Saved Leader's Guide E-Book

Nancy Guthrie

• Herausgeber: Crossway
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Seitenzahl: 266

Beschreibung

Lead a Study of the Book of Acts with Confidence Using This Extensive Leader's Guide In the Saved book and video series, bestselling author Nancy Guthrie offers a friendly and theologically rich walk through the entire book of Acts. This leader's guide provides everything needed to facilitate a group study using the book or video series, including tips for structuring your study, personal Bible study questions with possible answers, and group discussion questions with possible answers for every lesson. While the personal Bible study questions are designed to get participants into the detail of the text and prepare them for the teaching in the book chapter or video session, the group discussion questions are designed to generate meaningful discussion and application. The leader's guide also includes a printable list of the group discussion questions that can be duplicated to give to participants. This essential guide provides facilitators with everything needed to organize and conduct meaningful times as a group using the book or video series, followed by a discussion of the truths in the book of Acts and its implications for our lives.  - Everything Needed to Facilitate Bible Study: This leader's guide to the book Saved provides not only questions but also suggested answers to the question to fully equip the leader - Written by Nancy Guthrie: Experienced Bible study curriculum writer, author of the Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament Bible study series and the award-winning book Blessed: Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Revelation  - Part of the Saved Suite of Products: Also includes the book, the personal Bible study, and a video series (sold separately) - Ideal for Small Groups, Bible Studies, and Women's Groups

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Saved Leader’s Guide

Saved Leader’s Guide

Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Acts

Nancy Guthrie

Saved Leader’s Guide: Experiencing the Promise of the Book of Acts

© 2024 by Nancy Guthrie

Published by Crossway1300 Crescent StreetWheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law. Crossway® is a registered trademark in the United States of America.

Prepared with Amy Kannel.

Cover design: Crystal Courtney

First printing 2024

Printed in the United States of America

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible®, © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added be the author.

Trade paperback ISBN: 978-1-4335-9491-5 ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-9491-9 PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-9492-2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Guthrie, Nancy, author.

Title: Saved leader’s guide : experiencing the promise of the Book of Acts / Nancy Guthrie.

Description: Wheaton, Illinois : Crossway, 2024. | Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2023053504 (print) | LCCN 2023053505 (ebook) | ISBN 9781433594915 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9781433594922 (pdf) | ISBN 9781433594939 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Acts—Commentaries. | Christian leadership. | Bible study. 

Classification: LCC BS2625.53 .G89 2024 (print) | LCC BS2625.53 (ebook) | DDC 226.607—dc23/eng/20240301

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023053504

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023053505

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

2024-05-21 03:41:11 PM

Contents

Author’s Note

Planning Your Study

Ideas and Resources for Discussion Group Facilitators

Personal Bible Study and Discussion Questions with Possible Answers

Introduction: Acts of the Apostles?

1  You Will Be My Witnesses (1:1–26)

2  I Will Pour Out My Spirit (2:1–47)

3  In Jesus the Resurrection from the Dead (3:1–4:31)

4  You Will Not Be Able to Overthrow Them (4:32–5:42)

5  The Most High Does Not Dwell in Houses Made by Hands (6:1–7:60)

6  They Were All Scattered (8:1–40)

7  God’s Chosen Instrument (9:1–31)

8  What God Has Made Clean (9:32–11:18)

9  The Hand of the Lord Was with Them (11:19–12:25)

10  All That God Had Done with Them (13:1–14:28)

11  Saved through the Grace of the Lord Jesus (15:1–16:5)

12  There Is Another King, Jesus (16:6–17:9)

13  I Have Many in This City Who Are My People (17:10–18:23)

14  The Word Continued to Increase and Prevail Mightily (18:24–20:38)

15  Paul Resolved in His Spirit to Go to Jerusalem (21:1–23:35)

16  I Always Take Pains to Have a Clear Conscience toward God and Man (24:1–26:32)

17  It Will Be Exactly as I Have Been Told (27:1–28:31)

Group Discussion Questions

Author’s Note

This leader’s guide has been prepared to equip you to plan and lead a group study of the book of Acts using the book or video series Saved: Experiencing the Power of the Book of Acts. Acts is the longest book in the New Testament. So it is a lot to cover! I’m hoping that what Amy Kannel and I have put together in this leader’s guide will really help you at every step.

