Day Nine

If you have 5 minutes!

Read Acts 2:22-40

22 “People of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25 David said about him: “I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 
26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, 
27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. 
28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.”  29 “Brothers and sisters, we all know that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, “The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 
35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” 36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Peter moves on from his confident assertions that today is a day of hope fulfilled to explain how this has all come about: through Jesus; the seemingly failed Messiah who, Peter argues, God has vindicated and raised up to be “the rightful king of Israel.”[1] In doing so, he brings two strands of OT prophecy together: the hope of God’s kingdom coming more fully and the slightly mysterious prophecies about a suffering servant; the one pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed (see Isaiah 53). It is, Peter argues, through Jesus’ suffering and death – not despite it – that God’s presence can now be experienced so profoundly.

If you have a bit longer :-)

➡      How often do you reflect on Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection? Maybe we could all try to start each day thanking God for what he has done for us in Christ.

➡      Does Jesus’ suffering (and then restoration and vindication) encourage you in any way when you’re facing times of difficulties?

➡      “With many other words Peter warned them and pleaded with them…” Do we have this same passion and urgency when we’re engaging with those who don’t yet know Christ? How can we spur one another on in this?

---

[1] Tom Wright, “Acts,” pg. 36.

Day Eight

If you have 5 minutes!

Read the extract from Martin Luther King’s speech below 

& Acts 2:14-21

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!
(NB. It is well worth checking out the full speech on YouTube!)

14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 “In the last days,” God says, 
 “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. 
Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, 
your old men will dream dreams. 
18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, 
and they will prophesy. 
19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 
20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 
21 And everyone who calls 
on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Particularly in times of great hardship, certain speeches or texts stand out as exemplars of hope. Martin Luther King’s speech, at a time of great racial oppression, is one of the finest examples of this. Similarly, within the Jewish tradition, there were certain texts that embodied Jewish hopes for the future: hope that God’s people would be set free from oppression, hope that God’s kingdom would come more fully on the earth, hope that there would be renewed intimacy with God and empowerment to live in ways that please him, hope that God’s power would be experienced more completely, hope that the nations would finally be blessed through Israel and so on. Joel 3:1-5 – which Peter quotes here, albeit with some interesting changes – was one of these texts. By starting with it, Peter is making one thing very clear: this time you’ve all been waiting for is now here! There are, however, now and not-yet elements to this[1] and so, for Luke, the giving of the Holy Spirit is not only a blessing for now but also a guarantee that “the great and glorious day of the Lord” – when everything will be as God always wanted it to be – will indeed come![2]

➡      Are there times in your life when you’ve struggled to have hope? How has this felt?

➡      Hope isn’t just something for the future rather, as we see in Acts – and actually with Martin Luther King as well – hope has a powerful impact on the present. What in your life might be different if you had more hope?

➡      How can we encourage one another to be people of hope? How can we best spread hope amongst are neighbours, work colleagues, family, friends…?

If you have a bit longer :-)

On verses 17 & 18, Tom Wright writes:

This work of God is wonderfully inclusive, because there is no category of people which is left out: both genders, all ages, all social classes. But it is wonderfully focused, because it happens to all “who call on the name of the Lord” (verse 21). Here, once more, “the Lord,” which in Joel meant Israel’s God, YHWH, now seems to mean Jesus himself. And with this Luke introduces a vital and complex theme in his work: “salvation.” All who call on the Lord’s name will be saved.” “Being saved” doesn’t just mean, as it does for many today, “going to heaven when they die.” It means “knowing God’s rescuing power, the power revealed in Jesus, which anticipates, in the present, God’s final act of deliverance.” Peter will now go on to encourage his hearers to “call on the Lord’s name,” and so to know that “salvation,” that rescue, as a present reality as well as a future hope.[3]

➡      What could you do today to outwork your “salvation” in the present and bring God’s kingdom closer to earth?

It is pertinent that Peter starts his speech (well Luke’s summary of it anyway!) with a quotation from Scripture and we may want to conclude that all evangelistic talks should begin in this way. It is important, however, to remember that Peter was speaking to those within the Jewish faith who would have been familiar with these texts. Interestingly, later on in Acts (17:16-33) when Paul is chatting to non-Jews in Athens, he starts by reading an inscription from one of their idols (albeit to prove to them their own ignorance!) and then quotes one of their own poets.

➡      Within our evangelism, how can we, like the Christians in Acts, maintain faithfulness to the truth of Scripture whilst communicating these truths in culturally appropriate and penetrating ways?

---

[1] See Acts notes from last week (“Day Four”) and Tom Wright, “Acts,” pgs. 32-33.

