November 21-22, 2009: Peter's Vision

"I saw something that looked like a large sheet. It was being let down from heaven by four corners. It came down to where I was. I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth. There were also wild animals, reptiles, and birds. Then I heard a voice speaking to me. 'Get up, Peter,' the voice said. 'Kill and eat.'"

Peter's vision happened in Joppa, a city on the coast of Israel.

In the Old Testament, people were either Jews (followers of God), or Gentiles. Among the Gentiles, some were believers in God ("god-fearers"), but they could not become Jewish.

Foods were also divided into "clean" and "unclean" - but the meaning of this was "acceptable, special" vs. "common".

In Acts 10, two men receive messages from God: Cornelius & Peter.

Cornelius - God told him to send some men to Joppa to get Peter and invite him to his house.

Peter's vision was of a sheet being lowered onto a roof, filled with clean and unclean animals. Peter protests: I will not eat what is unclean. The voice answers: do not call anything unclean that God has made clean.

Peter is brought to Cornelius' house. Normally a Jew would not enter the home of a Gentile, but based on Peter's vision, he knows that God does not show favoritism and that salvation is for the Gentiles as well as the Jews.

What does this story teach us about God? In God's eyes - everyone is equal. That is, no one has special status because of their skin color, past, family, money, religious background, or anything like that. What if we really believed that?

This does not mean we are all the same. Rather, that differences don't make people any less.

Think about the people you associate with. Then think about who you don't or wouldn't associate with. We often draw distinctions for pointless reasons.

When Peter takes the story back to Jerusalem, that he has shared the gospel and had fellowship with Gentiles, the disciples believe he's done a bad thing (violated the Law) until Peter explains his vision. How many of us would have that courage if we were confronted about hanging out with the wrong sort of people?

When you can look at all sorts of faces - colors, rich vs. poor, disabled vs. normally able - and see dignity and value in each one, you have the mind of God.

November 14-15, 2009 - Saul's Conversion

Saul (who would become Paul) stood by at the stoning of Stephen. He was a good Jew, who kept all of the law. In other words, he was an enemy of the early Christians.

This made Saul an unlikely choice to be God’s messenger!
Abraham Lincoln was raised in a log cabin, his mother died when he was 9, he didn’t finish high school or college, he lost 8 of 13 elections in his life. Yet, he was elected President of the United States.
In a similar way, God used someone we wouldn’t expect in a very important way.

Video: “Peter & Paul - Saul’s conversion”

Saul had to overcome his reputation as a man dangerous to Christians and regain their trust: first, with Ananias, then with the disciples in Jerusalem.
At the same time, his own standing among the Jews took a hit: he had to escape from Damascus, and then angered the Jews in Jerusalem. The apostles sent him by ship to Tarsus.

Paul would go on to suffer greatly for standing up for Jesus - see 2 Corinthians 11.

Paul had great knowledge and kept the law - but it was his encounter with the living God that actually changed him.

Nov. 1 - Stephen and Persecution of Christians

In the book of Acts, we see the gospel message spreading - and like a trick birthday candle, whenever attempts are made to extinguish it, it just keeps coming back:

The Jewish leaders told the disciples to stop speaking...Peter refused
They threw the apostles in jail...an angel let them out
They threatened and whipped the apostles...the Holy Spirit made them bolder

Acts 6-7 tell the story of Stephen...Stephen was chosen as one of seven who were to oversee the church's distribution of food to the needy. "The Body is a unit, made up of many parts....so it is with Christ." In the church, we divide responsibilities because no one person can do it all - yet everything that is done is important and necessary.

Stephen was arrested and accused of speaking words against the Jewish religion, specifically teaching against the laws of Moses and the temple.
To the Jews, three things were important:
1. Living in the land God had promised them
2. Following strictly the law God gave through Moses
3. Building and maintaining the temple, the house of the Lord

Stephen, in his defense, says the Jews are missing the point, which is the Messiah - God promised him through the prophets, but the prophets were ignored. He calls them "stiff-necked" (stubborn) people, who rejected and killed the Messiah. This makes them angry and they stone him to kill him.

Stephen becomes the first Christian martyr - someone who is killed for an idea

There are still martyrs today - "closed" countries in which practicing the Christian faith is dangerous or illegal. (See www.kidsofcourage.com for some great information on where persecution is happening)

After Stephen's martyrdom, the believers are spread, but the threat of death doesn't kill the movement, it makes them bolder!

