Week 31, July 29 - August 4, 2018

Sunday, July 29, Job 1 - 3, Acts 21

• How does Job 1:1 describe Job's character?
• What was Job's initial reaction to all the bad news in chapter 1?
• Why would Job's wife recommend in Job 2:9, "Curse God and die!"?
• For a week Job's friends sat with him and didn't say anything.  Is there any value in comforting people just by being with them?
• In Job 3:20, Job wonders why life is given to those who are "bitter of soul."  What hope would you offer to someone whose circumstances are very difficult?
• In Acts 21, why did Paul continue his trip to Jerusalem when he had people urging him not to go there?
• Why was Paul arrested by the Romans in Acts 21?

Monday, July 30, Job 4 - 6, Psalm 86

• Eliphaz tells Job in 4:6, "Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope?"  Was this good advice?
• Eliphaz says in Job 5:8, "But if I were you, I would appeal to God."  Was this good advice?
• What does Job say in 6:9 that he would like God to do for him?
• Why does Job say in 6:28, "be so kind as to look at me"?  Are there suffering people you know who feel like no one is really looking at them?
• In Psalm 86:11 David prays, "give me an undivided heart."  What do you need to do to have an undivided heart?

Tuesday, July 31, Job 7 - 9, Acts 22

• Why does Job say in Job 7:16, "Let me alone; my days have no meaning"?
• In Job 8:5-6 Bildad said, "But if you will seek God earnestly and plead with the Almighty, if you are pure and upright, even now he will rouse himself on your behalf and restore you to your prosperous state."  This seems like reasonable advice.  What was Bildad missing?
• In Job 9, Job says that God is too wise and too powerful for a mere mortal to appeal to Him. Job cries out for a mediator in verse 33 saying, "If only there were someone to mediate between us, someone to bring us together."  How has our need for a mediator been answered?
• What did Paul say in Acts 22 that caused the crowd to quit listening and start shouting?

Wednesday, August 1, Job 10 - 12, Psalm 87

• Job prays in 10:8, "Your hands shaped me and made me. Will you now turn and destroy me?"  Since God made you, what should your attitude be toward your life?
• In chapter 11 Zophar told Job, "if you put away the sin that is in your hand" (verse 14) "You will surely forget your trouble." (verse 16).  Zophar believed that Job's problems were his fault because of sin.  What is wrong with assuming that someone in trouble has caused it themselves?
• Job says in 12:13, "To God belong wisdom and power."  How does knowing that God has all wisdom and power impact the way you face challenges?
• Why does Psalm 87 speak of recording far away places saying, "This one was born in Zion"?

Thursday, August 2, Job 13 - 15, Acts 23

• In Job 13:15 Job says, "Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him."  What outcome did Job expect from the trial he was going through?
• Job said, "If someone dies, will they live again?" (Job 14:14)  Did he have the hope of eternal life?
• In Job 15:4, Eliphaz escalated his attack on Job by saying, "you even undermine piety and hinder devotion to God."  Why did he say this?
• What did Paul say in Acts 23 that started a dispute between the Pharisees and the Sadducees in the Sanhedrin?
• What did God say to Paul to encourage him in Acts 23:11?
• Why did the Romans move Paul to Caesarea at night?

Friday, August 3 Job 16 - 18, Psalm 88

• Why does Job call his friends "miserable comforters" in Job 16:2?
• Why does Job say, "come on, all of you, try again! I will not find a wise man among you"? (17:10)
• Job, chapter 18, has Bildad explaining that bad things happen to bad people.  He was assuming that Job must have been bad for bad things to have come upon him.  Why did Bildad believe this?
• Psalm 88 was written in a time of great trouble, but verse 9 says, "I call to you, Lord, every day; I spread out my hands to you."  How should you pray when life is difficult?, 

Saturday, August 4, Job 19 - 21, Acts 24

• In Job 19:21 Job asks his friends for pity rather than criticism.  Why were they motivated to accuse him?
• In Job, chapter 20, Zophar elaborates on his belief that bad things happen to bad people and concludes by saying in verse 29, "Such is the fate God allots the wicked, the heritage appointed for them by God."  Why were Job's friends so persistent in their accusations?
• In Job 21:13-15, Job speaks of people who spend their years in prosperity but have no interest in God. What conclusion does he draw about such people?
• Why did Felix have Paul stop talking in Acts 24:25?

