Philip

In this weeks Fuel we read about Philip. Philip was one of the seven men chosen along with Stephen by the church in Acts 6. And just like Stephen we see Philip used greatly by the Lord in the midst of a tough time of persecution of Christians.

The study takes us through Acts 8:4-8 and 8:26-39. There are many things that will be valuable for you to study in order to prepare for this weeks lesson but I want to draw your attention away from Philip and to our wonderful and great God. Notice the story of Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. Out of all the tens of thousands Jews, Gentiles, and Samaritans that need Christ, God rests his favor on this man from Africa.

This was God's plan. He chose this man. He set up the meeting between him and Philip. God, in his sovereignty and grace, molded the situation in such a way that the timing was perfect. Philip, not knowing where he was, what he was doing, or who he was going to encounter chose to be obedient to the Spirit. The timing was perfect because as Philip approached he heard the Ethiopian reading from Isaiah. This provided a perfect opportunity to share the good news of Jesus Christ.

There are two points to this story in Acts 8. The first I think is that God is sovereign. He is in complete control of all things and he is the one who plans and makes things happen. The second point is that the story of Philip is an example of one of the ways God uses to evangelize the world. There is no doubt that evangelism should be planned and carried out (look at all the planning in Acts), but this story emphasizes that we should also be sensitive to the leading of the Lord in personal evangelism as well. God is good and as we abide in Him and his word he will lead us by His Spirit to the right people at His perfect time.

Did Stephen waste his life?

Stephen is a great example of one who gave his life to advance the gospel. In a world where students give their lives to be with a girl or boy, the story of Stephen screams at them to give their lives to know Christ. In a world where teens spend much of their time living in a dream world facilitated by video games, ipods, movies, and a host of other things, the story of Stephen points them to live in the real world where people die every day and leave this world only to spend an eternity separated from God.

We waste our lives and do not love people if we are not pointing them to the good news of Jesus Christ in the cross.

Stephen pointed to the cross. He boldly proclaimed the message that Jesus is our mediator to God and is the only way to heaven. He proclaimed the message that Jesus has satisfied his soul more than riches, relationships and life. He died with the good news of Christ being shouted with this last breath. Stephen did not waste his life. He lived it to the fullest. For God's glory.

Ananias and Sapphira

This weeks FUEL is about a husband and a wife who try to get one past the Holy Spirit. But we see that this does not work out the way they had planned. And you can be sure that Ananias and Sapphira did have this planned (Acts 5:4). But as we have learned and what Ananias and Sapphira seemed to have forgotten is that the "eyes of the Lord are in every place keeping watch on the evil and the good (Pr. 15:3).

There are many things that can be said about Ananias and Sapphira. They loved this world more than God. They desired the praise of men rather than honoring God. They were hypocrites...representing themselves as one thing but in reality were something totally different. They wanted to seem more generous than they really were. They lied to God. All these things I am sure you will look at and study, but really quickly I want to point you to Proverbs.

I wont take the space to type it, but read Proverbs chapter 16. If Ananias and Sapphira had only taken the time to read this small chapter they might have done things a little different. For example, verse 2 says, "All the ways of man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weights the spirit (motives in other translations)."

The story of Ananias and Sapphira is told in contrast to the story of Barnabas contained in chapter four. During my time in Fuel I am going to ask the students to compare and contrast Barnabas with Ananias and Sapphira. There are some major differences between them so if you get a chance check it out.

Lastly, we see that God used Ananias and Sapphira to warn the church that this is what always happens to phony Christians, sooner or later.

And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.

Where did Peter and John's power come from?

Peter and John had changed. There was something different about them. They had spent the last three years with Jesus, but were relatively weak with in their faith during that time. They questioned Jesus numerous times. Jesus often rebuked them for lack of faith (i.g. Matt. 8:26). But in Acts we see different men. They were powerful. They were bold and full of faith. They seemed almost...fearless. What had changed?

Two words. Holy Spirit. They had been clothed with power from on high (Luke 24:49). Peter and John's power and boldness didn't come from themselves, but came from them being "filled with the Spirit." Look with me at the emphasis of being filled with the Holy Spirit in the Acts:

Acts 1:8 "And you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you."

Acts 4:8 "Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit," spoke to the rulers of the people. And they saw the boldness with which he spoke (v. 13).

Acts 4:31, "And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken and they were all filled with the Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness."

Acts 6:5, 10, Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit and faith and the Jews could not withstand the wisdom with which he spoke.

Acts 7:55, "Stephen filled with Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God."

Acts 11:24, Barnabas was full of the Holy Spirit and faith; and a large company was added to the Lord.

Acts 13:9, "Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at Elymas and said."

Do you see the importance of the Holy Spirit in the work of God's people? Without him we have zero power to proclaim the riches of God's grace.

There is so much more that can be said about the Holy Spirit and his power in our lives, so I would encourage you to spend some time looking at the following verses:

Ephesians 3:14-18, 5:18, and 6:17.
Romans 15:13

Praise be to our Creator that he did not leave us to live for him on our own power! Have a great week.

