(Note: For remote participants and BFG leaders, these questions are meant to be used in conjunction with the pastor’s sermon. Attempting to use these questions absent the sermon’s teaching could lead to unbiblical or unhelpful conclusions.)

Screen Notes
I. Accept God’s love for the nations (vv. 26–28).  

• Acts 1:8
• Matthew 28:18–20

II.  Recognize Jesus as the focal point of God’s love for the nations (vv. 29–35).
III. Don’t let “success” make you stop (vv. 36–40).

• Philippians 3:13–14
• Galatians 6:9 

For Kids
Acts 1:26-40 is a strange example of someone who believes in Jesus and is baptized, but it teaches us some not-so-strange things about following Jesus in our own lives. See if you can pick out one thing you didn’t know from this passage and one thing God wants us to do from this passage.  
 

• What is one thing that God wants us to know from this passage? 
• What is one thing that God wants us to do from this passage? 
• Do you have a friend from a different country or culture who doesn’t believe in Jesus? Take time to pray for them with your family.  

For Discussion

Sermon Recap

• [Leader: Read through Acts 8:26–40 as a group.] 
• [Leader: Ask if anyone has any initial thoughts or comments on the passage.] 
• Where did the angel tell Philip to go (Acts 8:26)? Why do you think Luke stressed that it was a “deserted place”?  
  • Does God ever send his people to places unknown to do tasks yet to be revealed?  
  • Has God ever done that to you?  
  • How should you respond if God asks you to do such a thing?  
• What do we learn about God from the fact that the Ethiopian eunuch was on same road that God sent Philip (Acts 8:27)? Why is this important for us to remember?  
• Acts 8:29 explained that the Holy Spirit “said” something to Philip. Is it possible for a Christian to mistakenly “hear” from the Holy Spirit?  How are Christians to know when the Holy Spirit is truly speaking to them? 
• When Philip told the Ethiopian eunuch about Jesus, he did so “beginning with” the Scripture the eunuch was reading (Acts 8:35). What can we learn from the fact that Philip began with Isaiah to teach about Jesus? [Leader: Help the group arrive at the ideas that: (1) since there was no NT at the time, Philip showed that the OT teaches about Jesus; (2) Philip did not only reason from the passage in Isaiah, but only started there, implying he used other passages as well [Jesus taught himself from all of the OT—Luke 24:44–45]; (3) God’s word is sufficient for leading people to salvation.] 
• It seems that Philip did not see his incredible experience with the Ethiopian eunuch as an ending point but as a motivation to continue in God’s work (Acts 8:40). What does this fact teach us about our continued work with God? Have you ever had times where you thought you might retire permanently from working in the Lord? 

Going Deeper-Baptism

• This passage in Acts provides unique challenges when it comes to understanding baptism. Let’s consider two:  
• Challenge #1—Churches today sometimes engage in spontaneous baptisms and will use a passage like Acts 8:26–40 or Acts 2:41 to justify the practice. While baptisms can sometimes happen quickly after conversion, the immediate contexts of both these passages show that the baptisms were not completely spontaneous.  
  • What led up to these baptisms in their contexts? [Leader: Ask exploratory questions as needed to help your group see that both passages show: (1) previous knowledge of Scripture, (2) adequate contemplation [as opposed to a merely emotional response], and (3) confirmation of an understanding of the gospel before the person/people were baptized.] 
  • Given our understanding of these baptisms in their biblical contexts, what cautions should a church take when it comes to spontaneous baptism?  
• Challenge #2—People will sometimes use acts 8:26–40 to justify baptisms detached from a local church.  
  • Why is it a bad practice to use this passage to justify such a practice?  
  • Consider the below passages. What do they suggest about baptism?  
    • “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. . . Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.”—1 Corinthians 12:13, 27 
    • “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. ”—Galatians 3:27–28 
    • “”Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.—Matthew 28:19–20 
    • “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”—Acts 2:41 
• Putting all the above together, what is the wisest way for a church to conduct baptism?  

Application

• What from this passage do you need to apply to your life this week?  
• How can this group support one another in spreading the word of Christ in the places God sends us?  

Questions are welcome! Post them in the Sermon Discussion group of our WhatsApp chat community.