Church guide

Good morning. I hope you had a great weekend. However, it's time to return to work for another work week for many of us. I hope you have a successful one ahead of you. Since it is Monday, that means that it is also time to begin preparing for this upcoming Sunday. We will be talking about a deepened commitment that is made by the early believers in Acts, chapter 4. Acts 4:23 says: As soon as they were freed, Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them what they leading priests and elders had said. Yesterday we talked about how the apostles had gotten into trouble and had been warned to stop doing their missionary work in Jesus' name. They were threatened, even though we aren't told specifically how. They had been freed without any other consequence at this time. They are returning to the rest of the early believers to tell their story. These apostles returned to the rest of the believers to find help, strength and comfort. How often do we do that? When we face troubling times, do you and I turn to each other, the church, and to Christ Himself as these apostles model for us here? Do we find help, strength, and comfort through each others' company? Blessings on your day!

Good morning. It is Sunday once again which means that it is finally time to gather together for Worship. I hope you plan on joining us today either at Blythe or Fort Branch. Acts 4:21b-22 says: For everyone was praising God for this miraculous sign - the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years. The point of religion is to point people towards God. We do what we do in order to get closer to God and help others to do the same. That's exactly what Peter and John are ultimately guilty of doing. They were making God more accessible and understandable to the people around them. That was a good thing to be know for. As you look into your life today, is this true of you? Are you doing things to make God more visible and understandable to the people around you? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. It is Friday and I hope you have a great one in front of you. In just a few hours it will be time to enjoy the weekend. Acts 4:21a says: The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn't know how to punish them without starting a riot. The religious leaders were in a position where they had lost complete control over Peter and John. They had done all they could. They had threatened them and now they had to wait and see what was going to happen. Had they threatened them strongly enough? Had they said and done enough to stop them or at least so them down? They had done all they could due to the risk of causing a huge issue with all of those who knew about Peter and John. Have you ever been challenged by anyone due to your faith? Has anyone ever truly given you a hard time for being a follower of Jesus? Even in those moments does Jesus still win and the final authority of your life? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. We are nearing the end of the work week. As we do and you begin making plans for your weekend I hope you are planning to join us either at Blythe or Fort Branch for Sunday Morning Worship. As you already know we are going to be talking about no good deed going unpunished. Acts 4:19-20 says: But Peter and John replied, "Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than Him? We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard." This is the answer to the authority question from yesterday. The Jewish Ruling Council was trying to become the ultimate authority in Peter and John's lives. However, their final authority was God. They weren't going to disobey Him in order to obey them. Their response was that they were going to continue telling the Good News about Jesus. Who is the final authority of your life? Who has the ultimate power of your decision-making? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. We have found the middle of the week already. I hope yours is going well. Acts 4:18 says: So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. In order for a person to obey, that person must recognize the one to be obeyed as an authority in his/her life. The point is, the only way this command would stick and be obeyed is for Peter and John to recognize the Jewish Ruling Council as an authority over them. What or who do you recognize as the authorities over your life? Blessings on your day.

Tuesday funny!

Good morning. I hope your Monday was an excellent start to your work week. Acts 4:17 says: But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus' name again." The answer that the Jewish Ruling Council came up with to stop this movement was to warn them not to speak in Jesus' name. We have no idea what the threat was, but they must have been convinced that it would be strong enough that it would create enough fear in Peter and John that they would just stop. What would it take for you to back away from your faith in Jesus? How strong would the threat have to be to keep you from sharing about Jesus with the people in your life? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. I hope you had a great weekend. It's over now and time to head back to work and begin preparing for next Sunday. Next Sunday we will be building on what we talked about yesterday. We are going to look at the rest of this passage in chapter for of Acts as we continue looking at this idea of no good deed going unpunished. Acts 4:16 says: "What should we do with these men?" they asked each other. "We can't deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it." When we left Peter and John yesterday they had been ordered out of the council chamber so the Council could make a decision on what they were going to do with them. That leads us into today's verse and question. "What should we do with these men?" The religious leaders knew they were in trouble because they had a big problem. They had to stop whatever was happening simply because they couldn't control it. However, their hands were tied because they couldn't stop it without creating some real problems. Peter and John were very well known for the miracles they were performing. They were being listened to and creating quite a following which began to call into question the authority of these religious leaders. What would they do? What could they do? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. It's Sunday which means that it is time to gather for Worship. I hope that is a part of your plan today as we talk about no good deed going unpunished and see the aftermath of Peter and John healing the crippled beggar by the Temple Gate. Acts 4 14-15 says: But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say. So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves. The Jewish Ruling Council were baffled. They had the facts right in front of them. They had a crippled beggar who had been completely restored. They also had two men what had no formal education of any kind that outclassed them when it came to explaining the things of God. They didn't know what to do. They had no choice but to send Peter and John away so they could figure out their next move. Have you ever been in a position of baffling people around you about the things of God to the point where they had no answer for what you said? How often do you testify to the power of Jesus to the people around you? Blessings on you day.

Good morning. It is finally Friday. I hope you have a great one ahead of you. Acts 4:13 says: The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. The men that Peter spoke to that day would have been some of the most educated men of that day. They would have been taught by some of the greatest teachers. They would have been mentored from a very early age preparing them for this role in their lives. It would have been mind-blowing, to say the least, to have regular, ordinary, uneducated men speaking with such boldness and information. Peter and John's power to not only heal, but also to speak with boldness came from the Holy Spirit. How often do we trust the Holy Spirit to use us in similar ways? Blessings on your day.

Good morning. We are nearing the end of the work week. I hope you have a great weekend ahead. As you begin making plans for your weekend I hope that you have Sunday Morning Worship as a part of them. As you know, we will be talking about no good deed going unpunished. Acts 4:10 says: Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. Peter doesn't give the religious leaders a chance to answer the question that Peter posed to them yesterday concerning why they are in front of them. He continues to share the answer to the question about where the power to heal came from. He makes it very clear that Jesus made it possible for he and John to do what they did by healing the crippled beggar. He makes it crystal clear that the man they are talking about is the same man "they" crucified. Peter took advantage of his moment once again to share about Jesus. He does the same thing he did in the Temple. He shares the truth. He testifies about Jesus and His power. When opportunities arise, do you take advantage of them? When you have a chance to talk about Jesus and His power, do you do it? Blessings on you day.

Good morning. We are at the midway point of another work week. I sure hope yours is going well. We are continuing to talk about no good deed going unpunished. Acts 4:8-9 says: Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we've done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? Peter and John have been arrested. Many have chosen to believe in Jesus. The religious leaders convene the Jewish Ruling Counsel to determine how they are going to deal with Peter and John's healing of this man and their teaching about the resurrection made possible through faith in Jesus. They are asked a very pointed question in verse 7. "By what power, or in whose name have you done this?" Once they are asked this question, Peter and John have a couple of questions of their own. They want to know exactly why they are in trouble. They want to know exactly why they are being questioned. "Are we in trouble for doing good or do you want to know how he was healed?" Peter and John probably already knew the answers to both questions. The truth is, yes they were in trouble for what they and done and yes the religious leaders wanted to know how it happened. Have you ever found yourself in a position like this? Have you ever been in trouble for doing something good coupled with a question of how you did it? How have you handled moments like that? Blessings on your day.

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