Acts

Acts 1:3 tells us that Jesus spent 40 days on earth after his resurrection. It is said that the number 40 represents a complete period of testing, trial, and transformation. The number appears numerous times in scripture. Review the list below and notice how after each period of 40, a new phase of God’s work begins in scripture.Noah's Flood (Genesis 7:12): A new covenant is established between God and the earth (Genesis 9:13)Israelites' Wanderings (Exodus 16:35): They wandered in the desert for 40 years before God allowed them into the promised land to establish the kingdom of Israel.Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18): Moses spent 40 days and nights on Mount Sinai with God receiving the Law including the Ten Commandments.Goliath's Challenge (1 Samuel 17:16): Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days, when David kills Goliath he begins the process of living out his anointment (1 Samuel 6:12-15) because Saul is no longer God’s chosen King of Israel.Jesus' Temptation (Matthew 4:2): Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness during which he was tempted by the devil. Once the 40 days completed Jesus began his ministry.

Acts 1:3 tells us that Jesus spent 40 days on earth after his resurrection. It is said that the number 40 represents a complete period of testing, trial, and transformation. The number appears numerous times in scripture. Review the list below and notice how after each period of 40, a new phase of God’s work begins in scripture.Noah's Flood (Genesis 7:12): A new covenant is established between God and the earth (Genesis 9:13)Israelites' Wanderings (Exodus 16:35): They wandered in the desert for 40 years before God allowed them into the promised land to establish the kingdom of Israel.Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18): Moses spent 40 days and nights on Mount Sinai with God receiving the Law including the Ten Commandments.Goliath's Challenge (1 Samuel 17:16): Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days, when David kills Goliath he begins the process of living out his anointment (1 Samuel 6:12-15) because Saul is no longer God’s chosen King of Israel.Jesus' Temptation (Matthew 4:2): Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness during which he was tempted by the devil. Once the 40 days completed Jesus began his ministry.

Acts 1:3 tells us that Jesus spent 40 days on earth after his resurrection. It is said that the number 40 represents a complete period of testing, trial, and transformation. The number appears numerous times in scripture. Review the list below and notice how after each period of 40, a new phase of God’s work begins in scripture.Noah's Flood (Genesis 7:12): A new covenant is established between God and the earth (Genesis 9:13)Israelites' Wanderings (Exodus 16:35): They wandered in the desert for 40 years before God allowed them into the promised land to establish the kingdom of Israel.Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18): Moses spent 40 days and nights on Mount Sinai with God receiving the Law including the Ten Commandments.Goliath's Challenge (1 Samuel 17:16): Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days, when David kills Goliath he begins the process of living out his anointment (1 Samuel 6:12-15) because Saul is no longer God’s chosen King of Israel.Jesus' Temptation (Matthew 4:2): Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness during which he was tempted by the devil. Once the 40 days completed Jesus began his ministry.

We’ve been studying the passage of Jesus’ Ascension this week in the book of Luke but Luke, the author, also writes about the Ascension in the opening chapter of his book, Acts, with more detail.Quick background on Luke, he was a physician and his books (The Gospel According to Luke and Acts) were written as a narrative to report what he had learned about Jesus and the early church to someone named Theophilus. When I was learning the books of the Bible as a kid, I would remember Acts as “Acts is the book of facts” because it reads like a history book of how the church began in the first century.Back to the main point, in the account of Jesus’ Ascension in Acts we learn that while the disciples, now called apostles, are looking up at the sky, two men in white clothing appear beside them. 11. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.” Jesus will be back?!?! The ascension foretells of Jesus’ return to earth from heaven!So, when we look at the Ascension, we see that He’s setting everything up. He is going away so the Holy Spirit can come down, and He is coming back one day. This gives us the power to live where we are right now doing Kingdom work for the Lord, guided by the Holy Spirit, and the hope for even greater things to come when He returns. This is the foundation of our faith and our main purpose for living.

Since we had three amazing baptisms yesterday I thought we would look at another baptism in Acts. This is a pretty long text so today I just want you to read the passage and if you see something interesting in the passage, feel free to post it to the group chat.

We see in this passage that an angel tells Philip to take the road down toward Gaza. Now, I’m not saying an angel is probably going to show up and tell you where to go tomorrow. Probably. But also, you never know with God, right?But what we do see clearly is that the Spirit is leading Philip. The Spirit tells him to go over to the chariot, and Philip listens.Have you ever thought about what it might look like for you to notice the Spirit leading you? How would you know? What kinds of signs might God use?At Grace, we like to use the phrase “hearing in stereo.” It means you might sense the Spirit leading you in a certain direction, but then you start hearing that same thing from people you trust. That outside confirmation can help you realize, “Okay, maybe this really is something God is doing.”A personal example from me: a few years ago, I started to feel like God was putting some kind of church leadership role on my heart. I tried to stay open to whatever that might mean, vocational ministry (becoming a Nate or Kyle), seminary, serving in a new way, or just being ready for whatever opportunity God put in front of me.And honestly, that was not easy. I grew up as a pastor’s kid, and my experience with that was not always great. Because of that, I had pretty intentionally closed myself off to the idea of ministry or church leadership. But God broke down that wall and I finally said, "Ok, I'm willing". Then I found out that several people had nominated me to be an elder. For me, that felt like more than just a coincidence. It felt like a possible answer to prayer, and the fact that the answer came through other people made it feel even more confirming.As you move through high school and into whatever comes next, I think it is really important to stay tuned in to what the Lord might be saying to you through the Spirit. He may lead you through prayer, through Scripture, through circumstances, or through people you trust. The question is: are you paying attention?

Focus on verses 30 to 35 today. This is the part where Philip shared the Gospel. After reading, share an observation or two in the text thread about how Philip shared the Gospel with this man.

In Acts 8, Philip helps an Ethiopian official understand that Scripture points to Jesus. As they’re traveling they come to some water and the Ethiopian asks, “What can stand in the way of my being baptized?”That question matters because he doesn’t delay. He doesn’t wait until he knows everything or feels perfectly ready. He hears the good news about Jesus, believes, and wants to respond.Verse 37 says, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answers, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”That’s the center of following Jesus: not being perfect, but believing in Him and responding with your life.So maybe the question for us is what’s stopping me from taking my next step with Jesus? Is it fear, pride, what people might think, or feeling like you’re not good enough? Jesus doesn’t call us because we already have everything figured out. He calls us because He makes us new.What next step is Jesus asking you to take and what could be holding you back?