Discussion Bible

At the hour for prayer, how might the outpouring on the day of Pentecost have affected what Peter and John anticipated for this visit to the Temple?

Every day, the lame man sat at the Temple gate and asked for money. Jesus and his disciples must have passed the man many times. If so, why might the man have received money and not have been healed?

When the man saw Peter and John, what did he expect to receive from them? What words or mannerisms might he have used?

For what reasons might Peter and John have had no money?

In asking the man to look at him, how did Peter know what God was about to do?

Neither repentance nor faith are listed as requirements for the man to receive healing. Even so, how might his trust in God have been affected by hearing about what took place in the Temple on the day of Pentecost?

As Peter took him by the hand, the man’s feet and ankles received strength. Having never walked before, how did the man skip the repeated falling that is necessary before any toddler learns to walk?

Society judged the afflicted as sinners cursed by God, excluded from Temple worship and prayer. Beyond the physical change, how might his walk through the Temple gate for the first time have affected the man’s emotional and spiritual wellbeing?

To what extent do you think the Holy Spirit, who gave the man ability to walk, might have helped him with words to express God’s glory?

If the man was leaping, waving his hands, and shouting praises to God, would such behavior be unusual in the Temple? Perhaps that explains why everyone saw him. In what different ways might people have viewed his conduct?

How did people react when they saw the beggar from outside the gate, now walking and leaping inside the Temple?

What feelings do you think drove the man to hug Peter and John as people crowded around them at Solomon’s porch?

What wrong assumption did people make about the source of the miracle-working power?

Why was it important for Peter to tell them about Jesus? What did they not know?

For what reasons was it necessary for Jesus to suffer?

What action did Peter say must be taken before people can experience life in Jesus?

What will take place when Jesus returns to Earth? When will this happen?

What is the consequence of not heeding the words of Jesus?

The coming of the Messiah had been predicted from the days of Samuel more than a thousand years earlier. When so many generations had passed with no fulfillment of the promise, John the baptizer came to bring anticipation of Jesus’ coming. Even so, how difficult do you think it would be for people to overcome their skepticism?

If Jesus was a “son of Abraham,” how can he also be the “son of God”?

The Law revealed people’s guilt but lacked the power to force obedience. Jesus came to change our desires so doing what was right fulfilled a higher standard than what was required by the Law. How does knowing and following Jesus change our desires?