[2] Beverly Gaventa, “Acts,” pg. 77.

[3] Tom Wright, “Acts,” pg. 34.

Day Seven

If you have 5 minutes!

Re-read Acts 1:8 & Read Acts 2:5-13

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

In taking the opportunity to speak about Jesus to the international community present in Jerusalem at that time, the disciples started to fulfill the different parts of Jesus’ commission (Jerusalem…ends of the earth) all in one go! Although they are only engaging with those within Judaism at this stage. There are potentially some interesting connections between the outpouring of the Spirit and the fact that, at the time, people were celebrating Pentecost (a harvest festival that took place 50 days after Passover and which, later on, became an anniversary of the giving of the Law at Sinai – thought to have taken place 50 days after the Exodus).[1] However, it could also be that Luke simply includes this detail to explain why so many people from so many different places were all in Jerusalem at the same time![2]

➡      There are currently people of many different nationalities living in Loughborough. How proactive are we in seeking to reach those whose culture and nationality is different from our own? Is there anything you could do differently in this regard? (For some ideas on this, check out “Claire’s 24-hour Mission Trip!”)

If you have a bit longer :-)

As Beverly Gaventa observes, the outpouring of the Spirit was “no private event,” rather the disciples were immediately cast into the public arena.[3] Moreover, not all those present received them well! Rather, as Tom Wright challengingly notes, then – as “again and again in Acts” – there is “opposition, incredulity, scoffing and sneering at what the apostles say and do, at the same time as great success and conviction.”[4] In this regard, I am pretty certain that I’d experience more of the latter if I were more willing to risk the former.

➡      Looking back over the past week, have there been times when you’ve not said or done something that would have helped people see more of Christ through you because you were worried what they might think? How do you feel about this?

➡      Maybe we could all try to do or say at least one thing this week that helps someone who doesn’t know Christ find out more about him, even if there’s a risk they might think we’re a bit odd?!

➡     Are there any public Christian figures that are on your heart for you to pray for? If not, maybe ask God if there’s anyone you could be supporting in this way. Those I can think of would include: the Archbishop of Canterbury, Steve Chalke, the Pope, the Bishop of London, Alister McGrath (a theologian)… (you probably know of others!)

---

[1] See John Stott, “Acts,” pg. 62.

[2] Beverly Gaventa, “Acts,” pg. 74.

[3] Beverly Gaventa, “Acts,” pg. 74.

[4] Tom Wright, “Acts,” pg. 29.

Day Five

If you have 5 minutes!

Read Acts 1:12-26 “Matthias is Chosen”

12 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. 13 When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. 15 In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 16 and said, “Brothers and sisters, the Scripture had to be fulfilled in which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus. 17 He was one of our number and shared in our ministry.” 18 (With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. 19 Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 “For,” said Peter, “it is written in the Book of Psalms: “‘May his place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it,’ and, “‘May another take his place of leadership.’ 21 Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.” 23 So they proposed the names of two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” 26 Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles. (TNIV)

Beverly Gaventa notes that despite the prominence with which Matthias is introduced here, he does not appear in the rest of Acts.[1] Nor, in fact, do a number of other apostles and, in fact, only Peter appears prominently.

➡      Why, then, is Acts traditionally known as “the Acts of the Apostles”? Can you think of a better title?!

In reponse to Jesus’ instructions, his followers waited in Jerusalem meeting and praying together, presumably very unsure as to what would happen next!

➡      Are there times in your life when you have felt like you’re stuck in one place waiting for what God will do next? How has this felt? Do you find any encouragement from Acts in this regard and/or any tips?!

If you have a bit longer :-)

In both Psalm 69:25 and 109:8, which Peter quotes in v. 20, the psalmist is calling down a curse on his persecutors. He clearly does not have Judas in mind!

➡      Why, then, does Peter see these verses as fulfilled by Judas’ betrayal? Why does he think it is important to do so?

Thinking back over the whole of Acts 1, have a think about 1 or more of the following questions (depending on which you most resonate with!).

➡      What stands out to you the most from this chapter?

➡      What is the biggest challenge in this chapter?

➡      Do you have any unresolved questions about it?

➡      Has God spoken to you through this chapter? If so, what has he said?

➡      What have you learned about God through it?

➡      What have you learned about Jesus’ followers?

➡      Have you learned anything about the Bible?

➡      Is there anything you think you should do/change/pray in response to reading this chapter?

---

[1] See her commentary.

Day Four

If you have 5 minutes!

