We need to be aware of the wonderful privilege we have in having the Holy Spirit within us and to continually acknowledge His presence with us.

Q1. God is our Heavenly Father, He has given us the opportunity to become children of God by adoption into the family of believers. He showed His great love for us by sending His precious son to die on the cross for our sins.This was the greatest act of love that He could have done for us. His very essence is goodness and love. He is also patient and long suffering, not wishing anyone to perish but all to come to repentance and eternal life. No matter how sinful we are He is willing to forgive us, as long as we turn to Him in true repentance. God possess all the attributes of an earthly father but in a much purer and perfect way. Human fathers are human and therefore flawed. Some human fathers don’t understand their responsibilities and privileges of being a father. Other do their best but are unable to be all they should be. God the Father is perfect in every way. I think it is astounding that Jesus shares His father with us. That we are allowed and encouraged to pray to Him just as Jesus did when He was on earth. No matter how sinful we are we can turn and pray at any time and God hears and listens to us with interest. Q2. The word “ Hallowed” at the beginning of the Lord prayer reminds us that the Father we are speaking to is Holy and set apart from all sin. We are asking that the Father is treated with the honour and respect that He is entitled to by us but also be others. We must not come to a place of prayer or study with familiarity or disrespect. If we use the Lords name in a profane way we dishonour Him. We are also a bad example to those who hear us. We also need to honour God by gently asking people to refrain from using God’s name in a disrespectful manner. As Christians we must discipline our tongues and our hearts to honour God as He deserves. Q3. When we become Christians we enter into God’s Kingdom, we have the Holy Spirit living in us and we experience a new way of life. This is the beginning of the Kingdom of God. This will reach fruition when Jesus returns to earth to reign over all mankind. It started when God revealed Himself as Israel’s King. He made a covenant with the Jews and looks after them through thick and thin. But the people rejected Him and demanded an earthly king, but this King did not follow God’s ways and was succeeded by David , who was of the line of Judah from hence many generations later came Jesus. Jesus brought the Kingdom of God by preaching the good news about God and that Kingdom is also in us. We are asking that God will reign over all people. We also ask that Jesus will return soon. We should live our lives sharing all that God has done for us and being ready for His return. Q4.It is our human nature which drives us to be independent and self sufficient. It is difficult for us to submit to anyone even our Heavenly Father. Sometimes I don’t think we consciously try to be independent from God. We forge ahead and forget about praying and asking for guidance before we start something. We should ask God to “give” us our daily bread as an act of humility, knowing that everything we have is graciously given to us by God. The gifts and abilities we possess also come from God. Without our abilities we would be unable to earn to put food on the table. Q5.When we become Christians and grow in our walk with the Lord, we become less likely to sin. However as we become more Godly we see how imperfect we are, and sins we didn’t really consider sin before become more obvious to us. Therefore we do need to ask God’s forgiveness continually. He will forgive us our sins when we ask with true repentance. The same sins do not be confessed again and again. Our sins are forgiven once confessed and God in His mercy forgets about them.Psalm103 v12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Q6. Ephesians 4v32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other , just as in Christ God forgave you. Forgiveness is by God’s grace therefore we must afford the same grace to those who have offended us. If we do not and go around holding grudges we will block God’s blessing from our lives. If we refuse to forgive other, God may refuse to forgive us as we are wilfully harbouring sin in our hearts. If we feel we are not experiencing God’s blessing in our lives we need to examine ourselves and see if we have unforgiveness towards anyone in our hearts. Q7.God does not tempt us but He is there to help us in times of temptation. We must pray and ask Him to help us overcome our desire to sin. We must do our part by avoiding all occasions of sin, and not entertain anything that might draw us closer to doing wrong. Jesus was tempted and therefore knows what it is like and will help us in our time of need. God will not automatically deliver us from sin. We must pray humbly and show our dependence on Him, and ask for His help. Our lives must be full of things and activities that are God centred so we will have less time to entertain sin.