Standing by at Stephen's death is Saul, who will shortly become Paul, the great Christian missionary.

October 3-4: God Sends the Holy Spirit (Acts 2)

Superheroes have super powers - their purpose? To be used for the benefit of others.
God gives his believers powers as well - in fact, God gives us the power to do anything.

Acts 1:12-22 - a replacement is chosen for Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus. Whoever is chosen is to join the others in being a witness of the things they saw Jesus say and do.

A Witness -

• Tells about what they've seen and heard
• Needs to be truthful
• Needs to have courage
• Sometimes needs protection from the people they're testifying against

One more thing the apostles needed was the ability to speak the language of the many foreigners who had gathered in Jerusalem.

Acts 2:1-13
The Holy Spirit comes on the apostles, and they begin to speak in foreign languages. The people are amazed - kind of like when you meet someone in a foreign country who can speak your own language. People had gathered from all over because it was Pentecost, 50 days after the Passover celebration, and they were all in Jerusalem. The disciples are filled with the Holy Spirit, and Peter begins to speak.

Acts 2:14-40
Peter speaks to the crowd. Since Jews believe in the Old Testament, he used two prophecies from there. (A prophecy is a prediction of a future event.)

Joel predicted that on "The Day of the Lord," God would pour out his holy spirit and people would have dreams and visions and speak in foreign tongues. Peter says this is what they are witnessing.

David predicted that God would raise someone from the grave, not letting the body decay. But, Peter says, it was not David - he is still in his grave. The one raised was Jesus - whom they had crucified. Peter tries to convince the crowd that the one they turned against was God's chosen one.

When the crowd heard this, many were convinced and asked what they should do - Peter told them to repent (turn from sin) and be baptized, and they would be saved and they would also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

What the Holy Spirit did here: It gave the disciples courage, it protected them from the opposition (this will become really important later in Acts), and it allowed them to speak other languages and be understood.

Why God sent it: This was the beginning of getting the message out. The Bible says after Peter spoke, 3,000 people became believers. The new "church" began to grow, and grow...until the Jewish leaders took notice, which begins chapter 3.

Can a Christian really do anything? Yes - you can do anything God needs you to do. In this case, God needed the apostles to be able to speak in other languages. He has given us the power to do what we can't do on our own - to forgive, to love difficult people, to stand up for him. God will never ask us to do something that he doesn't also, at the same time, help us to do.

Sept 26-27, 2009: Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit (Acts 1)

What's the most amazing thing you've ever seen? When we've seen something amazing, we can't help but want to tell everyone we see.

That's the situation the disciples were in after Jesus visited them after having risen from the dead. The Book of Acts - tells their story.
The book of Acts (written by Luke) is all about...Acts! Theirs, but also God's through his Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is key in the book of Acts - Jesus told them to wait for it before they did anything else in his name.

2 Questions throughout our study of Acts:
What did the Holy Spirit do?
Why did God send it?

The disciples expected that maybe Jesus himself would return soon and restore the kingdom of Israel - then they would reign with Jesus as king! They did not know how much they were going to suffer for his name. Instead - they waited. And waited. They prayed and met together, and they selected a replacement for Judas, who had hung himself after betraying Jesus.

Important verses: 7 & 8 - it's not for them to know the time God is going to act. Sometimes we want God to act on our timetable, and we get impatient when he doesn't act right away or in the manner we want. But, we can be reassured that God has the time set - he knows - we wait.

As we wait...God is making us ready, and he is also building our faith. "Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) How can we be certain of something we do not see? Belief in God and waiting on him to act takes faith.

August 22-23: Had a Bad Day?

Movie clip: How to Eat Fried Worms

In this clip, the new kid, Billy, has a bad day, his first day at his new school. He's not accepted. He's late for class. He has to talk in front of everyone. They play a prank on him.

In small groups, discuss these questions:

• Have you ever had a day like Billy? Explain.
• How do you think Billy felt at the end of the day? Explain. How did you feel the last time you had a bad day? Explain.
• What do you do to deal with a bad day? (watch TV, listen to music, pray, ignore it, etc.) Does it make you feel better? Why or why not?
• If you're upset or frustrated, is it better to let it out or just try to ignore it? Why?
• Have you ever been new at school? New at church? New in the neighborhood? How was that for you? How many of you are starting at a new school this fall? What are your feelings about that?