Week 30, July 22 - 28, 2018

Sunday, July 22, Esther 1 - 2, Acts 17

• In Esther 1 why did some think that Vashti had committed a wrong against, "peoples of all the provinces of King Xerxes"?
• Why was Esther raised by her uncle?
• Why didn't Esther let her nationality be known?
• In Acts 17 why was there a riot in Thessalonica?
• How did the Berean Jews respond to Paul's message?

Monday, July 23, Esther 3 -4, Psalm 82

• Why was Haman more concerned about one man who wouldn't bow down to him than many who would?
• What did it take in Esther 4 for Esther to be willing to risk her life to save her people?
• In Psalm 82:3 God commands rulers, "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed."  What opportunities do you have to help the weak, fatherless, poor, or oppressed?

Tuesday, July 24, Esther 5, Acts 18

• Why do you think Esther asked the king and Haman to come back a second day before asking for mercy for the Jews?
• In Esther 5:9 Haman went from being happy to being filled with rage just from looking at Mordecai.  Are there things in your life that can trigger your emotions, moving you away from God-given joy to anger, worry, or fear?  If so, what do you need to do to correct this?
• Why did Paul turn his attention to the Gentiles in Corinth in Acts 18?
• In Acts 18:9-10 God spoke to Paul in a vision to encourage him to keep doing what he had been doing.  How has God encouraged you to persevere?

Wednesday, July 25, Esther 6 - 7, Psalm 83

• Haman hated Mordecai more than any other person.  How did he end up leading Mordecai through the city streets on horseback to honor him?
• What did Esther ask for in chapter 7?
• Psalm 83:4 says, "'Come,' they say, 'let us destroy them as a nation, so that Israel’s name is remembered no more.'"  From Haman to Hitler, there have been people who have wanted to destroy the descendants of Israel.  How have they survived as a people?

Thursday, July 26, Esther 8, Acts 19

• What happened to Haman's estate?
• How was the order to kill all the Jews overruled?
• What happened when the believers in Ephesus received the Holy Spirit in Acts 19?
• In Acts 19:19 people who had been practicing sorcery burned their scrolls.  They had been worth a very large sum of money.  Is there anything you hang onto from your past that you should get rid of?
• Who started the riot in Acts 19?

Friday, July 27, Esther 9 - 10, Psalm 84

• How did Purim become a two-day celebration?
• What position did Mordecai hold according to Esther chapter 10?
• Psalm 84:2 says, "My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God."  Do you have that kind of hunger for God?  How can that hunger be satisfied?

Saturday, July 28, Psalm 85, Acts 20

• Psalm 85:6 says, "Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?"  Why would God's people need to be revived?
• In Acts 20 how was Eutychus "picked up dead" but taken home alive?
• In Acts 20:24 Paul said, "my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me."  How can you develop that level of commitment of your life to the Lord's will?
• In Acts 20:28 Paul told the Ephesian leaders, "Keep watch over yourselves."  How would you do this?

Week 29, July 15 - 21, 2018

Sunday, July 15, Nehemiah 1 - 2, Acts 13

• When Nehemiah heard about the conditions in Jerusalem, he was deeply affected.  In 1:4 he said, "For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven."  Is there anything that could move you as deeply as this did for Nehemiah?
• What did Nehemiah ask God for in chapter 1?
• Why were Sanballat and Tobiah disturbed in Nehemiah 2:10?
• What response did Nehemiah get when he said to leaders in Jerusalem, "Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem"?
• Whose idea was it in Acts 13 to send Barnabas and Saul out as missionaries?
• What caused the Jews to become jealous in Acts 13:45?

Monday, July 16, Nehemiah 3 - 4, Psalm 79

• Nehemiah 3 lists people who were working on the wall, but 3:5 says, "but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work."  Why do you think some people avoided working on the wall when there were so many people who were working on it?
• What challenges to the rebuilding project did Nehemiah face in chapter 4?
• Asaph wrote in Psalm 79:8, "may your mercy come quickly to meet us, for we are in desperate need."  When have you been in desperate need and how do you react?

