The disciples faced challenges that we cannot relate to today. This discussion will help show that even though the challenges we face are different from back then, we still have pressing challenges to face and we need to be willing to overcome them by any means necessary.
Have the youth read Acts 5:25–42.
- Back in the years after Jesus resurrected, what were the challenges of the church and their followers?
- What were some of the specific challenges they faced?
- What were some of the ways they dealt with these challenges?
- Do we face the same challenges they had?
- As a follower of Christ, what are some of the challenges we face in our society, or better way to ask this… what are the challenges we specifically face in living a life centered around Jesus?
- Can our challenges today be compared to back then?
- How are our challenges the same or different?
Have a youth read Revelation 12:12 (NKJV) “Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”
The fallen one knows he has a short time left and we are not being imprisoned for our faith, but we are being bombarded by society through tiktoks, reels, and stories and being distracted is at an all-time high. Busy busy busy we are, and this is how the fallen one is attacking us. If he could get us too distracted to follow Christ with all our might, then he is winning the battle in our lives.
Dive deeper with your youth on ways we can overcome being distracted and spend more time in fellowship with our God.
- Why is it so hard to follow Jesus in our society?
- What are some ways we can stop the distraction in our lives so we can focus on Jesus?
- How can we counter the culture we are living in so that God becomes more prevalent in our lives?
- What steps are you willing to take to lessen the distraction?
Our challenges are different today than they were back then. But they still are challenges. Jesus promised us He would be with us through our challenges, until the very end of the age. Learning to lean on Him for strength is a lifetime challenge, but oh so worth it in the end.