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Q3. (Acts 2:14-36) What part(s) of Peter's message on the Day of Pentecost was so convicting to those who heard it? Peter accuses the Jewish people of participation in the Messiah’s death. “You, with the help of wicked men, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross” (2:23b). God’s plan is to bring salvation to people through the death and resurrection of Jesus. God is the sovereign Lord of all events, and rules history to fulfil His purposes. What His will determines; His power carries out (4:28). God used the Jews and the Romans to do what He had determined before – the death of Jesus on the cross. The people were culpable; the Romans were involved but ultimately the Jews had been responsible. They had not recognised Jesus as the Messiah and had allowed their leaders to kill Him. Then Peter went on proving that Jesus was both Lord and Messiah. “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah” (2:36b). This announcement comes crashing down upon the Jewish people. GOD HAS MADE BOTH LORD AND CHRIST - THIS JESUS WHOM YOU CRUCIFIED. They had crucified God's Anointed One. “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do? (2:37).

Q2. (Acts 2:11-13) Why are these messages in tongues so convincing to the crowds? What is the content of the messages the believers are speaking out in these various languages? In what kind of Bible books do we see this kind of content? The crowd was a multi-lingual crowd, and they heard the wonders of God being declared in their own language! Yet the speakers were known to be Galileans (7), not the most cultured in Israel. This speaking in different languages was one of three supernatural signs that accompanied the Holy Spirit coming upon the people. They heard the wind-like sound, saw the fire-like apparition, and spoke the different languages. We see that three of the higher senses were affected. It is not surprising that the crowd’s reaction was one of bewilderment (6). The Psalms are full of praise to God.

Q1. (Acts 2:1-4) When the Holy Spirit falls on the Day of Pentecost, what is the significance of the sound of wind? Of the flames? Of the spontaneous speaking of the praises of God in other languages? How does this filling conform to Old Testament patterns? In Scripture the imagery of wind points to both the revelation of God and the work of the Holy Spirit. Here the significance of the sound of wind, is that it denotes heavenly power, and its suddenness reveals the start of a supernatural event. The people did not feel the wind; they heard the sound of a mighty wind, it was a sound which “filled the whole house”, and was instantly recognized as a miracle “from heaven”. The significance of the flames (“tongues of fire”) that rested on each one of them, was to add a visual sign to the invisible sound of the wind. At this point each one received the Spirit, by the baptism with the Spirit, and were all made into one spiritual body – the body of Christ. The miracle at Pentecost was the filling of the Holy Spirit, followed by the speaking of other languages as led by the Holy Spirit. The significance of this was that they were given the miraculous power to speak actual foreign languages which they had never done before. This was another one of the signs or wonders God used to bear witness to the truth of the message which the apostles preached (Heb 2:3-4). I think that this was not gibberish talk or utterances but definite languages that was in use in other parts of the world. The Holy Spirit had been active prior to Pentecost and had worked in Creation (Gen 1:1–2), in Old Testament history (Judg 6:34; 1 Sam 16:13), and in the life and ministry of Jesus (Luke 1:30–37; 4:1, 14; Acts 10:38). However, now there would be two changes: the Spirit would dwell in people and not just come on them, and His presence would be permanent, not temporary (John 14:16–17). We are indwelt by God's Spirit the moment we are saved, but to be filled with the Spirit we must study the Word, spend time in meditation and prayer, and live-in obedience to the Lord. Prior to this the Holy Spirit had been with the disciples, but now He took residence in them (John 14:17). This was an important turning point, for in the OT the Spirit came upon a person, but now the Spirit came to stay (John 14:16); indwelt people permanently.

7. Why is it so easy to forget to thank God for His blessings? Like the other nine, we are prone to be quick to ask for God’s blessing, but easily forget to give Him thanks. We are quick to pray but slow to praise. Our problem is deeper than mere forgetfulness. This spirit of ingratitude is part of our sinful nature, and it is only the Holy Spirit that can change us, and give us a spirit of thankfulness. Also, thanksgiving is an admission of our dependence on our Heavenly Father, and an acknowledgement that He gives everyone life and breath and everything else (Acts 17:25b). Our only proper response is to glorify Him from a thankful heart. If only we could come to the realisation that He blesses us far more than we even appreciate and far more than we deserve.

6. In the phrase "Your faith has saved you" (17:19b) is Jesus speaking of the leper's physical healing, or his spiritual salvation, or both? Were the nine lepers saved or healed spiritually? Why or why not? Jesus is speaking about both physical healing and spiritual salvation. The thankful leper was both healed and saved. The praise and thanksgiving of the Samaritan were actually far more than only gratitude. He made a decision to come to Jesus in faith, and received something far greater than physical healing: he was also saved from his sins. The other nine were healed, but they were not saved because they did not have the attitude of thanksgiving. Ingratitude is a symptom of disbelief, and leads to futility and darkening of the mind in unbelief (Romans 1:21). They only wanted to be healed, to exploit the power of Jesus for their own selfish needs, and were not interested in any further commitment to Jesus. The ungrateful person refuses to acknowledge receipt of anything by grace, and it is only by grace that one can be saved.

