Church on the Move: Week 4 — Boldness

Discussion

• What stands out to you from Acts 4:1–31 and the video?
• Peter had previously denied knowing Jesus out of fear. Now he stands before the same kind of leaders who condemned Jesus and boldly proclaims Him. According to this passage, what has changed?
• Acts 4:13 says the leaders recognized that Peter and John were “uneducated, common men” and that “they had been with Jesus.” What do you think it means for someone's life to reveal that they have been with Jesus?
• When Peter and John are commanded to stop speaking about Jesus, they respond, “We cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” What does their response teach us about Christian witness?
• After being threatened, the believers pray—not primarily for safety or easier circumstances, but for boldness to remain faithful. What does their prayer reveal about their priorities? How might it challenge the way we normally pray when we face difficulty?
• Acts 4:31 says they were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak God's Word with boldness. What does this teach us about the relationship between prayer, dependence upon the Spirit, and boldness?
• Where are you currently tempted to let fear keep you silent or keep you from faithful obedience to Jesus? What might Spirit-filled boldness look like in that situation?
  
  

Practice — Pray for Boldness

• Read Acts 4:29 together: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness.”
• Take a few moments quietly and ask the Lord: “Where is fear keeping me from faithfully following or speaking about Jesus?”
• Write down one situation, conversation, or relationship that comes to mind.
• Then ask: “Holy Spirit, what would faithful boldness look like here?”
• Write down one step of obedience you can take this week. It might be starting a conversation, inviting someone, praying with someone, sharing what Jesus has done in your life, speaking truth with grace, or simply refusing to remain silent when God gives you an opportunity.
• If you would like, share what you wrote with one other person in the group so you can pray for and encourage one another this week.

Pray

• Spend time praying together.
• Pray specifically: For the situations and people you identified. For courage where fear has kept you silent. For wisdom to speak about Jesus with both boldness and love. For opportunities to bear witness to what you have “seen and heard.” For your House Church to be a community that encourages one another toward courageous faithfulness. For The Gathering Church to be known as ordinary people who have been with Jesus and are empowered by His Spirit.
• Pray Acts 4:29 together, asking God not merely to make life easier, but to make us faithful.
• For God to continue using this study through Acts to form us into a Church on the Move.

Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank You that boldness does not depend upon our personality, abilities, or confidence. Draw us close to You so that our lives increasingly reveal that we have been with You. Where fear tempts us to remain silent, fill us with Your Holy Spirit and give us courage to faithfully bear witness to You. Give us wisdom to speak the truth with grace, eyes to recognize the opportunities You place before us, and faith to obey even when it costs us something. Use our lives, our House Church, and our whole church family to make the good news of Jesus known to our families, friends, neighbors, workplaces, and community. Grant Your servants to continue to speak Your Word with all boldness. Amen.