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Realizing the presence, promise, and power of the Kingdom of God.
The Scriptorium

Ongoing and Then Some

Let them threaten, the Kingdom goes on.

Acts (4)

Be sure to view the video introducing our study of Acts 4 (Lesson 4) by clicking here.

Read and meditate on Acts 4.29-31
This is what you get when you pray according to the Lord’s will, using the Lord’s resources: results. We note here no trembling and whining about the “threat to their religious liberty.” They could have cared less. They had a job to do and no threats or restrictions imposed by mere men were going to stop them.

For reflection
1.  The believers did not seek relief from religious oppression; they sought power and boldness to stand up to it and overcome it. That is precisely what the Lord sent them, just as He had in Acts 2, and just as He’d promised in Acts 1. Do we dare expect the same in our day? Explain.

2.  We’re supposed to see something of a trajectory here: The Lord makes a promise, the Lord fulfills the promise, the Lord fulfills the promise again…and so on. Our job is to stay within the parameters of the promise and always be moving toward it. Based on what you’ve seen thus far in Acts, how should Christians do that?

3.  This all seems very simple. They didn’t organize a petition, create a training program, move to a new building, hire a specialist, or find some way of accommodating their practice to the changing environment or the demands of the culture around them. How would Christians today – your church – likely respond to a situation such as we’ve been looking at in Acts 4? Explain.

4.  Promise, power, prayer, practice: Diagram the relationship between these, as you have observed it thus far in Acts. Explain your diagram.

 

 



5.  What do you think the Christian community could do today to begin to get back on this trajectory? What could you do to help your church make this Kingdom turn?

Summary
The ongoing work of Christ is the work of the Spirit. He brings the power, according to the promises of God, so that we can practice the Kingship of Jesus the way we should (cf. Acts 17.1-9). On a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 is the highest rating, how well does this explain your walk with and work for the Lord? Explain.

Closing Prayer
For the LORD has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:
“This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”

Psalm 132-13-18

T. M. Moore

Each week’s studies in Acts are bound together into a free PDF that you can download for personal or group use (click here). Each week also features a video related to the studies of the week, which you may find helpful as you work through our studies Acts.

Acts is the record of Christ’s ongoing work as King and Lord. For more insight to His work in our here and now, order the book,
The Kingship of Jesus, from our online store by clicking here.

Please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452. Or, you can click here to donate online through credit card or PayPal.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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