January 25 | Acts 2:1-11 | Diaspora
Have you ever aspired to achieve something and failed? What did it feel like to go through that process? How did it affect your aspirations afterward?
Read Acts 2:1-11. What is the role of the Diaspora (Jews living outside Israel) in this first great movement of the Spirit?
Briefly review the blessings and curses of Deuteronomy 28:1-25. In the sermon today, we noted that the word translated ‘horror’ in v25 is the first occurrence of diaspora in the Greek Old Testament. What is the significance of this ‘origin story’ for the diaspora?
Read the prophetic verses below. How are these promises to the diaspora fulfilled in the Spirit’s arrival at Pentecost? What do these verses illustrate about the heart of God toward us?
Psalm 147:2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts [diaspora] of Israel.
Isaiah 49:6 “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved [diaspora] of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."An awareness of spiritual failure often keeps people from taking steps forward in their spiritual walks. What would you say to someone who confided in you something like, “I have been a pretty lousy Christian; I don’t think I should be the one to talk to my kids about spiritual things.” Or, “I can’t even maintain a regular prayer life for myself; how could I mentor a younger Christian?”