CONNECT: How can you rely more on the Holy Spirit as you seek to share the Gospel with your ‘one key’ person this week?

WARM-UP  Questions

1. If you’ve ever looked around for a church (or gone ‘Church shopping’), what were the types of things that you were looking for? How did you actually make your decision?
2. If you asked a friend what they thought that you were ‘devoted’ to, what do you think they would say? Is that different to what you would love them to say?

READ Acts 2:40-45 (LEARNING & LOVING)

1. What does Luke mean when he uses the word ‘devoted’? What do you think people would describe St Bart’s as being ‘devoted to’?
2. What does Luke mean by the Apostles’ teaching? Why did this teaching have such a special status and what would it have looked like for them to be devoted to it?
3. Why should the Bible take such a central place in the life of our church and lives?
4. What were the reasons as to why people were so motivated to love another?
5. What was the extent of their love for another? How do you think this would have been practically demonstrated?
6. What are the ways in which we love one another as a church? How could we grow in this area?

READ Acts 2:46-47 (WORSHIPPING & TELLING)

1. In what way was this first Christian church devoted to worshipping? In what forums did they worship and how was that expressed?
2. What does it mean to be both reverent and joyful in worship? How is that possible?
3. If someone said to you that Christian corporate worship (i.e., being gathered together) doesn’t matter, how would you respond to them?
4. How is it evident that the early church was regularly involved in telling others about Jesus? What has been the your latest (even tiny!) conversation that mentioned Jesus or that you are a Christian?

APPLY This Week: How can you help continue to shape St Bart’s as church devoted to learning, loving, worshipping, and telling? (Feel free to pick one!)

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On Your Frontline This Week: Is there someone that you can invite over for a casual mid-week dinner?

Audio and Video

• “What the Result?” By David Jackman:
• “Painting a Picture” by Sam Osborne
• “The First Church” by Tim Keller:
• “A new community” by Tim Keller:
• “The Church - a paper Tiger?” By John Stott
• “Together following Jesus” by Ray Galea
• “Waves of Blessing” by Andrew Ford
  

Other Helpful Articles and Courses

• “The Self-Effacing Spirit” by Graham Cole:
• “The Apostolic Preaching and its Developments” by C. H. Dodd (series of lectures at King’s College, London in 1964):

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