Pentecost Sunday: The Promised and Providing Holy Spirit (Acts 2)

Scripture: Acts 2

Translation: ^{Acts 2.1}And when the day of Pentecost arrived, all of them were together at the same place. ²And suddenly a sound came from the sky like the sound a violent wind brings. And if filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³And tongues like fire appeared being distributed to them. And it settled down on each one of them. ⁴And all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak different languages according to how the Spirit was giving them to speak out.

⁵And there were Jews staying in Jerusalem, God-fearing men from every ethnic group from all the places under Heaven. ⁶And when this sound came, the huge number of people gathered together and became confused, because each one of them was hearing them speaking in his own dialect. ⁷And they were shocked and amazed, saying, “Look, don’t absolutely all of these people speak the Galilean dialect? ⁸So how is each one of us hearing them in our own dialect that we were born in? ⁹Parthians and Medes and Elamites and those who live in Mesopotamia, as well as Judea and Cappadocia, Egypt and the parts of Libya that are near Cyrene, and the visiting Romans, ¹¹both Jews and converts, Cretans and Arabs, we are hearing them speaking in our languages the great things of God!” ¹²And all of them were shocked and dumbfounded, one saying to one another, “What wants this to be?” ¹³But others who were making fun of them were saying that “They’re really just drunk on new wine!”

¹⁴And Peter standing with the Eleven lifted up his voice and spoke boldly to them, “Men, Jews, and all those staying in Jerusalem, Let this be known to you and pay attention to my words. ¹⁵You see, it is not as you suggest “these people are drunk,” because it is 9am. ¹⁶Instead, this is what was spoken about through the prophet Joel. ¹⁵“And it will be in the last days, God says, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, and your young men will see visions and your old men will dream dreams! ¹⁸And indeed on My male slaves and on My female-slaves in those days I will pour out My Spirit and they will prophesy! ¹⁹And I will give omens in the sky above and signs on the earth below: book and fire and billows of smoke. ²⁰The sun will turn into darkness and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious Day of the Lord comes. ²¹And it will be that everyone who will call on the Name of the Lord will be saved!”

²²Men, Israelites, listen to these words! Jesus, the Nazarene, a man who really was endorsed by God for you with miracles and omens and signs, which God did through Him in the middle of you just as you yourselves know, ²³This Person by the determined plan and foreknowledge of God, who was given over, you killed via the hand of lawless people by nailing Him to a cross, ²⁴Who God raised breaking the pains of death, given that it was not possible that He be held by it. ²⁵You see, David says about Him, “I saw the Lord before me through it all, because He is at my right hand, so that I would not be shaken. ²⁶Because of this, my heart is rejoices and my tongue celebrates, but moreover my flesh settles on hope, ²⁷because You will not abandon my life in Hades, and You won’t allow You Holy One to see decay. ²⁸You make me know the path of life. You fill me with joy with Your Face!” ²⁹Men, brothers, I have to speak to you with boldness about David the Patriarch that he is both dead and buried. And his tomb is among us to this day. ³⁰So, because he really was a prophet and knew that with an oath God promised him someone from the fruit of his loins would sit on his throne, ³¹looking ahead, he spoke about the resurrection of Christ that he was not abandoned to Hades and His flesh did not see decay. ³²God raised this Jesus, which we are all witnesses of.

³³So, after being exalted to the right hand of God, and receiving the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, He poured This Spirit out, which you both see and hear. ³⁴For David didn’t go up into the heavens, but he says, “The Lord says to My Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand. ³⁵until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet!’” ³⁶So, certainly, all the house of Israel had better know that God made Him Lord and Messiah—this Jesus Who you crucified!”

³⁷And when they heard they stabbed in the heart and they said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, What should we do, men brothers?” ³⁸And Peter said to them, “Repent and each of you get baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, ³⁹because the promise is for you and your children and all those far into the future, as many as the Lord our God will summon.” ⁴⁰And with many other words he was warning and urging them saying “Get saved from this warped generation!” ⁴¹So, those who accepted his message were baptized and about 3000 lives were added on that day.

