SDA Sabbath School Lessons
March 2, 1996

Read for this week's study:

• Acts 2:1-21
• Acts 9:1-18
• Titus 2

Memory text: Titus 2:14, 15

Key thought:

The New Tstament describes corporate and personal worship experiences that are rich in meaning. This week we will study inductively three worship passages recorded in the New Testament.

Thinking about worship:

Read over the three passages listed for this week's study, and give each a title that relates to worship or personal religious experience.

How was corporate worship in the early church different from ours today? Using biblical models, what would you change in your worship service to conform to the early-church service?

Outline:

• Sunday Feb. 25: Pentecost and the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:1-21)
  • Chapter Summary: The next step in our inductive-study plan is to summarize the content of the Scripture passage. Either write a paraphrase or outline summarizing in detail the story of the unique worship experience on the Day of Pentecost.
  • Observations: (What does the text say?)
    1. What purpose brought the believers together in the room?
    2. Name three audiovisual signs of the Spirit's coming.
    3. What caused the crowd to gather?
    4. How did the people respond to the signs they witnessed?
    5. What does the passage tell us about how God worked in that worship situation?
    6. How many language groups heard the gospel?
    7. What was the result of this worship experience?
    8. What other questions would you like to ask of Acts 2?
  
  
• Monday Feb. 26:The Conversion of Paul and Personal Worship. (Acts 9:1-18) (Acts 22:1-16) (Acts 26:4-19)
  • Compare and contrast the three accounts of Paul's conversion. Review the personal struggles involved in his initial worship experiences as a Christian.
  • Observation: (What does Acts 9:1-18 say?)
    1. After reading this passage, describe Paul's character.
    2. What did Paul call the early Christians?
    3. What signs accompanied his worship experience?
    4. What was the reason for Christ's appearance?
    5. What was the result of the roadside encounter?
    6. What role did others perform in Paul's character change?
    7. What was the result of Paul's encounter with God?
  
  
• Tuesday Feb. 27: Worship and Teaching (Titus 2)
  • The early church had a number of functions. It saw as one of its major purposes the continued upbuilding of the believers' faith. Worship for the early church was both personal and corporate. It included an outward teaching ministry, the purpose of which was to win new converts and to establish firmly the faith of all believers in Christ as the church's one foundation.
  • Observation: (What does the text say?)
    1. What topics were to be taught in the early church?
    2. What specific counsel was to be given to men and women?
    3. What were youth in the church to be taught?
    4. According to Titus, what does grace teach?
    5. What is the motivation for teaching truth?
    6. How can the church know it is teaching correctly?
    7. How should people feel about you as a church member?
  
  
• Wednesday Feb. 28: Making Sense Out of Worship. (Isaiah 1:10-20)
  • Interpretation: (What does the text mean?)
    1. Pentecost: Acts 2.
       Should we expect the same kind of experiences to happen now?
       What was the purpose of the outpouring of the Spirit?
    2. Paul's Conversion: (Acts 9)
       Can we always expect such a dramatic change in our lives?
       How was Paul treated by members of the early church?
    3. Titus's teaching: (Titus 2)
       What should be taught to the church?
       What changes should good teaching produce?
  • According to the passages you have studied this week, what should be the focus of genuine worship?
  
  
• Thursday Feb. 29: Applying Biblical Principles of Worship (Rom. 12:1).
  • Application: (What does the text mean to me?)
    1. Pentecost: Acts 2.
       For my spiritual life.
       For my congregation.
    2. Paul's Conversion: (Acts 9)
       For my spiritual life.
       For my congregation.
    3. Titus's teaching: (Titus 2)
       For my spiritual life.
       For my congregation.
  
  
• Friday March 1: Further study: Ephesians 5; Matthew 9:13; Matthew 12:7.
  • Discussion Questions:
    1. In what ways would your congregational life be different if the church heeded the biblical counsel about worship that you have discovered this week?
    2. What rituals of the Seventh-day Adventist Church need renewal of purpose or practice?
    3. What personal aspects of the worship experience do we need in order to understand God's will for our lives?
    4. How should the church react to new ideas and worship practices?

Summary

By using the inductive method of Bible study, we learned that God encounters believers through worship and continues to build up the church by empowering the faithful to learn of His mission and purpose. The Pentecost experience provides a unique model for understanding the power of the Holy Spirit in qualifying the disciples to spread the gospel. Paul's conversion experience shows us the power of God in the lives of individuals who are willing to be taught God's ways by church members. The counsel to Titus gives us a model of the types of content the church can share with its membership.