Chapter 29 of The Story April 19, 2015

Acts; Romans; 1 Corinthians; Galatians; 1 Thessalonians

Even though Paul faced difficulties and obstacles on a regular basis, he continued faithfully teaching God’s people how to live.

After his conversion, Paul spent his life traveling across Asia Minor preaching the good news about Jesus. He gathered those who responded and started churches all along the way. He raised up leaders for these gatherings and continued to be part of their lives through follow-up visits and letters. It’s been estimated that Paul traveled over 14,000 miles in his lifetime. It’s incredible considering the types of transportation available in his day.

Unfortunately, Paul was not welcomed everywhere he went. The message about Jesus brought two distinct reactions. While some responded with great joy, others responded with strong hatred. Consider the various hardships Paul endured during his missionary journeys. (See 2 Corinthians 11:23-27). What has it cost you to be faithful? What reactions have you had when you’ve shared your faith with others?

Regardless of the situation, Paul was on a mission. Part of this mission was taking the message of Christ to people who had never heard of Jesus. (Romans 15:20) Another part of this mission was returning to cities where the gospel message was received to strengthen and encourage the new believers. Look at the maps in the back of a study Bible to see the routes of Paul’s journeys. Note the route Paul took, carefully retracing his steps to see how people were doing with their new faith.

Do you remember people along your faith journey who were committed to see how you were growing? How did they do it? How did you respond? Are there people you are investing in now, helping to guide their steps? We have the incredible privilege and tremendous responsibility of being part of the spiritual lives of those around us.

As author of nearly half of the letters of the New Testament, God used Paul to make an impact on our faith. Paul was a great teacher used by God to encourage, challenge, and instruct. Paul knew the role of teacher could not end with him. There would be others God would need to continue to teach the message of Christ (see 2 Timothy 2:2). How can you be one that will carry on this message?

Even in the face of great difficulty and danger, Paul stayed on track with his mission of bringing the good news to the world. While we may not engage in ministry the way Paul did, we can make an impact on the lives of those God has put in our lives.

Chapter 29

Paul said, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”

How can we live like the Apostle Paul?

Preaching the Gospel

Pages 407–412

The Holy Spirit called Saul—who soon became known as Paul—to go on several missionary journeys. The one who once persecuted the church became one of its apostles.

This week and next we’ll look at Paul’s life and glimpse some of his letters.

1. Which of Paul’s attributes stand out to you the most in Acts 13–16 (pages 407–412 in The Story)? Why? 


Paul spoke boldly, and God confirmed his message with signs and wonders. Yet some refused to believe and tried to turn others against Paul.
 


2. What are some reasons people refuse to believe God’s message of salvation even if they’re given sufficient evidence (Acts 14:1–3)?


Planting Churches

Pages 412–419 
 

Paul planted many churches while on his missionary journeys.
3. Which of Paul’s attributes stand out to you the most in Acts 16–18 (pages 412–416 in The Story)? Why?

Paul kept in touch with the churches he had planted by writing letters which explained, among other things, how to live in a way that pleases God.

4. What is something you can put into practice this week from Paul’s letter known as 1 Thessalonians (pages 416–419 in The Story)?

Debating Persuasively

Pages 419–424

Paul continued spreading the gospel. He debated persuasively and worked miracles as signs that God was with him.

5. Which of Paul’s attributes stand out to you the most in Acts 18–19 (pages 419–423 in The Story)? Why? 
 

6. Who else stood out to you in this section? Why?


Strengthening Churches

Pages 424–431 
 

Sometimes Paul heard about problems arising in churches he had planted. If he couldn’t visit right away, he wrote letters, such as the one he wrote to a church in Corinth, Greece, to address church conflicts.
 

7. What is something you can put into practice this week from Paul’s letter known as 1 Corinthians (pages 424–429 in The Story)?

Paul’s letters often corrected doctrine. Some Christian Jews mistakenly believed Gentiles had to not only have faith in Jesus, but had to become Jews who kept the Law of Moses. Paul heard this teaching had infiltrated the church in Galatia, so he wrote a letter to address it. 
 