⁴²And they were focusing on the teaching of the apostles and on sharing, breaking bread, and prayers. ⁴³And fear came over every life, and many omens and signs were happening through the apostles. ⁴⁴And all those who believed were at the same place and they held absolutely everything as shared. ⁴⁵And they were selling their possessions and properties and distributing them to all according to how someone had a need. ⁴⁶And daily focusing with one mind on being in the Temple, and breaking bread in different homes, they were sharing food with great joy and sincerity of heart, ⁴⁷praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding the people being saved every day to their group.

Interpretation

1.      Structure

a.       The Coming of the Spirit (vv.1-4)

b.      The Response of those in Jerusalem (vv.5-13)

c.       The Spirit-empower Sermon of Peter (vv.14-36)

                                                              i.      Peter Explains the Languages as a Fulfillment of Joel 2 (vv.14-21)

                                                            ii.      Peter Explains Christ raised from the dead, not David (vv.22-32)

                                                          iii.      Peter Explains Christ poured out the Spirit and is Lord, not David (vv.33-36)

d.      The Response of the People in Jerusalem to Peter’s Sermon (vv.37-41)

e.       The Nature of the Early Church (vv.42-47)

2.      Themes

a.       The Holy Spirit

b.      The death and resurrection of Christ

c.       The killing of Christ by the Jews

d.      Languages/tongues

e.       Prophecies interpreted

f.       Calling on the Name of the Lord

g.      Conversion

h.      Church

3.      Doctrines

a.       The Holy Spirit comes from God via Jesus

b.      The Bible is reliable

c.       The Holy Spirit comes on every Christian at conversion

d.      The Holy Spirit gives spiritual gifts, boldness, insight, and empowerment

e.       The Holy Spirit transforms the human heart

Applications

1.      Outline

a.       The Promised Holy Spirit

                                                              i.      Promised by Jesus (Acts 1.4-5, 8)

                                                            ii.      Promised in Joel 2 (Joel 2.28-32)

b.      The Providing Holy Spirit

                                                              i.      The Holy Spirit Provides Spiritual Gifts

1.      He provided different languages

2.      He provides other gifts too, like leadership and preaching

                                                            ii.      The Holy Spirit Provides Boldness

1.      Boldness to speak up in general

2.      Boldness to say harsh and even dangerous things

                                                          iii.      The Holy Spirit Provides Words

1.      He will give the words we need when we need them

                                                          iv.      The Holy Spirit Provides Insight

1.      He enabled Peter to correctly apply Joel 2.28-32 to His coming

2.      He enabled Peter to correctly apply Ps. 15.8-11 to the resurrection of Christ and not David

3.      He enabled Peter to correctly apply Ps. 110 to the Lordship of Christ not David and in particular to the sending of the Spirit from God by Christ

                                                            v.      The Holy Spirit Provides Incentive

1.      The Holy Spirit is so awesome and should be such a part of our spiritual lives that He naturally comes up in evangelism as an incentive to convert

2.      The offer of the Holy Spirit can motivate people to come to Christ in faith

                                                          vi.      The Holy Spirit Provides Dedication

1.      Dedication to learning and following God’s Word

2.      Dedication to sharing our stuff generously

3.      Dedication to eating together regularly

4.      Dedication to praying consistently

                                                        vii.      The Holy Spirit Provides Generosity

1.      Through Him we can share our time

2.      Through Him we can share our talents

3.      Through Him we can share our money

4.      Through Him we can share our stuff

                                                      viii.      The Holy Spirit Provides Joy

1.      His joy is sometimes mysterious

2.      His joy is always overwhelming

                                                          ix.      The Holy Spirit Provides Praise

1.      He brings the praise of God out of us naturally

2.      He brings the praise of people to us naturally

                                                            x.      The Holy Spirit Provides Unity

1.      He brings people together from all the different languages

2.      He brings people together from all the different places

3.      He brings people together from all the different cultures

4.      He brings people together from all the different backgrounds

5.      He brings people together from all the different statuses

2.      Discussion Questions

a.       What do you think it would have been like to have the Holy Spirit rush on you with fire over your head and different languages coming out of your mouth?

b.      If you had been on the outside looking in, what would you have said about these Jesus-followers?

c.       Before today, did you know God promised through prophecy to send His Holy Spirit on all His people? Why is sending the Holy Spirit so important to God?

d.      How important is the Holy Spirit to your daily life on a scale of 1-10? Why do you say that number?

e.       What places do you want the Holy Spirit to have on your daily life? What is keeping that from happening?

f.       How can you rely on the Spirit while reading and applying the Bible?

g.      Of the 10 things the Spirit provides mentioned in the sermon today, which 2 things do you want Him to provide to you the most? Why? Which 2 things do you want Him to provide the Universal Church the most? Why? 