5. What was Jesus' attitude toward the thankful leper? Toward the other nine lepers? (17:17-18) He was pleased with the thankful leper and not only healed him but saved him from his sins. However, it is also clear that Jesus was grieved because only one of the ten cleansed lepers returned to give praise to God. A group of Jews allow a Samaritan to outdo them in praising God and giving thanks. And this even though the Jewish nation had been blessed far above any other nation (Psalm 147:20). Jesus had shown mercy to every single one of the ten, all had been healed, and were able to return to their homes. Since all were cleansed, He asks “where are the other nine?” The main point is that all should have returned to praise God and thank Jesus for their healing. Their refusing to respond to God’s healing removes the real purpose of a miracle – the physical healing remains, but the spiritual healing never takes place. The lack of gratitude by the other nine was typical of the rejection of His ministry by the Jewish nation. He alone had the power to cleanse the nation and make it ceremonially clean. However, the nation did not respond properly to Him. The nation accepted the things that Jesus could do (such as heal them and feed them), but it did not want to accept Him as Messiah.

4. What about the thankful leper's actions showed his thankfulness? (17:15-16) This leper showed his thankfulness by returning to thank Jesus. By praising God with a loud voice. Jesus had healed him and he was going to make it known! This was the heartfelt praise of a person who had been healed by Jesus’ mighty power. Then he threw himself at Jesus’ feet, a posture of worship, to praise Him and give thanks. Even giving praise to God. Twice it is mentioned that he glorified God (15, 18). That is to exalt Him, and to let others know of His great mercy, grace, and how great He is.

3. Why does Luke make the point that the lepers weren't healed until they started to obey Jesus' command? (17:14b) The point Luke is making, is that in obedience to Jesus’ command, “Go, show yourselves to the priests” before healing them; was a test of their faith. The fact that they were only healed from a distance while on their way to the priests, shows us that they had responded in obedient faith. I feel this calls for a great amount of faith on their part, to leave without being healed and yet with the expectation that this will occur. Jesus was asking the men to respond in faith so that, by their obedience, they would be healed. All responded in faith, and Jesus healed them on the way.

2. What is the significance of the lepers showing themselves to the priests? (17:14a) What is significant is that the lepers responded to Jesus’ command to show themselves to the priests before they were healed. They responded in faith and on their way to the priests all were healed. The priests had no power to heal them, and was chosen as the only person that could pronounce them clean, so that they could return to their homes and be with their families. The difference here to a previous healing of a leper (5:13) was that Jesus did not touch them or even say “Be clean!,” or anything similar. And that at first He healed the man and only then told him to go and show himself to the priest. But here, without any evidence of healing, Jesus commands these ten lepers to go and show themselves to the priests.

1. What do you think the lepers expected when they called out to Jesus for mercy? (17:13) Food, shelter, clothing, or actual healing? I think the leper’s plea for mercy was a cry for healing. Their greatest concern would be for healing, and not for food, shelter or clothing. This was a golden opportunity to ask Him for mercy and compassion; perhaps the only opportunity they would ever have. Definitely not a chance to be missed. Having immediately recognised Jesus, and having heard about His miracle healings, they believed that He might heal them, or at the very least take pity on them. By calling Him Master, they acknowledged Jesus as Master of disease and even of nature itself, the only question was would He have compassion on them. We know that God delights in showing mercy to those who cry out for it. God is rich in mercy. The fact that in obedience to Jesus’ command to show themselves to the priests, BEFORE healing took place, to me, confirms that they were expecting to be healed. Otherwise, why go and show themselves to the priests? It was only when they thought that their leprosy had gone away that they would present themselves to a priest, who could declare them clean (Lev 14).

5. Why is "duty" such a bad word in our culture? Clearly today it’s all about my human rights, my rights, what’s in it for me. As a citizen what do I get, as a Christian what do I get. Not about my duty, my obligation, or my responsibility as a good citizen, or my duty, my obligation, my responsibility as a good Christian. It’s all about me, so we conveniently forget our duties as a Christian. We forget that God loved us and saved us while we were still sinners. We forget to serve our Lord for the joy and privilege of being part of His family as well as future heirs in His Kingdom. We forget that we are in a master-servant relationship and that we are obliged to serve Him with no expectation of return. We forget that we do our duty not for reward or payment but rather for the privilege of serving Him. We forget we deserve nothing from God and are to serve Him without making any demands. So, our obedience is not something extra that we do for God, rather it is our duty as a Christian. Our attitude and response should be one of unworthy servants, only doing their duty, and obeying His commands without asking what is in it for us. We should remember Jesus said, “if you love Me, keep My commands” (John 14:14). Then we will see that God does reward our acts of duty and responsibility, but He does this not out of obligation, but out of love.