This study covers the twenty-eight chapters of Acts in eighteen sessions—an introductory session plus seventeen sessions on the entire text of the book. I have sought to keep the chapters and video teaching sessions relatively short in hopes that it will not be overwhelming. But it will require perseverance to work through all eighteen sessions together.

We’ve tried to make the elements of this study as flexible as possible to accommodate the various ways groups will use them. The personal Bible study questions are designed to get participants into the text themselves, becoming familiar with the flow of events while also beginning to grapple with the “whys” underneath the text. While there is usually one personal application question in each personal Bible study lesson, application is mostly reserved for the teaching chapter or video and the group discussion. By using all three elements (personal Bible study + book or video + group discussion questions), we hope your group members will make discoveries in the word, grow in their understanding of the bigger picture, and have meaningful times together discussing what you’re learning and how you want it to shape you.

It is likely that participants in your study will be familiar with the story of Pentecost in Acts 1–2 and with some of the other stories, such as Ananias and Sapphira (yikes!), Peter’s vision of the animals on a sheet, Paul and Silas singing in prison, and perhaps the shipwreck at the end. We want to know and understand those stories. But we want more than that from our study of Acts. We want to gain a clearer sense of how the events of this book fit into the outworking of God’s salvation plan. We want to see how he is at work by his Spirit through his word to build his kingdom, to gather a people for himself, a bride for his Son, made up of Jews and Gentiles.

As I have worked on this study, I’ve found that my understanding of Acts has made a difference in how I read the rest of the New Testament Epistles. I notice characters and situations in the Epistles that I first met or learned about in Acts. When I read the letters to the churches in Philippi, Corinth, Ephesus, or Thessalonica, I read them in light of the history of Paul’s initial work in bringing the gospel to those cities. When I read Paul’s commendations at the ends of some of his letters, I recognize the names of people who traveled with him and supported him in the events presented in Acts. This has made the people and events in Acts and the Epistles so much more connected and real to me. It has given me more of a sense of what it was like to follow Jesus in these early days after the ascension of Christ—the wonder as well as the costliness of it. It has made me examine myself, looking for a similar commitment to spreading the gospel and a similar willingness to suffer for the name of Jesus.

When we read Acts, we’re not reading ancient history that is disconnected from us in the here and now. Rather, we’re reading family history. We’re reading the story of how our brothers and sisters first began to take the gospel from Jerusalem, to Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. And we’re seeing what it cost them. I pray that as you meet the people in this book, they will become real to you and beloved by you. I pray that you’ll have a greater sense of how the risen and enthroned Lord Jesus is directing the spread of his gospel from heaven, not only during the time period covered in Acts, but today. And I pray you’ll become more aware of and grateful for the Holy Spirit, who empowers his people to boldly spread that gospel. I pray that this study of Acts will cause you to understand more fully and cherish more fondly the salvation that God is accomplishing in his world and in our lives.

Planning Your Study

As a leader, you have the freedom to choose how to use these resources in a way that will work best for your group. Below we’ve sought to outline some considerations as you decide on the homework to assign, the length of your study, and how you’ll divide up your time together.

How to Structure Your Study

This study can be done with or without the video version of the teaching. The content of the videos is the same as the chapters in the book.

For your first meeting, I suggest that you either have participants read the introduction in the book in advance, read the introduction aloud in your gathering, cover its content in your own words, or watch the introduction video, and then work through the discussion questions provided for the introduction session. You might also use this time to talk about how your time will be structured and clarify expectations. Your participants can then work on the personal Bible study for chapter 1 on their own prior to the next gathering.

