Sunday Nov 17th Sermon from Pastor Ray

In one paragraph

Pastor Jonathan walked through Acts 3, picking up a series that has moved through Acts 1 and 2 in the previous two weeks. A man who had never walked a day in his life was healed at the temple gate, and Peter used the moment to press the crowd on who Jesus actually is. The sermon stayed close to the text and ended by turning the question around on the congregation. The recap of Acts 1 and 2 set the...

Read together

1. Acts 1 Jesus tells disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit; casting lots to replace Judas
2. Acts 2 Coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; crowds confused because they understood in their mother tongue
3. Acts 2:42 All believers devoted themselves to apostles teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer
4. Acts 3:1-26 Peter and John at the Beautiful Gate; healing of the lame man and Peter's sermon
5. John 9 Disciples ask Jesus who sinned when passing the blind man
6. Isaiah 35 Prophecy that the lame will leap like a deer, cited as fulfilled in the healed man
7. Exodus 18:15 Moses said God would raise up a prophet like him whom the people must listen to
8. Exodus 18:18 God tells Moses he will raise up a prophet and put his words in that prophet's mouth
9. Genesis 12:1-3 God's promise to Abraham that all families of the earth will be blessed through his descendants

Talk about it

1. Peter described the early believers in Acts 2 as devoted to teaching, fellowship, meals, and prayer, and says the Lord added to their number daily. What do you think it looked like practically to live that way, and what would it cost us to live that way now?
2. When the lame man saw Peter and John coming, most people in that situation would have looked away or avoided eye contact. Peter said 'look at us' and made a real connection with the man. When do you find it hardest to actually see people who are suffering, and what gets in the way?
3. Peter told the crowd, 'Why are you staring at us as though we made this man walk by our own power or godliness?' He was clear that it was Jesus, not them. When you have helped someone in a meaningful way, how easy or hard is it to credit Jesus rather than yourself, and why?
4. Peter told the crowd that what they did to Jesus was done in ignorance, and he called that a mitigating factor while still calling them to repent. How does it change the way you think about people who have wronged you or wronged God when you consider that ignorance might be part of what drove them?
5. Near the end of the sermon, the question was raised whether we should see ourselves as Peter and John in this story, or as the lame man who was lifted up and healed. Which of those two feels more honest to where you actually are right now, and what difference does that make in how you respond to what God has done for you?