The Gospel Starts in Jerusalem

OBJECTIVE

INTRODUCTION - 5 Minutes

The Apostles spent 40 days with the Lord Jesus after His death and resurrection in Jerusalem. During this time He taught them many things, but the time came when He had to leave the apostles and ascend to His Father in Heaven. The apostles were very sad to see Him go and wondered when Jesus would restore His Kingdom on earth. Our Lord told them that only God the Father knows when these things will happen (Matthew 24:36). The Lord Jesus told them that they should wait for the Holy Spirit to come and empower them (Acts 1:8). Jesus told His disciples, "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20). More specifically, Jesus told them before His ascension that "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere - in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8). In the next few weeks, we will study how the disciples did, in fact, spread the message of Gospel as Jesus said: Week 1- In Jerusalem, Week 2- In Judea and Samaria, Week 3 - to the Gentiles, Week 4- to Asia Minor.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 5 Minutes

Memory Verse "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Acts 1:8

Read together the following passages:

Acts 1:12-15 "Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey. 13 And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. 15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty)"
Acts 2:1-12 "When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs---we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?""
Acts 2:32-42 "32 This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. 33 Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. 34 "For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 35 "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." ' 36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" 38 Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." 40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers."
Acts 2:43-47 "43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved."

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 15 Minutes

Repeat the Memory Verse "You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Acts 1:8

Let's go back to these readings and see how the words of the Lord are being accomplished in Jerusalem.

Acts 1:12-15 - The disciples and apostles along with St. Mary and many other women returned to Jerusalem to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit, as the Lord Jesus had promised. They gathered together in continual prayer. There were 120 people that gathered as the followers of Jesus.
Acts 2:1-12 - Pentecost was already the name of a very important holiday in the Jeswish religion. It commemorates when God visited Mt. Sinai and gave the law to Moses and the Isrealites. All the Jewish people from around the world travel back to Jerusalem for this big feast. They celebrate by worshipping in the Temple and reciting the law as a reminder of what is acceptable to the Lord. They bring sacrifices and bring gifts for the poor. The Isrealites also remember and recite the story of Ruth for the holiday of Pentecost when Ruth is redeemed by her relative Boaz. On this special Pentecost Feast, God once again visited His people. This time, not on Mt. Sinai, but to each person who believed in the Lord Jesus as their redeemer. The followers of Jesus were filled with the Holy Spirit. As a result, they were given power and gifts. On this day, they were given the gift of being able to speak different languages. All of the Jewish people who were in Jerusalem for the feast then heard the 120 apostles speaking a language that they can all understand. Remember, they came from all over to celebrate the Feast of Pentecost. Now, they heard the special message of Christ, personalized to them
Acts 2:32-42 - St. Peter gave a sermon to all those who were there listening and everyone heard him in their own native language St. Peter explained to them, through the power of the Holy Spirit, how all this could be and how God allowed all this to happen. The people listening were all moved to action St. Peter told them to repent of their sins and to be baptized, so they can also receive the Holy Spirit. That day 3,000 people were baptized and they joined the community of believers in Jerusalem.
Acts 2:43-47 - The community of believers in Jerusalem continued to live together in prayer and agape love. They helped each other by bringing all of their talents and resources together. In this way, no one in the community needed anything This awesome example of Christian community appealed to many in Jerusalem and more people joined the community everyday.

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 10 Minutes

The disciples and apostles of Christ did not know or understand how the promises of Christ would actually happen. They couldn't have even imagined the amazing things that they experienced. Once the Holy Spirit came down and entered them, each person was given gifts that helped them work to further the Kingdom of God. How do we see this happening now in our church?

LIFE APPLICATION (Action) - 5 Minutes

What gifts does the Holy Spirit give us as Christians to further the Kingdom of God? How does the Church work together in unity to help those in need? What can you do this week/this month on your own and together with your class to help the Church?

ACTIVITY - 5 Minutes

Have students color the attached map, list all the regions names in Acts 2:9-11

RESOURCES

Great videos to show after class or send to parents.

BibleProject Overview Acts Ch. 1-12

BibleProject Acts Ch. 1-7

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

In this module, we will take the children through the journey of the Acts of the Apostles. Specifically, we will see how the Word of God spread from Jerusalem to the entire world through the work of the Holy Spirit. Week 1 covers the growth of the followers of Christ in Jerusalem from 120 apostles to 3000 on Pentecost The community of Christ's followers in Jerusalem continued to grow daily as the Holy Spirit transformed the lives of those who repented and were baptized.