Q1.These few verses are short but they carry a very important message for us as Christians. No amount of service for the Lord can take the place of spending time in His presence studying His word, talking to Him and taking time to listen to what He has to say to us. In this way we honour and worship Him. This is the highest form of honour we can give Him, and the kind of worship He desires from us. We must realise that nothing else in our lives is more important. Q2.Martha was seeking to honour Jesus by inviting Him into her home to stay and then to make Him feel comfortable and welcome she was preparing dinner for Him and His disciples.If Martha was not a spiritual woman she would not have issued the invitation, but she didn’t realise that it was more important to listen and soak up every word that Jesus said. Mary didn’t bother herself with helping Martha but sat at Jesus feet holding onto everything that Jesus said. This was Mary’s way of honouring Jesus. Q3.When Martha told Jesus to get Mary to help her, Jesus went against all the accepted cultural norms by telling Martha that Mary was correct in what she was doing, nothing was more important than listening to Him. It was unusual for women at that time to listen to teaching of the Torah, that was reserved for men only. Jesus went against this cultural expectation to emphasis the importance for both men and women to listen, learn and obey His teachings and so to honour Him in this way. Q4. I identify totally with Martha I have struggled with this passage for years but finally understand what is important. I think I would have still sat at Jesus feet and have been preoccupied, wondering how I would manage to prepare the meal! Nowadays I think I would have planned to issue the invitation and be well prepared in advance. Q5. I need to have planned times with the Lord, It is definitely easier now I am retired. I also find it is important to have a plan if I need to be somewhere at the usual time I spend with the Lord, otherwise it would not happen. I try to have a constant supply of spiritual books which also teach me more about God. I try to meet with other Christians for prayer, this has been harder recently but I have used Zoom for this. I make sure I get to our weekly Bible study, reading group etc.

Q1. The first theme would be ‘ Who is my neighbour’, Jesus shows us here that our neighbours are not just people who live near us. They are all people, irrespective of who they are or where they come from. The second theme is ‘How am I to treat my neighbour’. I am to treat my neighbour with love, mercy and compassion, just as Jesus would do . This parable gives us an example to follow, the Samaritan shows love to a man who is effectively his enemy as Jews and Samaritans were enemies at this time. The Samaritan goes way beyond what could be expected of anyone in these circumstances. He shows mercy and compassion by putting his own feelings to one side and caring for a man in dire straits. The third theme is a challenge ‘ Would I have acted in the same way, or would my actions have been motivated by selfishness’. Unfortunately I don’t think I would have been that loving , compassionate and merciful. I may have cared for him at the roadside, but that would have been the extent of my caring. My actions would have been probably fitted in around where I was going or what I was doing at the time. The chief theme is ‘ Are my good deeds motivated by my love of God and my neighbour or limited by my selfishness and love of self’ Q2.Being able to recite a verses from the Bible is easy enough it is truly understanding it’s contents and applying to our lives is the most difficult part. There are many people who are Biblical scholars who study for a life time, but never move beyond the head knowledge contained in the pages of Scripture. In this parable the ‘expert in the law’ is seeking to test Jesus and find out how much or how little Jesus knows. He has no interest in deepening his understanding or truly learning about Jesus. However Jesus shows him that He is the one in control of the situation. This situation of only having head knowledge rather than heart knowledge often comes from a heart which is full of pride and haughtiness rather than a heart of humility and openness to being taught by God through the Holy Spirit. Q3.Unfortunately I have often tried to justify my less than Christian acts to myself or to my children when they have challenged me on occasions. I try to justify them because I know they are not right! I know the Lord would not approve, sometimes it is afterwards I realise it was not the wisest thing to do. My motives for justifying myself are my pride, not want others to think badly of me and realising that the action is not pleasing to the Lord. Q4.The lawyer seeks to justify himself by asking Jesus