Share with your friends!
Materials: Inductive Bible Study Form; enough miniature candy bars for each child
Geography: Jerusalem
Background: Jesus is gone. He had assented to heaven. The angels told the disciples to go back to Jerusalem and wait for the coming of the Helper. And so they waited.
Acts 2 Object and Bible Lesson:
{Put the candy bars in a bag or bowl. Choose one child to come to you and whisper something like this: “I have free candy bars! You may have one, but you now need to go tell 1 other person about the free candy bars!” As each child comes up, tell them the same thing. If you have a large group, have the kids tell 2 others about the free candy. Watch the candy spread! Towards the end when almost everyone has candy, have your “evangelist” stand and loudly proclaim, “Is there anyone else who still needs a free candy bar?”}
Wasn’t it fun and exciting to receive the free candy? You didn’t have to do anything to receive it. All you had to do was come to me and I gave you one. And then you shared the good news. What would you think if the first person took the free candy and then didn’t tell anyone? [He would be selfish, that isn’t fair.]
Jesus has gone up into heaven. The disciples were told to go back to Jerusalem and wait for the Helper to come. And so they waited, about 120 people. On the Day of Penticost, a huge festival was taking place in Jerusalem. Many Jews from many of the surrounding nations were there. So Jerusalem was packed with people. All of a sudden, there was a huge sound of rushing wind! All of the disciples heard it and even those outside the room in the streets heard it! The wind was in the room and tongues of fire appeared over the heads of the disciples. They began to speak and different languages were being spoken. The people on the street were amazed as they heard local people speaking their foreign languages.
Someone mocked the disciples and said that they were drunk with wine. Peter stood up with the 11, raised his voice and told the mockers they were wrong. He then proceeded to quote the prophets and tell the crowd about Jesus, “whom THEY had crucified.” He told them about the resurrection and how they were witnesses of Jesus being alive.
The people were “pierced to the heart!” and wanted to know what they could do. Peter told them to repent, and be baptized. Then those who received Peter’s words were baptized. Three thousand people were “saved” that day!!
Acts 2 Bible Application:
If you have chosen to be “saved”, which that means you have confessed Jesus as Lord of your life and you are allowing Him to lead your life and not you yourself, then you have the same Holy Spirit inside of you that the disciples had. What power we possess! So why is it that we have a hard time sharing the “candy bar”, or the Good News of Jesus? A candy bar is nothing compared to the location of an eternal soul. Either we will be with God in heaven, or separated from God in hell. That seems “share-worthy!”
Christian, we need to be intentional in our relationships.