Next Lesson:
Arrested for the truth.
Acts chapters 4.
Penta means five. The Pentateuch is the 1st five books of the Bible. They were written by Moses; a prophet and deliverer.
The Sanhedrin was a council of 70 men. The captain of the temple guard was second in authority to the high priest.
The Sanhedrin only looked to the 1st 5 books of the Bible for authoritative scripture. The rest of the Old Testament was nice; but not authoritative. This unruly group of disciples had converted nearly 5,000 people to the idea of a resurrection that did not exist in the authoritative books according to the religious leadership. Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphs wanted to know by what “authority” did they do this healing? For clearly it did not come from Moses.
In sarcasm, Peter asks why an act of brotherly kindness is bothering them so much! The miracle is undeniable.
With all the authority the 70 could muster, they gave a legal notice; “Don’t! Don’t do it anymore!” If you do we will … we will … we will do something. But, further punishment was clearly impossible because all of the people were praising God. The Sanhedrin became jealous. The fact is, they became fools.
Psalm 2:1-2 is central to a prayer of praise “for God was clearly in control.” When they finished praying the place they were at was shaken, and they were ALL filled with the Holy Ghost.
With great power and awe, the disciples continued to witness to the power of the resurrection of Jesus. Luke gives us a brief introduction of Joseph, called Barnabas.
Luke will continue to build on the character of Barnabas. What motivates a person to tell a half-truth? What happened when Naaman lied to the prophet Elisha, and said he was just going from here to there? What could possibly go wrong if we lied to God?
Purpose Statement - Adult Bible Study
Matthew 28: 19 and 20 are Jesus’ instructions to the community of believers. “Make disciples!” It sounds simple at the surface level. Then this instruction is broken down into 2 other instructions; “baptize and teach.” Then we are given instruction to incorporate the Father’s portion, the Son’s portion, and the Spirit’s portion. This passage then takes on a whole new level, where we are asked to address all of these instructions.
Here at Link Church we use a “system” to accomplish these instructions as a church, and more importantly, as a family. Our Discipleship Pastor asks us to examine and follow the examples of Jesus Christ in the development and use of our spiritual empowerment.
At Link Church we use the system to disciple and deploy believers using the 4-D process of Discovery-Decide-Disciple-Deploy. There are multiple opportunities for individuals to step up to their God given potentials. The recurrent 4-F weekends of Freedom, Faith, Fire, and Family along with other outreach opportunities draw people of all ages and backgrounds into the morning services. Whether it is the Christmas outreach, Fall Festival, Children’s programs, College programs, Youth activities, men or women activities, and other such opportunities, they all bring believers into the morning services. The messages, with a monthly theme, draw the audience to decisions about God in your personal life.
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It is in the morning services where the “system” gives individuals the experiences of powerful praise, wonderful worship, personal prayer, and meaningful deployment. The 99 Serve team provides multiple opportunities to use people’s talents.
The atmosphere in small groups focus on the discovery process using biblically founded processes through a series of on ramps and off ramps towards empowered and anointed discipleship. Wednesday night Adult Bible study is one of those opportunities to discover the truths in God’s word concerning your identity and purpose in the Kingdom of God.
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As we return to our daily lives, we become the light of Jesus in a world that is desperately looking to escape the darkness. It is in this daily walk as the community of believers that we need the full armor of God and an arsenal of gifts. Believers offer a lifeline to the hurting humanity that we live, work, and play around.
We do not battle against flesh and blood, but against darkness. God’s word warns us that we can lose an entire generation to the darkness if we do nothing.
We have a Savior, a friend, and an advocate named Jesus. He is the head of the body of believers. He gave us grace, hope, peace, and love. He went to His father, and requested that the Holy Spirit be sent to us to be our help in time of need.
Everything comes from the Father, He gave us His only begotten son who is our source for salvation. The Father accepted back the sacrificed lamb who was slain for our sins. Jesus asked our Father to send us the Holy Spirit. And, now Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf.
We will study this relationship of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. More specifically we will look at the gifts that come from the Father, from the Son, and from the Holy Spirit. This all ties back to Matthew 28:19 and 20.