Persevere — God is Unstoppable
Persevere — God is Unstoppable
WORSHIP
SUGGESTED WORSHIP SONGS:
In Jesus Name, Great Things, Mighty Warrior, Indescribable, You are God Alone
WELCOME
Truth Matters. Do you really believe the truth about Jesus can change the world? How is this shown in your life?
WORD
ACTS 5:12–42
27 When they had brought them, they stood them before the Council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, “We gave
you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to
bring this man’s blood upon us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.30 The God of
our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you had put to death by hanging Him on a cross. 31 He is the one whom God exalted to
His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses of
these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.”
Every follower of Jesus is given a mission:
Acts 1:8, “but you will receive power when the Holy
Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My
witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
It is not just something to do, it is someone to be —
and we have been given the Holy Spirit, through
whose power we can become exactly what God has
called us to be on this earth. But is it easy to be a
witness for Jesus in our everyday life? Distractions,
disobedience, discouragement, discredit,
disillusionment, delays, and doubts are some of the
things that may prevent us from being the witnesses
we are called to be. But we must remember that we
are witnesses for a God whose plans cannot be
stopped (Isaiah 43:12-13).
OUR UNSTOPPABLE GOD
WILL EMPOWER YOU
As we persevere, we can be sure God will display His
power through us. Our simple everyday life lived in His
power can impact the people we encounter day by day.
In Acts 5:12-16, we learn about how our 1st century
brethren persevered in their unity and in their
testimony. When we love Jesus and one another, it will
certainly point people to Him. And though we cannot
compel people to follow Jesus, our good example can
open opportunities for us to share our faith to them.
As we persevere to be a witness, we will see God’s
unstoppable power at work in us through His Holy
Spirit (John 14:12).
OUR UNSTOPPABLE GOD WILL LIBERATE YOU
Our circumstances or struggles do not need to
imprison us. Even if our circumstances do not change,
they can still be our platform for being a witness!
In Acts 5:17-20, we see that the apostles were put in
jail because of the jealousy of the Sadducees. But
during the night, an angel of the Lord freed them and
instructed them to “go stand and speak to the people
in the temple the whole message of this Life” —
Jesus Christ!
2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit,
and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
God has set us free from sin and death. Through His
Spirit we can be free of fear. We can be victorious over
discouragement and doubt. As we see in the example
of Paul in Philippians 1:12-13, even our low
moments can be platforms for witnessing. He saw his
imprisonment as an opportunity to advance the
gospel. God will continue to set us free not necessarily
from our circumstances, but from the things
(i.e. emotions, thoughts, etc.) that hold us back from
being His witnesses. Don’t give up. God can liberate
you to be a witness even in difficult circumstances.
OUR UNSTOPPABLE GOD WILL TRANSFORM YOU
As we persevere, God transforms how we think and
how we view and respond to people and circumstances.
He gives us wisdom, courage and the right perspective.
When the apostles were brought back to stand before
the Council, the high priest questioned them because
they did not stop teaching about Jesus. But Peter and
the apostles answered them saying, “We must obey
God rather than men.” (Acts 5:27-32)
The leaders now wanted to kill the apostles! But God
intervened through Gamaliel, a respected rabbi and
Pharisee, to show that God and His plans are
unstoppable (Acts 5:33-39). The apostles were flogged
but released, and they were rejoicing that they had
been considered worthy to suffer shame for Jesus’
name. They continued teaching and preaching Jesus as
the Christ every day, in the temple and from house to
house (Acts 5:40-42).
Sometimes being a witness means drawing the line —
making a stand for Jesus. This is part of how God
transforms us — no fear of men, only reverent fear of
God. Our unstoppable God truly transforms us from
the inside out.
GOD’S LOVE IS UNSTOPPABLE
As we persevere, let us remember that there is one
sure thing about God that is unstoppable — His love.
Romans 8:37-39, “But in all these things we
overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved
us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth,
nor any other created thing, will be able to separate
us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.”
Whatever our circumstances are, they do not in any
way diminish the power of God's love for us. So let us
persevere and be witnesses for God!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(Leaders: Please choose questions that are appropriate to the level of spiritual maturity of your members)
1. Is there anything standing in the way of being the witness God called you to be? Are there distractions,
disobedience, discouragement, discredit, disillusionment, delays, or doubts in your life?
2. We learned that God displayed His power in the early church as they persevered in their unity and in their
testimony. How is this this true in your own experience? How can you contribute to the unity in the church today?
3. Do you need to make a stand for Jesus? In what ways should you obey God rather than men?
WORKS
PRAY CARE SHARE IN ACTION
There are many hurting people in this world who need Jesus
and we need to persevere in being His witnesses.
Pray that you will impact the lives of the people around you
through your good witness, even those who persecute or
malign you. Pray for them and pray for opportunities to show
kindness and to introduce them to Jesus Christ.
WEEKLY PRAYER POINTS
I. Thanksgiving
• Worship God for who He is, what He has done, and
what He will do in our lives
II. Country and the World
• Upright and moral governance of Public Servants
and a God-centered Philippines
• Repentance and Salvation
III. Church
• That CCF Members would honor and love God and
make disciples
• Elders, Pastors, Leaders, and Families
• Ministries and Churches worldwide
IV. CCF Facilities
• Worship and Training Center
• Prayer Mountain
V. Personal Concerns
• Deeper intimate relationship with God
• Righteous living
• Salvation of family and friends
Source: http://www.ccf.org.ph/4ws/