Read Acts 1:6-11 “Jesus’ Ascension”

6 So when they met together, they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (TNIV)

John Stott notes that it is not that Luke is about Jesus and Acts about his church rather, in Acts, Luke refers to Luke (i.e. his book!) as detailing what Jesus began to do and teach, implying that Acts records the continuation of this.^[1]

➡    How can this be, though, when Jesus ascends to heaven in the very first chapter?

Jesus’ ascension is, in some ways, an anticlimax. In the minds of his followers, Jesus had gone from being the expected Messiah who would bring about the restoration of Israel (his life), to failing completely in this (his death) to then being a Messiah who went above and beyond anyone’s expectations by defeating even death (his resurrection). Surely now, this Messiah would finally establish his kingdom once and for all (i.e. v. 6)? Well, no. Rather, Jesus is off back to heaven and, led by the Holy Spirit, his followers are to continue his work. It is, therefore, no wonder that they stand and stare for a while in slight disbelief that Jesus has gone away from them, again!

It is at this point that an important tension is introduced for Jesus has gone BUT he will return – the implication being that it is on his return that God’s kingdom will finally come fully. Thus the whole of Acts is set in the midst of a now/not-yet tension. On the one hand, the amazing miracle of Jesus’ resurrection has occurred and the promised Spirit is soon to be poured out. On the other hand, full restoration awaits Jesus’ return at an undetermined point in the future. As we read through Acts, it is important to remember this now/not yet tension, which is, indeed, a tension we still face today.

➡      In what ways have you experienced the now/not yet tension of Acts in your own life? How has this tension made you feel? How does remembering this tension impact our perspective on the ups and downs of life?

Throughout Acts, there is the overarching sense that the early Christians viewed Jesus’ return as imminent and something to be eagerly awaited (e.g. 3:17-21). In fact, they had orientated their whole lives around Jesus’ return; it was a future event that dominated their lives in the present.

➡     Does Jesus’ future return impact our lives in the same way? How might we change if it did?

If you have a bit longer :-)

As you will definitely know if you’ve done the Cairos course, Jesus’ “great commission” here (and in Matt. 28:18-12) is not the first time God has expressed his desire to reveal his love to the “nations.” Rather, right at the start of Israel’s life, God promised Abraham that “all peoples on the earth will be blessed through you.” However, although there was a promising(ish) start – in that a “mixed crowd” left Egypt along with the Israelites and were readily welcomed into their community – by the time we get to the end of the OT, we find that a guy called Ezra is deliberately sending away from the community anyone with even a hint of unIsraeliteness about them (see Ezra 9-10)![2] 

➡      Inline with God’s desire to reach all people, we do not want to deliberately exclude anyone from our community but are there ways in which we may do this unthinkingly? If so, how can we change?

To be fair to Ezra, he acted as he did at a time when Israel was at its most fragile. It was just coming out of a period of exile and, according to Israel’s prophets, this exile had come about largely as a result of the Israelites’ uncritical incorporation of their neighbors’ religious beliefs and practices. Thus, Ezra understandably thought that Israel’s only chance of success was to be as focused on God as possible which, to him, meant removing any possibility of them being adversely influenced by the nations around them.

➡      How can we maintain an inclusive and welcoming community without incorporating beliefs or practices that will lead us away from God?

➡      Can you think of times in your life when you have compromised your faith in response to people around you? How did you feel?

➡      What could you do this week in response to Jesus’ desire that we bear witness to him in Loughborough AND BEYOND?!

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^[1] John Stott, “Acts,” pg. 32.

[2] See John Drane, “Introducing the Old Testament,” pgs. 207-208.

Day Three

If you have 5 minutes!

Read Acts 1:1-5  “The Promise of the Spirit”

1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”(TNIV)

➡  What do you think Luke’s purpose was in writing Acts?

If you have a bit longer :-)

“The Spirit” was not a new concept for the early Christians; in fact, Judaism had a wealth of biblical and extra-biblical material contributing to its meaning. Within this material, receiving the Spirit was presented as inessential to participation in the covenant community. In fact, the Spirit’s ministry seemed to be limited, with few exceptions, to the leaders and prophets and thus was seen as an additional gift. However, it was anticipated that within the salvation of “the age to come” (within which the created world would be restored, Israel would be liberated from their enemies and God’s covenant would be restored) this would not be the case but rather the Spirit would be poured out on all! This outpouring, fulfilling Ez. 36:26, would enable ongoing obedience thus enabling God’s people to be the hoped for “light to the nations.” (Isa. 42:6) ^[1]

➡  What does Jesus mean by baptism with the Holy Spirit? Why does he distinguish this from John’s water baptism?

➡  In what ways have you experienced the Holy Spirit at work in your life?

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^[1] Max Turner, “The Holy Spirit and Spiritual Gifts Then and Now,” pgs. 6-15.

Day Two

If you have 5 minutes!

Read the General Intro below

Acts recounts events occurring between AD 30 (Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension) and AD 62 (when Paul was imprisoned in Rome). Historically, there are a number of factors that contributed to the success of early church’s expansion. Firstly, although it was the Roman Empire that ruled the roost when the events in Acts took place, the influence of the Greek Empire (330-30 BC) was still strong. Thus people throughout the Mediterranean world shared a common language (Greek!) and culture, making it far easier for the first Christians to evangelize than it might otherwise have been. Further, the Romans were renowned for great infrastructure, making it easy for these Christians to travel around.^[1] On top of this, politically, it was a time of unusual stability and peace. Further still, Christianity was viewed as lying within state-approved Judaism and was therefore unthreatened by imperial power (the first persecution of Christians by the state occurred in AD 64 and this persecution was not then formalized until AD 85).^[2]

Not that there weren’t challenges! Persecution arose from those within Judaism who viewed the Christians’ claims as blasphemous. There was spiritual opposition (e.g. 13:4-12).^[3] Further – as Paul’s letters indicate more clearly than Acts – aspects of Greek and Jewish thinking provided an insidious threat through their subtle perversion of the gospel’s truth in equal but opposite measures (contrast the problems Paul addresses in Corinthians versus those in Galatians, for example).

Acts could have been written as early as AD 62 (just after Paul arrived in Rome) but it’s more likely Luke wrote it sometime between AD 80-90.^[4] Either way, as far as recording history goes, it was produced very close to the events it describes which – alongside other reasons – means we can be confident that in it Luke records an accurate (albeit selective!) account of what actually happened.

➡      What opportunities and threats are provided for us today by our contemporary culture? In other words, if we were to perform a SWOT analysis of our current time in history – from a Christian perspective – what would be our key findings?

If you have a bit longer :-)

Luke was Paul’s traveling companion (e.g. Acts 16:10-17) and an educated doctor. John Stott argues he was also a diplomat, pointing out that Acts is a brilliant political apologetic within which Luke goes to great lengths to show that Christianity was not something to fear but was, on the contrary, harmless – even beneficial – and legal!^[5]

➡      In what ways can Christians today engage politically to provide a positive Christian voice both here and abroad? Some websites you can check out on this include:  www.licc.org.uk; www.opendoorsuk.org; www.csw.org.uk; www.care.org.uk.

---

^[1] John Drane, “Introducing the New Testament,” pg. 17.

^[2] Blaiklock, “The Acts of the Apostles,” pgs. 25-26.

^[3] Beverly Gaventa, “Acts,” pgs. 26-27.

^[4] John Drane, “Introducing the New Testament,” pg. 260.

^[5] John Stott, “Acts,” pg. 27.www.licc.org.uk

Day One

If you have 5 minutes!

Read the Old Testament Background below

I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. (Gen. 17:7)

Before Jesus came on the scene, Judaism was not even close to experiencing the fullness of God’s covenantal-promises to Abraham.  Thus, the Jews were looking forward to the time when these promises would be fully realised. For Luke (the writer of Luke and Acts), Jesus’ birth marks the start of this era (Lk. 1:55; Rom. 4). Central to the promises was the hope that Israel’s relationship with God, currently dented through their sin, would be restored and deepened^[1] and they would experience the blessings and liberation accompanying this.^[2] Thus in Luke (Luke’s aptly titled first book!) Jesus’ story is presented primarily as a fulfillment of prophecy, with Jesus identified as the one who brings the promised salvation to fruition – albeit there’s both now and not-yet elements to this. In Acts, the story continues as Luke describes the journey of the gospel as it grows from its Jewish and Judean origins to become a worldwide, community-transforming, Gentile-inclusive movement – within which the Spirit plays the leading role.

If you have a bit longer :-)

➡      How should we apply Acts to our lives today?  Acts records the life and growth of the early church so it’s highly relevant for us today! But how much of their journey should we aspire too? For example, should we take lots to decide the leadership team because they did so in Acts 1? Should we hold all our stuff in common? Should we expect the Spirit to play as prominent a role now as he did then? Probably you think “no” to the first, “not sure” to the second and - hopefully! - a massive “yes” to the third! But on what basis?! (i.e. How do we decide what experiences of the early church we should seek to emulate and which we can regard simply as being what they did then but not necessarily a norm for all time?)

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^[1] e.g. Joel 2:27; Isa. 44:5; Ezek. 48:35.

^[2] e.g. Isa. 61:1ff.