to clarify the question of ‘who is my neighbour’? He wanted Jesus to agree that his understanding was correct which would make it easy to love his neighbour. His interpretation was that his neighbour was his Jewish neighbour from the same class or social standing as himself not those who were poor or in need. The Priest and the Levite in the parable did not want to get involved in this mans situation. They may have justified themselves by think they were important men and couldn’t possibly make themselves “unclean “ by touching the poor injured man lying at the side of the road. But they didn’t do anything else either ie get him help etc. So although these men were involved in temple business they still ignored the Torah, which tells them to Love your neighbour as yourself. Lev 19 v 18. Q5.Jesus was making a strong point in this parable by using a Samaritan as the one who cared enough to attend to the mans needs when he was in bad circumstances. The Jews looked down on the Samaritans considering them “half breeds” following the intermarriage which took place after the Assyrians capture Israel in 721BC. This hatred was reciprocated by the Samaritans. By using a Samaritan as the one who helped, following the priest and the Levite who passed by Jesus could not have made a stronger contrast. The lawyer could have been in no doubt that Jesus meant that we are to love not just our own ‘ kind ‘ of neighbours but also those who are different and even those we consider to be our enemies. Q6.This parable teaches us that all people of every race, culture, religion or social background are our neighbours. We must love our neighbours as ourselves. We must do this by sharing what we have with others , that can be time, goods, finance, etc. We must show mercy by not allowing our prejudices get in the way of helping others. We must not judge people, there may be a lot going on that we know nothing about. Judgement is for God not us. We must not allow our selfishness to get in the way of helping others. Sometimes it is so easy to make an excuse rather than discipling ourselves to do something. It is important to recognize our selfishness and combat it with the Lord’s help. Q7. I think I need to overcome my selfishness and look beyond my own situation to where I can help my neighbour. Looking beyond my own circle is a challenge I shall take on , to see where I can be useful.

Q1. Jesus had sent out 70 men to prepare the way for Him coming to teach them. The mission had been successful and they had returned to Jesus excited at all they had achieved through the power given to them by God. Jesus was full of joy through the Holy Spirit , because He knows this is part of the Fall of Satan. Jesus is also full of joy because the names of the 70 are written in Heaven. Q2.Normal human joy comes about when things are going well in our lives and all is well with us. It can evaporate very quickly when life becomes difficult or there are problems on the horizon! Joy that comes from the Spirit is different it is a gift of the Holy Spirit not something we can muster up on our own accord. It comes from knowing, loving and obeying Jesus. It is present deep inside all the time, a calm assurance that all is well despite things being difficult all around us. It is that feeling that gives you the knowledge that this is all passing and in the future we will be present with the Lord, He will wipe away every tear, there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order has passed away. Rev 21 v 4. Q3. Jesus loves all people but He particularly loves people who are innocent, simple, and humble. These people have open willing heart and are willing to learn and obey. Sometimes the more knowledgeable we becomes , we can lose the original purpose of loving God and those around us. We can become full of pride and self promoting. Q4.God doesn’t allow everyone to know Him intimately because not all of us have the right heart attitude and really want to know Him. If we want God to reveal Himself to us we must seek Him with all our hearts. 1Chronicles 28v 9 If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him He will reject you forever. Q5.A deep desire to know Him intimately, someone who loves Him, believes in Him and that Jesus is His son and Saviour of the world. Someone who is willing to follow closely despite being in this world but also has a view and expectation of the world to come. Q6.I need to be humble and to seek my Lord and Saviour daily. I need to really pray for my family and friends who are not following Jesus, that God may reveal Himself to them , I also need to pray the Holy Spirit will soften their hearts. I need to be more aware of the joy of the Spirit and give thanks for it and the assurance it gives me. I need to thank God for all I can learn from His word and these studies.