Tuesday, July 17, Nehemiah 5 - 6, Acts 14

• Why did Nehemiah eliminate the charging of interest and reduce taxes in chapter 5?
• Why did Nehemiah refuse to meet with Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem in chapter 6?
• How long did it take to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem?
• Why did Paul and Barnabas leave Iconium in Acts 14?
• In Acts 14:9 Paul looked at a lame man and "saw that he had faith to be healed."  What did Paul see that made him believe the man would be healed?
• In Acts 14, how could the crowd in Lystra go so quickly from wanting to offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas to stoning Paul?

Wednesday, July 18, Nehemiah 7 - 8, Psalm 80

• What was the job of the gatekeepers in Nehemiah 7?
• What is the meaning of the statement in Nehemiah 8:10, "the joy of the Lord is your strength"?
• In Psalm 80, three times the psalmist prays, "Restore us." (verses 3, 7, and 19)  Why was restoration needed?

Thursday, July 19, Nehemiah 9 - 10, Acts 15

• In Nehemiah 9 the Levites led the people in remembering the good things God had done for Israel and the consequences of Israel's disobedience.  What was the value of doing this right after the wall had been rebuilt?
• What did the people agree to in Nehemiah, chapter 10?
• In Acts 15 why did some believe and teach that people needed to be circumcised to be saved?  How did Peter say people are saved?
• What did James recommend they teach Gentile believers?
• What did Paul and Barnabas disagree about so strongly that they parted ways?  Who was right and who was wrong?

Friday, July 20, Nehemiah 11 - 12, Psalm 81

• In Nehemiah 11, why did the people cast lots to choose people to move into Jerusalem?
• Why did Nehemiah have two choirs singing on top of the wall?
• In Psalm 81:10 God says, "Open wide your mouth and I will fill it."  What attitude should we have toward God's provision?

Saturday, July 21, Nehemiah 13, Acts 16

• Why did Nehemiah throw Tobiah’s household goods out of the room he had been staying in?
• Why did the gates of Jerusalem have to be guarded on the Sabbath?
• If Paul had argued that people didn't have to be circumcised to be saved, why did he circumcise Timothy in Acts 16?
• Why didn't Paul enter Bithynia?
• How did Paul and Silas answer the question, "what must I do to be saved?"

Week 28, July 8 - 14, 2018

Sunday, July 8, Ezra 1 - 2

• Among the Jewish captives in the kingdom of Persia, which were allowed to go back to Jerusalem in Ezra 1?
• Where did Cyrus get the silver and gold bowls and pans he gave to those who were going back to Jerusalem in Ezra 1?
• How many people returned to Jerusalem in Ezra 2?

Monday, July 9, Ezra 3, Acts 9

• What was the first thing to be rebuilt in Ezra 3?
• Why were there two different reactions to the foundation of the temple being laid in Ezra 3:12?
• Why did the Lord meet Saul is such a dramatic way in Acts 9?
• Why did Ananias question God's direction in Acts 9:13-14?
• Why were people astonished at Saul's preaching in Acts 9:21?

Tuesday, July 10, Ezra 4 - 6

• Why did Zerubbabel and Joshua turn down an offer for help in Ezra 4:3?
• Why did the work rebuilding the temple come to a stop in Ezra 4?
• How did work on the temple restart in Ezra 5?
• What role did Haggai and Zechariah have in the rebuilding of the temple?

Wednesday, July 11, Ezra 7, Acts 10

• Why did King Artaxerxes send Ezra to Jerusalem?
• An angel told Cornelius in Acts 10:4, "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God."  However, Cornelius needed to send for Peter to bring him the gospel.  How does God view those who are praying but don't know Jesus?
• What was the purpose of the vision Peter had in Acts 10?
• What astonished the circumcised believers in Acts 10:45-46?

Thursday, July 12, Ezra 8, Acts 11

• Why did Ezra call for a fast in chapter 8?  Why didn't he ask for soldiers for protection?
• Why was Peter criticized in Acts 11:2-3?
• Why did Barnabas bring Saul from Tarsus to Antioch?

Friday, July 13, Ezra 9, Psalm 78

• Why was Ezra appalled to learn that Jews had married people from neighboring groups?
• Psalm 78:34 says, "Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again."  How can you maintain a passionate desire to follow God that doesn't wait for things to get difficult before turning to Him?