Pentecost

The word Pentecost means "fiftieth", referring to the fiftieth day after the Passover. When we talk about Pentecost we are referring to what happened in Acts 2 with the coming of the Spirit. This is a very significant event. The "Background for the Bible passage" section in your notes provides a good description of what is going on at Pentecost. I want to call your attention to a passage in the Old Testament about Moses. Check out Numbers 11:24-30:

So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, But they did not continue doing it.
Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the Spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent and so they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp." And Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth said, "My lord Moses, stop them." But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for me sake? Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!"

Moses is pointing to a time when all of God's people would have the Holy Spirit. And that time is Now. No longer does the Holy Spirit rest on certain individuals, but we live in a time that Moses and Joel both longed for; a time when the Holy Spirit indwelt all of God's people. At Pentecost we see this happen in a BIG way.

How does this work in your life? God has put the Holy Spirit inside you and wants you to be a prophet. Not in the sense that you know the future, but in a sense that you are so filled with the knowledge of Him who has saved you that you constantly talk about his greatness.

The promised Holy Spirit has come. This promise is for you and has been kept by God. He has poured out his Spirit on you in order that you might be empowered to glorify Him. Rejoice in the promises of God! Have a great week.

How important were the Eye-witnesses of Jesus' resurrection?

This week we are studying the Post-Resurrection Appearances of Christ in Luke 24 and John 20. There are many who claim that the resurrection of Christ did not take place, but eye-witness accounts have been recorded that prove otherwise. How important are these eye-witnesses? Pastor John Piper says,

The early Christians were keenly aware that eyewitnesses were crucial in verifying their claims about the death and resurrection of Jesus. Their earliest writer, the apostle Paul, who was a contemporary of Jesus, said, “ Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures. . . . he was buried . . . he was raised on the third day . . . Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive” (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). Why did Paul say “most of whom are still alive”? Because he was not afraid to have his claims put to the test. He knew they could be verified by eyewitnesses. In other words, Christianity was spreading during the very decades when eyewitnesses could have most easily proved it false. But the basic claims stood the test. The events had happened.

God provided a way that we can verify that the resurrection really took place. Jesus revealed himself to hundreds of people after he had been raised from the dead. These eye-witness accounts bear the truth that "Jesus has been raised" and therefore our faith is not in vain.

John Piper shares more about these eye-witness accounts especially the Muslim reaction in his sermon "The Great Offense: Was Jesus Really Crucified?"

I hope you all have a great week.

Is Our Faith in Vain?

This week FUEL is on the burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our main passage is John 19:31-20:18. Around Easter there is always a few people who set out to prove (unsuccessfully I might add) that the resurrection of Jesus did not take place. And there seems to always be someone who says, "Well even if he was not raised from the dead, I will still believe and continue in my faith." How would the apostle Paul respond to this statement? First Corinthians has the answer:

1 Cor. 15:12-20 - Now if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ we have no hope whatsoever. "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins." Our faith would be worthless if Jesus is not raised from the dead. Think hard on these verses in First Corinthians as you study John 19-20.

The resurrection is absolutely necessary. Without it our faith is in vain.

This Sunday I will have postcards that you will be able to write to the students you haven't seen in a while. Pray hard for your students. You guys are great. Have a wonderful week.

Pierced for our Transgressions

"But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:5-6 (emphasis mine).

This week Fuel is focused on the Crucifixion of Christ from Matthew 27 and Luke 23. The "fanning the flame" question is "Tell me about a person you would sacrifice your life to save?" Instead of fanning the flames with this question think about another one such as, "Why did Jesus have to die?" or What was the purpose of Jesus' death?" These might be better questions. Challenge the students to think about why Jesus had to die.

Reflecting on some on these verses will help: Isaiah 53, 1 Cor. 15:1-7, 2 Cor. 5:21, Hebrews 2:9, Eph. 5:25-27, Romans 5:1-11, and Romans 8:1-31-39.

God is in control.

This weeks session is about the Arrest and Trial of Jesus from Matthew 26. The question that our Fuel lesson asks is one about betrayal, but I want to take you in a different direction.

In John 7:25-32 we find that Jesus is proclaiming himself to be the Christ. He is crying out that he has come from God, but the Jews do not know the one from whom Jesus came and seek to arrest Jesus. Verse 30 says, "So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come." The Jewish leaders had sought to arrest Jesus 6 times (7:30, 32, 44; 8:20, 10:39, 11:57) but never succeeded. Why? Jesus time had not yet come. Jesus could not be arrested until it was time and God was in charge of the timetable. In Matthew 26 we see that Jesus' time had come. "The hour is at hand" (v.45). Jesus knew God's plan and knew that these plans were centered on the cross. Christ obeyed, even to the point of death, knowing his Father was in control.

In no matter what situation or circumstance we are called to obey and trust our Father (1 Cor. 10:13). God is faithful. God is in control.
I hope everyone is having a wonderful week and please let me know if you need anything.

Propel: The Beginning

In an effort to make Propel as attractive as possible and to give myself an opportunity to experience what it is to "blog" I have started this blog entitled appropriately "Propel." The purpose of this blog is two-fold. First, to provide a means of contact with Fuel Leaders. Second, to offer insight into upcoming Fuel lessons and announcements for upcoming Fuel events. Lord willing, I will have a new blog every Tuesday by 4:00 and will send out an email letting all Fuel Leaders know that it is available. You guys are awesome and see you on Sunday.