Q1. As Christians we have power to cast out demons, if it is what Jesus wants us to do. He has to give us the authority to do it. It would also depend on the motivation of our hearts, our humility and our compassion. I have at times gone to see people who are lonely and depressed and feeling very negative, and by the time I leave they are different people. Sitting upright, smiling and chatty. I have done nothing but sat and chatted and listened to how they feel. This may be loneliness but sometimes I wonder if the Presence of the Holy Spirit in me, has not caused Satan to slide away. Which results in a more peaceful and contented person. It may not answer the question but it is along similar lines. I think God is very much at work among us and often we fail to realize it. Q2. I am not sure of the answer to this, could Jesus have been warning them about their pride, it was because of pride that Satan was caste out of heaven. Or maybe Jesus was saying to them not to dwell on the fact that they could caste out demons but dwell on something more important. The most important thing was that by casting out demons they were defeating Satan and his ways. Q3.Power to trample on snakes and scorpions was not literally given to the seventy, what was meant was that they had power by Jesus’s authority to crush the work of Satan and his evil followers. Satan is first introduced to us in Genesis three as a serpent and in Revelations as ‘that ancient serpent’. Also in the area where these men lived they would be used to dealing with serpents and scorpions as part of their daily lives and knew how dangerous they were. This power from Jesus did not give them immunity from being bitten by these creatures. Q4.Nothing shall by any means hurt you, did not refer to being hurt physically. They could still be physically hurt but no one or nothing could destroy their souls or the essence of who they were. They maybe persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ but no one could touch the core of who they were. Q5.To have our names written in the Lambs book of life is the most wonderful thing that could happen to us! Because we are so bound up in the things of this world we can sometimes forget how wonderful it is. It is something we need to think about and thank God for this gift and great privilege. It is another thing we need to be so thankful for, and need to speak to others about.

Q1.Jesus sent the seventy out two by two to every village, none was to be excluded. All were to be given the opportunity of either accepting what was being offered to them or rejecting it. That message was that the kingdom of God is near that Jesus the King of the Kingdom was on His way to tell them all about it and about the difference believing would make to them and their future. They were to call to each door and greet people with the traditional Jewish blessing “Peace to this house” and tell them about the gospel. If they were interested and open , they would receive a blessing from God. If not the blessing would return to the disciples. Q2.When people accept the word of God through the ministrations of a disciple they are agents of salvation and healing. Because someone accepts the word of God they pass from darkness of sin into the light of salvation, and because of this their sins are forgiven and they will not have to face the rigours of judgment as they would have had to do if they had died in their sin. So in this way they are possibly agents of judgement. Q3.Yes we will all have to face God and give an account of all we have done and have not done. Those who have lived for Christ will be judged for all the work done for Him. And will be rewarded accordingly, but those who have rejected Christ will be sent to eternal damnation. Q4.Because our sinful nature is constantly in the background we will all do things which are wrong. However if we consistently ask God’s help to live as He would want us to, He will guide us and lead us so we will not have too many inconsistencies in our lives. If we confess or admit to people that we should not have said or done something and own up to our inconsistencies hopefully we will not lead anyone astray. A mature person will not allow the inconsistencies of another put them off the things of God. It is about God and His Son and what they have done for us not about people and how they act. Our inconsistencies will be no excuse on Judgement Day. Q5.Jesus message is about the great salvation available to us all but as with all things there are consequences if we reject Him, and people must also be aware of this. A spokesperson for Christ must know and love Him. They must be a person of integrity and sound character. They must be willing to face rejection and know that when they do face it, that it is not personal but it is a rejection of God. They must also realise that it is a privilege to be rejected for the sake of Jesus. They are being faithful by speaking out and being rejected.

Q1.Jesus was setting out a pattern to be followed by all His disciples. We see it being followed many times in the New Testament. Paul took different people with him on his journeys as did Timothy. It was also for practical reasons, there is safely in numbers. If one was to become discouraged, the other can encourage him. They could look after each other. They can help and advise each other. They can pray together. Their spiritual gifts may be different so they both bring something different to their preaching and teaching. Q2.There was much work to be done in a short space of time. Jesus wanted as many people as possible to have the opportunity to know their need of God and know about the kingdom of God. They were also to heal the sick among them. Their mission was to seek out towns and villages where the message of Jesus would be accepted. They were to prepare the way for Jesus to come and teach. If the people did not accept them and Jesus they didn’t go there and the people lost the opportunity of their lives to meet and hear the Son of God preaching and teaching them about the kingdom of heaven. Q3.There were many people who needed to know of the love of God. There were not enough workers to go and tell people about the kingdom of God. There are many people in my area who flaunt God’s laws and ways. Those that I have opportunity with often feel they are doing ok! They have there own religion and all ways lead to God!! I find it hard trying to tell people just how wonderful God is and fell I don’t make a very good job of it. But I keep praying for opportunity and that God would give me the words to say. Q4.People don’t realise the urgency of telling others, we think there is plenty of time, but we don’t know how much time any one of us have.People are very involved with their own lives, work and families. Things that have kept me from being active mostly comes from not feeling confident about know just what to say to someone, how do I put all that God is into a few words and not put people off. I do realize this shows a lack of trust in God. I am afraid of letting Him down! I need to pray for the confidence I lack in this area. Q5.God is the main recruiter because we cannot recruit on our own. We need to ask God to send the right people for the job. Prayer has to be the main thing to do prior to looking for workers. Q6.God gives His workers the peace of knowing they are working within His will and doing what He has asked us to do, to preach His word. As believers it is our responsibility to pay our church leaders a just wage. They should not be struggling while their congregation has plenty. We must also support other workers that we know or that we decide to support to enable them to carry out their work for the Lord. All we are doing is giving back to the Lord a little of what He has given to us.

