July 18, 2021
GROUP TIME – Part 3
PHILIP – OBEDIENT AND FAITHFUL
During the six weeks of our Acts of the Apostles series, the Group Time lessons shared here will be a deeper exploration of a portion of the sermon rather than our usual lesson based on the sermon itself.
HOW TO GET STARTED:
It’s easy! Circle up with your friends and talk about the passage. We’ve set up the study with the same weekly routine.
A key practice of growing believers is readying, studying, and applying Scripture together.
The Scripture for our lesson today is: Acts 8:26-40
Each week we’ll READ the passage aloud, PRAY to ask the Holy Spirit to guide discussion, then follow these steps:
- DISCOVER: What is the passage saying?
- Analyze: look for emphasized statements, repeated words, and the flow of the passage.
- How would you summarize or paraphrase these verses?
- LEARN: What is the passage teaching?
- Ask the group to discuss the passage. What do they see?
- According to the verses, how did Philip know to leave Samaria? Where was he told he should go? What do verses 26-27 say he was to do there?
- List several ways the Ethiopian man is described. What was he reading? Consider why did he have that? Where might he have gotten it? How was he able to afford it?
- Was it a coincidence he was reading Isaiah 53 at the precise time Philip approached? How might Ephesians 2:10 relate to this passage?
- Where was the man going? Based on his attitude in Acts 8:37-39, what can we imagine would happen when he arrived?
- Was Philips’ immediate obedience significant in this passage?
- APPLY: What is our response?
- What is the Holy Spirit saying to you about this passage? Is He convicting you to do or change anything?
- What are some ways you “hear” the Holy Spirit leading you? (Allow several to share) How can you practice listening to the Holy Spirit this week?
READ the passage aloud one more time and allow people to pray out loud in response.