Activity: We stuff balloons into an oversized sweat shirt and pair of sweat pants, then make the person wearing them run around and do exercises. It's difficult. Why? Because the balloons stuffed inside keep us from moving the way we should.

Worries and frustrations are like the balloons. If we stuff them inside and pretend they're not there, they hurt our ability to be at peace with each other, to enjoy our friends, to be positive, to be kind to others...in fact, when we've been hurt or insulted or embarrassed, often we look for someone else to do the same thing to, so we don't have to feel so rotten. This is what bullies do.

Instead, God tells us (1 Peter 5:7) to cast all our cares on him - he cares for us.

1. It's ok to have negative feelings - that's normal to get upset sometimes, or angry, or have hurt feelings.

2. The wrong thing to do is "stuff" them.

3. The right way is to acknowledge when we're hurt, fearful, angry, or whatever, and to give those concerns to God. How? Some people do this by praying - by getting what's on the inside out. Others give it away by journaling - like a prayer, but it's written down, and it's only between you and God. Meditating - in Christianity, meditating is not emptying our mind but filling our mind with thoughts about what is true, and helpful, and reliable (God created me, God is in control of everything, in the midst of rotten days and events, God is working for my good). Solitude - being only with God - and not with TV, computers, homework, toys, other people - reminds us that he's in charge.

Birds were meant to fly. A weight around their neck or a broken wing = a bird is not living like a bird should. You were not meant to be weighed down by worries and disappointments - you were meant to live. Anything that keeps us from having "life to the full" is something God wants to help us handle.

Esther: Right place at the right time

"In the right place at the right time" usually means you were lucky - you were with the right people or caught in a situation that was lucky for you.

In the story of Esther, Esther was put in a position that benefited others. She was a Jew living in exile, that is, away from her homeland, among other conquered peoples.

The story of Esther:

The king, Xerxes, banished the old queen and Esther was chosen as his new queen. She had been warned by her cousin Mordecai not to reveal her Jewish identity. Mordecai is a gatekeeper, and overhears a plot by two of the king's men to assassinate him. Mordecai passes this along to the queen, Esther, and the plan is foiled. The two men are executed and the king is safe.

A man named Haman becomes the king's highest official. Haman hates it, though, that Mordecai will not bow down to him. Knowing that Mordecai is Jewish, he asks the king to issue a decree that all the Jews be killed, since they don't follow the king's orders and are dangerous to his rule.

Mordecai learns of the decree and goes into mourning. He knows only one person can save them - the king - and that Esther is in a position to make that happen. He reasons with her that if she keeps quiet, even she will lose her life, but the Jews will be saved from some other place (we assume God); and he says, "Who knows? Maybe you were made queen for such a time as this?" Esther agrees to speak to the king, even though she can lose her life for going to him without being asked, and says, "If I die, I die."

Esther goes to the king and he agrees to see her. At a banquet, he promises to give her whatever she wishes, even up to half the kingdom. She tells the king and Haman to come to another banquet the next day, when she will tell him what she wants. That night, the king cannot sleep. He asks for the book telling the story of his reign to be read aloud. They read to him about the plot to take his life that was foiled by Mordecai. The king asks why Mordecai has not been honored. He assigns Haman to parade through the streets with Mordecai, honoring him and drawing attention to what he has done. Now Haman hates Mordecai more than ever.

At the banquet the next day, Esther asks that the king spare the life of her people (he does not know that she is Jewish). She says there is a plot to wipe out her and her people. The king asks who would devise such a terrible plot, and Esther says Haman is responsible. Haman is killed by the king for his evil plan. Then the king promotes Mordecai to Haman's high position and issues a new decree, that the Jews are to defend themselves against anyone who tries to kill them. When the day arrives, the Jews are victorious over those who want to take their lives.

The memory of this event is celebrated in the Jewish holiday called "Purim".

Esther is the only book of the Bible that does not contain the word "God". Yet, it is still a story about God because it is about God's people, the Jews, and how God acted through Mordecai and Esther to save his people. Both Mordecai and Esther took risks - Mordecai by reporting the plot and Esther by daring to go to the king without being summoned, but they had to courage to do it or else the Jews would face destruction.

Esther was put in a position where she could serve God and his people - what positions have you been placed in to serve others?