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Responding to God’s Call as a Family in Missions: The Story of Abraham

𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗠-𝗨𝗣 • Describe the experience of moving into a new house. What excited you and what made you uncomfortable? • Recall a promise someone made to you or your family that was eventually fulfilled. Tell us about what happened. • What do you like about traveling? What is the first thing you do when you reach your destination? 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝘕𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘈𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘮, “𝘎𝘰 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥. 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦 𝟭𝟮:𝟭–𝟯 (Read also 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦 𝟭𝟮:𝟰–𝟵.) Hundreds of years since the scattering of people at Babel, the nomadic family of Abraham wandered the land without a place to truly call their own. His father, Terah, initially planned to travel to the land of Canaan—the Promised Land—but settled in a different place along the way. It was only after Terah’s passing that God led Abraham not just to a place, but also to a calling so great that it still influences us today. In this lesson, we will go deeper into what God told Abraham and how this applies to families of those who have also been called by God. 𝟭. 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦 𝟭𝟮:𝟮 Abraham, then called Abram, and his family could have stayed where they settled and built a community there. But God had greater things in mind for them. He called Abram with a charge to go, and had already prepared the land designated for Abram. God even blessed him, that as he would go, God would make of him a great nation. This was a continuation of God’s desire to bless Adam, Noah, and their families, and His command for them to be fruitful and multiply. In the same way, God’s original design for our families is to be an environment where its members are nurtured and blessed. This is so we would thrive in our God-given calling and, in turn, produce more generations of thriving families that will experience God’s blessings as well. How does this truth affect how you see God’s purpose for your own family? 𝟮. 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗮𝗺’𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵. 𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡, 𝑠𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑎 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔. 3𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑦𝑜𝑢, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑑𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝐼 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑑. 𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦 𝟭𝟮:𝟮–𝟯 God’s purpose for the family goes beyond blessing it and its members. For Abraham, God promised to bless him and his family so that they could be a blessing to all the families of the earth. God’s purpose for families is not just inward, but also outward. God desires all families to be blessed and be channels of His blessing to others around us. This would mean that it would not just be Abraham’s family that would be a blessing; the generations of families after him would also be blessed to be a blessing. Even though we may not be biological descendants of Abraham, all believers in Christ are considered as Abraham’s descendants (Galatians 3:7–9). Therefore, God has the same purpose for us and our families: He blessed us so that we would be a blessing to others. In what ways can we help our family members experience God’s blessing and be a blessing to others around us? 𝟯. 𝗚𝗼𝗱’𝘀 𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝐵𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐴𝑏𝑟𝑎ℎ𝑎𝑚 𝑜𝑏𝑒𝑦𝑒𝑑 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑜 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑎 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑛 𝑖𝑛ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒. 𝐴𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑢𝑡, 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑔𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑔. 𝐵𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑒, 𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒𝑖𝑔𝑛 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑, 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑛 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐼𝑠𝑎𝑎𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐽𝑎𝑐𝑜𝑏, ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑒. 𝐹𝑜𝑟 ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠, 𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑟 𝑖𝑠 𝐺𝑜𝑑. 𝗛𝗘𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗪𝗦 𝟭𝟭:𝟴–𝟭𝟬 Abram, now called Abraham, responded in faith to God’s charge to go to a new place and become a father of nations. This was a means for God’s greater plan to redeem mankind from sin and restore us back into His family. Through Abraham’s line, God sent His Son, Jesus, to be the way to our heavenly Father. What Jesus did on the cross was not only meant for Abraham’s descendants, but also for all those who believe in Him. This promise of salvation and purpose applies to all people in all stages of life. What does Galatians 3:7–9 say about those who believe in God? How could our personal response of faith with regard to how we view and treat our family be a channel of God’s redeeming work for humanity? 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 • Has God given you a family or a group of people to lead? How can you be a godly example for other families to follow? • What do you think is God calling your family to be and do? How will you respond to this purpose and mission? • As a child or sibling, how can you be a blessing to your family? How can you reach out to other families? 𝗣𝗥𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥 • Praise God for leading us to His greater purpose, as Abraham was led. Thank God for giving you and your family a unique calling. • Ask God to show you how you may be a blessing to your family. Ask for forgiveness for the times when you were otherwise and pray that God would renew your heart and mind towards your family. • Pray that God would use you to raise the next generation so that they may love God and be a blessing to others. Make an effort this week to reach out to them and share about God’s faithfulness in your life.

