2.9.20 Huddle

Zach Below   -   February 9, 2020

INTRO

We are in week 6 of our Travel Log Series, exploring mission and movement in the book of Acts. Throughout this series we have defined our purpose this way . . . “Your purpose is to glorify Jesus (cause his dignity and worth to be known) by your words and deeds and by sharing his words and deeds with others.” Today we will talk more about purpose, meaning, and hardship.

 

  1. Think back on your life . . . when was the first time you remember being connected to something that gave you a sense of meaning or purpose? Share a story if you have one.

 

Victor Frankl said, “When a person can’t find a deep sense of meaning, they distract themselves with pleasure.”

  1. Do you agree with this? Why?

 

  1. What are some of the ways people distract themselves in our culture?

 

SCRIPTURE ENGAGEMENT

Intro: In chapter 13, Paul and Barnabas begin their first missionary journey. Chapter 13 finds them traveling from Antioch to the island of Cyprus, then traveling back to the mainland and continuing on. Last we saw them, they were being forced out of Pisidian Antioch after initial success. This week we are looking at chapter 14, which begins in Iconium (in modern-day Turkey).

 

Read Acts 14:1-7

 

14 At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed.2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. 4 The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. 6 But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7 where they continued to preach the gospel.

 

  1. What, if anything, stands out to you from this story? What phrase/sentence/idea did your mind “grab” as it was being read?

 

  1. Thinking back on the past couple weeks . . . what were some of the possible reasons that Paul and Barnabas always went to the Jewish synagogue?

 

(Leader Note: possible answers include—they would be respected as Jewish scholars and would be asked to speak, they would be offered food and lodging)

 

 

KEY PRINCIPLE FOR THE WEEK—WHEN IT COMES TO  YOUR PURPOSE, UNDERSTAND . . . PROBLEMS ARE A PART OF THE PACKAGE

  1. Where do we see this principle showing up in Acts 14:1-7?

 

  1. What about in Acts 13? Skim over it and see if you notice any other examples of this principle.

 

 

After initial success in a number of cities, Paul and Barnabas always face some kind of hardship. In this passage, they are almost stoned to death. Scripture highlights the fact that Paul and Barnabas’s success, but never glosses over their issues and problems. This brings us back to this week’s principle . . . PROBLEMS ARE A PART OF THE PACKAGE.

 

  1. How does the “health, wealth, and happiness” gospel (basically, the idea that your life will be perfect once you become a Christian) ignore this reality?

 

  1. Why is that dangerous?

 

 

On Sunday, Bret said, “If you have expectations of perfections, you can get disillusioned really fast.” This can cause you to struggle with whether God loves you, if you are really called or saved, it can even make you question if God is actually real, etc.”

 

  1. Has this ever been true in your own life? Have you ever been disillusioned by the hardships you have had to face? Share a story if you have one.

 

 

Read 2 Corinthians 11:24-28

Paul is writing to the church at Corinth and is sharing in his moments of hardship. He says…

24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26 I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27 I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

 

  1. How can the fact that even the most faithful believers in scripture experience hardship actually give us peace in our own hardships?

 

 

READ ROMANS 5:1-5

 

5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we[a] have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith[b] into this grace in which we stand, and we[c] rejoice[d] in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

 

 

In light of all of this . . . of the fact that throughout scripture it is clear that “problems are a part of the package . . . How are we to understand Romans 8:28

 

ROMANS 8:28-29 

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

 

 

CLOSING THOUGHT

Admiral Jim Stockdale was a US Navy officer shot down during the Vietnam War. He was held captive as a prisoner of war for 7 years. He said that he never doubted the end of the story and the fact that it was going to define his life. At the same time, he claimed that the group of people in the camp that generally didn’t make it were the optimists.

 

Read and respond to Admiral Stockdale’s quote on the matter.

 

He said, “You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end, which you can never afford to lose, with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they may be.” – Admiral Jim Stockdale

 

  1. What do you think Stockdale means by this?

 

  1. How might this correspond to faith?

 

 

THIS WEEK’S PRACTICE: As much as we don’t like thinking back over the hardships of our life, if God uses them to form us into the likeness of Christ, it is necessary to do so. This week, spend some time reflecting on some of the pain (that you are now years away from) in your life. Think about the connections of those moments to where you are now and reflect on how God may have used that to help form you into Christ?

 

 

CLOSE IN PRAYER