Q1.To live life as a sojourner mean to live temporarily in a place. The person is there for a time but knows it is not their permanent home. As Christians we are to live our lives as though we are here for a short time and then we will go to our permanent place of residence which is heaven. While we are on earth we must engage fully in the work, God has given us to do, whilst being aware that we are sojourner sin this world. Because we are temporary residents we must not become too attached to worldly things. At the same time we have been placed here at this very time by God as is described in Acts 17 v24 to 28. Disciples need to live with a sojourner mentality because they may be called to go to situations where they will have a bed in somewhere that is temporary and not home. It is part of following Jesus. Q2.Jesus is making the very strong point here that following Him must come before everything else in our lives, even something as important as looking after a parent in old age and into the time of their dying. For many of us we may not have to physically leave parents in old age but we may have to make our way spiritually without our nearest and dearest we cannot put off the call of Jesus to follow Him. Q3.Jesus is speaking here about the spiritually dead, to bury the dead. As believers our priority is to do the work God has for us to do. Otherwise we will get bogged down in earthly things and not be available and committed to the things of God. Q4. The man wanting to say goodbye was not ready to fully commit himself to following Jesus. It is a privilege to be called by Almighty God to serve Him in some small way and we need to be ready and fully committed to do His bidding. It is insulting to Our Saviour to be fobbed off by excuses not to obey Him immediately. Q5. We must keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus, not turning back and looking at the past. It is impossible to keep going straight if we keep looking over our shoulders. Plow men fix their eyes on a point at the far end of where they are ploughing and keep going towards it not looking anywhere else. Q6. Yes I think Jesus is speaking in hyperbole but He is making strong points about the huge importance of serving God with a fully committed heart and not as an after thought after we have done everything else we want to do. Our service is the most important thing in our lives and yet unless we discipline ourselves on a daily basis our service and time spent with God can be squeezed out of our day. Even if Jesus is using hyperbole it does get the seriousness of the matter home to us, and makes us stop and think about our own situation and how serious do we take our commitment compared with what Jesus is saying in the passage. In no way does it mean we can ignore it or take it lightly. Jesus has used hyperbole to show us the seriousness of what He is saying and the need to think seriously about it.