How God Uses Failure and Helplessness

Scripture: Romans 8.28-39; Matt. 14.22-33; Luke 8.22-25; Luke 22.28-35; John 21.15-19; 2 Cor. 12.7b-10

Translation: ^{Romans 8.28}And we know that for the people who love God, He is working everything out for good, for the people who really are called according to plan. ²⁹[We know] that the people He had a relationship with before time, He also destined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the Firstborn of many brothers. ³⁰And the people He destined, these same people He also called. And the people He called, these same people He also made righteous. And the people He made righteous, these same people He also glorified! ³¹So, what will we say faced with these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²The One who didn’t even spare His own Son, but instead gave Him up for all of us, how will He not grace everything to us with Him? ³³Who will bring charges against God’s chosen ones? God is the One who makes righteous! ³⁴Who is the person who will condemn? Christ Jesus the One Who died, but moreover Who was raised, Who also is at God’s right hand, Who also is interceding for us! ³⁵What will separate us from Christ’s Love? Suffering, or stress, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or swords? ³⁶Just like it’s surely written that “because of You we’re being put to death all day long! We’re thought of like sheep marked for slaughter!” ³⁷But in all these things we take absolute victory through the One who loves us! ³⁸You see, I’m convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor demons nor the present nor the future nor powers ³⁹nor height nor depth nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!

^{Matt. 14.22}And immediately urged the disciples to get in a boat and go ahead of him to the other side, until He had dismissed the crowds. ²³And after He dismissed the crowds, He went up into the mountain by Himself to pray. And when it became evening He was there alone. ²⁴Meanwhile, the boat was already many stades away from land being tormented by the waves, because there was a hostile wind. ²⁵And during the fourth watch of the night, He came towards them walking on the sea. ²⁶And the disciples, watching Him walking on the sea, freaked out, saying that it was a ghost. And they screamed out of fear! ²⁷And immediately He spoke to them saying, “Get a hold of yourselves. It’s Me. don’t be scared.” ²⁸And in response Peter said to Him, “Lord, if it’s you, command me to come to You on the waters!” ²⁹And He said, “Come!” And getting out of the boat Peter walked on the waters and came towards Jesus. ³⁰But seeing the wind he got scared, and as he began to drown, he screamed saying, “Lord, save me!” ³¹And immediately Jesus reached out His hand and grabbed on to him and was saying to him, “Man of little faith, for what purpose did you doubt?” ³²And when they got in the boat, the wind stopped. ³³And the people in the boat worshiped Him saying, “Truly You are God’s Son!”

^{Luke 8.22}And it happened on one of the days that He got in a boat with His followers and said to them, “Let’s go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set out. ²³And while they were sailing, He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down towards the lake and they were being swamped and were facing danger. ²⁴And they came over and were trying to wake Him up, saying, “Master! Master! We’re dying!” And after He woke up, He rebuked the wind and the waves. And they stopped and became calm. ²⁵And He said to them, “Where’s your faith?!” And terrified they were amazed, saying to one another, “So Who is This Guy, that He even rebukes the winds and the water, and they obey Him?!”

^{Luke 22.28}And you are the ones who will actually stay with Me during my tests. ²⁹And I’m arranging for you, just like My Father arranged a kingdom for Me, so that you will eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel. ³¹Simon, Simon, look, Satan was demanding to sift all of you like flour. ³²But I prayed for you [Peter], so that your faith would not fail. And you, after you have repented, strengthen your brothers.” ³³And he said to Him, “Lord, I’m ready to go with you both to prison and to death!” ³⁴And He said, “I’m telling you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you deny knowing Me three times!”

