By Doug Redford
1. Following up on last week’s “Personal Challenge” projects: What steps can you take to continue your involvement in and support of missions and missionaries? How can you involve others (family and church friends) in this effort?
2. In what subject or subjects do you think you would be best suited for leading a discussion group of, say, 10 to 15 people?
Ask two people to read aloud Acts 19:8-10, 23-41, one after the other, preferably from different Bible versions. Then ask a third person to briefly summarize the passages.
3. Some in Ephesus “publicly maligned” the Christian faith (Acts 19:9). In what ways do we see the faith maligned today (publicly or otherwise)?
4. While in Ephesus, Paul was able to have daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus (Acts 19:9). Do you think the discussion format would be effective in today’s culture as a means of communicating the Christian faith? Why or why not?
5. Silver images of the goddess Artemis were worshipped in Ephesus. What items or ideas could be considered “idols” in Western society today?
6. Mark Scott notes the part that greed played in the thinking of Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen in Ephesus.
- In what ways does greed manifest itself in contemporary culture?
- What can we do to avoid being impacted by greed?
7. Two of Paul’s traveling companions, Gaius and Aristarchus, were seized during the uproar in Ephesus (Acts 19:29).
- What personality or character type was well-suited for traveling with someone like Paul?
- What risks would be involved in traveling with Paul (besides what happened to Gaius and Aristarchus)?
8. Acts 19:31 notes that some of the officials of the province of Asia were friends of Paul and were concerned for his safety.
- What does this tell us about Paul’s strategy in taking the gospel to new locations?
- What would be some examples of similar friendships that Christian leaders might want to develop in today’s setting?
9. Based on our study and discussion, complete the sentence: “I will . . .”
10. As a follow-up to last week’s lesson and Personal Challenge, commit to praying each day this week for one (or more) of the following: a missionary your church supports, a missionary whom you know (but whom your church does not support), and/or a missions-related organization. Pray for two points noted in today’s Scripture: boldness (Acts 19:8) and protection from opposition (Acts 19:35-41).
For Next Week: Read and reflect on Acts 28:17-31. You can also read next week’s supplemental texts as well as the Study and Application sections as part of your personal study.
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