hanks

3. What is the stated purpose why Jesus told this parable? (18:1) Jesus told this parable to teach the disciples, and us, they we should always pray and never lose heart or give up. Like the widow in the parable who persistently bothered the unjust judge, we are to persistently continue to pray, and if this uncaring, unjust judge ultimately answers; how much more will our loving and holy Heavenly Father answer our prayers. To be effective our prayers may require tenacity and faithfulness, and is based on absolute trust and faith in God. We know He will answer when, where, and how He chooses. But then God expects us to keep on asking, seeking, knocking, and praying until the answers come (Matt 7:7–8).

2. Describe the widow. What makes her tick? Why do you think she is so persistent? (18:3) Throughout the Scriptures we notice that there’s a special place in the heart of God for widows, who seem to be the most vulnerable people in the world. In the society of that time, woman had little status before the law, and being a widow made matters worse. She must have been financially in dire straits, and therefore had no option but to be persistent in getting her case heard. She would have had no money to bribe the judge – which was the usual practice. She was also a ‘no-body’ and the unjust judge took no notice of her until she started to irritate him. I think she persisted because she knew that justice was on her side.

1. Describe the judge in this parable. What do we know about his motivations? (18:2, 4-5) The judge does not fear God, and this tells me is a fool (Prov 1:7). By not fearing God he has no desire to walk in His ways, no desire to serve Him, no desire to keep His commandments, and definitely no desire to dispense justice. He even admits this about himself, saying that he neither fears God or cares about men (18:4). He is totally an unjust man who has no reverence for God and obviously has no regard for the rights of man or for what they think about him. True to character he demonstrates utter contempt for any sense of justice and shows no compassion to anyone, even a lowly widow. She was in his court every day pleading her case and she had become very troublesome to the judge. Having only concern for himself, acting out of selfish motives he finally grants the widow her request, but only to get rid of her persistent and continual nagging. Money could also have been a motivation factor in ignoring the poor widow. It would not be beyond him to accept bribes from her adversary. A truly a wicked man who had no right to be a judge, and one who abused his position of power.

Q5. (Acts 5:17-42) Why do you think Luke includes this long section about the apostles' imprisonment, trial before the Sanhedrin, and flogging? In your culture, what does it take to keep Christians from sharing their faith openly? Do you share your faith openly? Peter’s testimony began and ended with a reference to obeying God. The disciples are under obligation to obey Him, and by doing this, even though they may suffer when disobeying the authorities, they will be richly rewarded by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. They were ordered for the second time not to speak in the name of Jesus (5:40). We have to admire them for despite their imprisonment, the trial before the Sanhedrin, and flogging, they were rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering dishonour for the Name (5:41). They again boldly defied the authorities ban, and never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that the Christ is Jesus (5:42). They knew that must obey God rather than men. Possible causes for not sharing our faith openly can be the fear of rejection or humiliation. Maybe a feeling of not knowing enough about Scripture, or failing to trust in the Lord. Another reason could be that we are not in fellowship with Jesus. Whatever the reason, we are commanded to be bold for Jesus (Eph 6:19). Yes, when given the opportunity. I know I should be much more active in seeking the lost.

Q4. (Acts 5:1-11) What is the central sin Ananias and Sapphira are guilty of? Why is lying to Peter the same as "lying to the Holy Spirit" (verse 3), "lying to God" (verse 4)? How can acting toward the church as a mere human institution put us under God's judgment? What does it mean to "test the Spirit of the Lord" in verse 9. Why was that wrong? Both Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, must have seen the great generosity of Barnabas and how well he was respected. They decided to sell a piece of property expecting to receive the same respect. After selling the property they kept some of the proceeds of the sale, only giving a portion to the church, while implying that they had given all sacrificially to the church. His wife was aware of the deception, they both wanted the image of great generosity. Besides the attempt to deceive God and the church, both were guilty of hypocrisy, and contempt of God – all because of their **** for recognition and praise. God must have given Peter supernatural knowledge of what Ananias had done. This spiritual gift, called the word of knowledge, is mentioned in 1Cor 12:8. Peter did not accuse Ananias of lying to the church or to the apostles, but to the Holy Spirit Himself. This clearly shows us that the Holy Spirit was a Person, because one can only lie to a person. He also believed the Holy Spirit is God “You have not lied to men but to God”. Their sin was also against the church, since falsehood ruins fellowship. One can only imagine if this hypocrisy had not been exposed and punished, the Christian ideal of open fellowship would not have lasted, and we would all be called hypocrites today. Peter’s question “Why did the two of you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord?” Reminds us of the command God gave His people in Deu 6:16: “Do not test the LORD your God as you put Him to the test at Massah”. They tested God ten times and then faced the death penalty that was executed during their stay in the desert (Num 14:21-23). Jesus, when He was tempted by Satan to jump from the pinnacle of the temple, also appealed to the command not to tempt the Lord God (Mat 4:7).