^{John 21.1}After these things, Jesus show Himself to the disciples again at the Tiberian Sea. And He showed up in this way. ²Simon Peter and Thomas, called Twin, and Nathanael from Cana in Galilee and the Zebedee brothers and two other of His disciples. ³Simon Peter was saying to them, “I’m going fishing.” They were saying to him, “We’re coming with you too.” They left and got in a boat, and during that night they caught nothing. ⁴And when it was already early in the morning Jesus stood on the shore, although the disciples didn’t know that it was Jesus. ⁵So, Jesus was saying to them, “Dear children, don’t you have anything to eat?” They responded to Him, “No.” ⁶And He said to them, “Throw the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they threw the net, and they were not strong enough anymore to pull it in because of the huge number of fish! ⁷So, that disciple that Jesus loved was saying to Peter, “It’s the Lord!” So, Simon Peter, when He heard that it was the Lord, tied his outer clothes around his waist, because he was naked, and threw himself into the sea. ⁸And the other disciples came in the small boat, because there were not far from land, but about 200 cubits away, dragging the net full of fish. ⁹So, as they moved out towards the land they saw a charcoal fire set up and fish set on it and bread. ¹⁰Jesus was saying to them, “Bring some of the fish that you caught now. ¹¹So, Simon Peter got up and pulled in the net to land full of 153 huge fish. And even though there were so many huge fish, the net didn’t break. ¹²Jesus was saying to them, “Come on, eat breakfast.” And none of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” because they knew that it was the Lord. ¹³Jesus was coming and taking the bread and giving it to them, and the fish in the same way. ¹⁴This was already the third time Jesus showed Himself to the disciples, after rising from the dead.

 ¹⁵So, when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus was saying to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He was saying to Him, “Yes Lord, You know that I love You!” He was saying to him, “Feed My lambs.” ¹⁶He was saying to him again, a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He was saying to Him, “Yes Lord, you know that I love You!” He was saying to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” ¹⁷He was saying to him a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was hurt that He said to him three times “Do you love Me?” so He was saying to Him, “Lord, You know everything! You know that I love You!” He was saying to him, “Feed My sheep. ¹⁸Amen, Amen I’m telling you, When you were younger, you were dressing yourself and walking wherever you wanted. But when you are old, you will hold out your hands and someone else will dress you and will bring you where you don’t want. ¹⁹And He said this, signaling the kind of death that He would glorify God by. And having said this, He was telling him, “Follow Me!”

^{2 Cor. 12.7b}Because this, so that I wouldn’t get cocky, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, specifically a messenger/angel of Satan, so that he could torment me, so that I wouldn’t get cocky. ⁸I urged the Lord three times about this, that He might take it away from me. ⁹And He was actually telling me, “My grace is enough for you, because My power is best experienced in weaknesses!” So, unexpectedly, I will brag the most happily in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ will dwell on me! ¹⁰Because of this, I will celebrate in weaknesses, in insults, in obligations, in persecutions and troubles, for Christ. You see, whenever I’m weak, it’s at that point I am powerful.

Interpretation

1.      Themes

a.       Failure

b.      Helplessness

c.       Problems

d.      God’s Sovereignty

e.       Repentance

f.       Restoration

g.      God’s plan

h.      Goodness/beneficialness

Applications

1.      Outline

a.       God uses failure for your good

                                                              i.      He uses your own failures for your good (Romans 8.28-39)

1.      Examples

a.       Luke 8.22-25: The Storm at Sea

b.      Matt. 14.22-33: Peter tries to walk on water

c.       Luke 22.28-34: Jesus tells Peter he will deny Him three times, but also tells Peter to later strengthen his brothers

d.      John 21.15-19: Peter is reinstated

2.      Implications

a.       Don’t let a fear of failure keep you from living for Christ

b.      Don’t give up on living for Christ after a failure, even a major failure

c.       Failure will sometimes be unavoidable, because God has planned to use Your failure

                                                                                                                                      i.      in other words, sometimes God will refuse to keep you from failing on some level because He has a plan that includes failure

d.      Don’t lose your failure; Use your failure to glorify God and strengthen others

                                                                                                                                      i.      When you fail, repent from it, and use the growth that God gives you through the failure to serve God and help others