Making a Difference in Your Sphere of Influence as a Father: The Story of Cornelius

𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗠-𝗨𝗣 • What is one activity you love doing with your family? Tell us about one of the best memories you have with your family. • Think of a puzzle or challenge you couldn’t solve at first. What helped you complete it? • Recall a project that you led at work or school. How did you work as a team to finish it? 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘯 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵. 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. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵'𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘈𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘩𝘢𝘮'𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘦. 𝗚𝗔𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝟯:𝟮𝟳–𝟮𝟵 (Read also 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟬–𝟭𝟭.) God’s plan for all families to be blessed and be a blessing is not only for the descendants of Abraham, but also for the Gentiles. This was accomplished through the finished work of Christ and is now proclaimed to all. The gospel is not limited to any age, ethnicity, or gender. During the early days of the church, God demonstrated the impartiality of the gospel through Peter and Cornelius the centurion. Today, we will look at how God uses people from different backgrounds to make the gospel known and become a blessing to their families. 𝟭. 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘂𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗹, 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲. 𝘈𝘵 𝘊𝘢𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘊𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘶𝘴, 𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘊𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵, 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥, 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘴 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘎𝘰𝘥. 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟬:𝟭–𝟮 Cornelius was a Roman military figure who led about a hundred soldiers (and possibly more). God had drawn him to be what was known as a God-fearer, which was a Gentile who was, just short of fully converting to Judaism, devoted to the one true God, worshiped in the synagogues, and obeyed God’s word. God had empowered Cornelius to set an example and lead his entire household in following God and in doing charitable acts, like giving alms to the poor. In spite of all these, God was not finished with him yet. God would create circumstances that would lead him and his household to put their faith in Jesus Christ. Why is it important to recognize God’s active work as we influence our family and others toward God? 𝟮. 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘂𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗼𝗱’𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘑𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘢. 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟬:𝟳–𝟴 The Lord continued to work in Cornelius and his family by sending an angel to Cornelius and by appearing to Peter in a vision. While Peter was perplexed trying to understand the meaning of his vision (Acts 10:9–16), an angel instructed Cornelius to send men and invite Peter to his household. Even if there was no explanation why this instruction was so, Cornelius understood that it was from God and immediately acted upon it. Little did he know that his obedience would change those around him and become a catalyst for the gospel to be preached. As we trust and obey God even when things don’t make sense, we will eventually understand and see His plans fulfilled. Recall a time when God called you to do something you couldn’t understand at first. How did you respond? 𝟯. 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗹. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘊𝘢𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘢. 𝘊𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴. 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟬:𝟮𝟰 Cornelius knew that what Peter was about to say was something he and the people around him shouldn’t miss. When Peter finally arrived, Cornelius had already invited his relatives and close friends to expectantly hear God’s message for them. As a result of Cornelius’s obedience, leadership, and influence, God’s word was preached, and he and his family and friends put their faith in Christ and were baptized. This also paved the way for more Gentiles to come to Christ. The mindset of the Jews toward the Gentiles was broken when they saw that God has granted repentance that leads to life (Acts 11:18). The gospel we have heard is also for everyone else around us who has not heard it yet. It also empowers us to make a difference in our spheres of influence, through our faith, obedience, and helping others follow Him. Recall a time when a family member or friend heard the gospel for the first time. How did he or she respond? 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 • How may you set a godly example for your family and community today? What steps can you take to bless the people around you and point them to God? • Are there members in your family or group of friends who have yet to hear the gospel? What are some actions you can take to help them do so this week? • God shows no favoritism and the gospel is a message for all. How can you preach the gospel to someone you’re not familiar with? What will you say? 𝗣𝗥𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥 • Thank God for raising people to lead godly families and communities. Thank Him that His love is for all people, regardless of demographic. • Ask God for forgiveness for any pride and indifference when an opportunity to preach the gospel is presented. • Pray for an open door to preach the gospel to your family and friends. Ask God to help you be a good example and a living testimony of His love to them.

