Acts 12:1-19
ACTS STUDY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What encouraged or convicted you from our study of Acts 12:1-19?
Though the governing rulers have changed, what is still true about the attitude toward Jesus and his
followers? What does Jesus teach us in John 16:33 that echoes this text but also gives hope?
What does Herod seek to do with his power and hands, and how is he contrasted with what God does with his power and outstretched arm in Exodus 6:6? What hope does that offer us as adopted sons and daughters of God?
What details does Luke provide in Acts 12:1-6 that show Peter is in impossible circumstances, facing sure and certain death, without hope of man-made rescue? What other pit, prison, and tomb stories come to mind from the Bible as you read Peter’s story? What do all those stories point to (cf. Eph 2:1-10)?
What was the church's go-to first action in light of these circumstances (cf. Acts 12:5)? What do we learn about their faith and about prayer from their actions? What are they confessing to God by their actions? What is typically your first course of action in crisis?
In a previous moment of persecution in Acts 4:23-31, what did the church do and pray? How might their prayers in Acts 4:23-31 inform their prayers in Acts 12:5? How might that explain their surprise in Acts 12:15?
What is this church doing when Peter shows up in Acts 12:12? Is prayer an integral part of our communal life together? Why or why not? How can we cultivate this?
What do the details in Acts 12:6-10 say about Peter’s role in his escape? Who does Peter point to and give credit when he “came to himself” in verse 11 and when he testifies to the church in Acts 12:17? How might Peter’s experience inform his words in 2 Peter 2:9? What hope can we take from his testimony and instruction?
What does Peter’s miraculous rescue from impossible circumstances lead to in Acts 12:12-17? What irony and humor do you notice in these verses? What does the church’s shock say about God’s surpassing grace (cf. Eph 3:20)? What should our rescue, God’s daily provision, and His answer to prayer result in? How can we grow in recognizing and giving praise for God’s answers to prayer?
What did you learn this week from the text about God? Are there any attitudes, actions, or affections that need to change as a result of our study? What hope does this text offer?