                                                            ii.      He uses other people’s failures for your good

1.      Examples

a.       Gal. 2.11-21: Peter gets rebuked by Paul

b.      Gen.37-47 : Joseph’s Life-story

c.       Christ on the Cross

2.      Implications

a.       Sometimes God will expose the failures of others to prevent us from falling into those same failures

b.      Sometimes the failures of others will be part of a grand plan for your own growth, for your own good, and even for the good of many people

                                                                                                                                      i.      This means that sometimes you will not see the purpose for your own failures and the failures of others for a long time. in fact many years may pass by before you see how God worked it all out for good, and you know what sometimes you might even have to die before you see why.

c.       Sometimes the failure of others is required for us to receive true blessings

b.      God uses helplessness for your good (2 Cor. 12.7b-10)

                                                              i.      To humble you

                                                            ii.      To deepen your faith

                                                          iii.      To reveal His Glory and Power

Illustrations/Explanations

1.      It’s like saying, “hey I failed the last quiz, so I’m not even going to study for this quiz.”

2.      A person who caves in and smokes pot, and then thinks, “o well, I’ve done drugs now, so there’s no reason not to try crack.” So the person tries some crack, and thinks “O well, I’ve tried crack, why not try heroin?”—Why not?! Have you lost your mind? It’s heroin! That’s exactly why not!

3.      In my own life, I was an addict to a particular sin when I was in junior high/high school. No one ever knew, and no one would have ever suspected. But I remember being trapped in it. I would try to overcome the addiction every single day, day in and day out. But literally for years I experienced almost no victory. It got so bad, I started questioning, “Am I even really a Christian? Because all I seem to do is give in to this sin, even when I don’t want to, and even when I fight against the urge to sin hardcore!” But one think I did do was keep fighting. I kept fighting day in and day out for years. And I failed way more times than I would ever like to admit. I didn’t understand. I couldn’t see any good coming out of it. And you know what? I didn’t. not for a long time. but somewhat recently, somehow the topic of all that failure came up in my conversations with God. And the Spirit told me, “Anthony, I was training you to pursue Me day in and day out, with desperation, with passion, with hope, with faith, with love. I used your failure to give you a thriving relationship with Me that will last for eternity!” And I was like, “Mind blown. Whoaaa!” I am the pastor—no, I am the Christian I am today, because like 10+ yrs ago, God refused to answer my prayers for victory in the way I expected. God basically said, “I’ll see your one-time win, and raise you a life-time of wins.” God’s just bawler like that!

Jesus Shows Us How and What to Pray (John 17)

Scripture: John 17

Translation: ^{John 17.1}Jesus said these things and lifted His eyes toward Heaven and said, “Father, the time is really coming. Glorify Your Son, so that the Son can glorify You, ²just as You gave Him authority over all flesh, so that He would give them everything that You really are giving Him, especially eternal life! ³And this is the eternal life, that they would know you, the Only True God and Jesus Christ, Who You sent. ⁴I will glorify You on the earth by finishing the work that You really are giving Me to do. ⁵And now glorify Me—You, Father—with the glory coming from Yourself, which I had from You before the world existed!

⁶I revealed Your Name to the people You gave Me from the world. They’re Yours and You gave them to Me and they really are obeying Your message. ⁷Now they know that absolutely all that You really are giving Me is from You, ⁸because the words that You gave me I really am giving to them! And they received and truly know that I came from You and they believe that You sent Me!

⁹I’m asking for them; I’m not asking for the world, but for who You really are giving to Me, because they are Yours. ¹⁰And all My things are Yours and all Your things are Mine! And I really am being glorified in them. ¹¹And I won’t be in the world anymore, but they will be in the world, and I will come to You. Holy Father, protect them in Your Name, which You really are giving to Me, so that they would be one just like We are. ¹²When I was with them, I was protecting them in Your Name, which You really are giving Me. And I stood watch and none of them was destroyed, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled. ¹³And now I’m coming to You and I’m speaking these things in the world, so that they would have My joy richly filled up in themselves. ¹⁴I really am giving them Your message. And the world hates them, because they aren’t part of the world, just like I’m not part of the world. ¹⁵I’m not praying that You take them out of the world, but that You protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶They are not a part of the world, just like I’m not a part of the world. ¹⁷Make them holy by the truth! Your Word is truth. ¹⁸Just as You sent Me into the world, I also sent them into the world. ¹⁹And I make Myself holy for them, so that they also would be made holy by the truth.