If participants are working on the personal Bible study on their own, we generally do not recommend that you plan to spend your time together going over all the personal Bible study questions. These questions are invaluable for laying a foundation of understanding and helping participants immerse themselves in Scripture prior to reading the chapter or watching the video, but they do not always lend themselves very well to group discussion because they often generate simply factual responses.

You will want to use the discussion questions as your primary source for generating thoughtful discussion. These questions are designed to lead you from the text of the Bible and the chapter or video presentation into real life, deepening your understanding of the text and its implications, and making personal applications. Questions from the personal Bible study are occasionally brought into the discussion questions where we think discussing them would be helpful.

Note: If you assign the personal Bible study as homework and have someone in your group who repeatedly does not complete it, you might see if she would be interested in meeting for lunch, coffee, or a study session to work through it together. Perhaps there is an intimidation or frustration factor that you can help with.

Using Your Group Time

Following are just two examples of how you might plan your group time together based on how long you meet, whether you’re using the book or the video, and whether you want to work through the personal Bible study individually or as a group. Of course, these examples are not exhaustive, but we hope they will give you ideas as you plan your study in a way that will work best for your group.

If you are using the teaching videos in this series, you will find that they vary slightly but generally last 30–45 minutes.

Example 1: Sixty minutes using book only, with participants reading the chapter in between gatherings:

 5 minutes: Welcome and prayer.

15 minutes: Leader talks through main points of chapter, asking participants to share parts of the chapter that were significant.

35 minutes: Work through discussion questions.

 5 minutes: Prayer of response to material, close.

Example 2: Ninety minutes using video:

 5 minutes: Welcome, get settled, announcements.

35 minutes: Watch video teaching.

35 minutes: Discussion using the discussion questions.

10 minutes: End with various participants praying in response to what has been presented and discussed. Each session of the discussion questions ends with an invitation to pray through what has been presented in the passage.

Using the Personal Bible Study Questions

Work through questions on your own first. We all know that it can be a challenge to resist looking for the answers to a crossword puzzle in the back of the book. As the leader, it may likewise be a challenge for you to resist using this resource when you work through these questions for the first time. We strongly urge you to use a blank copy of the personal Bible study and complete the questions on your own first, just like your fellow group members, without reading the possible answers in this leader’s guide until after you’ve completed it on your own. After working through the questions yourself, you can look over the leader’s guide and add notes to your own answers as desired in preparation for the group discussion.

The possible answers to the personal Bible study questions found in this leader’s guide are provided to assist you and other small-group leaders in facilitating discussion and dealing with difficult questions. This guide should never be provided to group members. Think of it as a reference tool. If you choose to discuss the answers to the personal Bible study questions when you gather, be sure to avoid referring to what is provided in this leader’s guide as the source of the “right” or “best” answer.

The personal Bible study is much less focused on personal application and much more about laying scriptural groundwork. It doesn’t tie up loose ends (we hope the book chapter or the video will help to clarify any confusing concepts) and doesn’t always make direct application. Its primary purpose is to get participants into God’s word to see for themselves what it says and begin thinking about what it means.

Depending on the Bible study experience, maturity level, or personalities of the people in your group, some may tend to get impatient with these “What does this passage say?” questions and want to rush to application: “What does this have to do with my life?” Often in our instant-gratification culture, women want to put in a few minutes of Bible reading and come away with a feel-good bit of encouragement or a clear to-do list. They’re seeking a quick “How does this apply to me?” takeaway.