8. In the letter to the Galatians, what stands out to you about the way Paul balances his teaching that Christians were not under the Law of Moses, but were nonetheless not to indulge in sin (pages 429–431 in The Story)?

  9. What is something you can put into practice this week from the letter to the Galatians?


Teaching Doctrine

Pages 431–437 
 

Paul heard about a church springing up in Rome. He wasn’t able to visit right away, so he sent a letter explaining doctrine and how Jewish and Gentile Christians should get along. 
 

10. What stands out to you in Paul’s letter to the Romans regarding the impossibility of achieving salvation by being good enough (pages 431–437 in The Story)?

 
11. What is something you can put into practice this week from the letter to the Romans?


12. What is one way you would like to imitate Paul? What steps can you take to do so?


Next week, we’ll see Paul’s final days as persecution against Christians increased.

 

Timeline: The Early Church (AD 30–90)

AS YOU READ CHAPTER 29

Journal your answers to these questions as you read through the chapter this week. You may wish to read one day and journal the next, or spread the questions over the whole week.

1. As Paul and his companions traveled from city to city, many received their message that Jesus was the Messiah, but many did not. Trace each stop on the journey. How did those who opposed Paul feel? How did they act? Why? What were they afraid of? How does fear play a role in our own culture’s experience of faith? Your faith?

2. What did you learn about the relationship between faith and suffering from Paul’s life and the church at Thessalonica (p. 416-419)? How might this help you cope as you endure your own trials and suffering?

3. What differences do you find in Paul’s message to the Jews in the synagogue (p. 408) as compared to his message to the Gentiles (p. 411)? Discuss applications we might make today for reaching different groups of people with the same gospel.

4. One of the key teachings Paul carried to each city was how we are “made free by Christ” (John 8:32). However, in places like Corinth, people were living quite “free” already, believing freedom means self-indulgence. How does Paul correct this misunderstanding of freedom by teaching about the body of Christ and love (p. 426-427, 431)? What do you think freedom in Christ means?

5. Paul says to the Galatians, “no one who relies on the law is justified before God” (p. 430) and, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep step in the Spirit” (p. 431). What is the difference between trying to keep the law on your own power and letting the Spirit work the fruits of the Spirit and love through you?

6. Romans 5:1-2 (p. 433) is among the most powerful summaries of the good news of Jesus (Romans 5:8 isn’t bad either!). What does having “peace with God” mean to you? How does it feel? How do you experience it?

Questions

After Paul found the Lord, what was Paul’s passion and mission in life?


Paul wanted to tell people about the Lord. Specifically he wanted to tell the Jews about the Lord. It was with apparent reluctance that he switched his focus to the Gentiles. But he just had to tell people about the Lord. As he said in Rom 1:14: “I am obligated to Greeks and non-Greeks, to the wise and the foolish ... that is why I am eager to preach the Gospel ...” Telling the Gospel story was Paul’s passion and mission in life.


Paul's conversion to Christ is one of the greatest transformational encounters in all of Scripture. Do you remember the story? Paul was traveling down the Damascus road, when he was suddenly knocked to the ground and blinded by a brilliant light. Paul immediately knew this was a supernatural encounter. And he asked, "Who are you, Lord?" The Lord replied, "I am Jesus whom you persecute." Now, Paul had just met Christ Jesus, the one whom he had been persecuting. No doubt overcome by the powerful encounter, Paul asked another question. He asked, "Lord, what will you have me to do?"


You see, when you really meet Jesus, you will find the purpose of your life! Paul discovered his mission in that moment and he never turned back. If you have met the Lord, then you have a mission, too. Whether you're a butcher, a baker, a preacher or a plumber, God has a plan for you to glorify Him and to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all your being. And He wants you to take this calling seriously. You cannot negotiate with God about your mission. And never compromise with the world. Give God your best each day. Embrace your assignment. Fight the good fight and fulfill your purpose in Christ Jesus.




What is your passion and mission in life?