Q3. (Acts 4:32) Why is "having everything in common" at the root of true Christian fellowship? Of koinonia? What does this have to do with the mark of disciples who are known for deep love for one another (John 13:34-35)? To what degree does the church fall short of this? What are we going to do about it? After the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the disciples discovered that their own hearts were strongly united out of their common loyalty to Jesus. There was now a new society of people, the church, in fellowship with God and with one another. This unity was wonderful evidence of the work of the Holy God Spirit among them, and resulted in a change in the attitude towards each other and towards material possessions. They started regarding people more important than things, and started sharing everything they had with fellow believers. There was a sincere love of each other, shown by their selfless sharing. But it was also a higher degree of love: “As I have loved you, so you must love one another (John 13:34). The true mark of a Christian is love for his fellow Christians. This requires divine power, and this power is only given to those indwelt by the Spirit. The church often falls short of this because sincere love involves selfless giving, and self-centred people cannot truly love. God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom 5:8). As a church, out of gratitude for God's love and forgiveness, we should be taking our eyes off ourselves and start focussing on the needs of others. By loving others, following His example, and giving of ourselves sacrificially. I read somewhere that this radical sharing of possessions among the early church might have been a mistake. Since the believers had assumed that Jesus was returning immediately, and this led to much poverty in the Jerusalem church later on. Need to plan carefully, and change our attitude towards possessions, and be more willing to share.

Q2. (Acts 4:31) What does it mean, "They were all filled with the Holy Spirit"? Weren't they already filled with the Spirit? This is not the baptism of the Holy Spirit which took place at Pentecost. Which takes place once in the life of a believer at salvation – the first yielding to the Spirit’s power. We need to be continually filled with the Spirit to enable us to live a life in obedience to our Lord, to help us become more and more like Jesus Christ, and to help us persevere, that is keep us on the straight and narrow path. To look for opportunities in our family and neighbourhood to talk about Christ, and not to be scared of rejection, and embarrassment. As believers they receive a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit, who fills them with courage so that they proclaim the Good News. This enables them to receive the boldness they asked for. Their boldness was a gift from God, received through prayer. It was not something that they tried to create in themselves. This gave them the boldness that they needed to continue to serve God in spite of official opposition. It was a new filling of the Spirit to equip the believers to serve the Lord and minister to the people.

Q1. (Acts 4:23-31) Why do the believers pray for boldness? Why do they need boldness in this circumstance? What does this tell us about their faith? Their character? The believers pray for boldness to proclaim Christ’s gospel as a way to counteract the Sanhedrin’s threat. They are confident that God will not allow His plan and purpose to be frustrated by the rulers of the people. They prayed for boldness, with power and confidence, for they knew that they were praying to the Lord of all creation, the God of all power. They also asked God to continue confirming their ministry to the people, with miracles, signs, and wonders done in the name of Jesus. In that day, miracles and wonders were signs that confirmed the preaching of the Good News. Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, indicating their obedience to the Lord, their walking in the light, and their obedience to Him. We notice that they did not pray to have the situation they found themselves to be changed, but rather to give them the boldness and power to achieve what He has already predetermined (Acts 4:28). Praying for power that is equal to the task. They knew they had a conflict situation and that their battle was not only against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, and against the rulers of the darkness. Showing complete faith in the Sovereign Lord, the God who is in control of all things. What they also did was to pray in unity, that is having the same mind when they prayed. There was no strife, argument, disagreement, and/or division among them; which would only hinder prayer and result in loss of spiritual power. Also, there was no disorder, which is evidence of the Holy Spirit leading, for God is a God of order.

6. What does Jesus' parable of the gathering vultures teach us about His location when He comes? (17:37) The disciples had asked our Lord where this judgment would occur, and He answered that wherever there are dead bodies, there the vultures will be gathered. The vultures symbolise future judgments and dead bodies are represented by evil, any form of unbelief or rebellion against God, no matter where it is found. Vultures are scavengers, and will feed on the corpses of those killed in the judgments associated with the second coming. Those who fail to heed the warnings of imminent judgment and reject our Lord will be caught in that judgment.