Q1.The greatest human need is to have Christ like humility, so we can see the needs of those around us. If we are full of pride we will be thinking about ourselves and our needs and working towards that end, with little thought about the people around us in whom we should be interested in and serving. In this passage we see the disciples arguing about which of them would be the greatest. This kind of arguing brings about disharmony among those who should have been close and unified. They were only concerned with there own lives not about those around them. Q2.Jesus asked a child to stand beside him to demonstrate to His disciples that He thought this little one was important which was contrary to the custom of the day. Children had no standing in society until they were 12 to 13 years. Before this age they were of no interest except to their parents. The disciples were inclined to keep the children away from Jesus but Jesus didn’t want that.Jesus was showing His disciples that they were to be different and to show humility and accept children as He accepted them. He also told them that if they accepted a child as He did they were accepting Him and also His Father who sent Him. Jesus knew this was hard for the disciples because He knew their pride and to accept a little child in His name would take humility. Q3. The disciples are full of pride and when they see someone who is not part of their group casting out demons they are not happy and stop him. They are insecure and feel threatened by his power. They feel they are the ones who have exclusive powers to caste out demons. They want to stop anyone they feel is threatening their unique position. Jesus rebukes them because He knows their hearts and knows exactly why they stopped him. Q4.Jesus rebukes the disciples because their reaction was totally wrong, it was motivated by their intolerance and racial and religious pride. They may have been hurt and angered because Jesus was rejected by the Samaritans but that was not a reason to destroy them. They were making a judgment that was not theirs to make. Jesus had come to save and not to destroy people. They could not share the good news with them at any stage if they were destroyed by fire. Their sense of righteousness without mercy was not fitting for the disciples of Jesus. It was as though they felt called to follow Jesus but did not have the love for certain people that Jesus had. This would effect their ministry because people can feel it when we have a sense of self righteousness and disapprove of people for some reason. This passage has a lot to teach every one of us because we all hold biases to some degree. This is a good reminder to examine ourselves and ask God to show us where our individual biases lie, and how we need to address them in order to be in line with what Jesus wants us to be. Q5. I find it difficult to love or even like those around me who reject Jesus and are so arrogant that they won’t even listen or they think they are far too advanced and sophisticated to believe in that rubbish! I ask God to help me find opportunity when I know I am meeting one of these unbelieving people. Also to give me grace to speak with gentleness and respect. But I still need forgiveness because my attitude in my heart is not Christ like.

Q1.Jesus rebukes the disciples in verses 41 for their unbelief, straight after that Jesus rebukes the demon and heals the boy. The disciples them can’t understand what Jesus is explaining to them about His approaching suffering and death, even though Jesus has told them before they still don’t understand. Next they start discussing who is the ‘ greatest’ among them. Jesus brings a child among them to demonstrate that the least among you is the greatest. The disciples see a man driving out demons , but Jesus did not send him out , so the disciples tried to stop him but Jesus told them not to stop him. The final rebuke is for their hatred of Samaritans , the disciples wanted to destroy their village because they did not welcome them but Jesus forbad them doing so. Q2. We have to live and contribute to this world even though we are belonging to this world , we are passing through on our way to our Heavenly Home. The light of Jesus must reflect of us onto other people. If our lives are immersed in Jesus we will be able to speak to others about Him, without feeling ashamed or ‘strange’. Even though we are in the midst of hostility a lot of the time we must continue doing and saying all we need to, in order to be know as Christians. We need to be in prayer for the Lord’s leading and guiding to be involved with others but to be confident in saying ‘ no’ when we need to. The deeper we get to know Jesus the less likely we are to have any desire to do anything or be involved in anything that would displease our Heavenly Father. We can influence those around us by being faithful to the things of God while living along side ungodliness. Q3. I think in general my response to rebuke has been to feel defensive and I have tried to explain why I did or did not do something. I have often felt hurt and felt the rebuke unjustified. However I have learnt over the years that I am not as perfect or good as I at times seem to think I am! I now go to God and ask His help to show me what I need to learn from the rebuke and what action, if any I need to take. I do make sure that a rebuke or criticism does not interfere with my relationship with the person who rebuked me. Sometimes this may be hard , if I feel the rebuke unwarranted but I remind myself that others don’t necessarily see my deeds or actions or words as I may see them. My Lord always helps in these situations! Q4. A Christian leader needs to be a godly man with one wife and to be able to control his family because if he cannot look after his family he will not be able to look after the church God has entrusted to him to lead. He also needs to be a man of integrity and godly maturity. He must teach and admonish as Jesus did. There are many illustrations of Jesus teaching and rebuking in the Bible and a Christian leader must do the same. Much prayer and seeking God’s leading and guiding will be done prior to rebuking anyone. This will always be done in a gentle and respectful manner , but with firmness and biblical discussion. Q5. Not everyone will take a rebuke in a positive way but a Christian leader must try and do it in such a way that it will bring about the needed repentence and change of direction. To do this in a harsh nagging way will alienate someone straight away. Or to keep mentioning the misdemeanour every time they meet , will annoy and provoke anger. Equally if the rebuke is given in a light , joking kind of attitude it will give the person the impression that their leader isn’t serious and that their sin isn’t that bad that they need to do something about it. It is not an easy situation for any leader as we are all different and need and take correction in different ways. Hopefully if we are walking close to God we will know if we are doing something wrong before our Christian leaders have to speak to us.