4. In what ways do we citizens of the twenty-first century take God for granted, expect Him to do our bidding, and become petulant when He doesn't grant our wishes? We take God for granted, conveniently forgetting that we are in a master-servant relationship, and that we are obliged to serve Him with no expectation of a return. We become easily irritated and annoyed, failing to realize that we are His creatures/servants/slaves and we don’t deserve anything; whatever we do receive is by His mercy and grace only. We behave like spoilt brats when we don’t get our way, when God doesn’t give us what we want, when He doesn’t perform to our liking, we have tantrums, and start throwing our toys out of the cot. When in prayer we should not be demanding what we want, but rather try to find out what He wants for us – what is best for us. It is when we ask for anything according to His will that we know He hears us. And when we know He hears us, we can be sure that we will get whatever we asked of Him (1 John 5:14-15).

3. What does this parable say to the Pharisees, who expected God's special favour towards them because of their strict observance of the law? The Pharisees were proud and self-righteous and saw no need for salvation. They strictly obeyed the Law and this made them think more highly of themselves, even believing that they would receive special treatment from God. Not realising that God hates pride, that they are sinners, that they are lost, and that they cannot save themselves by obeying the Law. False religions tell us that there is something we can do or be in order to win favour with God. This is the very heart of the difference between true Christianity and all other teachings. Their salvation would require them to give up their self-righteousness, confess that they are sinners by nature, that there is nothing good in them, and that they had to repent and put their faith in Jesus Christ. The true Christian will never trust in their own goodness, and will never boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2. In the parable, the slave should not expect thanks for fixing the family dinner. Why? The slave should not expect any thanks for preparing the family dinner, because obedience is not something extra that is earned. He was only doing his duty and he does not expect any thanks or extra credit. The slave belongs to his master and his primary duty is to obey.

1. In Jesus' parable, should a slave expect his master to prepare dinner for him, or should the slave expect to prepare dinner for his master after doing his other chores? To prepare the dinner was part of his duties as a servant and it was required that he obey his master. He could not expect his master to prepare dinner for him, even after a hard day’s work in the field.

9. Why do the disciples balk at this by asking for more faith? What does Jesus' answer about the mustard seed and the mulberry tree mean? What is His point? The disciples’ thought of forgiving 7 times in a single day must have seemed like an impossible task. That is why they asked Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus’ answer was that it was not so much about the quantity of faith they had, but more about the quality of faith they possessed. His point is that what prevents us from forgiving others is our own pride and self-importance. Once these are rooted up and cast out, faith as small as a mustard seed, which can even uproot a mulberry tree (very difficult to uproot) and plant it in the sea, will be available. In other words, no task assigned by the Lord, would be impossible for us to accomplish, as long as we remain in trustful fellowship with the Lord.

8. Why does Jesus add the "7 times" and the "7 times 70" part of His teaching? What is His intent? Jesus meant that it does not matter how many times we must forgive, but that we should always forgive those that are truly repentant. It was not a literal 490 times, but a figurative way of saying that there is no limit on how often we forgive. Jesus wants us to remember that this is the gracious way our Heavenly Father treats us. No matter how often we fail Him, we still have the assurance that “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9).

7. Isn't there a danger in forgiving a person who isn't "truly" repentant? How repentant is repentant enough for us? Enough for God? True repentance can never be just a flippant “I’m sorry”. True repentance always involves hurt, and there is a price to pay for sinning against that person. By forgiving a person who isn’t truly repentant we run the danger of that person sinning again and again. Perhaps unaware that they are sinning, but also seeing that they are getting away with it, they continue without consideration of the hurt they are causing others. When dealing with fellow believers we should trust them for being repentant, give them the benefit of any doubt we may have, unless that person continues with the same sin. Although we should still forgive them, we can know that they were not repentant. God knows our heart, so He will know if we are truly repentant.