Saturday, July 14, Ezra 10, Acts 12

• Why did it take two months to deal with all the cases of people who had married foreign women?
• In Acts 12, why was James put to death but Peter was rescued?
• Why was Herod struck down?

Week 27, July 1 - 7, 2018

Sunday, July 1, 2 Chronicles 19 - 20, Acts 5

• Jehoshaphat served the Lord, but he partnered in war with Ahab who did not serve the Lord.  In 2 Chronicles 19:2, Jehu the prophet rebuked him for this.  What should your attitude be in working with people who do not share your faith?
• Jehoshaphat told the judges he appointed that "with the Lord our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery." (2 Chronicles 19:7)  Why is this true?
• What was the purpose of the fast proclaimed in 2 Chronicles 20:3?
• What did the prophet mean in 2 Chronicles 20:15 when he said, "For the battle is not yours, but God’s"?
• Nobody made Ananias and Sapphira sell their property in Acts 5.  They were not required to give the money they made from selling the property.  What did they do that was wrong?  What motivated them to want to do this?
• Why did the apostles rejoice in Acts 5:41?

Monday, July 2, 2 Chronicles 21 - 23, Psalm 76

• In 2 Chronicles 21, what did Jehoram do that was wrong?  What were the consequences?
• Who had Ahaziah killed?
• In 2 Chronicles 23 Athaliah is killed and replaced by a young king.  The new king, Joash, is not mentioned by name in chapter 23.  This change of power was planned and carried out by the priest Jehoiada, an uncle of Joash.  Why did Jehoiada do this?
• Psalm 76:7 says, "It is you alone who are to be feared."  What benefit is there to you if you are not afraid of people?

Tuesday, July 3, 2 Chronicles 24 - 25, Acts 6

• When did Joash turn from being a good king to a bad king?
• 2 Chronicles 25:14 says, "When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them."  Why would Amaziah do this?
• In Acts 6 why were seven men chosen to do what the 12 apostles could have done themselves?
• Why was Stephen brought before the Sanhedrin?

Wednesday, July 4, 2 Chronicles 26 - 29

• 2 Chronicles 26:5 says of Uzziah, "As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success."  But verse 16 says, "But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall."  How can you enjoy God-given success without becoming prideful?
• How does 2 Chronicles 27:6 summarize the reign of Jotham?
• In 2 Chronicles 28 why did Israelites give up slaves they had taken captive?
• How long did it take in 2 Chronicles 29 to purify the temple?

Thursday, July 5, 2 Chronicles 30 - 31, Acts 7

• The Passover was celebrated in 2 Chronicles 30.  Verse 26 says, "for since the days of Solomon son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem."  There were more than 200 years between Solomon and Hezekiah.  How could so many years go by with the Passover being widely neglected?
• What was the result when people brought their tithes in 2 Chronicles 31?
• What caused the Sanhedrin to become furious with Stephen in Acts 7?

Friday, July 6, 2 Chronicles 32 - 34, Psalm 77

• In 2 Chronicles 32:8 Hezekiah said, "With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles."  How does it change your approach to problems if you believe that God is with you?
• 2 Chronicles 33:9 says, "But Manasseh led Judah and the people of Jerusalem astray, so that they did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites."  Why would Manasseh be drawn to do evil?
• When Josiah was king, 2 Chronicles 34:11 says the kings of Judah had allowed the temple buildings to "fall into ruin."  In verse 21 Josiah said, "those who have gone before us have not kept the word of the Lord."  What did Josiah do about the neglect of the temple and of God's Word?
• Psalm 77 is written in a difficult time which caused the writer Asaph to wonder in verse 9, "Has God forgotten to be merciful?  Has he in anger withheld his compassion?"  But in verse 12 he writes, "I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds."  What benefit is there in remembering, during a difficult time, all the things that God has done?

Saturday, July 7, 2 Chronicles 35 - 36, Acts 8

• Why did Josiah die when he was only 39?
• In 2 Chronicles 36 what happened to kings Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jehoiachin?
• If Simon the Sorcerer believed and was baptized in Acts 8:13, why did Peter tell him "your heart is not right before God," in verse 21?
• Based on the story in Acts 8, what is needed for someone to be baptized?