The story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 4:32-5:11) offends the modern reader, but it should help us to answer a timeless question: What is the fear of the Lord? Matthew 10:28

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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.

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Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

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What is the fear of the Lord?

• I remember hearing this phrase as a kid and I thought it was a bad thing
• Not supposed to be afraid of God, are we?
• I was told that it’s just talking about “respect”
• Respect God, like you respect a sweet old man
• Grampa Gene
• But then I read verses like this:

Matthew 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

• (Gulp) This is not respecting a sweet old man!
• This is Jesus telling people to fear God. This is in opposition to someone who might say the fear of the Lord is just an Old Testament thing.

I bring up this question because today we’re covering Acts 4:32-5:11. It tells a terrifying story and then lands on this verse:

Acts 5:11 (NLT) 11 Great fear gripped the entire church and everyone else who heard what had happened.

• That’s a BAD thing, right? Wrong. It’s a good thing, and that’s what we’re going to be talking about today. Before we read it, let me ask you a question:
• Do you take God too seriously or too lightly? (put it on a spectrum)
• I think 99% of today’s Christians take him too lightly
• he is just a sweet old grandpa figure
• Today’s story will hopefully swing the pendulum back a bit
• Now let’s get to the text…

Acts 4:32-35 (NLT) 32 All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had. 33 The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all. 34 There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them 35 and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need.

• Another general description of the early church
• More than that… it’s a setup for the two stories to follow…

Acts 4:36-37 (NLT) 36 For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus. 37 He sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles.

• There are lots of cool nicknames: “Air Jordan”, “The Rock”, “Billy the Kid”, but how cool would it be to have the nickname “Son of Encouragement".” Now that’s a guy I want to hang around. Do you have some encouragers in your life?
• This is almost certainly the same Barnabus who shows up three more times in Acts (9:26-7; 11:22-6; 15:37)
• A positive example of generosity in the early church
• (Pillar New Testament Commentary) Although only a field was sold, ownership of land...

The world as we know it is against Jesus. Because of this, we might face hard questions, attacks, and more that challenge our faith. In today's episode, we answer the question: How Should Christians Respond to Bold Opposition?

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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

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How Should Christians Respond to Bold Opposition?

• Define bold opposition: enemies of God, the cross
• Threats against our values, the truth of the Bible
• Olympic ceremony's 'Last Supper' sketch
• The segment… resembled the biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his apostles sharing a last meal before crucifixion and featured drag queens, a transgender model and a naked singer
• Hugo Bardin, whose drag queen character Paloma took part in the tableau, was disappointed Paris 2024 had felt compelled to apologise. "An apology means recognising a mistake, recognising that you deliberately did something to harm, which was not the case," Bardin said. "What bothers people isn’t that we're reproducing this painting," Bardin continued, "what bothers people is that queer people are reproducing it."
• Other examples in recent years:
• Andres Serrano's Piss Christ (1987): controversial photograph depicting a crucifix submerged in urine
• Authors like Richard Dawkins [The God Delusion (2006)] and Christopher Hitchens [God Is Not Great (2007)]
• Comedians like George Carlin and Bill Maher
• Criticism of Christian stances on social issues (such as LGBTQ+ rights, abortion, and contraception) has often been accompanied by mockery, portraying Christians as outdated or intolerant.
• Philippians 3:18-19 (NLT) 18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.
• Bold enemies of the cross. Getting bolder every year. This makes me mad. How should we respond to this?
• We are told to be tolerant, inclusive, kind - yet we are mocked for our belief in Biblical values and our desire to follow Jesus
• Many Christians want to curse them: pray for their destruction, call down God’s judgment like James and John did in Luke 9
• Summarize story: Luke 9:51-54 (NLT) 51 As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 He sent messengers ahead to a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. 53 But the people of the village did not welcome Jesus because he was on his way to Jerusalem. 54 When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?”
• They thought this was God’s MO
• (Pillar...

Today we’ll answer the question: When should you reject spiritual authority? It was required a few times in Christian history, and it all started with Peter and John in Acts 4.

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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

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Here’s a question: When Should You Reject Spiritual Authority?

