Happy Monday
Read Acts 2
Today we encounter the story of Pentecost, 50 days after Passover and a celebration of the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai (see Exod. 19-20, and Lev. 23.15-21). Some call this the birthday of the church. I mean instead of candles lit, there are tongues of fire resting on individual believers, more like trick candles.
The people of God are together, and they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, the very thing Jesus had promised 10 days ago would come soon. People from all over the known world at that time heard these local Jews speaking in their own language.
It is here that Peter gives his first sermon where he tells how Jesus fulfills Hebrew scriptures and was killed, and was raised from the dead. His message cuts people to the heart, and people repent, are baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But this is just the beginning. As we learn at the end of the chapter they devote themselves to learning from the apostles, being together, praying and worshiping together. Baptism is just a step on the journey of the faithful, a springboard into a deeper life with God.
Think back to when you first became a Christian, or to when you first started taking following Jesus seriously. What was it like? How much time did you spend with other believers learning, being together, praying and worshiping? Have things changed for you? Reflect on what it was like to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit? Can you put it into words? What things are you committed to doing, or want to do in order to deepen your life with God right now?
May you experience the Spirit in tangible ways this week as you think about this story.
Peace,
Matt
Inductive Questions: (These will be included each day and your work on them will be the foundation we build upon at our Wednesday evening in-person and Zoom Bible Study as we explore the church, mission, and Holy Spirit in Acts.)
Pick at least one of these to be a focus for all of Acts, but answer as many of them as you want.
- What does the church look like in Acts? Who is a part of it? What do they do? How is it formed? How does it relate to mission and the Spirit? In other words (fancy, technical terms) What is the ecclesiology of Acts?
- What does mission look like in Acts? Who does it? What do they do? How does it happen? How does it relate to the church and the Spirit? In other words (fancy, technical terms) What is the missiology of Acts?
- What does the Holy Spirit look like in Acts? What does the Spirit do? How is the Spirit active? How does it relate to church and mission? In other words (fancy, technical terms) What is the pneumatology of Acts?
Answer the question with the language of Acts as much as possible and cite the chapter and verse reference in your notes.
If you want a bonus study, you could look at how Pentecost and the arrival of the Holy Spirit compares with both the tower of Babel in Genesis 11, and the giving of the Law in Exodus 19-20.
P.S. Just like Luke, the Bible Project has a video series for Acts as well. Here is the link to the first of 4: