September 24, 2023
Good News | Acts 4:1-22
Even With His Enemies
You would think that people with good news would only be celebrated and loved! “The ice cream truck is coming down the street!” “The burgers are ready!” “The Jays won!”. Christians have the best news to share, but it isn’t always celebrated, and we aren’t always loved. In today’s passage, Peter and John have to face the authorities who are pretty keen for this ‘Christian problem’ to go away. Peter and John have to figure out whom they will obey. Will it be threatened leaders or the God who died on the cross for them?
Songs for this week: Spotify
- Have you ever been shut down, intimidated, or silenced for being a Christian? Tell that story.
- How did Peter and John respond to being ‘grilled’? Highlight both words and attitudes.
- Do you ever have to decide between “pleasing people or obeying God”? Share that struggle.
- The religious leaders “took note that these men had been with Jesus.” Could the same observation be made of you? What does ‘being with Jesus’ look like in your life these days?
- Share any stories of sharing your faith from the past week.
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Recent Sermons
James 5:13-20 - A life of faith is a life of prayer. It’s also a life lived with others. When we follow Jesus, we belong to Him and to one another as brothers and sisters. As a family, we care for one another in weakness, confess our sins to each other, and gently confront one another.
James 4:6-10 -James knows that the heart of the Christian message is grace. God gives us good that we couldn’t ever deserve. The truth is that we earn and deserve justice and punishment. Thankfully, Jesus took both of those for us and gave us the good he deserved. As powerful as grace is, there is one thing that can re
James 3:1-18 -James is at it again! He has a real concern for the words that Christians use on themselves, with each other and with the world. Our tongues (James' favourite image for our words) can cause such destruction, and they are nearly impossible to control.
James 2:14-26 -James continues to press deep into the muscles and tissues of our faith. Is your faith doing what it was designed to do? Just like you might go to the doctor for a physical check-up, James offers a self-administered faith check-up in this passage. Where do you see signs of life in your faith?
James 1:19-27 - James is direct: angry words, thoughtless words, and religious words don’t have a place in a life of faith. Our words don’t work … but God’s word does! Our job is simply to cooperate with his word.
James 1:1-8 - James gets right down to business! For everyone not currently soaking in a hot tub, suffering is a first order of business. In just a few verses, James explains how trials can grow maturity, how wisdom helps the journey, and how to avoid wasting a suffering experience.
