Small Group Study (Encourage leaders to prioritize

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Small Group Study (Encourage leaders to prioritize these questions based on the dynamics of their individual groups. The questions below are not necessarily in priority order.) Acts 10:1 – 11:18 1. Cornelius is presented to us as a very good person – devout, fearing God, full of good works, praying to God continually. Yet the story also makes it clear that he was “missing something” – forgiveness of sin and new life in Christ. Reflect on people that you know who are just like Cornelius – they are good people, perhaps churchgoers, they believe in God, etc. Share with your group the names of people you know who are like this, and discuss ideas about how you can communicate to them their need for salvation. 2. In Peter’s vision, he was shown animals, and he was told to kill and eat them for food. Discuss how Peter may have eventually made the connection that the vision was primarily about people and not animals. Focus especially on vv. 14 and 28. Simon, whose house Peter was staying in, was a leather tanner. This occupation would have made him ceremonially unclean. What does this add to your understanding of the story? 3. Reflect on Jesus’ “Great Commission” as recorded in Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts 1:1-8. How are these passages related to the story of Peter and Cornelius? How was God using these events to help the early Jewish Christians understand the fullness of Jesus’ commission? 4. Do you believe that the call to spread the gospel is a task for every Christian? Defend your answer from Scripture. If you think it is … Reflect on what that looks like in your life, and share with your group ways in which you can be more diligent in taking the gospel to the nations. How might God be using our study in the book of Acts to help you get a larger vision for your personal role in the taking the gospel to the nations? Are you willing to put your “yes” on the table – commit to obedience to God in the Great Commission – even if you don’t know where God will lead you? 5. Even though we don’t have the same divide between Jew and Gentile that existed among the earliest Christians, we may harbor other kinds of divisions in our minds & hearts. Are there people or groups of people that you have (by either thoughts or action) treated as if they were excluded from God’s plan of salvation? In other words, are there people or groups about whom you have said something like, “The gospel is not for them.”? How can you correct your thinking? 6. What other ideas from Sunday’s study in this passage come to your mind as being especially important in the life of your small group and the life of our church?