Applying the Bible to our lives is essential! But the appropriate application is not always immediately clear. It’s good for us to press in and think deeply to gain clarity about what the text meant to the original audience (them/then) before we bring it into our own context (us/now). If we don’t spend much time on the “So what?” question in the personal Bible study, that doesn’t mean it won’t be addressed at all. Rather, we believe that the application will be deeper and more powerful (and more faithful to the Scriptures) when we get there if we invest the time to think carefully and understand what God’s word says first. Each chapter in the book and each video presentation will present some ideas for application. And much of the discussion guide focuses on getting practical and living out the truths presented. We should keep in mind, however, that the most important impact of the lessons may be less about “what I’m supposed to do” or “how I’m supposed to change” and more about leading us to wonder and worship in light of the magnificence of God’s salvation plan and the generosity of “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21).

How Long Should It Take to Complete the Personal Bible Study Questions?

There is no set time frame. We all approach this differently. Some participants love to linger, think through, look up, and write out. Others simply look for the answers and make short notations. If you’re asked about the time commitment, we suggest you say that it takes as much time as they choose to invest in it. Some lessons include more passages to look up than others, but we would expect that you could read the Scriptures and complete the questions in thirty to sixty minutes. Certainly participants may have more time available some weeks than others, but we all know that we get more out of study the more we put into it. As the leader, keep in mind that the depth of thought given to the lesson is not necessarily reflected in the length of answers written on the page or the time spent according to the clock.

What is most important is not how much time it takes, but that each participant plan a time to work through the personal Bible study and keep that appointment. In fact, on the first week, you might go around the circle and ask each group member to share with the group when she intends to work on the personal Bible study in the coming week. This encourages planning and establishes some accountability, as well as providing ideas to others in the group for when they might make time for study. You might ask those who have done similar studies if they prefer to do it in one sitting or to break it up over several days.

It will be wise for you to affirm at the start why we are doing any of this: because we want to know Christ through his word. This is not like the busywork we did in school. This is the pursuit of relationship with Christ, which comes primarily as we open up God’s word to hear him speak to us as we read it, think it through for ourselves, chew on it, discuss it, and pray through it. It is both elements—the personal Bible study and the teaching (either book or video)—that prepare participants to take part in the group discussion.

Using the Group Discussion Questions

You will find a copy of the discussion questions for each session beginning on page 203 of this leader’s guide. You may copy and hand out these questions to your group members if you would like, though you don’t have to.

The discussion questions don’t always lend themselves to simple answers; they invite participants to interact with the themes and challenges of each passage and consider how we are called to live in light of these truths. You will want to spend some time going over the questions on your own prior to your group time. Looking over the notes we’ve provided will give you a sense of the types of conversations we’re hoping to provoke. But we hope you’ll view this guide as a resource, not as a script. You might choose to add an opening question that will help participants warm up, or you might be selective about which questions you think will be most effective with your group and fit in your time frame. You may also want to encourage participants to share something that was meaningful or challenging to them from the personal Bible study, the book chapter, or the video presentation, determining ahead of time at what point in the discussion you will invite those comments.

We strongly urge you not to read answers from this leader’s guide, as this creates a “right answer” environment rather than a genuine discussion among equal participants. Instead, we suggest you make some notes from the leader’s guide onto your copy of the discussion questions and bring them in where needed, esteeming the input of your group. Their contributions may be different from what we’ve provided—and even more insightful!

Ideas and Resources for Discussion Group Facilitators

Thank you for your willingness to lead a group through this study of Acts! We pray that your extra investment of time and effort in preparation will not only equip you to lead effectively but will also fill you with wonder and worship of the God who is working out his salvation purposes in history.

Your Goal as Discussion Leader

What is your role as a discussion leader? We suggest you make it your goal to draw out the members of your group and guide them through a time of open and authentic discussion of the biblical truths presented in the text of Scripture and in the book or video. As you seek to clarify challenging concepts, solidify the group’s grasp of the truths presented, and apply those truths to real life, work to create an environment that is safe for personal struggle, difficult questions, discovery, and even ambiguity.

