Followers of The Way: The Apostles’ Teaching by Pastor Luke Faw
Acts 2:42 (NLT) – All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.
Matthew 28:19-20a (NLT) – Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;
1. KNOW JESUS CRUCIFIED
1 Corinthians 2:2b (MSG) – I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified.
1 Corinthians 2:2 (CEV) – In fact, while I was with you, I made up my mind to speak only about Jesus Christ, who had been nailed to a cross.
Acts 2:23-24 (NLT) -- Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip.
Acts 2:32-33 (NLT) – God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.
Acts 2:36 (NLT) – So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!
2. REPENT
Acts 2:37-38 (NLT) – Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Acts 3:19:20 (NLT) – Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah.
1 Peter 1:3 (NLT) – All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation,
1 Peter 1:18 (NLT) – For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
3. RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT
Acts 2:38 (NLT) – Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
4. WALK IN LOVE
1 Peter 1:21-23 (NLT) – Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.
You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart.
For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God.
Romans 5:5 (NLT) – And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Original Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God the Father almighty;
and in Christ Jesus His only Son, our Lord,
Who was born from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,
Who under Pontius Pilate was crucified and buried,
on the third day rose again from the dead,
ascended to heaven,
sits at the right hand of the Father,
whence He will come to judge the living and the dead;
and in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Church,
the remission of sins,
the resurrection of the flesh.
(Amen)
Questions for Discussion & Reflection:
1. Is the gospel central to your life?
2. Share an aspect of your life that needs to be more deeply grounded in the gospel.
3. Do you feel confident in sharing the gospel? Why or why not?
4. Share a situation where you think the Love of God for others was present in your life.
5. Share a situation where you don’t think the love of God was present in your life. Why was it missing?
