Strange Sovereignty of God in Suffering

Acts 12: The Strange sovereignty of God in suffering

     In a Broken World, Suffering is Real

          "Herod the king laid violent hands..."

     God Hears, God Intervenes

          "....but earnest prayer for him was made to God"

     God's Victory in Christ is (and will be) Final

          "eaten by worms .... the word of God increased"

Discipleship group questions

Equip

• Read aloud the text from Sunday (Acts 12:1-25). What do you  remember most from the teaching?
• How would you respond to someone who said, "I don't believe in God because a good God wouldn't allow suffering"?
• Do you find Acts 12 to be an encouraging passage? If so, why? If not, why not?

Encourage

• How would you respond to someone who said, Prayer doesn't really matter because God will just do whatever He wants anyway?
• Read Romans 15:30-32, 2 Corinthians 1:11 and Colossians 4:12-13 aloud together. What do all of these passages suggest about the role of prayer in the story of God?
• Can you think of other Biblical examples of God directly responding to the prayers of His people?
• Have you ever felt like God responded to your prayers? Describe that experience.

Challenge

• Consider the example of the church in Jerusalem who was praying for Peter's release from prison without knowing (or maybe even believing) that God intended to use their prayers as a means of Peter's deliverance. Can you think of a situation in your life where God just might be calling you to pray as a means of His intervention in the story? End your time by praying into these situations together.