Acts (7)

And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.  Luke 24.27

Be sure to view the video introducing our study of Acts 8 (Lesson 7) by clicking here.

Read and meditate on Acts 8.25.
This verse offers little but suggests much. The apostles stuck around in Samaria to testify and speak the Word of the Lord, making this the second incursion of the Gospel to that region. The first was made by Jesus Himself, and now, just as He promised, they were reaping more of the fruit of what He had sown.

For reflection
1.  What “word,” we wonder, were the apostles preaching? Doubtless, that which had launched the ongoing work of Christ in Jerusalem. They must have spoken to the people about the Kingdom, and taught them to pray and prepare for its coming, to care for one another as a new community within the existing community of the Samaritans, and to proclaim the Kingdom to their neighbors. This, after all, is what we saw in Jerusalem. Is this what you see in your church? Explain.

2.  The apostles must have stayed there long enough to be persuaded that the work launched by Philip and others was becoming sufficiently well established to ensure that it would continue after them. Then, as they returned to Jerusalem, they continued preaching in villages and towns, leading many more to the Lord and, doubtless, helping them become established as well. The pattern we observed in Acts 1-6 must have served as a kind of template for the apostles as they oversaw the progress of Christ’s ongoing work into new areas. How does the work of making disciples fit into that template (Matt. 28.18-20)?

3.  Luke doesn’t bother to repeat the details, but we can assume, I think, that he has written the book of Acts to report on the ongoing work of Christ, so that it can continue generation after generation, following the same pattern of launch/establish/disperse/replicate that he describes, even unto and beyond our own day. Should local churches today be guided by this pattern? Explain.

4.  We should be reading Acts in order to discover as much as possible about the Lord’s preferred way of advancing His ongoing work. We’re looking for patterns, norms, protocols, and even structures and components which, because they were used so powerfully in Acts, must still be of value today. How would you describe that “pattern” as we’ve been observing it thus far?

5.  On a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 equals “really well”, how would you assess the life and ministry of your own church according to the pattern Luke presents in Acts? What’s one thing your church could do to improve your assessment?

Summary
Recall Jesus’ witness to the Samaritans in John 4. Jews and Samaritans had no dealings with one another. They didn’t like or trust one another. In many ways, for the believers in Jerusalem to take the ongoing work of Christ into Samaria was “swallowing the big frog” right from the start (“If you have to swallow a frog, don’t spend too much time looking at it; if you have to swallow a lot of frogs, start with the big one”). What would be the “big frog” for your church as a witness to the ongoing work of Christ? Is God big enough to help you in this?

Closing Prayer
The LORD my God will enlighten my darkness.
For by You I can run against a troop,
By my God I can leap over a wall.
As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the LORD is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him.
For who is God, except the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?
It is God who arms me with strength,
And makes my way perfect.
He makes my feet like the feet of deer,
And sets me on my high places.

Psalm 18.28-33

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 in Acts.

Acts is the record of Christ’s ongoing work as King and Lord. For more insight into 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.