5. Jesus tells of people in close physical proximity to each other, and warns that one will be taken and the other left. What does this teach us about the nature of Jesus' coming? Where will they be taken? What happens to those who are left? (17:34-35) Physical proximity or nearness to each other will neither save nor **** anyone. When this day arrives, every opportunity to be saved will be gone forever. The door will be shut to those who failed to take advantage of the opportunity to be saved (Matt 25:10). What happens during the night is depicted in (17:34), and what takes place during the day is depicted in (17:35). This is very logical, for if Jesus arrives in the air above a place where it is night, it will be day on the other side of the globe; and vice versa. Briefly, those taken will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. To be with Him forever. (1Thess 4:17). Those left behind are left to their doom. The angels will round up all causes of sin and all evildoers and throw them into the furnace of fire, where they will weep and gnash their teeth (Matt 13:40-42).

4. What does "trying to keep one's life" have to do with turning to get one's possessions? What is the paradox here that trying to save one's life results in losing it? Explain. (17:31-33) Turning to get one’s possessions indicates that our focus is on our earthly things and not one spiritual things. With Jesus’ coming our possessions and earthly matters are of no importance at all, as believers we are going to be with our Saviour and unbelievers will be go to hell. If we only care for “trying to keep our life”, that is our physical safety, and not caring for our soul, we will lose it – our soul that is. On the other hand, if we lose our life during this period of Jesus’ coming because of our faithfulness to the Lord, we will actually preserve it for all eternity.

3. Jesus warns those on the roof or in the field not to go back to get their possessions. Why? What does this have to do with Lot's wife? (17:31-32) Jesus warns us that His coming will happen so suddenly that there will be no time to salvage earthly possessions. Meaning that now is not the time to worry about earthly interests, but rather to surrender wholeheartedly to Him, our Saviour. Look what happened to Lot’s wife who placed earthly values above heaven, and material things above spiritual. She was told to “Flee for your lives! Don't look back … “(Gen 19:17a); “But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt” (Gen 19:26).

2. At His coming is Jesus going to bring peace or punishment? Both, Jesus will bring peace or punishment depending on our relationship with Him. It will be a time of separation, believers from unbelievers. In short, there will be the Final Judgment (Matt 25:31-46), and believers will be with Jesus and enjoy a time of peace and prosperity. To the unbelievers Jesus will say, “Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt 25:41). They will receive punishment and spend eternity in hell.

1. What two things do the "days of Noah" have in common with the "days of Lot"? What point is Jesus making by comparing His coming to those events? (17:26-30). The two things both events have in common are the suddenness of the coming destruction and the majority of people living a life of complacency neglecting spiritual matters – careless and totally unprepared. Jesus is warning us against false security. He was comparing His coming to the coming of the flood in Noah’s day, and to the coming of judgment on Sodom. People in Noah’s day were not prepared for the Flood, and therefore they were completely destroyed (Gen 6:1-22) - warning that people who live with no thought or time for God will similarly not be ready. In the same way the indifferent and materialistic people of Sodom were not prepared for God’s judgment (Gen 19:1-38). They were living in sin, oblivious to God, resulting in their destruction.

5. There's been a lot of speculation in our own day about the coming of Christ. Witness the huge mainstream popularity of Tim LeHay's "Left Behind" series. What are the problems this creates for disciples? What are the strengths this offers disciples? Sorry, I cannot comment as I’ve never even heard about the Left Behind series. No excuses, but remember I live in Darkest Africa! Without any offence, I think I would still rather prefer spending my time reading about end-times theology in the Bible.

4. Why was it so difficult for the disciples to comprehend that Jesus had to suffer? The disciples had been taught about a future Messiah that would come to usher in a new era in the history of their nation. Throughout the OT they had learnt about the Messiah as a figure chosen and anointed by God to deliver and redeem His people. He would be their future King, so it must have been most difficult for them to even try to understand that Jesus must suffer many things and be rejected by their generation. The Messiah to suffer and be executed? Impossible! They would only learn later that the suffering of Christ was God’s plan for the salvation of the world. That Jesus suffered and died in order to secure salvation for all who would believe. That there was no other way for us to be saved.