Q1.The Transfiguration is one of three occasions that Jesus picks Peter, James and John to be with Him for a special time.In Luke chapter8 they are allowed into the room when Jesus healed the daughter of Jairus. They were also with Jesus when they went deep into the Garden of Gethsemane for Jesus to pray prior to being betrayed and crucified. Jesus was training and revealing more and more of Himself to these Apostles, maybe because He could identify leadership qualities in them and spiritual maturity beyond that of the other disciples. Jesus treated them all as individuals and developed and nurtured each ones special gifts, and trained them to face life without Him. Q2.Jesus did this to show the disciples who He truly was and so they could see first hand His glory , this would help them after He had left them, It is so much easier to speak convincingly of things you have personally witnessed.It was an assurance of things to come in the future after Jesus had suffered. Q3. Maybe Jesus needed a few people who could understand fully who He really was. A few that He could open up to and be human with and receive their reassurance and help but at all times holding in tension the fact that He was the Son of God. This showed them without a doubt who He was. Q4.Eye witness accounts are important but people witnessing the same thing can give very different accounts and contradictory accounts of the event. The Word of God as we know is “ God Breathed” and is wholly accurate because it is from God, therefore we know we can believe everything it contains. There is nothing more important than the Word of God. Q5. My Christian experience has been positive. Life is hard but I have been blessed in so many ways by God. His constant presence is reassuring and helpful. He has often stopped me from making bad decisions, and has helped me when I have been in all sorts of difficult situations. I just could not imagine life without His presence and His leading and guiding. I just wish I had the words to convey this in a meaningful way to those around me.

Q1.The disciples find it hard to understand that the Messiah was going to be killed and would rise again. This was not in line with their expectations, they had understood that the Messiah would come and overthrow the Romans who have held them under oppressive rule for too many years. They longed to have their kingdom restored to Israel. But now Jesus was telling them He was going to die , He told them different aspects of what He would suffer over a period of time but they couldn’t accept it or understand it. After Jesus death His predictions made them realise that everything that happened was part of Gods plan. Q2.Daily taking up our cross, mean that if we want to live for Jesus and follow in His footsteps we must do His will and deny ourselves the things we want to do. It take discipline each day to do this but as we study God’s word , pray and learn more and more about Jesus and His wonderful, sacrificial love for us denying ourselves becomes easier. This is because as our love grows so does our desire to please Him and we will not be happy doing anything that is displeasing to Him. Unfortunately our sinful nature is always lurking not too far away so we cannot become complacent and we need to surrender ourselves to God every day. Q3.We should be faithful to Christ no matter the cost. And for our persecuted brothers and sisters that ‘cost’ may be death! But by dying they will save their eternal lives and live in God’s presence for all eternity. This is also what happened to all but one of the apostles. We may not have to face physical death but we could face eternal death, if we live life just as we please. Only by surrendering our wills to God and trusting in Him have any hope of preserving our lives in eternity. Q4.I would tell this person that no one is beyond the forgiveness of God. No matter how great the sin His mercy is greater still. But they have to turn their lives over to God and truely repent of their sin and be prepared to follow Him from this day until the end. In every situation they must uphold God and not revert back to their old ways. Q5. I try to speak to non Christians about God but I don’t do it on a continuous basis, otherwise I think they would start avoiding me. I will however continue to live my life to please the Lord. I don’t change my ways in their presence. I refuse politely if asked to go somewhere inappropriate, or if asked to do something on Sunday. I do this in a normal, nonjudgmental way, at least I hope I do! I say something if someone uses the Lord’s name in my presence. If I am asked what I did on any given night, I will say ‘ I was at my Bible study’ etc. I also pray both for those that I feel have no interest and those that may show a flicker of interest. Sometimes it can be hard when you can feel the antipathy radiating from someone but I continue as normal and try to be extra careful in being friendly or whatever is appropriate depending on the circumstances.Jesus had unbelievers listen to Him and believe, there were also those who tried to catch Him out so they could accuse Him .There were those that were too blind to see who He was, and those who were jealous of His following and sought to get rid of Him for their own evil designs.