6. What does it mean to forgive a Christian brother or sister who has repented of a sin against you? Is it possible to maintain a meaningful relationship with a person who is unwilling to repent of sin? Why or why not? If a brother or sister does sin against us, there is a tendency to feel hurt down inside, to nurse a grudge, and tell others what happened to us. Instead, we should forgive that person as often as he or she needs it, this will create a much better chance of restoring the relationship. And we should forgive that person immediately, as this frees us from a bitter, and unforgiving spirit. Because of His great mercy God forgave us, and as we come to understand this mercy, we will want to forgive others. Even though we have forgiven that person in our heart, we do not yet tell our Christian brother or sister that he or she is forgiven. We are obligated to approach him or her and rebuke him or her privately in love (17:3), and as soon as he or she has truly repented should we tell him or her that he or she is forgiven (17:4). If a Christian brother or sister is unwilling to repent, we should doubt their salvation, as they have not become one with Christ, who was willing to forgive even those who crucified Him (23:34). We as true believers are still to show kindness and pray for that person. Who might still be a true believer who has only temporarily backslidden. Hopefully that person will come to their senses and repent. Until then we should treat them courteously but should also show them by our attitude that we do not condone their sin and cannot have a meaningful relationship with someone who is unwilling to repent.

5. What kind of repentance is necessary for us to forgive our brother or sister? What are the things we're looking for in their repentance? Why is it so difficult for us to confess to our brother or sister that we have sinned against them? The whole purpose of rebuking our fellow believer is not personal satisfaction but spiritual repentance. For us to forgive that person we desire reconciliation between ourselves but even more with our Heavenly Father. If there is true repentance towards God and towards us, God will forgive, and Jesus tells us to forgive as well. For us to confess to our brother or sister that we have sinned against them can be very difficult since it requires true humility. Besides the pride in our heart there is also the fear of how they will respond to such a confession. We have all come across people who have an unforgiving and quarrelsome spirit. Among our fellow believers there are those that through pride, and arrogance, and readiness to take offense, are determined never to forgive or forget. Even if the sin was a trivial offense. Our obedience in confessing to others shows that we are trusting God to take care of the consequences, handle the possible misunderstandings, and work out everything for our good and His glory.

4. Extra Credit. Why is it important for every Christian to be regular part of a congregation? If churches are filled with such sinners, why bother? It is precisely for the reason that we need to belong and be active in a church, because we are sinners in dire need of a Saviour. Here we can support each other as we are exposed to Scripture. Being a regular part of a congregation, we are able to help in teaching, in rebuking, in correcting, and in training each other in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16). We should be taught true Biblical doctrine, and this will safeguard us against false teaching and be our guide in living the Christian life. We can uphold the “little ones”, and the young/new believers who might be in need of spiritual and/or morally support. “I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them” (Romans 16:17).

3. Why are we tempted to keep silent in the face of the sins of our Christian brothers and sisters against us? Why do we disrupt God's redemptive process when we fail to rebuke them when they sin against us? We tend to overlook it if it is a single incident, and might take action after being sinned against several times. I sometimes feel that it is a problem between him and our Lord. Then again, I sometimes feel that I don’t want to embarrass him, and overlook his sin towards me. I now know, that this is the wrong action to take. If we keep silent he might not be aware that his action has affected anyone and most probably will continue sinning against others. However, if we rebuke him privately, letting him know what he has done and he acknowledges his guilt, reconciliation is achieved.

2. Who are the "little ones" that Jesus seeks to protect from sin? (17:2b) The “little ones” Jesus refers to are not only the children but also new believers who are still learning how to follow the Lord. They are the most vulnerable to be led astray in today’s evil world. Anything that leads them away from obedience to the true Word is a stumbling block. They are most likely to follow the actions of leaders in the Church who must now be extra careful not to lead them astray by their loose behaviour, lifestyle, thinking, or attitudes. One must also be careful not to inadvertently lead one to be tempted. I think especially of false teachers that do much harm to these little ones by feeding them false doctrines. We pray Lord let us not be the one that causes one of these “little ones’ to be tempted and sin. “So, watch yourselves” (17:3).

1. Why do you think Jesus warns His disciples so strongly about not being a cause of temptation to others? Why does Jesus use a millstone to make His point? (17:1-2) Jesus is very serious about sin, and warns us not to lead others astray and cause them to stumble. He knows the devastating effect sin has on our lives, and that we are all sinners living in a sinful world. It is a serious thing to sin against a fellow believer tempting them to sin, and we therefore need to take special care for this not to happen. He also knows that Satan uses all kinds of methods to tempt believers to think about the pleasures of wickedness. This is why Jesus uses strong language to make His point. The consequences one faces for leading another to sin, are so severe that it would be better to have a millstone tied around our neck, and be thrown into the sea than to face the wrath of God. Jesus uses a heavy millstone to emphasize not only physical death but eternal condemnation as well.

7. What ministries and agencies in your community could you give to that directly aid the poor? Presently, our country is going through a very tough time. Corruption is rampant. We have had massive looting from hundreds of shopping malls, and an attempt at destroying our food chains. All politically motivated; demanding the release from prison of our previous president. If their demands are not met there are threats to make our country ungovernable even threats to attack us in our homes. So sad! Many members of our church are anxious and are hurting financially, even finding it difficult to properly feed their families. Food parcels are made up, money donated in buying food coupons, and these are distributed weekly.