3. According to 17:24, will Jesus' coming be secret or public? Jesus’ coming will be public. He made it clear to us that there will be no doubt in anyone’s mind when He returns to this earth. There will be tremendous flashes of lightning which will come suddenly and very quickly, and it will light up the sky from one end to the other. This will be visible to us all, so we all will know of His Second Coming. One can imagine, we will be behaving in a normal way, and then in an instant, everything will be changed. Come, Lord Jesus Come!

2. How do we know for certain that the real messiah won't be the subject of messiah-sightings in the next decade or two? (17:22-23) Jesus warns us that many will come and claim to be the Messiah, but we are not to be deceived by such false claims. Others will say that Jesus has returned – and people will believe them. Also, there will be attempts to pinpoint exactly when Jesus will return. We are not to take these reports seriously, no matter how convincing they may appear. Such speculation can only be false predictions by false teachers trying to lead believers astray. Because, when Jesus returns, His power and His presence will be evident to everyone, like lightning that flashes across the sky. There will be no need for anyone to spread the message since everyone will be able to see this for themselves.

1. How could the Kingdom be in or in the midst of the Pharisees? (17:20-21) The Lord Jesus had not meant that the kingdom was actually inside the hearts of the Pharisees, because they were hardened religious hypocrites who had no room in their hearts for Christ the King. He meant that the kingdom of God was in their midst. That He, Jesus Christ was in their midst. He was the rightful King of Israel and had performed His miracles, and presented His credentials for all to see. But the Pharisees had no desire to receive Him. And so, for them, the kingdom of God had presented itself and was completely unnoticed by them.

Q4. (Acts 4:19-20) We are told to submit to the civil authorities God has placed over us (Romans 13:1). How are we to balance submission to God with submission to parents and government? How can we be faithful to God and still be humble? All civil authorities that exist are appointed by God, and for this reason we are told to submit to them as this is part of His plan. The nation’s leaders are also appointed by God, but not always to bless the people, perhaps to judge the people or to prepare the nation for judgment. Therefore, if we resists civil authority, we resists the ordinance of God. And by doing this we will bring judgment upon ourselves. We are to be good citizens, honest in all our dealings with the state, but we are still loyal to God before we are loyal to the state. Since governments have authority from God, we are bound to obey them - unless, of course, they order us to do something in contradiction to God’s law. Then, we are commanded to obey God before man (Acts 4:19). The same argument applies to parents who obviously have been appointed by God. We can be faithful to God and still be humble by praying for the civil authorities, and leaders/parents God has placed over us. We pray for the good leaders who act as servants of God, who promote the good of the people - their security, peace, and general welfare. But we might be unfortunate to have ungodly leaders/parents, we are to pray for them as well, hoping they will come to their senses.

Q3. (Acts 4:12) What are the implications of believing that Jesus Christ is the exclusive way to God? How does this conviction energize evangelism? Why does our culture resist this belief so adamantly? The implications are that each one of us must make a personal decision to put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation. The gate of Christian discipleship is narrow and the way is difficult, but this leads to eternal life. On the other hand, there is the wide gate - the life of self-indulgence and pleasure, which leads to destruction. What we decide is a matter of life or death, it will determine where we spend eternity. The choice is ours – heaven or hell. This makes it even more urgent for us to evangelise and make disciples for our Lord. So many people don’t realise the magnitude of this decision; don’t understand that there is no other way; are misled by false teachings; are deceived by Satan, or are just plain stubborn, and need to understand the seriousness of what is involved here. Peter didn’t proclaim Jesus as a way of salvation, but as the only way of salvation. Many people don’t mind saying that Jesus is one legitimate way to God, and other religions and even individuals have their own ways to God. They don’t want to believe that Jesus is the only way. The world hates such statements and finds it hard to accept, rather believing that there are many roads to heaven, or that they can take a combination of faiths to get them to heaven, or even believing that all are saved and will spend eternity in heaven. Then there are the majority who think they can earn their way into heaven by works. Instead of putting their trust and faith in Jesus, they prefer to try and find a way to save themselves. They refuse to accept the truth that Jesus is the way and the truth and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through Jesus (John 14:6). We might ask about the person who has never heard about Jesus, and the infant who dies – we can be sure God is a God of love and will deal with them fairly and justly. We need also to ask what about those who have heard and have rejected our Lord and Saviour? Remember our Heavenly Father is a God of love, mercy, and grace; not wishing any to perish but all to be saved.