Q1. Jesus knew He had serious questions He wanted to ask His disciples, and He also had planned to tell them about what was going to happen to Him in the near future. Jesus could not do this in a meaningful and proper manner if they were in the midst of a large crowd who were eager to hear Jesus teaching or people anxious to get up close to Jesus because they needed healing. So Jesus has drawn apart from the crowd and brought the disciples to a quiet place for a time of prayer and discussion.It was usual for Jesus to be in communication with His Father and especially before important events, eg before choosing his apostles (Luke 6v12). Praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before His passion and crucifixion. (Luke 22v40-46.) I am sure Jesus was asking His father for the correct words to say, and praying that the disciples did fully understand who He was. Q2.That question is almost like an ice- breaker before the real question comes. The disciples get the opportunity to discuss and talk about all the different people that Jesus is thought to be by those who have seen and heard Him. There is a distance and a remoteness in talking about others but now Jesus gets to the real question, there can be only an honest and straightforward answer to His question. Q3.I find that it depends on the situation and the person I am speaking with! Sometimes it can be so easy and joyful to be able to share with someone what Jesus has done for us. At other times it can be difficult, I find it hard if I am looking for an opportunity to say something and I can’t see an opening. If I feel the person has absolutely no interest in God or the things of God. If it is someone I have tried to speak to before and I have had a negative answer. I find with my children they have answers for everything I say and I think of great answers when the conversation is over. I know that I should find it easier if I loved Jesus more, but I find it hard to persist if a person doesn’t want to hear. Q4. I first declared my faith in Jesus publically when I was baptised at the age of 42. I have given my testimony on a few occasions when I have been asked. I thank God that He chose me to be part of His family. It is a constant source of wonder to me that Jesus left the splendour of Heaven and came to this sinful world and was born and lived in truely humble circumstances. During His public ministry He was rejected and reviled and disbelieved by many, this culminated in His torture, persecution and crucifixion on a cross. All so that I and all humanity could choose to spend eternity in His Glorious Presence. All we have to do is turn from our sinful way of life and follow Him. Romans 6v23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.Romans5v 8 But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Q1. Even though Jesus and the disciples were exhausted and Jesus was grieving for John, when He saw the crowds gathered He had compassion on them and He welcomed them. He spent the day preaching to them and healing the sick among them. He did not react as most of us would do if someone was wanting attention when we are tired or not feeling well. He was the very opposite to us He welcomed them , He had compassion on them , He loved them despite how He was feeling Himself . He was also being a good example to the disciples and to us as His followers. We also need to ‘die to self’ and put other people’s needs before our own. We also need Godly wisdom to know when it is time to take time off in order to recharge our batteries. We are no use to anyone if we are exhausted, emotional and tetchy . Neither can we be effective and efficient in the Lord’s service if we are over tired. And we may do a disservice to the Lord by being in a place when we are not fit and able. If we are in doubt whether to take time out , it is always good to seek advice from someone you respect and can trust to give you a straight and honest answer and advice. Q2.Jesus was going to use this opportunity to teach the disciples that their own resources are far from adequate and that they must trust God and give His recognition and ‘all the glory’. Q3. Jesus was teaching the disciples and us an important lesson. They had to realise how inadequate they were for the task. Humanly speaking they could not provide what was needed. But could they contribute anything to the cause? It is also a question for us, we may not have much but what can we give Jesus to help the cause at a particular time? Jesus took what they found and used it and added to it to provide what was needed. So we can see the contrast between the small amount that we can provide and realise that God provides the rest. To Him be the Glory. Q4.My record to date in surrendering what I have to the Lord is poor! I struggle in case I don’t have enough! Also my husband is not a believer and my giving has at times caused problems because he does not understand about ‘ giving to the Lord’ . I have explained but he refuses to accept that I should support anything but our own household! In recent years since our children are educated and living independently I do have a bit more disposable income which I give to the Lord but I am always fearful of my husband being annoyed. This is not a good answer but I am afraid it is the truth.