Acts 3

To better help you understand a story in the Bible remember to look for these three things:

            Place - where did it happen

            People - who is involved

            Point - what does God want me to understand for my own life

Acts 3:1-11 

            Why did Peter and John go to the temple? 

            Why did the lame man go to the temple? 

Does it make a difference why you go to church? 

Do you go to sit and see what you can get or do you go to participate and see what you can give?

Acts 3:5 - What is wrong with the lame man's expectation? 

Acts 3:6, 7 - How did Peter and John help him?

1.

2.

3.

Acts 3:8-11 - How did the lame man change as a result of verses 6,7?  List the verbs

            1.

            2.

            3.

            4.

            5.

Acts 3:12 - What do people tend to do when God acts in their lives?

            Credit man or God?

Acts 3:13-26 - Peter teaches us how to deal with problems and errors either in our own life or in the lives of others.  How?

1.      What you did wrong?

v. 13-15 - Specifically points our the problem

                        a.

                        b.

                        c.

2.      What you need to do now?  V.19-23Peter tells them how to remedy the situation. 

a.     

b.     

c.     

3.      Why you need to make the change? V. 23-26

a.     

b.     

c.     

d.     

If you apply these principles to any situation in your life and ask yourself these questions, you'll be amazed how God can help you.  Let's take an example:  Quitting a bad habit like smoking, disobeying, caving in to temptation, etc.

1.      What are you doing wrong? You're wanting the wrong thing and not wanting the right thing.

2.      What do you need to do now?  Repent - Ask God to change your focus and  Attitude about it.  And ask God to help you change your behavior - quit doing it. 

                        3.  Why do you need to change?  Here is the secret motivation for helping      

                             make lasting change- find good reasons for doing it.  For example:

                             If you don't quit smoking you will be destroyed.  Look at the years of

                             Research supporting the danger of smoking.   You're special to God

                             And He doesn't want  you to smoke.  God wants you to be happy and

                             Can you be truly happy if you keep doing the thing???

If you go to church with an attitude of what we can give to others, God will use us to help the lame Christians at church rise up and become active, healthy members.  The secret was that Peter and John took Jesus to church with them and He used them to touch the lives of the people there.