Sometimes we are anxious about leading or reluctant to lead because we know we don’t have all the answers. We’re afraid someone will ask a question we can’t answer or take the discussion in a direction we can’t handle. Don’t allow yourself to be intimidated by the false expectation that if you step up to facilitate the discussion, you must have all the “right” answers.

Too often when people discuss the Bible, someone in the group (often the leader) feels he or she must sum up every part of the discussion with the “right” answer. As you lead your group, avoid the compulsion to come quickly to the “right” answer to every question. Don’t be afraid to let some questions hang for a while. Allow members to struggle with the issues involved in the series of questions. Keep asking for the input of other participants who may be reluctant talkers.

There’s nothing wrong with admitting that you don’t know something or don’t fully understand something. Perhaps you need to study it more, or you want to invite someone on the pastoral staff of your church to help answer the question. Determine to lead your group as a fellow learner, not as an all-knowing expert. Expect God to use his word not only in the lives of your group members, but in your life as well!

While you do not want to dominate the group, you do want to lead effectively. It’s your job to create an atmosphere that fosters meaningful discussion. As the leader, you set the tone for authenticity and openness. Set an example of being a good listener and giving short answers so that others can talk. Being an effective leader also means that it is up to you to draw reluctant talkers into the conversation and to redirect the conversation when it has gone off track. Few people want to be part of a group that is inflexible, restrictive, or rules oriented, but they do want to be part of a group that is organized and purposeful, in which expectations are unapologetically communicated and guidelines are respected. On the following pages, we’ve provided some suggestions for dealing with issues that commonly arise in small-group studies. We hope they will be helpful to you in leading well.

Using Your Time Effectively

As the leader, it’s your responsibility to direct how the time for group discussion is used. While some participants may be very casual about this, others in your group will be very aware of the time and become frustrated when they feel their valuable time is being wasted. Several issues can have a significant impact on effectively using the time allotted for small-group discussion:

Getting Started

So often we run out of time because we are slow to get started. We are waiting for latecomers or chatting or enjoying some food together, and we simply let the time get away from us. All groups develop a culture, and members learn whether the group will really start on time or not. They will adjust their sense of urgency regarding arrival time accordingly.

Certainly you need to allow some time for participants to greet each other and to share their lives with each other, but you will want to decide how long that will last and give the group a firm start time for the discussion. If you establish a culture of starting on time regardless of whether everyone in the group has arrived, not allowing latecomers to interrupt your discussion when they arrive, you may likely find that group members become more punctual.

At the beginning of the study, you may also want to ask that any members who arrive late simply join the group and enter the discussion as unobtrusively as possible. When we stop the discussion while everyone greets the late arrival, perhaps hearing the story of what caused the lateness, it can be challenging to get started again. You as the leader will need to manage this area with an appropriate blend of firmness and grace.

Prayer Requests

Many times we want our small-group discussion times to include sharing prayer requests, which can be a meaningful way of sharing our lives together and exercising our trust and relationship with God. But we also know that sometimes sharing requests can turn into long stories and lengthy discussions as other members offer advice or input.

If the use of time for prayer requests is a concern for your group, one way to handle this is to provide notecards for people to write down their requests. These cards can be shared at the end, or members can simply swap cards with each other. Alternatively, you may want to determine a time to bring your discussion to a close that will allow space at the end for sharing requests, praying together over those requests, and praying through the truths presented in the lesson.

And that is key—that your prayer time include praying through the truths presented, not solely praying over situations in the lives of participants. When we read and study God’s word, we don’t want it to be a one-way conversation. We want to respond to it in prayer. Rather than listening to him speak to us and then only talking to him about what we think is important, we should pray through the implications of what we’ve studied as an important way to respond to what he has said.

