Weekly Sermons

Divine Doings in the Dungeon!         Acts 5:17-42

The Unstoppable Force: The __________________ of Jesus Christ!                                                                                               V. 17-32

“Everyone gets their turn on the merry-go-round!”

 

3 gifts to the believer mentioned in verses 31-32:

You get back on track with God (repentance)

You get ______________________ of sins while you were off track

You get a mighty __________________ to take you down the track (the Holy Spirit!)

Ephesians 1:13-14                   2 Cor. 1:22

 

An Unusual Forbearance: Gamaliel champions religious __________________                                                               V. 33-39

The apostles might have been executed that day were it not for the intervention of the respected Gamaliel, one of the first voices in history for religious ____________________________.

If Jesus was in the same category as these men, the movement He had started would die down. If He was not, and the movement had God’s blessing, the council would have no hope of stopping it. It is a dangerous thing to fight against God – as Saul found out on the road to Damascus.              -African Bible Commentary, 1309

 

Question from Leadership Magazine: In the 20^th century many assumed Christian faith would decline. What’s actually happening?

Answer from Patrick Johnstone: The former Communist, European, and Pacific countries are secularizing very rapidly. Canada is somewhere in between the U.S. and Europe. Meanwhile the Christian faith in the U.S. is in gentle decline. But growth in what I call “AFASLA” – Africa, Asia, and Latin America – more than compensates for the losses in the West. Non-religious people are committing sociocide, mainly because of their low birthrates. There are a handful of prominent atheists making noise in the public square, but nonreligious groups peaked in the 1970’s and have declined ever since.  

 

An Unshakeable Faith: The apostles rejoice despite their ____________________                                                             V. 40-42  

Name = 60 uses in Acts; 231 in the New Testament  “Onoma”

Phil. 2:9                       Acts 4:12

Now some teach faith will lead to less suffering. That is most definitely ____________ what the New Testament teaches, as the apostles affirm here.      

John 16:33                   2 Timothy 3:12

The apostles saw in their suffering a sacred trust from the Lord, that Jesus had chosen them to be examples of how the faith overcomes even the ___________________________ of circumstances.   

1 Peter 5:6-11