Q2. (Acts 3:19-20) Why is repentance necessary to experience personal "times of refreshing," peace, and renewal? According to Acts 3:19-20, when does the ultimate "time of refreshing" come? Before the “times of refreshing” can come, sins have to be blotted out, and for this to happen there has to be repentance. John the Baptist had prepared the way for Jesus by preaching that people should repent, that is turn away from their sins. In the same way, Peter’s message of salvation also included the call to repent - acknowledging personal sin and turning to God by believing in Jesus the Messiah. Peter was saying that after Israel's repentance, God will bring the “final restoration of all things”, referring to the Second Coming, the Last Judgment, and the removal of sin from the world. In His grace and love, God gives Israel one more opportunity to acknowledge the Christ. If they reject Him a second time, they will not be able to come to repentance when Jesus eventually returns on the clouds of heaven. Peter mentions that their repentance will speed Christ’s return (2 Pet 3:12).

Q1. (Acts 3:6, 16; 4:10) What kind power do we possess in the name of Jesus? Why do many believers conclude their prayers, "in Jesus' name, Amen"? (John 14:14) How does praying in Jesus' name relate to praying in God's will? Can we misuse praying in Jesus' name? If so, how? We possess the power of the Holy Spirit which is given to us by the authority of Jesus Christ. “In the name of Jesus Christ” means “by the authority of Jesus Christ.” The apostle Peter was given the power of healing by the authority of Jesus Christ, the healing was done through the Holy Spirit’s power, and not by his own power. It is because Jesus, our great High Priest, has made us acceptable to God, that we can approach God directly. Not because of any merit in us. But, when we pray in Jesus’ name, we must pray according to God’s character and will. The emphasis here is on God's will, not our will. It’s not about adding Jesus’ name at the end of our prayers, it’s to ask for those things that will glorify God, and be for our own spiritual good. We can easily misuse praying in Jesus’ name by making demands that are not at all in line with what God wants for us. Unless we are in a close relationship with our Lord Jesus, we will not know the things God wants for us - the things that are pleasing in God’s sight. So, we cannot use Jesus’ name as a magic formula to fulfil our selfish desires. We can be certain God hears our prayers if we ask what pleases Him, and we know that if God hears us we can be certain our prayers will be answered (1 John 5:14-15).

Q5. (Acts 2:42-47) What characteristics of the early church in Acts 2:42-47 are necessary for healthy congregations in our day? In which of these characteristics is your congregation most healthy? Most unhealthy? Jesus said, “I will build My church” (Mat 16:18). The church, still future when Jesus spoke these words, was formed on the Day of Pentecost and is composed of all true believers in Christ, both Jew and Gentile. A distinct society known as the body and bride of Christ, it has a unique heavenly calling and destiny. Unless it has the characteristics Peter mentions it will not survive. The congregation was composed of believers who steadfastly devoted themselves to the Apostles inspired teaching; Biblical doctrine today. There will be constant growth as they reach out to the local community. It will be a learning church, having a hunger for the Word. Another evidence of a healthy congregation will be its commitment to fellowship. There will be the desire to be together with other believers and to share things in common. A sense of being separated to God from the world, and a community of interests with other Christians. There will be frequent celebration the Lord’s Supper. It will be a praying church. One that will be completely dependent on the Lord for worship, guidance, preservation, and service. Finally, it will be a caring church, one that has a program for caring for the needy in the congregation and community. My church is a healthy praying church, spending much time in prayer, and one that is serious about teaching the true Word of God. Not so healthy is the growth of the church.

Q4. (Acts 2:38-40) What about repentance and baptism is vital for forgiveness? To whom is the Holy Spirit promised? What will save us from our corrupt cultures today? For forgiveness we must repent of our sins and turn to God, putting our faith in our Saviour Jesus Christ. We change our life of sin, selfishness and rebellion against God, turning to Christ, depending on Him for forgiveness, mercy, grace, guidance, and purpose. This is a wholehearted change of values and direction. For believers, baptism is visible proof of repentance and commitment to follow Jesus, the Messiah. The Holy Spirit is promised to all, without exception, to whom the Lord our God will call. That is, everyone God calls to Himself through Christ. The only way to save us from the corrupt cultures of today, is to leave it and change by joining a new culture of believers, that is the church. We need to be with other believers for fellowship, prayer, and teaching. Living a life glorifying our Heavenly Father, humbly remembering that we are sinners saved by grace!