Raising Missional Children in the Home: The Story of Lois, Eunice, and Timothy

𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗠-𝗨𝗣 • Share some old photos you have of your parents and family. What are the similarities and differences between you and those older than you? • Think of one of your good habits that you developed as a child. Who taught you this or how did you develop this habit? • Have you ever been coached by someone in a sport or line of work? What do you think they saw in you that you didn’t? 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩, 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝟮 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗬 𝟭:𝟱 (Read also 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟲:𝟭–𝟱.) As the gospel was preached to both the Jews and Gentiles, the early church grew in number. More importantly, the church grew in godly character and a heart to preach the gospel. This set the foundation for Christian families and would be the basis for generations to follow. Today, we will look at how Timothy and his family nurtured a multigenerational lifestyle of faith that would make an impact beyond their home and in the world. 𝟭. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲. 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩, 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝟮 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗬 𝟭:𝟱 Paul’s greeting in his letter to Timothy began with the starting point of Timothy’s faith—the home. Paul saw how setting a God-honoring culture in the family is important. This is still true today. As followers of Christ, it is the primary responsibility of every parent to raise up their children to have a right understanding of who God is and to believe in Him. Children need to hear the gospel and see it lived out at the home first before they hear it from others. This will lead to a progressive discipleship journey in the family. What does Paul say about the importance of grounding children in the word of God in 2 Timothy 3:14–15? 𝟮. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩, 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘓𝘰𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘌𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘥𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝟮 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗬 𝟭:𝟱 While Paul addressed his greeting to Timothy, he also credited Timothy’s grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice for setting the foundations of faith in the family. We can surmise that Lois raised and discipled Eunice, who then passed her values on to Timothy. Because of this, Timothy had more than one person who guided him and helped nurture his faith even before his ministry with the apostle Paul started. Whether in a young child or a parent wise in age, God’s word can and will do its redemptive work in the hearts of those who love Him. How do you think a sincere faith is passed on from one generation to another? 𝟯. 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗴𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. 𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘓𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘶𝘮. 𝘗𝘢𝘶𝘭 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘛𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘪𝘳𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘑𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘬. . . . 𝘚𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘯𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘺. 𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝟭𝟲:𝟮–𝟯, 𝟱 The impact that discipleship in the home had on Timothy was not only limited to his family. It greatly affected his ministry. The values instilled in Timothy that were cultivated generations before helped him advance God’s kingdom and led to the expansion of the early church. Paul, a prominent figure in the early church, was able to preach the gospel in many cities, and Timothy was influential in this, too. This is why we value family. When we actively disciple the next generation in our home, the communities we are in will be blessed as well. Why do you think Paul mentored a young man, rather than someone more experienced? 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 • How does your society view raising families? What is the difference between families who follow the world’s standards and those who follow God’s ways? • Who are some of the people who discipled you in your values and beliefs? How may you show your gratitude to them this week? • Think of someone who doesn’t know and believe in Jesus yet. How can you reach out to him or her and preach the gospel? 𝗣𝗥𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥 • Praise God for raising godly families and communities. Thank Him for the opportunity to be discipled and to disciple others. • Thank God for your family. Thank Him that despite your imperfections as a family, your family helped you become who you are today. • Ask God for the heart to reach the next generation in your home and your community. Pray that He would give you a clear vision of how He intends to be at the center of your family.