• Some of you may say, Always
• No one wants to submit these days…
• Judges era: “Everyone did what was right in their own eyes”
• General lack of respect for spiritual authority
• So much hopping around from church to church
• Not a “sense of awe” that we saw at the end of book of Acts
• But see Is Spiritual Authority a Thing Anymore?
• Quick answer: Yes!
• Spiritual leadership in the church flows from Jesus’ authority, and obedience to godly leaders benefits the soul.
• Hebrews 13:17 Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say. Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God. Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow. That would certainly not be for your benefit.
• So I’ll ask again: When should you reject spiritual authority?
• Because you shouldn’t blindly follow it
• There are times you should reject it, as we’ll see in the text today
• We’re covering Acts 4:1-22
• We’ll get there in a minute, but first…

Martin Luther (1483-1546)

• 1507: Ordained as a priest.
• 1517: On October 31, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church, challenging the Catholic Church’s practice of selling indulgences and other corruptions. This event is often marked as the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
• 1520: Published three key works: "To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation," "On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church," and "On the Freedom of a Christian," outlining his theological views and criticisms of the Church.
• 1521: Excommunicated by Pope Leo X in January. In April, he was summoned to the Diet of Worms, where he famously refused to recant his writings, saying, "Here I stand, I can do no other." Declared an outlaw by the Edict of Worms.

William Tyndale (c. 1494-1536)

• 1523: Sought permission to translate the Bible into English, but was denied by the Bishop of London. Fled the next year to Germany to work on his translation.
• 1525: Completed the New Testament in English, printed in 1526 in Cologne and Worms.
• 1526: The first printed copies of Tyndale’s New Testament were smuggled into England, where they were banned and burned by the Church.
• 1536: William Tyndale was executed by strangulation and then burned at the stake on October 6.

Jan Hus (c. 1372-1415)

• 1400: Ordained as a priest.
• 1411:...

Emotional intelligence (EQ) is crucial for successful relationships, including marriage. EQ is different from IQ and focuses on understanding and managing emotions, as well as understanding others. The five traits of EQ are self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skill. In this episode, Bryan and Tracy discuss the importance of EQ for a healthy marriage.

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The PursueGOD Family podcast helps you think biblically about marriage and parenting. Join Bryan and Tracy Dwyer on Wednesday mornings for new topics every week or two.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/family.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

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Have you ever heard of the “name it and claim it” movement? It encourages people to “speak into existence” whatever they want, and if they really believe it, it will happen. Some of you have probably listened to some of these teachers, and maybe you've learned some helpful things. That's great! But at least a part of their teaching is very dangerous, and that's what we want to address in today's podcast.

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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

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Before we get to Acts chapter 3 to answer the question, let's look at

A Brief History of the Word of Faith Movement:

The Word of Faith movement, also known as the "prosperity gospel" or "health and wealth gospel," has its roots in the early 20th century, with influences from several theological streams and key figures. Here is a brief history of its development:

Early Influences

• New Thought Movement: The New Thought movement, which began in the late 19th century, emphasized the power of the mind, positive thinking, and the belief that thoughts could influence material reality. Phineas Quimby (1802–1866) was an American spiritual healer, mesmerist, and the founder of the movement. (Not a Christian.)
• Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, was one of Quimby’s patients. Although Eddy later developed her own theological system, elements of Quimby’s teachings can be seen in the early foundations of Christian Science.
• E.W. Kenyon: Often considered a foundational figure in the development of the Word of Faith theology, E.W. Kenyon (1867-1948) blended elements of New Thought with traditional Christian beliefs. Kenyon's teachings emphasized the power of words and the concept of "positive confession."

Core Teachings

• God-like Nature: Copeland has controversially suggested that Adam had a god-like status before the Fall, reflecting the idea of humans being little gods or having divine attributes. Jesus' redemptive work aims to restore what was lost in the Fall, allowing believers to reclaim their authority and dominion through faith.
• Positive Confession: Copeland teaches that Adam had the power to speak things into existence, similar to how God created the world with His words. Believers can have this same power:
• “Words are spiritual containers, and your words create your future.”
• "Our words create our destiny."
• The faith-force: Copeland portrays faith as a tangible, powerful force that believers can harness to influence their circumstances and manifest God's promises in their lives.
• “Faith is a spiritual force. It is substance. Faith has the ability to effect natural substance.”
• This concept is often summarized by phrases like "speak it into existence" or "name it and claim it," emphasizing the power of positive confession.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NLT) 3 For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and...

In this conversation, Bryan and Tracy discuss the topic of selfishness in marriage. They explore five areas where selfish attitudes and behaviors tend to appear: finances, preferences, emotions, time, and chores. They emphasize the importance of recognizing and admitting one's own selfishness and making a commitment to be less selfish. They also discuss the need for open communication, compromise, and serving each other in order to have a healthy and thriving marriage.

