Bible Study Summary - Upcoming Sunday's Scriptures

Sermon (Feb. 19) – “Unbinding Your Heart: The Paul Problem”

Acts 9:1-19

-         This is the only reference to Ananias in the New Testament.  We only know that he was a believer who obeyed Jesus to take the risk to go and help Saul (Paul) be included in the community of faith.

-         Ananias responded with love, grace, and wisdom.

-         Saul had been commissioned by the religious leaders to stomp out the Jesus movement.

-         Thanks to Ananias, Saul (Paul) ended up reaching the gentile world for Jesus Christ. 

-         God must have a sense of humor to have chosen the person you would least expect to end up reaching the entire world for Christ.  Paul was a Pharisee and they were known for their very protective, nationalistic fervor of Israel being against the world.

-         Ananias calls Paul a “brother.”  That signifies a family relationship within the Jewish movement.  How different would we relate to each other if we saw each other as members of “the family?” 

-         How are we being like Ananias where we respond to Jesus by inviting/welcoming other people into the church family?  How can we get to a point where we learned not to be so surprised by the people God calls us to reach out to and call sister and brother?

Mark 9:2-9

-         The transfiguration story.  This is always read just before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent.

-         This is one of those mysterious moments that defy explanation.  It was beyond the normal and the ordinary.  This reminds me of the recent incident when a widower experienced a transforming revelation at the funeral of his wife.  At the graveside, he said, “The sun came out just when you said that prayer and I felt a warmth.”  The look in his eyes was something I’ll never forget!  If I was a skeptic of Christianity, I would not have chosen this moment to question what he experienced because it was obviously a very real experience for him.  A skeptic would have been forced to deal with what this man experienced.  In a similar way, this is what we encounter with the transfiguration of Jesus story.  It is too “real” to simply dismiss!

-         The transfiguration is a sign-post that Jesus really is the Messiah.

-         This isn’t a story to prove Jesus’ divinity because Moses and Elijah are there with Jesus and they certainly weren’t divine.  It’s a story of Jesus and the kingdom of God shining brightly through them.  This serves as another confirmation of Jesus as the true Messiah.  Jesus’ baptism is another story that points to this.  The voice from heaven confirms this.

.