“He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” Acts 1:3
For today’s devotion, we’ve got a small group Bible study from the Acts Study Guide. Many churches encourage these types of midweek studies, and each shares the same goal: that the people of God gather together in community to study the word, encourage one another, pray, and be equipped for the mission to make the gospel of Jesus known to each group member, their families, and communities.
Read
Jesus is alive! The Bible teaches this, showing it to be true on every page, and it promises he will return. Much like the apostles, we too have our own ideas about what we’d like Jesus to do for us (e.g., “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”), but Jesus graciously keeps the apostles—and us—on track. In the meantime, for those who are in Christ Jesus, God the Holy Spirit will come in power, enabling them to witness to others the powerful work of Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.
Questions
- What does it mean for our lives today that Jesus Christ is alive?
- What evidences do you see of the Holy Spirit living inside of you?
- Who are you witnessing to about what Jesus did and taught?
- Which proofs of Jesus’ resurrection mean the most to you?
Prayer
Thank you, Father God, for sending Jesus to die for our sins and save us from death. Not only did Jesus save us from death, he also saved us so we could witness about him. Please give us power through your Holy Spirit to boldly proclaim to those in our homes, neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, and cities—even to the ends of the earth—all that your son Jesus did and taught. Thank you that you are sending Jesus back in your wise timing and that, in the meantime, salvation from God has been sent to us. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
This devotion is adapted from the Acts Study Guide: Chapters 1–5. This resource is a companion to Pastor Mark’s current sermon series, Acts: Empowered for Jesus’ Mission.