We might like to think of Paul as a so called “full time” missionary. But he wasn’t. He had a trade which was accepted everywhere and he could earn a living wherever he went. He was a tentmaker. So we cannot really say that “if only we were full time like Paul, things would be different...” and use that as an “excuse” that we are not as passionate as Paul was! He had to earn a living, and he was passionate, and he gave his time to telling people about Jesus’ love. But Paul was single. That made a huge difference, and he recognized that singleness can be an advantage, in some cases, when working for the Lord.


This meant that Paul had different time constraints on him being able to give expression to his passion. So I also want us to examine our passion objectively, and not suggest that we would do more if we were like Paul – for example. What is our passion and mission in life? I think that we could CHOOSE to make sharing the Gospel our mission and passion – as Paul did. He felt a sense of obligation. We have no less obligation because we have been no less saved from eternal separation for God than Paul was. We therefore want to tell others – feel obligated to tell others – in response to what we have experienced in our salvation.


What will that look like?


It may not mean that things in our lives look that different. But it will mean that when we go to work, to sport, to reading club, to the shop – that we do those things with a sense of intentionality. We would be eager to make use of opportunities to show kindness, to allow Jesus to love a person through us, to talk to someone if we had the opportunity. We may not get more opportunity, although I am sure that if we were intentional we would find ourselves with more opportunities. But our passion would be seen in that we were going through our days intentional about incarnating Jesus to whoever we are with.


When in a new city, why did Paul invariably begin his outreach at the Jewish synagogue?

The Gospel was always going to be to the Jews first. Paul acknowledged that and so did Jesus. So that was one reason he started with the synagogue. But, it was a natural place to meet. The worshippers were there, and Paul used that as an opportunity to point to Jesus, the fulfillment of the Old Testament longing of the Jews.

How would you define the gospel?

Rom 1:16, 17 is a good place to start: I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” The human problem is sin and separation from God. Sinful human beings cannot “stand” before a holy God. And we are powerless to do anything about it. So from our text, which we use to define the Gospel, the Gospel:

• It is the power of God – in the face of our powerlessness
• It is for our salvation
• It is required of us that we believe
• It is about “righteousness from God.” Righteousness in the instance means literally: a right standing, an ability to be in a right relationship with, God. The gospel is about God taking the initiative and revealing how we can enter into a right standing, or, a right relationship, with Himself.
• Because we are powerless to do anything about it, it has to be by faith. We have to believe God that He has made a way through Jesus for us to have this righteousness – this right standing with a holy God.

What impact does the gospel have on your life?


The first question should be: DOES the Gospel have an impact on our lives? If the answer is YES, then we can explore what that impact is.

• It should cause us to live responsively – i.e., to live in response to all He has done for us. This means obeying Him – keeping the law – NOT in order to be saved, but because we are already saved. And what that looks like specifically will vary from person to person.

What would have happened to Christianity if the Jewish believers who insisted that Gentiles become Jews prevailed?


We would have ended up with people trying to work in order to be saved. We would have ended up with a set of “do this” and “don’t do that.” What is interesting is this: Looking from the outside at a person living legalistically, and a person living in response to Christ’s love – it would look the same. Both would be living obediently. The difference would be this:

• One is living obediently IN ORDER TO EARN FAVOR.
• The other would be living obediently IN RESPONSE TO THE FAVOR THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN SHOWN.

What does Paul’s letter to the Romans reveal to us about salvation?


It cannot be accomplished on our own – whether we are godless pagans – Rom 1:18ff; whether we are well intentioned Gentiles – Rom 2; whether we are law abiding – or otherwise – Jews – Rom 3. None of us can earn salvation. The second major thing is this: those who are saved live differently – Rom 12 - 16.

PRAYER

Gracious God, Thank you for providing Paul’s life as an example of one who courageously lived out Your call. Lord, help me to live faithfully as a witness to Your work on earth. God, give me courage when I need it most to be obedient to Your call in my life. Help me to live a life that follows You, not the world, in all I do and say, even when it is risky and there is resistance. Amen. 

See you on Sunday!

In His Love,

David & Susan