Acts 4:23-31
ACTS STUDY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
How were you convicted or encouraged from our study of Acts 4:23-31 on Sunday?
Why do you think the apostles and disciples started their prayer the way they did in Acts 4:24? What does it reveal about their attitude and disposition by calling God the master, maker, revealer, and determiner of all things? How does their attitude and perspective stand in contrast to the religious leaders (cf. Acts 4:25-27)?
How do the opening words of disciple’s prayer serve as an indictment against the religious leaders? If the kings, rulers, and even the religious leaders and “peoples of Israel” (vs. 27) are set against the Lord and his Anointed, what is the answer according to Psalm 2:10-12? How is that answer expressed in the opening words of their prayer and the title “Sovereign Lord?”
The religious leaders and many of the disciple’s Jewish peers are blind and proud, and that leads to the request in their prayer. What do they ask in Acts 4:29? What do they not ask, specifically with regard to the threats? What can we learn from their initial request in verse 29?
Many of us wrestle with sharing our faith largely because of various fears. The disciples ask for the words, clarity, and conviction to speak as well as for the freedom to speak in the face of their fears. How is their prayer both instructive and encouraging?
How does growing deeper in gospel understanding (i.e., that through Jesus, we have the full approval, acceptance, and security of God) increase our willingness to speak freely and confidently the good news of the gospel?
What does the second half of their request, found in verse 30, reveal about their hearts for their peers and persecutors and why they asked for the words and the freedom to speak? What do they not ask God to do to their peers and persecutors, and how is that instructive for us?
What was the result of their prayer according to Acts 4:31? What does the ground shaking communicate? What did it communicate in Exodus 19:18 and Isaiah 6:4? Where else do we see the ground shaking (cf Matt 27:51, 54, 28:4), and what was the result (cf. Heb 12:28)?
What do we learn about prayer from Acts 4:23-31? Is “Sovereign Lord” the banner over your life? If not, why not? Is your heart moved by the blindness of your friends and family to the greatness and grace of God in Jesus? Have you asked God for the words, clarity, conviction, and freedom to communicate the gospel to them? While you speak, do you simultaneously trust God to act and transform them?
Are there any attitudes, actions, or affections that need to change, that we can pray for, or that we can stir up and encourage in one another as a result of studying Acts 4:23-31?