²⁰And I’m not only praying for these people, but also for those who will believe in Me through their message, ²¹so that they all would be one, just like You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You, so that that they would also be in Us, so that the world would believe that You sent Me! ²²And I really am giving them the glory that You really are giving Me, so that they would be one just like We are One. ²³I am in them and You are in Me, so that they would be made perfectly one, so that the world would know that You sent Me and You love them just like You love Me. ²⁴Father, concerning what You really are giving to Me, I desire that wherever I am, that those people would be with Me, so that they can see My glory, which You really are giving to Me, because You loved Me before the creation of the world. ²⁵Righteous Father, indeed the world doesn’t know You, but I know You! and these people know that You sent Me. ²⁶And I made Your Name known to them and I will make it known, so that the love that You loved Me with would be in them and I would be in them!

Intro:

1.      Story of how that little girls started praying for God to kill people

Interpretation

1.      Structure

a.       Intro (v.1a)

b.      Jesus Prays: Glorify Me, because I Revealed You (vv.1b-8)

c.       Jesus Prays for the 11 Apostles (vv.9-19)

d.      Jesus Prays for All Future Believers (vv.20-23)

e.       Jesus Prays for the 11 Apostles (+ Future Believers?) vv.24-26

2.      Themes

a.       Giving

b.      Glory

c.       Joy

d.      Love

e.       Prayer

f.       Protection

g.      World vs. non-world

h.      Name of God

i.        Eternal life

j.        Unity

k.      Revelation

l.        Believing

m.    Trinitarian Life

n.      Jesus wants for the disciples what He enjoys Himself with the Father

o.      Everything comes from the Father

3.      Doctrines

a.       Jesus is God

b.      Jesus is Eternal

c.       Jesus and the Father are One

d.      Christians are not part of the world system

e.       Christians should be unified

Applications

1.      Outline

a.       How Jesus Prays

                                                              i.      Jesus Prays with Goals

1.      To glorify God

2.      To bless us

3.      To reveal truth

a.       that the Father sent the Son

b.      that the Father loves the Son

c.       that Jesus has the glory of the Father

                                                            ii.      Jesus Prays with Humility

1.      By depending on the Father

2.      By asking respectfully

3.      By asking honestly

4.      By asking for His needs

5.      By asking for others’ needs

b.      What Jesus Prays

                                                              i.      Jesus Prays for Himself

1.      He prays for Glory (vv.1b-5; cf. v.24)

2.      He prays for Us to be with Him (v.24-26)

                                                            ii.      Jesus Prays for Us

1.      He prays for God to make us safe

2.      He prays for God to make us holy

3.      He prays for God to make us one

c.       What We Learn from How and What Jesus Prays

                                                              i.      We learn how to pray

1.      We pray with goals

2.      We pray with humility

                                                            ii.      We learn what to pray for

1.      The glory of Christ

2.      The protection of Christians

3.      The holiness of Christians

4.      The Unity of Christians

                                                          iii.      We learn what We should Value

1.      The Glory of God

2.      The Glory of Christ

3.      The Truth of God

4.      Humility

5.      Mission

6.      Holiness

7.      Unity

2.      Discussion Questions

a.       Why do you think that Jesus would want to show the world that God sent Him?

b.      Do you think it would ever be appropriate for you to ask God for glory? Why or why not? Why do you think Jesus feels comfortable asking to be glorified? What is His purpose behind asking for glory?

c.       Does it comfort you to know that Jesus prayed for God to protect us? Why or why not? What do you feel like you need protection from?

d.      On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you depend on God in prayer? Why?

e.       Jesus prayed for God to make us holy. Do you ever pray for God to make you holy? Either way, take a moment to ask God to make you holy.

f.       Why do you think unity among Christians is so important to Jesus? What could we do to increase our unity with other Christians?

g.      Why do you think Jesus prays for God to protect us in the world and not for God to remove us from the world?

h.      How are you participating in Jesus’ mission to the world? Try to get specific. If you’re not, talk about some ways you could advance Jesus’ mission in the world. Be specific. Brainstorm a little.

i.        Please take extra time in prayer today, praying the kinds of things Jesus prayed.