Takeaways:

• Selfishness can be present in various areas of a marriage, including finances, preferences, emotions, time, and chores.
• It is important to recognize and admit one's own selfishness in order to grow and improve as a spouse.
• Open communication and compromise are key in addressing selfish attitudes and behaviors in a marriage.
• Serving each other and considering the needs and preferences of one's spouse is essential for a healthy and thriving marriage.

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The PursueGOD Family podcast helps you think biblically about marriage and parenting. Join Bryan and Tracy Dwyer on Wednesday mornings for new topics every week or two.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/family.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

Donate Now

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In today’s lesson, we're finishing up our study of Acts chapter 2. We’ll look to the early church’s example to answer the question: How do you grow a church?

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The PursueGOD Truth podcast is the “easy button” for making disciples – whether you’re looking for resources to lead a family devotional, a small group at church, or a one-on-one mentoring relationship. Join us for new episodes every Tuesday and Friday.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

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Today we're finishing up our study of Acts chapter 2. Can you believe it took us 5 weeks to get through this chapter? This won't happen for every chapter throughout our study. In fact next week we're going to cover all of chapter 3 in 1 week. but today we finished the chapter with a glimpse into what the early church was like. In particular, we get to see the secret sauce for church growth. We're going to answer this question: How do you grow a church?

Church growth statistics:

• As of 2020, there were approximately 2.3 billion Christians worldwide, making up about 31% of the global population.
• Pentecostalism and Charismatic movements are among the fastest-growing Christian denominations globally.
• Africa and Asia are experiencing significant growth. Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to have the largest number of Christians by 2060.
• In the United States, weekly church attendance dropped from about 39% in 2013 to around 29% in recent years.
• Headed in Europe’s direction?
• In the Netherlands, regular church attendance fell from approximately 50% in the 1950s to below 10% by the early 2000s.
• United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark: regular church attendance at or below 5%.
• Note: “church attendance” doesn’t capture the whole picture, but it gives us an idea. Truth is, many attendees aren’t even Christians! (stats don’t include house churches or nature Christians)

Share about our history/vision at Alpine Church for growth

• Include some videos and photos?

Today we're going to try to learn from the early church to see what they did to grow…. I see 7 marks of healthy church growth; if you’re a pastor, leader, attender, consider how you do in each of these areas.

Seven Marks of Healthy Church Growth:

Baptisms

• Acts 2:41 (NLT) 41 Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.
• (Pillar New Testament Commentary) The population of Jerusalem at the time is estimated to have been between 180,000 and 200,000. Even 3,000 converts in the temple precincts would have been 'a distinct minority of the crowd.'
• Principle: Healthy church growth is conversion growth, not transfer growth.
• Jesus: “Go make disciples…” meant something different than what it means in most churches today. (Pursuit)

Biblical Teaching

• (NLT) 42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching,
• (Expositor's Bible Commentary: Abridged Edition (2 Volumes)) "The apostles' teaching " refers to a body of material considered authoritative because it was the message about Jesus of Nazareth proclaimed by accredited apostles. It undoubtedly included a compilation of the words of Jesus...

In this conversation, Bryan and Tracy discuss the importance of understanding personality types in marriage and parenting. They focus on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) as a framework for understanding different personality types. They explain that the purpose of understanding personality types is not to change the other person, but to gain insight into their strengths and weaknesses. They discuss the four main indicators of the MBTI: introvert vs. extrovert, sensor vs. intuitive, thinker vs. feeler, and judger vs. perceiver. They provide examples and personal anecdotes to illustrate how these indicators can impact relationships. They emphasize the importance of self-awareness and empathy in building healthy relationships.

Takeaways:

• Understanding personality types can provide insight into the strengths and weaknesses of individuals in relationships.
• The purpose of understanding personality types is not to change the other person, but to gain understanding and empathy.
• The four main indicators of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) are introvert vs. extrovert, sensor vs. intuitive, thinker vs. feeler, and judger vs. perceiver.
• Each person falls on a spectrum for each indicator, and it is important to recognize and respect these differences in relationships.
• Self-awareness and empathy are key in navigating conflicts and finding compromise in relationships.

Find discussion questions to talk about this at FLEXTALK.org.

Or for a faith-based conversation, find it at pursueGOD.org.

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The PursueGOD Family podcast helps you think biblically about marriage and parenting. Join Bryan and Tracy Dwyer on Wednesday mornings for new topics every week or two.

Find resources to talk about these episodes at pursueGOD.org/family.

Help others go "full circle" as a follower of Jesus through our 12-week Pursuit series.

Click here to learn more about how to use these resources at home, with a small group, or in a one-on-one discipleship relationship.

Got questions or want to leave a note? Email us at podcast@pursueGOD.org.

Donate Now

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