“We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul...”

Hebrews 6:19 (NRSV)

“When a gentle south wind began to blow, (the crew) saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day (the crew) began to throw the cargo overboard. On the third day, (the crew) threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands. When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.”

Acts 27:13-15; 18-20 (NIV)

“After they had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: “Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’ So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.”

Acts 27:21-25 (NIV)

“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.”

Psalm 1:1-3 (NIV)

“Consequently, faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”

Romans 10:17 (NIV)

How to H.E.A.R from God:

Highlight.

Reading Plan

Explore.

What does this verse say about God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit?

What does this verse say about people life or faith?

Apply.

Why is this in the Bible?

How does it relate to me?

Respond.

How will I put this into practice this week?

“Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people.”

Luke 2:52 (NLT)

“Then he shall take off his garments, put on other garments, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a clean place. And the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it; and he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. A fire shall always be burning on the altar; it shall never go out.”

Leviticus 6:11-13 NKJV

“Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.”

1 Chronicles 4:9-10 (NKJV)

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (NIV)

“Three days after Festus arrived in Caesarea to take over his new responsibilities, he left for Jerusalem, where the leading priests and other Jewish leaders met with him and made their accusations against Paul. They asked Festus as a favor to transfer Paul to Jerusalem planning to ambush and kill him along the way.”

Acts 25:1-3 (NLT)

“But Festus replied that Paul was at Caesarea and he himself would be returning there soon. So he said, ‘Those of you in authority can return with me. If Paul has done anything wrong, you can make your accusations.’”

Acts 25:4-5 (NLT)

“Paul denied the charges. ‘I am not guilty of any crime against the Jewish laws or the Temple or the Romans government,’ he said. The Festus, wanting to please the Jews asked him, ‘Are you willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there?’ But Paul replied, ‘No! This is the official Roman court, so I ought to be tried right here. You know very well I am not guilty of harming the Jews. If I have done something worthy of death, I don’t refuse to die. But if I am innocent, no one has the right to turn me over to these men to kill me. I appeal to Caesar!’ Festus conferred with his advisers and then replied, ‘Very well! You have appealed to Caesar, and to Caesar you will go!’”

Acts 25:8-12 (NLT)

Key Thought 1: If you prepare to share your faith, God will prepare someone to receive it.

“A few days later King Agrippa arrived with his sister, Bernice, to pay their respects to Festus. During their stay of several days, Festus discussed Paul’s case with the king. ‘There is a prisoner here,’ he told him, ‘whose case was left for me by Felix. When I was in Jerusalem, the leading priests and Jewish elders pressed charges against him and asked me to condemn him. I pointed out to them that Roman law does not convict people without a trial. They must be given an opportunity to confront their accusers and defend themselves. When his accusers came here for the trial, I didn’t delay. I called the case the very next day and ordered Paul brought in. But the accusations made against him weren’t any of the crimes I expected. (Now I want you to catch this) Instead, it was something about their religion and a dead man named Jesus, who Paul insists is alive. I was at a loss to know how to investigate these things.’”

Acts 13-20 (NLT)

Key Thought 2: The gospel is confusing for people who don’t know Jesus.

The Gospel on a Napkin:

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:23

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (NIV)

“Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.”

Acts 19:8-10 (NIV)

“God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.”

Acts 19:11-12 (NIV)

To follow Jesus...

1. Start with a commitment to Jesus.

“...Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ They answered, ‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ So Paul asked, ‘Then what baptism did you receive?’ ‘John’s baptism,’ they replied. Paul said, ‘John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.’ On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.”

Acts 19:1-5 (NIV)

1. Develop a relationship with Jesus.

“Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, ‘In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.’ Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?’ Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.”

Acts 19: 13-16 (NIV)

1. Be transformed by Jesus.

“When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.”

Acts 19:17-19 (NIV)

“And you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (NIV)

“When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.”

Acts 16:7 (NIV)

“We can make our plans, but the Lord directs our steps.”

Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)

When plans change, remember...

1. God has a better perspective.

“So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’  After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God called us to preach the gospel to them.”

Acts 16:8-10 (NIV)

1. It’s part of a bigger purpose.

“On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer.  We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.  One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God.  The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.”

Acts 16:13-14 (NIV)

“Once we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.  She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling.  This girl followed Paul and the rest of us shouting, ‘These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.’  She kept this up for many days.  Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, ‘In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!’  At that moment the spirit left her.”

Acts 16:16-18 (NIV)

1. To give God praise.

“The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.  After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown in prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.”

Acts 16:22-24 (NIV)

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.  Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.  At once the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.”

Acts 16:25-26 (NIV)

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (NIV)

“Among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called ‘the black man’), Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod Antipas), and Saul.”

Acts 13:1 (NLT)

Before I GO, I should know...

1. The more I seek God, the more He shows me where to go.

“One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.’  So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.”

Acts 13:2-3 (NLT)

1. Some people will help, others will hinder.

“So Barnabas and Saul were sent out by the Holy Spirit. They went down to the seaport of Seleucia and then sailed for the island of Cyprus.  There, in the town of Salamis, they went to the Jewish synagogues and preached the word of God. John Mark went with them as their assistant. Afterward they traveled from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus.   He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God.  But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.”

Acts 13:4-8 (NLT)

“Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye.  Then he said, ‘You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good!  Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord?  Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.’ Instantly mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him.”

Acts 13:9-11 (NLT)

1. The message of Jesus is the miracle.

“When the governor saw what had happened, he became a believer, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.”

Acts 13:12 (NLT)

1. All people are loved by God
2. Sin has separated all people from God’s love.
3. Jesus made a way for all people to experience God’s love.

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (NIV)

“At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, ‘Cornelius!’ Cornelius stared at him in fear. ‘What is it, Lord?’ he asked. The angel answered, ‘Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter.’”

Acts 10:1-5 (NIV)

Building a multi-cultural church means we have to…

1. Get comfortable being uncomfortable.
   

“About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’ ‘Surely not, Lord!’ Peter replied. ‘I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.’ The voice spoke to him a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’ This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.”

Acts 10:9-16 (NIV)

1. Don’t just attend a multi-ethnic church, live a multi-ethnic life.

“While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, ‘Simon, three men are looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.”

Acts 10:19-20 (NIV)

“Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. He said to them: ‘You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection.’”

Acts 10:27-29 (NIV)