Acts 4:36-6:7
Key Verse: 6:2

* "YOU HAVE LIED TO THE HOLY SPIRIT" (4:36-5:11)

1. How did the believers show the spirit of Jesus in the way they dealt with material things? Who was Joseph Barnabas, and how did he encourage the early church? (4:36,37)

2. Contrast Ananias and Barnabas. What did Ananias and his wife do, and why did they do it? Was it the rule to bring everything to the apostles? According to Peter, what was Ananias' sin? (3,4)

3. What happened to Ananias when he heard Peter's rebuke? What happened to his wife Sapphira? Why was Peter so uncompromising? Why was this a life and death matter?

4. What was the immediate effect of these events on the church and on others who heard about it? What does it mean to fear God? Why should we fear God? (cf. Pr. 9:10; 1:7)

* THE APOSTLES' BIBLE TEACHING (5:12-42)

5. Were the apostles discouraged by the event of Ananias and Sapphira? How did the apostles' ministry continue to reveal Jesus' love? Why were people afraid to join them? How could their numbers grow anyway?

6. Why did the high priest have the apostles arrested? How did they get out of jail? What did
God tell them to do? What does this reveal about God's mission for his church ? (cf. 2 Ti.4:2; 1 Pet. 1:24,25)

7. What did the apostles do as soon as they got out? (21) When was their absence from jail discovered, and what happened? (21-26) What can we learn about the attitude and life of men of mission?

8. How did the high priest rebuke them before the Sanhedrin? How did the apostles answer? (29) Why were they no longer fearful of men?

9. How did they use this opportunity to witness to Jesus and the gospel ? What did they emphasize in their message to the Jewish leaders? (30-32) Did they repent? How did they respond?

10. Who was Gamaliel, and how did he help the apostles? What did they do after they were released? (41) Why did they rejoice ? Why were they willing to suffer ? (cf. 1 Pet. 2:20) What did they do after being beaten? (42) What can we learn from their attitude toward suffering?

* THE DECISION TO DO NO MORE BUSINESS (6:1-7)

11. What problem arose as the church grew? How did the apostles deal with it? What was the result? (7) What can we learn here from them?