Acts Chapter 9 Study Guide

Family Study Guide for October 26 - November 1, 2006
(Read Acts 9 Online)

Reflections on Acts 9 by Mark Chesner, Coach

"Fate" is a word you hear a lot about in English classes when you’re studying Greek myths, but you don’t hear much about it in Sunday School. Dictionary.Com defines fate as...

fate -noun
1. something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune; lot
2. the universal principle or ultimate agency by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events; time
3. that which is inevitably predetermined; destiny
4. a prophetic declaration of what must be
5. death, destruction, or ruin.
6. the Fates, Classical Mythology. the three goddesses of destiny, known to the Greeks as the Moerae and to the Romans as the Parcae.

That doesn’t sound much like the way we view our lives. We tend to think of ourselves as "free" – after all we’re Americans and America is all about freedom, right? We look at each day as a series of choices, a new chance every minute to "Deal or No Deal" our way to success or failure. And to an extent, it is true.

But in Acts 9, we are reminded that our freedom in Christ is not absolute. God is God, Lord, and King, and when He decides something, we do not have the choice to go against Him. Christians do have a "fate" to which God is moving us, and we can’t do a thing about it. (Luckily, He is a good God, so we can trust his decisions!) Consider how many people are forced to comply with God’s decision, against their own better judgement:

• Saul is struck down with blindness to force him to see that Jesus is the Christ, despite his "choice" to persecute and kill Christians as heretics,
• Ananias is forced to go to Saul and heal him from blindness, despite his "choice" to stay away out of fear of the man who has harmed so many of the faithful, and
• The apostles are forced to accept Paul into their midst as one of the disciples, despite their choice to avoid him out of fear.

And note that it is not just those who are "not right with God" who sometimes have to be dragged along. It is not just Saul who has to be pushed, but also Ananias (a faithful disciples) and even the apostles themselves (presumably including Peter and John who showed amazingly open minds in the last chapter towards the Samaritans). We all have to give in to God’s decisions, whether we agree with them or not.

The Christian life is always a split between freedom and the recognition of God’s absolute power. "Fate" is something real in our lives, and we need to be ready for it when it comes.



Questions to Consider
- When have you tried to be "free" when God wanted you to follow the "fate" He had set for you?
- Right now in your life, is God teaching you more about freedom or about obedience?
- If God’s decisions are irresistible, how can someone who is "lost" come to Christ by their own "free will"?


Bible.Org Outline for Acts 9

C. Saul’s Conversion (9:1-30)
1. Setting: On the Road to Damascus (9:1-2)
2. The Conversion of Saul on the Road (9:1-9)
3. The Coming of Ananias in Damascus (9:10-19)
4. The Confrontations with the Jews in Damascus (9:20-25)
5. The Coming of Saul to Jerusalem (9:26-30)
D. Conclusion of Book Three (9:31)
IV. Book Four: The Extension of the Church to Antioch (9:32–12:24)
A. The Preparation of Peter for the Gentile Mission (9:32–10:48)
1. Peter in Western Judea: With Aeneas and Dorcas (9:32-43)
a. In Lydda: The Healing of Aeneas (9:32-35)
b. In Joppa: The Raising of Dorcas (9:36-43)

Finish the Verse Questions for Acts 9

Finish the Verse: But the // Lord said to
Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." [Acts 9:15-16]

Finish the Verse: Yet // Saul grew more and
more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ. [Acts 9:22]

Finish the Verse: But Barnabas // took him and
brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. [Acts 9:27]

Finish the Verse: Then the // church throughout Judea,
Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord. [Acts 9:31]

Reference Questions for Acts 9

Q: According to Acts 9:04, who fell to the ground?
A: He - Saul

Q: According to Acts 9:18, who was baptized?
A: He - Saul

Q: According to Acts 9:20, Jesus is what?
A: The Son of God