Getting Stuck Along the Way

It’s easy to give too much time to questions at the beginning and end up running out of time to cover everything. We strongly suggest you go over the discussion questions in advance to determine how you will use the time. Mark the key questions you must get to. You may want to make a note beside each question that you want to be sure to include, indicating an estimate of how much time you want to give for discussing that question, and then watch your clock along the way to keep on track. As you do, however, don’t be so rigidly tied to the clock that you rush the group along when rich discussion is developing. Perhaps some members found a different question particularly compelling, and a discussion that stays on topic but goes in a different direction than the one you planned can still be worthwhile and helpful.

Keeping the Focus on God’s Word

People come to a Bible study for many reasons, from many situations and struggles, with varying levels of knowledge of and interest in the Bible. Sometimes a group can easily shift from a Bible study into more of a personal support group. Finding that balance between biblical study and relational connection is a challenge for every small-group leader.

Some group leaders feel that when a group member arrives with a significant struggle or sorrow, the leader must set the study aside to listen and care for that hurting person. In some situations, perhaps this is the best thing to do, but we must also remember that the word of God speaks into every need and situation in our lives. It heals; it gives perspective; it instructs, convicts, restores, and renews. Don’t assume that the advice and input of group members has more power than your discussion of the truths of God’s word to help that hurting person.

Keep in mind that while some participants may come more for the fellowship and sharing of their lives with each other, other participants are hungry to feast on biblical teaching and discussion of God’s word. If, over time, these participants find that the word is often set aside or given short shrift, they may look for somewhere else to study God’s word with others.

Ending on Time

Just as starting promptly demonstrates that participants’ time is valuable, concluding your study on time also shows respect for your participants. Be sure to wrap things up at the agreed-upon time, recognizing that they have other commitments and plans after your study. That way those who want to stay and chat can linger, but those who need to leave won’t have to slip out one by one, or be unable to focus on the discussion because of the distraction of needing to be somewhere else.

Guiding the Discussion and Addressing Challenges

Sharing of Opinion without Regard to God’s Word

It is only natural that group members will often begin their input in the discussion with the words, “Well, I think . . .” And in fact, some of the questions are phrased in a “What do you think” manner. This is purposeful, not only to get people thinking, but also to emphasize that there isn’t necessarily a right or wrong answer.

But we also want to cultivate a respect for the authority of Scripture in our discussions. Though this is not a welcome perspective in our culture, every opinion does not have equal value or weight with every other opinion. The revealed truth of God’s word must carry the greatest weight in our discussions. While you don’t want to embarrass someone in the group setting who states something that is clearly unscriptural, it may be a good idea to gently challenge a questionable opinion with something like, “That’s interesting. I wonder how you would support that from Scripture?” Or you might want to find a time outside the group setting to discuss the issue, using biblical support to gently challenge error.

The Discussion Gets Lively but Off Track

Sometimes the discussion quickly gets away from the original question and onto an interesting but not directly related topic. When this happens, it may be wise to state the obvious and then turn the focus back to the content at hand by saying something like, “We could certainly talk a long time about _____, but we have so much important material to discuss in our lesson this week, so let’s get back to that.” If the first person to answer says something that seems far from the main point, you might say, “That’s interesting. How do you see that connecting to [restate the question/topic]?” If you haven’t gotten to some of the key truth involved in the question, go back and ask the original question again, perhaps adding, “Did anyone see it differently or have another idea?”

Group Members Are Quiet and Slow to Respond

For a leader to be effective, it’s essential for her to become comfortable with silence. Some people are slow to warm up or take longer to formulate their thoughts. Others are eager to participate but don’t want to appear to be know-it-alls or dominate the discussion time. Some fear having the “wrong” answer or revealing their biblical illiteracy, especially if they are surrounded by people they perceive to have more biblical knowledge than they do. Resist the temptation to fill the silence by continuing to explain the question or jumping in with your own thoughts. Waiting quietly allows people more space to contribute. One way to deal with an awkward silence is to make a joke about the silence without coming across as chiding your group. Humor is a great way to defuse discomfort. One leader we know sometimes says, “I can wait you out!”